bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Romiplostim: Therapeutic Value in Chronic Immune Thrombocytopenic Purpura
Authors: Tanaka Maria Florencia , Daver Naval Gustad , Rice Lawrence
Published: November 2010

Immune thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) is an autoimmune disease characterized by the production of antibodies to circulating platelets. Traditionally it has been regarded as a disorder of increased platelet destruction, so therapies have targeted this mechanism, including corticosteroids, IVIG, splenectomy and rituximab. More recently, it has become clear that decreased platelet production importantly contributes to the thrombocytopenia. The isolation of thrombopoietin (TPO), the ligand for the mpl receptor and the major hormone regulating platelet production, has shed new light on platelet homeostasis and facilitated the development of new therapeutic approaches. First generation TPO-mimetics were removed from clinical trials when some healthy volunteers and patients with cancer developed antibodies against these drugs that cross-reacted with native TPO, causing paradoxical thrombocytopenia. Two second generation TPO-mimetics, romiplostim and eltrombopag, share no structural homology with endogenous TPO and are being studied in a variety of thrombocytopenic states. Romiplostim was approved by the US FDA in August 2008 for the treatment of patients with ITP who had failed at least one prior therapy. This was based on randomized, placebo-controlled phase III studies that showed increased platelet counts in more than 80% of treated patients, with a durable platelet response by stringent criteria in 38% of splenectomized and 61% of non-splenectomized patients compared to 0%–5% in patients receiving placebo. Being non-immunosuppressive, the toxicity profile is favorable, although there are concerns with this class of drugs with thrombotic risks, “rebound thrombocytopenia,” marrow reticulin fibrosis, or even hematopoietic clonal proliferation. Romiplostim may gain an increasing niche in the treatment of ITP.
Safety and Efficacy of Levonorgestrel 0.10 mg and Ethinyl Estradiol 0.02 mg plus Ethinyl Estradiol 0.01 mg in an Extended-Cycle Oral Contraceptive Regimen
Authors: Rible Radhika , Parvataneni Ram , Chen Angela
Published: November 2010

Extended-cycle combined hormonal contraception has become a common practice among women seeking effective contraception and menstrual regulation. Extended cycle regimens have the benefit of decreasing scheduled bleeding as compared to traditional combined oral contraceptive (COC) regimens containing 21 days of hormones followed by a 7-day hormone-free interval (HFI) by reducing the frequency of the HFI. The newest FDA approved product in this family of contraceptive regimens is a 91-day COC regimen containing 0.02 mg ethinyl estradiol (EE) and 0.1 mg levonorgestrel (LNG) for 84 days followed by a 7-day interval with 0.01 mg EE. This regimen has been evaluated in one pivotal trial and demonstrated to have efficacy and a side effect profile similar to the other currently available FDA approved 91-day extended-cycle regimens. This is the first 91-day regimen formulated with 0.02 mg EE and offers women an effective option for contraception and menstrual cycle control.
Catumaxomab in the Treatment of Malignant Ascites: The Evidence of its Therapeutic Value
Authors: Wimberger Pauline , Heubner Martin , Kimmig Rainer
Published: November 2010

The trifunctional, bispecific antibody catumaxomab (anti-EpCAM x anti-CD3) is a new therapeutic strategy for epithelial cancer patients with symptomatic malignant ascites. The trifunctionality has the advantage of binding tumor cells and simultaneously two different immune effector cells (e.g. macrophages and T-lymphocytes). The unique binding specifities of catumaxomab induce an effective destruction of tumor cells, including those resistant to apoptosis, through different mechanisms, i.e. perforin-mediated lysis, antibody-mediated phagocytosis, and cytokine release. Moreover, a possible long-lasting humoral and cellular antitumor response was shown in a mouse model with a surrogate bispecific trifunctional antibody binding to mouse CD3. Catumaxomab (Removab®) is the first medication approved by the EMEA (European Medicines Agency) for the treatment of malignant ascites due to EpCAM-positive carcinomas where no standard therapy is available or no longer feasible. The safety profile is acceptable. Adverse events associated with catumaxomab are manageable, generally reversible and mainly related to its immunologic mode of action. Catumaxomab is a promising new therapy for malignant acites even in heavily pretreated patients. Intraperitoneal treatment with catumaxomab plus paracentesis demonstrated clinically relevant benefit in patients with recurrent malignant ascites. Significantly prolonged puncture-free survival (46 vs. 11 days) as well as prolonged time to first need of therapeutic puncture (77 vs. 13 days) was shown in comparison to paracentesis alone ( P < 0.0001).
Metal Exposure in the Children of Punjab, India
Authors: Blaurock-Busch E. , Friedle Albrecht , Godfrey Michael , Schulte-Uebbing Claus E.E. , Smit Carin
Published: November 2010

Our test results documented that hair and urine mineral analysis results support each other. This is of interest, because hair analysis evaluates past exposure while urine analysis detects immediate exposure.

We evaluated barium, cadmium, manganese, lead and uranium in hair and urine. Our test results indicate that all of the children show evidence of past and immediate exposure to one or more metals.

Hair mineral test results for the 114 children aged 12 and younger showed some type of toxic metal exposure for each one of the children; 88% exceeded the uranium reference range for hair. This indicates past and chronic exposure.

After renal evaluation, 55 children aged 3–12 years who passed certain criteria were selected for urine baseline testing. Urine baseline concentrations are a direct reflection of immediate exposure. Of the 55 children, 47 showed elevated urine concentrations for one or more of the toxins listed above, demonstrating immediate exposure.

DMSA is recommended as an oral antidote for lead and other metals. We selected 55 children aged 3–12 for a DMSA (Dimercapto succinic acid) urine challenge test. Our results showed that 98% of this group showed lead concentrations above the baseline level, demonstrating lead binding and excretion. The DMSA challenge did not affect barium, cadmium, manganese and uranium, suggesting that for these elements, DMSA may not be the chelating agent of choice.

In summary, hair and urine mineral testing demonstrated that chronic and immediate toxic exposure had affected our test group of Punjabi children. The DMSA challenge test was effective in detoxifying lead, but did not affect barium, cadmium, manganese or uranium.
Reducing Cardiovascular Risk in Patients following MI with Eplerenone
Authors: Rekhraj Sushma , Szwejkowski Benjamin , Struthers Allan
Published: November 2010

Background

In the event of an MI, the presence of LV systolic dysfunction with or without heart failure is associated with a poorer prognosis. Elevation of aldosterone levels also results in a poor prognosis after an MI.

Objective

This review discusses the cardiovascular benefits of blocking the aldosterone receptor using eplerenone therapy in post MI patients.

Methods

A literature search of Pubmed was conducted for relevant English language articles published between 1990–2010 using the search terms eplerenone, aldosterone, myocardial infarction, heart failure and endothelial dysfunction. Additional articles were obtained from reference lists of identified publications.

Results

Eplerenone is a selective aldosterone receptor blocker that has been shown by a landmark study, EPHESUS to reduce all cause mortality, cardiovascular mortality and heart failure admissions in post MI patients with LV systolic dysfunction and heart failure or diabetes. It blocks the damaging effects of aldosterone including LV remodeling, endothelial dysfunction and arrhythmogenicity. Due to its selective action, there are less sexual side effects compared with spironolactone therapy. However, a small risk of hyperkalemia and renal dysfunction is associated with eplerenone therapy.

Conclusions

Eplerenone therapy should be commenced for post MI patients with LV systolic dysfunction and heart failure or diabetes provided there are no contraindications.
Antiretroviral agents: Focus on Maraviroc for the Treatment of HIV-1-Infected Adults
Authors: Pett SL. , Emery S. , Kelleher AD. , Cooper DA.
Published: November 2010

Over a decade has passed since several groups identified the chemokine receptors CXCR4 and CCR5 as key co-receptors for HIV entry. CCR5 is more important in HIV transmission and during the early course of HIV infection. It is also apparent that protection from HIV infection is afforded to those lacking CCR5–-the so called delta-32 homozygotes; in those heterozygous for this mutation, an attenuated course of HIV-infection is observed. Provocatively, those with modified expression of CCR5 are physiologically normal with the exception of poorer outcomes with some of the viral encephalitides specifically West Nile virus and Tick Borne encephalitis. The small molecule, orally-bioavailable CCR5 receptor antagonists, including, maraviroc (MVC), are allosteric inhibitors that lock the CCR5 receptor into a conformation such that the receptor is not able to bind HIV envelope protein; the molecules also variably block intracellular signalling induced by different receptor-binding chemokines.

The aims of this review on the CCR5 receptor inhibitors are to summarise information relevant to treatment in individuals with HIV-1 infection. Data from the licensing studies, the side-effect profile and putative long-term risks of CCR5 receptor inhibitor exposure, tropism testing and mechanisms of resistance will be reviewed. The potential for using this class of agent as an immunomodulating agent will be detailed. Given that MVC is the only licensed drug in this class at present and reflecting the greater body of work describing this agent, the majority of information in this review relates to MVC. Last, the authors propose the place of MVC in the hierarchy of HIV therapy and future opportunities for research.
Pharmacotherapy of Major Depressive Disorder: Focus on Desvenlafaxine Succinate
Authors: Trinidad Antolin C. , Bregman Benjamin
Published: November 2010

The newest antidepressant, desvenlafaxine (DVS) was approved by the FDA in early 2008 and since then, has been available in the market for general use. DVS is dual acting, a serotonin-norepinepherine reuptake inhibitor (SNRI). Like its parent compound, venlafaxine (VEN), DVS inhibits the neuronal re-uptake of both serotonin and norepinepherine while having minimal affinity for muscarinic cholinergic, H1-histaminergic, alpha1-adrenergic and opioid receptors. DVS is moderately effective for MDD at doses ranging from 100–400 milligrams per day. Its possible advantage is its lower risk of drug-drug interaction. There is no extant evidence that it is especially effective over and above the other existing antidepressants. Its niche will be defined by time but one speculation, given preliminary but un-replicated proof of its efficacy in vasomotor instability in peri-menopause, is that it may have a future utility for depressed women entering menopause.
Chemical mass balance estimation of arsenic in atmospheric dust fall out in an urban residential area, Raipur, Central India
Authors: Balakrishna G. , Pervez S. , Bisht D. S.
Published: November 2010

Abstract. The components and quantities of atmospheric dust fallout have been reported to be the pollution indicator of large urban areas. The multiplicity and complexity of sources of atmospheric dusts in urban regions has put forward the need of source apportionment of these sources indicating their contribution to specific environmental receptor. The study presented here is focused on investigation of source contribution estimates of Arsenic in urban dust fallout in an urban-industrial area, Raipur, India. Source-receptor based representative sampling plan using longitudinal study design has been adopted. Six sampling sites have been identified on the basis of land use for development plan of anthropogenic activities and factors related to the transportation and dispersion pattern of atmospheric dusts. Source apportionment has been done using Chemical Mass Balance (CMB 8). Good fit parameters and relative source contribution has been analyzed and documented. Dominance of coal fired industries sources on arsenic levels measured at selected ambient residential receptors compared to line sources has been observed. Road-traffic has shown highest contribution of dust at indoor houses and out door-street automobile exhaust has shows highest contribution for arsenic. The results of CMB output and regression data of source-receptor dust matrices have shown comparable pattern.
Impact of ocean acidification and elevated temperatures on early juveniles of the polar shelled pteropod Limacina helicina: mortality, shell degradation, and shell growth
Authors: Lischka S. , Büdenbender J. , Boxhammer T. , Riebesell U.
Published: November 2010

Abstract. Due to their aragonitic shell thecosome pteropods may be particularly vulnerable to ocean acidification driven by anthropogenic CO2 emissions. This applies specifically to species inhabiting Arctic surface waters that are projected to become locally undersaturated with respect to aragonite as early as 2016. This study investigated the effects of rising pCO2 partial pressures and elevated temperature on pre-winter juveniles of the polar pteropod Limacina helicina. After a 29 days experiment in September/October 2009 at three different temperatures and under pCO2 scenarios projected for this century, mortality, shell degradation, shell diameter and shell increment were investigated. Temperature and pCO2 had a significant effect on mortality, but temperature was the overriding factor. Shell diameter, shell increment and shell degradation were significantly impacted by pCO2 but not by temperature. Mortality was 46% higher at 8 °C compared to 3 °C (in situ), and 14% higher at 1100 μatm CO2 as compared to 230 μatm CO2. Shell diameter and increment were reduced by 10% and 12% at 1100 μatm CO2 as compared to 230 μatm CO2, respectively, and shell degradation was 41% higher at elevated compared to ambient pCO2 partial pressures. We conclude that pre-winter juveniles will be negatively affected by both rising temperature and pCO2 which may result in a possible abundance decline of the overwintering population, the basis for next year's reproduction.
Islet amyloid polypeptide acts on glucose‐ stimulated beta cells to reduce voltage‐gated calcium channel activation, intracellular Ca2+ concentration, and insulin secretion
Authors: Zhu Tiehong , Wang Yinxia , He Bingjun , Zang Jingjing , He Qing , Zhang Weihua
Published: November 2010

Objective

The mechanism by which islet amyloid polypeptide (IAPP) inhibits insulin release is unclear. We hypothesized that reduced voltage‐gated calcium channel activity and intracellular Ca2+ concentration might contribute to IAPP‐mediated inhibition of glucose‐stimulated insulin release.

Research design and methods

Rat islet beta cells were cultured and treated with various extracellular concentrations of IAPP, and insulin release was stimulated via addition of glucose. Activation voltage, high voltage‐gated calcium channel currents, intracellular Ca2+ concentration, and insulin secretion were detected by patch clamp electrophysiology, fluorescent digital imaging microscopy using calcium‐sensitive fluorescent dye, and radioimmunoassay, respectively.

Results

High voltage‐gated calcium channel currents, intracellular Ca2+ concentration, and insulin secretion increased in a dose‐dependent manner when rat beta cells were exposed to glucose. After short‐term IAPP treatment (5 or 10 µM), these parameters decreased significantly in glucose‐stimulated beta cells. However, no significant changes were observed with lower doses of IAPP.

Conclusions

Glucose‐stimulated islet beta‐cell high voltage‐gated calcium channels were activated in conjunction with insulin secretion, while high extracellular concentrations of IAPP inhibited beta‐cell high voltage‐gated calcium channel activation and insulin secretion in a dose‐dependent manner. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
A nested benders decomposition approach for telecommunication network planning
Authors: Naoum‐Sawaya Joe , Elhedhli Samir
Published: November 2010

Despite its ability to result in more effective network plans, the telecommunication network planning problem with signal‐to‐interference ratio constraints gained less attention than the power‐based one because of its complexity. In this article, we provide an exact solution method for this class of problems that combines combinatorial Benders decomposition, classical Benders decomposition, and valid cuts in a nested way. Combinatorial Benders decomposition is first applied, leading to a binary master problem and a mixed integer subproblem. The subproblem is then decomposed using classical Benders decomposition. The algorithm is enhanced using valid cuts that are generated at the classical Benders subproblem and are added to the combinatorial Benders master problem. The valid cuts proved efficient in reducing the number of times the combinatorial Benders master problem is solved and in reducing the overall computational time. More than 120 instances of the W‐CDMA network planning problem ranging from 20 demand points and 10 base stations to 140 demand points and 30 base stations are solved to optimality. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Naval Research Logistics, 2010
Stock management in the presence of significant measurement delays
Authors: Yasarcan Hakan
Published: November 2010

The stock management studies in the system dynamics literature implicitly or explicitly assume that measurement delays are negligible. This assumption may be true in some cases but it will not hold in all cases. As a matter of fact, either long or short, measurement delays are always present in dynamic feedback control systems. In this paper, two stock management problems, which incorporate significant delays in measuring the stock level, are considered: the first problem does not have a supply line delay, while the second problem does. For the second problem, we further assume that the level of the supply line cannot be directly measured. The standard anchor‐and‐adjust heuristic creates unstable oscillations in both cases due to the delay involved in accessing the value of the stock. On the other hand, the improved decision‐making heuristic introduced in this paper creates a stable and fast response in the dynamic behavior of the stock because it accounts for the fact that the information is delayed. Copyright © 2010 System Dynamics Society.
Social contracts and authoritarian projects in post-Soviet space: The use of administrative resource
Authors: Allina-Pisano Jessica
Published: November 2010

Drawing on evidence from Ukraine and other post-Soviet states, this article analyses the use of a tool of political coercion known in the post-communist world as adminresurs, or administrative resource. Administrative resource is characterized by the pre-election capture of bureaucratic hierarchies by an incumbent regime in order to secure electoral success at the margins. In contrast to other forms of political corruption, administrative resource fundamentally rewrites existing social contracts. It redefines access to settled entitlements—public infrastructure, social services, and labor compensation—as rewards for political support. It is thus explicitly negative for publics, who stand to lose access to existing entitlements if they do not support incumbents. The geography of its success in post-communist states suggests that this tool of authoritarian capacity building could be deployed anywhere two conditions are present: where there are economically vulnerable populations, and where economic and political spheres of life overlap.
Motivic cohomology of quadrics and the coniveau spectral sequence
Authors: Yagita Nobuaki
Published: November 2010

We study the coniveau spectral sequence for quadrics defined by Pfister forms. In particular, we explicitly compute the motivic cohomology of anisotropic quadrics over ℝ, by showing that their coniveau spectral sequences collapse from the -term
Revisiting Nori's question and homotopy invariance of Euler class groups
Authors: Das Mrinal Kanti
Published: November 2010

This paper examines the relation between the Euler class group of a Noetherian ring and the Euler class group of its polynomial extension. When the ring is a smooth affine domain, the two groups are canonically isomorphic. This is a consequence of a theorem of Bhatwadekar-Sridharan, which they proved in order to answer a question of Nori on sections of projective modules over such rings. If the smoothness assumption is removed, the result of Bhatwadekar-Sridharan is no longer valid and also the Euler class groups above are not in general isomorphic. In this paper we investigate a variant of Nori's question for arbitrary Noetherian rings and derive several consequences to understand the relation between various groups in the theory of Euler classes.
Corporate Governance and Institutional Ownership
Authors: Chung Kee H. , Zhang Hao
Published: November 2010

In this study we examine the relation between corporate governance and institutional ownership. Our empirical results show that the fraction of a company’s shares that are held by institutional investors increases with the quality of its governance structure. In a similar vein, we show that the proportion of institutions that hold a firm’s shares increases with its governance quality. Our results are robust to different estimation methods and alternative model specifications. These results are consistent with the conjecture that institutional investors gravitate to stocks of companies with good governance structure to meet fiduciary responsibility as well as to minimize monitoring and exit costs.
Benchmarking as a means to improve conservation practice
Authors: Sutherland William J. , Peel Michael J. S.
Published: November 2010

Benchmarking, the comparison of efficiency measures of an organization against those of other organizations, is widely used in industry, medical practice and agriculture as a means of learning where practice can be improved. This could be used by conservationists for routine repeatable activities, such as the treatment of invasive species or the survival rate of transplanted plants. We give three examples of the benefits of cross-site comparisons: grazing management in South Africa, husbandry of captive penguins and management of lagoons for wading birds. Benchmarking, by comparing effectiveness with others, is the initial stage in identifying weaknesses and leads on to learning how to improve through cross-site comparisons, comparisons with better performers or examination of the published literature. We suggest that the term best practice, which is often used as part of benchmarking, is unsuitable as it implies a comparison of all options, which rarely takes place, and it is subject to change as knowledge and techniques develop. An alternative term is current effective practice.
LIVING LIKE THE LAITY? THE NEGOTIATION OF RELIGIOUS STATUS IN THE CITIES OF LATE MEDIEVAL ITALY
Authors: Andrews Frances
Published: November 2010

Framed by consideration of images of treasurers on the books of the treasury in thirteenth-century Siena, this article uses evidence for the employment of men of religion in city offices in central and northern Italy to show how religious status (treated as a subset of ‘clerical culture’) could become an important object of negotiation between city and churchmen, a tool in the repertoire of power relations. It focuses on the employment of men of religion as urban treasurers and takes Florence in the late thirteenth and early fourteenth centuries as a principal case study, but also touches on the other tasks assigned to men of religion and, very briefly, on evidence from other cities (Bologna, Brescia, Como, Milan, Padua, Perugia and Siena). It outlines some of the possible arguments deployed for this use of men of religion in order to demonstrate that religious status was, like gender, more contingent and fluid than the norm-based models often relied on as a shorthand by historians. Despite the powerful rhetoric of lay–clerical separation in this period, the engagement of men of religion in paid, term-bound urban offices inevitably brought them closer to living like the laity.
Some Remarks on Wittgenstein's Account of Religious Belief
Authors: Hudson W. D.
Published: November 2010

Pupils' notes of some lectures on religious belief which Wittgenstein gave in 1938 have recently been published, and what I have to say is set against the background of these lectures. My title may suggest that there is a distinctive and precise account of religious belief which can be extracted from them and stated clearly for consideration. But I do not think that this is so. It is evident from these lectures that, in the subject of religious belief, Wittgenstein's prodigious capacity for puzzlement, in which Moore recognised the marks of genius, found full scope. But, at many points, it is not clear to me, at any rate, just how he is resolving – or would resolve – the puzzlement. So I am most certainly not setting myself up to explain ‘what Wittgenstein really meant’. However, like everything which we have from him, these lectures are fascinating, suggestive, provocative. And, at some hazard, I am going to offer a few observations on one or two of the points which he was, or appears to have been, making.
On Doing Theology
Authors: van Buren Paul
Published: November 2010

That a theologian has been asked to contribute a lecture to this series on the philosophy of religion is, I assume, not an invitation to him to play amateur philosopher, but to offer, for what it is worth, what he can. I have conceived it my responsibility, therefore, both to those to whom I owe the honour of the invitation to be here, and to the furtherance of honest discussion between philosophers and theologians, to take as my task a clarification of what theology is, what a theologian is up to when he is doing theology.
Non-verbal Communication and Language
Authors: Argyle Michael
Published: November 2010

Human communication consists of an intricate combination of verbal and non-verbal signals. We shall see that the verbal aspects of messages are elaborated and supported in a number of ways by non-verbal ones. In order to understand human verbal communication we need to know about these non-verbal components. Non-verbal communication (NVC) can be studied experimentally as a problem in encoding and decoding; it can also be studied as part of a sequence, using the methods of ethology or of linguistics. We shall see that this kind of analysis has theoretical implications about the nature of human communication, and has practical implications in a number of fields.
Psycholinguistics: Competence and Performance
Authors: Greene Judith
Published: November 2010

There has been a tendency, natural perhaps in such ‘verbal’ disciplines as philosophy and linguistics, to assume that language and communication are the same thing. But while no one would deny that language is one powerful medium of human communication, is it the only one? Is there any real distinction between communicating one's desire to leave a dinner party by making verbal remarks like, ‘I must go’ or ‘We could only get Jane as a babysitter’, as opposed to fidgeting, standing up and looking longingly towards the door? As Michael Argyle argues, a great deal of information is conveyed by non-verbal cues. To take the argument a step further, are even verbal statements examples of purely linguistic communication ? Whereas the manifest linguistic content of ‘I must go’ is obvious to anyone who speaks English, the meaning of the remark about the babysitter can only be understood by those who know the particular neighbourhood social context in which it was uttered. Does it make sense, then, to try and analyse the linguistic structure and content of an utterance without taking into account the use to which it is being put in a particular extra-linguistic context?
Predictability in Human Affairs
Authors: Henderson G. P.
Published: November 2010

I Want to talk about a strong sense of the terms ‘predict’, ‘prediction’, ‘predictability’, and so on; to take up the question whether a social science may aspire to predict in the strong sense; and to consider some bearings of this question on the free-will problem.
God as Creator
Authors: Ward Keith
Published: November 2010

‘In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth’ (Genesis 1.1). For millions of Jews, Christians and Muslims this has been a fundamental article of belief. Nor is it unknown in the classical Indian traditions. The Upanishads, taken by the orthodox to be ‘heard’, not invented, and to be verbally inerrant, state: ‘He desired: “May I become many, may I procreate” … He created (or emanated) this whole universe’ (Taittiriya Upanishad, 6). The belief that everything in the universe is brought into being by an act of will or desire on the part of one uniquely uncreated being is widespread and fundamental in religion. Historians of religion generally suppose that it is a rather late belief in the Biblical tradition, having developed from an earlier stage at which Jahweh was one tribal deity among others. By the time of the major prophets, however, the notion was firmly established that there is only one God, creator of everything other than himself. Christian theologians always seem to have had a great interest in conceptual problems, and the idea of creation has proved a very fruitful one for generating philosophical puzzles. Those puzzles are still of great theoretical interest, and I shall consider some of them with reference to the work of Augustine and, to a lesser extent Thomas Aquinas. Their views have been so influential that they may fairly be called ‘classical’, in Christian theology.
Foreknowledge and the Vulnerability of God
Authors: Lucas J. R.
Published: November 2010

Elijah foretold evil for Ahab in the name of the Lord. ‘I will bring evil upon you; I will utterly sweep you away, and will cut off from Ahab every male, bond or free in Israel’ … but when he heard those words, he rent his clothes, and put sackcloth upon his flesh, and fasted and lay in the sackcloth, and went about dejectedly. And the word of the Lord came to Elijah saying ‘Have you seen how Ahab has humbled himself before me? Because he has humbled himself before me, I will not bring the evil in his days, but in his son's days I will bring evil upon his house.’
Hope
Authors: Sutherland Stewart
Published: November 2010

Most of us have probably heard Samuel Johnson's witticism about the reported proposal of an acquaintance to enter into a second marriage—‘the triumph of hope over experience’. Whatever that tells us about his friend's previous marriage, it tells us quite a bit about the popular understanding of hope. A similiar point was implied by J. B. Priestley when he referred to whisky distillers marketing faith and hope at twelve shillings and sixpence per bottle, and not for the first time G. K. Chesterton got it superficially wrong in defining hope as ‘the power of being cheerful in circumstances which we know to be desperate’.
Shear velocity structure of the Mariana mantle wedge from Rayleigh wave phase velocities
Authors: Pyle Moira L. , Wiens Douglas A. , Weeraratne Dayanthie S. , Shore Patrick J. , Shiobara Hajime , Sugioka Hiroko
Published: November 2010

We examine the seismic structure of the Mariana mantle wedge using data from a combined deployment of ocean bottom seismographs and land stations in 2003–2004. We measure Rayleigh wave phase velocities and invert these results for the shear velocity structure and azimuthal anisotropy in the region. In the back‐arc region low phase velocities indicate shear velocities as low as 3.9 ± 0.1 km/s at depths of about 60 km. Locations of the lowest seismic velocities at 18.0°N–18.5°N, 16.0°N–16.5°N, and 14.0°N–14.5°N correspond to the locations of gravity lows and probably indicate the presence of temperature and melt production maxima compared to elsewhere along the spreading center. The shape of the low velocity anomaly also indicates that there is a degree of asymmetry to the thermal structure across the spreading center. The fore arc exhibits low shear velocities (Vs ∼ 3.6 km/s) at depths shallower than 40 km. These low uppermost mantle velocities are likely due to serpentinization of the fore arc. Azimuthal anisotropy results suggest an average peak‐to‐peak anisotropy of about 1%–2% with a fast direction of NNE. Fore‐arc anisotropy shows arc‐parallel fast directions at shallow depth in agreement with previous shear wave splitting observations and deeper arc‐perpendicular directions influenced by the slab. Back‐arc anisotropy is largely arc perpendicular, consistent with splitting observations west of the spreading center.
Geostatistical inversion of seismic and ground‐penetrating radar reflection images: What can we actually resolve?
Authors: Irving James , Holliger Klaus
Published: November 2010

Estimation of the spatial statistics of subsurface velocity heterogeneity from surface‐based geophysical reflection survey data is a problem of significant interest in seismic and ground‐penetrating radar (GPR) research. A method to effectively address this problem has been recently presented, but our knowledge regarding the resolution of the estimated parameters is still inadequate. Here we examine this issue using an analytical approach that is based on the realistic assumption that the subsurface velocity structure can be characterized as a band‐limited scale‐invariant medium. Our work importantly confirms recent numerical findings that the inversion of seismic or GPR reflection data for the geostatistical properties of the probed subsurface region is sensitive to the aspect ratio of the velocity heterogeneity and to the decay of its power spectrum, but not to the individual values of the horizontal and vertical correlation lengths.
Auroral X‐ray emission at Jupiter: Depth effects
Authors: Ozak N. , Schultz D. R. , Cravens T. E. , Kharchenko V. , Hui Y.‐W.
Published: November 2010

Auroral X‐ray emissions from Jupiter with a total power of about 1 GW have been observed by the Einstein Observatory, Roentgen satellite, Chandra X‐ray Observatory, and XMM‐Newton. Previous theoretical studies have shown that precipitating energetic sulfur and oxygen ions can produce the observed X‐rays. This study presents the results of a hybrid Monte Carlo (MC) model for sulfur and oxygen ion precipitation at high latitudes, looks at differences with the continuous slow‐down model, and compares the results to synthetic spectra fitted to observations. We concentrate on the effects of altitude on the observed spectrum. The opacity of the atmosphere to the outgoing X‐ray photons is found to be important for incident ion energies greater than about 1.2 MeV per nucleon for both sulfur and oxygen. Model spectra are calculated for intensities with and without any opacity effects. These synthetic spectra were compared with the results shown by Hui et al. (2010) which fit Chandra X‐ray Observatory observations for the north and south Jovian auroral emissions. Quenching of long‐lived excited states of the oxygen ions is found to be important. Opacity considerably diminishes the outgoing X‐ray intensity calculated, particularly when the viewing geometry is not favorable.
Relationship between structures, stress and seismicity in the Charlevoix seismic zone revealed by 3‐D geomechanical models: Implications for the seismotectonics of continental interiors
Authors: Baird A. F. , McKinnon S. D. , Godin L.
Published: November 2010

The Charlevoix seismic zone in the St. Lawrence valley of Québec is the most active in eastern Canada. The structurally complex region comprises a series of subparallel steeply dipping Iapetan rift faults, superimposed by a 350 Ma meteorite impact structure, resulting in a heavily faulted volume. The elongate seismic zone runs through the crater parallel to the rift. Most large events localize outside the crater and are consistent with slip along the rift faults, whereas background seismicity primarily occurs within the volume of rock bounded by the rift faults within and beneath the crater. The interaction between rift and crater faults is explored using the three‐dimensional stress analysis code FLAC3D. The rift faults are represented by frictional discontinuities, and the crater is represented by a bowl‐shaped elastic volume of reduced modulus. Differential stresses are slowly built up from boundary displacements similar to tectonic loading. Results indicate that weakening the rift faults produces a stress increase in the region of the crater bounded by the faults. This causes a decrease in stability of optimally oriented faults and may explain the localization of low‐level seismicity. Additionally, slip distribution along the rift faults shows that large events localize at the perimeter of the crater and produce focal mechanisms with P axes oblique to the applied stress field, consistent with historic large earthquakes. It is speculated that similar systematic rotation of focal mechanism P axes may be expected along other intraplate rift zones, raising a potential caveat for the use of focal mechanisms for stress estimation in continental interiors.
Propagation of linear surface air temperature trends into the terrestrial subsurface
Authors: Lesperance Marielle , Smerdon Jason E. , Beltrami Hugo
Published: November 2010

Previous studies have tested the long‐term coupling between air and terrestrial subsurface temperatures working under the assumption that linear trends in surface air temperature should be equal to those measured at depth within the subsurface. A one‐dimensional model of heat conduction is used to show that surface trends are attenuated as a function of depth within conductive media on time scales of decades to centuries, therefore invalidating the above assumption given practical observational constraints. The model is forced with synthetic linear temperature trends as the time‐varying upper boundary condition; synthetic trends are either noise free or include additions of Gaussian noise at the annual time scale. It is shown that over a 1000 year period, propagating surface trends are progressively damped with depth in both noise‐free and noise‐added scenarios. Over shorter intervals, the relationship between surface and subsurface trends is more variable and is strongly impacted by annual variability (i.e., noise). Using output from the FOR1 millennial simulation of the GKSS ECHO‐G General Circulation Model as a more realistic surface forcing function for the conductive model, it is again demonstrated that surface trends are damped as a function of depth within the subsurface. Observational air and subsurface temperature data collected over 100 years in Armagh, Ireland, and 29 years in Fargo, North Dakota, are also analyzed and shown to have subsurface temperature trends that are not equal to the surface trend. While these conductive effects are correctly accounted for in inversions of borehole temperature profiles in paleoclimatic studies, they have not been considered in studies seeking to evaluate the long‐term coupling between air and subsurface temperatures by comparing trends in their measured time series. The presented results suggest that these effects must be considered and that a demonstrated trend equivalency in air and subsurface temperatures is inconclusive regarding their long‐term tracking.
Response of cave air CO2 and drip water to brush clearing in central Texas: Implications for recharge and soil CO2 dynamics
Authors: Wong Corinne , Banner Jay L.
Published: November 2010

Brush removal is commonly conducted to increase water availability in arid areas, such as central Texas, where water resources are stressed. The effectiveness of brush clearing to enhance recharge, however, remains uncertain as numerous studies have yielded contradictory results. This study assesses the effects of brush clearing on recharge to a cave at Natural Bridge Caverns, central Texas by evaluating changes in drip rate, drip water compositions, cave air CO2 concentrations, and calcite growth in a cave underlying an area cleared of brush. Drip sites were monitored for 3 years preclearing and 2 years postclearing at five drip sites beneath and seven drip sites not beneath the surface cleared of brush. Physical and chemical drip water parameters exhibit preclearing and postclearing variability. Postclearing drip rate characteristics reflect an initial interval of anomalously heavy rainfall, then a longer dry period. Drip water 87Sr/86Sr values do not exhibit preclearing to postclearing variation at sites beneath the cleared area and indicate no change in postclearing water residence time. Significant decreases in postclearing cave air CO2 are observed at seven of nine drip sites in the cave beneath the clearing. Decreases in cave air CO2 influence calcite growth, which impacts postclearing drip water Mg/Ca and Sr/Ca. Decreases in cave air CO2 immediately following brush clearing suggest that a significant portion of soil CO2 respiration is from tree root respiration rather than from soil microbial activity. Seasonal calcite growth patterns, linked to cave air CO2, also exhibit variability postclearing and suggest that cave mineral deposits may record historical changes in vegetative cover.
Of switches and hourglasses: regulation of subcellular traffic in circadian clocks by phosphorylation
Authors: Tataroğlu Özgür , Schafmeier Tobias
Published: November 2010

Investigation of the phosphorylation of circadian clock proteins has shown that this modification contributes to circadian timing in all model organisms. Phosphorylation alters the stability, transcriptional activity and subcellular localization of clock proteins during the course of a day, such that time‐of‐day‐specific phosphorylation encodes information for measuring time and is crucial for the establishment of an approximately 24‐h period. One main feature of molecular timekeeping is the daytime‐specific nuclear accumulation of clock proteins, which can be regulated by phosphorylation. Here, we discuss increasing knowledge of how subcellular shuttling is regulated in circadian clocks, on the basis of recent observations in Neurospora crassa showing that clock proteins undergo maturation through sequential phosphorylation. In this model organism, clock proteins are regulated by the phosphorylation‐dependent modulation of rapid shuttling cycles that alter their subcellular localization in a time‐of‐day‐specific manner.
Radical mechanism of cyanophage phycoerythrobilin synthase (PebS)
Authors: Busch Andrea W. U. , Reijerse Edward J. , Lubitz Wolfgang , Hofmann Eckhard , Frankenberg-Dinkel Nicole
Published: November 2010

PEB (phycoerythrobilin) is a pink-coloured open-chain tetrapyrrole molecule found in the cyanobacterial light-harvesting phycobilisome. Within the phycobilisome, PEB is covalently bound via thioether bonds to conserved cysteine residues of the phycobiliprotein subunits. In cyanobacteria, biosynthesis of PEB proceeds via two subsequent two-electron reductions catalysed by the FDBRs (ferredoxin-dependent bilin reductases) PebA and PebB starting from the open-chain tetrapyrrole biliverdin IXα. A new member of the FDBR family has been identified in the genome of a marine cyanophage. In contrast with the cyanobacterial enzymes, PebS (PEB synthase) from cyanophages combines both two-electron reductions for PEB synthesis. In the present study we show that PebS acts via a substrate radical mechanism and that two conserved aspartate residues at position 105 and 206 are critical for stereospecific substrate protonation and conversion. On the basis of the crystal structures of both PebS mutants and presented biochemical and biophysical data, a mechanism for biliverdin IXα conversion to PEB is postulated and discussed with respect to other FDBR family members.
Mechanical vibratory stimulation of feline forepaw skin induces long‐lasting potentiation in the secondary somatosensory cortex
Authors: Kawakami Yoriko , Miyata Mariko , Oshima Tomokazu
Published: November 2010

We investigated the long‐lasting effects of mechanical vibratory stimulation of the skin on the excitability of feline cortical neurons in the forelimb areas of the primary (SI) and secondary (SII) somatosensory cortices. Conditioning mechanical stimuli were 300 bursts of 10 pulses at 200 Hz delivered with a 10‐s interburst interval from a mechanical stimulator. Test field potentials and unit discharges were evoked by electrical stimulation to the ventral posterolateral thalamic nucleus (VPL) or by single mechanical stimuli applied to the skin. In SII, the mechanical burst stimulation to the skin increased the amplitudes of field potentials and the frequency of unit discharges elicited by single mechanical stimuli applied to the skin. The vibratory conditioning stimulus also produced a similar potentiation of the VPL‐evoked field potentials (126–139% increase in amplitude, P < 0.05) with an associated increase in firing rates of extracellularly recorded neuronal activity (117%, P < 0.001). These potentiations persisted through the entire experimental period of 120 min. The translaminar current source density analysis calculated from the VPL‐evoked field potentials increased to 127% of the control value (P < 0.01). In contrast, in SI we observed no significant changes in the field potential amplitudes or in the currents generated in superficial layers (91–117%). Taken together with the previous finding that tetanic electrical stimulation of VPL induces long‐lasting potentiation of the VPL‐evoked cortical responses in SII but not of those in SI, the present results suggest that SII has a large capacity for the rapid functional plasticity involved in the learning that occurs during repeated tactile experiences.
Environmental tuning of mutation rates
Authors: Saint‐Ruf Claude , Matic Ivan
Published: November 2010

Through their life cycles, bacteria experience many different environments in which the relationship between available energy resources and the frequency and the nature of various stresses is highly variable. In order to survive in such changeable environments, bacteria must balance the need for nutritional competence with stress resistance. In Escherichia coli natural populations, this is most frequently achieved by changing the regulation of the RpoS sigma factor‐dependent general stress response. One important secondary consequence of altered regulation of the RpoS regulon is the modification of mutation rates. For example, under nutrient limitation during stationary phase, the high intracellular concentration of RpoS diminishes nutritional competence, increases stress resistance, and, by downregulating the mismatch repair system and downregulating the expression of the dinB gene (coding for PolIV translesion synthesis polymerase) increases mutation rates. The reduction of the intracellular concentration of RpoS has exactly opposite effects on nutritional competence, stress resistance and mutation rates. Therefore, the natural selection that favours variants having the highest fitness under different environmental conditions results in high variability of stress‐associated mutation rates in those variants.
Who Cites What?*
Authors: Clements Kenneth W. , Wang Patricia
Published: November 2010

The present paper analyses citations in the work of a large number of PhD students. We show that the pattern of citations of journal articles, books and other reference material differs substantially across areas within economics. An investigation of reciprocal citations reveals a surprisingly low degree of communication among the Group of Eight universities and a high propensity to cite authors from the same institution, especially supervisors. We also analyse the Australian share of cited works, and identify journals, articles and authors that PhD students value highly.