bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Development and characterisation of an experimental recurrent laryngeal nerve injury model for the study of viral gene therapy
Authors: Fung K , Hogikyan N D , Heavner S B , Ekbom D , Feldman E L
Published: June 2007

Objectives:

To develop and characterise an experimental model of recurrent laryngeal nerve injury for the study of viral gene therapy.

Methods:

Twenty rats underwent unilateral recurrent laryngeal nerve injury. After vocal fold mobility was observed, larynges were serially sectioned, and immunohistochemical techniques were employed to stain for neurofilament and motor endplates in order for a blinded investigator to determine the percentage of nerve–endplate contact, as a histological indicator of an intact neuromuscular connection.

Results:

All animal procedures resulted in complete, ipsilateral vocal fold paralysis that recovered by three weeks. The mean nerve–endplate contact percentage was 11.6 per cent at one week, 53.9 per cent at two weeks, 88.6 per cent at three weeks, 81.7 per cent at four weeks and 86.6 per cent at five weeks. The differences between results at week one and week three were statistically significant (p < 0.01). The mean nerve–endplate contact percentage on the control side was 86.8 per cent.

Conclusions:

There was a dramatic, measurable decrease in nerve–endplate contact percentage following crush injury to the recurrent laryngeal nerve. Spontaneous recovery was observed by three weeks post-injury. This model will be used to investigate the potential therapeutic role of viral gene therapy for the treatment of recurrent laryngeal nerve injury.
Serological evidence of arboviral infection and self-reported febrile illness among U.S. troops deployed to Al Asad, Iraq
Authors: RIDDLE M. S. , ALTHOFF J. M. , EARHART K. , MONTEVILLE M. R. , YINGST S. L. , MOHAREB E. W. , PUTNAM S. D. , SANDERS J. W.
Published: June 2007

Understanding the epidemiology of current health threats to deployed U.S. troops is important for medical assessment and planning. As part of a 2004 study among U.S. military personnel deployed to Al Asad Air Base, in the western Anbar Province of Iraq, over 500 subjects were enrolled, provided a blood specimen, and completed a questionnaire regarding history of febrile illness during this deployment (average ∼4 months in country). This mid-deployment serum was compared to pre-deployment samples (collected ∼3 months prior to deployment) and evaluated for seroconversion to a select panel of regional arboviral pathogens. At least one episode of febrile illness was reported in 84/504 (17%) of the troops surveyed. Seroconversion was documented in nine (2%) of deployed forces tested, with no association to febrile illness. Self-reported febrile illness was uncommon although often debilitating, and the risk of illness due to arbovirus infections was relatively low.
A general construction of fractal interpolation functions on grids of n
Authors: BOUBOULIS P. , DALLA L.
Published: June 2007

We generalise the notion of fractal interpolation functions (FIFs) to allow data sets of the form

where I=[0,1]n. We introduce recurrent iterated function systems whose attractors G are graphs of continuous functions f:I→, which interpolate the data. We show that the proposed constructions generalise the previously existed ones on . We also present some relations between FIFs and the Laplace partial differential equation with Dirichlet boundary conditions. Finally, the fractal dimensions of a class of FIFs are derived and some methods for the construction of functions of class Cp using recurrent iterated function systems are presented.
Semiarid unsaturated zone chloride profiles: Archives of past land use change impacts on water resources in the southern High Plains, United States
Authors: Scanlon Bridget R. , Reedy Robert C. , Tachovsky J. Andrew
Published: June 2007

Unsaturated zone chloride profiles in semiarid regions provide a decadal‐ to century‐scale record of past environmental changes, similar to climate change records provided by tree rings and ice cores. Impacts of conversions from natural ecosystems to rain‐fed agriculture on water resources are recorded in chloride profiles in semiarid regions, as typified by the southern High Plains (SHP), Texas, southwestern United States. Large chloride accumulations beneath natural grassland and shrubland ecosystems (3 profiles) reflect evapotranspirative enrichment of atmospherically derived chloride during the Holocene, indicating no recharge in interdrainage areas. Conversion to rain‐fed agriculture is recorded by downward displacement (9 profiles) or complete flushing (10 profiles) of chloride bulges, indicating increased recharge. Increased recharge associated with cultivation (median 24 mm/yr, 5% of precipitation, 19 profiles) was quantified using chloride mass balance calculations. The timing of land use change was estimated using chloride data, and results (43–89 years) are consistent with aerial photo records and landowner surveys. New equilibrium volumetric recharge rates beneath rain‐fed agriculture in the SHP (0.63 km3/yr) will require decades to establish and represent one to eight times recharge rates for baseline precultivated conditions that are focused beneath ephemeral lake or playa drainages (0.08–0.83 km3/yr). These chloride profiles generally represent decadal‐scale monitoring of subsurface response to land use change.
Enhancement of field-induced strain by La substitution in epitaxial Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 films grown by metal organic chemical vapor deposition
Authors: Nishida Ken , Honda Yoshihisa , Yokoyama Shintaro , Funakubo Hiroshi , Yamamoto Takashi , Saito Keisuke , Katoda Takashi
Published: June 2007

High-quality epitaxial La-substituted Pb(Zr0.65Ti0.35)O3 films were grown on (100)cSrRuO3‖(100)cSrTiO3 substrates at 600°C using metal organic chemical vapor deposition. Single-phase perovskite was obtained for La∕(Pb+La) ratios ranging from 0 to 33%; La ions were selectively substituted at the Pb sites when the La∕(Pb+La) ratio was 6% or less and were substituted at both A and B sites when it was greater than 6%. Both the remanent polarization and coercive field monotonically decreased with the La∕(Pb+La) ratio, and the maximum field-induced strain was around 6%. This means that La substitution enhances the field-induced strain.
Clinical Treatment of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: Conceptual Challenges Raised by Recent Research
Authors: McFarlane Alexander C. , Yehuda Rachel
Published: June 2007

Objective: This paper highlights some of the recent findings in the field of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and examines their impact on conceptions of trauma-focused clinical treatment.

Method: A series of research findings in the area of epidemiology, phenomenology, neurobiology and treatment are summarised.

Results: The findings from these studies present critical challenges for clinicians who wish to treat trauma survivors using specialised trauma treatments. The major challenge is one of avoiding a simplistic view of PTSD as a singular response to trauma, as this perception may result in an underestimation of the complexity and disabling quality of the disorder, and lead to the formulation of treatment plans that are simplistic or incomplete.

Conclusions: A more precise characterisation of the nature and range of the stress responses of trauma victims will significantly improve treatments of trauma survivors.
The Economic Dimension in the Sociology of Education
Authors: Bell L.A.
Published: June 2007

Endemic in the traditional approaches to the sociology of education, although not always stated explicitly, is a particular view of the relationship between the education system, educational institutions and the economy, particularly that part of it represented by the occupational structure. This model pre‐supposes a certain view of intelligence and ability and of the functions of the education system. Much of the same model is also incorporated implicitly into the new sociology of education which, so far, has failed to consider these macro‐level relationships. This task is now being undertaken by a new generation of Marxist sociologists whose work should contain significant insights especially at a time when the traditional relationship between education and the economy is being highlighted both by cuts in education and the large scale unemployment amongst school leavers.
Some Fieldwork Problems in Teacher‐Based Research
Authors: Burgess Robert G.
Published: June 2007

This article examines a way of conducting educational research which may have relevance for the classroom teacher. It is argued that the teacher might take a teacher‐as‐researcher role in schools and classrooms. This style of research requires a knowledge of several fieldwork techniques and raises several fieldwork problems. Special attention is given to questions of access, fieldwork roles and the ethics and politics of doing teacher‐based research.
Modality Preference and the Teaching of Reading and Spelling to Dyslexic Children
Authors: Hicks Carolyn
Published: June 2007

Three groups of six dyslexic children with auditory processing difficulties were taught basic literacy skills by one of three methods: (1) by training auditory processing skills; (2) by training visual processing skills; (3) by training a combination of both. The results indicated that children taught by methods (2) and (3) made most progress. Children taught through the auditory modality made no more progress than a matched control group who had received standard remedial help. The results are explained in terms of Birch & Belmont's (1965a,b) inter‐ and intra‐modality integration hypothesis.
Ego‐Attitudes in Second Language Learning: an analysis of sex‐related differences
Authors: Ganguly S.R. , Ormerod M.B.
Published: June 2007

Using a pool of items collected from the free expression of a sample of the population studied, factor analysis revealed five distinct aspects of the ego‐attitudes of adolescent bilinguals of Asian origin living in and around London. These factors comprised anxiety about the self‐image when using English; appreciation of the use of English in the community; the suitability of English in praying; perception of interest in the use of English at home and an ‘own‐language factor’. These constituted the ‘Linguistic Self‐Concept Inventory’. An additional ‘Linguistic Motivation Scale’ was shown to be factorially distinct from these measures. The relationships between scores on these ego‐attitude factors and a range of cognitive, social and personality variables, together with the use of ‘judges' in constructing the attitude scales provide them with validity. The reliabilities are also satisfactory for attitude scales. There are a considerable number of sex differences among the correlates of the attitude measures. These present a complex picture in which the same attitude is positively related to different levels of cognitive capacity, social and personality measures in the two sexes. This leads to implications for teaching English to this class of second language learners.
A Critique of Research Methods in the Study of Reading Comprehension
Authors: Hewitt Graham
Published: June 2007

Much research on reading comprehension has used an inappropriate methodology and the interpretation of results has often been based on the erroneous use of statistics. Two major approaches to the study of reading comprehension are distinguished, the psychometric and the cognitive, and representative studies are briefly described. It is argued that these two approaches suffer from fundamental methodological weaknesses, principally in the areas of measurement, theory and generalisation, which limit the scientific worth of their findings. Research on reading comprehension needs to develop alternative methodologies which have a more qualitative orientation. This would involve a reconceptualisation of reading comprehension and what counts as valid data. Such a methodology would be based on fieldwork in naturalistic settings, using naturalistic texts and tasks and would make use of observational techniques. Thus researchers could attempt to answer both the traditional questions and those not previously asked.
School‐based Curriculum Research
Authors: Chambers Peter , Powney Janet
Published: June 2007

The authors' evaluation of their experience of in‐service education leads to a re‐consideration of educational theory, the impact of research on teachers, the interaction between educational institutions, the function of peer‐group learning, the expansion of school‐based in‐service education and the networking of curriculum development agencies. This experience provides an empirical and ideological basis for justifying school‐based curriculum research. It suggests that models of the teacher as researcher can generate theories of education that will impinge more strongly on teachers and teaching, providing they are genuinely ‘school‐based’. Action research, in the context of school‐centred, problem‐solving approaches to in‐service education, is presented as a productive way forward providing that different educational agencies recognise the value of applied research and development, appreciate the importance of small scale and co‐operative research and understand that research ouicomes may have more to do with sensitising individual teachers than shaping educational policy.
Classroom Discussion: a method of research for teachers?
Authors: Solomon Joan
Published: June 2007

This new methodology, in common with many others, arises as much out of the constraint of practicalities as from the nature of the research questions being considered. It is located within the classroom and attempts to examine the class consensus. Inevitably the method affects both the nature of the data collected and the thoeretical stance adopted for its explication. This paper describes both of these aspects as well as methods for analysing the discussion process and presenting the results. The subject also calls for a consideration, however brief, of the nature of teachers' reflection on their work, the social interactions that influence classroom discussion, and the different kinds of knowledge which may be elicited by either a solitary or a social method of exploration.
Professional Self‐knowledge versus Social Justice: a critical analysis of the teacher‐researcher movement1
Authors: Weiner Gaby
Published: June 2007

This paper has two parts. First it explores the development of teacher research on gender ‐ from the Schools Council Sex Differentiation Project which ended in 1983 to recent initiatives in INSET. It argues that teacher research on gender has made important contributions both to exploration of gender inequalities in schooling and to the development of equal opportunities strategies, particularly within INSET. The second part of the paper suggests that there have been important differences in the approaches taken by ‘gender’ and ‘mainstream’ teacher‐researchers. It shows that important concepts within the teacher‐researcher literature, for example ‘emancipation’, ‘neutrality’, ‘positivism’, have had different implications for the two teacher‐researcher groups. Moreover the process of networking of the two groups has resulted in gendered structures and hierarchies (e.g. the membership of the Classroom Action Research Network has been largely male, compared to that of the Sex Differentiation Project which was largely female). One consequence of this is that teacher research on gender has developed independently of the ‘mainstream’ movement and gender as a substantive issue has been largely ignored by teacher researchers. Finally, it is claimed that teacher research is important for feminists because it offers a means of challenging educational inequalities from the inside'. The hope in the future is that all teacher research should embrace the dual aims of enhanced professional self‐knowledge and increased social justice.
Ethnicity and Conflict in Physical Education: a critique of Carroll & Hollinshead's case study
Authors: Siraj‐Blatchford Iram
Published: June 2007

This critique focuses on the findings of Carroll & Hollinshead's case‐study and analyses the limitations of their conclusions. It further attempts to illuminate some of the problems associated with small‐scale research on ‘race’ and gender.
Primary Headteachers' Careers: a survey of primary school heads with particular reference to women's career trajectories
Authors: Hill Tim
Published: June 2007

This paper presents some of the findings of a survey of the career trajectories of 287 primary headteachers in one local education authority (LEA). Women were found to be particularly underrepresented in the larger primary schools and this phenomenon is considered in relation to level of qualifications; geographical mobility; age on first appointment to headship; and whether or not a career break was taken. The career aspirations and expectations of both men and women heads are also examined. It is argued that there is a need for recent survey data to complement the existing ethnographic data on teachers' careers.
Why is Research Invisible in Further Education?
Authors: Elliott Geoffrey
Published: June 2007

This paper attempts to answer the question: ‘why is research in further education largely undervalued by policy‐makers and practitioners alike?’ The paper adopts as a working definition that proposed by Stenhouse that, ‘research is systematic self‐critical enquiry’. It is noted that knowledge of, or based upon, research, is seldom valued within management studies as a key resource for managers. Significant contributory factors to the marginality of research on and within the further education sector are argued to be historical, structural and symbolic. A number of barriers to establishing a research culture in the sector are identified, which fall under the broad groupings of personnel, policy and climate. Drawing upon the management of change literature, the potential benefits of a research culture for further education are argued, and the prospects for establishing such a culture are assessed. Political constraint is held to be a key factor limiting the currency of further education located practitioner research.
The Composite Head: coping with changes in the primary headteacher's role
Authors: Boyle Mari , Woods Peter
Published: June 2007

It has been argued that the role of the head has changed dramatically in recent years, following the introduction of the Education Reform Act and Local Management of Schools in 1988. A case‐study of a lower school headteacher is used here to explore how she has developed her own form of leadership in the face of the changes. In contrast to many accounts of headteachers, which report their practice in the form of typologies or bimodal polarities, we report a headteacher who has made a comprehensive, multivaried role for herself, despite conflicting elements within it, which reaches across the standard dimensions. The chief characteristic of her role is a universalism, evidenced in her self‐expression through teaching, her orchestration of disparate elements of the role, and controlled collaboration with her staff. She accomplishes this difficult task through objectifying the problems, taking ‘time out’, using ‘resistance humour’, and with the aid of a number of personal qualities, including her love of her job and of her children, her stance as a ‘professional mother’, and her motivation through feelings of guilt. The role of the headteacher is seen to be complex, full of conflicts and contrasts, and irreducible to a polarised position. Rather, there is adaptation to particular circumstances which produces a composite form of leadership.
The Origins of a Theory of Career Decision‐making: a case study of hermeneutical research
Authors: Hodkinson Phil
Published: June 2007

This article analyses a recently completed research project, to answer the question, on what were the findings based? It draws on the hermeneutics of Gadamer to explore the relationship between researcher and research subject in qualitative educational research. It argues that all qualitative research findings are simultaneously subjective and objective, being essentially constructed interpretations of data which are partly, but only partly, external to the researcher. Yet many contemporary educational researchers tend to focus almost exclusively on either the subject matter under investigation or upon the standpoint of the researcher him/herself. A simultaneous combination of both is necessary to understand the nature of research findings.
The Impact of Action Research and Education Reform in Northern Ireland: education in democracy
Authors: Hutchinson Barry , Whitehouse Peter
Published: June 2007

A recent survey of the impact on graduates of the University of Ulster's MSc programme in education management has identified issues concerning the nature and purpose of education in the current social and political climate of Northern Ireland. The evidence suggests that most of them use some form of action research to accommodate themselves to, and make more efficient, the operations of the organisation in which they work. This means that their work is circumscribed by the market values embedded in the Education Reform Order (Northern Ireland) (1989). When this evidence is placed into the whole of the UK's social, educational and political context and the history of education in Northern Ireland, it becomes clear why educational action research falls outside the concerns of current educational provision at institutional level. Because the Northern Ireland curriculum is a replication of the English National Curriculum, itself a response to the politically defined English economic situation, there is seen to be no need to prepare future citizens of a new Northern Ireland any differently to those in England. Yet the current and most pressing problem in Northern Ireland is the lack of political stability. Whatever the outcome of the current peace negotiations, it is vital that the next generation be helped by their teachers to be able to think for themselves and so be able to evaluate in a rational way the political, economic and historical faces of their social environment. It is argued that there is a need to reappraise current educational purposes and practices based on the dominant political free market ideology.
Long Walk in a Deep Forest
Authors: Vidal-Hall Judith
Published: June 2007

CONTROL OF THE FOREST AND ITS MINERAL WEALTH MIGHT LIE BENEATH A BATTLE THAT IS PITTING GOVERNMENT MILITIAS AGAINST MAOIST GUERRILLAS
Co‐Morbid Substance Misuse and Mental Health Problems: Policy and Practice in Scotland
Authors: Baldacchino Alex
Published: June 2007

This article attempts to conceptualize the issues, problems, research, and policy solutions that have arisen in Scotland as a result of co‐morbid substance misuse and mental health problems in treatment‐ and non‐treatment‐seeking populations. This approach also acknowledges the differences and similarities present when comparing the Scottish and national UK responses to co‐morbidity. Finally, information and recommendations from a Scotland‐wide qualitative research program on co‐morbidity will help relate the Scottish picture with the international scene in trying to identify the best ways of tackling this complex situation.
Modelling the Effect of Cell Shedding on Avascular Tumour Growth
Authors: Ward J. P. , King J. R.
Published: June 2007

Earlier mathematical models of the authors which describe avascular tumour growth are extended to incorporate the process of cell shedding, a feature known to affect the growth of multicell spheroids. A continuum of live cells is assumed within which, depending on the concentration of a generic nutrient, movement (described by a velocity field) occurs due to volume changes caused by cell birth and death. The necrotic material is assumed to contain a mixture of basic cellular material (assumed necessary for creating new cells) and a non‐utilisable material which may inhibit mitosis. The rate of cell shedding is taken to be proportional to the mitotic rate, with constant of proportionality θ. Numerical solutions of the resulting system of partial differential equations indicate that, depending on θ and the initial conditions, the solution may either tend to the trivial state in finite time (by which we mean complete death of the tumour), or to one of two non‐trivial states, namely a steady‐state (indicating growth saturation) or a travelling wave (indicating continual linear growth). These long time outcomes are explored by deriving the travelling wave and steady‐state limits of the model. Numerical solutions demonstrate that there are two branches of solutions, which we have termed the ′Major′ and ′Minor′ branches, consisting of both travelling waves and steady‐states. The behaviour of the solutions along each branch is discussed, with those of the Major branch expected to be stable. Beyond some critical θ,where the Major and Minor branches merge, the spheroid ultimately vanishes whatever the initial tumour size due to the effects of cell shedding being too strong for it to survive. The regions of existence of the two long time outcomes are investigated in parameter space, cell shedding being shown to expand significantly the parameter ranges within which growth saturation occurs.
Scheduling Chemotherapy: Catch 22 between Cell Kill and Resistance Evolution
Authors: Gardner Shea N.
Published: June 2007

Dose response curves show that prolonged drug exposure at a low concentration may kill more cells than short exposures at higher drug concentrations, particularly for cell cycle phase specific drugs. Applying drugs at low concentrations for prolonged periods, however, allows cells with partial resistance to evolve higher levels of resistance through stepwise processes such as gene amplification. Models are developed for cell cycle specific (CS) and cell cycle nonspecific (CNS) drugs to identify the schedule of drug application that balances this tradeoff.

The models predict that a CS drug may be applied most effectively by splitting the cumulative dose into many (>40) fractions applied by long‐term chemotherapy, while CNS drugs may be better applied in fewer than 10 fractions applied over a shorter term. The model suggests that administering each fraction by continuous infusion may be more effective than giving the drug as a bolus, whether the drug is CS or CNS. In addition, tumors with a low growth fraction or slow rate of cell division are predicted to be controlled more easily with CNS drugs, while those with a high proliferative fraction or fast cell division rate may respond better to CS drugs.
Modelling the Hepatitis C with Different Types of Virus Genome
Authors: Moneim I. A. , Mosa G. A.
Published: June 2007

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is one of the leading known causes of liver disease in the world. The HCV is a single‐stranded RNA virus. The genomes of HCV display significant sequence heterogeneity and have been classified into types and subtypes. Types from 1 to 11 have so far been recognized, each type having a variable number of subtypes. It has been confirmed that 90% approximately of the isolates HCV infections in Egypt belong to a single subtype (4a) [10]. In this paper, we construct a mathematical model to study the spread of HCV‐subtype 4a amongst the Egyptian population. The relation between HCV‐subtype 4a and the other subtypes has also been studied. The values of reproduction numbers R01, R02 have been derived [5]. Also, threshold conditions for the value of the transmission rates k1 and k02, in terms of R01, R02 and the mutation factor μ have been determined to insure that the disease will die out. If the conditions fail to happen the disease takes off and becomes endemic.
Solutions for the Cell Cycle in Cell Lines Derived from Human Tumors
Authors: Zubik-Kowal B.
Published: June 2007

The goal of the paper is to compute efficiently solutions for model equations that have the potential to describe the growth of human tumor cells and their responses to radiotherapy or chemotherapy. The mathematical model involves four unknown functions of two independent variables: the time variable t and dimensionless relative DNA content x. The unknown functions can be thought of as the number density of cells and are solutions of a system of four partial differential equations. We construct solutions of the system, which allow us to observe the number density of cells for different t and x values. We present results of our experiments which simulate population kinetics of human cancer cells in vitro. Our results show a correspondence between predicted and experimental data.
A Mathematical Model of Combined Drug Therapy of HIV Infection
Authors: Kirschner Denis E. , Webb G. F.
Published: June 2007

A Mathematical model of the HIV infected human immune system is presented. The model consists of a system of ordinary differential equations for the populations of uninfected CD4+T cells, infected CD4+T cells and free virus in the blood. The model is constructed, and parameters chosen, so that turnover rates and life spans for these populations agree with clinical data. The model is used to simulate chemotherapy treatment of HIV infection. The simulations are based upon preliminary clinical reports of treatment with combinations of antiviral drugs involving standard reverse transcriptase inhibitors and newly developed protease inhibitors. The models incorporate the apperance of drug‐resistant viral strains, which is the key limiting factor in the effectiveness of HIV Chemotherapy. The simulations focus upon the timing of treatment initiation.
Negative Control of Cell Proliferation. Growth Arrest versus Apoptosis. Role of βGBP
Authors: Mallucci Livio , Wells Valerie
Published: June 2007

βGBP is a novel physiological negative growth regulator of the cell and a cytostatic factor.It is secreted by cells, and bybinding with high affinity to specific cell surface receptors. In normal cell surface receptors. In normal cells, βGBP physiologically controls transition from G0 to G1 and passage from late S phase to G2 by modulating signalling cascades activated by tyrosine Kinase receptors and by affecting transcription events.As a cytostatic Factor βGBP has a marked growth inhibitory effect on a variety of tumours including leukaemias where growth arrest is followed by the activation of apoptotic pathways and cell death.
Modeling Insulin‐Glucose Dynamics during Insulin Induced Hypoglycemia. Evaluation of Glucose Counterregulation
Authors: Kovatchev Boris P. , Farhy Leon S. , Cox Daniel J. , Straume Martin , Yankov Vladimir I. , Gonder-Frederick Linda A. , Clarke William L.
Published: June 2007

A dynamical network model of insulin‐glucose interactions in subjects with Type I Diabetes was developed and applied to data sets for 40 subjects. Each data set contained the amount of dextrose + insulin infused and blood glucose (BG) determinations, sampled every 5 minutes during a one‐hour standardized euglycemic hyperinsulinemic clamp and a subsequent one‐hour BG reduction to moderate hypoglycemic levels. The model approximated the temporal pattern of BG and on that basis predicted the counterregulatory response of each subject. The nonlinear fits explained more than 95% of the variance of subjects′ BG fluctuations, with a median coefficient of determination 97.7%. For all subjects the model‐predicted counterregulatory responses correlated with measured plasma epinephrine concentrations. The observed nadirs of BG during the tests correlated negatively with the model‐predicted insulin utilization coefficient (r = ‐0.51, p < 0.001) and counterregulation rates (r = ‐0.63, p < 0.001). Subjects with a history of multiple severe hypoglycemic episodes demonstrated slower onset of counterregulation compared to subjects with no such history (p < 0.03).
Gender Differences in Seven‐Year Alcohol and Drug Treatment Outcomes among Older Adults
Authors: Satre Derek D. , Blow Frederic C. , Chi Felicia W. , Weisner Constance
Published: June 2007

This study examined participants at seven‐year follow‐up to assess long‐term outcomes of older women (n = 25) and men (n = 59) ages 55 and over in an outpatient addiction program. It measured demographic characteristics, alcohol and drug use, psychiatric symptoms, Addiction Severity Index, treatment length, and outcomes. At seven years, 76.0% of women reported abstinence in the prior 30 days versus 54.2% of men, p = .05. Logistic regression analysis found that longer treatment stay predicted abstinence. Findings indicate that older women have better long‐term addiction outcome than older men, but treatment length is more significant than gender in predicting outcome.
Turning Our Attention from the What to the How: The National Numeracy Strategy
Authors: Brown Margaret , Bibby Tamara , Johnson David C.
Published: June 2007

ABSTRACT This article examines the policy of the UK Labour Government between 1997 and 1999 in relation to the production and implementation of the National Numeracy Strategy, within the structure of context of influence, context of policy texts and context of practice. It examines its roots in, and differences from, numeracy and mathematics policies of previous regimes. Some tensions between the philosophies of modernisation and traditionalism, which are represented among those responsible for the New Labour education policies and which are reflected in the National Numeracy Strategy are discussed. Finally, evidence from the context of practice demonstrates that despite the attempt at tight prescription and control, cyclical recontextualisation and multiple interpretations exist.
Screening for hazardous alcohol use and dependence in psychiatric in‐patients using the AUDIT questionnaire
Authors: Hulse G. K. , Saunders J. B. , Roydhouse R. M. , Stockwell T. R. , Basso M. R.
Published: June 2007

The Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) has been used to screen for hazardous and harmful alcohol consumption among general hospital populations but not in psychiatric patients. Using the AUDIT, we assessed alcohol use in patients with four major types of psychiatric disorder, namely mood, adjustment, anxiety and psychotic disorders. Nine hundred and ninety consecutive admissions to the psychiatric units of two hospitals during a 12‐month period underwent assessment. In each diagnostic group a high proportion of patients was alcohol‐dependent. Among those with mood disorders 25.4% of men were alcohol‐dependent, compared with 16.3% of women, while 34.5% of men with anxiety disorder were alcohol‐dependent compared with 25.0% of women. Both gender differences were statistically significant. The differences were even greater for adjustment disorder (44.4% vs. 14.5%) and psychosis (29.2% and 4.2%, respectively). More men than women with anxiety disorder were classified as hazardous (24.1%vs. 11.7%) or harmful drinkers (13.8%vs. 3.3%), but for the other diagnostic groupings the percentages in these drinking categories were more nearly similar. Thus, there is a high rate of excessive alcohol consumption in people with psychiatric disorders, especially males. Such individuals may be particularly vulnerable to complications of alcohol misuse such as suicide and exacerbation of their disorder. The potential for decreased severity of psychiatric symptoms and a reduction in the number of hospital admissions following cessation or reduction in alcohol consumption is considerable. The AUDIT is a simple screening device for investigating alcohol use and dependence, and offers a means of initiating intervention in this population.
Tissue engineering of heart valves using decellularized xenogeneic or polymeric starter matrices
Authors: Schmidt Dörthe , Stock Ulrich A , Hoerstrup Simon P
Published: June 2007

Heart valve replacement represents the most common surgical therapy for end-stage valvular heart diseases. A major drawback that all contemporary heart valve replacements have in common is the lack of growth, repair and remodelling capability. In order to overcome these limitations, the emerging new field of tissue engineering is focusing on thein vitrogeneration of functional, living heart valve replacements. The basic approach uses starter matrices either of decellularized xenogeneic or polymeric materials configured in the shape of the heart valve and subsequent cell seeding. This manuscript will give a detailed overview of these two concepts without giving favour to one or the other. The concluding discussion will focus on current limitations and studies as well as future challenges prior to safe clinical application.
Increased expression of tissue vascular endothelial growth factor and foetal liver kinase‐1 receptor in seasonal allergic rhinitis and relevance to asthma component
Authors: Yuksel H. , Kose C. , Yilmaz O. , Ozbilgin K. , Degirmenci P. B. , Pinar E. , Kirmaz C.
Published: June 2007

Background
There is a difference in the extent of remodelling in allergic rhinitis (AR) and asthma. This may be attributed to the difference in local tissue response to these mediators.

Objectives
The aim of this study was to compare vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and its receptor foetal liver kinase (Flk)‐1 expression between seasonal AR patients with or without asthma and non‐allergic controls as well as that between AR patients with and without asthma.

Methods
Thirteen subjects with seasonal AR and six non‐allergic controls were included in the study. Allergic sensitization was demonstrated by a skin prick test. Inferior turbinate thiny biopsies were obtained from both groups. Monoclonal mouse antibodies were used to demonstrate VEGF and Flk‐1. Nasal mucosal endothelial cells' staining intensity was graded semi‐quantitatively and the histochemical score (HSCORE) was calculated. In all samples, VEGF‐ and Flk‐1‐labelled vessels were counted for the assessment of vascular surface density (VSD).

Results
The mean HSCORE for VEGF and anti‐VEGF‐based VSD were significantly higher in the patient group (P=0.001 and 0.002, respectively). The mean HSCORE for Flk‐1 and anti‐Flk‐1‐based VSD in the patient group were significantly higher than those in the control group (P=0.016 and 0.028, respectively). Differences between the mean HSCORE for VEGF and anti‐VEGF‐based VSD in patients with pure AR and AR and asthma were insignificant (P=0.16 and 0.39, respectively). The mean HSCORE for Flk‐1 and anti‐Flk‐1‐based VSD in patients with pure AR were significantly lower than those in patients with AR and asthma (P=0.004 and 0.018, respectively).

Conclusion
Angiogenic factor VEGF and its receptor Flk‐1 is increased in AR. A similar increase in VEGF in AR with and without asthma despite a higher Flk‐1 in AR patients with asthma may be a possible explanation for the presence of angiogenesis in the airway wall in patients with asthma but not in those with pure AR.
Time course of cerebral hemodynamics in cryptococcal meningitis in HIV‐negative adults
Authors: Chang W.‐N. , Lu C.‐H. , Chang H.‐W. , Lui C.‐C. , Tsai N.‐W. , Huang C.‐R. , Wang H.‐C. , Chuang Y.‐C. , Chen S.‐F. , Chang C.‐C.
Published: June 2007

To evaluate the cerebral hemodynamics in cryptococcal meningitis (CM) patients using non‐invasive studies. Serial trans‐cranial color‐coded sonography (TCCS) and magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) studies were performed to measure the cerebral vasculopathy of 12 HIV‐negative CM patients. With TCCS, 8 of the 22 middle cerebral arteries (MCAs) showed stenotic velocities, whereas the time‐mean velocity (Vmean) of the 20 anterior cerebral arteries (ACAs), 22 posterior cerebral arteries (PCAs), and 12 basilar arteries (BAs) did not. In total, five patients had stenotic velocities, three of whom had bilateral M1 stenosis (<50%), whilst two had unilateral M1 stenosis (<50%). The Vmean of MCA increased from day 1 to day 35 and substantially decreased thereafter. The mean Pulsatility Index (PI) in the studied vessels was higher during the study period. A mismatch of the findings between TCCS and MRA studies were also demonstrated. There was a high incidence and a longer time‐period of disturbed cerebral hemodynamics during the clinical course of CM. However, because of the limited case numbers for this study, further large‐scale studies are needed to delineate the clinical characteristics and therapeutic influence of cerebrovascular insults in HIV‐negative CM patients.
A Mean-Field Pressure Formulation for Liquid-Vapor Flows
Authors: Li Shi-Ming , Tafti Danesh K.
Published: June 2007

A nonlocal pressure equation is derived from mean-field free energy theory for calculating liquid-vapor systems. The proposed equation is validated analytically by showing that it reduces to van der Waals’ square-gradient approximation under the assumption of slow density variations. The proposed nonlocal pressure is implemented in the mean-field free energy lattice Boltzmann method (LBM). The LBM is applied to simulate equilibrium liquid-vapor interface properties and interface dynamics of capillary waves and oscillating droplets in vapor. Computed results are validated with Maxwell constructions of liquid-vapor coexistence densities, theoretical relationship of variation of surface tension with temperature, theoretical planar interface density profiles, Laplace’s law of capillarity, dispersion relationship between frequency and wave number of capillary waves, and the relationship between radius and the oscillating frequency of droplets in vapor. It is shown that the nonlocal pressure formulation gives excellent agreement with theory.
Semaphorin Regulation of Cellular Morphology
Authors: Tran Tracy S. , Kolodkin Alex L. , Bharadwaj Rajnish
Published: June 2007

Semaphorin proteins, although initially characterized as repulsive neuronal guidance cues, are now appreciated as major contributors to morphogenesis and homeostasis for a wide range of tissue types. Semaphorin-mediated long- and short-range repulsive, and attractive, guidance has profound influences on cellular morphology. The diversity of semaphorin receptor complexes utilized by various semaphorin ligands, the ability of semaphorins themselves to serve as receptors, and the myriad of intracellular signaling components that comprise semaphorin signaling cascades all contribute to cell-type-specific responses to semaphorins. Analysis of the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying semaphorin function in neural and vascular systems provides insight into principles governing how this large protein family contributes to organogenesis, function, and disease.
Heart Field: From Mesoderm to Heart Tube
Authors: Abu-Issa Radwan , Kirby Margaret L.
Published: June 2007

In this review we discuss the major morphogenetic and regulative events that control myocardial progenitor cells from the time that they delaminate from the epiblast in the primitive streak to their differentiation into cardiomyocytes in the heart tube. During chick and mouse embryogenesis, myocardial progenitor cells go through four specific processes that are sequential but overlapping: specification of the cardiogenic mesoderm, determination of the bilaterally symmetric heart fields, patterning of the heart field, and finally cardiomyocyte differentiation and formation of the heart tube. We describe the morphological and molecular events that play a pivotal role in each of these four processes.
Endolithic Microbial Ecosystems
Authors: Walker Jeffrey J. , Pace Norman R.
Published: June 2007

The endolithic environment, the pore space in rocks, is a ubiquitous microbial habitat and an interface between biology and geology. Photosynthesis-based endolithic communities inhabit the outer centimeters of rocks exposed to the surface, and offer model systems for microbial ecology, geobiology, and astrobiology. Endolithic ecosystems are among the simplest microbial ecosystems known and as such provide tractable models for testing ecological hypotheses. Such hypotheses have been difficult to test because microbial ecosystems are extraordinarily diverse. We review here recent culture-independent, ribosomal RNA-based studies that evaluate hypotheses about endolithic ecosystems, and provide insight for understanding general principles in microbial ecology. Comparison of endolithic communities supports the principle that patterns of microbial diversity are governed by similar principles observed in macroecological systems. Recent results also explore geobiological processes that shape the current biosphere and potentially provide clues to life's history on Earth and where to seek life elsewhere in the Solar System.
Splanchnic Regulation of Glucose Production
Authors: Wahren John , Ekberg Karin
Published: June 2007

The liver plays a key role for the maintenance of blood glucose homeostasis under widely changing physiological conditions. In the overnight fasted state, breakdown of hepatic glycogen and synthesis of glucose from lactate, amino acids, glycerol, and pyruvate contribute about equally to hepatic glucose production. Postprandial glucose uptake by the liver is determined by the size of the glucose load reaching the liver, the rise in insulin concentration, and the route of glucose delivery. Hepatic glycogen stores are depleted within 36 to 48 hours of fasting, but gluconeogenesis continues to provide glucose for tissues with an obligatory glucose requirement. Glucose output from the liver increases during exercise; during short-term intensive exertion, hepatic glycogenolysis is the primary source of extra glucose for skeletal muscle, and during prolonged exercise, hepatic gluconeogenesis becomes gradually more important in keeping with falling insulin and rising glucagon levels. Type 1 diabetes is accompanied by diminished hepatic glycogen stores, augmented gluconeogenesis, and increased basal hepatic glucose production in proportion to the severity of the diabetic state. The hyperglycemia of type 2 diabetes is in part caused by an overproduction of glucose from the liver that is secondary to accelerated gluconeogenesis.
Resultados da assistência ao parto no Centro de Parto Normal Dr. David Capistrano da Costa Filho em Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brasil
Authors: Campos Sibylle Emilie Vogt , Lana Francisco Carlos Félix
Published: June 2007

A qualidade da assistência prestada em Centro de Parto Normal (CPN) por enfermeira obstetra é amplamente questionada. Foi realizado um estudo descritivo e retrospectivo de 2.117 partos ocorridos entre janeiro de 2002 e julho 2003, no CPN Dr. David Capistrano da Costa Filho, em Belo Horizonte. Entre os principais resultados da assistência, destacam-se a taxa de transferência materna com 11,4%; a taxa de cesárea com 2,2%; a taxa de admissão em Centro de Tratamento Intensivo (CTI) neonatal de 1,2%; e a taxa de Apgar < 7 no 5º minuto de 1%. Distocias de trabalho de parto e o desejo por analgesia peridural foram as maiores causas para a transferência materna, enquanto o distúrbio de desconforto respiratório foi a causa principal para admissão dos recém-nascidos no CTI. A mortalidade neonatal corrigida foi de 2 casos em mil nascidos vivos. Percebe-se que os resultados do CPN em estudo não diferem dos dados referidos na literatura internacional. A baixa taxa de cesárea é talvez o resultado mais evidente. Estudos comparativos nacionais são necessários.
Giardia duodenalis infection: risk factors for children living in sub-standard settlements in Brazil
Authors: Teixeira Júlio César , Heller Léo , Barreto Mauricio L.
Published: June 2007

The objective of the present study was to characterize Giardia duodenalis infection among children living in sub-standard settlement areas in the municipality of Juiz de Fora, Minas Gerais State, Brazil. The cross-sectional epidemiological study included 590 children from 1 to 5 years of age. Data were collected from one child per selected family through home interviews with the parent or guardian and parasitological examination of stool samples. Thirty-one putative risk factors concerning family structure, socioeconomic status, and environmental factors were analyzed by multivariate logistic regression. Prevalence of G. duodenalis infection was 18% (106 children). Four potential risk factors were heavily associated with G. duodenalis infection: number of under-five children in the same household, index child's birth order, existence of a bathroom in the home, and drinking water source.