bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Investing in the relationship: practitioners’ relationships with looked‐after children and care leavers in Social Work Practices
Authors: Ridley Julie , Larkins Cath , Farrelly Nicola , Hussein Shereen , Austerberry Helen , Manthorpe Jill , Stanley Nicky
Published: November 2013

Providing more consistent and continuous relationships for looked‐after children and care leavers is a current preoccupation in social work in light of many criticisms of the quality of such relationships. Recommendations for more direct work have spurred new models of service delivery in children's services aimed at improving individual outcomes. Independent Social Work Practices (SWPs), a new organizational model piloted in some areas of England between 2009 and 2012, were established to enable social workers and other practitioners to spend more time in direct work and thus to improve the practitioner/child/young person relationship. This paper uses findings from interviews with 169 children and young people across 11 local authorities and 5 SWPs, undertaken as part of a 3‐year national matched control evaluation of pilot SWPs, to identify key elements of good quality practitioner relationships with children or young people. Focusing on children's and young people's perspectives and experiences, the study demonstrates that more direct work and consistent relationships are valued. The paper deploys Recognition Theory to further understanding of effective practice as defined by children and young people.
Common nature in the effects of thalidomide on embryo‐fetal development in Kbl:JW and Kbl:NZW rabbits
Authors: Kawamura Yoshinori , Shirotsuka Yasuki , Awatsuji Hirofumi , Matsumoto Kiyoshi , Sato Keiichiro
Published: November 2013

The effects of thalidomide on the embryo‐fetal development (EFD) of rabbit fetuses and the sensitive periods (SP) for the various malformations were compared between Kbl:JW and Kbl:NZW rabbits to investigate possible strain differences. The post‐implantation loss rate and number of placental remnants were increased and the number of live fetuses was decreased in both of the strains in the EFD study and in Kbl:NZW at 300 mg/kg dosed on GD 7–8 in the SP study. In the external and skeletal examinations, head, limb and tail malformations were observed in both the strains in the EFD and SP studies at the same dose levels in the same dosing period. In the visceral examination, hydrocephaly, cardiovascular malformations, absent pulmonary intermedial lobe, diaphragmatic hernia and/or abnormal liver lobation were also observed in both of the strains in the EFD and SP studies at the same dose levels and in the same dosing period. Plasma concentrations of thalidomide were equivalent between the two strains in the SP study. There were strain differences in some parameters, such as the post‐implantation loss rate and the frequencies of malformations in forelimb and hindlimb and pulmonary intermedial lobe, but similar types of malformations or variations were induced at the same dose levels on the same dosing period in both strains. Therefore, it is concluded that there were no essential differences in sensitivity of the fetuses to thalidomide between Kbl:JW and NZW rabbits and both of the strains are useful to evaluate the teratogenic effects of thalidomide.
From capsules to nutlets—phylogenetic relationships in the Boraginales
Authors: Weigend Maximilian , Luebert Federico , Gottschling Marc , Couvreur Thomas L.P. , Hilger Hartmut H. , Miller James S.
Published: November 2013

Multiple family‐level subdivisions of Boraginales have been proposed in the past. The relationships of several constituent genera have been enigmatic, including Codon (Codonaceae), Hoplestigma (Hoplestigmataceae), Pholisma (Lennoaceae), Vahlia (Vahliaceae), and Wellstedia (Wellstediaceae), all of which are included in the present study. We present a molecular analysis with four chloroplast loci, including 89 ingroup taxa and a broad outgroup sampling in the asterids. The genus Vahlia is excluded from Boraginales and appears to represent an early branching lineage of Lamiales. The study provides a well supported topology for the relationships within Boraginales, including all of the genera with previously unclear relationships. Within Boraginales, two major clades are recognized, with “herbaceaous” Boraginales I resolved as [Codonaceae,[Wellstediaceae,[Boraginaceae]]] and “woody” Boraginales II resolved as [Hydrophyllaceae I,[Hydrophyllaceae II,[Heliotropiaceae,[Cordiaceae,[Ehretiaceae,Lennoaceae]]]]. A close relationship between Ehretiaceae and Lennoaceae is well supported, but the exact placement of Lennoaceae remains unresolved. The Cordiaceae lineage includes the monotypic genus Coldenia and the aberrant western and central African genus Hoplestigma. Woody Boraginales II are retrieved in two highly supported clades. Hydrophyllaceae are retrieved in two separate clades, but with poor support. There appear to be clear morphological progressions in vegetative, floral, and fruit morphology in both major Boraginales lineages. Thus capsular fruits are found in the first branching lineages of both clades, whereas reduced seed numbers in indehiscent fruits predominate in the more derived phylogenetic positions. Based on these results, we advocate the recognition of eight morphologically well defined clades in the order, namely Boraginaceae s.str., Codonaceae, Cordiaceae (incl. Coldenia and Hoplestigmataceae), Ehretiaceae (incl. Lennoaceae), Heliotropiaceae, Hydrophyllaceae I and Hydrophyllaceae II, and Wellstediaceae.
Self‐expandable metal stents in the treatment of benign anastomotic stricture after rectal resection for cancer
Authors: Lamazza A. , Fiori E. , Sterpetti A. V. , Schillaci A. , Scoglio D. , Lezoche E.
Published: November 2013

Aim

To evaluate the use of self‐expandable metallic stents to treat patients with symptomatic benign anastomotic stricture after colorectal resection.

Method

Ten patients with a benign symptomatic anastomotic stricture after colorectal resection were treated with endoscopic placement of a self‐expandable metal stent.

Results

The stent was placed successfully in all 10 patients without any major morbidity. At a mean follow‐up of 18 months the stenosis was resolved successfully in 7 out 10 patients (70%). The remaining three patients were subsequently treated successfully with balloon dilatation.

Conclusion

Self‐expandable metal stents represent a valid alternative to balloon dilatation to treat patients with benign symptomatic anastomotic stricture after colorectal resection for cancer.
A preliminary study of transcaecal ileostomy as an alternative to defunctioning ostomies
Authors: Monzón‐Abad A. , Gracia‐Roche C. , Martínez‐Germán A. , Barranco‐Domínguez I. , Sánchez‐Fuentes N.
Published: November 2013

Aim

To evaluate the usefulness of a transcaecal ileostomy catheter for protecting distal lower rectal anastomosis as an alternative to conventional ileostomy.

Method

Patients with a rectal cancer located 3–10 cm from the anal verge were included in the study. In all cases, an open low or ultra‐low anterior resection of the rectum was performed with total mesorectal excision. A balloon catheter was inserted through the caecum and ileocaecal valve, with the catheter's distal end placed in terminal ileum. A computed tomography (CT) scan was performed 7 days postoperatively to check the integrity of the anastomosis; the transcaecal catheter was withdrawn if no complications were detected.

Results

Eighteen patients were treated with a transcaecal catheter. Two patients developed cellulitis (11.1%) in the catheter exit wound. In both cases, successful healing was achieved within a month of surgery. One patient had anastomotic dehiscence (5.5%) after removal of the catheter following a normal CT examination. The median hospital stay was 10 days (range 8–13 days).

Conclusion

A transcaecal ileostomy catheter to protect a distal rectal anastomosis is a potential alternative to loop ileostomy with potentially fewer complications and without need for a second procedure for closure.
OCT1 genetic variants are associated with long term outcomes in imatinib treated chronic myeloid leukemia patients
Authors: Koren‐Michowitz Maya , Buzaglo Zehavit , Ribakovsky Elena , Schwarz Michaela , Pessach Ilias , Shimoni Avichai , Beider Katia , Amariglio Ninette , Ie Coutre Philipp , Nagler Arnon
Published: November 2013

Objectives

One third of CML patients treated with first line imatinib have suboptimal responses or treatment failures with increased risk for disease progression. Imatinib is actively transported into cells by the SLC22A1 transporter (hOCT1) and its genetic variants may affect intracellular drug import. We studied the effect of SLC22A1 genetic variants on long‐term outcomes of imatinib treated patients.

Methods

A total of 167 patients, 94% in chronic phase, were analyzed for rs41267797, rs683369, rs12208357, and rs628031 variants using the Sequenom MassARRAY platform.

Results

Rates of CHR, MCyR, CCyR, and MMolR were not significantly different according to allelic variants. However, patients with AA or GA rs628031 genotypes had a higher incidence of poor response to imatinib compared to the GG genotype (47% compared to 29%, P = 0.06), and a higher rate of KD mutation discovery (8/16 vs. 5/27, P = 0.04), suggesting that secondary resistance was more common in these genotypes. Median EFS was shorter for rs628031 genotype AA/AG compared with the GG genotype (61 months and not reached, respectively, P = 0.05), and 5 yr OS rates were lower for patients with the rs628031 genotypes AA/AG compared with the GG genotype (88% and 97%, respectively, P = 0.03). Patients with AA/GA rs628031 and additional rare genotypes had worse EFS and OS compared to patients with only AA/GA rs628031 (P = 0.02 for EFS and 0.01 for OS). There was no difference in pretreatment SLC22A1 mRNA expression levels in patients with rs628031 genotypes GG/AA or GA.

Conclusions

Studying SLC22A1 genetic variants prior to TKI initiation could influence treatment decisions.
Online decoding of object‐based attention using real‐time fMRI
Authors: Niazi Adnan M. , van den Broek Philip L. C. , Klanke Stefan , Barth Markus , Poel Mannes , Desain Peter , van Gerven Marcel A. J.
Published: November 2013

Visual attention is used to selectively filter relevant information depending on current task demands and goals. Visual attention is called object‐based attention when it is directed to coherent forms or objects in the visual field. This study used real‐time functional magnetic resonance imaging for moment‐to‐moment decoding of attention to spatially overlapped objects belonging to two different object categories. First, a whole‐brain classifier was trained on pictures of faces and places. Subjects then saw transparently overlapped pictures of a face and a place, and attended to only one of them while ignoring the other. The category of the attended object, face or place, was decoded on a scan‐by‐scan basis using the previously trained decoder. The decoder performed at 77.6% accuracy indicating that despite competing bottom‐up sensory input, object‐based visual attention biased neural patterns towards that of the attended object. Furthermore, a comparison between different classification approaches indicated that the representation of faces and places is distributed rather than focal. This implies that real‐time decoding of object‐based attention requires a multivariate decoding approach that can detect these distributed patterns of cortical activity.
Precedent in the Sui Generis Legal Order: A Mine Run Approach
Authors: Sadl Urska , Hink Sigrid
Published: November 2013

In this article, we use case‐to‐case citation networks to explore the force of precedent in EU law. We introduce a novel methodology to analyse the extent to which references to past decisions act as reasons for decisions in subsequent cases and illustrate the approach on the European citizenship case‐law citation network. We conclude that the cohesive pull of precedent in EU citizenship case‐law is too weak to generate a coherent judicial doctrine, thereby confirming qualitative research on the subject. However, the incursions into competences of the Member States in areas, found only tangential to EU citizenship, form a more consistent underlying story.
Watering Down the Court of Justice? The Dynamics between Network Implementation and Article 258 TFEU Litigation
Authors: Korkea‐aho Emilia
Published: November 2013

With the establishment of an administrative network to manage implementation of the Water Framework Directive (WFD), a more consensual approach to judicial enforcement seemed like a natural next step. This anticipation was partially derived from the experimentalist nature of the WFD, requiring concerted action in the specification and application of its open‐ended and broad provisions. This article assesses how important changes in WFD implementation practices shape the role played by the Court of Justice with respect to Article 258 Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union. The examination of the WFD litigation reveals interesting tensions. Network‐based implementation practices keep Member States accountable for the progress of implementation and make a subsequent legal action swifter. At the same time, implementation practices remove from courts those issues that may be better solved by network participants. The results show how the function and exercise of judicial enforcement is influenced by the ways in which legislation is implemented.
Cross‐sectional imaging: More ways to look at a problem
Authors: Judy C. E.
Published: November 2013

See also article by Bolt et al.
Environmental influences on Atlantic bluefin tuna (Thunnus thynnus) catch per unit effort in the southern Gulf of St. Lawrence
Authors: Vanderlaan Angelia S. M. , Hanke Alex R. , Chassé Joël , Neilson John D.
Published: November 2013

The Atlantic bluefin tuna (Thunnus thynnus) population in the western Atlantic supports substantial commercial and recreational fisheries. Despite quota establishment and management under the auspices of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas, only small increases in population growth have been estimated. In contrast to other western bluefin tuna fisheries indices, contemporary estimates of catch per unit effort (CPUE) in the southern Gulf of St. Lawrence have increased rapidly and are at record highs. This area is characterized by the Cold Intermediate Layer (CIL) that is defined by waters <3°C and located at depths of 30–40 m in September. We investigated the influence of several in situ environmental variables on the bluefin tuna fishery CPUE using delta‐lognormal modelling and relatively extensive and consistent oceanographic survey data, as well as dockside monitoring and mandatory logbook data associated with the fishery. Although there is considerable spatial and temporal variation of water mass characteristics, the amount of available habitat in the southern Gulf of St. Lawrence (assuming a > 3°C thermal ambit) for bluefin tuna has been increasing. The percentage of the water column occupied by the CIL was a significant environmental variable in the standardization of CPUE estimates. There was also a negative relationship between the spatial extents of the CIL and the fishery. Properties of the CIL account for variation in the bluefin tuna CPUE and may be a factor in determining the amount of available feeding habitat for bluefin tuna in the southern Gulf of St. Lawrence.
Reading ‘Multiculturalism’: A Historiography of Policy and Ideal in Australia
Authors: Anderson Zoe
Published: November 2013

This article will detail the historiographical accounts of the reasons for the creation of a policy of multiculturalism, and the ways in which multiculturalism has been explained and understood through contemporary analyses and histories. This article serves as an overview to these complex intersections between contemporary politics and histories of multiculturalism as markers of who embodies, and what is, ‘Australianness’.
“The Wounds of Class”: A Historiographical Reflection on the Study of Deindustrialization, 1973–2013
Authors: High Steven
Published: November 2013

This article examines 40 years of multi‐disciplinary scholarship on deindustrialization in North America and the United Kingdom. This field of research emerged in the 1970s and 1980s as a political response to successive waves of mill and factory closures that devastating industrial towns and cities, displacing millions. A way of life seemed to be passing out of existence. Why was this happening? What did it mean? Could it be stopped? This essay identifies three distinct waves of scholarship: an initial activist generation of scholars who worked with the social movements of the 1970s and 1980s, the cultural turn towards the meaning of deindustrialization in the early 2000s, and the socio‐cultural exploration of working‐class culture in a post‐industrial age. As we will see, the scholarly focus has broadened from the causes of industrial decline and resistance to job loss, to its effects and long‐term consequences.
Women and Abolitionism in the United States: Recent Historiography
Authors: Kellow Margaret M. R.
Published: November 2013

The past 20 years have seen substantial developments in the historiography on women and abolitionism in the United States. These include a focus on the experience of African American women both as activists and as objects of the abolitionist movement. Recent studies explore the ways in which religion inspired and shaped American women's commitment to ending slavery. Important work has been done on the ways in which antislavery women functioned as political actors and the ways in which their efforts influenced antebellum American politics. Abolition historiography has benefitted from the Atlantic perspective as studies have explored the transnational networks created by British and American women and comparisons highlight new aspects of American women's experience in abolitionism. Lastly, studies of women and abolition from each of these perspectives have complicated and problematized the grand narrative of 19th‐century American women's history which enshrined a “path from antislavery to feminism” as a critical consciousness‐raising experience which inspired American women to take up the quest for their own rights.
Food‐Related Interaction Among Christians, Muslims, and Jews in High and Late Medieval Latin Christendom
Authors: Freidenreich David M.
Published: November 2013

Social historians of the Middle Ages can gain a richer understanding of interreligious relations by examining the ways Christians, Muslims, and Jews interacted over food. Legal and non‐legal sources from the eleventh through sixteenth centuries shed light on commercial, social, and cultural exchanges across faith communities, both in the market and at meals. These texts convey a broad spectrum of attitudes toward the food and food ways of religious foreigners, ideas whose variation reflects the contested and shifting status of minorities within Catholic Europe.
“Enduring Patterns of Loyalist Study: Definitions and Contours”
Authors: Chopra Ruma
Published: November 2013

More than a century ago, loyalist historians established the close relationship between the Atlantic colonies and the British Empire. Far from inevitable or natural, the mainland rebellion signaled a radical break from cherished customs, laws, and liberties. Two overlapping categories of scholarship examine the loyalist experience during the long revolutionary era. The first situates the loyalists alongside the rebels within the framework of the nation and challenges the strength and cohesion of patriots. The second places the loyalists as imperial subjects with legitimate claims to British liberties and recounts the loyalist‐British relationship over the long durée. In the first approach, the loyalists disrupt the conventional narrative of the nation; in the second, they participate in the construction of empire.
Ampullary cancer – a separate clinical entity?
Authors: Perysinakis Iraklis , Margaris Ilias , Kouraklis Gregory
Published: November 2013

Aims

Ampullary cancer is a relatively uncommon tumour, with a better prognosis than pancreatic cancer. The purpose of this study was to review the recent literature on ampullary adenocarcinoma, focusing on histological types and prognostic factors.

Methods and results

Using PubMed, we carried out a comprehensive search of the literature, which was extended to April 2013 to retrieve all additional publications. Ampullary cancer comprises two main histological subtypes, the pancreatobiliary type and the intestinal type. These subtypes have different pathogenetic and clinical characteristics. Clinical and histological parameters as well as immunohistochemical markers have been identified as significant prognostic factors in ampullary cancer. Moreover, several immunohistochemical markers have been studied, not only as prognostic factors but as a means of differentiating ampullary from other peri‐ampullary tumours, and of identifying the exact histological subtype.

Conclusions

The considerable differences in the frequencies of the two subtypes of ampullary tumours reported in literature reinforce the necessity to define molecular markers to distinguish them. Until then, the significance of the histological subtype as a prognostic factor should be evaluated cautiously. Future research on the pathogenesis of ampullary cancer will possibly suggest that we should stop treating this type of cancer as a separate entity.
Fabrication and Characteristic of Nextel 720 Fiber‐Reinforced Silicon Nitride Matrix Composites by Chemical Vapor Infiltration Process
Authors: Han Guifang , Liu Yongsheng , Zhang Litong , Cheng Laifei
Published: November 2013

Most current processes for fiber‐reinforced silicon nitride composites are conducted at very high temperature, which is not possible to use oxide fiber as reinforcement. Here, low‐temperature process of chemical vapor infiltration (CVI) was utilized to fabricate Nextel 720 oxide fiber tow‐reinforced silicon nitride matrix composite with PyC as interphase. The tensile strength was analyzed by Weibull distribution. The microstructure showed that there were two types of interface bonding. The strong interface bonding determined the unexpected low strength of the composites. This indicated that the suitable interface design is the urgent issue for oxide fiber‐reinforced silicon nitride composite by CVI.
Structure, trypsin inhibitor activity and functional properties of germinated soybean protein isolate
Authors: Aijie Liu , Shouwei Yin , Li Li
Published: November 2013

The objective of this research was to investigate the effects of germination on functional and conformational properties as well as the in vitro trypsin digestibility of soy protein isolate (SPI). The influences of germination on the molecular properties of SPI were also evaluated. The germination degraded lipoxygenase, α, α' subunits of β‐conglycinin (7S) and acidic chains of glycinin (11S) of soybean. Concomitantly, the loss of tertiary structures of SPI occurred due to the germination. The trypsin inhibitor activity of germinated SPI presented a decreasing trend, followed by an increase in the growth of hypocotyls. The in vitro trypsin digestibility of germinated SPI followed a consistent trend with the trypsin inhibitor activity. The protein solubility (PS) and emulsifying properties of SPI were improved by the germination, in a hypocotyl length‐dependent manner. The data suggest that some selected functional properties and the in vitro digestibility of soy proteins can be improved by means of the germination.
Endovascular Therapeutic Hypothermia for Acute Ischemic Stroke: ICTuS 2/3 Protocol
Authors: Lyden Patrick D. , Hemmen Thomas M. , Grotta James , Rapp Karen , Raman Rema
Published: November 2013

Therapeutic hypothermia improves neurological outcome after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest or neonatal hypoxic–ischemic injury. Although supported by preclinical evidence, therapeutic hypothermia for acute stroke remains under study. In the Intravascular Cooling in the Treatment of Stroke (ICTuS) trial, awake stroke patients were successfully cooled using an endovascular cooling catheter and a novel antishivering regimen. In the ICTuS-L study, the combination of endovascular hypothermia and thrombolysis proved feasible; while hypothermia was associated with no increased risk of bleeding complications, there was an increased association with pneumonia. Despite efforts to expedite, cooling began on average six-hours after stroke onset. We designed a novel Phase 2/3 trial to further test the safety of combined thrombolysis and endovascular hypothermia and to determine if the combination shows superiority compared with thrombolysis alone. ICTuS 2 ( n = 400) will assess four hypotheses, and if milestones are met, ICTuS 3 ( n = 1200) will begin as a seamless continuation for a total sample of 1600 patients. The ICTuS 2 milestones include ( 1 ) target temperature reached within six-hours of symptom onset; ( 2 ) no increased risk of pneumonia; ( 3 ) no increase in signs/symptoms of fluid overload due to chilled saline infusions; and ( 4 ) sufficient recruitment to complete the trial on time. The ICTuS 2/3 protocol contains novel features–based on the previous ICTuS and ICTuS-L trials – designed to achieve these milestones. Innovations include scrupulous pneumonia surveillance, intravenous chilled saline immediately after randomization to induce rapid cooling, and a requirement for catheter placement within two-hours of thrombolysis. An Investigational Device Exemption has been obtained and an initial group of sites initiated.
Double Return Migration: Failed Returns to Poland Leading to Settlement Abroad and New Transnational Strategies
Authors: White Anne
Published: November 2013

Many Poles who have arrived in the UK since EU accession show signs of settling. Often (especially for families with school‐age children) this is a gradual process. Other Poles have returned to Poland, but Poland currently seems to be having problems keeping its return migrants. Many go back only to depart again. This article focuses on why some returnees change their minds and decide to make a long‐term home abroad. It explores the implications of this decision for transnational practices and identities. It argues that often the key objective is stability. Choosing to settle abroad in the hope of a stable life, returnees attempt to live less split lives. While maintaining certain transnational practices, they scale down others, such as return visits to Poland and keeping well‐informed about Polish current events. Simultaneously, they make a decisive effort to integrate into the regular UK labour and housing markets.
Dietary and oral hygiene habits of active athletes and adolescents attending ordinary junior high schools
Authors: Anttonen Vuokko , Kemppainen Anna , Niinimaa Ahti , Pesonen Paula , Tjäderhane Leo , Jaana Laitinen
Published: November 2013

Background

Active sports require sufficient energy intake. How do young athletes meet this need? The aim of this study was to investigate self‐reported health and oral behaviors of young athletes and to compare them with a population‐based sample of ordinary adolescents.

Design

A computer‐based questionnaire on oral hygiene habits and dietary habits was conducted in two junior high schools with special classes for athletes in 2011. Adolescents of similar age (n = 1230) attending ordinary classes had responded the same questionnaire earlier in the city of Oulu (in 2004) and in Kajaani, Finland (in 2006–2007). Answers to individual questions as well as sum scores of the answers were analyzed. The answers of the athletes and ordinary adolescents were analyzed by gender using cross‐tabulation and chi‐square testing.

Results

The mean sum score of the athletes indicated their more favorable health behavior compared with the other adolescents. They also ate more frequently the four daily than the others; in addition, they ate the school lunch as an entity which it was intended. However, the athlete boys consumed more fizzy/soft drinks and ate chocolate more often than the rest. The athletes also brushed their teeth more frequently than ordinary adolescents. Oral health behavior of the girls was better than that of the boys.

Conclusions

Health behavior of the young athletes is better than that of other adolescents. Continuous oral health education should be targeted to all adolescents; growing boys should be target group of information on healthy sources of energy.
Discolouring Democracy? Policing, Sensitive Evidence, and Contentious Deaths in the United Kingdom
Authors: Martin Greg , Bray Rebecca Scott
Published: November 2013

This article examines recent United Kingdom government proposals for secret inquests, which, it is argued, are part of a general push for secrecy discernible across common law jurisdictions, and which include developments such as increased recourse to sensitive evidence in forensic settings and the normalization of intelligence‐led policing. While the push for secrecy is justified by national security claims, the article shows that in cases of contentious death involving police, the issue is less about national security and more about the use of intercept evidence, covert surveillance, and intelligence‐led policing, all of which have implications for police trust, accountability, and reputation management.
Effects of multiple disturbance processes on arboreal vertebrates in eastern Australia: implications for management
Authors: Anson Jennifer R. , Dickman Chris R. , Handasyde Kath , Jessop Tim S.
Published: November 2013

Habitat loss and invasive predators increasingly threaten global biodiversity. Here we use a landscape‐scale experimental approach to explore the individual and synergistic effects of logging and an invasive predator, the red fox Vulpes vulpes on two common native arboreal vertebrates (a predator and prey species) in south‐eastern Australia. We used site occupancy methods to evaluate different models evaluating the effects of site specific forest logging disturbance, lethal fox baiting and forest structural elements for explaining variation in site occupancy of a large monitor lizard Varanus varius, and a marsupial prey, the common ringtail possum Pseudocheirus peregrinus across a complex forest landscape. Site occupancy of ringtail possum was influenced by habitat resources and the structural complexity of forest, which indirectly mediated predation risk. Presence of fox baiting had no direct effect on the ringtail site occupancy. In contrast, access to prey resources and fox baiting appeared to best explain site occupancy variation in monitor lizards across the landscape. While these species are affected primarily by separate disturbances, synergistic interactions between the processes may intensify their effects. Our results demonstrate that species susceptibility to disturbance processes are highly idiosyncratic. This approach makes efficient use of integrated modelling to aid conservation management at both local and landscape levels.
Fifty Years of Research and Development Coming to Fruition; Unraveling the Complex Interactions during Processing of Transparent Magnesium Aluminate (MgAl2O4) Spinel
Authors: Rubat du Merac Marc , Kleebe Hans‐Joachim , Müller Mathis M. , Reimanis Ivar E.
Published: November 2013

The need for materials for demanding optical applications has engendered a resurgent interest in transparent ceramics. Transparent polycrystalline magnesium aluminate spinel is one especially promising and rapidly maturing technology that can fill this niche. Although it has been studied for over 50 yr, it is only recently that highly transparent components with acceptable mechanical properties have been reliably fabricated at reasonable cost. Development has been hindered by the inherent difficulty in sintering spinel to the near‐theoretical density required for transparency, a high sensitivity to powder and processing parameters, variable stoichiometry, and a lack of understanding of the synthesis–processing–property relationships. The driver of recent success is an emerging understanding of complex, multiscale, multivariable interactions that occur during green‐body formation and sintering. In particular, certain key variables play a decisive role in determining compact properties and their evolution must be controlled from synthesis to the finished product. This article features the interactions between these key variables during processing and gives an exposé of the state of the art in transparent polycrystalline spinel fabrication.
Local levels of inflammatory mediators in uncontrolled type 2 diabetic subjects with chronic periodontitis
Authors: Duarte Poliana M. , Bezerra Joyce P. , Miranda Tamires S. , Feres Magda , Chambrone Leandro , Shaddox Luciana M.
Published: November 2013

Aim

The aim of this study was to evaluate the levels of a wide panel of cyto/chemokines in the gingival crevicular fluid (GCF) of uncontrolled type 2 diabetic subjects as compared with non‐diabetic subjects with periodontitis.

Methods

Twenty‐six uncontrolled type 2 diabetic subjects (glycated haemoglobin levels >7.5%) and 20 non‐diabetic subjects with chronic periodontitis were enrolled in this study. The levels of 14 cyto/chemokines were measured in the GCF of healthy and diseased sites of the diabetic and non‐diabetic subjects using multiplex bead immunoassays.

Results

The concentrations of eotaxin, macrophage inflammatory protein‐1α, granulocyte‐macrophage colony‐stimulating factor, interleukin (IL)‐6, tumour necrosis factor‐α and IL‐12 were higher in healthy and diseased sites of diabetic than non‐diabetic subjects, after adjustment for multiple comparisons (p < 0.0035).

Conclusion

Uncontrolled type 2 diabetes mellitus modulated the local levels of several cyto/chemokines at both healthy and diseased periodontal sites in favour of a proinflammatory profile, which may partially explain the greater susceptibility of diabetic subjects to periodontal breakdown.
Physicochemical Characteristics of Cereal Extrudates with Different Levels of Defatted Blackcurrant Seeds
Authors: Gumul Dorota , Ziobro Rafał , Zięba Tomasz , Rój Edward
Published: November 2013

The aim of this study was to determine the effects of different proportions of defatted blackcurrant seeds on the nonstarch polysaccharide, sugar, starch and vitamin C content and the basic physical properties of cereal extrudates. The analyzed extrudates were based on cornmeal, which was partly replaced with blackcurrant seeds in proportions of 10, 30 and 50%. It was observed that the addition of seeds caused elevation in fiber and hemicelluloses compared with the control; the beta‐glucan content in all analyzed samples was negligible. The vitamin C content in extrudates with seeds was several times higher, but the amount of starch decreased and the level of sugar increased in comparison with control. Extrudates with seeds added were characterized by higher water‐binding capacity and solubility in comparison with a control (with the exception of that with 50% seeds). It was shown that the addition of seeds increased the density and reduced the expansion of extrudates.

Practical Applications

The physicochemical characteristics of cereal extrudates were highly dependent on the proportion of defatted blackcurrant seeds. The study showed a correlation between the physical parameters and the chemical composition of the snacks. The addition of defatted blackcurrant seeds to cereal snacks to a proportion of 10% resulted in a product with high expansion, low density, good solubility and water‐binding properties, and enhanced levels of pro‐health components.
Comparative Antibacterial Activity of Tryptic‐Hydrolyzed Palm Kernel Cake Proteins of Different Degrees of Hydrolysis
Authors: Tan Yen Nee , Ayob Mohd Khan , Matthews Karl R.
Published: November 2013

Protein from palm kernel cake (PKC), a feed ingredient for ruminants, was extracted, hydrolyzed with trypsin and tested for its antibacterial properties. PKC hydrolysates of different degrees of hydrolysis (DH%, 60–100) were prepared using trypsin. The hydrolysis conditions were suggested by mathematical models obtained using response surface methodology with two‐level factorial design and central composite rotatable design. The PKC hydrolysates of different DH% were compared for their antibacterial properties. PKC hydrolysates with DH% of 80, 90 and 100 showed the greatest antibacterial efficacy against Bacillus cereus, B. coagulans, B. pumilus, B. stearothermophilus, B. subtilis, B. thuringiensis and Listeria monocytogenes compared with PKC hydrolysates of other DH%, with no significant difference among bacteria (P > 0.05). This result suggests that greater antibacterial activity was proportionately related to higher DH%.

Practical Applications

Remarkably, an antibacterial protein product was successfully prepared from palm kernel cake (PKC), an oil palm milling waste that is commonly used as an animal feed ingredient. This encouraging finding widens the prospects for the usage of PKC and simultaneously provides a new means of income, but, most importantly, can help fulfill the environmental conservation commitment of Malaysia, the leading producer of palm oil. This study suggests that the PKC protein product may be suitable for application in the food or pharmaceutical industry as an antimicrobial agent.
Executive function in children with intellectual disability – the effects of sex, level and aetiology of intellectual disability
Authors: Memisevic H. , Sinanovic O.
Published: November 2013

Background

Executive function is very important in the children's overall development. The goal of this study was to assess the executive function in children with intellectual disability (ID) through the use of the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF) teacher version. An additional goal was to examine the differences in executive function in relation to child's sex, level and aetiology of ID.

Method

The sample consisted of 90 children with ID attending two special education schools in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina. There were 42 children with mild ID and 48 children with moderate ID. Of those, 54 were boys and 36 were girls. Children were classified into three etiological categories: 30 children with Down syndrome, 30 children with other genetic cause or organic brain injury and 30 children with unknown aetiology of ID. Special education teachers, who knew the children for at least 6 months filled the BRIEF.

Results

Children with ID had a significant deficit in executive function as measured by the BRIEF. There were no statistically significant differences in executive function in relation to the child's sex. Level of ID had a significant effect on executive function. In relation to the aetiology of ID, the only significant difference was on the Shift scale of the BRIEF.

Conclusions

Knowing what executive function is most impaired in children with ID will help professionals design better intervention strategies. More attention needs to be given to the assessment of executive function and its subsequent intervention in the school settings.
The medical use of oxygen: a time for critical reappraisal
Authors: Sjöberg F. , Singer M.
Published: November 2013

Oxygen treatment has been a cornerstone of acute medical care for numerous pathological states. Initially, this was supported by the assumed need to avoid hypoxaemia and tissue hypoxia. Most acute treatment algorithms, therefore, recommended the liberal use of a high fraction of inspired oxygen, often without first confirming the presence of a hypoxic insult. However, recent physiological research has underlined the vasoconstrictor effects of hyperoxia on normal vasculature and, consequently, the risk of significant blood flow reduction to the at‐risk tissue. Positive effects may be claimed simply by relief of an assumed local tissue hypoxia, such as in acute cardiovascular disease, brain ischaemia due to, for example, stroke or shock or carbon monoxide intoxication. However, in most situations, a generalized hypoxia is not the problem and a risk of negative hyperoxaemia‐induced local vasoconstriction effects may instead be the reality. In preclinical studies, many important positive anti‐inflammatory effects of both normobaric and hyperbaric oxygen have been repeatedly shown, often as surrogate end‐points such as increases in gluthatione levels, reduced lipid peroxidation and neutrophil activation thus modifying ischaemia–reperfusion injury and also causing anti‐apoptotic effects. However, in parallel, toxic effects of oxygen are also well known, including induced mucosal inflammation, pneumonitis and retrolental fibroplasia. Examining the available ‘strong’ clinical evidence, such as usually claimed for randomized controlled trials, few positive studies stand up to scrutiny and a number of trials have shown no effect or even been terminated early due to worse outcomes in the oxygen treatment arm. Recently, this has led to less aggressive approaches, even to not providing any supplemental oxygen, in several acute care settings, such as resuscitation of asphyxiated newborns, during acute myocardial infarction or after stroke or cardiac arrest. The safety of more advanced attempts to deliver increased oxygen levels to hypoxic or ischaemic tissues, such as with hyperbaric oxygen therapy, is therefore also being questioned. Here, we provide an overview of the present knowledge of the physiological effects of oxygen in relation to its therapeutic potential for different medical conditions, as well as considering the potential for harm. We conclude that the medical use of oxygen needs to be further examined in search of solid evidence of benefit in many of the current clinical settings in which it is routinely used.
Effect of storage on the dissolution rate of a fast-dissolving perphenazine/β-cyclodextrin complex
Authors: Turunen Elina , Korhonen Ossi , Lehto Vesa-Pekka , Kauppinen Ari , Ahtiainen Hanne , Järvinen Kristiina , Jarho Pekka
Published: November 2013

Objective

In general, the chemical and physical stability of amorphous cyclodextrin complexes and how storage affects their dissolution rate have not been widely reported. The aim of this study was to evaluate the solid-state stability of a fast-dissolving perphenazine/β-cyclodextrin (β-CD) complex, which has been found to be well absorbed after sublingual administration to rabbits. In addition, the dissolution rate of plain β-CD in crystalline and amorphous forms was determined.

Methods

The amorphous perphenazine/β-CD complex powders were prepared by spray-drying and freeze-drying, and their stability was examined after storage at 40°C, 75% relative humidity (RH) or at room temperature, 60% RH for up to 82 days.

Key findings

Perphenazine was found to be chemically stable in all samples. The dissolution rate of perphenazine remained practically unchanged at both storage conditions, although partial crystallization was observed in both spray-dried and freeze-dried samples at 40°C, 75% RH. Interestingly, it was also observed that the dissolution rates of crystalline and amorphous β-CD were similar.

Conclusion

The results suggest that CD complexation may represent a suitable alternative for preparing intraorally dissolving formulations because the fast dissolution rate of the drug was maintained even though changes in the crystal structure were observed during storage.
Noninvasive detection of face perception characteristics in children with autism spectrum disorders
Authors: Gunji Atsuko , Inagaki Masumi
Published: November 2013

Children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) have delayed or deviant social interaction and communication skills. Recent neuroimaging studies have corroborated unique behaviors and patterns of facial information processing in children with ASD, such as less attention toward faces, atypical gaze pattern and face inversion effect, and difficulty in understanding facial expressions and identification of faces. The findings suggest that these specific face recognition characteristics are the result of detail‐focused processing and/or a distinctive cognitive style in dealing with visual inputs. This paper reviews our recent work evaluating social perception of faces using noninvasive neuroimaging techniques in children with ASD.
Visual Culture and the Fight for Visibility
Authors: Schroer Markus
Published: November 2013

The article explores the relationship between visual culture and the fight for visibility and attention in contemporary society. It draws on a concept of visual culture which not only sees the rising significance of the visual and the proliferation of images as its defining traits, but also the fact that, today, people are—to a much higher degree—both consumers as well as producers of images. Based on this definition, it is argued that in visually oriented communication and media societies, the anthropologically fundamental need for attention manifests itself as a fight for visibility which takes on the form of ever more extreme forms of public self‐display. Furthermore, a portrait of two social figures—the star and the voyeur—will serve as further analysis and description of the social trends which can be tied to the emergence of today's visual culture. The article will close by discussing attention and visibility in terms of inclusion and exclusion and by proposing an analytical model for differentiating four modes of existence in a visual culture.
Pre‐release expectations and post‐release experiences of prisoners and their (ex‐)partners
Authors: Souza Karen A. , Lösel Friedrich , Markson Lucy , Lanskey Caroline
Published: November 2013

Purpose

This study compared prisoners’ and their (ex‐)partners’ forecasts and actual experiences of life after prison. The aims were to: (1) assess prisoners’ self‐expectancies of problems and actual resettlement experiences; (2) compare prisoners’ post‐release expectations and experiences to their partners’ forecasts and valuations of these outcomes; (3) examine whether pre‐prison factors have an effect on each partners’ outlook of the future; (4) examine the predictive utility of each partners’ expectations on the men's post‐release outcomes; and (5) explore a range of resettlement issues which may play a vital role in pathways for reducing reoffending (i.e., family relationships, accommodation, finances, employment, alcohol use, and drug use).

Method

We employed a prospective longitudinal design and used semi‐structured interviews to gather quantitative and qualitative data from 39 male prisoners in England and their respective (ex‐)partners.

Results

The couples showed relatively strong agreement on the men's post‐release difficulties compared to their earlier predictions; however, there was some variation in the ‘realism’ and ‘optimism’ of their outlooks. Their expectations were partially based on pre‐prison factors: higher frequencies of pre‐prison problems were positively associated with anticipated difficulties post‐release. Pre‐release expectations significantly predicted the men's post‐release difficulties with substance use and relationship factors.

Conclusion

Overall, our findings lend support to a dual hypothesis on the function of prisoners’ cognitions of future resettlement. On one hand, a ‘realistic view’ is important in recognizing when one is at risk for adversity. On the other hand, a ‘positive mindset’ has been associated with active coping and positive outcomes (e.g., desistance). The findings also underscore the importance of a holistic, family perspective in release and resettlement planning, and highlight key areas for targeted service delivery to promote successful desistance.