bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Handling conflict at work – the impact of active and agreeable conflict styles
Authors: Chen Angela Shin-yih , Hou Yu-hsiang , Wu I-heng
Published: February 2016

Purpose

– This paper aims to explore the relationships between emotional intelligence (EI), conflict management styles and job performance in a Chinese cultural context.

Design/methodology/approach

– The present paper uses a cross-sectional research design. Paper-based questionnaires were distributed to employees working in the R & D department of a science and technology institute in Taiwan. In total, 300 questionnaires were distributed and 248 valid questionnaires were analyzed, with a return rate of 81.4 per cent.

Findings

– The results show that EI has a positive impact on job performance. Furthermore, agreeable conflict style positively moderated between EI and job performance, whereas active conflict style has negative moderating effect.

Research limitations/implications

– Due to the research design, sample and data collection method, the research results may lack representativeness. Therefore, researchers are encouraged to use a different approach in the future.

Practical implications

– Organizations should strengthen employees’ EI and conflict management abilities to improve job performance. Organizations can apply the results of this study in accordance with their policy on recruitment, selection and training.

Originality/value

– Organizations should strengthen employees’ EI and conflict management abilities to improve job performance. Organizations can apply the results of this study in accordance with their policies on recruitment, selection and training.
“Mission impossible”: exploring the viability of power-sharing as a conflict-resolution tool in Syria
Authors: Groarke Emer
Published: February 2016

Purpose

– This paper aims to show the viability of consociational power-sharing as a conflict-resolution tool in Syria. It further argues that a subsequent movement from consociational to centripetal power-sharing is vital to ensure sustainable peace.

Design/methodology/approach

– A theoretical overview of power-sharing as a conflict-resolution tool provides the basis for this paper, supported by empirical evidence and qualitative research analysis for its proposed application in Syria. Perceived obstacles to a negotiated settlement are outlined, with suggestions made as to how these issues can be transformed into incentives for invested parties. Such obstacles include Bashar al-Assad remaining in power, and calls for the implementation of Shari’a law by some opposition groups.

Findings

– While previously the conditions of the conflict were not conducive to peace talks, this paper finds that regional developments, including the rise of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, have re-opened the possibility of, and indeed the necessity for, political negotiations. Detailing the complexity of a conflict that goes far beyond a mere sectarian divide, the findings of this paper dispel the notion that a sectarian partition is a viable model for Syria. The paper highlights the multiple cleavages occurring simultaneously, and shows how a power-sharing model is best suited to deal with them.

Originality/value

– The paper analyses the ongoing inertia of political negotiations to peacefully resolve the conflict. It offers an approach to conflict-resolution in Syria that has, thus far, not been adequately considered in academic – or political – spheres.
OKF-Ref: using the object knowledge framework to understand the reference experience
Authors: Latham Kiersten F. , Kearns Jodi
Published: February 2016

Purpose

– The aim of this paper is to offer a platform for thinking about the reference interaction experience by borrowing from museum studies literature, particularly from a holistic understanding of the museum visitor’s experience.

Design/methodology/approach

– The goal of this paper is to offer a platform for thinking about the reference interaction experience by borrowing from museum studies literature, particularly from a holistic understanding of the museum visitor’s experience.

Findings

– Object knowledge framework-reference (OKF-Ref) enables reference staff to connect patrons with resources to enable deeper thinking and research.

Practical implications

– OKF-Ref seeks to permit reference transactions as experiences rooted in synchronous individual, group and material potential connections made between resources and information seekers.

Originality/value

– New considerations in lived reference experience encourages reference librarians to think about the whole experience of reference interactions, allowing intermediaries to be proactive toward the goal of unified experiences for patrons.
Linking phylogenetic similarity and pollution sensitivity to develop ecological assessment methods: a test with river diatoms
Authors: Keck François , Bouchez Agnès , Franc Alain , Rimet Frédéric
Published: February 2016

Diatoms include a great diversity of taxa and are recognized as powerful bioindicators of freshwater quality. However, using diatoms for bioassessment is costly and time‐consuming, because most of the indices necessitate species‐level identification. Simplifying diatom‐based assessment protocols has focused the attention of water managers and researchers in recent years.

The increasing availability of genomic data and phylogenies can benefit in the development of bioassessment methods making use of these tools, where a clade plays the role of a species if relevant. Indeed, the null hypothesis is that closely related species are more likely to exhibit similar environmental sensitivity because of phylogenetic constraints and inheritance. Such patterns have been reported recently for sensitivity to a variety of pollutants for two important groups of bioindicators used for freshwater monitoring: benthic macroinvertebrates and diatoms.

We introduce a method to extract clusters of species sharing similar traits and being phylogenetically related. We apply this method to the general pollution sensitivity (IPS specific sensitivity value;Étude des Méthodes Biologiques d'Appréciation Quantitative de la Qualité des Eaux, 1982) of 262 species of diatoms and, by tuning the method settings, we generate different clade‐based derivatives of the traditional IPS index.

Finally, we estimate traditional and derived IPS scores for 2119 natural communities of diatoms in eastern France to compare and assess the performances of these new indices.

Synthesis and applications. We show that phylogenetic approaches offer scope for simplification without loss of important information and we discuss the potential of their use in biomonitoring.
Unity and Fragmentation of the Habitus
Authors: Silva Elizabeth B.
Published: February 2016

This paper examines a unitary notion of the habitus present in Bourdieu's early works and its transformation along his sociological career, to later conceptions of a fragmented habitus concept to examine contemporary relationality and social change. The career of the concept of habitus in Bourdieu shows that interplays of habitus and fields are seen to demand increasing labour of integration from individuals as social life becomes more differentiated. The paper claims the need for sociology to engage with field analyses to advance explorations of the habitus and to acknowledge the potential pliability of the concept. It is suggested that sociology may adopt the psychoanalytic notion of ‘standing in spaces’ (and associated notions of ‘liminality’ and experiences in interstitial positons) for a productive development of the notion of fragmented habitus, and to enhance proposals that view the social with a history that is made available to humans to change.
Between disruption and continuity: challenges in maintaining the ‘biographical we’ when caring for a partner with a severe, chronic illness
Authors: Aasbø Gunvor , Solbrække Kari Nyheim , Kristvik Ellen , Werner Anne
Published: February 2016

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a progressive illness that changes the lives of patients and their spouses dramatically. The aim of this paper is to show how spouses of COPD patients integrate their tasks as informal carers with their role as spouses and the tensions and challenges involved in this. The study draws on qualitative interviews with spouses of COPD patients, recruited from the patient pool of ambulatory pulmonary services of two hospitals in Oslo, Norway. The spouses described their great efforts to re‐establish normality and continuity in their everyday lives. Accomplishing this was a delicate process because they faced several dilemmas in this work. They balanced the need to sustain the independence and integrity of both parties against the need to ensure safety and deal with the progression of the illness. We propose ‘biographical we’ as a concept that can highlight the great effort spouses put into establishing a sense of continuity in their lives. In times when healthcare policy involves mobilising informal caregiving resources, an awareness of the complexity of caregiving relationships is crucial when developing appropriate support for informal carers.
Circulating microRNA expression profiles in pre‐eclampsia: evidence of increased miR‐885‐5p levels
Authors: Sandrim VC , Luizon MR , Palei AC , Tanus‐Santos JE , Cavalli RC
Published: February 2016

Objective

To validate and to compare the circulating microRNA (miR) expression profiles between pre‐eclampsia and healthy pregnant women, to perform correlation analysis of the differently expressed miRs with clinical and biochemical parameters, and to verify the extracellular localisation of miRs in apoptotic bodies, microvesicles, and exosomes.

Design

A case–control study with a replication study.

Setting

Pregnant women attending maternity hospitals in Southeastern Brazil.

Population

Two obstetric white populations: a case–control study (19 pre‐eclampsia and 14 healthy pregnant) and a replication study (eight pre‐eclampsia and eight healthy pregnant).

Methods

PCR‐array with 84 different miRs was performed in plasma from five pre‐eclampsia and four healthy pregnant women. In the case–control study, differently expressed miRs were validated using quantitative real‐time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (qRT‐PCR), and correlated with clinical and biochemical parameters. The plasma was then fractioned to study the extracellular localisation of miRs.

Main outcome measures

Gene expression profiles of miRs.

Results

From PCR‐array, three miRs (miR‐376c‐3p, miR‐19a‐3p, and miR‐19b‐3p) were found to be down‐regulated and the miR‐885‐5p was found to be up‐regulated in pre‐eclampsia compared with healthy pregnant women. In the validation step, miR‐885‐5p was the only significantly different miR (fold‐change = 5.0, P < 0.05), which was confirmed in the replication study (fold‐change = 4.5, P < 0.05). Moreover, miR‐885‐5p was significantly correlated with the hepatic enzyme aspartate transaminase (r = 0.66; P = 0.0034) and it was mostly associated with the exosomes (32‐fold higher than apoptotic bodies).

Conclusions

miR‐885‐5p is increased in plasma from pre‐eclampsia compared with healthy pregnant women, and it is released into circulation mainly inside exosomes.

Tweetable Abstract

miR‐885‐5p is increased in pre‐eclampsia and is released into circulation mainly inside exosomes.
Sperm traits differ between winged and wingless males of the ant Cardiocondyla obscurior
Authors: SCHREMPF Alexandra , MOSER Astrid , DELABIE Jacques , HEINZE Jürgen
Published: February 2016

Size and shape of sperm cells vary tremendously throughout the animal kingdom. The adaptive significance of this variation is not fully understood. In addition to sperm–female interactions and the environmental conditions, the risk of sperm competition might affect number, morphology and other “quality” traits of sperm. In the male‐diphenic ant Cardiocondyla obscurior, winged sneaker males have limited sperm number, because their testes degenerate shortly after adult emergence, as is typical for males of social Hymenoptera. In contrast, wingless fighter males continuously replenish their sperm supply due to their exceptional lifelong spermatogenesis. While winged males usually have to compete with several other winged males for virgin queens, wingless males are able to monopolize queens by killing all other rivals. Hence, this presents a unique system to investigate how alternative reproductive tactics and associated physiology affect sperm morphology and viability. We found that sperm‐limited males invest into sperm number instead of sperm size. Variance in sperm length is smaller in winged males, probably reflecting that they have to compete with several other males. Finally, sperm viability is equally high in both male phenotypes.
Guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of acute non‐variceal upper gastrointestinal bleeding (2015, Nanchang, China)
Authors: Bai Yu , Li Zhao Shen
Published: February 2016

Acute non‐variceal upper gastrointestinal bleeding (ANVUGIB) is one of the most common medical emergencies in China and worldwide. In 2009, we published the “Guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of acute non‐variceal upper gastrointestinal bleeding” for the patients in China; however, during the past years numerous studies on the diagnosis and treatment of ANVUGIB have been conducted, and the management of ANVUGIB needs to be updated. The guidelines were updated after the databases including PubMed, Embase and CNKI were searched to retrieve the clinical trials on the management of ANVUGIB. The clinical trials were evaluated for high‐quality evidence, and the advances in definitions, diagnosis, etiology, severity evaluation, treatment and prognosis of ANVUGIB were carefully reviewed, the recommendations were then proposed. After several rounds of discussions and revisions among the national experts of digestive endoscopy, gastroenterology, radiology and intensive care, the 2015 version of “Guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of acute non‐variceal upper gastrointestinal bleeding” was successfully developed by the Chinese Journal of Internal Medicine, National Medical Journal of China, Chinese Journal of Digestion and Chinese Journal of Digestive Endoscopy. It shall be noted that although much progress has been made, the clinical management of ANVUGIB still needs further improvement and refinement, and high‐quality randomized trials are required in the future.
Weighting Nitrogen and Phosphorus Pixel Pollutant Loads to Represent Runoff and Buffering Likelihoods
Authors: Stephan Emily A. , Endreny Theodore A.
Published: February 2016

Watershed models often estimate annual nitrogen (N) or phosphorus (P) pollutant loads in rural areas with export coefficient (EC) (kg/ha/yr) values based on land cover, and in urban areas as the product of spatially uniform event mean concentration (EMC) (mg/L) values and runoff volume. Actual N and P nonpoint source (NPS) pollutant loading has more spatial complexity due to watershed variation in runoff likelihood and buffering likelihood along surface and subsurface pathways, which can be represented in a contributing area dispersal area (CADA) NPS model. This research develops a CADA NPS model to simulate how watershed properties of elevation, land cover, and soils upslope and downslope of each watershed pixel influence nutrient loading. The model uses both surface and subsurface runoff indices (RI), and surface and subsurface buffer indices (BI), to quantify the runoff and buffering likelihood for each watershed pixel, and generate maps of weighted EC and EMC values that identify NPS pollutant loading hotspots. The research illustrates how CADA NPS model maps and pixel loading values are sensitive to the spatial resolution and accuracy of elevation and land cover data, and model predictions can represent the lower and upper bounds of NPS loading. The model provides managers with a tool to rapidly visualize, rank, and investigate likely areas of high nutrient export.
Policy‐Relevant Behaviors Predict Heavier Drinking in Both On and Off Premises and Mediate the Relationship Between Heavier Alcohol Consumption and Age, Gender, and Socioeconomic Status—Analysis from the International Alcohol Control Study
Authors: Casswell Sally , Huckle Taisia , Wall Martin , Parker Karl
Published: February 2016

Background

Our goal was to investigate the role of behaviors amenable to policy change in mediating the relationship between alcohol consumption in off and on premises, age, and 2 measures of socioeconomic status (education and income).

Methods

A cross‐sectional general population survey was analyzed by using Bayesian path analysis to understand direct and mediating pathways. A total of 1,900 drinkers (past 6 months), aged 18 to 65 years, living in households with landline phones participated in the study. Measures were as follows: typical quantities of alcohol consumed per occasion, frequency of drinking, both off and on premise; gender, age groups; and years of education, personal income, prices paid, time of purchase, and liking for alcohol advertisements.

Results

Later times of purchase predicted larger quantities consumed (on and off premise) and more frequent drinking (on premise only). Younger people and males purchased later, and this mediated their heavier consumption. Lower prices paid predicted larger quantities consumed (on premise) and higher frequency of drinking (off premise). Younger and male respondents paid lower prices, and this mediated larger quantities consumed on premise and more frequent drinking off premise. Less well educated paid lower prices, and this mediated drinking more frequently off premise among this group. Liking for alcohol ads predicted drinking larger quantities and higher frequency both off and on premise. Younger and male respondents reported greater liking for ads, and this mediated their consumption of larger quantities and more frequent drinking both on and off premise. Those with higher income drank larger amounts on premise and more frequently on and off, but there were no mediating effects from the policy‐relevant variables.

Conclusions

Heavier drinking patterns by young people and those less well educated could be ameliorated by attention to alcohol policy.
Racial/Ethnic Differences in the Prevalence of Clinically Recognized Alcohol Use Disorders Among Patients from the U.S. Veterans Health Administration
Authors: Williams Emily C. , Gupta Shalini , Rubinsky Anna D. , Jones‐Webb Rhonda , Bensley Kara M. , Young Jessica P. , Hagedorn Hildi , Gifford Elizabeth , Harris Alex H. S.
Published: February 2016

Background

Alcohol use disorders (AUDs) are common and have worse consequences for racial/ethnic minority groups than whites. AUDs are often underrecognized in clinical settings, but it is unknown whether the prevalence of clinically recognized AUD varies across racial/ethnic groups. We describe the overall and age‐ and gender‐stratified prevalence of clinically documented AUD across 3 racial/ethnic groups in a national sample of Veterans Health Administration (VA) patients.

Methods

Data from VA's National Patient Care Database identified all patients who used VA care in Fiscal Year 2012 and were documented as black, Hispanic, or white race/ethnicity. The prevalence of clinically recognized AUD based on ICD‐9 diagnoses was compared across racial/ethnic groups overall and within gender and age groups using chi‐square tests of independence.

Results

Among 4,666,403 eligible patients, 810,902 (17.4%) were black, 302,331 (6.5%) were Hispanic, and 3,553,170 (76.1%) were white. The prevalence of clinically recognized AUD was 6.5% overall, and 9.8% (95% CI 9.8 to 9.9) among black, 7.1% (95% CI 7.0 to 7.2) among Hispanic, and 5.7% (95% CI 5.6 to 5.7) among white patients (p < 0.001). This pattern generally held for men, regardless of age group, with the exception of those 18 to 29 years old, for whom no difference was observed across race/ethnicity. Among women, the prevalence of AUD was generally lowest among Hispanic and highest among black patients, with the exception of those 30 to 44 years old, for whom the highest prevalence was among whites.

Conclusions

In contrast to findings from the general population, the prevalence of clinically recognized AUD among VA patients is generally highest among black men and women and lowest among white men and Hispanic women. This is the first study to describe the prevalence of clinically recognized AUD across racial/ethnic groups in a large healthcare system. Future research comparing estimates to diagnoses based on structured gold‐standard assessments is needed to understand whether AUDs are under‐ or overidentified.
Alcoholic Hepatitis: Risk Factors, Pathogenesis, and Approach to Treatment
Authors: Yeluru Apurva , Cuthbert Jennifer A. , Casey Lisa , Mitchell Mack C.
Published: February 2016

Background

Alcoholic hepatitis (AH) is an inflammatory disorder of the liver characterized clinically by jaundice, hepatomegaly, and abdominal pain, and histologically by macrovesicular steatosis and necroinflammation.

Methods

This clinical review will cover what is known about the pathogenesis, clinical presentation, current treatments, and novel therapies for AH.

Results

The pathogenesis and treatment of AH remain areas of active research. Although abstinence is the cornerstone of therapy for all stages of alcoholic liver disease, corticosteroids have shown modest short‐term benefits in treatment of severe AH.

Conclusions

Improved understanding of the pathogenesis of AH has expanded the range of potential treatments for this devastating disease. Several novel therapies are also currently in various stages of testing through clinical trials.
Inhibitors of Calcium‐Activated Anion Channels Modulate Hypnotic Ethanol Responses in Adult Sprague Dawley Rats
Authors: Carter Jenna M. , Landin Justine D. , Gigante Eduardo D. , Rieger Samuel P. , Diaz Marvin R. , Werner David F.
Published: February 2016

Background

Ethanol is widely known for its depressant effects; however, the underlying neurobiological mechanisms are not clear. Calcium‐activated anion channels (CAACs) contribute to extracellular chloride levels and thus may be involved in regulating inhibitory mechanisms within the central nervous system. Therefore, we hypothesized that CAACs influence ethanol behavioral sensitivity by altering CAAC expression.

Methods

We assessed the role of CAACs in ethanol‐induced loss of righting reflex (LORR) and locomotor activity using intracerebroventricular infusions of several nonselective CAAC blockers. CAAC expression was determined after ethanol exposure.

Results

Ethanol‐induced LORR (4.0 g/kg, intraperitoneally [i.p.]) was significantly attenuated by all 4 CAAC blockers. Blocking CAACs did not impact ethanol's low‐dose (1.5 g/kg, i.p.) locomotor‐impairing effects. Biochemical analysis of CAAC protein expression revealed that cortical Bestrophin1 (Best1) and Tweety1 levels were reduced as early as 30 minutes following a single ethanol injection (3.5 g/kg, intraperitoneally [i.p.]) and remained decreased 24 hours later in P2 fractions. Cortical Best1 levels were also reduced following 1.5 g/kg. However, CAAC expression was unaltered in the striatum following a single ethanol exposure. Ethanol did not affect Tweety2 levels in either brain region.

Conclusions

These results suggest that CAACs are a major target of ethanol in vivo, and the regulation of these channels contributes to select behavioral actions of ethanol.
Theory of Mind in Children with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders
Authors: Lindinger Nadine M. , Malcolm‐Smith Susan , Dodge Neil C. , Molteno Christopher D. , Thomas Kevin G. F. , Meintjes Ernesta M. , Jacobson Joseph L. , Jacobson Sandra W.
Published: February 2016

Background

Theory of mind (ToM) refers to the ability to understand and make inferences about other people's intentions, feelings, and beliefs. Although children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) are known to have deficits in social‐cognitive function, little is known about ToM in FASD.

Methods

ToM ability was assessed using a developmentally sensitive ToM battery, including the reading the mind in the eyes (RME) test, a measure of mental inferential ability that has been found to be impaired in other clinical populations. IQ and executive function (EF) were assessed as potential mediating variables. The battery was administered to 63 children (aged 9 to 11 years) from Cape Town, South Africa, whose mothers had been prospectively recruited during pregnancy. Children with fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS; n = 8) and partial FAS (PFAS; n = 19), as well as nonsyndromal heavily exposed children (n = 17), were compared to children born to abstaining or light drinkers (n = 19) from the same community.

Results

No FASD group differences were found on the less challenging ToM tasks. By contrast, children with FAS and PFAS performed more poorly than controls on a more challenging ToM task, the RME test. A continuous measure of prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE) was more sensitive than FASD diagnosis in that it was related to 4 higher‐order ToM measures, particularly the ability to attribute mental states assessed on RME. IQ only partially mediated the effect of exposure on RME performance, and these effects were not mediated by EF. Hence, the data suggest that these ToM measures tap into a specific alcohol‐related social‐cognitive deficit that does not merely reflect poorer EF. FASD diagnosis and PAE were each also related to RME after control for attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder.

Conclusions

These findings suggest that deficits in higher‐order ToM function may play a significant role in the social‐cognitive behavioral impairment in FASD.
Association Study of Gene Polymorphisms in GABA, Serotonin, Dopamine, and Alcohol Metabolism Pathways with Alcohol Dependence in Taiwanese Han Men
Authors: Wu Lawrence Shih‐Hsin , Lee Chau‐Shoun , Weng Tzu‐Ya , Wang Kathy Hsiao‐Tsz , Cheng Andrew Tai‐Ann
Published: February 2016

Background

The roles of GABA, serotonin, dopamine, and alcohol metabolism pathways in alcohol dependence (AD) are evident from animal models and human studies. Aims of this study were to investigate associations between genes in the 4 pathways and AD.

Methods

Male subjects from 2 independent samples of Taiwanese Han descent, a family sample of 179 trios and a case–control sample of 262 AD cases and 273 normal controls, were included in this study. The Schedules for Clinical Assessment in Neuropsychiatry was used for phenotype assessment of AD. We genotyped 282 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) located in 61 candidate genes involving alcohol metabolism, serotonin, and GABA systems among the family sample and replicated the top hits in the case–control sample.

Results

Fifteen SNPs located in 10 genes showed signals of associations (FBAT test p < 0.05) with AD in the family sample. Three SNPs, rs1229984 in ADH1B, rs671 in ALDH2, and rs2000292 in HTR1B, were significantly replicated in the case–control sample (p = 5.87 × 10−14, 5.12 × 10−14, and 0.0051, respectively). In the combined meta‐analysis, these 3 SNPs and 1 additional SNP, rs698 in ADH1C, showed significant association after correcting for multiple comparisons, and rs1229984 and rs671 showed the strongest association (p < 10−16). Logistic regression conditioning on rs1229984 and rs671 in the case–control sample showed that rs2000292 in HTR1B remained nominally significant.

Conclusions

Genes in alcohol metabolism pathway, especially ADH1B and ALDH2, conferred the major genetic risk for AD in Taiwanese Han population. Some genes in GABA and serotonin pathways showed nominal association with AD.
Role of Growth Arrest and DNA Damage‐Inducible, Beta in Alcohol‐Drinking Behaviors
Authors: Gavin David P. , Kusumo Handojo , Zhang Huaibo , Guidotti Alessandro , Pandey Subhash C.
Published: February 2016

Background

The contribution of epigenetic factors, such as histone acetylation and DNA methylation, to the regulation of alcohol‐drinking behavior has been increasingly recognized over the last several years. GADD45b is a protein demonstrated to be involved in DNA demethylation at neurotrophic factor gene promoters, including at brain‐derived neurotrophic factor (Bdnf) which has been highly implicated in alcohol‐drinking behavior.

Methods

DNA methyltransferase‐1 (Dnmt1), 3a, and 3b, and Gadd45a, b, and g mRNA were measured in the nucleus accumbens (NAc) and ventral tegmental areas of high ethanol (EtOH) consuming C57BL/6J (C57) and low alcohol consuming DBA/2J (DBA) mice using quantitative reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (PCR). In the NAc, GADD45b protein was measured via immunohistochemistry and Bdnf9a mRNA using in situ PCR. Bdnf9a promoter histone H3 acetylated at lysines 9 and 14 (H3K9,K14ac) was measured using chromatin immunoprecipitation, and 5‐methylcytosine (5MC) and 5‐hydroxymethylcytosine (5HMC) using methylated DNA immunoprecipitation. Alcohol‐drinking behavior was evaluated in Gadd45b haplodeficient (+/−) and null mice (−/−) utilizing drinking‐in‐the‐dark (DID) and 2‐bottle free‐choice paradigms.

Results

C57 mice had lower levels of Gadd45b and g mRNA and GADD45b protein in the NAc relative to the DBA strain. C57 mice had lower NAc shell Bdnf9a mRNA levels, Bdnf9a promoter H3K9,K14ac, and higher Bdnf9a promoter 5HMC and 5MC. Acute EtOH increased GADD45b protein, Bdnf9a mRNA, and histone acetylation and decreased 5HMC in C57 mice. Gadd45b +/− mice displayed higher drinking behavior relative to wild‐type littermates in both DID and 2‐bottle free‐choice paradigms.

Conclusions

These data indicate the importance of the DNA demethylation pathway and its interactions with histone posttranslational modifications in alcohol‐drinking behavior. Further, we suggest that lower DNA demethylation protein GADD45b levels may affect Bdnf expression possibly leading to altered alcohol‐drinking behavior.
Dynamic Exposure to Alcohol Advertising in a Sports Context Influences Implicit Attitudes
Authors: Zerhouni Oulmann , Bègue Laurent , Duke Aaron A. , Flaudias Valentin
Published: February 2016

Background

Experimental studies investigating the impact of advertising with ecological stimuli on alcohol‐related cognition are scarce. This research investigated the cognitive processes involved in learning implicit attitudes toward alcohol after incidental exposure to alcohol advertisements presented in a dynamic context. We hypothesized that incidental exposure to a specific alcohol brand would lead to heightened positive implicit attitudes toward alcohol due to a mere exposure effect.

Methods

In total, 108 participants were randomly exposed to dynamic sporting events excerpts with and without advertising for a specific brand of alcohol, after completing self‐reported measures of alcohol‐related expectancies, alcohol consumption, and attitudes toward sport. Participants then completed a lexical decision task and an affective priming task.

Results

We showed that participants were faster to detect brand name after being exposed to advertising during a sports game, and that implicit attitudes of participants toward the brand were more positive after they were exposed to advertising, even when alcohol usage patterns were controlled for.

Conclusions

Incidental exposure to alcohol sponsorship in sport events impacts implicit attitudes toward the advertised brand and alcohol in general. The effect of incidental advertising on implicit attitudes is also likely to be due to a mere exposure effect. However, further studies should address this point specifically.
Alcohol Decreases Organic Dust‐Stimulated Airway Epithelial TNF‐Alpha Through a Nitric Oxide and Protein Kinase‐Mediated Inhibition of TACE
Authors: Gerald Carresse L. , Romberger Debra J. , DeVasure Jane M. , Khazanchi Rohan , Nordgren Tara M. , Heires Art J. , Sisson Joseph H. , Wyatt Todd A.
Published: February 2016

Background

Farm workers in rural areas consume more alcohol than those who reside in urban areas. Occupational exposures such as agricultural work can pose hazards on the respiratory system. It is established that hog barn dust induces inflammation in the airway, including the release of cytokines such as tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF‐α), interleukin‐6 (IL‐6), and IL‐8. We have shown that alcohol alters airway epithelial innate defense through changes in both nitric oxide (NO) and cAMP‐dependent protein kinase A (PKA). Simultaneous exposure to hog barn dust and alcohol decreases inflammatory mediators, TNF‐α, IL‐6, and IL‐8, in mice. Previously, mice exposed to both alcohol and hog barn dust showed a depleted amount of lymphocytes compared to mice exposed only to hog barn dust. Weakening of the innate immune response could lead to enhanced susceptibility to disease. In addition, mice that were co‐exposed to hog barn dust and alcohol also experienced increased mortality.

Methods

Because we recently demonstrated that PKA activation inhibits the TNF‐α sheddase, TNF‐α‐converting enzyme (TACE), we hypothesized that an alcohol‐mediated PKA pathway blocks TACE activity and prevents the normative inflammatory response to hog barn dust exposure. To delineate these effects, we used PKA pathway inhibitors (adenylyl cyclase [AC], cAMP, and PKA) to modulate the effects of alcohol on dust‐stimulated TNF‐α release in the bronchial epithelial cell line, BEAS‐2B. Alcohol pretreatment blocked TACE activity and TNF‐α release in hog barn dust‐treated cells.

Results

Alcohol continued to block hog barn dust‐mediated TNF‐α release in the presence of the particulate AC inhibitor, SQ22,536. The soluble adenylyl cyclase inhibitor, KH7, however, significantly increased the inflammatory response to hog barn dust. phosphodiesterase 4 inhibitors significantly elevated cAMP and enhanced alcohol‐mediated inhibition of dust‐stimulated TNF‐α release. In addition, the NO synthase inhibitor, l‐NMMA, also reversed the alcohol‐blocking effect on dust‐stimulated TNF‐α.

Conclusions

These data suggest that alcohol requires a soluble cyclase‐generated cAMP‐PKA pathway that is dependent upon the action of NO to inhibit TACE and TNF‐α release. These findings support our observations that alcohol functions through a dual NO and PKA pathway in bronchial epithelial cells.
Alcohol Consumption and Risk for Dependence Among Male Latino Migrant Farmworkers Compared to Latino Nonfarmworkers in North Carolina
Authors: Arcury Thomas A. , Talton Jennifer W. , Summers Phillip , Chen Haiying , Laurienti Paul J. , Quandt Sara A.
Published: February 2016

Background

Our aim was to describe alcohol consumption behavior of male Latino migrant farmworkers, compare their alcohol consumption behavior with that of other male Latino immigrants, and determine factors associated with risk for alcohol dependence among Latino immigrant workers.

Methods

Cross‐sectional data were drawn from baseline interviews conducted as part of a larger community‐based participatory research project examining the cognitive and neurological outcomes of pesticide exposure. A total of 235 farmworkers and 212 nonfarmworkers completed interviews between May and August 2012.

Results

Although 17.5% of the North Carolina Latino farmworkers report never having drunk alcohol, and a total of 34.5% report not having drunk alcohol in the previous 3 months, 48.5% engaged in heavy episodic drinking (HED) in the previous 3 months, and 23.8% frequently engaged in HED during this period. Farmworkers and nonfarmworkers did not differ significantly in alcohol consumption behavior. Farmworkers and nonfarmworkers did differ significantly in each component of the CAGE scale, with 37.9% of farmworkers and 16.0% of nonfarmworkers being at risk for alcohol dependence (p < 0.0001). Significant factors for being at risk for alcohol dependence were stress (odds ratio 1.06, 95% confidence interval 1.03, 1.09) and being a farmworker (odds ratio 3.58, 95% confidence interval 2.12, 6.06). Being married reduced the risk of alcohol dependence (odds ratio 0.45, 95% confidence interval 0.23, 0.87).

Conclusions

Latino farmworkers and nonfarmworkers consume relatively large amounts of alcohol and engage in HED at relatively high rates. Latino farmworkers have very high rates of risk for alcohol dependence. Policy changes and public health interventions are needed to address these concerns for a population that is vital to the agricultural economy.
Optimizing the treatment of rhegmatogenous retinal detachment
Authors: Hajari Javad Nouri
Published: February 2016

Surgical approaches for rhegmatogenous retinal detachment (RRD) have evolved rapidly in the past century. This has resulted in an increase in the anatomical success rate from zero per cent in the beginning of the 1900s to now almost 100 per cent. Rhegmatogenous retinal detachment is regarded as an acute eye disease that needs immediate treatment. With the increasing number of cataract surgeries and an increased elderly population, the numbers of RRD occurrences are increasing. The aim of this thesis is to create knowledge on how treatment and care of RRD patients can be optimized. In the first paper, data on the incidence of RRD in Denmark are presented based on data from a nation register the National Patient Registry (NPR). It was discovered that the incidence of RRD in Denmark is similar to previous reported numbers and that the incidence has been increasing due to increasing numbers of cataract surgeries and an increased elderly population. Using data from the NPR, we estimated that the risk of a RRD occurring on the fellow eye is 100 times larger than on the first eye and that middle aged men have the highest risk. Having an increase in the incidence of RRD we need to ensure that the patients are also treated in the most optimal way. To ensure this, an indicator is needed to monitor the quality at the different centres. This indicator presented in the second paper is based in the occurrence of redetachment. We define a detachment to be caused by poor surgery if the retina detaches within one year after initial surgery with pneumatic retinopexy, scleral buckling and VTX with gas, and one and a half years after surgery with VTX with oil. Also lack of oil removal within the first year is a failed operation. It is widely accepted that RRD is an acute disease but when should surgery be performed to attain the most optimal result? In the third paper, we evaluated the progression of posterior RRD with an optical coherence tomography to make an objective assessment of the movement. We found that the risk of a macula on RRD progressing to affect the fovea is small if the patient is postured appropriately. We found that the movement of the RRD is dynamic but the detachments will ultimately approach the fovea. Having an opportunity to postpone surgery without risking the outcome for the patient allows a more optimal surgery. The results of this thesis can be used by all health care systems to establish optimal conditions in the treatment of RRD.
Hypersensitivity toward bacterial stimuli in patients with age‐related macular degeneration
Authors: Chen Jia‐Jia , Han Bing‐Sha , Xu Shao‐Gang , Vu Honghua , Farrow James W. , Rodman Connie L. , Zhu Yu , Wang Wen‐Zhan
Published: February 2016

Although the pathogenesis of age‐related macular degeneration (AMD) is unclear, genetic screening has revealed that polymorphisms in the complement system may be associated with AMD development. Production of autoantibodies was also found in AMD patients. In this study, we analyzed the antibody response in AMD patients. We found that purified B cells from AMD patients tended to respond to lower concentrations of bacterial antigen stimulation, and produced higher amounts of antibodies, especially in IgM and IgA secretions. When examining clinical symptoms, patients with more severe wet‐form AMD tended to exhibit higher sensitivity to bacterial antigens and secreted more IgM and IgA antibodies than those with less severe dry‐form cases. In conclusion, our study discovered an altered B‐cell antibody production in response to bacterial antigens in AMD patients, which potentially contributes to AMD pathogenesis.
The peroxisomal Lon protease LonP2 in aging and disease: functions and comparisons with mitochondrial Lon protease LonP1
Authors: Pomatto Laura C. D. , Raynes Rachel , Davies Kelvin J. A.
Published: February 2016

Peroxisomes are ubiquitous eukaryotic organelles with the primary role of breaking down very long‐ and branched‐chain fatty acids for subsequent β‐oxidation in the mitochondrion. Like mitochondria, peroxisomes are major sites for oxygen utilization and potential contributors to cellular oxidative stress. The accumulation of oxidatively damaged proteins, which often develop into inclusion bodies (of oxidized, aggregated, and cross‐linked proteins) within both mitochondria and peroxisomes, results in loss of organelle function that may contribute to the aging process. Both organelles possess an isoform of the Lon protease that is responsible for degrading proteins damaged by oxidation. While the importance of mitochondrial Lon (LonP1) in relation to oxidative stress and aging has been established, little is known regarding the role of LonP2 and aging‐related changes in the peroxisome. Recently, peroxisome dysfunction has been associated with aging‐related diseases indicating that peroxisome maintenance is a critical component of ‘healthy aging’. Although mitochondria and peroxisomes are both needed for fatty acid metabolism, little work has focused on understanding the relationship between these two organelles including how age‐dependent changes in one organelle may be detrimental for the other. Herein, we summarize findings that establish proteolytic degradation of damaged proteins by the Lon protease as a vital mechanism to maintain protein homeostasis within the peroxisome. Due to the metabolic coordination between peroxisomes and mitochondria, understanding the role of Lon in the aging peroxisome may help to elucidate cellular causes for both peroxisome and mitochondrial dysfunction.
Social predictors of less frequent dental attendance over time among older people: population‐averaged and person‐specific estimates
Authors: Gülcan Ferda , Ekbäck Gunnar , Ordell Sven , Lie Stein Atle , Åstrøm Anne Nordrehaug
Published: February 2016

Objectives

Longitudinal studies considering social disparities in the utilization of dental services are scarce. Repeated measures should be accounted for by the use of appropriate statistical methods. The purpose of this study was first to describe the patterns of less frequent dental attendance (less than once a year) over time from the age of 65–70 in Norwegian and Swedish 1942 cohorts. Second, this study estimated the influence of predisposing, enabling and need‐related social predictors using marginal model with robust variance estimators and random intercept model, RIM, to account for the clustered structure of the repeated observations. Third, the study aimed to compare the estimates of associations between social predictors and less frequent dental attendance derived from marginal and random intercept models.

Methods

In 2007 and 2012, all residents born in 1942 in selected counties of Norway and Sweden were invited to participate in a questionnaire survey. In Norway, the response rate was 58.0% (n = 4211) in 2007 and 54.5% (n = 3733) in 2012 with a follow‐up rate of 70%. The corresponding figures in Sweden were 73.1% (n = 6078) and 72.2% (n = 5697), with a follow‐up rate of 80%. Marginal and random intercept models were fitted for population‐averaged and person‐specific estimates. Design effects were calculated by comparing the results from ordinary logistic regression analyses and the marginal model with robust variance estimators. The proportion of the total variation due to differences between persons was reported using the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC).

Results

Less frequent dental attendance declined from 14.5% to 12.2% in Norway and from 13.6% to 12.9% in Sweden. According to marginal and random intercept models, time‐invariant (gender, country of birth, education) and time‐variant social predictors (working status, social network, marital status, smoking and perceived health) contributed to less frequent dental attendance. A likelihood ratio test confirmed that adjustment for clustered observations was appropriate. The ICC was 0.90 in Norway and 0.85 in Sweden.

Conclusions

The prevalence of less frequent dental attendance was low and dropped by increasing age from 65 to 70 years. Both at population and at person‐specific levels, being advantaged on social aspects protects against less frequent dental attendance after 65 years of age in the Norwegian and Swedish cohorts investigated.
Structure–function studies of HNF1A (MODY3) gene mutations in South Indian patients with monogenic diabetes
Authors: Balamurugan K. , Bjørkhaug L. , Mahajan S. , Kanthimathi S. , Njølstad P.R. , Srinivasan N. , Mohan V. , Radha V.
Published: February 2016

Maturity‐onset diabetes of the young (MODY) is a genetically heterogeneous monogenic form of diabetes characterized by onset of diabetes below 25 years of age, autosomal dominant mode of inheritance and primary defect in insulin secretion. Mutations in the gene (HNF1A) encoding transcription factor hepatocyte nuclear factor 1A (HNF‐1A) results in one of the most common forms of MODY (MODY3). HNF‐1A is mainly enriched in pancreatic β‐cells and hepatocytes and important for organ development and normal pancreatic function. We here report on the functional interrogation of eight missense HNF1A mutations associated with MODY3 in South Indian subjects, and the contributing effect of common variant (S487N) within HNF1A. Of the eight mutations, three mutations (p.R171G, p.G245R and p.R263H), in particular, affected HNF‐1A function in transfected HeLa cells by reducing both transcriptional activity and nuclear localization, possibly due to disruption of the integrity of the three dimensional structure. The common variant p.S487N contributed further to the loss‐of‐function of p.R271Q (p.R271Q+p.S487N double mutant), in vitro, on both activity and localization. Our data on the first functional study of HNF1A mutations in South India subjects confers that the defect of the HNF‐1A mutant proteins are responsible for MODY3 diabetes in these patients.
Variant haploinsufficiency and phenotypic non‐penetrance in PRPF31‐associated retinitis pigmentosa
Authors: Rose A.M. , Bhattacharya S.S.
Published: February 2016

Retinitis pigmentosa (RP) is a genetically heterogenous group of inherited disorders, characterized by death of the retinal photoreceptor cells, leading to progressive visual impairment. One form of RP is caused by mutations in the ubiquitously expressed splicing factor, PRPF31, this form being known as RP11. An intriguing feature of RP11 is the presence of non‐penetrance, which has been observed in the majority of PRPF31 mutation‐carrying families. In contrast to variable expressivity, which is highly pervasive, true non‐penetrance is a very rare phenomenon in Mendelian disorders. In this article, the molecular mechanisms underlying phenotypic non‐penetrance in RP11 are explored. It is an elegant example of how our understanding of monogenic disorders has evolved from studying only the disease gene, to considering a mutation on the genetic background of the individual – the logical evolution in this genomic era.