bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Different SNP Combinations in the GCH1 Gene and Use of Labor Analgesia
Authors: Dabo Fatimah , Grönbladh Alfhild , Nyberg Fred , Sundström-Poromaa Inger , Åkerud Helena
Published: July 2010

Background:

The aim of this study was to investigate if there is an association between different SNP combinations in the guanosine triphosphate cyclohydrolase (GCH1) gene and a number of pain behavior related outcomes during labor. A population-based sample of pregnant women (n = 814) was recruited at gestational week 18. A plasma sample was collected from each subject. Genotyping was performed and three single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) previously defined as a pain-protective SNP combination of GCH1 were used.

Results:

Homozygous carriers of the pain-protective SNP combination of GCH1 arrived to the delivery ward with a more advanced stage of cervical dilation compared to heterozygous carriers and non-carriers. However, homozygous carriers more often used second line labor analgesia compared to the others.

Conclusion:

The pain-protective SNP combination of GCH1 may be of importance in the limited number of homozygous carriers during the initial dilation of cervix but upon arrival at the delivery unit these women are more inclined to use second line labor analgesia.
An automated stochastic approach to the identification of the protein specificity determinants and functional subfamilies
Authors: Mazin Pavel V , Gelfand Mikhail S , Mironov Andrey A , Rakhmaninova Aleksandra B , Rubinov Anatoly R , Russell Robert B , Kalinina Olga V
Published: July 2010

Background

Recent progress in sequencing and 3 D structure determination techniques stimulated development of approaches aimed at more precise annotation of proteins, that is, prediction of exact specificity to a ligand or, more broadly, to a binding partner of any kind.

Results

We present a method, SDPclust, for identification of protein functional subfamilies coupled with prediction of specificity-determining positions (SDPs). SDPclust predicts specificity in a phylogeny-independent stochastic manner, which allows for the correct identification of the specificity for proteins that are separated on a phylogenetic tree, but still bind the same ligand. SDPclust is implemented as a Web-server http://bioinf.fbb.msu.ru/SDPfoxWeb/ and a stand-alone Java application available from the website.

Conclusions

SDPclust performs a simultaneous identification of specificity determinants and specificity groups in a statistically robust and phylogeny-independent manner.
Population-Based Longitudinal Study of Follow-Up Care for Breast Cancer Survivors
Authors: Grunfeld Eva , Hodgson David C. , Del Giudice M. Elisabeth , Moineddin Rahim
Published: July 2010

This study shows substantial variation in adherence to guideline recommendations, with both overuse and underuse of surveillance visits and tests.
American Society of Clinical Oncology/College of American Pathologists Guideline Recommendations for Immunohistochemical Testing of Estrogen and Progesterone Receptors in Breast Cancer
Authors: Hammond M. Elizabeth H. , Hayes Daniel F. , Wolff Antonio C. , Mangu Pamela B. , Temin Sarah
Published: July 2010

ASCO and CAP collaborated to produce an evidence-based guideline on estrogen and progesterone receptor testing in breast cancer to produce optimal testing performance.
Issues Surrounding Biospecimen Collection and Use in Clinical Trials
Authors: Baer Allison R. , Smith Mary Lou , Collyar Deborah , Peppercorn Jeffrey
Published: July 2010

As the need for patient participation in biospecimen and correlative research increases, challenging ethical and potentially legal questions are emerging.
Turning crocodilian hearts into bird hearts: growth rates are similar for alligators with and without right-to-left cardiac shunt
Authors: Eme John , Gwalthney June , Owerkowicz Tomasz , Blank Jason M. , Hicks James W.
Published: July 2010

The functional and possible adaptive significance of non-avian reptiles' dual aortic arch system and the ability of all non-avian reptiles to perform central vascular cardiac shunts have been of great interest to comparative physiologists. The unique cardiac anatomy of crocodilians – a four-chambered heart with the dual aortic arch system – allows for only right-to-left (R–L; pulmonary bypass) cardiac shunt and for surgical elimination of this shunt. Surgical removal of the R–L shunt, by occluding the left aorta (LAo) upstream and downstream of the foramen of Panizza, results in a crocodilian with an obligatory, avian/mammalian central circulation. In this study, R–L cardiac shunt was eliminated in age-matched, female American alligators (Alligator mississippiensis; 5–7 months of age). We tested the hypothesis that surgical elimination of R–L cardiac shunt would impair growth (a readily measured proxy for fitness) compared with sham-operated, age-matched controls, especially in animals subjected to exhaustive exercise. While regular exercise caused a decrease in size (snout-to-vent length, head length and body mass), elimination of the capacity for R–L cardiac shunt did not greatly reduce animal growth, despite a chronic ventricular enlargement in surgically altered juvenile alligators. We speculate that, despite being slightly smaller, alligators with an occluded LAo would have reached sexual maturity in the same breeding season as control alligators. This study suggests that crocodilian R–L cardiac shunt does not provide an adaptive advantage for juvenile alligator growth and supports the logic that cardiac shunts persist in crocodilians because they have not been selected against.
Developmental plasticity of shell morphology of quagga mussels from shallow and deep-water habitats of the Great Lakes
Authors: Peyer Suzanne M. , Hermanson John C. , Lee Carol Eunmi
Published: July 2010

The invasive zebra mussel (Dreissena polymorpha) has quickly colonized shallow-water habitats in the North American Great Lakes since the 1980s but the quagga mussel (Dreissena bugensis) is becoming dominant in both shallow and deep-water habitats. While quagga mussel shell morphology differs between shallow and deep habitats, functional causes and consequences of such difference are unknown. We examined whether quagga mussel shell morphology could be induced by three environmental variables through developmental plasticity. We predicted that shallow-water conditions (high temperature, food quantity, water motion) would yield a morphotype typical of wild quagga mussels from shallow habitats, while deep-water conditions (low temperature, food quantity, water motion) would yield a morphotype present in deep habitats. We tested this prediction by examining shell morphology and growth rate of quagga mussels collected from shallow and deep habitats and reared under common-garden treatments that manipulated the three variables. Shell morphology was quantified using the polar moment of inertia. Of the variables tested, temperature had the greatest effect on shell morphology. Higher temperature (∼18–20°C) yielded a morphotype typical of wild shallow mussels regardless of the levels of food quantity or water motion. In contrast, lower temperature (∼6–8°C) yielded a morphotype approaching that of wild deep mussels. If shell morphology has functional consequences in particular habitats, a plastic response might confer quagga mussels with a greater ability than zebra mussels to colonize a wider range of habitats within the Great Lakes.
Genetic differences in hemoglobin function between highland and lowland deer mice
Authors: Storz Jay F. , Runck Amy M. , Moriyama Hideaki , Weber Roy E. , Fago Angela
Published: July 2010

In high-altitude vertebrates, adaptive changes in blood–O2 affinity may be mediated by modifications of hemoglobin (Hb) structure that affect intrinsic O2 affinity and/or responsiveness to allosteric effectors that modulate Hb–O2 affinity. This mode of genotypic specialization is considered typical of mammalian species that are high-altitude natives. Here we investigated genetically based differences in Hb–O2 affinity between highland and lowland populations of the deer mouse (Peromyscus maniculatus), a generalist species that has the broadest altitudinal distribution of any North American mammal. The results of a combined genetic and proteomic analysis revealed that deer mice harbor a high level of Hb isoform diversity that is attributable to allelic polymorphism at two tandemly duplicated α-globin genes and two tandemly duplicated β-globin genes. This high level of isoHb diversity translates into a correspondingly high level of interindividual variation in Hb functional properties. O2 equilibrium experiments revealed that the Hbs of highland mice exhibit slightly higher intrinsic O2 affinities and significantly lower Cl– sensitivities relative to the Hbs of lowland mice. The experiments also revealed distinct biochemical properties of deer mouse Hb related to the anion-dependent allosteric regulation of O2 affinity. In conjunction with previous findings, our results demonstrate that modifications of Hb structure that alter allosteric anion sensitivity play an important role in the adaptive fine-tuning of blood–O2 affinity.
Harbor seal vibrissa morphology suppresses vortex-induced vibrations
Authors: Hanke Wolf , Witte Matthias , Miersch Lars , Brede Martin , Oeffner Johannes , Michael Mark , Hanke Frederike , Leder Alfred , Dehnhardt Guido
Published: July 2010

Harbor seals (Phoca vitulina) often live in dark and turbid waters, where their mystacial vibrissae, or whiskers, play an important role in orientation. Besides detecting and discriminating objects by direct touch, harbor seals use their whiskers to analyze water movements, for example those generated by prey fish or by conspecifics. Even the weak water movements left behind by objects that have passed by earlier can be sensed and followed accurately (hydrodynamic trail following). While scanning the water for these hydrodynamic signals at a swimming speed in the order of meters per second, the seal keeps its long and flexible whiskers in an abducted position, largely perpendicular to the swimming direction. Remarkably, the whiskers of harbor seals possess a specialized undulated surface structure, the function of which was, up to now, unknown. Here, we show that this structure effectively changes the vortex street behind the whiskers and reduces the vibrations that would otherwise be induced by the shedding of vortices from the whiskers (vortex-induced vibrations). Using force measurements, flow measurements and numerical simulations, we find that the dynamic forces on harbor seal whiskers are, by at least an order of magnitude, lower than those on sea lion (Zalophus californianus) whiskers, which do not share the undulated structure. The results are discussed in the light of pinniped sensory biology and potential biomimetic applications.
Opsin co-expression in Limulus photoreceptors: differential regulation by light and a circadian clock
Authors: Katti C. , Kempler K. , Porter M. L. , Legg A. , Gonzalez R. , Garcia-Rivera E. , Dugger D. , Battelle B.-A.
Published: July 2010

A long-standing concept in vision science has held that a single photoreceptor expresses a single type of opsin, the protein component of visual pigment. However, the number of examples in the literature of photoreceptors from vertebrates and invertebrates that break this rule is increasing. Here, we describe a newly discovered Limulus opsin, Limulus opsin5, which is significantly different from previously characterized Limulus opsins, opsins1 and 2. We show that opsin5 is co-expressed with opsins1 and 2 in Limulus lateral and ventral eye photoreceptors and provide the first evidence that the expression of co-expressed opsins can be differentially regulated. We show that the relative levels of opsin5 and opsin1 and 2 in the rhabdom change with a diurnal rhythm and that their relative levels are also influenced by the animal's central circadian clock. An analysis of the sequence of opsin5 suggests it is sensitive to visible light (400–700 nm) but that its spectral properties may be different from that of opsins1 and 2. Changes in the relative levels of these opsins may underlie some of the dramatic day–night changes in Limulus photoreceptor function and may produce a diurnal change in their spectral sensitivity.
The emergence of right-wing radicalism at the local level in Spain: the Catalan case
Authors: Pardos-Prado Sergi , Molins Joaquim M
Published: July 2010

In spite of being considered an example of failure of the radical right, Spain has seen for the first time since the restoration of democracy how some extreme parties got representation in the last 2003 and 2007 local elections. This article focuses on the most successful among these
parties, namely the Plataforma per Catalunya. We suggest that partisan conversion of socialist voters and mobilization of former abstainers are the main origin of radical votes. By contrast, new cohorts of voters and swings from right-wing voters or nationalist voters do not have an
influence. The results are triangulated with two methods of ecological inference that allow us to estimate the proportion of individuals who changed their vote in one direction or the other across two consecutive elections.
Theory and practice: reconciling design-as analogies with real talk in design education
Authors: Lasserre Barbara
Published: July 2010

This article focuses on two linguistic forms of discourse that are essential to the way knowledge is created in the discipline of design. One form is that found in academic written texts, and at the other end of the spectrum, spoken texts such as those of the design critique, or crit.
Students at tertiary institutions are asked to decode both, but they perceive them differently, and often feel that academic texts are unrelated to the perceived real talk, such as that found in the spoken crit, about producing and evaluating designs. Examples of crit discourse are set against
examples taken from the literature on design, and in particular in texts wherein the processes and purpose of design are described by way of analogy. These texts are referred to as design-as analogies, as an attempt is made to find a way to point to existing connections hitherto not explored
between the two forms of discourse. Ultimately, an intricate connection between the discourse of the crits and the more formally expressed concepts of design theorists will be shown. This article refers to three examples of design-as analogies, namely design as bricolage (Louridas 1999); design
as moral problem solving (Dorst and Royakkers 2006); and designing as disclosure (Newton 2004). The authors' explanations of these analogies are held up against the spoken texts of the crits, and an investigation is made of how their theories are enacted in this type of discourse. Some pedagogical
implications of the findings are suggested, with activities that could help students to bridge the perceived gap between the metadiscourse of the literature and the discourse of the studio.
Gender and discipline: publication practices in design
Authors: Clerke Teena
Published: July 2010

Design research and writing began to appear in scholarly journals over 30 years ago, coinciding in Australia with the transition of design education into universities. Concurrently, a significant increase in the number of women in what could be considered a male-dominated profession
and emergent discipline actuated feminist-informed women and design writing. While this writing raised important questions about gender and design, it is generally not cited in design literatures that do not have a specifically feminist focus, and as this article will attest, publication and
citation rates demonstrate the dominance of men in positions of influence in scholarly design journals. This is particularly problematic for female design academics and for the field in the current audit climate in universities, whereby state-funded research output is measured by citation
analysis systems. Drawing on feminist and Foucauldian theorizations of power and knowledge, and supported by an empirical audit and analysis of gender distribution in publication in two scholarly design journals, I argue first that scholarship as a form of social practice in new professional
fields such as design is complexly disciplined and problematically gendered. Second, I argue that further empirical research, and new and different kinds of feminist-informed writing that attend closely to issues of gender, is required to productively disrupt and reconceptualize design scholarship
as it is currently practiced.
Compaction Characteristics of Non-Gravel and Gravelly Soils Using a Small Compaction Apparatus
Authors: Chinkulkijniwat Avirut , Man-Koksung Ekachai , Uchaipichat Anuchit , Horpibulsuk Suksun
Published: July 2010

The standard Proctor test has been widely used and accepted for characterizing soil compatibility for field compaction control. This paper presents a time- and cost-effective method to predict standard Proctor compaction characteristics of non-gravel and gravelly soils using a proposed small apparatus. This small apparatus is similar to the standard Proctor apparatus and easily introduced into soil mechanics laboratory. A comparison of the compaction characteristics of non-gravel soils measured from the proposed small apparatus and from the standard Proctor apparatus shows that this small apparatus can be used as an alternative to the standard Proctor apparatus and regarded as a practical tool for non-gravel soils. For gravelly soils, gravel content mainly controls compaction energy transmitted to the fine fraction and hence its compaction characteristics. A relationship between the generalized optimum water content of the fine fraction in the gravelly soil and the gravel content is established. This relationship leads to an effective method of predicting standard Proctor compaction characteristics of gravelly soils compacted in standard molds using compaction results from the proposed small apparatus. Comparisons between the predicted and the measured compaction characteristics are in very good agreement.
The Physiological Circus: Knowing, Representing, and Training Horses in Motion in Nineteenth-Century France
Authors: Mayer Andreas
Published: July 2010

The late nineteenth-century debates about forms of dressage and the correct representations of horses, using the circus as the major arena for testing and observation, provided a fertile ground for the development of Etienne-Jules Marey's physiology of locomotion. Marey claimed to revolutionize the field of locomotion studies with mechanically produced representations, yet, as this essay shows, his mechanical reform of the study of bodies in motion was countered by the persistence of older forms of animal observation and superseded by new anthropologies and psychologies of seeing.
Factor Analysis of the Transcultural Self-Efficacy Tool (TSET)
Authors: Jeffreys Marianne R. , Dogan Enis
Published: July 2010

The factor structure of the Transcultural Self-Efficacy Tool (TSET) was analyzed using data from 272 culturally diverse undergraduate nursing students. The TSET is a questionnaire designed to measure students’ confidence for performing general transcultural nursing skills among diverse client populations. Using the most recent imputation techniques for missing data, researchers demonstrate how common exploratory factor analysis (CEFA)—(as opposed to principal components analysis)—can (and should be) used in examining the factorial composition of the tool. Standard errors for factor loadings were computed and utilized in deciding whether a given item loaded significantly on a factor and whether the difference between the factor loadings of two or more items on the same factor were statistically significant. The CEFA, comprised of 69 of the 83 items, yielded four factors—“Knowledge and Understanding,” “Interview,” “Awareness, Acceptance, and Appreciation,” and “Recognition”—with internal consistency ranging from .94 to .98. Reliability of the total instrument was .99. It was concluded that the present CEFA study continues to support that the TSET assesses the multidimensional nature of transcultural self-efficacy while also differentiating between three types of learning: cognitive, practical, and affective. The benefits of this support allow the researcher/educator to move beyond mere assessment to the design, implementation, and evaluation of diagnostic-prescriptive teaching strategies for cultural competence education.
Addressing Adolescent Immunization Disparities: A Retrospective Analysis of School-Based Health Center Immunization Delivery
Authors: Federico Steven G. , Abrams Lisa , Everhart Rachel M. , Melinkovich Paul , Hambidge Simon J.
Published: July 2010

Objectives. We compared completion rates for adolescent immunization series administered at school-based health centers (SBHCs) to completion rates for series administered at community health centers (CHCs) within a single integrated delivery system.

Methods. We performed a retrospective analysis of data from an immunization registry for patients aged 12–18 years. Patients were assigned to either an SBHC or a CHC during the study interval based on utilization. We used bivariate analysis to compare immunization series completion rates between the 2 groups and multivariate analysis to compare risk factors for underimmunization. We performed subanalyses by ages 12–15 years versus ages 16–18 years for human papillomavirus (HPV) and for the combination of HPV; tetanus, diptheria, and pertussis (Tdap); and tetravalent meningococcus virus.

Results. SBHC users had significantly higher completion rates (P < .001) for hepatitis B, Tdap, inactivated poliovirus, varicella, measles/mumps/rubella, and HPV for ages 16–18 years, and for the combination of HPV, Tdap, and MCV4 for ages 16–18 years. CHC users had higher completion rates for tetanus and diphtheria.

Conclusions. SBHCs had higher completion rates than did CHCs for immunization series among those aged 12–18 years, despite serving a population with limited insurance coverage.
Influence of Schoolyard Renovations on Children's Physical Activity: The Learning Landscapes Program
Authors: Brink Lois A. , Nigg Claudio R. , M. R. Lampe Sarah , Kingston Beverly A. , Mootz Andrew L. , van Vliet Willem
Published: July 2010

Objectives. We examined whether schoolyard improvements led to increased physical activity levels among both boys and girls and assessed the aspects of schoolyard design that have an impact on physical activity.

Methods. In a quasi-experimental research design, 6 schools with renovated schoolyards and 3 control schools were divided into activity areas. We calculated measures of children's physical activity by area during school hours as well as after-school hours.

Results. The volume of schoolyard use was significantly higher at schools with renovated schoolyards than at control schools, and students were significantly more active at these schools. Also, activity levels were significantly higher among both boys and girls in certain schoolyard areas, such as those with soft surfaces.

Conclusions. Because few public elementary schools in the United States provide daily physical education or its equivalent for all students throughout the school year, noncurriculum approaches to increasing children's physical activity are important. Renovated schoolyards increase the number of children who are physically active, as well as their overall activity levels, and reduce sedentary behaviors.
Integrated Schools, Segregated Curriculum: Effects of Within-School Segregation on Adolescent Health Behaviors and Educational Aspirations
Authors: Walsemann Katrina M. , Bell Bethany A.
Published: July 2010

Objectives. We examined the extent to which within-school segregation, as measured by unevenness in the distribution of Black and White adolescents across levels of the English curriculum (advanced placement–international baccalaureate–honors, general, remedial, or no English), was associated with smoking, drinking, and educational aspirations, which previous studies found are related to school racial/ethnic composition.

Methods. We analyzed data from wave 1 of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, restricting our sample to non-Hispanic Blacks (n = 2731) and Whites (n = 4158) who from 1994 to 1995 attended high schools that enrolled Black and White students.

Results. White female students had higher predicted probabilities of smoking or drinking than did Black female students; the largest differences were in schools with high levels of within-school segregation. Black male students had higher predicted probabilities of high educational aspirations than did White male students in schools with low levels of within-school segregation; this association was attenuated for Black males attending schools with moderate or high levels of within-school segregation.

Conclusions. Our results provide evidence that within-school segregation may influence both students' aspirations and their behaviors.
Effects of Green Buildings on Employee Health and Productivity
Authors: Singh Amanjeet , Syal Matt , Grady Sue C. , Korkmaz Sinem
Published: July 2010

We investigated the effects of improved indoor environmental quality (IEQ) on perceived health and productivity in occupants who moved from conventional to green (according to Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design ratings) office buildings. In 2 retrospective–prospective case studies we found that improved IEQ contributed to reductions in perceived absenteeism and work hours affected by asthma, respiratory allergies, depression, and stress and to self-reported improvements in productivity. These preliminary findings indicate that green buildings may positively affect public health.
School Environment and the Mental Health of Sexual Minority Youths: A Study Among Dutch Young Adolescents
Authors: Sandfort Theo G. M. , Bos Henny M. W. , Collier Kate L. , Metselaar Marijke
Published: July 2010

Objectives. We examined whether structural elements of the school environment, in particular cultural pluralism and consistency and clarity of school rules and expectations of students, could mitigate the risk for mental health problems among young sexual minority adolescents.

Methods. Data were collected in 2008 by means of a computer-based questionnaire completed at school by 513 young Dutch adolescents (12–15 years old) during regular class times. Eleven percent of these students, who were enrolled in 8 different schools, reported having at least some feelings of same-sex attraction.

Results. Adolescents with same-sex attractions in schools where rules and expectations were experienced as less consistent and clear reported significantly more mental health problems than their peers with no same-sex attractions in the same schools. Such differences were absent in schools where rules and expectations were experienced as more consistent and clear. There were no such effects of cultural pluralism.

Conclusions. Our results suggest that schools with consistent and clear rules and expectations mitigate the risk for mental health problems among students with same-sex attractions and underscore the importance of structural measures for the health of sexual minority youth.
Suicide Patterns and Association With Predictors Among Rhode Island Public High School Students: A Latent Class Analysis
Authors: Jiang Yongwen , Perry Donald Kent , Hesser Jana Earl
Published: July 2010

Objectives. We analyzed Rhode Island's 2007 Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) data to investigate suicide patterns and their association with suicide risk predictors among public high school students.

Methods. We used latent class regression analysis of Rhode Island's 2007 YRBS data (from a random sample of 2210 public high school students) to model latent classes of suicide risk and identify predictors of latent class membership.

Results. Four latent classes of suicide risk were modeled and predictors were associated with each: class 1 (emotionally healthy, 74%); class 2 (considered and planned suicide, 14%) was associated with being female, having low grades, being gay/lesbian/bisexual/unsure, feeling unsafe at school, having experienced forced sexual intercourse, and self-perceived overweight; class 3 (attempted suicide, 6%) was associated with speaking a language other than English at home, being gay/lesbian/bisexual/unsure, feeling unsafe at school, and forced sexual intercourse; and class 4 (planned and attempted suicide, 6%) was associated with the previously mentioned predictors and with being in 9th or 10th grade and currently smoking.

Conclusions. A single model characterized and quantified 4 patterns of suicide risk among adolescents and identified predictors for 3 at-risk classes. Interventions for high-risk youths may help prevent adolescent suicides.
Bridging the Gap: Using School-Based Health Services to Improve Chlamydia Screening Among Young Women
Authors: Braun Rebecca A. , Provost Jackie M.
Published: July 2010

Objectives. We implemented a chlamydia screening program targeted at young women accessing reproductive health care services in a school-based setting, and we assessed racial/ethnic factors associated with infection.

Methods. The California Family Health Council partnered with 9 health care agencies receiving federal Title X family planning funding and 19 educational institutions to implement the Educational Partnerships to Increase Chlamydia Screening (EPICS) program from January 2008 through December 2008.

Results. EPICS agencies provided reproductive health services to 3396 unique sexually active females, 85% of whom self-reported no other source for reproductive health care. Chlamydia screening was provided to 3026 clients (89.1% chlamydia screening coverage). Of those screened for chlamydia, 5.6% tested positive. Clients who were African American (odds ratio [OR] = 7.5; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 3.9, 14.3), Pacific Islander (OR = 4.1; 95% CI = 1.1, 15.5), or Asian (OR = 3.3; 95% CI = 1.4, 8.1) were more likely to have a positive test than were White clients.

Conclusions. Chlamydia screening programs implemented in school-based settings have the capacity to identify and treat a significant amount of asymptomatic infection in a population that otherwise may not be reached. To facilitate screening, school-based clinics should implement outreach strategies that target their school population and clinical strategies that maximize opportunities for screening.
Global Inequality in Eye Health: Country-Level Analysis From the Global Burden of Disease Study
Authors: Ono Koichi , Hiratsuka Yoshimune , Murakami Akira
Published: July 2010

Objectives. We assessed global inequality in eye health by using data on the global burden of disease measured in disability-adjusted life years (DALYs).

Methods. We estimated the burden of eye disease by calculating the sum of DALYs (from the Global Burden of Disease study, 2004 update) due to trachoma, vitamin A deficiency, glaucoma, cataract, refractive errors, and macular degeneration. We assessed the geographic distribution of eye disease in relation to economic status and etiology by calculating the Gini coefficient, the Theil index, and the Atkinson index.

Results. The global burden of eye disease was estimated at 61.4 million DALYs worldwide (4.0% of total DALYs). Vitamin A deficiency and trachoma were distributed more unevenly than were noncommunicable eye diseases, regardless of economic status. For noncommunicable eye diseases, the major contributor was refractive errors, regardless of economic status. The most uneven distribution was observed for cataract (high-income countries) and refractive errors (middle- and low-income countries).

Conclusions. Creating new eye health service for refractive errors and reducing the unacceptable eye health disparity in refractive errors should be the highest priorities for international public health services in eye care and eye health.
Kish: Where Customers Pay As They Wish
Authors: Kim Ju-Young , Natter Martin , Spann Martin
Published: July 2010

New restaurants often do not manage to succeed within a reasonable amount of time. Exotic restaurants especially face the problem that price promotions may not attract new customers because prospective customers might associate very low prices for unfamiliar food with a high functional risk. This paper describes how Pay-What-You-Want (PWYW), a new pricing mechanism, was successfully implemented at Kish, a moderately priced Persian restaurant in downtown Frankfurt. After the initial testing phase, which had the characteristics of a promotional offer, the restaurant decided to permanently offer its buffet lunch under PWYW conditions. We report the long-term effects of this decision as well as a simulation demonstrating that profitability is mainly based on 'trading up' the continuous inflow of new customers to the more profitable dining offer where prices are fixed.
War Mobilization and the Great Compression
Authors: Scotese Carol A.
Published: July 2010

During the 1940s, the diversion of 55% of the workforce to wartime production, the induction of over 10 million young men into the armed forces, and the entry of millions of female, young, and elderly workers into the workplace subjected the labor force to large shocks. Also during the 1940s, the wage distribution compressed sharply and the returns to education fell. This paper uses wage changes between occupations to link wartime labor market shocks to the decline in the return to education and the decline in wage inequality. Wartime production favoring semi-skilled labor and the occupation-biased nature of the draft combined to compress both the lower and upper tails of the male wage distribution and the upper portion of the female wage distribution.
Examination of a Clinical Prediction Rule to Identify Patients With Neck Pain Likely to Benefit From Thoracic Spine Thrust Manipulation and a General Cervical Range of Motion Exercise: Multi-Center Randomized Clinical Trial
Authors: Cleland Joshua A. , Mintken Paul E. , Carpenter Kristin , Fritz Julie M. , Glynn Paul , Whitman Julie , Childs John D.
Published: July 2010

Background

A clinical prediction rule (CPR) purported to identify patients with neck pain who are likely to respond to thoracic spine thrust manipulation has recently been developed, but has yet to be validated.

Objective

The purpose of this study was to examine the validity of this CPR.

Design

This was a multi-center randomized clinical trial.

Methods

One hundred forty patients with a primary report of neck pain were randomly assigned to receive either 5 sessions of stretching and strengthening exercise (exercise-only group) or 2 sessions of thoracic spine manipulation and cervical range of motion exercise followed by 3 sessions of stretching and strengthening exercise (manipulation + exercise group). Data on disability and pain were collected at baseline, 1 week, 4 weeks, and 6 months. The primary aim (treatment group × time × status on the prediction rule) was examined using a linear mixed model with repeated measures. Time, treatment group, and status on the rule, as well as all possible 2-way and 3-way interactions, were modeled as fixed effects, with disability (and pain) as the dependent variable. Effect sizes were calculated for both pain and disability at each follow-up period.

Results

There was no 3-way interaction for either disability or pain. A 2-way (group × time) interaction existed for both disability and pain. Pair-wise comparisons of disability demonstrated that significant differences existed at each follow-up period between the manipulation + exercise group and the exercise-only group. The patients who received manipulation exhibited lower pain scores at the 1-week follow-up period. The effect sizes were moderate for disability at each follow-up period and were moderate for pain at the 1-week follow-up.

Limitations

Different exercise approaches may have resulted in a different outcome.

Conclusions

The results of the current study did not support the validity of the previously developed CPR. However, the results demonstrated that patients with mechanical neck pain who received thoracic spine manipulation and exercise exhibited significantly greater improvements in disability at both the short- and long-term follow-up periods and in pain at the 1-week follow-up compared with patients who received exercise only.
Functional mapping–guided resection of low-grade gliomas in eloquent areas of the brain: improvement of long-term survival
Authors: Chang Edward F. , Clark Aaron , Smith Justin S. , Polley Mei-Yin , Chang Susan M. , Barbaro Nicholas M. , Parsa Andrew T. , McDermott Michael W. , Berger Mitchel S.
Published: July 2010

Object

Low-grade gliomas (LGGs) frequently infiltrate highly functional or “eloquent” brain areas. Given the lack of long-term survival data, the prognostic significance of eloquent brain tumor location and the role of functional mapping during resective surgery in presumed eloquent brain regions are unknown.

Methods

We performed a retrospective analysis of 281 cases involving adults who underwent resection of a supratentorial LGG at a brain tumor referral center. Preoperative MR images were evaluated blindly for involvement of eloquent brain areas, including the sensorimotor and language cortices, and specific subcortical structures. For high-risk tumors located in presumed eloquent brain areas, long-term survival estimates were evaluated for patients who underwent intraoperative functional mapping with electrocortical stimulation and for those who did not.

Results

One hundred and seventy-four patients (62%) had high-risk LGGs that were located in presumed eloquent areas. Adjusting for other known prognostic factors, patients with tumors in areas presumed to be eloquent had worse overall and progression-free survival (OS, hazard ratio [HR] 6.1, 95% CI 2.6–14.1; PFS, HR 1.9, 95% CI 1.2–2.9; Cox proportional hazards). Confirmation of tumor overlapping functional areas during intraoperative mapping was strongly associated with shorter survival (OS, HR 9.6, 95% CI 3.6–25.9). In contrast, when mapping revealed that tumor spared true eloquent areas, patients had significantly longer survival, nearly comparable to patients with tumors that clearly involved only noneloquent areas, as demonstrated by preoperative imaging (OS, HR 2.9, 95% CI 1.0–8.5).

Conclusions

Presumed eloquent location of LGGs is an important but modifiable risk factor predicting disease progression and death. Delineation of true functional and nonfunctional areas by intraoperative mapping in high-risk patients to maximize tumor resection can dramatically improve long-term survival.
Aneurysm of the distal anterior cerebral artery radiologically mimicking a ventricular mass
Authors: Şanlι A. Metin , Çekirge Saruhan , Şekerci Zeki
Published: July 2010

The ventricular system is a rare localization for intracranial aneurysms. Most ventricular aneurysms arise from a distal branch of the choroidal arteries and a major branch point of the circle of Willis.

A 41-year-old-man suffering from dizziness of 2 weeks' duration was admitted to the clinic. On radiological examination, he had a well-circumscribed mass involving the frontal horn of the right lateral ventricle without radiological evidence of a prior or recent hemorrhage. Localization and radiological appearance were not typical of a ventricular mass and did not allow diagnosis. After cerebral angiography, an aneurysm arising from the distal anterior cerebral artery was incidentally found in an intraventricular location. This unruptured aneurysm was successfully treated via the endovascular route.

The authors describe the unusual case of a distal anterior cerebral artery aneurysm with a dome extending into the right lateral ventricle, which appears to be the first such case in the literature. Angiography may be helpful to neurosurgeons in avoiding the disastrous complications of a biopsy procedure in such unusual cases.
Prediction of neurological deficits and recovery after surgery in the supplementary motor area: a prospective study in 26 patients
Authors: Rosenberg Keren , Nossek Erez , Liebling Ronit , Fried Itzhak , Shapira-Lichter Irit , Hendler Talma , Ram Zvi
Published: July 2010

Object

Resection of lesions involving the supplementary motor area (SMA) may result in immediate postoperative motor and speech deficits that are reversible in most cases. In the present study the authors aimed to determine the critical involvement of SMA in the lesioned and healthy hemispheres in this functional recovery. They hypothesized that compensatory mechanisms take place following surgery in the SMA, and that these mechanisms can involve either the lesioned or the non-lesioned hemisphere. In addition, they hypothesized that a correlation will be present between the functional MR imaging (fMR) imaging–related activation in the SMA and the occurrence of a functional deficit during intraoperative cortical stimulation.

Methods

Twenty-six patients scheduled for resection of space-occupying lesions involving, or in the vicinity of, the SMA were recruited. Patients underwent an fMR imaging examination that included finger-tapping and verb-generation tests to assess for motor and language functions. Intraoperatively direct cortical stimulation (DCS) of the SMA region was performed while patients were monitored for language and motor functions using tests similar to those used for the fMR imaging. Task dysfunction during DCS assessed the critical involvement of the SMA in the tested functions. Neurological evaluations were performed prior to surgery and at 3 time points within a month following surgery. A region of interest–based approach was used to evaluate fMR imaging blood oxygen level–dependent activation level and asymmetry in the SMA. These measurements were later compared with the intraoperative DCS and neurological findings.

Results

Functional MR imaging showed greater activation and dominance of the SMA in the lesioned hemisphere in patients who exhibited no motor or language dysfunction during DCS. In addition, patients with the highest activation of the SMA in the lesioned hemisphere for language and motor tests showed stronger coupling of this region with ipsilateral motor and language networks. In contrast, activation in the nonlesioned hemisphere did not correspond with DCS results.

Conclusions

The authors' findings demonstrate the necessity of activation in the vicinity of the lesioned SMA for functional compensation in motor and language tasks. It is possible that more effective functional coupling of the SMA with motor and language areas in the same hemisphere prevents dysfunctions following surgical intervention. Importantly, fMR imaging activation in the unaffected SMA was not sufficient for development of functional compensation and, if anything, indicated decompensation.
Clonal propagation of Carob (Ceratonia siliqua L., Fabaceae)
Authors: Hakim L , Islam MR , Mamun ANK , Ahmed G , Khan R
Published: July 2010

Mature seeds of carob tree (Ceratonia siliqua L.) were germinated on hormone free MS medium. Efforts were made to develop multiple shoots by using axillary buds of in vitro grown seedlings on MS medium fortified with different concentrations of BA singly and BA in combination with IAA or GA3. Axillary buds produced single shoot with a moderate amount of callus at the base of the explant after culturing on MS medium with BA alone. Multiple shoots were regenerated when explants when cultured on MS medium fortified with BA + IAA or BA + GA3. MS medium supplemented with 1.5 mg/l BA + 0.5 mg/l GA3 was found more effective in multiple shoot regeneration than all other combinations. Regenerated multiple shoots were excised and cultured on half strength of MS medium containing different concentrations of IBA for root induction. Best root development was obtained in half strength MS medium containing 0.5 mg/l IBA. About 70% of the regenerated plantlets survived in natural conditions. Key words: Carob; Ceratonia siliqua; Fabaceae; Clonal propagation DOI: 10.3329/bjb.v39i1.5520Bangladesh J. Bot. 39(1): 15-19, 2010 (June)
Effects of age on the survival and recovery of submerged rice (Oryza sativa L.) seedlings
Authors: Pervin MS , Gomosta AR , Ahmed JU
Published: July 2010

Post-submergence (about 100 cm water depth for ten days) survivality and recovery of rice seedlings were studied in a greenhouse experiment. Irrespective of varieties, 10 and 15-day-old seedlings barely could recover from the shock. More than 80% of 20-day-old seedlings of variety FR13A survived. With the increase of seedling age, elongation of plants decreased during submergence. The variety FR13A and BRRI dhan32 recovered considerably at the seedling age exceeding 20-day, whereas BR6110-10-2-1 and BR11 performed the same not below 40-day-old seedlings. At the higher seedling age, all the varieties maintained higher level of soluble sugar and starch both before and after submergence. During the submergence, the depletion rate of soluble sugar was more or less similar in all the varieties, but the rate of starch depletion was the lowest in FR13A. Therefore, the amount of total carbohydrate both pre- and post-submergence was higher in tolerant variety FR13A that might contribute to the better survivality and recovery ability. Key words: Rice; T. Aman; Carbohydrate content; Seedling age; Survival; Recovery DOI: 10.3329/bjb.v39i1.5522Bangladesh J. Bot. 39(1): 21-28, 2010 (June)
Methods to Estimate the Diversity in the Marine Photosynthetic Protist Community with Illustrations from Case Studies: A Review
Authors: Medlin Linda K. , Kooistra Wiebe H.C. F.
Published: July 2010

We review the application of molecular methods to estimate biodiversity in the marine environment. All of the methods reviewed here, which are at the forefront of molecular research, can be applied to all organisms in all habitats, but the case studies used to illustrate the points are derived from marine photosynthetic eukaryotic protists. It has been accepted that we know less than 10% of the identified diversity in the marine microbial world and the marine micro- and pico-eukaryotes are no exception. Even the species that we think we can easily recognize are often poorly described, and even less is known of their life histories and spatial and temporal trends in their abundance and distribution. With new molecular and analytical techniques, we can advance our knowledge of marine biodiversity at the species level to understand how marine biodiversity supports ecosystem structure, dynamics and resilience. Biogeochemical reactions performed by marine photosynthetic microbial organisms constitute a major sustaining component of ecosystem functioning, and therefore, affect climate changes. New interpretations of how environmental, ecological and evolutionary processes control and structure marine ecosystem biodiversity can be made so that we can augment our understanding of biodiversity and ecosystem dynamics in especially the pico- and nano-fractions of the plankton as well as in the deep sea benthos, both of which are very difficult to study without good analytical methods.
Nitric Oxide: Perspectives and Emerging Studies of a Well Known Cytotoxin
Authors: Paradise William A. , Vesper Benjamin J. , Goel Ajay , Waltonen Joshua D. , Altman Kenneth W. , Haines G. Kenneth , Radosevich James A.
Published: July 2010

The free radical nitric oxide (NO●) is known to play a dual role in human physiology and pathophysiology. At low levels, NO● can protect cells; however, at higher levels, NO● is a known cytotoxin, having been implicated in tumor angiogenesis and progression. While the majority of research devoted to understanding the role of NO● in cancer has to date been tissue-specific, we herein review underlying commonalities of NO● which may well exist among tumors arising from a variety of different sites. We also discuss the role of NO● in human physiology and pathophysiology, including the very important relationship between NO● and the glutathione-transferases, a class of protective enzymes involved in cellular protection. The emerging role of NO● in three main areas of epigenetics—DNA methylation, microRNAs, and histone modifications—is then discussed. Finally, we describe the recent development of a model cell line system in which human tumor cell lines were adapted to high NO● (HNO) levels. We anticipate that these HNO cell lines will serve as a useful tool in the ongoing efforts to better understand the role of NO● in cancer.