bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Charge-ordering-induced polar domains and domain walls in a bilayered manganite Pr(Sr0.15Ca0.85)2Mn2O7
Authors: Itoh H. , Tokunaga Y. , Kida N. , Shimano R. , Tokura Y.
Published: January 2010

We have observed charge-ordering-induced polar domains and domain walls (DWs) in a bilayered manganite Pr(Sr0.15Ca0.85)2Mn2O7 using second-harmonic-generation microscopy. Around the transition temperature TC∼306 K, a nucleation process of the domains with spontaneous polarization is clearly observed. Well below TC, the characteristic band-shaped dark patterns are identified in the second-harmonic images. On the analogy of the nucleation feature, they can be assigned to the DWs separating antiparallel polar domains. The anisotropy in the DW is governed by the geometrical constraint of the charge and orbital ordering, not by the electrostatic stability as in conventional ferroelectric DWs.
Mode locking of ceramic Nd:yttrium aluminum garnet with graphene as a saturable absorber
Authors: Tan W. D. , Su C. Y. , Knize R. J. , Xie G. Q. , Li L. J. , Tang D. Y.
Published: January 2010

The mode-locking of a ceramic Nd:yttrium aluminum garnet (YAG) solid-state laser (SSL) with solution processed graphene as saturable absorber (SA) was demonstrated. Transform-limited pulses with duration of 4 ps centered at 1064 nm were generated for a nondispersion compensated Nd:YAG SSL. Z-scan studies revealed that the graphene SA has a saturation intensity of 0.87 M W cm−2 and a normalized modulation depth of 17.4%. Our results illustrate the potential of using graphene as a mode locker for SSLs.
Revisiting anomalous structures in liquid Ga
Authors: Tsai K. H. , Wu Ten-Ming , Tsay Shiow-Fon
Published: January 2010

In terms of an interatomic pair potential, which well characterizes the dynamic properties of liquid Ga, we investigate again the origin of the well known high-q shoulder in the static structure factor of the liquid. Similar to the results of Gong’s simulation at high temperature, dimers with extremely short bond lengths are indeed found in our model just above the melting point, but our results indicate that it is unlikely for the high-q shoulder to be produced by these dimers. Instead, based on our model, the high-q shoulder is resulted from some medium-range order, which is related to the structures beyond the first shell of the radial distribution function, caused by Friedel oscillations within a nanoscale range.
Communications: Accurate description of atoms and molecules by natural orbital functional theory
Authors: Piris M. , Matxain J. M. , Lopez X. , Ugalde J. M.
Published: January 2010

The spin-conserving density matrix functional theory is used to propose an improved natural orbital functional. The Piris reconstruction functional, PNOF, which is based on an explicit form of the two-particle cumulant λ(Δ,Λ) satisfying necessary positivity conditions for the two-particle reduced density matrix, is used to reconstruct the latter. A new approach Λ(3), as well as an extension of the known Δαβ to spin-uncompensated systems lead to PNOF3. The theory is applied to the calculation of the total energies of the first- and second-row atoms (H–Ne) and a number of selected small molecules. The energy differences between the ground state and the lowest-lying excited state with different spin for these atoms, and the atomization energies of the considered molecules are also presented. The obtained values agree remarkably well with their corresponding both CCSD(T, full) and experimental values.
Human stem cell delivery for treatment of large segmental bone defects
Authors: Dupont Kenneth M. , Sharma Kapil , Stevens Hazel Y. , Boerckel Joel D. , García Andrés J. , Guldberg Robert E.
Published: January 2010

Local or systemic stem cell delivery has the potential to promote repair of a variety of damaged or degenerated tissues. Although various stem cell sources have been investigated for bone repair, few comparative reports exist, and cellular distribution and viability postimplantation remain key issues. In this study, we quantified the ability of tissue-engineered constructs containing either human fetal or adult stem cells to enhance functional repair of nude rat critically sized femoral defects. After 12 weeks, defects treated with cell-seeded polymer scaffolds had significantly higher bone ingrowth and torsional strength compared to those receiving acellular scaffolds, although there were no significant differences between the cell sources. Next, stem cells were labeled with fluorescent quantum dots (QDs) in an attempt to noninvasively track their distribution after delivery on scaffolds. Clear fluorescence was observed at implantation sites throughout the study; however, beginning 7–10 days after surgery, signals were also observed at contralateral sites treated with acellular QD-free scaffolds. Although immunostaining for human nuclei revealed retention of some cells at the implantation site, no human cells were detected in the control limb defects. Additional histological analysis of implantation and control defect tissues revealed macrophages containing endocytosed QDs. Furthermore, QD-labeling appeared to diminish transplanted cell function resulting in reduced healing responses. In summary, augmentation of polymeric scaffolds with stem cells derived from fetal and adult tissues significantly enhanced healing of large segmental bone defects; however, QD labeling of stem cells eliminated the observed therapeutic effect and failed to conclusively track stem cell location long-term in vivo.
Genetic architecture of a complex trait and its implications for fitness and genome-wide association studies
Authors: Eyre-Walker Adam
Published: January 2010

A model is investigated in which mutations that affect a complex trait (e.g., heart disease) also affect fitness because the trait is a component of fitness or because the mutations have pleiotropic effects on fitness. The model predicts that the genetic variance, and hence the heritability, in the trait is contributed by mutations at low frequency in the population, unless the mean strength of selection of mutations that affect the trait is very small or weakly selected mutations tend to contribute disproportionately to the trait compared with strongly selected mutations. Furthermore, it is shown that each rare mutation tends to contribute more to the variance than each common mutation. These results may explain why most genome-wide association studies have failed to find associations that explain much of the variance. It is also shown that most of the variance in fitness contributed by new nonsynonymous mutations is caused by mutations at very low frequency in the population. This implies that most low-frequency SNPs, which are observed in current resequencing studies of, for example, 100 chromosomes, probably have little impact on the variance in fitness or traits. Finally, it is shown that the variance contributed by a category of mutations (e.g., coding or regulatory) depends largely upon the mean strength of selection; this has implications for understanding which types of mutations are likely to be responsible for the variance in fitness and inherited disease.
Resource limitation is a driver of local adaptation in mycorrhizal symbioses
Authors: Johnson Nancy Collins , Wilson Gail W. T. , Bowker Matthew A. , Wilson Jacqueline A. , Miller R. Michael
Published: January 2010

Symbioses may be important mechanisms of plant adaptation to their environment. We conducted a reciprocal inoculation experiment to test the hypothesis that soil fertility is a key driver of local adaptation in arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) symbioses. Ecotypes of
Andropogon gerardii
from phosphorus-limited and nitrogen-limited grasslands were grown with all possible “home and away” combinations of soils and AM fungal communities. Our results indicate that
Andropogon
ecotypes adapt to their local soil and indigenous AM fungal communities such that mycorrhizal exchange of the most limiting resource is maximized. Grasses grown in home soil and inoculated with home AM fungi produced more arbuscules (symbiotic exchange structures) in their roots than those grown in away combinations. Also, regardless of the host ecotype, AM fungi produced more extraradical hyphae in their home soil, and locally adapted AM fungi were, therefore, able to sequester more carbon compared with nonlocal fungi. Locally adapted mycorrhizal associations were more mutualistic in the two phosphorus-limited sites and less parasitic at the nitrogen-limited site compared with novel combinations of plants, fungi, and soils. To our knowledge, these findings provide the strongest evidence to date that resource availability generates evolved geographic structure in symbioses among plants and soil organisms. Thus, edaphic origin of AM fungi should be considered when managing for their benefits in agriculture, ecosystem restoration, and soil-carbon sequestration.
Political economy of marine reserves: Understanding the role of opportunity costs
Authors: Smith Martin D. , Lynham John , Sanchirico James N. , Wilson James A.
Published: January 2010

The creation of marine reserves is often controversial. For decisionmakers, trying to find compromises, an understanding of the timing, magnitude, and incidence of the costs of a reserve is critical. Understanding the costs, in turn, requires consideration of not just the direct financial costs but also the opportunity costs associated with reserves. We use a discrete choice model of commercial fishermen’s behavior to examine both the short-run and long-run opportunity costs of marine reserves. Our results can help policymakers recognize the factors influencing commercial fishermen’s responses to reserve proposals. More generally, we highlight the potential drivers behind the political economy of marine reserves.
Protein interactions and ligand binding: From protein subfamilies to functional specificity
Authors: Rausell Antonio , Juan David , Pazos Florencio , Valencia Alfonso
Published: January 2010

The divergence accumulated during the evolution of protein families translates into their internal organization as subfamilies, and it is directly reflected in the characteristic patterns of differentially conserved residues. These specifically conserved positions in protein subfamilies are known as “specificity determining positions” (SDPs). Previous studies have limited their analysis to the study of the relationship between these positions and ligand-binding specificity, demonstrating significant yet limited predictive capacity. We have systematically extended this observation to include the role of differential protein interactions in the segregation of protein subfamilies and explored in detail the structural distribution of SDPs at protein interfaces. Our results show the extensive influence of protein interactions in the evolution of protein families and the widespread association of SDPs with protein interfaces. The combined analysis of SDPs in interfaces and ligand-binding sites provides a more complete picture of the organization of protein families, constituting the necessary framework for a large scale analysis of the evolution of protein function.
Crystal structure of the DNA-recognition component of the bacterial virus Sf6 genome-packaging machine
Authors: Zhao Haiyan , Finch Casey J. , Sequeira Reuben D. , Johnson Brian A. , Johnson John E. , Casjens Sherwood R. , Tang Liang
Published: January 2010

In herpesviruses and many bacterial viruses, genome-packaging is a precisely mediated process fulfilled by a virally encoded molecular machine called terminase that consists of two protein components: A DNA-recognition component that defines the specificity for packaged DNA, and a catalytic component that provides energy for the packaging reaction by hydrolyzing ATP. The terminase docks onto the portal protein complex embedded in a single vertex of a preformed viral protein shell called procapsid, and pumps the viral DNA into the procapsid through a conduit formed by the portal. Here we report the 1.65 Å resolution structure of the DNA-recognition component gp1 of the
Shigella
bacteriophage Sf6 genome-packaging machine. The structure reveals a ring-like octamer formed by interweaved protein monomers with a highly extended fold, embracing a tunnel through which DNA may be translocated. The N-terminal DNA-binding domains form the peripheral appendages surrounding the octamer. The central domain contributes to oligomerization through interactions of bundled helices. The C-terminal domain forms a barrel with parallel beta-strands. The structure reveals a common scheme for oligomerization of terminase DNA-recognition components, and provides insights into the role of gp1 in formation of the packaging-competent terminase complex and assembly of the terminase with the portal, in which ring-like protein oligomers stack together to form a continuous channel for viral DNA translocation.
MicroRNA
let-7b
regulates neural stem cell proliferation and differentiation by targeting nuclear receptor TLX signaling
Authors: Zhao Chunnian , Sun GuoQiang , Li Shengxiu , Lang Ming-Fei , Yang Su , Li Wendong , Shi Yanhong
Published: January 2010

Neural stem cell self-renewal and differentiation is orchestrated by precise control of gene expression involving nuclear receptor TLX.
Let-7b
, a member of the
let-7
microRNA family, is expressed in mammalian brains and exhibits increased expression during neural differentiation. However, the role of
let-7b
in neural stem cell proliferation and differentiation remains unknown. Here we show that
let-7b
regulates neural stem cell proliferation and differentiation by targeting the stem cell regulator TLX and the cell cycle regulator
cyclin D1
. Overexpression of
let-7b
led to reduced neural stem cell proliferation and increased neural differentiation, whereas antisense knockdown of
let-7b
resulted in enhanced proliferation of neural stem cells. Moreover,
in utero
electroporation of
let-7b
to embryonic mouse brains led to reduced cell cycle progression in neural stem cells. Introducing an expression vector of
Tlx
or cyclin D1 that lacks the
let-7b
recognition site rescued
let-7b
-induced proliferation deficiency, suggesting that both TLX and cyclin D1 are important targets for
let-7b
-mediated regulation of neural stem cell proliferation.
Let-7b
, by targeting TLX and cyclin D1, establishes an efficient strategy to control neural stem cell proliferation and differentiation.
Mobile elements reveal small population size in the ancient ancestors of
Homo sapiens
Authors: Huff Chad D. , Xing Jinchuan , Rogers Alan R. , Witherspoon David , Jorde Lynn B.
Published: January 2010

The genealogies of different genetic loci vary in depth. The deeper the genealogy, the greater the chance that it will include a rare event, such as the insertion of a mobile element. Therefore, the genealogy of a region that contains a mobile element is on average older than that of the rest of the genome. In a simple demographic model, the expected time to most recent common ancestor (TMRCA) is doubled if a rare insertion is present. We test this expectation by examining single nucleotide polymorphisms around polymorphic
Alu
insertions from two completely sequenced human genomes. The estimated TMRCA for regions containing a polymorphic insertion is two times larger than the genomic average (
P
< <10
−30
), as predicted. Because genealogies that contain polymorphic mobile elements are old, they are shaped largely by the forces of ancient population history and are insensitive to recent demographic events, such as bottlenecks and expansions. Remarkably, the information in just two human DNA sequences provides substantial information about ancient human population size. By comparing the likelihood of various demographic models, we estimate that the effective population size of human ancestors living before 1.2 million years ago was 18,500, and we can reject all models where the ancient effective population size was larger than 26,000. This result implies an unusually small population for a species spread across the entire Old World, particularly in light of the effective population sizes of chimpanzees (21,000) and gorillas (25,000), which each inhabit only one part of a single continent.
IL-2/anti-IL-2 antibody complexes show strong biological activity by avoiding interaction with IL-2 receptor α subunit CD25
Authors: Létourneau Sven , van Leeuwen Ester M. M. , Krieg Carsten , Martin Chris , Pantaleo Giuseppe , Sprent Jonathan , Surh Charles D. , Boyman Onur
Published: January 2010

IL-2 is crucial to T cell homeostasis, especially of CD4+T regulatory cells and memory CD8+cells, as evidenced by vigorous proliferation of these cells in vivo following injections of superagonist IL-2/anti-IL-2 antibody complexes. The mechanism of IL-2/anti-IL-2 antibody complexes is unknown owing to a lack of understanding of IL-2 homeostasis. We show that IL-2 receptor α (CD25) plays a crucial role in IL-2 homeostasis. Thus, prolongation of IL-2 half-life and blocking of CD25 using antibodies or CD25-deficient mice led in combination, but not alone, to vigorous IL-2–mediated T cell proliferation, similar to IL-2/anti-IL-2 antibody complexes. These data suggest an unpredicted role for CD25 in IL-2 homeostasis.
Functional reciprocity between Na
+
channel Na
v
1.6 and β1 subunits in the coordinated regulation of excitability and neurite outgrowth
Authors: Brackenbury William J. , Calhoun Jeffrey D. , Chen Chunling , Miyazaki Haruko , Nukina Nobuyuki , Oyama Fumitaka , Ranscht Barbara , Isom Lori L.
Published: January 2010

Voltage-gated Na
+
channel (VGSC) β1 subunits regulate cell–cell adhesion and channel activity in vitro. We previously showed that β1 promotes neurite outgrowth in cerebellar granule neurons (CGNs) via homophilic cell adhesion, fyn kinase, and contactin. Here we demonstrate that β1-mediated neurite outgrowth requires Na
+
current (I
Na
) mediated by Na
v
1.6. In addition, β1 is required for high-frequency action potential firing. Transient I
Na
is unchanged in
Scn1b
(β1) null CGNs; however, the resurgent I
Na
, thought to underlie high-frequency firing in Na
v
1.6-expressing cerebellar neurons, is reduced. The proportion of axon initial segments (AIS) expressing Na
v
1.6 is reduced in
Scn1b
null cerebellar neurons. In place of Na
v
1.6 at the AIS, we observed an increase in Na
v
1.1, whereas Na
v
1.2 was unchanged. This indicates that β1 is required for normal localization of Na
v
1.6 at the AIS during the postnatal developmental switch to Na
v
1.6-mediated high-frequency firing. In agreement with this, β1 is normally expressed with α subunits at the AIS of P14 CGNs. We propose reciprocity of function between β1 and Na
v
1.6 such that β1-mediated neurite outgrowth requires Na
v
1.6-mediated I
Na
, and Na
v
1.6 localization and consequent high-frequency firing require β1. We conclude that VGSC subunits function in macromolecular signaling complexes regulating both neuronal excitability and migration during cerebellar development.
Genetic control over the resting brain
Authors: Glahn D. C. , Winkler A. M. , Kochunov P. , Almasy L. , Duggirala R. , Carless M. A. , Curran J. C. , Olvera R. L. , Laird A. R. , Smith S. M. , Beckmann C. F. , Fox P. T. , Blangero J.
Published: January 2010

The default-mode network, a coherent resting-state brain network, is thought to characterize basal neural activity. Aberrant default-mode connectivity has been reported in a host of neurological and psychiatric illnesses and in persons at genetic risk for such illnesses. Whereas the neurophysiologic mechanisms that regulate default-mode connectivity are unclear, there is growing evidence that genetic factors play a role. In this report, we estimate the importance of genetic effects on the default-mode network by examining covariation patterns in functional connectivity among 333 individuals from 29 randomly selected extended pedigrees. Heritability for default-mode functional connectivity was 0.424 ± 0.17 (
P
= 0.0046). Although neuroanatomic variation in this network was also heritable, the genetic factors that influence default-mode functional connectivity and gray-matter density seem to be distinct, suggesting that unique genes influence the structure and function of the network. In contrast, significant genetic correlations between regions within the network provide evidence that the same genetic factors contribute to variation in functional connectivity throughout the default mode. Specifically, the left parahippocampal region was genetically correlated with all other network regions. In addition, the posterior cingulate/precuneus region, medial prefrontal cortex, and right cerebellum seem to form a subnetwork. Default-mode functional connectivity is influenced by genetic factors that cannot be attributed to anatomic variation or a single region within the network. By establishing the heritability of default-mode functional connectivity, this experiment provides the obligatory evidence required before these measures can be considered as endophenotypes for psychiatric or neurological illnesses or to identify genes influencing intrinsic brain function.
Cocaine effects on mouse incentive-learning and human addiction are linked to α2 subunit-containing GABA
A
receptors
Authors: Dixon Claire I. , Morris Hannah V. , Breen Gerome , Desrivieres Sylvane , Jugurnauth Sarah , Steiner Rebecca C. , Vallada Homero , Guindalini Camila , Laranjeira Ronaldo , Messas Guilherme , Rosahl Thomas W. , Atack John R. , Peden Dianne R. , Belelli Delia , Lambert Jeremy J. , King Sarah L. , Schumann Gunter , Stephens David N.
Published: January 2010

Because GABA
A
receptors containing α2 subunits are highly represented in areas of the brain, such as nucleus accumbens (NAcc), frontal cortex, and amygdala, regions intimately involved in signaling motivation and reward, we hypothesized that manipulations of this receptor subtype would influence processing of rewards. Voltage-clamp recordings from NAcc medium spiny neurons of mice with α2 gene deletion showed reduced synaptic GABA
A
receptor-mediated responses. Behaviorally, the deletion abolished cocaine’s ability to potentiate behaviors conditioned to rewards (conditioned reinforcement), and to support behavioral sensitization. In mice with a point mutation in the benzodiazepine binding pocket of α2-GABA
A
receptors (α2H101R), GABAergic neurotransmission in medium spiny neurons was identical to that of WT (i.e., the mutation was silent), but importantly, receptor function was now facilitated by the atypical benzodiazepine Ro 15-4513 (ethyl 8-amido-5,6-dihydro-5-methyl-6-oxo-4H-imidazo [1,5-a] [1,4] benzodiazepine-3-carboxylate). In α2H101R, but not WT mice, Ro 15-4513 administered directly into the NAcc-stimulated locomotor activity, and when given systemically and repeatedly, induced behavioral sensitization. These data indicate that activation of α2−GABA
A
receptors (most likely in NAcc) is both necessary and sufficient for behavioral sensitization. Consistent with a role of these receptors in addiction, we found specific markers and haplotypes of the
GABRA2
gene to be associated with human cocaine addiction.
Methionine oxidation induces amyloid fibril formation by full-length apolipoprotein A-I
Authors: Wong Yuan Qi , Binger Katrina J. , Howlett Geoffrey J. , Griffin Michael D. W.
Published: January 2010

Apolipoprotein A-I (apoA-I) is the major protein component of HDL, where it plays an important role in cholesterol transport. The deposition of apoA-I derived amyloid is associated with various hereditary systemic amyloidoses and atherosclerosis; however, very little is known about the mechanism of apoA-I amyloid formation. Methionine residues in apoA-I are oxidized via several mechanisms in vivo to form methionine sulfoxide (MetO), and significant levels of methionine oxidized apoA-I (MetO-apoA-I) are present in normal human serum. We investigated the effect of methionine oxidation on the structure, stability, and aggregation of full-length, lipid-free apoA-I. Circular dichrosim spectroscopy showed that oxidation of all three methionine residues in apoA-I caused partial unfolding of the protein and decreased its thermal stability, reducing the melting temperature (
T

m

) from 58.7 °C for native apoA-I to 48.2 °C for MetO-apoA-I. Analytical ultracentrifugation revealed that methionine oxidation inhibited the native self association of apoA-I to form dimers and tetramers. Incubation of MetO-apoA-I for extended periods resulted in aggregation of the protein, and these aggregates bound Thioflavin T and Congo Red. Inspection of the aggregates by electron microscopy revealed fibrillar structures with a ribbon-like morphology, widths of approximately 11 nm, and lengths of up to several microns. X-ray fibre diffraction studies of the fibrils revealed a diffraction pattern with orthogonal peaks at spacings of 4.64 Å and 9.92 Å, indicating a cross-β amyloid structure. This systematic study of fibril formation by full-length apoA-I represents the first demonstration that methionine oxidation can induce amyloid fibril formation.
Structural insights into phosphoinositide 3-kinase activation by the influenza A virus NS1 protein
Authors: Hale Benjamin G. , Kerry Philip S. , Jackson David , Precious Bernard L. , Gray Alexander , Killip Marian J. , Randall Richard E. , Russell Rupert J.
Published: January 2010

Seasonal epidemics and periodic worldwide pandemics caused by influenza A viruses are of continuous concern. The viral nonstructural (NS1) protein is a multifunctional virulence factor that antagonizes several host innate immune defenses during infection. NS1 also directly stimulates class IA phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) signaling, an essential cell survival pathway commonly mutated in human cancers. Here, we present a 2.3-Å resolution crystal structure of the NS1 effector domain in complex with the inter-SH2 (coiled-coil) domain of p85β, a regulatory subunit of PI3K. Our data emphasize the remarkable isoform specificity of this interaction, and provide insights into the mechanism by which NS1 activates the PI3K (p85β:p110) holoenzyme. A model of the NS1:PI3K heterotrimeric complex reveals that NS1 uses the coiled-coil as a structural tether to sterically prevent normal inhibitory contacts between the N-terminal SH2 domain of p85β and the p110 catalytic subunit. Furthermore, in this model, NS1 makes extensive contacts with the C2/kinase domains of p110, and a small acidic α-helix of NS1 sits adjacent to the highly basic activation loop of the enzyme. During infection, a recombinant influenza A virus expressing NS1 with charge-disruption mutations in this acidic α-helix is unable to stimulate the production of phosphatidylinositol 3,4,5-trisphosphate or the phosphorylation of Akt. Despite this, the charge-disruption mutations in NS1 do not affect its ability to interact with the p85β inter-SH2 domain in vitro. Overall, these data suggest that both direct binding of NS1 to p85β (resulting in repositioning of the N-terminal SH2 domain) and possible NS1:p110 contacts contribute to PI3K activation.
African great apes are natural hosts of multiple related malaria species, including
Plasmodium falciparum
Authors: Prugnolle Franck , Durand Patrick , Neel Cécile , Ollomo Benjamin , Ayala Francisco J. , Arnathau Céline , Etienne Lucie , Mpoudi-Ngole Eitel , Nkoghe Dieudonné , Leroy Eric , Delaporte Eric , Peeters Martine , Renaud François
Published: January 2010

Plasmodium reichenowi
, a chimpanzee parasite, was until very recently the only known close relative of
Plasmodium falciparum
, the most virulent agent of human malaria. Recently,
Plasmodium gaboni
, another closely related chimpanzee parasite, was discovered, suggesting that the diversity of
Plasmodium
circulating in great apes in Africa might have been underestimated. It was also recently shown that
P. reichenowi
is a geographically widespread and genetically diverse chimpanzee parasite and that the world diversity of
P. falciparum
is fully included within the much broader genetic diversity of
P. reichenowi
. The evidence indicates that all extant populations of
P. falciparum
originated from
P. reichenowi
, likely by a single transfer from chimpanzees. In this work, we have studied the diversity of
Plasmodium
species infecting chimpanzees and gorillas in Central Africa (Cameroon and Gabon) from both wild-living and captive animals. The studies in wild apes used noninvasive sampling methods. We confirm the presence of
P. reichenowi
and
P. gaboni
in wild chimpanzees. Moreover, our results reveal the existence of an unexpected genetic diversity of
Plasmodium
lineages circulating in gorillas. We show that gorillas are naturally infected by two related lineages of parasites that have not been described previously, herein referred to as
Plasmodium GorA
and
P. GorB
, but also by
P. falciparum
, a species previously considered as strictly human specific. The continuously increasing contacts between humans and primate populations raise concerns about further reciprocal host transfers of these pathogens.
An impossibility theorem for price-adjustment mechanisms
Authors: Papadimitriou Christos H. , Yannakakis Mihalis
Published: January 2010

We show that there is no discrete-time price-adjustment mechanism (any process that at each period looks at the history of prices and excess demands and updates the prices) such that for any market (a set of goods and consumers with endowments and strictly concave utilities) the price-adjustment mechanism will achieve excess demands that are at most an
ϵ
fraction of the total supply within a number of periods that is polynomial in the number of goods and

. This holds even if one restricts markets so that excess demand functions are differentiable with derivatives bounded by a small constant. For the convergence time to the actual price equilibrium, we show by a different method a stronger result: Even in the case of three goods with a unique price equilibrium, there is no function of
ϵ
that bounds the number of periods needed by a price-adjustment mechanism to arrive at a set of prices that is
ϵ
-close to the equilibrium.
SHEA Guideline for Management of Healthcare Workers Who Are Infected with Hepatitis B Virus, Hepatitis C Virus, and/or Human Immunodeficiency Virus
Authors: Henderson David K. , Dembry Louise , Fishman Neil O. , Grady Christine , Lundstrom Tammy , Palmore Tara N. , Sepkowitz Kent A. , Weber David J. ,   Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America
Published: January 2010

This guideline provides the updated recommendations of the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America (SHEA) regarding the management of healthcare providers who are infected with hepatitis B virus (HBV), hepatitis C virus (HCV), and/or the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). For the reasons cited in the guideline, SHEA continues to recommend that, although some aspects of the approach to and administrative management of each of these infectious syndromes in healthcare providers are similar, separate management strategies for healthcare workers who are infected with these unrelated viruses remain appropriate. As we did in both prior iterations of this document, SHEA emphasizes the use of appropriate infection control procedures to minimize exposure of patients or providers to blood, emphasizes that transfers of blood from patients to providers and from providers to patients should be avoided, and recommends that infected healthcare providers should not be totally prohibited from participating in patient-care activities solely on the basis of a bloodborne pathogen infection. The types of procedures assessed by the panel as associated with an increased risk for provider-to-patient transmission of these pathogens are discussed in detail. For each pathogen, recommendations are graduated according to the relative viral load level of the infected provider (Tables 1 and 2). However, SHEA emphasizes that, because of the complexity of these cases, each such case will be slightly different from the next, and each should be independently considered in context.
Systematic Review of Studies on Compliance with Hand Hygiene Guidelines in Hospital Care
Authors: Erasmus Vicki , Daha Thea J. , Brug Hans , Richardus Jan Hendrik , Behrendt Myra D. , Vos Margreet C. , van Beeck Ed F.
Published: January 2010

Objectives.

To assess the prevalence and correlates of compliance and noncompliance with hand hygiene guidelines in hospital care.

Design.

A systematic review of studies published before January 1, 2009, on observed or self-reported compliance rates.

Methods.

Articles on empirical studies written in English and conducted on general patient populations in industrialized countries were included. The results were grouped by type of healthcare worker before and after patient contact. Correlates contributing to compliance were grouped and listed.

Results.

We included 96 empirical studies, the majority (n= 65) in intensive care units. In general, the study methods were not very robust and often ill reported. We found an overall median compliance rate of 40%. Unadjusted compliance rates were lower in intensive care units (30%–40%) than in other settings (50%–60%), lower among physicians (32%) than among nurses (48%), and before (21%) rather than after (47%) patient contact. The majority of the time, the situations that were associated with a lower compliance rate were those with a high activity level and/or those in which a physician was involved. The majority of the time, the situations that were associated with a higher compliance rate were those having to do with dirty tasks, the introduction of alcohol-based hand rub or gel, performance feedback, and accessibility of materials. A minority of studies (n= 12) have investigated the behavioral determinants of hand hygiene, of which only 7 report the use of a theoretical framework with inconclusive results.

Conclusions.

Noncompliance with hand hygiene guidelines is a universal problem, which calls for standardized measures for research and monitoring. Theoretical models from the behavioral sciences should be used internationally and should be adapted to better explain the complexities of hand hygiene.
Risk Factors for Subsequent Diagnosis of Prosthetic Joint Infection
Authors: Aslam Saima , Reitman Charles , Darouiche Rabih O.
Published: January 2010

The factors associated with prosthetic joint infection for 126 patients in a case-control study were as follows: bacteremia during the previous year (odds ratio [OR], 4.25 [95% confidence interval {CI}, 1.3–3.8]), nonsurgical trauma to the prosthetic joint (OR, 21.5 [95% CI, 2.6–175.2]), and surgical site infection (OR, 5.25 [95% CI, 1.7–16.7]).
Chapter 1 The Voice
Authors: Salzman Eric , Desi Thomas
Published: January 2010

This chapter discusses the close identification of language and music, song, and speech. It considers how singing styles and vocal techniques have evolved over the years with many new developments in the 20th and 21st centuries, many of them coming out of popular, folk, and experimental music; and the importance of the influence of the all-pervasive microphone (as “loudspeaker culture” edges out “acoustic culture”). It shows that non-operatic singing styles and the development of extended and experimental vocal techniques and styles are important features of new music theater.
Chapter 6 Visual Strategies
Authors: Salzman Eric , Desi Thomas
Published: January 2010

This chapter discusses the relatively recent appearance and developing role of the stage director and choreographer in opera and music theater; the increasing importance of image, light, design, and color to the point where they are equal to music, text, and physical movement; and new technology as a performance strategy.
Chapter 7 Space
Authors: Salzman Eric , Desi Thomas
Published: January 2010

This chapter considers the question of what constitutes a theater, and discusses time and space. It illustrates specific types of spatial arrangements for performers and audiences. Further discussion involves theater outside of conventional theaters including participatory theater, notions of “landscape” and “textscape”, movement in space, musical space, and the influence of new music-theater ideas in the opera.
Chapter 11 Théâtre Musical
Authors: Salzman Eric , Desi Thomas
Published: January 2010

This chapter discusses the history of the Avignon Festival and its emphasis on a director-driven music theater. Further topics in the evolution of music theater in France include the work of Xenakis, musique concrete, the music theater of Georges Aperghis, the work of Pascal Dusapin and Bernard Cavanna, and the importance of centers outside of Paris including Lyon, Quimper, and Québec.
In Dahomey
Authors: Carter Marva Griffin
Published: January 2010

This chapter discusses the début of the musical In Dahomey. It then examines how this musical, the performers, and its composer, gained praise and criticisms from various critics. It talks about the In Dahomey’s cast’s performance in London. It also narrates how Cook was prompted to compose the song “Swing Along” and how he insisted on presenting this song to the audience. It explains that much of In Dahomey’s favorable reception was because of the music and that its effect was tremendous. This chapter also tells of how the reviewers applauded Abbie Mitchell’s vocal talent. It highlights that Will Cook’s musical styles include a diverse range of pseudo-Africanisms, a nostalgic plantation song, tender ballads, waltzes, recitatives, and operatic ensembles. It adds that at 34, Cook was at the peak of his career.
The “Students” and The Stage
Authors: Carter Marva Griffin
Published: January 2010

This chapter talks about a musical ensemble known as the “Memphis Students”. It tells of how Cook stole the group away from their original organizer, took them on a European tour, and how their performances were praised. It narrates that In Abyssinia represented the most elaborate efforts to date of Jesse A. Shipp, Alex Rogers, Bert Williams, and Will Cook. It also discussed that Cook also composed and conducted stage shows at the Pekin Theater in Chicago. It shows that the theater encouraged many talented performers to become members of its Negro Stock Company and that it was also responsible for the early development of many singers and actors who later acquired national fame. It then tells of the end of the golden age of black musical comedies, brought by the death of Ernest Hogan, George Walker, and Bob Cole.
The CLEF Club, Darkydom, and World War I
Authors: Carter Marva Griffin
Published: January 2010

This chapter describes Will Cook’s social relationships with his publishers to his personal friends. It characterizes Cook as hot-tempered, and argumentative. It discusses that Will and Abbie got divorced in August 1908 as a result of countless marital difficulties, and settled custody of the children out of court. It tells of a famous group, under James Reese Europe, known as Clef Club, which probably evolved from the Memphis Students. It also describes Darkydom as being offensive to many black patrons. It discusses that the Europe-Castle team was dissolved during the World War I in 1917. Jim Europe joined the army but Cook continued to serve as its assistant conductor and chorus master. The chapter explains that Cook’s association with the Clef Club introduced him to many of the men who would become players in his next musical group, the New York Syncopated Orchestra.
The Southern Syncopated Orchestra
Authors: Carter Marva Griffin
Published: January 2010

This chapter describes the Southern Syncopated Orchestra as an all-black group originally composed of fifty formally attired men, with a few women, who played and sang a diverse repertoire of light classics, popular songs, ragtime, spirituals, and waltzes. It explains that the orchestra sought to encourage, preserve, and uplift African-American culture, and to help obliterate racial discrimination by modeling democratic ideals through instrumentation, personnel, and programming. It discusses that the majority of the music performed by the orchestra was written and arranged by Will Cook. It explains that the group’s original name New York Syncopated Orchestra was changed to American Southern Syncopated Orchestra during their trip to Europe. The orchestra was split into two groups due to internal turmoil brought by dishonesty.
Conservation with a Heart
Authors: Goldoftas Barbara
Published: January 2010

The National Integrated Protected Areas System (NIPAS), created in 1992, established protected areas that could have the twin goals of conservation and sustainable development. This chapter profiles one of the protected areas — Mount Kitanglad Natural Park — at the time considered a model conservation program and one which could use community-based resource management in order to conserve the mountain range's unusually rich biodiversity. This case study provides an example of the obstacles that conservation can face at the local level, and the need to develop sound livelihood programs with workable financial systems, which can broadly benefit the community.
Come What May: Bahala Na
Authors: Goldoftas Barbara
Published: January 2010

In Metropolitan Manila, environmental health is the next frontier of environmentalism. In this sprawling urban area in the 1990s, the growing population — including migrants from ecologically degraded provinces — added to the pressure on inadequate systems for water, sewerage, and power. One case study explores the Pasig River Rehabilitation Program, which had the goal of cleaning the city's main river for industrial use and recreation. Part of that program involved relocating thousands of squatters living along the river's banks, a controversial measure that had mixed results. A second case study explores the accomplishments and failings of the privatization of the water supply in Manila and the challenges of constructing sewerage facilities in a densely populated city. The chapter also analyzes how a country's elite can insulate itself from environmental decline.
Epilogue
Authors: Goldoftas Barbara
Published: January 2010

This final chapter argues that the trade-offs between ecological protection and growth, which marked economic development in countries that industrialized early should not be seen as a model for the rest of the world. Sustainable development is not a luxury; it is a sound development strategy. Some ecosystems, particularly in the tropics, are not resilient enough to recover from sustained degradation. Models of natural resource management developed in the Philippines have wide application in other countries; and in Manila, considerable progress has been made in improving environmental health. The chapter also argues that environmental projects can be an important part of development and the evolution of a relatively new democracy.
Japan: Confronting the Nanjing Massacre
Authors: Yoshida Takashi
Published: January 2010

This chapter analyzes the history and memory of the Nanjing Massacre in Japan from 1945 to 1971. The social and political reforms imposed by the American occupation deeply influenced Japanese awareness of the Nanjing atrocities. The atrocities became a subject of broad discussion in Japan once the occupation began.
Japan: A War over History and Memory
Authors: Yoshida Takashi
Published: January 2010

This chapter examines the history and memory of the Nanjing Massacre in Japan from 1989 to the present. The end of the Cold War, Hirohito's death, the loss of conservative dominance in politics, the more inclusive textbook descriptions of Japan's wartime atrocities, and the growing awareness of wartime devastations in Asia and the Pacific caused by Imperial Japan all combined to heighten the intensity of the disputes over the Nanjing Massacre.
Baroque Expression and Romantic Expression Compared
Authors: Haynes Bruce
Published: January 2010

It was only in the early 20th century that music historians rediscovered the importance of rhetoric as the basis of aesthetic and theoretical concepts in earlier music. An entire discipline that had once been the common property of every educated man has had to be rediscovered and reconstructed during the intervening decades, and only now is it beginning to be understood how much Western art music has depended on rhetorical concepts. What Windows is to computers, rhetoric was to Baroque and Renaissance musicians. And although it was applied to music from the outside, in a sense it would be more accurate to describe music as one form that rhetoric took. This chapter compares Baroque expression with Romantic expression in music, and discusses affection or meaning in music, Romantic vision of an absolute music, and the marginalisation of rhetoric in favor of beauty or aesthetics.
The Influence of Social Grouping
Authors: Marsh Kathryn
Published: January 2010

This chapter looks at the influence of social grouping on the oral transmission and generation of children's playground singing games in schools. In particular, the role of social grouping in shaping and changing tradition and the relationship between transmission and generation in musical play are considered and children's own teaching and learning processes are described. Playground singing games, particularly clapping games, are generally performed by pairs or small groups. Usually these groups are made up of friends from the same school grade. Friendship groups may function as a whole group for game performances, with, for example, six performers participating concurrently in a performance, most frequently in ring formation but sometimes in a line arrangement. Singing games can take place in any area and seem to occupy small spaces, both in terms of place and time in the lives of the children who play them.
Style and Cultural Idiosyncrasy in Musical Play
Authors: Marsh Kathryn
Published: January 2010

A number of musical, textual and movement characteristics of children's singing games appear to transcend cultural boundaries. This chapter discusses features of children's musical play that have been found in various school playgrounds and therefore could be seen to be more generally occurring, then examines some of the differences between play in those settings, and relates this to the contexts in which they are found. As is clearly evident from the previous chapters, one major stylistic feature of children's musical play is their disposition to “play around with” text, movement, melody, and rhythm of games in a constant effort to create something new, to increase the level of amusement, and stamp their own imprimatur on the games they play. This improvisatory capacity was enacted in playgrounds in all field locations, resulting in multiple variants of some game genres, such as “Sar Macka Dora”, both within and between playgrounds and across cultural boundaries.
The Early Works
Authors: Owen Barbara
Published: January 2010

This chapter discusses Brahms's early works. It suggests that by the time Brahms was beginning to feel some real mastery of counterpoint, he should have turned to the organ as a medium for three extensive works: the Prelude and Fugue in A Minor (WoO 8), the Fugue in A-flat Minor (WoO 0), and the Geistliches Lied (op. 30), which combines a sensitive setting of a Paul Flemming text with a masterful canonic melding of voices and organ.
Introduction
Authors: LAVEN DAVID
Published: January 2010

This introductory chapter places this work within the historiography of the Austrian domination of Venice and Venetia.
Making Good Subjects
Authors: LAVEN DAVID
Published: January 2010

This chapter focuses on public instruction, and the role of the Church. The Austrian administration sought to use the state school system to fashion the Venetian population into loyal subjects of the Emperor. At a higher level, the University of Padua was supposed to form elites, who could be integrated into the Habsburg machinery of government. Meanwhile, despite occasional tensions with the ecclesiastical hierarchy, good relations were cultivated with the Church as a means of winning the hearts of Venetians of all classes. Ultimately these policies largely misfired. Most poor Venetians still remained virtually untouched by the education system; Padua produced too many graduates to be accommodated by the bureaucracy, many of whom became hostile to the regime because of frustrated careerism; and priests played a key role in fomenting the unrest, which turned into insurrection in 1848.