bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Effects of biowashing and liquid ammonia treatment on the physical characteristics and hand of denim fabric
Authors: Lee In Yeol , Jeong Go Eun , Kim Suk Rae , Bengelsdorff Carl , Kim Sung Dong
Published: May 2015

The changes in the physical characteristics and hand of denim fabric through aftertreatments such as biowashing using only neutral cellulase enzyme and liquid ammonia treatment were investigated. The basic physical properties of denim were measured using the Kawabata evaluation system for fabric. The results showed that biowashing increased softness and created a fade‐out effect with natural colour; however, it reduced strength and elastic recovery as a result of damage to the cellulose by the enzyme. On the other hand, liquid ammonia treatment gave improved physical properties, which can be attributed to fast and uniform swelling, but resulted in a darker colour. Therefore, a combination of liquid ammonia treatment with biowashing is desirable in order to obtain a good fade‐out effect while achieving softness, smoothness, and elastic recovery.
Impaired face detection may explain some but not all cases of developmental prosopagnosia
Authors: Dalrymple Kirsten A. , Duchaine Brad
Published: May 2015

Developmental prosopagnosia (DP) is defined by severe face recognition difficulties due to the failure to develop the visual mechanisms for processing faces. The two‐process theory of face recognition (Morton & Johnson, 1991) implies that DP could result from a failure of an innate face detection system; this failure could prevent an individual from then tuning higher‐level processes for face recognition (Johnson, 2005). Work with adults indicates that some individuals with DP have normal face detection whereas others are impaired. However, face detection has not been addressed in children with DP, even though their results may be especially informative because they have had less opportunity to develop strategies that could mask detection deficits. We tested the face detection abilities of seven children with DP. Four were impaired at face detection to some degree (i.e. abnormally slow, or failed to find faces) while the remaining three children had normal face detection. Hence, the cases with impaired detection are consistent with the two‐process account suggesting that DP could result from a failure of face detection. However, the cases with normal detection implicate a higher‐level origin. The dissociation between normal face detection and impaired identity perception also indicates that these abilities depend on different neurocognitive processes.
Acute but not chronic activation of brain glucagon‐like peptide‐1 receptors enhances glucose‐stimulated insulin secretion in mice
Authors: Tudurí E. , Beiroa D. , Porteiro B. , López M. , Diéguez C. , Nogueiras R.
Published: May 2015

Aim

To investigate the role of brain glucagon‐like peptide‐1 (GLP‐1) in pancreatic β‐cell function.

Methods

To determine the role of brain GLP‐1 receptor (GLP‐1R) on β‐cell function, we administered intracerebroventricular (i.c.v.) infusions of GLP‐1 or the specific GLP‐1 antagonist exendin‐9 (Ex‐9), in both an acute and a chronic setting.

Results

We observed that acute i.c.v. GLP‐1 infusion potentiates glucose‐stimulated insulin secretion (GSIS) and improves glucose tolerance, whereas central GLP‐1R blockade with Ex‐9 impaired glucose excursion after a glucose load. Sustained activation of central nervous system GLP‐1R, however, did not produce any effect on either GSIS or glucose tolerance. Similarly, ex vivo GSIS performed in islets from mice chronically infused with i.c.v. GLP‐1 resulted in no differences compared with controls. In addition, in mice fed a high‐fat diet we observed that acute i.c.v. GLP‐1 infusion improved glucose tolerance without changes in GSIS, while chronic GLP‐1R activation had no effect on glucose homeostasis.

Conclusions

Our results indicate that, under non‐clamped conditions, brain GLP‐1 plays a functional neuroendocrine role in the acute regulation of glucose homeostasis in both lean and obese rodents.
Essential Threats to the Security of the GCC Countries in the Post Arab Spring Era
Authors: Binhuwaidin Mohamed M.
Published: May 2015

The so called Arab Spring has brought more challenges to the security of the Arabian Gulf states members of the Gulf Cooperative Council (GCC). This article aims to reach a better understanding of the main threats facing the GCC states in the post Arab Spring era. It argues that the conservative system of the GCC states, originated in the paternalistic conservatism, is facing an essential threat from three very important elements that are instigated by the eruption of the so called Arab Spring: political liberal ideas, political Islamic movement, and sectarianism. The article investigates the impact of these elements on the GCC states.
The Role of Culture and Technology in Civil Society Promotion in the Middle East: A Case Study Approach
Authors: Bardhan Soumia , Wood Richard L.
Published: May 2015

For over a decade, the U.S. administration has been sponsoring capacity‐building efforts focusing on technology to support democracy activists in Middle Eastern societies; such efforts have often fallen short in their effectiveness. In this article, using a case study approach, we argue that capacity‐building efforts must be approached in a culture‐specific manner. It is imperative to begin exploring the specific nature of civil society in different Middle Eastern societies and translate the Western concept of “civil society” into terms appropriate to Middle Eastern contexts. Based on a culture‐specific understanding, programs involving technology to promote democratic institutions in Middle Eastern societies can be designed.
The Effects of Landmarks on Territorial Behavior in a Convict Cichlid, Amatitlania siquia
Authors: Suriyampola Piyumika S. , Eason Perri K.
Published: May 2015

Defense of a territory is a primary factor determining the fitness of territorial individuals. Thus, territorial animals use a variety of means to lower the cost of territorial defense. Although landmarks are known to lower the defense costs of territories, little is known about how they could affect fundamental properties of territories, which could ultimately affect the demography, population regulation, individual behavior, and spatial ecology of a territorial species. This field study examined the effects of natural landmarks on territory size, shape, and defensive costs in Amatitlania siquia, a little‐studied member of the convict cichlid group native to Costa Rica and Nicaragua. We investigated the territorial behavior of 103 breeding pairs in a caldera lake in Nicaragua. During 10‐min focal observations, we recorded the locations at which residents chased intruders and then used these locations to outline the territory boundaries. Landmarks affected both size and shape of A. siquia territories. Territory size decreased as the percentage of the boundary at landmarks increased. Territories with <20% of their boundaries at landmarks were approximately circular in shape, while territories with 20–60% of their boundaries at landmarks were on average more elongated. These variations in territory size and shape significantly affected defense costs, with higher numbers of chases per square meter in small and elongated territories. These effects of landmarks on territory size and shape and defense costs are useful to understand the widely seen size and shape variations in naturally occurring territories.
The suspensory apparatus of the distal phalanx in normal horses
Authors: Pollitt C. C. , Collins S. N.
Published: May 2015

Reasons for performing study

The suspensory apparatus of the distal phalanx (SADP) is functionally and clinically important.

Objectives

To investigate SADP form and function and the microanatomy of its insertion zone.

Study design

Descriptive gross and microanatomy.

Methods

The feet of 6 normal Standardbred horses were sectioned into blocks along the traditional perpendicular transverse axis and along functional axes of the SADP, decalcified and processed for staining with haematoxylin and eosin, Jones' periodic acid silver methenamine or Masson's trichrome stains.

Results

In traditional midline toe transverse plane sections SADP collagen bundles were irregular with an unstructured appearance. In sections made transversely along planes (70° and 30°) aligned with the long axis of the SADP, collagen bundles were arranged in linear rows. The linear bundles were continuous from their origin on parietal ridges of the distal phalanx through to the secondary epidermal lamellar basement membrane. At the parietal ridge interface the collagen bundles coalesced into smaller, strongly silver staining, linear structures that penetrated the cortical bone and merged with adjacent osteons. In proximal sagittal sections collagen bundles were also linear, angled at 70° to the ground surface. In distal sagittal sections collagen bundles were also arranged linearly but in a multi‐angled, ‘spokes of a wheel’ arrangement, centred on the distal phalanx apex.

Conclusions

Sectioning along functional axes demonstrated the true suspensory nature of the SADP connecting the parietal surface to the lamellar hoof wall. SADP/distal phalanx insertions showed penetrating fibres extending through the chondral–apophyseal interface up to and between distal phalanx osteons. Lamellar measurements made from sections perpendicular to the dorsal aspect of the distal phalanx are underestimations but if made along the longer, functional midline 70° transverse plane would accurately reflect the suspensory function of the lamellae. Laminitis pathophysiology correctly viewed as SADP degradation should inform logical, future therapeutic strategies.
How does clay constrain woody biomass in drylands?
Authors: Fensham Roderick J. , Butler Don W. , Foley Jenny
Published: May 2015

Aim

To investigate the role of clay in limiting the development of woody biomass in drylands.

Location

Australia.

Methods

Spatial data representing woody biomass, soil clay content and climate for the Australian continent were interpreted to explore the relationship between a moisture index and woody biomass on clay and non‐clay substrates. Moisture and soil water potential were investigated through time for clay and sand plains. Sub‐soil clay and other soil characteristics were compared between areas with and without high tree mortality after drought.

Results

The substantially lower woody biomass on clay soils than non‐clay soils in the drylands of the Australian continent verifies the inverse texture effect. A clay floodplain consistently held more water than an adjacent sandplain, but soil moisture in the clay was effectively inaccessible to plants for much longer periods because of more negative values of water potential in the clay soil. Small increases in sub‐soil clay were associated with high tree mortality.

Main conclusions

Our findings suggest that the ‘inverse texture effect’, which describes the negative association of woody biomass with soil clay content in drylands, may mostly relate to the moisture‐retentive properties of clay rather than being caused by reduced infiltration and enhanced evaporation from clay‐rich soils. Our evidence suggests that clay soils constrain woodiness in drylands by exacerbating water stress, and confirm the fundamental role of aridity in determining woody biomass and the global distribution of grassland.
Analysis of stable states in global savannas – a response to Staver and Hansen
Authors: Hanan Niall P. , Tredennick Andrew T. , Prihodko Lara , Bucini Gabriela , Dohn Justin
Published: May 2015

Staver & Hansen (2015, Global Ecology and Biogeography, doi: 10.1111/geb.12285) comment on our recent paper (Hanan et al., Global Ecology and Biogeography, 2014, 23, 259–263) in which we argue that classification and regression tree methods used with remote sensing data to predict tree cover may bias inference of bifurcations in savanna vegetation communities. While we agree with several of their comments, we remain unconvinced that a remote sensing product based on an inherently discontinuous statistical approach can, or should, be used to test for discontinuities.
Multi‐hierarchical macroecology at species and genetic levels to discern neutral and non‐neutral processes
Authors: Baselga Andrés , Gómez‐Rodríguez Carola , Vogler Alfried P.
Published: May 2015

Aim

Large‐scale DNA barcoding allows the simultaneous assessment of variation in community composition at species level and below. We here propose that the patterns emerging across multiple hierarchical levels can be used to discern the effects of neutral and non‐neutral macroecological processes, which otherwise have proven difficult to separate.

Location

Iberian Peninsula.

Methods

We performed cox1 barcoding on 20 complete assemblages of leaf beetles for 4533 individuals of 203 species. The neutrality of cox1 sequence evolution was tested using Tajima's test. Haplotypes (n = 2020) were grouped into nested n‐step networks of up to five intraspecific hierarchical levels. We then assessed whether the spatial variation in assemblage composition at all hierarchical levels from haplotype to species was self‐similar (fractal) and predictable from level to level.

Results

Tajima's test on a subset of widely sampled species (n = 136) was consistent with neutral evolution in 83% of the species, but only 3% of cases exhibited balancing selection. Multiple hierarchical levels representing haplotype genealogies of various ages showed a similar rate of distance decay of assemblage similarity. In addition, we found strong log‐log correlations between hierarchical level (lineage age) and number of lineages, lineage range size and assemblage similarity. Similarity at the species level was strongly correlated to similarity at the haplotype level for the whole assemblage (r2 = 0.75) or for within‐species haplotype similarity (mean r2 = 0.17, SE = 0.03).

Main conclusions

These findings suggest great regularities in the pattern of assemblage variation at all lineage ages that are best explained by the enduring action of stochastic (neutral) processes of mutation and dispersal. The multi‐hierarchical analysis therefore bridges predictions of the neutral theory of molecular evolution and the neutral theory of biodiversity. Neutral processes thus emerge as a unifying principle of ecology and evolution, which has deep implications in biodiversity assessment and conservation.
Time to eligibility for antiretroviral therapy in adults with CD4 cell count > 500 cells/μL in rural KwaZulu‐Natal, South Africa
Authors: McGrath N , Lessells RJ , Newell ML
Published: May 2015

Objectives

Understanding of progression to antiretroviral therapy (ART) eligibility and associated factors remains limited. The objectives of this analysis were to determine the time to ART eligibility and to explore factors associated with disease progression in adults with early HIV infection.

Methods

HIV‐infected adults (≥ 18 years old) with CD4 cell count > 500 cells/μl were enrolled in the study at three primary health care clinics, and a sociodemographic, behavioural and partnership‐level questionnaire was administered. Participants were followed 6‐monthly and ART eligibility was determined using a CD4 cell count threshold of 350 cells/μl. Kaplan − Meier and Cox proportional hazard regression modelling were used in the analysis.

Results

A total of 206 adults contributed 381 years of follow‐up; 79 (38%) reached the ART eligibility threshold. Median time to ART eligibility was shorter for male patients (12.0 months) than for female patients (33.9 months). Male sex [adjusted hazard ratio (aHR) 3.13; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.82–5.39], residing in a household with food shortage in the previous year (aHR 1.58; 95% CI 0.99–2.54), and taking nutritional supplements in the first 6 months after enrolment (aHR 2.06; 95% CI 1.11–3.83) were associated with shorter time to ART eligibility. Compared with reference CD4 cell count ≤  559 cells/μl, higher CD4 cell count was associated with longer time to ART eligibility [aHR 0.46 (95% CI 0.25–0.83) for CD4 cell count 560–632 cells/μl; aHR 0.30 (95% CI 0.16–0.57) for CD4 cell count 633–768 cells/μl; and aHR 0.17 (95% CI 0.08–0.38) for CD4 cell count > 768 cells/μl].

Conclusions

Over one in three adults with CD4 cell count > 500 cells/μl became eligible for ART at a CD4 cell count threshold of 350 cells/μl over a median of 2 years. The shorter time to ART eligibility in male patients suggests a possible need for sex‐specific pre‐ART care and monitoring strategies.
Hope in a Vice: Carole Pateman, Judith Butler, and Suspicious Hope
Authors: Billingsley Amy
Published: May 2015

Eve Sedgwick critiques paranoid methodologies for denying a plurality of affective approaches. Instead, she emphasizes affects such as hope, but her description of hope's openness does not address how hope can avoid discourses that appear to offer amelioration while deceptively masking subjugation. In this context, I will argue that suspicion in feminist political philosophy, as shown in the earlier work of Carole Pateman and Judith Butler, provides a cautious approach toward hope's openness without precluding hope altogether. This analysis will reconsider the domination and empowerment debates in relation to affect, pointing toward compatibilities between the two perspectives. First, I will expand Sedgwick's analysis of hope to explain its potential as a feminist political affect. Second, I will examine the techniques of suspicion employed by Pateman and Butler and how they risk denying possibilities for hope. This will lead to a discussion of how Amy Allen's theory of power indicates that suspicion is compatible with hope. Finally, I will explain how the suspicious approaches of Pateman and Butler illuminate hope as an inherently risky, fragile project. This will show that suspicion does not necessarily take up the totalizing position of paranoia, but rather can productively ensure that hope is not led astray.
The Production and Characterization of Ytterbium‐Stabilized Zirconia Films for SOFC Applications
Authors: Yildiz Esra , Yilmaz Serdar , Turkoglu Orhan
Published: May 2015

(ZrO2)1–x(Yb2O3)x binary systems were investigated in the doping range of 0.02 ≤ x ≤ 0.12. Ytterbium‐doped zirconia powders were synthesized using the Pechini method. X‐ray diffraction (XRD) measurements showed that fcc ZrO2 was stabilized for 8–12 mol% Yb‐doping rate. The produced Yb‐stabilized Zr (YbSZ) films were characterized; their thickness and homogeneity properties depended on the nature of the YbSZ slurry. All coating parameters were optimized and determined with precoating treatments. The samples were characterized by differential thermal analysis/thermal gravimetry (DTA/TG), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and ac impedance measurements.
Model of corporate intelligence, secrecy, and economic growth
Authors: Parello Carmelo Pierpaolo
Published: May 2015

This paper plugs informal intellectual property rights (IPR) and secrecy into a scale‐invariant Schumpeterian model of growth. In doing so, the paper envisages the existence of two‐stage research and development races in which firms initially introduce a new way to produce new quality products, and then try to refine it in order to make the innovation suitable for patent application. In the passage from the first stage to the second, research firms keep the discovery secret, but face a positive probability that some sensitive information can leak from the firm because of corporate intelligence. The model displays a unique steady state, which is then used to study the long‐run effects of strengthening secrecy protection. Stronger secrecy protection is found to be welfare‐improving and beneficial for innovation and growth, even in the case where research firms can prevent corporate‐intelligence firms from obtaining sensitive information through information‐protecting activities.
On voluntary and efficient allocations
Authors: Ünveren Burak
Published: May 2015

A set of sufficiency conditions is presented for Walrasian equilibrium to be equivalent to voluntary and efficient allocations. An important corollary of this equivalence is that voluntary trade in non‐clearing markets, which is omnipresent in all market economies, is inefficient. Moreover, our assumptions generalize all the results on the Pareto‐efficiency properties of disequilibrium. This generalization also shows that the inefficiency of disequilibrium is germane to the existence of Walrasian equilibrium.
Vitamin B12 and folate levels increase during treatment of iron deficiency anaemia in young adult woman
Authors: Remacha A. F. , Wright I. , Fernández‐Jiménez M. C. , Toxqui L. , Blanco‐Rojo R. , Moreno G. , Vaquero M. P.
Published: May 2015

Introduction

The relationship between iron deficiency and vitamin B12 and folate was recognized several decades ago. Combined deficiency is important in clinical practice owing to its relationship with malabsorption syndromes. By contrast, iron deficiency and low levels of serum vitamin B12 with normal metabolic markers were often found mostly in young adults. In this work, vitamin B12/folate changes were investigated during treatment of iron deficiency anaemia (IDA) with pharmacological iron in young adult women.

Methods

A cohort of 35 young adult women with IDA was treated with oral iron. An haematological response was obtained in 97.2% at 4‐month follow‐up. Changes in serum vitamin B12, serum folate and other biochemical parameters were monitored.

Results

Treatment with iron increased significantly serum folate and vitamin B12 from baseline. This increase was also observed in vitamin B12 levels ≤200 pmol/L (six patients, 17.1%), in whom serum vitamin B12 was above 200 pmol/L at the end of the study in all cases. Other biochemical parameters also changed. Significant increases were seen for glucose (P = 0.012), uric acid (P < 0.001), total cholesterol (P = 0.023), HDL cholesterol (P = 0.026) and bilirubin (P < 0.001). Urea decreased significantly (P = 0.036).

Conclusions

Data from our work suggest that iron deficiency could affect many metabolic pathways, including vitamin B12, folate and lipids. These changes normalize after iron therapy, even in women with baseline low levels of serum vitamin B12. Healthcare practitioners should be aware of these changes in IDA management. The mechanisms controlling these changes remain to be explained, but they are probably related to the control of iron homeostasis (iron deficiency mediated stimuli).
Why Is Left Atrial Appendage Morphology Related to Strokes? An Analysis of the Flow Velocity and Orifice Size of the Left Atrial Appendage
Authors: LEE JUNG MYUNG , SEO JIWON , UHM JAE‐SUN , KIM YOUNG JIN , LEE HYE‐JEONG , KIM JONG‐YOUN , SUNG JUNG‐HOON , PAK HUI‐NAM , LEE MOON‐HYOUNG , JOUNG BOYOUNG
Published: May 2015

Why Is Left Atrial Appendage Morphology Related to Strokes?

Background

A specific morphology of left atrial appendage (LAA) has been reported to be related to stroke in nonvalvular atrial fibrillation (AF) patients. However, the mechanism is not completely understood. This study evaluated whether a specific LAA morphology was related to stroke, and whether it was related to the change of flow velocity and size of LAA in AF patients.

Methods

The morphology, size, and flow velocity of LAA were evaluated in AF patients with ischemic strokes (stroke, n = 160) and age‐matched AF patients without ischemic strokes (control, n = 200).

Results

Compared with control, the stroke group had a larger LA dimension (4.5 ± 0.7 vs. 4.2 ± 0.6 cm, P < 0.001), larger LAA orifice area (5.3 ± 2.1 vs. 4.1 ± 1.7 cm2, P < 0.001), and slower LAA flow velocity (37 ± 19 vs. 51 ± 20 cm/s, P < 0.001). The stroke group had the chicken wing type less frequently than the control (34% vs. 50%, P = 0.003). After an adjustment for multiple potential confounding factors, the chicken wing type LAA had a decreased stroke risk (odds ratio 0.34, 95% confidence interval 0.14–0.84, P = 0.020). Patients with a chicken wing LAA had a smaller LAA orifice area (4.4 ± 1.6 vs. 4.9 ± 2.2 cm2, P = 0.013) and higher LAA velocity (55 ± 19 vs. 41 ± 20 cm/s, P < 0.001) than those with non‐chicken wing LAA.

Conclusion

A chicken wing type of LAA was related to the less incidence of stroke. Our results suggest that the relationship between a specific LAA morphology and stroke might be partially explained by the change of the size and flow velocity of LAA.
Flood damage assessment in the Pampanga river basin of the Philippines
Authors: Shrestha B.B. , Okazumi T. , Miyamoto M. , Sawano H.
Published: May 2015

In this study, a flood damage assessment method was proposed for the assessment of flood risk in data‐poor river basins by using a physical‐based numerical model, satellite‐based information and socio‐economic factors. The Pampanga river basin of the Philippines was selected for the case study. For the flood damage assessment, hazard characteristics, such as flood depth and duration, were computed using the rainfall runoff inundation model. Agriculture and households, which are major exposures in flood‐prone areas, were taken into account for the flood damage assessment. The potential damage to agriculture was estimated by using the damage functions of agriculture and flood characteristics. The damage functions of agriculture for each growing stage were defined as the function of flood depth and duration. Field investigations and questionnaire surveys were conducted at the selected barangays (villages) in the Pampanga river basin to develop a methodology for household damage estimation. The damage estimation approach for damage to household buildings including assets, was developed based on the flood and household characteristics. The potential damage to house building and assets was estimated. The estimated damage of agriculture and households was compared with the reported values.
Emergency Birth Hybrid Simulation with Standardized Patients in Midwifery Education: Implementation and Evaluation
Authors: Lindsay Miller Jane , Avery Melissa D. , Larson Karin , Woll Anne , VonAchen Alison , Mortenson Angela
Published: May 2015

Structured simulations have become a critical part of health professions education at every level, particularly for high‐risk, low‐incidence scenarios. This article describes the implementation and evaluation of a hybrid simulation of emergency birth situations in a graduate midwifery program. In the fall of 2011 and spring of 2012, nurse‐midwifery students twice participated in 2 simulated emergencies—shoulder dystocia and postpartum hemorrhage—using hybrid simulation (a standardized patient paired with a birth task trainer). Students found the simulations to be realistic. The use of best practices (ie, repetitive practice, team learning, small group debriefing, and large group debriefing) enhanced the quality of the simulation experience and the learners’ reflection about their professional skills, strengths, weaknesses, and confidence in managing these 2 obstetric emergencies. This article is part of a special series of articles that address midwifery innovations in clinical practice, education, interprofessional collaboration, health policy, and global health.
Clinical usefulness of the definitions for defining characteristics of activity intolerance, excess fluid volume and decreased cardiac output in decompensated heart failure: a descriptive exploratory study
Authors: de Souza Vanessa , Salloum Zeitoun Sandra , Takao Lopes Camila , Dias de Oliveira Ana Paula , de Lima Lopes Juliana , Bottura Leite de Barros Alba Lucia
Published: May 2015

Aims and objectives

To assess the clinical usefulness of the operational definitions for the defining characteristics of the NANDA International nursing diagnoses, activity intolerance, decreased cardiac output and excess fluid volume, and the concomitant presence of those diagnoses in patients with decompensated heart failure.

Background

Content validity of the operational definitions for the defining characteristics of activity intolerance, excess fluid volume and decreased cardiac output have been previously validated by experts. Their clinical usefulness requires clinical validation.

Design

This was a descriptive exploratory study.

Methods

Two expert nurses independently assessed 25 patients with decompensated heart failure for the presence or absence of 29 defining characteristics. Interrater reliability was analysed using the Kappa coefficient as a measure of clinical usefulness. The Fisher's exact test was used to test the association of the defining characteristics of activity intolerance and excess fluid volume in the presence of decreased cardiac output, and the correlation between the three diagnoses.

Results

Assessments regarding the presence of all defining characteristics reached 100% agreement, except with anxiety. Five defining characteristics of excess fluid volume were significantly associated with the presence of decreased cardiac output. Concomitant presence of the three diagnoses occurred in 80% of the patients. However, there was no significant correlation between the three diagnoses.

Conclusions

The operational definitions for the diagnoses had strong interrater reliability, therefore they were considered clinically useful. Only five defining characteristics were representative of the association between excess fluid volume and decreased cardiac output. Therefore, excess fluid volume is related to decreased cardiac output, although these diagnoses are not necessarily associated with activity intolerance.

Relevance to clinical practice

The operational definitions may favour early recognition of the sequence of responses to decompensation, guiding the choice of common interventions to improve or resolve excess fluid volume and decreased cardiac output.
A randomised clinical trial comparing the patient comfort and efficacy of three different graduated compression stockings in the prevention of postoperative deep vein thrombosis
Authors: Ayhan Hatice , Iyigun Emine , Ince Selami , Can Mehmet Fatih , Hatipoglu Sevgi , Saglam Mutlu
Published: May 2015

Aims and objectives

To compare the comfort levels of patients regarding the use of three different graduated compression stockings and to analyse the efficacies of the graduated compression stockings in relation to patient comfort and compliance in prevention of postoperative deep vein thrombosis.

Background

Graduated compression stockings are very important with other prophylaxis methods in postoperative deep vein thrombosis prophylaxis. In meta‐analyses and systematic review studies, it was reported that knee‐length and thigh‐length graduated compression stockings had similar efficacies. However, there is no randomised study in literature regarding the patient problems and levels of comfort with the use of graduated compression stockings of different sizes and pressures.

Design

A randomised clinical trial design.

Methods

A total of 219 patients were randomised into three groups (n = 73 in each group). Group I was given low‐pressure, knee‐length graduated compression stockings, group II was given low‐pressure, thigh‐length graduated compression stockings and group III was given moderate‐pressure, knee‐length graduated compression stockings. The level of patients comfort regarding the graduated compression stockings and occurrence of deep vein thrombosis were examined.

Results

The vast majority of the patients (79·5%) in group III and 52·1% of the patients in group II stated experiencing problems during the use of the graduated compression stockings (p < 0·001). The graduated compression stockings were reported by the patients as being very comfortable in the group I (p < 0·001). No findings of thrombosis were observed in any of the groups.

Conclusion

The low‐pressure, knee‐length graduated compression stockings are as effective as the other graduated compression stockings of different pressures and sizes in the postoperative deep vein thrombosis prophylaxis, and the patients have fewer problems while using these graduated compression stockings with a high satisfaction.

Relevance to clinical practice

The combined use of pharmacological, mechanical and physical methods and patient education is effective in the prevention of postoperative deep vein thrombosis. The use of low‐pressure, knee‐length graduated compression stockings in clinical practice may be recommended, as the patients have fewer problems while using these graduated compression stockings with a high satisfaction.
Corporate Taxes and Securitization
Authors: HAN JOONGHO , PARK KWANGWOO , PENNACCHI GEORGE
Published: May 2015

Most banks pay corporate income taxes, but securitization vehicles do not. Our model shows that, when a bank faces strong loan demand but limited deposit market power, this tax asymmetry creates an incentive to sell loans despite less‐efficient screening and monitoring of sold loans. Moreover, loan‐selling increases as a bank's corporate income tax rate and capital requirement rise. Our empirical tests show that U.S. commercial banks sell more of their mortgages when they operate in states that impose higher corporate income taxes. A policy implication is that tax‐induced loan‐selling will rise if banks’ required equity capital increases.
Pneumopericardium, pneumomediastinum, pneumothorax and pneumoretroperitoneum complicating pulmonary metastatic carcinoma in a cat
Authors: Greci V. , Baio A. , Bibbiani L. , Caggiano E. , Borgonovo S. , Olivero D. , Rocchi P. M. , Raiano V.
Published: May 2015

This report describes a case of severe spontaneous tension pneumopericardium with concurrent pneumomediastinum, pneumothorax and retropneumoperitoneum in a cat presenting with dyspnoea and signs of cardiac tamponade secondary to metastatic pulmonary carcinoma. Spontaneous pneumopericardium is an extremely uncommon condition consisting of pericardial gas in the absence of iatrogenic/traumatic causes. In humans, it has been described secondary to pneumonia or lung abscess and very rarely secondary to pulmonary neoplasia.
Structural Competition in Second Language Production: Towards a Constraint‐Satisfaction Model
Authors: Austin Gavin , Pongpairoj Nattama , Trenkic Danijela
Published: May 2015

Second language (L2) learners often show inconsistent production of some aspects of L2 grammar. One view, primarily based on data from L2 article production, suggests that grammatical patterns licensed by learners’ native language (L1) and those licensed by their L2 compete for selection, leading to variability in the production of L2 functional morphology. In this study, we show that the idea of structural competition has broader applicability, in correctly predicting certain asymmetries in the production of both the definite article the and plural marking –s by Thai learners of English. At the same time, we recognize that learners’ growing sensitivity to structural regularities in the L2 might be an additional contributing factor, and therefore make a novel proposal for how the L1–L2 structural competition model and the sensitivity‐to‐L2‐structural regularities account could be integrated and their respective contributions studied under the constraint‐satisfaction model of language processing. We argue that this approach is particularly suited to studying bilingual processing as it provides a natural framework for explaining how highly disparate factors, including partially activated options from both languages, interact during processing.
Phylogeographical patterns of the gastropod Siphonaria pectinata (Linnaeus, 1758)
Authors: Espinosa Free , Morey‐Rubio Clara , Nakano Tomoyuki
Published: May 2015

Siphonaria pectinata is a marine gastropod distributed across the shores of the Western and Eastern Atlantic. Although previous studies have indicated that the species could be a recent introduction to Central and North America from Western Africa and Europe, other authors have questioned this statement. In fact, a recent study has shown that individuals from both sides of the Atlantic are genetically disconnected, rejecting the idea of a recent invasion. However, genetic information on this species is very scarce and based only on a single study using a limited number of specimens and sites. The data reported in the present study represent one step forward, collecting information from 119 specimens from 22 sites that cover the entire distributional range of the species. Populations from the Western Atlantic separated from eastern ones around 1.4−1.9 Mya, whereas the centre of dispersion is located on the eastern side of the Atlantic. Siphonaria pectinata should be considered native to the Western Atlantic and cannot be considered as a species with an amphi‐atlantic distribution owing to the lack of genetic connection between both sides of the Atlantic, as previous authors have pointed out. The presence of a star‐shaped phylogeny is discussed in the context of Plio‐Pleistocene glaciations.
Performance of serum galactomannan in patients with allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis
Authors: Agarwal Ritesh , Aggarwal Ashutosh N. , Sehgal Inderpaul S. , Dhooria Sahajal , Behera Digambar , Chakrabarti Arunaloke
Published: May 2015

Few studies have evaluated the performance of serum galactomannan (GM) in patients with allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis (ABPA). Herein, we analyse the diagnostic performance of serum GM in ABPA. Consecutive subjects with ABPA and asthma underwent GM estimation using the Platelia assay (Bio‐Rad Laboratories). An optical density index of >0.5 was considered positive. One hundred and twenty subjects (70 ABPA, 50 asthma) with a mean (SD) age of 33.0 (13.1) were included in the study. The serum GM antigen was positive in 18 (25.7%) subjects with ABPA compared to 9 (18%) subjects with asthma without ABPA (P = 0.32). The sensitivity of the serum GM antigen test in patients with ABPA was 25.7% [95% confidence intervals (CI), 16–38] while the specificity was 82% (95% CI, 69–91). The positive and negative predictive values were 66.7% (95% CI, 46–84%) and 44.1% (95% CI, 34–55), respectively. The area under the ROC curve was 0.54 (95% CI, 0.44–0.64). The sensitivity increased and the specificity decreased with decreasing the serum GM cutoff, and vice versa. The results of this study suggest that serum GM estimation has a limited role in the diagnostic workup of patients with ABPA.
Effects of atorvastatin on oxidative stress in chronic kidney disease
Authors: Fassett Robert G , Robertson Iain K , Ball Madeleine J , Geraghty Dominic P , Coombes Jeff S
Published: May 2015

Aim

Statins have pleiotropic effects that include attenuation of oxidative stress that may be relevant for chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients. We investigated the effect of long‐term atorvastatin therapy on oxidative stress biomarkers in CKD patients.

Methods

This was a pre‐specified secondary analysis of data from a randomized, double‐blind, placebo‐controlled trial (Lipid lowering and Onset of Renal Disease, LORD) in CKD patients. Participants received 10 mg/day atorvastatin (n = 47) or placebo (n = 39) for 3 years. Plasma measures (total F2‐isoprostanes, malondialdehyde. protein carbonyls, uric acid, glutathione peroxidase (GPx) activity and total antioxidant capacity (TAC) ) were performed at baseline and at 3 years. Age and sex matched participants (n = 34) with normal kidney function were controls.

Results

CKD patients had significantly (P < 0.05) increased F2‐isoprostanes and uric acid and decreased GPx activity compared with controls. When comparing the treatment (atorvastatin (A) vs placebo (P) ) change from baseline to 3 years, there were no significant differences (P > 0.05) in the group difference of the change values: (mean (95% CI), F2‐isoprostanes = 5.3 (−29.2 to 39.8) pg/mL, protein carbonyls = 0.03 (−0.13 to 0.19) nmol/mg, GPx activity = −0.10 (−4.73 to 4.52) (U/L), uric acid = 8.8 (−33.9 to 51.6) μmol/L or TAC = −0.03 (−0.10 to 0.04) mmol/L. A significant difference (P = 0.04) in the change in malondialdehyde between groups, 1.52(0.09 to 2.96) μmol/L, was due to a large decrease in the placebo group.

Conclusion

CKD patients had elevated oxidative stress that was not attenuated by atorvastatin 10 mg/day for 3 years.
Contrasting growth responses in lamina and petiole during neighbor detection depend on differential auxin responsiveness rather than different auxin levels
Authors: de Wit Mieke , Ljung Karin , Fankhauser Christian
Published: May 2015

Foliar shade triggers rapid growth of specific structures that facilitate access of the plant to direct sunlight. In leaves of many plant species, this growth response is complex because, although shade triggers the elongation of petioles, it reduces the growth of the lamina. How the same external cue leads to these contrasting growth responses in different parts of the leaf is not understood.

Using mutant analysis, pharmacological treatment and gene expression analyses, we investigated the role of PHYTOCHROME INTERACTING FACTOR7 (PIF7) and the growth‐promoting hormone auxin in these contrasting leaf growth responses.

Both petiole elongation and lamina growth reduction are dependent on PIF7. The induction of auxin production is both necessary and sufficient to induce opposite growth responses in petioles vs lamina. However, these contrasting growth responses are not caused by different auxin concentrations in the two leaf parts.

Our work suggests that a transient increase in auxin levels triggers tissue‐specific growth responses in different leaf parts. We provide evidence suggesting that this may be caused by the different sensitivity to auxin in the petiole vs the blade and by tissue‐specific gene expression.
Ectomycorrhizal fungal communities coinvading with Pinaceae host plants in Argentina: Gringos bajo el bosque
Authors: Hayward Jeremy , Horton Thomas R. , Nuñez Martin A.
Published: May 2015

Coinvasive ectomycorrhizal (ECM) fungi allow Pinaceae species to invade regions otherwise lacking compatible symbionts, but ECM fungal communities permitting Pinaceae invasions are poorly understood. In the context of Pinaceae invasions on Isla Victoria, Nahuel Huapi National Park, Argentina, we asked: what ECM fungi are coinvading with Pinaceae hosts on Isla Victoria; are some ECM fungal species or genera more prone to invade than others; and are all ECM fungal species that associate with Northern Hemisphere hosts also nonnative, or are some native fungi compatible with nonnative plants?

We sampled ECMs from 226 Pinaceae host plant individuals, both planted individuals and recruits, growing inside and invading from plantations. We used molecular techniques to examine ECM fungal communities associating with these trees.

A distinctive subset of the ECM fungal community predominated far from plantations, indicating differences between highly invasive and less invasive ECM fungi. Some fungal invaders reported here have been detected in other locations around the world, suggesting strong invasion potential.

Fungi that were frequently detected far from plantations are often found in early‐successional sites in the native range, while fungi identified as late‐successional species in the native range are rarely found far from plantations, suggesting a means for predicting potential fungal coinvaders.
Computer‐aided analyses of mouse retinal OCT images – an actual application report
Authors: Yu Dekuang , Zheng Jin , Zhu Ruilin , Wu Nan , Guan Alex , Cho Kin‐Sang , Chen Dong Feng , Luo Gang
Published: May 2015

Purpose

There is a need for automated retinal optical coherence tomography (OCT) image analysis tools for quantitative measurements in small animals. Some image processing techniques for retinal layer analysis have been developed, but reports about how useful those techniques are in actual animal studies are rare. This paper presents the use of a retinal layer detection method we developed in an actual mouse study that involves wild type and mutated mice carrying photoreceptor degeneration.

Methods

Spectral domain OCT scanning was performed by four experimenters over 12 months on 45 mouse eyes that were wild‐type, deficient for ephrin‐A2 and ephrin‐A3, deficient for rhodopsin, or deficient for rhodopsin, ephrin‐A2 and ephrin‐A3. The thickness of photoreceptor complex between the outer plexiform layer and retinal pigment epithelium was measured on two sides of the optic disc as the biomarker of retinal degeneration. All the layer detection results were visually confirmed.

Results

Overall, 96% (8519 out of 9000) of the half‐side images were successfully processed using our technique in a semi‐automatic manner. There was no significant difference in success rate between mouse lines (p = 0.91). Based on a human observer's rating of image quality for images successfully and unsuccessfully processed, the odds ratios for ‘easily visible’ images and ‘not clear’ images to be successfully processed is 62 and 4, respectively, against ‘indistinguishable’ images. Thickness of photoreceptor complex was significantly different across the quadrants compared (p < 0.001). It was also found that the average thickness based on 4‐point sparse sampling was not significantly different from the full analysis, while the range of differences between the two methods could be up to about 6 μm or 16% for individual eyes. Differences between mouse lines and progressive thickness reduction were revealed by both sampling measures.

Conclusions

Although the thickness of the photoreceptor complex layer is not even, manual sparse sampling may be as sufficiently accurate as full analysis in some studies such as ours, where the error of sparse sampling was much smaller than the effect size of rhodopsin deficiency. It is also suggested that the image processing method can be useful in actual animal studies. Even for images poorly visible to human eyes the image processing method still has a good chance to extract the complex layer.
Phylogeny and diversification of bryozoans
Authors: Taylor Paul D. , Waeschenbach Andrea
Published: May 2015

Although only a small fraction of the estimated 6000 extant bryozoan species has been analysed in a molecular phylogenetic context, the resultant trees have increased our understanding of the interrelationships between major bryozoan groups, as well as between bryozoans and other metazoan phyla. Molecular systematic analyses have failed to recover theLophophorata as a monophyletic clade until recently, when phylogenomic data placed theBrachiopoda as sister to a clade formed byPhoronida + Bryozoa. Among bryozoans, classPhylactolaemata has been shown to be the sister group ofGymnolaemata + Stenolaemata, corroborating earlier anatomical inferences. Despite persistent claims, there are no unequivocal bryozoans ofCambrian age: the oldest bryozoans are stenolaemates from theTremadocian ofChina. Stenolaemates underwent a major radiation during theOrdovician, but the relationships between the six orders involved are poorly understood, mostly because the simple and plastic skeletons of stenolaemates make phylogenetic analyses difficult. Bryozoans were hard‐hit by the mass extinction/s in the latePermian and it was not until theMiddleJurassic that they began to rediversify, initially through the cyclostome stenolaemates. The most successful post‐Palaeozoic order (Cheilostomata) evolved a calcareous skeletonde novofrom a soft‐bodied ancestor in theLateJurassic, maintained a low diversity until the mid‐Cretaceous and then began to radiate explosively. A remarkable range of morphological structures in the form of highly modified zooidal polymorphs, or non‐zooidal or intrazooidal modular elements, is postulated to have evolved repeatedly in this group. Crucially, many of these structures have been linked to micropredator protection and can be interpreted as key traits linked to the diversification of cheilostomes.