bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The island syndrome in lizards
Authors: Novosolov Maria , Raia Pasquale , Meiri Shai
Published: August 2012

Aim

Islands are thought to promote correlated ecological and life‐history shifts in species, including increased population density, and an infrequent production of few, large, offspring. These patterns are collectively termed ‘the island syndrome’. We present here the first, phylogenetically informed, global test of the ‘island syndrome’ hypothesis, using lizards as our model organisms.

Location

World‐wide.

Methods

We assembled a database containing 641 lizard species, their phylogenetic relationships, geographic ranges and the following life‐history traits: female mass, clutch size, brood frequency, hatchling body mass and population density. We tested for life‐history differences between insular and mainland forms in light of the island syndrome, controlling for mass and latitude, and for phylogenetic non‐independence. We also examined the effects of population density and, in insular endemics, of island area, on lizard reproductive traits.

Results

We found that insular endemic lizards lay smaller clutches of larger hatchlings than closely related mainland lizards of similar size, as was expected by the island syndrome. In general, however, insular endemics lay more frequently than mainland ones. Species endemic to small islands lay as frequently as mainland species. Continental and insular lizards have similar productivity rates overall. Island area had little effect on lizard reproductive traits. No trait showed association with population density.

Main conclusions

Island endemic lizards mainly follow the island syndrome. We hypothesize that large offspring are favoured on islands because of increased intra‐specific aggression and cannibalism by adults. Stable populations on islands lacking predators may likewise lead to increased intra‐specific competition, and hence select for larger hatchlings that will quickly grow to adult size. This view is supported by the fact that lizard populations are denser on islands – although population density per se was uncorrelated with any of the traits we examined.
Class in a Glass: Capital, Neoliberalism and Social Space in the Global Wine Industry
Authors: Overton John , Murray Warwick E.
Published: August 2012

Abstract:  This paper explores the evolving relationship between class and capital in the neoliberalised global wine industry. Wine is a unique sector that is possessed of intricate and underexplored aspects of class formation. Having investigated the recent restructuring of the industry under neoliberalism the paper goes on to analyse class formations in the production and consumption spheres. In this discussion we note not only the concrete economic and social dynamics of change, in terms of the differing fortunes of consumers, investors, landowners and workers, but also the physical and symbolic expressions of class in and through the countryside, as manifested in changing landscapes, discourses and idylls. In conclusion we analyse relationship between capital, class formation and accumulation across and within different scales in the context of a rapidly globalising sector that is so rooted in place.
Logic, Models, and Paradoxical Inferences
Authors: ORENES ISABEL , JOHNSON‐LAIRD P. N.
Published: August 2012

People reject ‘paradoxical’ inferences, such as: Luisa didn't play music; therefore, if Luisa played soccer, then she didn't play music. For some theorists, they are invalid for everyday conditionals, but valid in logic. The theory of mental models implies that they are valid, but unacceptable because the conclusion refers to a possibility inconsistent with the premise. Hence, individuals should accept them if the conclusions refer only to possibilities consistent with the premises: Luisa didn't play soccer; therefore, if Luisa played a game then she didn't play soccer. Two experiments corroborated this prediction for three sorts of ‘paradox’, including a disjunctive paradox.
Three Challenges for Indexicalism
Authors: CLAPP LENNY
Published: August 2012

Indexicalism is a strategy for defending truth‐conditional semantics from under‐determination arguments. According to indexicalism the class of indexical expressions includes not only the obvious indexicals, e.g. demonstratives and personal pronouns, but also unobvious indexical expressions, expressions which allegedly have been discovered to be indexicals. This paper argues that indexicalism faces significant obstacles that have yet to be overcome. The issue that divides indexicalism and truth‐conditional pragmatics is first clarified. And then three general problems for indexicalism are presented, and some potential solutions that have been proposed in its defense are criticized.
(NON‐)RESILIENCY OF FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENT IN THE UNITED STATES DURING THE 2007–2009 FINANCIAL CRISIS
Authors: CONTESSI SILVIO , DE PACE PIERANGELO
Published: August 2012

We study the contraction of foreign direct investment (FDI) flows in the United States during the recent financial crisis and show their unusual non‐resiliency, which depends in part on the global nature of the economic recession, but also on the increases in the cost of financing FDI in the economies in which the flows originate. To formally study the effects of external financial conditions on FDI in the United States, we exploit the three dimensions of a panel of US inward FDI flows organized by recipient US industries, source countries and years for the recorded flows. Changes in the cost of finance in the source countries have little or no effect on total inward flows (the sum of equity, debt and reinvested earnings) over the 2006–2010 period. However, US industries characterized by more financial vulnerability experience statistically significant variations in the debt and equity components of inward FDI flows in response to the changes in the cost of capital that occurred in the source countries during the crisis.
CAPITAL FLOWS AND JAPANESE ASSET VOLATILITY
Authors: NEELY CHRISTOPHER J. , FAWLEY BRETT W.
Published: August 2012

Characterizing asset price volatility is an important goal for financial economists. The literature has shown that variables that proxy for the information arrival process can help explain and/or forecast volatility. Unfortunately, however, obtaining good measures of volume and/or order flow is expensive or difficult in decentralized markets such as foreign exchange. We investigate the extent that Japanese capital flows, which are released weekly, reflect information arrival that improves foreign exchange and equity volatility forecasts. We find that capital flows can help explain transitory shocks to generalized autoregressive conditionally heteroskedastic volatility.
ATTRACTING FOREIGN PARTICIPATION IN ASIAN LOCAL CURRENCY BOND MARKETS: THE CASE OF THE ASIAN BOND FUND 2 INITIATIVE
Authors: PACKER FRANK , REMOLONA ELI
Published: August 2012

The Asian Bond Fund 2 (ABF2) is a $US2bn initiative by a group of central banks in Asia and the Pacific. To promote local currency government bond markets, the fund has been investing in 8 such markets in the region. These markets have made impressive strides since the fund's inception in 2005. The improvements may be traced in large part to overcoming a number of market impediments, including barriers to cross‐border investment. The ABF2 project has played an important catalytic role in market reforms aimed at removing these impediments. However, while the government bond markets have come of age, the corporate bond markets have remained immature. To develop, the immature markets would likely require the benefits of further opening up to regional issuance and investment flows.
The Dollar Shortage in Global Banking and the International Policy Response
Authors: McGuire Patrick , von Peter Goetz
Published: August 2012

Among the policy responses to the global financial crisis, the international provision of US dollars via central bank swap lines stands out. This paper studies the build‐up of stresses on banks’ balance sheets that led to this coordinated policy response. We reconstruct the worldwide consolidated balance sheets of the major national banking systems to investigate the structure of their global operations across offices worldwide, shedding light on how their international asset positions were funded across currencies and counterparties. The analysis shows how the growth in European banks’ US dollar assets produced structural US dollar funding needs, setting the stage for the global dollar shortage when interbank and swap markets became impaired. We demonstrate that such vulnerabilities are best measured along the contours of banks’ consolidated balance sheets, rather than along national borders.
Has Globalization Improved International Risk Sharing?
Authors: Antonakakis Nikolaos , Scharler Johann
Published: August 2012

In this paper, we study the dynamics of international consumption risk sharing among the G‐7 countries. Based on the dynamic conditional correlation model due to Engle (2002), we construct a time‐varying, consumption‐based measure of risk sharing. We find that the exposure to country‐specific shocks has evolved heterogeneously across the G‐7 countries and that risk sharing varies procyclically with the output gap. This dependence on the business cycle is especially pronounced in countries where credit constraints are relatively binding.
Vocational training and professional development: a capability perspective
Authors: Lambert Marion , Vero Josiane , Zimmermann Bénédicte
Published: August 2012

Lifelong learning has become one of the keys to making workers' career paths more secure at both the French and the European policy level. However, the implementation of these policy lines raises delicate questions as to how the responsibility for vocational training should be shared among employees, employers and public institutions. The capability approach is used here to elucidate the ambiguous relationships between responsibility and freedom that characterized French training reforms in 2004. The study, based on quantitative and qualitative surveys in which employers and their employees were consulted, shows that the environment provided by the company contributes more decisively than employees' previous training and career paths to the capability of the latter to attend vocational training and develop professionally at work. Relying on these empirical findings, it proposes a scheme for a capability‐based conceptualization of professional development.
New teachers' individual learning dispositions: a Scottish case study
Authors: Shanks Rachel , Robson Dean , Gray Donald
Published: August 2012

This research is concerned with the professional learning and development of new teachers in the Scottish Teacher Induction Scheme, in particular, informal and formal learning, the workplace learning environment and the personal and professional characteristics of the induction year teacher. Building on the work of Unwin and Fuller and Hodkinson and Hodkinson on expansive and restrictive learning environments for teachers, this study considers learning at both the social and individual level, while providing a deeper understanding of the related concept of individual learning disposition. A sequential mixed methods approach was adopted, using online questionnaires and semi‐structured interviews, to collect new teachers' perceptions of their learning experiences.

The research suggests that a policy‐driven formal programme of induction for new teachers should be augmented with experience of an expansive learning environment with supportive colleagues. The authors suggest that, rather than fitting the new teacher into existing arrangements, schools must recognize the new teachers' individual learning dispositions, namely their learning biography and attitude towards, and engagement with, learning opportunities. By demonstrating flexibility schools can tailor induction year experiences, thus enabling rich and complementary professional learning to take place within a supportive workplace community.
Gene–gene interactions in IL23/Th17 pathway contribute to psoriasis susceptibility in Chinese Han population
Authors: Wang W.‐J. , Yin X.‐Y. , Zuo X.‐B. , Cheng H. , Du W.‐D. , Zhang F.‐Y. , Yang S. , Zhang X.‐J.
Published: August 2012

Background  Psoriasis is a common chronic inflammatory skin disease. IL23/Th17 is a newly confirmed pathway in psoriasis.

Objective  To investigate the gene–gene interactions in IL23/Th17 pathway underlying psoriasis.

Methods  A total of 299 single‐nucleotide polymorphisms from 11 genes in IL23/Th17 pathway were genotyped on 1139 patients with psoriasis and 1694 controls. Multifactor dimensionality reduction and logistic regression algorithms were applied to explore the gene–gene interactions.

Results  We found that there were a three‐way interaction among IL21, CCR4 and TNF(χ2 = 5.02(1), P = 0.025) and three pair‐wise gene–gene interactions between IL12RB1 and CCR4(χ2 = 11.66(4), P = 0.0201), IL22 and CCR4 (χ2 = 11.97(4), P = 0.0176), IL12RB1 and IL6 (χ2 = 7.31(1), P = 0.0069) in psoriasis.

Conclusions  Our results might be helpful for explaining the missing heritability of the psoriasis due to epistasis and provide a deep insight into the important role of the IL23/Th17 pathway in the pathogenesis of psoriasis.
Does the European Union Need to Become a Community?*
Authors: THEILER TOBIAS
Published: August 2012

Many theorists contend that for the European Union to become a viable democratic polity its citizens must develop an overarching communal identity. I take issue with this claim, arguing that the norms, motivations and perceptions that make supranational democracy possible can also emerge through processes that do not presuppose shared communal identifications. These include the gradual externalization of domestic democratic norms and practices to the EU level, the incorporation of the resulting supranational democratic attachments back into existing national identifications and the build‐up of transnational political trust propelled by the practice of supranational democracy itself. Such an outcome is not inevitable, but it is conceivable in that it is theoretically coherent and has limited empirical analogies and precedents. The range of options for the EU's further democratic development is therefore broader and the chances of its success greater than many analysts assume.
The importance of leaf cuticle for carbon economy and  mechanical strength
Authors: Onoda Yusuke , Richards Lora , Westoby Mark
Published: August 2012

Cuticle thickness of leaves varies > 100 times across species, yet its dry mass cost and ecological benefits are poorly understood. It has been repeatedly demonstrated that thicker cuticle is not superior as a water barrier, implying that other functions must be important.

Here, we measured the mechanical properties, dry mass and density of isolated cuticle from 13 evergreen woody species of Australian forests.

Summed adaxial and abaxial cuticle membrane mass per unit leaf area (CMA) varied from 2.95 to 27.4 g m−2 across species, and accounted for 6.7–24% of lamina dry mass. Density of cuticle varied only from 1.04 to 1.24 g cm−3; thus variation in CMA was mostly due to variation in cuticle thickness. Thicker cuticle was more resistant to tearing. Tensile strength and modulus of elasticity of cuticle were much higher than those of leaf laminas, with significant differences between adaxial and abaxial cuticles.

While cuticle membranes were thin, they could account for a significant fraction of leaf dry mass due to their high density. The substantial cost of thicker cuticle is probably offset by increased mechanical resistance which might confer longer leaf lifespans among evergreen species.
Auditory stream segregation impairments in schizophrenia
Authors: Weintraub David M. , Ramage Erin M. , Sutton Griffin , Ringdahl Erik , Boren Aaron , Pasinski Amanda C. , Thaler Nick , Haderlie Michael , Allen Daniel N. , Snyder Joel S.
Published: August 2012

We used behavior and event‐related potentials (ERPs) to examine auditory stream segregation in people with schizophrenia and control participants. During each trial, a context pattern was presented, consisting of low (A) and high (B) tones and silence (‐) in a repeating ABA‐ pattern, with a frequency separation (Δf) of 3, 6, or 12 semitones. Next, a test ABA‐pattern was presented that always had a 6‐semitone Δf. Larger Δf during the context resulted in more perception of two streams and larger N1 and P2 ERPs, but less perception of two streams during the test pattern. These effects of Δf were smaller in schizophrenia. Individuals with schizophrenia also showed a reduced effect of prior perceptual judgments. Overall, the findings demonstrate that people with schizophrenia have abnormalities in segregating sounds. These abnormalities result from difficulties utilizing frequency cues in addition to reduced temporal context effects.
The association of childhood obesity to neuroelectric indices of inhibition
Authors: Kamijo Keita , Pontifex Matthew B. , Khan Naiman A. , Raine Lauren B. , Scudder Mark R. , Drollette Eric S. , Evans Ellen M. , Castelli Darla M. , Hillman Charles H.
Published: August 2012

To examine whether childhood obesity is associated with inhibitory control, we compared healthy weight and obese preadolescent children's task performance along with the N2 and P3 components during a Go/NoGo task. Results indicated that obese children exhibited lower response accuracy relative to healthy weight children during the NoGo task requiring greater amounts of inhibitory control, whereas no such difference was observed during the Go task. Neuroelectric data indicated that healthy weight children exhibited a more frontal distribution for the NoGo P3 relative to the Go P3, whereas obese children had similar topographic distributions between the Go P3 and NoGo P3. Further, obese children had larger NoGo N2 amplitude relative to the Go N2, whereas this difference was not observed for healthy weight children. These findings suggest that childhood obesity is negatively and selectively associated with prefrontal inhibitory control.
Debt and disadvantage: the experience of unmanageable debt and financial difficulty in England and Wales
Authors: Patel Ash , Balmer Nigel J. , Pleasence Pascoe
Published: August 2012

In common with a number of other developed western states, the UK has seen significant growth of consumer debt over the past three decades. In tandem, there has been an associated increase on the demand for debt advice. Using data from the English and Welsh Civil and Social Justice Survey, this article explores how debt problems are experienced across the population and goes on to contextualize the distinct nature of debt problems and their relationship to other problems of everyday life. Findings reaffirm the increased vulnerability to debt problems experienced by socially excluded groups, such as lone parents, those with a long‐term illness or disability and the people with no academic qualification. Results go further to demonstrate that vulnerability is not constant but is also influenced by broader economic and social factors; in particular, findings demonstrate how problems directly associated with the economic downturn increase vulnerability to unmanageable debt and financial difficulty. Given this relationship, and the prolonged longevity of debt problems compared with other problem types, we would expect to see an increase in the experience of debt problems as the effects of the recession become fully apparent, and for some time thereafter. Discussion focuses upon the policy relevance of findings to frontline debt counselling and advice services operating within an increasingly tighter financial environment. Specifically, emphasis is placed upon potential benefits of offering debt counselling and advice as part of an array of other social welfare advice services, and even working across sectors to get better penetration into hard to reach groups.
Shopping for a home vs. a loan: the role of cognitive resource depletion
Authors: Perry Vanessa Gail , Lee Joonwhan David
Published: August 2012

The authors suggest that the process of shopping for a home and choosing between alternative property features depletes individuals’ cognitive resources, which in turn results in sub‐optimal home financing decisions. Thus, in the span of time that follows the shopping experience, consumers will devote less attention to choosing a mortgage, resulting in a higher propensity to select higher‐risk, adjustable‐rate mortgage products. The results of two controlled experiments demonstrate that participants in an online house shopping simulation were more likely to select one of the high‐risk mortgage offers, and spent less time selecting a mortgage than participants in the control condition. In addition, contrary to expectations, warning participants about cognitive resource depletion exacerbated these effects. These findings imply that consumer decisions could be improved by imposing a temporal separation between shopping for a home and shopping for financing.
Income thresholds of dissaving in Germany: empirical evidence from the recent sample survey of income and expenditure (EVS 2008)
Authors: Hufnagel Rainer
Published: August 2012

Saving of private households monotonically increases with income. If the regression lines, which represent the ‘demand for saving’, assume negative values, saving turns into dissaving, i.e. dissolving assets or going into debt. The zeros of the demand functions for saving are called ‘dissaving thresholds’. Dissaving thresholds for Germany are determined econometrically using the Sample Survey of Income and Expenditure. Dissaving thresholds turn out to be far higher than social assistance amounts. Implications for economic, social and consumer policy in Germany are discussed.
Back to the Future: How Biology and Technology Could Change the Role of PTFE Grafts in Vascular Access Management
Authors: Roy‐Chaudhury Prabir , El‐Khatib Mahmoud , Campos‐Naciff Begona , Wadehra Davinder , Ramani Karthik , Leesar Massoud , Mistry Meenakshi , Wang Yang , Chan Jenq‐Shyong , Lee Timmy , Munda Rino
Published: August 2012

Although the arteriovenous fistula (AVF) is the preferred mode of dialysis vascular access, AVF maturation failure remains a huge clinical problem, often resulting in a prolonged duration of use of tunneled dialysis catheters. In contrast, polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) grafts do not suffer from early failure, but have significant problems with later stenosis and thrombosis. This review will initially summarize the pathology and pathogenesis of PTFE graft dysfunction and will then use this as a basis for describing some novel therapies, which may have the potential to reduce PTFE graft dysfunction. Finally, we will emphasize that the introduction of such therapies could be an important first step toward individualizing overall vascular access care.
Biological Grafts for Hemodialysis Access: Historical Lessons, State‐of‐the‐Art and Future Directions
Authors: Dukkipati Ramanath , Peck Marissa , Dhamija Rajiv , Hentschel Dirk M , Reynolds Tyler , Tammewar Gautam , McAllister Todd
Published: August 2012

The vast majority of arteriovenous grafts (AVG) have been constructed using expanded polytetrafluoroethylene (ePTFE). While ePTFE grafts have the advantage of being relatively inexpensive and easy to manufacture, distribute, ship, and store, their primary patency rates are disappointing when compared with the native AVF. Though use of arteriovenous fistulas (AVF) in the United States has increased substantially, approximately 25% of hemodialysis patients continue to use AVG as their vascular access. We present here a comprehensive review of biological grafts and their use in hemodialysis vascular access. In this review, we discuss the use of synthetics and then explore the evolution of biological grafts over the past 20 years, their clinical impact, and future challenges in widespread clinical use in hemodialysis patients. Provided are in depth descriptions of currently used nonbiological arteriovenous grafts and the recent approaches in increasing the patency of synthetic grafts. Recent technological advances using tissue‐engineered AVGs have shown promise for patients receiving hemodialysis and their potential to provide an attractive, viable option for vascular access have been discussed.
Arterial Micro‐Calcification of Vascular Access is Associated with Aortic Arch Calcification and Arterial Stiffness in Hemodialysis Patients
Authors: Kim Hyun Gyung , Park Sun Cheol , Lee Soo Lim , Shin Ok‐Ran , Yoon Sun Ae , Yang Chul Woo , Kim Yongsoo , Kim Young Ok
Published: August 2012

Vascular calcification of the coronary arteries or aorta is an independent risk factor for cardiovascular outcome, but clinical significance of arterial micro‐calcification (AMC) of vascular access is unclear in hemodialysis (HD) patients. Sixty‐five patients awaiting vascular access operation were enrolled. We compared surrogate markers of cardiovascular morbidity such as aortic arch calcification (AoAC) by chest radiography, arterial stiffness by brachial‐ankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV) and endothelial dysfunction by flow‐mediated dilatation (FMD) between patients with and without AMC of vascular access on von Kossa staining. AMC of vascular access was detected in 36 (55.4%). The AMC‐positive group had significantly higher incidence of AoAC (63.9% vs. 20.7%, p < 0.001) and higher baPWV (26.5 ± 9.4 m/s vs. 19.8 ± 6.6 m/s, p = 0.006) than the AMC‐negative group. There was no significant difference in FMD between the two groups (5.4 ± 2.6% vs. 5.7 ± 3.5%, p = 0.764). The AMC‐positive group had higher incidence of diabetes mellitus, higher systolic blood pressure and wider pulse pressure than the AMC‐negative group. This study suggests that AMC of vascular access may be associated with cardiovascular morbidity via AoAC and arterial stiffness in HD patients.
A Finite Element Model to Simulate Femoral Fractures in Calves: Testing Different Polymers for Intramedullary Interlocking Nails
Authors: Rodrigues Luciano B. , Las Casas Estevam B. , Lopes Daniel S. , Folgado João , Fernandes Paulo R. , Pires Eduardo A. C. B. , Alves Geraldo Eleno S. , Faleiros Rafael R.
Published: August 2012

Objective

To verify if the finite element method can correctly estimate the performance of polyacetal and polyamide 6 intramedullary nails in stabilizing a femoral fracture in calves and to estimate the performance of a polypropylene nail in same conditions.

Study Design

Computational and experimental study.

Sample Population

Finite element models (FEMs).

Methods

Based on a 3‐dimensional finite element method (FEM) of the femoral diaphysis, 3 models were constructed to simulate an oblique simple fracture stabilized by an intramedullary nail composed of 1 of 3 distinct polymers. Models were tested under 6 loading conditions that simulated a static calf or a calf in different walking phases. Maximum bone and implant stresses were compared to yield and rupture stresses of specific materials.

Results

Under static conditions, all polymers were resistant to critical deformation and rupture because maximum von Mises stresses were lower than the respective yield and rupture stresses. However, during walking, maximum stresses exceeded the yield and rupture limits of the polymers, in agreement with a previous in vivo study, which used polyacetal and polyamide nails.

Conclusions

FEM correctly estimated that polyacetal and polyamide 6 nails would fail to immobilize an oblique femoral diaphyseal fracture in calves that were allowed to walk freely during the early postoperative period. FEM can be useful in the development of new bovine orthopedic devices.
The Instantaneous Apparent Activation Energy of Cement Hydration Measured Using a Novel Calorimetry‐Based Method
Authors: Thomas Jeffrey J.
Published: August 2012

A new calorimetry‐based method for calculating the activation energy of cement hydration is described. The method requires a scanning calorimeter that can change the sample temperature relatively quickly and has a stable baseline, but the technique is straightforward to perform. Activation energy values can be calculated at multiple hydration times from a single specimen, allowing any changes with time to be assessed. With this method, the measured activation energy at a given time does not depend on the previous microstructural development, as is the case with traditional methods of calculating the activation energy from parallel specimens hydrated isothermally at different temperatures. For tricalcium silicate (C3S) hydrated in pure water or in a calcium chloride solution, the activation energy remains statistically constant from the earliest times until the degree of hydration exceeds 0.65, with an overall average value of (51.1 ± 1.8) kJ/mol. For cement hydration, the activation energy is also constant until well past the main hydration peak, with slightly lower average values. These results suggest that the rate‐controlling step in the hydration process does not change during the early hydration period (the first few days after mixing), as different reaction steps tend to have different activation energies.
Peripheral Nerve Sheath Tumors. Benign or Malignant? The Role of MRI and Ultrasonography in A Case Report
Authors: Chatzistefanou Alexandros , Mantatzis Michalis , Deftereos Savas , Mintzopoulou Paraskevi , Prassopoulos Panos
Published: August 2012

A 31‐year‐old male patient admitted to another hospital for investigation of a localized painful hump in the medial surface of his left leg. The clinical examination revealed a painful palpable lump in the medial surface of left thigh that was initially thought to be a hematoma due to a history of recent trauma. However, an ultrasound was requested to exclude deep venous thrombosis (DVT). The US examination revealed a heterogeneous, fusiform lesion with elongated proximal and distal projections in close proximity to superficial femoral artery and vein and could not definitely exclude the DVT hypothesis. In a second ultrasound examination performed in our department, a neurogenic origin of the lesion was proposed. A consequent MRI examination confirmed the presence of a fusiform tumor in the anatomic path of the saphenous nerve. This was further confirmed intraoperatively, and pathologically was diagnosed as a malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumor (MPNST). In this present study the role of ultrasonography, the correlation between MRI and ultrasonographic findings are discussed and a review of the literature is presented.
Symptoms after obstetric sphincter injuries have little effect on quality of life
Authors: PALM ANNA , ISRAELSSON LEIF , BOLIN MARIE , DANIELSSON INGELA
Published: August 2012

Objective. To compare the prevalence of anal incontinence and dyspareunia in women with or without obstetric sphincter injury after standardizing the suture technique. Design. Retrospective case–control study. Setting. Regional hospital, Sweden. Population. 305 women with an obstetric sphincter injury and 297 women with spontaneous vaginal delivery. Methods. In order to standardize and improve the repairing skills of sphincter injuries, collaboration between obstetricians and colorectal surgeons was begun in 2000. Inner and external sphincters were repaired in two layers with continuous monofilament polidioxane sutures. The participating women received a questionnaire with validated questions on anal incontinence, dyspareunia and quality of life. The follow‐up time was 15 months to 8 years. Main outcome measures. Anal incontinence, dyspareunia and quality of life. Results. Of the sphincter group, 72% returned the questionnaire, as did 67% in the control group. Significantly more women in the sphincter group suffered from incontinence of flatus and loose stool compared to controls (p < 0.05). There was no significant difference of incontinence of solid stool, soiling, or fecal urgency between the groups. The quality of life questions showed no significant difference between the groups. In the sphincter group, there was significantly more superficial coital pain compared to controls (p= 0.02). Significantly more women with complete sphincter injury reported anal incontinence than women with a partial sphincter injury. Conclusion. In spite of increased rate of anal incontinence and dyspareunia after anal sphincter rupture, there was no statistically significant reduction in the women's quality of life.
How to measure the cost‐effectiveness of periodontal treatments
Authors: Vernazza Chris , Heasman Peter , Gaunt Francesca , Pennington Mark
Published: August 2012

There is a need to measure efficiency of periodontal treatments. Efficiency questions can be addressed through a variety of economic evaluation techniques: cost minimization, cost‐effectiveness, cost utility and cost–benefit analysis. Each of these techniques is outlined in this article, including a detailed discussion of different preference‐based outcome (utility) measures. Despite the need, few analyses have been undertaken in periodontology. There are several issues in undertaking cost‐effectiveness analyses specific to periodontology and these are examined in detail: outcome measures including patient‐based vs. clinical measures of outcome; discounting or taking into account time preference for outcomes and costs; problems of costing, including the perspective taken in an analysis; interpreting the evidence, in particular using incremental cost‐effectiveness ratios; and global variation in periodontal care delivery, including healthcare systems and the use of hygienists. The need for cost‐effectiveness analysis in periodontology is explored further, and the need to involve a health economist in such an evaluation is underlined.
Recording and surveillance systems for periodontal diseases
Authors: Beltrán‐Aguilar Eugenio D. , Eke Paul I. , Thornton‐Evans Gina , Petersen Poul E.
Published: August 2012

This paper describes tools used to measure periodontal diseases and the integration of these tools into surveillance systems. Tools to measure periodontal diseases at the surveillance level have focussed on current manifestations of disease (e.g. gingival inflammation) or disease sequelae (e.g. periodontal pocket depth or loss of attachment). All tools reviewed in this paper were developed based on the state of the science of the pathophysiology of periodontal disease at the time of their design and the need to provide valid and reliable measurements of the presence and severity of periodontal diseases. Therefore, some of these tools are no longer valid. Others, such as loss of periodontal attachment, are the current de‐facto tools but demand many resources to undertake periodical assessment of the periodontal health of populations. Less complex tools such as the Community Periodontal Index, have been used extensively to report periodontal status. Laboratory tests for detecting putative microorganisms or inflammatory agents present in periodontal diseases have been used at the clinical level, and at least one has been tested at the population level. Other approaches, such as self‐report measures, are currently under validation. In this paper, we do not review indices designed to measure plaque or residual accumulation around the tooth, indices focussed only on gingival inflammation or radiographic approaches with limited applicability in surveillance systems. Finally, we review current case‐definitions proposed for surveillance of periodontal disease severity.
Periodontal health and global public health
Authors: Petersen Poul E. , Baehni Pierre C.
Published: August 2012

Chronic diseases are a growing burden to people, to health‐care systems and to societies across the world. The rapid increase in the burden of chronic diseases is particularly prevalent in the developing countries. Periodontal disease is one of the two most important oral diseases contributing to the global burden of chronic disease. In addition to social determinants, periodontal health status is related to several proximal factors. Modifiable risk factors, such as tobacco use, excessive alcohol consumption, poor diet and nutrition, obesity, psychological stress and insufficient personal/oral hygiene, are important and these principal risk factors for periodontal disease are shared by other chronic diseases. The present monograph is devoted to the existing evidence on the practice of public health related to periodontal health. Public health is defined as the process of mobilizing and engaging local, national and international resources to assure that people can be healthy. Social determinants of health, environmental hazards and unhealthy lifestyles are prioritized in modern public health‐care. Disease prevention and health promotion are cornerstones in actions for public health. This volume of Periodontology 2000 is entitled ‘Periodontal health and global public health’; the 12 articles of this volume discuss different aspects of this statement. It covers a range of subjects from public health issues to patient care. This monograph intends to stimulate community action research in the field of periodontology in order to help the development of appropriate public health intervention and relevant surveillance programs. It also expects to stimulate health authorities and professional organizations to initiate and support actions to promote periodontal health in their respective countries.
Is breastfeeding related to bone properties? A longitudinal analysis of associations between breastfeeding duration and pQCT parameters in children and adolescents
Authors: Kühn Tilman , Kroke Anja , Remer Thomas , Schönau Eckhard , Buyken Anette E.
Published: August 2012

Nutritive and bioactive components of human milk could be involved in programming metabolic systems that affect bone growth throughout the life course. Bone properties in childhood and adolescence might differ, depending on breastfeeding duration. Thus, breastfeeding could be a relevant factor in the context of primary osteoporosis prevention. The prospective association between breastfeeding duration and bone properties was investigated using the data of 284 participants of the Dortmund Nutritional and Anthropometric Longitudinally Designed Study. Breastfeeding duration was assessed during infancy. Bone properties were measured by peripheral quantitative computed tomography (pQCT) at ages 5–23 years. Cortical volumetric bone mineral density, cortical bone mineral content, strength strain index, total cross‐sectional area of the bone and cross‐sectional area of the cortical bone were determined at the 65% site of the radius. Linear regression analyses were performed to check for differences in pQCT parameters of subjects who had not or shortly been breastfed (0–16 weeks) and subjects who had been breastfed for a long duration (≥17 weeks). Multivariable models adjusted for age, gender, forearm length, muscle cross‐sectional area, body mass index standard deviation score (SDS), height SDS and socio‐economic status did not yield associations between breastfeeding duration and pQCT parameters. These findings suggest neither protective nor adverse effects of prolonged breastfeeding on bone health in childhood and adolescence. Influences of early nutrition on bone growth might be overridden by current effects of mechanical loads on bone physiology.
Identification of potent small‐molecule inhibitors of STAT3 with anti‐inflammatory properties in RAW 264.7 macrophages
Authors: Capiralla Hemachander , Vingtdeux Valérie , Venkatesh Jeganathan , Dreses‐Werringloer Ute , Zhao Haitian , Davies Peter , Marambaud Philippe
Published: August 2012

Signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) is a key mediator of the inflammatory response of macrophages and other immune cell types. The naturally occurring polyphenol resveratrol is associated with anti‐proliferative and anti‐inflammatory properties via mechanisms implicating inhibition of STAT3 signaling. Here, we report that the small‐molecule analogs of resveratrol, RSVA314 and RSVA405, are potent inhibitors of STAT3. RSVA314 and RSVA405 inhibited both constitutive and stimulated STAT3 activity in HEK293 cells and lipopolysaccharide‐stimulated RAW 264.7 macrophages, respectively. The small‐molecule analogs inhibited STAT3 nearly 50 times more potently than did resveratrol (apparent IC50 ~0.5 μm). We further show that RSVA405 interfered with the inflammatory response by RAW 264.7 cells upon lipopolysaccharide stimulation by inhibiting IκB kinase and IκBα phosphorylation and by decreasing the expression of several cytokines, including the NF‐κB target genes tumor necrosis factor α and interleukin‐6. Downstream activation of STAT1 upon lipopolysaccharide stimulation was also inhibited by RSVA405. Consequently, RSVA405 significantly interfered with the phagocytotic activity and proliferation of lipopolysaccharide‐activated RAW 264.7 macrophages. Finally, we found that the effect of the two small‐molecule analogs on STAT3 phosphorylation could be prevented by inhibitors of protein tyrosine phosphatases, indicating that the small molecules acted by promoting dephosphorylation of STAT3 by protein tyrosine phosphatases.
Fallibilism
Authors: Reed Baron
Published: August 2012

Although recent epistemology has been marked by several prominent disagreements – e.g., between foundationalists and coherentists, internalists and externalists – there has been widespread agreement that some form of fallibilism must be correct. According to a rough formulation of this view, it is possible for a subject to have knowledge even in cases where the justification or grounding for the knowledge is compatible with the subject’s being mistaken. In this paper, I examine the motivation for fallibilism before providing a fully general account of the view. I conclude by looking at the two major difficulties for fallibilism: the Gettier problem and the lottery paradox.
Potassium channel activators differentially modulate the effect of sodium channel blockade on cardiac conduction
Authors: Veeraraghavan R. , Larsen A. P. , Torres N. S. , Grunnet M. , Poelzing S.
Published: August 2012

Aims

Diminished repolarization reserve contributes to the arrhythmogenic substrate in many disease states. Pharmacological activation of K+ channels has been suggested as a potential antiarrhythmic therapy in such conditions. Having previously demonstrated that IK1 and IKr can modulate cardiac conduction, we tested here the effects of pharmacological IKATP and IKs activation on cardiac conduction and its dependence on the sodium current (INa).

Methods and Results

Bath electrocardiograms (ECGs) recorded from Langendorff‐perfused guinea pig ventricles revealed QRS prolongation during IKATP activation by pinacidil but not during IKs activation by R‐L3 relative to control. In contrast, when INa was partially blocked by flecainide, R‐L3 but not pinacidil prolonged the QRS relative to flecainide alone. Conduction velocity (θ) was quantified by optical mapping during epicardial pacing. Both longitudinal (θL) and transverse (θT) θ were reduced by pinacidil (by 10 ± 1 and 9 ± 3%, respectively) and R‐L3 (by 11 ± 2% and 15 ± 4%, respectively). Flecainide decreased θL by 33 ± 4% and θT by 36 ± 5%. Whereas pinacidil did not further slow θ relative to flecainide alone, R‐L3 decreased both θL and θT.

Conclusion

Pharmacological activation of IKATP and IKs slows cardiac conduction; however, they demonstrate diverse effects on θ dependence on INa blockade. These findings may have significant implications for the use of K+ channel activators as antiarrhythmic drugs and for patients with Na+ channel abnormalities or being treated with Na+ channel blockers.
The effect of selected pre‐analytical phase variables on plasma thromboxane A2 measurements in humans
Authors: Sadilkova L. , Paluch Z. , Mottlova J. , Bednar F. , Alusik S.
Published: August 2012

Aims

Platelet function testing is often affected by the existence of different pre‐analytical variables that can cause platelet activation. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of such variables that are present when samples are taken (different anticoagulants, incubation temperature, and storage conditions) to select those which enable to reach optimal range of measured plasma concentrations of the two stable thromboxane A2 metabolites, that is, thromboxane B2 (TxB2) and 11‐dehydrothromboxane B2 (11‐dTxB2).

Materials and Methods

For the purpose of this study, whole blood samples obtained from 20 volunteers were screened for TxB2 and 11‐dTxB2 concentrations using commercial EIA kits (Cayman Chemicals™; Neogen™) in relation to the effect of different anticoagulants, using different incubation temperatures and storage conditions.

Results

Trisodium citrate has been shown not to be affecting the TxB2 and 11‐dTxB2 concentrations compared with the values measured in the serum. Incubation of the samples for 1 h at 37 °C and freezing at −20 °C or −80 °C give the most suitable concentration range of both thromboxanes in the used EIA measurement.

Conclusion

This study describes the setup of such pre‐analytical phase conditions that enable the screening of platelet function in terms of the plasma concentrations of TxB2 and 11‐dTxB2 in selected EIA measurement.
Overlapping generations can balance the fluctuations in the activity patterns of an endangered ground beetle species: long‐term monitoring of Carabus hungaricus in Hungary
Authors: Bérces Sándor , Elek Zoltán
Published: August 2012

Carabus hungaricus is a ground beetle inhabiting the Pannonian steppes. It is highly endangered by fragmentation and abandonment of its habitat.

For five consecutive years, from 2006 to 2010, we used the mark–release‐recapture technique in a grid of 270 live‐capture pitfall traps to study its population ecology in sandy grasslands on Szentendrei Island in the Northern vicinity of Budapest, Hungary.

In total, 3950 individuals of C. hungaricus (1874 females and 2076 males) were marked.

Population size was estimated at∼2000 individuals per year; the estimates for females were consistently higher than those for males. The minimum population size was 1317 ± 60.1 individuals in 2007, whereas the maximum was 2169.7 ± 108.8 individuals in 2008.

Adults older than a year formed∼32–42% of the population, whereas individuals surviving for 3 years formed∼10%, and those surviving for 4 years formed∼2% of the population. Individuals older than 4 years comprised <1% of the population. Female survival rate was higher than that of male, but the capture rate also differed between sexes.

Although the studied population showed considerable fluctuations in the pattern of activity during the 5 years, its size seemed to be relatively stable, underlining the importance of overlapping generations.