bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
What Makes Susie Cry? A Symptom‐Context Study of Family Therapy
Authors: CRITS‐CHRISTOPH PAUL , LUBORSKY LESTER , GAY ELLEN , TODD THOMAS , BARBER JACQUES P. , LUBORSKY ELLEN
Published: July 2004

The aim of this investigation was to examine the context of recurrent crying episodes during family therapy sessions. We tested the relative contribution of social versus individual intrapsychic variables within a 10‐session, videotaped, structural family therapy. Segments of therapy before crying episodes when compared with control (non‐crying) segments were found to have higher levels of the following variables: involvement with others in the room, rejection, and concern about supplies. Two family variables were also higher before crying episodes: family discussion about patient, and patient receives hostility. A stepwise discriminant function analysis using these variables indicated that family discussion about the patient was most important in signaling onset of crying. The results are discussed in terms of individual and family theories of symptom formation as illuminated through this case study.
Parenting Behaviors of Women Who Were Sexually Abused As Children in Their Families of Origin
Authors: BURKETT LINDA PADOU
Published: July 2004

This research explored links between a childhood history of family sexual abuse and current parenting behaviors of mothers of school‐age children, using observations of family interaction and interviews with the mothers. Videotaped family interaction tasks, analyzed with Benjamin's Structural Analysis of Social Behavior, showed that women who had been sexually abused in their childhood families were more self‐focused, rather than child‐focused, compared to nonabused women. In interviews, the women who had been abused gave strong evidence of greater reliance on their children for emotional support. These findings lend support to theoretical and clinical impressions of highly permeable intergenerational boundaries, including parent‐child role reversal, in family systems marked by child sexual abuse, even when the abuse occurred in the previous generation.
Rethinking Levels of Abstraction in Family Systems Theories
Authors: BURR WESLEY R.
Published: July 2004

This article is an attempt to improve the way we conceptualize “levels” in family systems. The first section reframes thinking about levels by identifying an array of different ways of thinking about levels. The next section suggests a parsimonious framework for thinking about levels of abstraction in systemic processes. The proposed framework integrates several earlier ways of conceptualizing levels, and helps eliminate some of the confusion, inconsistencies, fragmentation, and limitations of some earlier models. The new framework has three categories that are called Levels I, II, and III. The most abstract level (III) includes phenomena such as family paradigms and values. The intermediate level includes processes such as second‐order change, regime, and “meta” processes such as metacommunication and metarules. The least abstract level refers to specific processes such as transformation processes and rules. The article concludes with an attempt to demonstrate the usefulness of the proposed framework by showing how it can be used to eliminate a number of conceptual problems in earlier models, improve conceptual clarity, help generate new theoretical insights, and help deal with several controversies in the field.
Family‐of‐Origin Work and Family Therapy Skills Training: Both‐And
Authors: McDANIEL SUSAN H. , LANDAU‐STANTON JUDITH
Published: July 2004

Since the inception of field, theoreticians and teachers of family therapy have advocated for either problem‐solving, skill‐based training, or transgenerational training that emphasizes the therapist's own family‐of‐origin work. This article proposes an end to these polarized positions and argues for both‐and, that is, a model of training that integrates the trainee's own family‐of‐origin work with live supervision and skills training. A family‐of‐origin curriculum designed for this purpose is described.
A Consideration of Intimate and Non‐Intimate Interactions in Therapy
Authors: WEINGARTEN KATHY
Published: July 2004

Viewing therapy as a conversation among participants, rather than as an interview concluding with an intervention selected by an expert, allows one to consider the contributions of each member of the conversation in comparable terms. I propose a distinction between intimate interaction, in which meaning is co‐created or shared, and non‐intimate interaction, in which meaning is rejected, provided, or misunderstood. I suggest that intimate interaction between therapists and clients is therapeutic and that non‐intimate interaction rarely is. However, it is in the acknowledgment and repair of the inevitable lapses of intimate interaction that occur between therapists and clients that there is an opportunity for a profoundly meaningful collaboration.
A Computerized Scoring Procedure for the Kvebaek Family Sculpture Technique Applied to Families of Children with Rheumatic Diseases
Authors: ECKBLAD GUDRUN , VANDVIK INGER HELENE
Published: July 2004

A new computer‐based quantification procedure was applied to data obtained from administering the Kvebaek Family Sculpture Technique (KFST) to 92 mothers of children with recent onset of rheumatic symptoms (median = 7 months). Four family configuration types (close, hierarchical, unspecified, and skewed) were defined on the basis of distance and structural parameters of the configuration. The types differed with regard to the childhood environment of the mother, chronic family difficulties, and the psychosocial functioning of the primary patient. Comparisons of the families of the mothers that did (n = 23) and did not (n = 69) wish a change of family configuration showed that the families of the mothers who wished change differed with regard to configuration types, distance variables, and psychosocial characteristics. The results are discussed in the context of structural family‐systems theory. The computerized scoring procedure opens new possibilities for research about various family members' perspectives and assessment of changes in family configurations during therapy or over time.
Dimensions of Family Rituals Across Two Generations: Relation to Adolescent Identity
Authors: FIESE BARBARA H.
Published: July 2004

Family rituals are considered part of a generational process that fosters a sense of identity for individual members and is reflective of the family's shared belief system. The symbolic significance attached to family rituals is considered central to the force of family rituals. Three questions were addressed in the study: (1) Are the dimensions of family rituals viewed similarly across generations?; (2) Is level of ritualization related to adolescent identity?; (3) If there is disagreement about the relative level of ritualization in a family, is there a negative relation to adolescent identity? A total of 77 families with an adolescent member completed the Family Ritual Questionnaire, and the adolescents completed a measure of self‐esteem. Results of a factor analysis demonstrated shared representation of family rituals across two generations, with one factor loading on the symbolic qualities of family rituals and the second factor loading on the routine aspects of family rituals. Positive relations were found between adolescent identity and the family's report of symbolic significance and affect associated with family rituals. A negative relation was found between mother‐adolescent disagreement about family rituals and adolescent feelings of belonging. Distinguishing between meaning and routine aspects of family rituals is discussed as well as clinical implications.
Expressed Emotion in Depressed Patients and Their Partners
Authors: Florin Irmela , Nostadt Anja , Reck Corinna , Franzen Ule , Jenkins Melissa
Published: July 2004

This study was designed to assess the expressed emotion (EE) status in the spouses of depressed patients and the patients themselves, to relate the EE status to the severity of depression as measured by the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), and to compare the prevalence of high EE between the target and control group. Seventeen depressed patients and their spouses, and 20 control couples participated in the study. The Five‐Minute Speech Sample was used to assess the EE status. High EE was significantly more common in spouses of depressed patients and the patients themselves than in controls. There was a significant relationship between the EE status of the patients and their spouses. High EE in the patient and in the spouse corresponded significantly with a high BDI score of the patient. These findings underline the importance that in EE research the patients' EE status as well as their present mental health state must also be taken into account.
The California Family Health Project' Project: II. Family World View and Adult Health
Authors: RANSOM DONALD C. , FISHER LAWRENCE , TERRY HOWARD E.
Published: July 2004

This article explores the pattern of relationships between family World View and adult Health in a community based sample of 225 families. Family World View refers to the beliefs, appraisals, and values that define a family's orientation to the world. The interrelationships among eight self‐reported family World View variables are described, using principal components analyses (PCA) and multidimensional scaling analyses (MDS). Derived, joint‐spouse World Views also are examined using inter‐battery factor analysis. The World View variables then are analyzed as a set with 14 self‐reported health variables for husbands and wives separately, using canonical correlation. The PCAs for family World View yielded poor solutions for both husbands and wives. The MDS displayed the eight variables in a circular pattern for husbands and for wives, indicating the absence of a single broad dimension, or subgroupings of separate dimensions, that could be used to “describe” the domain. In the canonical analyses, family World View was a strong correlate of Health, with approximately 50% of the variance accounted for by the respective canonical variates. For husbands, what we called Family Coherence, Family Religiousness, Family Life Engagement, and Family Optimism, were correlated with Health. For wives, Family Coherence, Family Religiousness, and Family Optimism, were correlated with Health. Different patterns of health scores emerged by gender, with behavioral indicators, such as Smoking and Drinking, more salient for husbands, and mood indicators, such as Anxiety and Depression, more salient for wives.
Families with Adolescents: Escaping Problem Lifestyles
Authors: DICKERSON VICTORIA C. , ZIMMERMAN JEFFREY
Published: July 2004

Using the concepts of “restraints” and reciprocal patterns, a specific approach for understanding and working with families of adolescents is offered. The organizing idea is the “restraint” that revolves around a difficulty both parents and youngsters have in making a distinction between what parents want for their youngsters and what the young person might want. This difficulty may come from the parents' ideas and beliefs about parenting and from their own growing‐up experience, from the adolescent's “not completely storied” lives, and/or from societal discourse about adolescence. Restraint of ideas can be constructed as reciprocal patterns and located in dominant narratives that families may have about themselves. A restorying process allows families to separate from the problem pattern and focus on the youngsters' willingness to have ideas for themselves.
Working with Projective Identification in Couples
Authors: CATHERALL DON R.
Published: July 2004

Couples therapists spend considerable time focused on the recurring patterns of anger and misunderstanding that occur in their sessions. These patterns usually represent projective identification sequences in which one partner disavows disturbing thoughts and feelings, and, instead, unconsciously induces similar thoughts and feelings in the other partner by behaving in such a way as to stimulate them. Conflict and misunderstanding surround the partners' shared efforts to avoid identifying with the undesirable thoughts and feelings. The underlying problem is each individual's inability to contain the disturbing material and provide holding for the other partner. This article offers a technique for interrupting the process and helping each partner to identify with and contain the disturbing material.
The California Family Health Project: IV. Family Structure/Organization and Adult Health
Authors: FISHER LAWRENCE , RANSOM DONALD C. , TERRY HOWARD E. , BURGE SANDRA
Published: July 2004

This research explores the relationships between each of four “domains” of family life and the health of husbands and wives in a community‐based sample of 225 families. In this article we report the association between Family Structure/Organization and adult Health. This family domain refers to the architecture of the family or the structural frame of roles and rules within which the family operates. Interrelationships among 13 self‐reported, family Structure/Organization scales are described, using principle components analysis (PCA) and multidimensional scaling analysis (MDS). Derived, joint‐spouse or couple Structure/Organization variables also were created using inter‐battery factor analysis. The PCA yielded a poor solution, whereas the MDS yielded a good two‐dimensional solution, which roughly displayed the scales in a circular pattern for both husbands and wives. The analyses indicated that no single dimension or set of separate subdimensions adequately described the Structure/Organization variables. All 13 scales then were associated with a battery of 14 adult health scales for husbands and wives separately, using canonical correlation. Different aspects of family Structure/Organization were correlated with health for husbands and wives: Organized Cohesiveness, Sex Role Traditionalism, Role Flexibility and Shared Roles for husbands; and Organized Cohesiveness and Differentiated Sharing for wives. Different patterns of health scores also emerged by gender, with behavioral indicators, such as Smoking and Drinking, more salient for husbands, and mood indicators, such as Anxiety and Depression, more salient for wives.
The Therapeutic System as Viewed by Depressive Inpatients and Outcome: An Expanded Study
Authors: PRIEBE STEFAN , POMMERIEN WILFRIED
Published: July 2004

In an expansion of a previous study, we examined in which way depressive inpatients' views of psychiatrists' and significant others' attitudes toward the severity of their illness were related to outcome. Fifty‐six patients were asked a two‐part question —“Who regards your illness as being more severe: (a) you or your significant others; (b) you or your psychiatrist?” Two subsamples of patients were identified: those who viewed the psychiatrists' and significant others' attitudes as similar and those who viewed them as dissimilar. Both groups showed substantial and significant improvement during hospital treatment; but the group that viewed the attitudes held by psychiatrists and significant others as dissimilar had significantly fewer depressive symptoms by the end of a 3‐month followup period. The findings were consistent with those of the original study, and with the hypothesis as derived from the Mental Research Institute brief therapy principles.
Invasive fungal infections in autologous stem cell transplant recipients: a nation‐wide study of 1188 transplanted patients
Authors: Jantunen E. , Salonen J. , Juvonen E. , Koivunen E. , Siitonen T. , Lehtinen T. , Kuittinen O. , Leppä S. , Anttila V‐J. , Itälä M. , Wiklund T. , Remes K. , Nousiainen T.
Published: July 2004

Abstract:  Based on small single‐centre series, the risk of invasive fungal infections (IFI) has been considered small in autologous stem cell transplant (ASCT) recipients. Purpose: To analyse epidemiological and clinical features of (IFI) among ASCT recipients in Finland 1990–2001. Patients: During the study period, 1188 adult patients received high‐dose therapy supported by ASCT in six centres. Altogether, 1112 patients (94%) received blood progenitor cells. The graft was CD34+ selected in 261 patients (22%). The major diagnostic groups were non‐Hodgkin's lymphoma (n = 417), multiple myeloma (n = 395), breast cancer (n = 132) and Hodgkin's lymphoma (n = 53). Results: Eighteen patients (1.5%) with IFI were identified. The incidence of proven or probable invasive aspergillosis was 0.8%, followed by candidaemia with an incidence of 0.3%. The median time to the diagnosis of IFI was 35 d (6–162) from the progenitor cell infusion. In fourteen patients (78%) IFI was diagnosed during lifetime and they were treated with antifungal therapy for a median of 50 d. Nine patients (64%) were cured. Conclusions: IFI appears to be a rare event after ASCT and Aspergillus infections seem to be predominant. These epidemiological features have an impact in planning prophylactic and empirical antifungal strategies in ASCT recipients.
Initial expression of interferon alpha receptor 2 (IFNAR2) on CD34‐positive cells and its down‐regulation correlate with clinical response to interferon therapy in chronic myelogenous leukemia
Authors: Ito Kinro , Tanaka Hideo , Ito Takuo , Sultana Tanvira A. , Kyo Taiichi , Imanaka Fumio , Ohmoto Yasukazu , Kimura Akiro
Published: July 2004

Abstract:  In order to investigate the mechanism of interferon‐α (IFNα) action in the treatment of chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML), we examined surface expressions of both type I interferon receptor 1 (IFNAR1) and 2 (IFNAR2) subunits on CD34‐positive cells in bone marrow (BM) in a total of 57 CML patients. Initial cell‐surface IFNAR2 expression at diagnosis assessed by flow cytometry widely distributed but showed overall significantly higher expression in CML patients when compared with normal controls. In 15 fresh patients who subsequently received IFNα therapy, IFNAR2 expression at diagnosis was significantly higher in cytogenetic good responders than in poor responders. Down‐regulation of IFNAR2 expression during IFNα therapy was observed only in good responders but not in poor responders. In addition to protein level, both initial high IFNAR2c mRNA expression level and its down‐regulation during IFNα therapy, in purified CD34‐positive cells, were also observed only in good responders. In contrast to IFNAR2, cell‐surface IFNAR1 expression was generally lower than IFNAR2, and correlation between either the pretreatment level or down‐regulation of IFNAR1 and clinical response was not evident. With in vitro IFNα stimulation, CD34‐positive cells showed down‐regulations of cell‐surface IFNAR2, and IFNAR1 to a lesser extent, in one good‐responder patient, but not in one poor‐responder patient. Serum soluble interferon receptor (sIFNR) was higher in untreated CML patients than in normal controls, without any correlation with clinical response to IFNα. Thus, the pretreatment protein and mRNA expression levels of IFNAR2 and their down‐regulations during IFNα therapy correlate well with IFNα response in CML patients.
Cytogenetic and hematological spontaneous remission in a case of acute myelogenous leukemia
Authors: Fozza C. , Bellizzi S. , Bonfigli S. , Campus P. M. , Dore F. , Longinotti M.
Published: July 2004

Abstract: Several cases of spontaneous remission (SR) interrupting the invariably progressive course of untreated acute myeloblastic leukemia (AML) have been reported so far. We shall add to this series the hematological and cytogenetic SR occurring in a 72‐yr‐old man affected by AML following myelodysplastic syndrome. At diagnosis cytogenetic analysis showed the 48, xy, del (6) (p22‐pter), +13, +14 karyotype. Owing to a lobar pneumonia, the chemotherapy was deferred and a broad spectrum antibiotic therapy was established. Supportive care included red cells and platelet transfusions and low‐dose corticosteroid. Two months later, after the pneumonia had completely disappeared, a complete remission, lasting about 5 months, was documented on bone marrow morphological and cytogenetical examination, although some degree of myeloid dysplasia persisted. Possible mechanisms of the various SRs described during the course of AML are discussed with a review of the literature.
A systematic approach to molecular quantitative determination of mixed chimaerism following allogeneic bone marrow transplantation: an analysis of its applicability in a group of patients with severe aplastic anaemia
Authors: Hassan Rocío , Bonamino Martin H. , Braggio Esteban , Lobo Ana Maria , Seuánez Héctor N. , Tabak Daniel G. , Zalcberg Ilana R.
Published: July 2004

Abstract:  Mixed chimaerism (MC) following allogeneic bone marrow transplantation (allo‐BMT) is defined as the persistent cohabitation of haematopoietic cells from recipients and donors. Its kinetics, clinical implications and more efficient laboratory approaches for MC detection are the object of ongoing research in view of the possibility of developing useful markers. Here we describe a sequential analysis of chimaerism using variable number of tandem repeat (VNTR) polymerase chain reaction (PCR) followed by quantitative, fluorescent labelled, short tandem repeat (STR) PCR. A set of four, highly discriminative VNTR and four STR markers was used to assess chimaerism. Sensitivity and regression analysis indicated that this approach was reliable for routine application in a single BMT centre. We studied 12 patients with severe aplastic anaemia (SAA) who had received allo‐BMT, and had been conditioned with cyclosphosphamide (Cy) with or without anti‐thymocyte globulin (ATG). We found a 50% prevalence of MC in the whole group, with levels between 4% and 37% of recipient cells. A sustained stable MC pattern after BMT was characteristic of the Cy‐only conditioned patients but was also recorded in one patient treated with the Cy + ATG regime who showed a sustained MC pattern over a period of 24 months post‐BMT. In none of our patients, MC was associated with an increased risk of graft rejection in a median follow‐up of 39.5 months.
Interethnic Relationships: The Role of Social Network Diversity
Authors: Clark‐Ibáñez Marisol , Felmlee Diane
Published: July 2004

We examine the degree to which ethnic diversity in social networks relates to the frequency of interethnic romantic relationships for 318 college students. In a multinomial logit, we find that the odds of having an interethnic relationship once or twice, versus never, increase significantly if the respondent has a relatively ethnically diverse friendship network, is male, and supports interethnic dating. The odds of having an interethnic relationship often, versus once or twice, are significantly higher for persons of color and when the friends of the respondent's parents are relatively diverse ethnically. Findings from open‐ended data also provide support for a social network perspective, and point to the processes by which networks, gender, and ethnicity shape interethnic courtship.
Social Support Networks and Loneliness Among Elderly Jews in Russia and Ukraine
Authors: Iecovich Esther , Barasch Miriam , Mirsky Julia , Kaufman Roni , Avgar Amos , Kol‐Fogelson Aliza
Published: July 2004

The collapse of the Soviet Union had devastating consequences for the lives of its population, especially for older adults, many of whom became impoverished and were left with no social support. Using data from a survey of 2,579 elderly Jews in two of the largest countries of the former Soviet Union, Russia and Ukraine, we examine variables that affect their feeling of loneliness. Unmarried and childless elderly persons reported the highest feelings of loneliness. Married elderly persons who maintained frequent contact with their children felt least lonely. Moreover, married and unmarried elderly persons who did not maintain frequent contact with relatives or friends were lonelier than those who maintained such contact. The characteristics of social networks were significantly correlated with loneliness. The findings also showed that Jews in Ukraine had fewer social networks and felt lonelier compared to Jews in Russia.
Girls’ Family Labor in Low‐Income Households: A Decade of Qualitative Research
Authors: Dodson Lisa , Dickert Jillian
Published: July 2004

This article analyzes a decade of qualitative research to identify and explore an overlooked survival strategy used in low‐income families: children's family labor. Defined as physical duties, caregiving, and household management responsibilities, children’s—most often girls’—family labor is posited as a critical source of support where low wages and absent adult caregivers leave children to take over essential, complex, and time‐consuming family demands. We argue that there are lost opportunities when children are detoured from childhood to do family labor and that an intergenerational transfer of poverty is associated with those losses.
Playing Well with Others in Kindergarten: The Benefit of Siblings at Home
Authors: Downey Douglas B. , Condron Dennis J.
Published: July 2004

There are many reasons to expect that children gain something by growing up with siblings, yet there is surprisingly scant evidence of this advantage. Indeed, the vast majority of research assessing the consequences of siblings reports negative effects: Children with many siblings do not perform as well in school as children with few siblings. By focusing almost exclusively on educational outcomes, however, previous studies have neglected ways in which children might benefit from siblings. One possibility, for example, is that siblings promote children's social and interpersonal skills. In this study, we analyze a sample of kindergartners (N = 20,649) from The Early Childhood Longitudinal Study—Kindergarten Class of 1998–99 to replicate the often‐noted negative relationship between number of siblings and cognitive outcomes, and then demonstrate that this pattern does not extend to social skills. Findings are consistent with the view that children negotiate peer relationships better when they grow up with at least one sibling.
Divorced Parents’ Qualitative and Quantitative Reports of Children's Living Arrangements
Authors: Lin I‐Fen , Schaeffer Nora Cate , Seltzer Judith A. , Tuschen Kay L.
Published: July 2004

We use data from a sample of divorced parents in Wisconsin (N = 1,392) to examine how parents describe their children's living arrangements. When the children spend substantial time in both parents’ homes, both parents are less likely to use the phrase live with to describe living arrangements. When children spend most nights with their mother, mothers are more likely than fathers to state that the children live with their mother. Together, these findings suggest that family researchers no longer can rely on simple questions to capture complex living arrangements. We need clearer and more careful question wording and, in some instances, follow‐up questions to accurately describe where children live.
The Effects of Work Demands and Resources on Work‐to‐Family Conflict and Facilitation
Authors: Voydanoff Patricia
Published: July 2004

This article uses a differential salience‐comparable salience approach to examine the effects of work demands and resources on work‐to‐family conflict and facilitation. The analysis is based on data from 1,938 employed adults living with a family member who were interviewed for the 1997 National Study of the Changing Workforce. The results support the differential salience approach by indicating that time‐ and strain‐based work demands show relatively strong positive relationships to work‐to‐family conflict, whereas enabling resources and psychological rewards show relatively strong positive relationships to work‐to‐family facilitation. The availability of time‐based family support policies and work‐family organizational support is negatively related to conflict and positively related to facilitation, thereby supporting the comparable salience approach.
Consequences of Male Partner Violence for Low‐Income Minority Women
Authors: Leone Janel M. , Johnson Michael P. , Cohan Catherine L. , Lloyd Susan E.
Published: July 2004

The current study used a random sample of 563 low‐income women to test Johnson's (1995) theory that there are two major forms of male‐partner violence, situational couple violence and intimate terrorism, which are distinguished in terms of their embeddedness in a general pattern of control. The study examined the associations between type of violence experienced and respondents’ physical health, psychological distress, and economic well‐being. Analyses revealed three distinct patterns of partner violence: intimate terrorism, control/no threat, and situational couple violence. Compared to victims of control/no threat and situational couple violence, victims of intimate terrorism reported more injuries from physical violence and more work/activity time lost because of injuries. Compared to women who experienced no violence in the previous year, victims of intimate terrorism reported a greater likelihood of visiting a doctor, poorer health, more psychological distress, and a greater likelihood of receiving government assistance.
Legacy Volunteering: A Test of Two Theories of Intergenerational Transmission
Authors: Mustillo Sarah , Wilson John , Lynch Scott M.
Published: July 2004

Sociological theory suggests two reasons that volunteering runs in families. The first is that parents act as role models. The second is that parents who volunteer pass on the socioeconomic resources needed to do volunteer work. Panel data from two generations of women (N = 1,848) are analyzed to see how much influence family socioeconomic status and mother's volunteering have on daughter's volunteer careers. More highly educated women and women whose mothers volunteered donate more hours initially, but only family socioeconomic status increases volunteering over the life course.
Nitric oxide synthase inhibition with l‐NAME reduces maximal oxygen uptake but not gas exchange threshold during incremental cycle exercise in man
Authors: Jones Andrew M. , Wilkerson Daryl P. , Campbell Iain T.
Published: July 2004

We hypothesized that the effective inhibition of nitric oxide synthase (NOS), achieved via systemic infusion of NG‐nitro‐l‐arginine methyl ester (l‐NAME), would reduce the gas exchange threshold (GET) and the maximal oxygen uptake during incremental cycle exercise in man if NO is important in the regulation of muscle vasodilatation. Seven healthy males, aged 18–34 years, volunteered to participate in this ethically approved study. On two occasions, the subjects completed an incremental exercise test to exhaustion on an electrically braked cycle ergometer following the infusion of either l‐NAME (4 mg kg−1 in 50 ml saline) or placebo (50 ml saline, CON). At rest, the infusion of l‐NAME resulted in a significant increase in mean arterial pressure (MAP; CON vs. l‐NAME, 89 ± 8 vs. 103 ± 11 mmHg (mean ±s.d.; P < 0.05)) and a significant reduction in heart rate (HR; CON vs. l‐NAME, 60 ± 12 vs. 51 ± 8 beats min−1; P < 0.01). At submaximal work rates, there was no significant difference in between the conditions and no difference in the GET (CON vs. l‐NAME, 1.94 ± 0.47 vs. 2.01 ± 0.41 l min−1). However, at higher work rates, differences in between the conditions became more pronounced such that was significantly lower with l‐NAME (CON vs. l‐NAME, 4.02 ± 0.41 vs. 3.80 ± 0.34 l min−1; P < 0.05). The reduction in was associated with a reduction in HRmax (CON vs. l‐NAME, 186 ± 10 vs. 178 ± 7 beats min−1; P < 0.01). These results demonstrate that NOS inhibition with l‐NAME has no effect on GET but reduces during large muscle group exercise in man, presumably by direct or indirect effects on cardiac output and muscle blood flow.
Signalling mechanisms underlying the rapid and additive stimulation of NKCC activity by insulin and hypertonicity in rat L6 skeletal muscle cells
Authors: Zhao Haiyan , Hyde Russell , Hundal Harinder S.
Published: July 2004

We have investigated the expression and regulation of the Na+–K+–2Cl− cotransporter (NKCC) by insulin and hyperosmotic stress in L6 rat skeletal muscle cells. NKCC was identified by immunoblotting as a 170 kDa protein in L6 myotubes and mediated 54% of K+ (86Rb+) influx based on the sensitivity of ion transport to bumetanide, a NKCC inhibitor. The residual 86Rb+ influx occurred via the Na+,K+‐ATPase and other transporters not sensitive to bumetanide or ouabain. NKCC‐mediated 86Rb+ influx was enhanced significantly (∼1.6‐fold) by acute cell exposure to insulin, but was inhibited significantly by tyrosine kinase inhibitors, wortmannin and rapamycin, consistent with a role for the insulin receptor tyrosine kinase, phosphoinositide 3 (PI3)‐kinase and mTOR, respectively, in cotransporter activation. In contrast, the hormonal activation of NKCC was unaffected by inhibition of the classical Erk‐signalling pathway. Subjecting L6 myotubes to an acute hyperosmotic challenge (420 mosmol l−1) led to a 40% reduction in cell volume and was accompanied by a rapid stimulation of NKCC activity (∼2‐fold). Intracellular volume recovered to normal levels within 60 min, but this regulatory volume increase (RVI) was prevented if bumetanide was present. Unlike insulin, activation of NKCC by hyperosmolarity did not involve PI3‐kinase but was suppressed by inhibition of tyrosine kinases and the Erk pathway. While inhibition of tyrosine kinases, using genistein, led to a complete loss in NKCC activation in response to hyperosmotic stress, immunoprecipitation of NKCC revealed that the cotransporter was not regulated directly by tyrosine phosphorylation. Simultaneous exposure of L6 myotubes to insulin and hyperosmotic stress led to an additive increase in NKCC‐mediated 86Rb+ influx, of which, only the insulin‐stimulated component was wortmannin‐sensitive. Our findings indicate that L6 myotubes express a functional NKCC that is rapidly activated in response to insulin and hyperosmotic shock by distinct intracellular signalling pathways. Furthermore, activation of NKCC in response to hyperosmotic‐induced cell shrinkage represents a critical component of the RVI mechanism that allows L6 muscle cells to volume regulate.
Electroneutral ammonium transport by basolateral rhesus B glycoprotein
Authors: Ludewig Uwe
Published: July 2004

The liver and kidney are important tissues for ammonium (NH4+/NH3) metabolism and excretion. The rhesus B glycoprotein (RhBG) is a membrane protein expressed in liver and kidney with similarity to NH4+ transporters found in microorganisms, plants and animals. In the kidney, RhBG is predominantly localized to basolateral membranes of distal tubule epithelia, including connecting tubules and collecting ducts. These epithelia display mainly electroneutral ammonium transport, in contrast to other tubular sites, where net NH4+ transport occurs. In accordance with its localization, human RhBG mediates saturable, electroneutral transport of the ammonium analogue methylammonium when heterologously expressed in Xenopus oocytes. Uptake of methylammonium saturates with a Km= 2.6 mm. Methylammonium uptake is inhibited by ammonium and this inhibition saturates with a Ki≈ 3 mm. Electric current measurements and intracellular pHi determinations suggest that RhBG acts as an electroneutral NH4+–H+ exchanger.
Lesion‐induced enhancement of LTP in rat visual cortex is mediated by NMDA receptors containing the NR2B subunit
Authors: Huemmeke Markus , Eysel Ulf T. , Mittmann Thomas
Published: July 2004

There is emerging evidence that injury of the cerebral cortex is followed by processes of enhanced neuroplasticity. In the present study, we investigate the functional properties of NMDA receptors (NMDARs) in the surround of focal lesions with recordings of extracellular field potentials (FPs) in acute slices of rat visual cortex at survival times of 2–6 days. FPs were recorded in cortical layer III lateral to the lesion, while long‐term potentiation (LTP) was induced by theta‐burst stimulation (TBS) in layer IV. The predominantly AMPA receptor‐mediated FPs displayed a significantly enhanced LTP in the surround of the lesion at distances of 2–3.2 mm. The LTP was completely blocked by the NMDAR antagonist D‐AP5. Ifenprodil, an antagonist of NMDARs containing the NR2B subunit, only slightly affected the LTP in slices from sham‐operated animals, but significantly reduced the LTP in slices from lesioned rats. We quantitatively analysed the proportion of NMDARs containing the NR2B subunit after lesions by applying ifenprodil to pharmacologically isolated NMDAR‐FPs. The NR2B antagonist reduced the NMDAR‐FPs significantly more strongly at distances of 2.0–3.2 mm from the border of the lesion. This indicates that the early phase of increased synaptic long‐term plasticity in the surround of cortical lesions is accompanied by an up‐regulation of NMDARs containing the NR2B subunit.
Human cerebral venous outflow pathway depends on posture and central venous pressure
Authors: Gisolf J. , Van Lieshout J. J. , Van Heusden K. , Pott F. , Stok W. J. , Karemaker J. M
Published: July 2004

Internal jugular veins are the major cerebral venous outflow pathway in supine humans. In upright humans the positioning of these veins above heart level causes them to collapse. An alternative cerebral outflow pathway is the vertebral venous plexus. We set out to determine the effect of posture and central venous pressure (CVP) on the distribution of cerebral outflow over the internal jugular veins and the vertebral plexus, using a mathematical model. Input to the model was a data set of beat‐to‐beat cerebral blood flow velocity and CVP measurements in 10 healthy subjects, during baseline rest and a Valsalva manoeuvre in the supine and standing position. The model, consisting of 2 jugular veins, each a chain of 10 units containing nonlinear resistances and capacitors, and a vertebral plexus containing a resistance, showed blood flow mainly through the internal jugular veins in the supine position, but mainly through the vertebral plexus in the upright position. A Valsalva manoeuvre while standing completely re‐opened the jugular veins. Results of ultrasound imaging of the right internal jugular vein cross‐sectional area at the level of the laryngeal prominence in six healthy subjects, before and during a Valsalva manoeuvre in both body positions, correlate highly with model simulation of the jugular cross‐sectional area (R2= 0.97). The results suggest that the cerebral venous flow distribution depends on posture and CVP: in supine humans the internal jugular veins are the primary pathway. The internal jugular veins are collapsed in the standing position and blood is shunted to an alternative venous pathway, but a marked increase in CVP while standing completely re‐opens the jugular veins.
Statistical Linearization Model for the Response Prediction of Nonlinear Stochastic Systems Through Information Closure Method
Authors: Chang R. J. , Lin S. J.
Published: July 2004

A new linearization model with density response based on information closure scheme is proposed for the prediction of dynamic response of a stochastic nonlinear system. Firstly, both probability density function and maximum entropy of a nonlinear stochastic system are estimated under the available information about the moment response of the system. With the estimated entropy and property of entropy stability, a robust stability boundary of the nonlinear stochastic system is predicted. Next, for the prediction of response statistics, a statistical linearization model is constructed with the estimated density function through a priori information of moments from statistical data. For the accurate prediction of the system response, the excitation intensity of the linearization model is adjusted such that the response of maximum entropy is invariant in the linearization model. Finally, the performance of the present linearization model is compared and supported by employing two examples with exact solutions, Monte Carlo simulations, and Gaussian linearization method.
Axisymmetric Dynamic Stability of Rotating Sandwich Circular Plates
Authors: Wang Horng-Jou , Chen Lien-Wen
Published: July 2004

The axisymmetric dynamic stability of rotating sandwich circular plates with a constrained damping layer subjected to a periodic uniform radial loading along the outer edge of the host plate is studied in the present paper. The viscoelastic material in middle layer is assumed to be frequency dependent and incompressible, and complex representations of moduli are used. Equations of motion of the system are derived by the finite element method where the geometry stiffness matrices induced by rotation and external load are evaluated from solutions of static problems. Bolotin’s method is employed to determine the regions of dynamic instability while the eigenvalue problems with frequency dependent parameters are solved by the modified complex eigensolution method. Numerical results show that the effects of constrained damping layer tend to stabilize the circular plate system and the widths of unstable regions decrease with increasing of rotational speeds.
A New Type Controllable Squeeze Film Damper Using an Electromagnet
Authors: Ahn Young Kong , Ha Jong-Yong , Yang Bo-Suk
Published: July 2004

The paper presents stability of a rotor system with a squeeze film damper (SFD) using an electromagnet. The electromagnet is installed in the inner damper of the SFD. The proposed SFD has basically the property of a conventional SFD and variable damping according to the strength of the applied electric current. Therefore, when the applied current is controlled, the whirling amplitude of the rotor system can be effectively reduced in a wide operational speed range. In the present work, the performance of the SFD was experimentally investigated according to the magnetic field strength. When the applied current increased, the whirling amplitude greatly reduced at the critical speeds and damping ratio increased. © 2004 American Institute of Physics.
On the Nonlinear Dynamics of Tether Suspensions for MEMS
Authors: Davis Wyatt O. , O’Reilly Oliver M. , Pisano Albert P.
Published: July 2004

Many MEM devices feature tether suspensions and it is known that the tethers induce a stiffening behavior. In this paper, we develop a model for a tether and, from it, establish several useful expressions for the nonlinear restoring forces and torques it provides. For a specific gyroscope, the expressions we find are compared to experimental results.
Frequency Domain Identification of Tip-sample van der Waals Interactions in Resonant Atomic Force Microcantilevers
Authors: Hu Shuiqing , Howell Stephen , Raman Arvind , Reifenberger Ron , Franchek Matthew
Published: July 2004

Hamaker constants are characteristic material properties that determine the magnitude of the nonlinear van der Waals force between atoms, molecules and nanoscale aggregates of atoms. This paper explores the novel possibility of using Harmonic Balance based nonlinear system identification methods to extract from the nonlinear vibration spectrum of resonant atomic force silicon microcantilevers, the Hamaker constants between a few atoms at the tip of the microcantilever and graphite, gold and silicon carbide samples. First, the nonlinear dynamics of a diving board microcantilever coupled to the samples through van der Waals force potentials are investigated through a discretized model of the system. Next, the feasibility of using Harmonic Balance based nonlinear system identification techniques are demonstrated using simulations of the discretized model. Finally the method is implemented on an AFM system. The results indicate that the proposed method provides a novel alternative way to measure Hamaker constants and the measured results are within the range of known experimental data.
On the Secondary Resonance of a Spinning Disk Under Space-Fixed Excitations
Authors: Chen Jen-San , Hua Chin-Yi , Sun Chia-Min
Published: July 2004

We investigate the possibility of secondary resonance of a spinning disk under space-fixed excitations. Von Karman’s plate model is employed in formulating the equations of motion of the spinning disk. Galerkin’s procedure is used to discretize the equations of motion, and the multiple scale method is used to predict the steady state solutions. Attention is focused on the nonlinear coupling between a pair of forward (with frequency ωmn¯) and backward (with frequency ωmn) traveling waves. It is found that combination resonance may occur when the excitation frequency is close to 2ωmn+ωmn¯,ωmn+2ωmn¯, or 1/2ωmn¯+ωmn. When the combination resonance does occur, the frequencies of the free oscillation components are shifted slightly from the respective natural frequencies ωmn¯ and ωmn. The final response is therefore quasiperiodic. However, in the case when the excitation frequency is close to 1/2ωmn¯−ωmn, no combination resonance is possible. In the case when the excitation frequency is close to 1/3ωmn and 1/2ωmn¯−ωmn simultaneously, internal resonance between the forward and backward modes can occur. The frequencies of the free oscillation components are exactly three times and five times that of the excitation frequency. In this special case both saddle-node and Hopf bifurcations are observed.
Gefitinib-Sensitizing
EGFR
Mutations in Lung Cancer Activate Anti-Apoptotic Pathways
Authors: Sordella Raffaella , Bell Daphne W. , Haber Daniel A. , Settleman Jeffrey
Published: July 2004

Gefitinib (Iressa, Astra Zeneca Pharmaceuticals) is a tyrosine kinase inhibitor that targets the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and induces dramatic clinical responses in nonsmall cell lung cancers (NSCLCs) with activating mutations within the EGFR kinase domain. We report that these mutant EGFRs selectively activate Akt and signal transduction and activator of transcription (STAT) signaling pathways, which promote cell survival, but have no effect on extracellular signal–regulated kinase signaling, which induces proliferation. NSCLC cells expressing mutant EGFRs underwent extensive apoptosis after small interfering RNA–mediated knockdown of the mutant
EGFR
or treatment with pharmacological inhibitors of Akt and STAT signaling and were relatively resistant to apoptosis induced by conventional chemotherapeutic drugs. Thus, mutant EGFRs selectively transduce survival signals on which NSCLCs become dependent; inhibition of those signals by gefitinib may contribute to the drug's efficacy.
DENSITY FUNCTIONAL ELECTRONIC SPECTRUM OF THE CuO6-10 CLUSTER AND POSSIBLE LOCAL JAHN–TELLER DISTORTIONS IN THE La–Ba–Cu–O SUPERCONDUCTOR
Authors: SOTO J. R. , CASTRO J. J. , YÉPEZ E. , CALLES A.
Published: July 2004

We present a density functional theory (DFT) calculation in the generalized gradient approximation to study the possibility for the existence of Jahn–Teller (JT) or pseudo Jahn–Teller (PJT) type local distortions in the La – Ba – Cu – O superconducting system. We performed the calculation and correspondingly group theory classification of the electronic ground state of the CuO 6-10 elongated octahedra cluster, immersed in a background simulating the superconductor. Part of the motivation to do this study is that the origin of the apical deformation of the CuO 6-10 cluster is not due to a pure JT effect, having therefore a non a priori condition to remove the degeneracy of the electronic ground state of the parent regular octahedron. We present a comparative analysis of the symmetry classified electron spectrum with previously reported results using unrestricted Hartree–Fock calculations (UHF). Both the DFT and UHF calculations produced a non-degenerate electronic ground state, not having therefore the necessary condition for a pure JT effect. However, the appearance of a degenerate E g state near to the highest occupied molecular orbital in the DFT calculation, suggests the possibility for a PJT effect responsible for a local distortion of the oxidized [Formula: see text] cluster.