bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Differential response of UCP3 to medium versus long chain triacylglycerols; manifestation of a functional adaptation
Authors: Hoeks Joris , Hesselink Matthijs K.C , van Bilsen Marc , Schaart Gert , van der Vusse Ger J , Saris Wim H.M , Schrauwen Patrick
Published: December 2003

We compared UCP3 protein in rat cardiac, glycolytic and oxidative skeletal muscle and examined the effect of high‐fat medium chain vs. long chain triacylglycerol feeding on UCP3 content in these tissues. Cardiac muscle displays the lowest basal levels of UCP3 protein. Increasing long chain – but not medium chain – fatty acid supply upregulates UCP3 in all muscles. Since plasma non‐esterified fatty acids and the expression of two peroxisome proliferator‐activated receptor (PPAR)‐responsive genes, were not different between groups, we conclude that the differential upregulation of UCP3 is not merely PPAR‐mediated. This study supports a role of UCP3 in export of non‐metabolizable fatty acids.
Comparative functional analysis of the Rac GTPases
Authors: Haeusler Lars Christian , Blumenstein Lars , Stege Patricia , Dvorsky Radovan , Ahmadian Mohammad Reza
Published: December 2003

Small GTPases of the Rho family including Rac, Rho and Cdc42 regulate different cellular processes like reorganization of the actin cytoskeleton by acting as molecular switches. The three distinct mammalian Rac proteins share very high sequence identity but how their specificity is achieved is hitherto unknown. Here we show that Rac1 and Rac3 are very closely related concerning their biochemical properties, such as effector interaction, nucleotide binding and hydrolysis. In contrast, Rac2 displays a slower nucleotide association and is more efficiently activated by the Rac‐GEF Tiam1. Modeling and normal mode analysis support the idea that altered dynamics of Rac2 at the switch I region may be responsible for different biochemical properties. These results provide insight into the individual functionalities of the Rac isoforms.
Recent developments in the analysis of protein complexes1
Authors: Dziembowski Andrzej , Séraphin Bertrand
Published: December 2003

The goal of this review is to analyse how recent technical developments contributed to the biochemical characterisation of protein complexes. Improvement of tags used for protein purification, including in our own laboratory, and the development of new strategies have allowed the use of generic procedures for the purification of a wide variety of protein complexes. Together with increased mass spectrometry sensitivity and automation, this made high throughput studies of protein complexes possible and allowed proteome‐wide analyses of protein complexes. However, knowledge of protein complex composition, even at the cellular level, will not be sufficient to understand their function. We suggest that the next level of analysis in this area will be the definition of internal subunit arrangement in complexes as a first step toward more detailed structural analyses.
Young male prisoners in a Young Offenders’ Institution: their contact with suicidal behaviour by others
Authors: Hales H , Davison S , Misch P , Taylor P.J
Published: December 2003

Prison suicide rates are increasing. The impact of witnessing a suicide or how many people do so is unknown. The aim of this study was to find how many young people detained in a Young Offenders’ Institution (YOI) have had contact with another's suicide attempt and to test for association between this and own self‐harming behaviour. A questionnaire, developed for the project, was distributed within a YOI. 74% (355/480) responded.

One hundred and fifty‐one (43%) of the young men reported that they knew someone who had attempted suicide, 48 of them knowing someone who had thereby died. The contact with a non‐fatal suicide attempted by others was associated with own self‐harm (OR 1.73, CI 1.39–21.4, p<0.01); contact with completed suicide had no such association. The most important factor that increased the chance of knowing a suicide attempter was actual length of time spent in prison up to the time of the study; 95 (63%) of the young men with such contact had it in prison. No other significant vulnerability factors were identified.

It seems likely that imprisonment is a specific vulnerability factor for self‐harm, one explanation being that it increases the risk of exposure to a contact with suicidal behaviour by others. Further work is called for to test relationships between such exposure and own behaviour over time, and to gather first hand accounts from the young men in such circumstances in order to understand the meaning for them of the contact with suicidal behaviour by others. This would inform appropriate intervention strategies, and could save much morbidity, and even mortality.
YIELD RESPONSES OF WINTER (RABI) FORAGE CROPS TO IRRIGATION WITH SALINE DRAINAGE WATER
Authors: YADAV R. K. , KUMAR A. , LAL D. , BATRA L.
Published: December 2003

A field experiment in an alluvial sandy loam saline soil was conducted during the winter (rabi) season from 1997–98 to 1999–2000 at the Central Institute for Research on Buffaloes, Hisar, to study the effect of saline drainage water (EC=3.6 –7.4) on five (rabi) forage crops: oat (Avena sativa), rye grass (Lolium rigidum), senji (Indian clover) (Melilotus indica) berseem (Egyptian clover) (Trifolium alexandrinum) and shaftal (Persian clover) (Trifolium resupinatum). All the crops were established using canal water as pre-sowing irrigation and the various irrigation strategies were imposed subsequently. Irrigation with canal water resulted in a 115% increase in forage yield compared with the saline drainage water. The results suggested that alternate irrigation with saline drainage water increased the yields of all the forage crops compared with using saline drainage water only. Further, alternate irrigation, starting with canal water, was superior to alternate irrigation starting with saline drainage water because less salt was added in total. Oat produced the largest green-forage yield (32.3 t ha-1) in the first year while rye grass gave its maximum in the second (34.6 t ha-1) and third years (37.0 t ha-1). Persian clover performed better than did Egyptian clover in all the three years. Interaction between species and irrigation treatments was significant. In comparison with canal irrigation water, there was a 36 %, 42 %, 54 %, 68 %, and 85 % yield reduction in rye grass, oat, Persian clover, Egyptian clover and senji, respectively when only saline drainage water was used for irrigation reflecting their relative tolerances of salinity. Yields declined linearly for all crops with increases in the quantity of salt applied.
THE IMPACT OF FALLOWING AND GREEN MANURING ON SOIL CONDITIONS AND THE GROWTH OF SUGARCANE
Authors: NIXON D. J. , SIMMONDS L. P.
Published: December 2003

There are currently concerns within some sugar industries that long-term monoculture has led to soil degradation and consequent yield decline. An investigation was conducted in Swaziland to assess the effects of fallowing and green manuring practices, over a seven-month period, on sugarcane yields and the physical properties of a poorly draining clay soil. In the subsequent first sugarcane crop after planting, yields were improved from 129 t ha−1 under continuous sugarcane to 141–144 t ha−1 after fallowing and green manuring, but there were no significant responses in the first and second ratoon crops. Also, in the first crop after planting, root length index increased from 3.5 km m−2 under continuous sugarcane to 5.2–6.8 km m−2 after fallowing, and improved rooting was still evident in the first ratoon crop where there had been soil drying during the fallow period. Soil bulk density, total porosity and water-holding capacity were not affected by the fallowing practices. However, air-filled porosity increased from 11 % under continuous sugarcane to 16% after fallowing, and steady state ponded infiltration rates were increased from 0.61 mm h−1 to 1.34 mm h−1, but these improvements were no longer evident after a year back under sugarcane. Levels of soil organic matter were reduced in all cases, probably as a result of the tillage operations involved. In the plant crop, root length was well correlated with air-filled porosity, indicating the importance of improving belowground air supply for crop production on poorly draining clay soils.
PARTICIPATORY EVALUATION OF THE PERFORMANCE OF SOME IMPROVED BREAD WHEAT (TRITICUM AESTIVUM) VARIETIES IN THE JIJIGA PLAINS OF EASTERN ETHIOPIA
Authors: JALLETA TERIESSA
Published: December 2003

Through years of research, the Ethiopian Agricultural Research Organization has recommended a number of improved bread-wheat varieties for production in the different climatic zones, along with accompanying technology packages. In areas such as the Jijiga plains, however, adoption of these varieties by the farmers has been very limited. The principal objective of the study was, therefore, to investigate the reasons why farmers are reluctant to adopt high-yielding improved wheat varieties, and to identify farmers' preferences. An assessment study followed by participatory evaluation of the performance of five improved bread-wheat (Triticum aestivum) varieties and a local control was carried out under farmers' management practices. The trial was conducted at 10 locations (across three districts) on the Jijiga plains for two consecutive years (the 1999 and 2000 cropping seasons) and involved 30 farmers. Farmers' preferred varieties were identified using preference ranking. The results showed that farmers refrained from the adoption of some ‘improved’ varieties of bread wheat that were provided through the extension services because the varieties performed poorly under farmers' conditions. The study also showed that farmers do have multiple criteria for evaluating the varieties apart from yield, though the latter was the major parameter for recommending and releasing varieties for multi-locations. Farmers identified earliness, yield, and quality as the main criteria for adoption of wheat varieties. Accordingly, variety HAR-710 stood first in terms of yield (2.56 t ha−1) and other parameters, followed by PAVON -76 (2.49 t ha−1). Though its grain yield was relatively lower than the improved ones, the local control was preferred to some improved varieties used in this study for other quality parameters. The study highlighted the need for re-orienting agricultural research towards involving farmers at the appropriate stages of technology identification.
EFFECT OF ON-FARM SEED PRIMING ON EMERGENCE, GROWTH AND YIELD OF COTTON AND MAIZE IN A SEMI-ARID AREA OF ZIMBABWE
Authors: MURUNGU F. S. , CHIDUZA C. , NYAMUGAFATA P. , CLARK L. J. , WHALLEY W. R.
Published: December 2003

The effects of on-farm seed priming (i.e. seed soaking) on the emergence, growth and yield of cotton and maize were studied in the field in the south-eastern lowveld of Zimbabwe. Experiments were conducted on both crops in the 1999/2000 and 2000/2001 seasons and, in the 2001 winter season, on maize only. The interaction of priming with tillage (ox-drawn ploughing or hand-hoeing) and simulated sowing rainfall regimes (irrigations of 15 mm, 30 mm or 45 mm at planting) was studied. Priming usually increased the rate of emergence in maize, but always decreased final percent emergence in cotton. In the 2000/2001 season, there was an interaction between priming and simulated sowing rainfall regimes such that the 15 mm treatment gave a smaller adverse effect of priming in cotton than the 30 and 45 mm treatments. In maize, however, the 15 mm treatment gave an adverse rather than a positive effect of priming on emergence. There was little effect of tillage on emergence or growth. Priming did not affect the relative growth rate of cotton or maize, although plants grown from primed maize seed were consistently larger at any given date throughout the 2001 winter season. Plants from primed seed also flowered and matured earlier in the winter 2001 season. There were no significant effects of priming on yield, except in the 1999/2000 season, where priming decreased yield in cotton. It was concluded that the effect of priming can depend on crop species.
Passives and impersonals
Authors: BLEVINS JAMES P.
Published: December 2003

This paper argues that the term ‘passive’ has been systematically misapplied to a class of impersonal constructions that suppress the realization of a syntactic subject. The reclassification of these constructions highlights a typological contrast between two types of verbal diathesis and clarifies the status of putative ‘passives of unaccusatives’ and ‘transitive passives’ in Balto-Finnic and Balto-Slavic. Impersonal verb forms differ from passives in two key respects: they are insensitive to the argument structure of a verb and can be formed from unergatives or unaccusatives, and they may retain direct objects. As with other subjectless forms of personal verbs, there is a strong tendency to interpret the suppressed subject of an impersonal as an indefinite human agent. Hence impersonalization is often felicitous only for verbs that select human subjects.
Semantic invariance, locating process and alterity: a TOPE-based analysis of the verbal prefix z- in Ikwere
Authors: OSU SYLVESTER N.
Published: December 2003

This article first outlines the theory of the predicative and enunciative operations (TOPE) developed by Antoine Culioli and his associates. It then shows how this theory enables one to analyse such linguistic units as the verbal prefix z- in Ikwere, spoken in Nigeria, and, more precisely, the way they operate in the language. We find that behind the various uses of z- is an invariant meaning element which consists of introducing a ranking between p and p′, i.e., two constituent values of a given unorganized notional domain, such that the domain is finally organized. It is further argued that the TAM (Tense-Aspect-Modality) category, which z- is related to, is constructed by the utterance in which z- occurs.
Mullah Zaeef and Taliban diplomacy:
an English School approach
Authors: Sharp Paul
Published: December 2003

The recent revival of interest in the English School has emphasised the historical and, hence, impermanent and incomplete character of international societies. Its focus has been upon the circumstances in which specific societies come into being, flourish and fade, with a view to making better sense of what is happening in and to the contemporary international society of states. Recent commentary, however, has noted both the insistence of the first generation of the English School upon the importance of diplomacy and its failure to develop any significant empirical work upon this insight. This case study of Mullah Zaeef and the Taliban embassy in Islamabad in the two years before the Afghan war seeks to rectify that shortcoming by providing an analysis of diplomatic activity in a context where there is little intersubjective understanding of both what an international society is or ought to be and the elements of the diplomatic culture which helps sustain it. It argues that while war was not averted, the episode provides grounds for modest optimism about the possibility of surmounting the obstacles to resolving conflicts of this kind in the future.
The history of a lesson: Versailles, Munich and the social construction of the past
Authors: Rasmussen Mikkel Vedby
Published: December 2003

The article investigates the concept of lessons in IR. By means of a constructivist critique of the ‘lessons literature’, the article analyses one of the most important of IR lessons: that of Munich. Examining how the Munich lesson came about, the article shows the praxeological nature of lessons and emphasises the need to study the history of lessons rather than the lessons of history. This approach shows that Munich is the end point of a constitutive history that begins in the failure of the Versailles treaty to create a durable European order following the First World War. The Munich lesson is thus one element of the lesson of Versailles, which is a praxeology that defines how the West is to make peace, and against whom peace must be defended. The lesson of Versailles has been, at least in part, constitutive of the outbreak of the Cold War, and it continues to define the Western conception of what defines peace and security even in the ‘war against terrorism’.
Too polemical or too critical? Chomsky on the study of the news media and US foreign policy
Authors: Herring Eric , Robinson Piers
Published: December 2003

Noam Chomsky argues that, while the US news media are adversarial towards the US government on foreign policy, institutional filters operate to ensure that the criticisms made generally stay within narrow bounds set by the US political elite. Chomsky's research in this area is largely ignored even by academics who agree with this conclusion. The institutional tendency to filter out anti-elite perspectives applies not only to the news media but also to academia. Consequently, Chomsky's work is marginalised due to its emphasis on corporate power, principled opposition to US foreign policy and the role of academia in buttressing elite power.
Why the end of the Cold War doesn't matter: the US war of terror in Colombia
Authors: Stokes Doug
Published: December 2003

Orthodox narratives of US foreign policy have been employed as uncontested modes of historical interpretation with US post-Cold War foreign policy in the Third World characterised by discontinuity from its earlier Cold War objectives. Chomsky's work adopts an alternative revisionist historiography that views US post-Cold War foreign policy as characterised by continuity with its earlier Cold War objectives. This article examines the continuities of US post-Cold War policy in Colombia, and explains this in terms of the maintenance of US access to South American oil, the preservation of regional (in)stability and the continued need to destroy challenges to US-led neoliberalism.
Counter-revolution, order and international politics
Authors: Bisley Nick
Published: December 2003

Every social revolution has elicited some form of counter-revolutionary response from the international system. The impulse to reverse revolutionary transformation has much to tell us about the dynamics of social revolution as well as the nature of international order. The purpose of this article is to investigate the relationship between counter-revolution and international order. First it establishes a basic conceptual framework of international counter-revolution and argues that counter-revolution should be understood as more than just an active opposition to revolution and also examines the motives of counter-revolutionaries. Second, using two interpretations of the international system – those of Henry Kissinger and Raymond Aron – the article draws several conclusions about the international tendency to attempt to overturn revolution and concludes that there exist international systemic pressures, of a non-neorealist kind, which provide the basis for international order. These pressures not only produce order but, at certain times, impel states to counter radical transformations in parts of the world which seem, at first glance, to have little consequence for the functioning of international order.
New follies on the state of globalisation debate?
Authors: Morton Adam David
Published: December 2003

This review article explores several latest endeavours that theorise the state and globalisation. The aim is to reflect further on some of the wider follies that lie within the ambition of debates on the state and globalisation. By uniting common themes throughout the review – revolving around issues of state capacity in the post-colonial world, the relationship between globalisation and international relations, and the very meaning of globality – the review raises a series of questions for further research on the state and globalisation. Most significantly, it seeks to question the future of critical theorising on the state and globalisation within international studies. It does so by arguing that there remain serious question-begging assumptions about capitalism that lie at the core of present general theories of the state and globalisation that, if overlooked, might also blunt the precepts of critical international theorising.
Biogeochemical cycling of Pb in the coastal marine environment at Terra Nova Bay, Ross Sea
Authors: RIVA S. DALLA , ABELMOSCHI M.L. , CHIANTORE M. , GROTTI M. , MAGI E. , SOGGIA F.
Published: December 2003

The biogeochemical cycle of lead in the marine coastal environment of Terra Nova Bay has been investigated by determining the lead concentration in a large number of matrices: marine sediments, pack ice, snow, seawater, marine microlayer, aerosol and eight species of marine organisms (the bivalve molluscs Adamussium colbecki and Laternula elliptica, the seastar Odontaster validus, the sea urchin Sterechinus neumayeri, the fish Trematomus bernacchii, the seaweeds Iridaea cordata and Phyllophora antarctica, and the nemertine worm Parborlasia corrugatus). The study of solid speciation of sediment showed that the site is not influenced by human activity and is hence suitable to examine natural processes. The concentration values found in the suspended paniculate matter (SPM) of pack ice core, aerosol, marine microlayer and seawater as well as the particulate morphology, investigated by SEM, seem to support the hypothesis that particulate lead is transferred from the atmosphere to the water column through three different mechanisms: (i) release of SPM from the pack ice during its melting, (ii) input from the continental land through wet deposition, (iii) transport by aerosol and marine microlayer. Concentration data both in the whole organism and in some target organs indicated two suitable biomonitor organisms: the bivalva Laternula elliptica (particularly its digestive gland) and the fish Trematomus bernacchii (particularly its bones).
Experimental investigation of seasonal development in six Antarctic red macroalgae
Authors: DUMMERMUTH ANGELIKA L. , WIENCKE CHRISTIAN
Published: December 2003

The phenology of six Antarctic red macroalgae, Delesseria salicifolia Reinsch, Gymnogongrus antarcticus Skottsberg, Gymnogongrus turquetii Hariot, Hymenocladiopsis crustigena Moe, Kallymenia antarctica Hariot and Phyllophora ahnfeltioides Skottsberg, was investigated in a two-year culture study under fluctuating daylengths imitating the conditions of King George Island, South Shetland Islands. The algae were cultured at 0°C in filtered, nutrient enriched seawater under photon fluence rates of 3, 10, 25, 50 μmol photons m−2 s−1. All species are classified as season anticipators, starting growth in late winter–spring and stopping growth before the summer solstice. Formation of new blades was observed from January/February onwards in most of the species. Carpospore formation was observed in K. antarctica in early summer. Growth was light saturated at photon fluence rates of 3 μmol photons m−2 s−1 in D. salicifolia and at 10 μmol photons m−2 s−1 in the other species, corresponding to an annual light dose of 31.4 and 157 mol photons m−2. The results show that this type of life strategy is typical for species from the Antarctic and give further evidence on the high degree of shade adaptation of Antarctic algae and predict a lower distribution limit for these species at 37 ± 15 m and 23 ± 10 m, respectively.
Late Quaternary palaeoenvironments in Prydz Bay, East Antarctica: interpretations from marine diatoms
Authors: TAYLOR FIONA , LEVENTER AMY
Published: December 2003

Fossil diatom-bearing marine sediment cores recovered from Prydz Channel, Prydz Bay, record episodes of glacial advance and retreat in the bay. Diatom frustules are abundant, well preserved, and the species composition is diverse in two biogenic sediment units composed of siliceous diatom ooze (SMO-1 and SMO-2). Between SMO-1 and SMO-2 a terrigenous unit (T) is present, composed of muddy diamicton and sandy silty clay, which contains poorly preserved rare diatoms. The SMO units are interpreted to represent an open marine setting with seasonal sea ice cover; the T unit is interpreted to represent glacial ice expansion from the Amery Ice Shelf over the site. Based on an age model developed previously for other cores from Prydz Channel with analogous stratigraphies, we interpret our record to be late Quaternary through Holocene in age. The T unit records the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) in Prydz Bay; the SMO-1 and SMO-2 units record interstadial episodes that are post- and pre-LGM respectively. Extinct diatom taxa in the T and SMO-2 units indicate reworked sediment sourced from two different-aged deposits. Our results provide both a new interpretation of late Quaternary deposition in Prydz Channel and support for previous studies in this region.
Surface “waves” on Byrd Glacier, Antarctica
Authors: REUSCH D. , HUGHES T.
Published: December 2003

Byrd Glacier has one of the largest ice catchment areas in Antarctica, delivers more ice to the Ross Ice Shelf than any other ice stream, and is the fastest of these ice streams. A force balance, combined with a mass balance, demonstrates that stream flow in Byrd Glacier is transitional from sheet flow in East Antarctica to shelf flow in the Ross Ice Shelf. The longitudinal pulling stress, calculated along an ice flowband from the force balance, is linked to variations of ice thickness, to the ratio of the basal water pressure to the ice overburden pressure where Byrd Glacier is grounded, and is reduced by an ice-shelf buttressing stress where Byrd Glacier is floating. Longitudinal tension peaks at pressure-ratio maxima in grounded ice and close to minima in the ratio of the pulling stress to the buttressing stress in floating ice. The longitudinal spacing of these tension peaks is rather uniform and, for grounded ice, the peaks occur at maxima in surface slope that have no clear relation to the bed slope. This implies that the maxima in surface slope constitute a “wave train” that is related to regular variations in ice-bed coupling, not primarily to bed topography. It is unclear whether these surface “waves” are “standing waves” or are migrating either upslope or downslope, possibly causing the grounding line to either retreat or advance. Deciding which is the case will require obtaining bed topography in the map plane, a new map of surface topography, and more sophisticated modeling that includes ice flow linked to subglacial hydrology in the map plane.
A numerical simulation of the geomagnetic sudden commencement: 2. Plasma processes in the main impulse
Authors: Fujita S. , Tanaka T. , Kikuchi T. , Fujimoto K. , Itonaga M.
Published: December 2003

A geomagnetic sudden commencement (SC) is studied numerically based on a model of buffeting the magnetosphere by a solar wind density impulse. This paper treats two successive current systems in the main impulse (MI) phase. The two current systems have different current generating mechanisms. The first current generator appears behind the wavefront of a compressional disturbance launched by the impulse. The inertia current of the compressional mode is generated by free energy due to deceleration of plasma flows. A field‐aligned current (FAC) is excited through mode conversion from the compressional wave in a VA gradient region. The magnetospheric flows and the ionospheric flows are not connected self‐consistently to each other. The second generator is located in the tailward side of the cusp. It is the same as the generator of the region 1 current system. The current generated there is connected with the FAC with the region 1 sense via a diamagnetic current flowing around an isolated enhancement of pressure in the nightside equatorial magnetosphere. The pressure enhancement is induced through compression of the magnetospheric flank due to the solar wind impulse. In this period, plasma convection vortices appear both in the magnetosphere and in the ionosphere, which are correspondent to each other. This is a peculiar convection confined within the magnetosphere (the SC transient cell convection). This convection is driven though compression of the magnetospheric flank due to the solar wind impulse.
Radiogenic helium in shallow groundwater within a clay till, southwestern Ontario
Authors: Sheldon Amy L. , Solomon D. Kip , Poreda Robert J. , Hunt Andrew
Published: December 2003

Profiles of 4He in pore water were measured in clay aquitards in SW Ontario. The 4He distributions are consistent with groundwater velocities that are <6 mm yr−1, and thus diffusion is the dominant transport mechanism for 4He. Modeling indicates that the effective diffusion coefficient for 4He is 6.3 ± 1.6 × 10−6 cm2 s−1. Furthermore, the profiles are consistent with the internal release of 4He from aquitard sediments at a rate of 0.03–0.13 μcc(STP) kg−1 yr−1. These rates are also consistent with laboratory release experiments and, on average, are 600 times greater than the production of 4He from U/Th decay. Modeling and the ratio of 21Ne to 4He within the sediments indicate that although the aquitards were deposited about 13 kA BP, the sediments released >70% of initial 4He for 50 to 60 kA prior to incorporation into the till.
Sorption/desorption kinetics of contaminants on mobile particles: Modeling and experimental evidence
Authors: Bold Steffen , Kraft Siegfried , Grathwohl Peter , Liedl Rudolf
Published: December 2003

In this study the impact of sorption/desorption kinetics between organic contaminants and mobile particles suspended in subsurface water is analyzed. TCE migration through a granular activated carbon column is investigated at different transport velocities with lignite and activated carbon particles as mobile carriers. The measured breakthrough characteristics of TCE can be reproduced by a reactive transport model simulating sorption/desorption kinetics applying an intraparticle diffusion approach for mobile particles and the packed bed of granular activated carbon. Model predictions are based on independently measured physicochemical parameters, i.e., no calibration of TCE sorption/desorption is required. The close matches of experimental data to predicted data validate the exclusively process‐based model assumptions and indicate that this approach has large predictive capabilities. Extending these findings, a sensitivity study is presented in order to specify under which conditions sorption/desorption of contaminants in mobile particles has to be modeled as a kinetic process. It is found that sorption/desorption kinetics are of major importance for Damköhler numbers between 0.01 and 100.
Marine Isotopic Stage 5e in the Southwest Pacific: Similarities with Antarctica and ENSO inferences
Authors: Pelejero Carles , Calvo Eva , Logan Graham A. , De Deckker Patrick
Published: December 2003

A detailed record of alkenone‐derived sea‐surface temperatures (SSTs) offshore western New Zealand has been generated for the penultimate deglaciation and last interglacial. SSTs were 3.5 to 4.5°C warmer than present, peaking 4.5 thousand years ahead of ice volume minima. The short duration of Marine Isotopic Stage 5e off New Zealand exhibits a striking parallelism to the record of air temperatures at Vostok, Antarctica. Changes in latitudinal SST gradients for the Southwest Pacific from New Zealand to the equator are also assessed, showing values consistently lower than today. In this region, this situation usually occurs during periods with positive values of the Southern Oscillation Index and thus La Niña conditions. By inference, we suggest that our assessed low thermal gradients might be indicative of a prevalence of either persistent or more frequent La Niña like conditions, particularly during early Stage 5e.
Seasonal variation of biogenic VOC emissions above a mixed hardwood forest in northern Michigan
Authors: Karl T. , Guenther A. , Spirig C. , Hansel A. , Fall R.
Published: December 2003

Fluxes of biogenic volatile organic compounds (VOCs) were measured at a hardwood forest in northern Michigan (UMBS, Prophet research site) over the course of the growing and senescing season. Methanol, acetaldehyde, acetone and isoprene were found to be the most abundant biogenic VOCs with maximum fluxes (mixing ratios in ppbv) of 2.0 mg m−2 h−1 (21.0), 1.0 mg m−2 h−1 (2.7), 1.6 mg m−2 h−1 (5.6) and 7.6 mg m−2 h−1 (6), respectively. The emission patterns show distinct seasonal changes and indicate a spring peak for methanol due to rapid leaf expansion and a fall peak for acetone and acetaldehyde most likely attributed to senescing and decaying biomass; isoprene emissions peaked as expected in the summer. We estimate potential source strengths of 8.9 Tg (C) y−1 methanol, 2.7 Tg (C) y−1 acetaldehyde and 7.0 Tg (C) y−1 acetone for deciduous temperate forests, which is a substantial contribution to the global atmospheric VOC budget.
Cloud detection over desert regions using the 412 nanometer MODIS channel
Authors: Hutchison Keith D. , Jackson John M.
Published: December 2003

A method is proposed to enhance the performance of automated cloud detection algorithms in the vicinity of desert regions. The approach uses data in MODIS Channel 8, which has a bandpass of 405–420 nanometers (nm) where a strong contrast exists between the more highly reflective clouds and lower reflective cloud‐free desert regions. Special processing is required to exploit cloud signatures since the MODIS high (880) signal‐to‐noise‐ratio (SNR) requirement in this band causes saturation. The value of 412 nm data is demonstrated in the analysis of a scene that contains clouds over the western part of the Sahara Desert and has airborne sand and dust extending over the eastern Atlantic Ocean.
Origins of fine aerosol mass in the western United States using positive matrix factorization
Authors: Liu Wei , Hopke Philip K. , VanCuren Richard A.
Published: December 2003

In order to evaluate the impact of Asian dust to the air quality of North America, a relatively new type of factor analysis, positive matrix factorization (PMF), was applied to the PM2.5 particle composition data obtained at two high elevated sampling sites in the western United States from Interagency Monitoring of Protected Visual Environments (IMPROVE) program. These two sites are Crater Lake National Park (1981m) and Lassen Volcanic National Park (1798m). PMF can provide optimal point‐by‐point weighting by using the estimates uncertainty in the data and can permit efficient treatment of missing and below detection limit values. It also imposes the nonnegativity constraint on the factors. Seven and six sources were resolved from the Crater Lake National Park and Lassen Volcanic National Park data, respectively. The factors were normalized by using aerosol fine mass concentration data through multiple linear regression so that the quantitative source contributions for each resolved factor were obtained. Among the sources resolved at the two sites, six are common. These six sources exhibit not only similar chemical compositions but also similar seasonal variations at both sites. The Asian dust was represented by Al, Ca, Fe, NO3, S, K, and Ti with strong seasonal variation. Secondary sulfate with a high concentration of S and strong seasonal variation correlated with the Asian dust. Wood smoke was represented by organic carbon (OC), elemental carbon (EC), and K; sea salt with the high concentrations of Na, S and NO3. Nitrate was dominated by NO3 and motor vehicle with high concentrations of OC, EC, and dust elements. A incinerator source with the presence of Cu and Zn also was resolved from the Crater Lake site. Generally, most of the sources at these two sites showed similar chemical composition profiles and seasonal variation patterns. The source profile of Asian dust resolved from this study agreed reasonably well with the source characteristics found in other Asian dust studies. This study indicated that PMF was a powerful factor analysis method to extract sources from the ambient aerosol concentration data.
Mars nutation resonance due to Free Inner Core Nutation
Authors: Defraigne P. , Rivoldini A. , Van Hoolst T. , Dehant V.
Published: December 2003

The rotational normal modes of the planet Mars are computed using a numerical approach. We deduce the associated resonances in the nutations induced by the external gravitational forcing from the Sun, Phobos, and Deimos. In particular, the influence of a possible solid inner core inside a liquid core is investigated. A normal mode associated with the inner core (Free Inner Core Nutation (FICN)) is computed, as well as the associated resonance effects in the nutations. For a small inner core, before the eutectic composition of the outer core is reached, the FICN effect on nutation is negligible. For a large inner core it can be very important, and for some nutations it can greatly decrease the resonance effect of the classical Free Core Nutation. Future observations of Mars nutation resonances will therefore provide information about the inner core.
Water table waves in an unconfined aquifer: Experiments and modeling
Authors: Cartwright Nick , Nielsen Peter , Dunn Scott
Published: December 2003

Comprehensive measurements are presented of the piezometric head in an unconfined aquifer during steady, simple harmonic oscillations driven by a hydrostatic clear water reservoir through a vertical interface. The results are analyzed and used to test existing hydrostatic and nonhydrostatic, small‐amplitude theories along with capillary fringe effects. As expected, the amplitude of the water table wave decays exponentially. However, the decay rates and phase lags indicate the influence of both vertical flow and capillary effects. The capillary effects are reconciled with observations of water table oscillations in a sand column with the same sand. The effects of vertical flows and the corresponding nonhydrostatic pressure are reasonably well described by small‐amplitude theory for water table waves in finite depth aquifers. That includes the oscillation amplitudes being greater at the bottom than at the top and the phase lead of the bottom compared with the top. The main problems with respect to interpreting the measurements through existing theory relate to the complicated boundary condition at the interface between the driving head reservoir and the aquifer. That is, the small‐amplitude, finite depth expansion solution, which matches a hydrostatic boundary condition between the bottom and the mean driving head level, is unrealistic with respect to the pressure variation above this level. Hence it cannot describe the finer details of the multiple mode behavior close to the driving head boundary. The mean water table height initially increases with distance from the forcing boundary but then decreases again, and its asymptotic value is considerably smaller than that previously predicted for finite depth aquifers without capillary effects. Just as the mean water table over‐height is smaller than predicted by capillarity‐free shallow aquifer models, so is the amplitude of the second harmonic. In fact, there is no indication of extra second harmonics (in addition to that contained in the driving head) being generated at the interface or in the interior.
Effectiveness of needle cast at reducing erosion after forest fires
Authors: Pannkuk C. D. , Robichaud P. R.
Published: December 2003

Needle cast from partially burnt conifer trees commonly occurs after forest fires. The effectiveness of needles in reducing soil erosion was investigated in this study. Two needle types, ponderosa pine and Douglas fir needles, were used at four different cover amounts (0, 15, 40, and 70 percent) on granitic and volcanic derived soils. Simulated rainfall was used to examine interrill erosion; added inflow was used to determine rill erosion in a laboratory setting. After a series of “runs,” data showed that sediment delivery was greater for the granitic soil compared with the volcanic soil. Douglas fir needles were more effective at reducing interrill erosion compared with the ponderosa pine needles. Ponderosa pine needles, because of their shape and being bundled together, often caused minidebris dams to form. The minidebris dams formed by ponderosa pine needles reduce flow within the rill, resulting in less rill erosion than the Douglas fir needles. A 50 percent cover of Douglas fir needles reduced interrill erosion by 80 percent and rill erosion 20 by percent. A 50 percent cover of ponderosa pine needles reduced interrill erosion by 60 percent and rill erosion by 40 percent. We also compared the effectiveness of using stream power, rather than shear stress, to model rill erosion. Stream power was a better predictor of sediment load than shear stress. Rill detachment rates based on stream power decreased with increasing cover for both needle types. These results challenge the use of shear stress detachment rates in current erosion models and provide insight into the use of stream power detachment rates.
Herpesviruses in localized juvenile periodontitis
Authors: Ting Miriam , Contreras Adolfo , Slots Jørgen
Published: December 2003

Herpesvirus genomic sequences can be detected in gingival crevicular fluid of adult periodontitis lesions. Herpesviruses are immunosuppressive and may facilitate establishment of subgingival pathogens. Electron microscopic studies have identified nuclear and cytoplasmic virus‐like inclusions in gingival inflammatory cells from localized juvenile periodontitis (LJP). The present study aimed to determine if herpesviruses occur in LJP lesions and if human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) activation is associated with elevated levels of subgingival Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans, the putative bacterial pathogen of LJP. Eleven systemically healthy patients exhibiting LJP (10–23 yr) were studied. In each patient, subgingival samples were pooled from 3 periodontitis lesions around first molar and incisor teeth (5–11 mm periodontal pocket depth) and from 3 gingivitis/healthy sites around canines (2–3 mm periodontal pocket depth). Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was used to detect herpesvirus DNA and HCMV cDNA of major capsid protein transcripts, indicative of viral activation. Selective culture and 16S rRNA PCR were used to identify A. actinomycetemcomitans. Of 11 deep periodontal samples, 8 showed HCMV, 7 showed Epstein–Barr virus type 1 (EBV‐1), 1 showed EBV type 2, 6 showed herpes simplex virus (HSV) and 8 showed viral co‐infection. Of 11 shallow periodontal samples, 2 showed HCMV, 2 showed EBV‐1, 1 showed HSV and 2 showed viral co‐infection. The difference in occurrence of HCMV and viral co‐infection between deep and shallow periodontal sites was statistically significant (p=0.031). HCMV activation was detected in deep pockets of all 5 virally positive patients with early LJP (aged 10–14 years) but only in 1 of 3 virally positive LJP patients older than 14 years, and not in any shallow pocket tested. HCMV activation appeared related to absence of radiographic crestal alveolar lamina dura, a possible indication of periodontal disease progression. A. actinomycetemcomitans tended to be more prevalent in samples showing active than latent HCMV infection. The present findings are consistent with the notion that periodontal herpesvirus infection and possibly HCMV activation constitute important features of the etiopathogenesis of LJP.
Cyclosporin A inhibits production and activity of matrix metalloproteinases by gingival fibroblasts
Authors: Bolzani Gláucia , Coletta Ricardo Della , Júnior Hercílio Martelli , De Almeida Oslei Paes , Graner Edgard
Published: December 2003

Cyclosporin A (CyA) is a potent immunosuppressor used in organ transplantation and in the management of various autoimmune diseases. Gingival overgrowth is one of the side‐effects of the CyA‐treatment, affecting the attached gingiva of 25–81% of treated patients. To investigate the production and activity of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) in the CyA‐induced gingival overgrowth, 2 well‐documented models were utilized: the in vivo CyA‐induced rat gingival overgrowth and primary cultures of human gingival fibroblasts treated with CyA. Our results obtained from the Western blot assays demonstrated clearly that the production of MMP‐1 and MMP‐3 was significantly inhibited by CyA at similar concentrations found in the serum of patients undergoing CyA‐treatment. Moreover, the gelatinolytic activity of MMP‐2 was also reduced both in cultured fibroblasts and in the rat CyA‐induced gingival overgrowth. Taken together, the data presented here suggest that these inhibitory effects may contribute to the extracellular matrix (ECM) components accumulation in the CyA‐induced gingival overgrowth.
Relevance of IgG receptor IIIb (CD16) polymorphism to handling of Porphyromonas gingivalis: implications for the pathogenesis of adult periodontitis
Authors: Kobayashi Tetsuo , Van Der Pol W‐Ludo , Van De Winkel Jan G. J. , Hara Kohji , Sugita Noriko , Westerdaal Nomdo A. C. , Yoshie Hiromasa , Horigome Tsuneyoshi
Published: December 2003

Polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMNs) are essential in host defense against periodontopathic bacteria such as Porphyromonas gingivalis. The uptake of immunoglobulin G (IgG)‐opsonized bacteria via IgG Fc receptors (FcγR) on PMN constitutes a central defense mechanism in periodontium. FcγRIIIb is the most abundantly expressed FcγR on PMN and is functionally polymorphic. The FcγRIIIb‐NA1 and IIIb‐NA2 allotypes interact differently with IgG1‐ and IgG3‐opsonized particles. We recently showed recurrence rates of adult periodontitis (AP) to be higher in patients carrying at least 1 FcγRIIIb‐NA2 allele. In this study we evaluated the functional relevance of the FcγRIIIb polymorphism to anti‐P. gingivalis PMN effector functions. Our results showed FcγRIIIb‐NA2‐carrying PMN from both patients with AP and healthy controls to be less efficient in phagocytosis and induction of oxidative burst upon interaction with IgG1‐ and IgG3‐opsonized P. gingivalis. These functional differences between FcγRIIIb‐NA1 and IIIb‐NA2 were observed in the presence of CD32‐blocking antibody fragments, but not upon blocking CD16. Moreover, PMNs from AP patients exhibited increased FcγRIIIb‐allelic differences in IgG3‐induced oxidative burst compared to control PMNs. These results support the concept that FcγRIIIb heterogeneity may influence the clinical course of AP.
Primer for antimicrobial periodontal therapy
Authors: Slots Jørgen
Published: December 2003

Successful prevention and treatment of periodontitis is contingent upon effective control of the periodontopathic microbiota. Periodontal pathogens reside in subgingival sites but also colonize supragingival plaque, tongue dorsum and other oral sites. Controlling destructive periodontal disease warrants a comprehensive antimicrobial approach that targets periodontal pathogens in various ecological niches of the oral cavity. Also, to effectively combat periodontal pathogens, the various elements of antimicrobial periodontal therapy should be engaged within a short period of time. Scaling and root planing, with or without periodontal surgery, along with proper oral hygiene, constitute the primary approach to controlling periodontopathogens. Antimicrobial agents administered systemically or locally can help suppress periodontal pathogens in periodontal sites and in the entire mouth. Microbiological testing aids the clinician in selecting the most effective antimicrobial agent or combination of agents, and in monitoring the effectiveness of periodontal treatment. The present paper considers theoretical and practical aspects of effective antimicrobial treatment of destructive periodontal disease.