bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Mindfulness and dream quality: The inverse relationship between mindfulness and negative dream affect
Authors: SIMOR PÉTER , KÖTELES FERENC , SÁNDOR PIROSKA , PETKE ZSOLT , BÓDIZS RÓBERT
Published: April 2011

Simor, P., Köteles, F., Sándor, P., Petke, Z. & Bódizs, R. (2011). Mindfulness and dream quality: The inverse relationship between mindfulness and negative dream affect. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology 52, 369–375.

The aim of the study was to examine the relationship of mindfulness to the emotional quality of dreaming. In our questionnaire‐based study, comprising the data of 587 undergraduate students we examined the association between trait anxiety, perceived stress, trait mindfulness, negative dream affect and dream anxiety. Our results indicate that mindfulness is inversely related to disturbed dreaming and predicts less severe dream disturbances after controlling for trait anxiety. Moreover, the results of the applied hierarchical regression analysis suggest that mindfulness is associated with reduced dream anxiety by moderating the extent of waking anxiety. Our findings extend previous research relating mindfulness, emotional regulation and sleep quality to the domain of dream research. We suggest that mindfulness is a possible protective factor against dream disturbances.
Uniforms, status and professional boundaries in hospital
Authors: Timmons Stephen , East Linda
Published: April 2011

Despite their comparative neglect analytically, uniforms play a key role in the delineation of occupational boundaries and the formation of professional identity in healthcare. This paper analyses a change to the system of uniforms in one UK hospital, where management have required all professions (with the exception of doctors) to wear the same ‘corporate’ uniform. Focus groups were conducted with the professionals and patients. We analyse this initiative as a kind of McDonaldisation, seeking to create a new ‘corporate’ worker whose allegiance is principally to the organisation, rather than a profession. Our findings show how important uniforms are to their wearers, both in terms of the defence of professional boundaries and status, as well as the construction of professional identity.
INTERNATIONAL FACTOR MOBILITY, PRECAUTIONARY SAVING AND LONG‐RUN ECONOMIC GROWTH*
Authors: ROBERTS MARK A.
Published: April 2011

Long‐run economic growth is analysed in a global model with many small countries prone to national level total factor productivity shocks. International capital mobility raises growth through the effects on precautionary saving of both a fall in interest uncertainty and a rise in earnings uncertainty, while international labour reduces growth, because these same two effects then operate in different directions. Besides this, positive aggregation effects from general global integration imply that international capital mobility unambiguously promotes economic growth, while the growth effects of international labour mobility are less sure because of conflicting mechanisms.
THE EFFECT OF FINANCIAL ENFORCEMENT ON ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND DEVELOPMENT IN A ‘GROWTH MIRACLE’*
Authors: JOO DONGHUN , VILLAMIL ANNE
Published: April 2011

This paper uses a GE model of occupational choice with financial frictions to explain development in a ‘growth miracle’. We analyze two historical periods that correspond to different steady states, and find that Korea's development was largely due to human and physical capital deepening. Whilst this result is consistent with growth regressions, our alternative method shows how changes in enforcement, ability, bequest preferences and technology drive development. The model also provides quantitative measures of improvements in institutions and changes in the distribution of ability, magnitudes that are not directly observable in data.
SPAIN‐STING: SPAIN SHORT‐TERM INDICATOR OF GROWTH*
Authors: CAMACHO MAXIMO , QUIROS GABRIEL PEREZ
Published: April 2011

We develop a dynamic factor model to compute short‐term forecasts of the Spanish GDP growth in real time. With this model, we compute a business cycle index which operates as an indicator of the business cycle conditions in Spain. To examine its real‐time forecasting accuracy, we use real‐time data vintages from 2008.02 through 2009.01. We conclude that the model exhibits good forecasting performance anticipating the recent and sudden downturn.
CAUSALITY, STRUCTURE AND THE UNIQUENESS OF RATIONAL EXPECTATIONS EQUILIBRIA*
Authors: MCCALLUM BENNETT T.
Published: April 2011

Consider a rational expectations model that includes a relationship between variables xt and zt+1. To be useful as a guide to actual behavior, this model should specify whether xt is influenced by the expectation at t of zt+1 or, alternatively, that zt+1 is directly influenced by xt. For a broad class of multivariate linear RE models, distinct causal specifications involving both expectational and inertial influences will be uniquely associated with distinct solutions—operationally, different specifications of which variables are predetermined. With a natural continuity assumption, there is only one RE solution that is fully consistent with the model's specification.
THE QUALITY OF MONETARY POLICY AND INFLATION PERFORMANCE: GLOBALIZATION AND ITS AFTERMATH*
Authors: BOHL MARTIN T. , MAYES DAVID G. , SIKLOS PIERRE L.
Published: April 2011

With few exceptions the last decades have seen reductions in inflation around the world. This experience is the result of many factors. In this paper, we seek to isolate one of the factors, namely, improvements in the quality of monetary policy. We estimate a gravity—like model and propose an exhaustive analysis of the potential role for a large number of institutional factors. Briefly, we find that institutional factors help explain inflation relative to the US experience, which is used as the benchmark. Nevertheless, a role for greater central bank autonomy is a feature of the 1980s and early 1990s only.
Recovering a Separation of Powers in the European Union
Authors: Conway Gerard
Published: April 2011

The attributed sui generis character of the EU as a polity has often been cited as the basis for not applying a classic separation of powers analysis to it. Yet it is a logical non sequitur to infer the inapplicability of a separation of powers framework to the EU on this basis: no particular proposition of political or legal morality can be automatically inferred or excluded from the attributed generic novelty of the EU relative to States. The EU certainly has some novel features, but that observation of itself does not establish that such novelty requires an entirely new conception of institutional normativity (rather, it needs to be explained how whatever particular novelty the EU possesses is such as to require the exclusion of separation of powers thinking). This article argues that a separation of powers analysis is: first, descriptively accurate, to a large extent, for much of the working of the EU apart from the law‐making role of the ECJ; and, secondly, normatively attractive as a means of practically safeguarding the principles of democracy and the rule of law. This view is supported by an analysis of the substitute for a separation of powers in the caselaw of the ECJ, namely the principle of institutional balance, which it is argued is too vague and indeterminate to be a satisfactory alternative.
Mainstreaming Gender into European Family Law? The Case of International Child Abduction and Brussels II Revised
Authors: Lamont Ruth
Published: April 2011

Gender mainstreaming is an EU policy tool encouraging equality between men and women by incorporating gender concerns into the formation of EU law. The EU has intervened in private international family law, an area where concerns over gender equality may be present. Child abduction, which is regulated by the Brussels II Revised Regulation, is an aspect of international family law where issues of gender have been highlighted. Women are predominantly the abductors of their children and may abduct a child to escape a violent relationship. These factors were in evidence in the 1980 Hague Abduction Convention and an effective gender mainstreaming strategy should promote discussion to address these concerns. By examining the proposals for Brussels II Revised, this article will demonstrate that the gendered nature of child abduction was not clearly addressed in the development of the legislation and questions how mainstreaming can be effective as an aspect of the legislative process.
Hard Times for Hard Bans: Fixed‐Term Work and So‐Called Non‐Regression Clauses in the Era of Flexicurity
Authors: Corazza Luisa
Published: April 2011

This paper deals with the issue of non‐regression clauses, which, despite a twenty‐year history, has been addressed by domestic and European case law only recently, and only with regard to the field of flexible employment. This essay argues that the Court of Justice case law on non‐regression clauses (the Mangold and Angelidaki rulings) leads to a weakening of these instruments, rendering them ineffective. This ineffectiveness is due to the controversial idea of Fixed‐Term Work in the era of flexicurity, and to the difficult justiciability of the particular clause in itself, as demonstrated by the most recent Court of Justice's ruling, Sorge. In addition, this essay provides an explanation of the difficult enforcement of non‐regression clauses, in light of the new course of European employment policies.
En‐gendering Notions of Leadership for Sustainability
Authors: Marshall Judi
Published: April 2011

This article explores the gendering of leadership for sustainability. It first reviews the world of corporate social responsibility, illustrating how men's voices predominate in shaping discourses and practices. It is appropriate that men with access to power speak out advocating change for sustainability and yet, if this is all that happens, we risk replicating business as usual. To extend the analysis and seek more women's voices and more images associating gender, leadership and sustainability, the article reviews five novels by women authors addressing environmental issues. This exploration changes the landscape of sense‐making, directing attention first to broader society rather than to organizations as the base for constructing notions of sustainability. Taking this approach, themes of social justice, equality, everyday practice, ways of knowing, embodiment and the crafts of fitting in (to nature and society) move to the foreground. These provide cues for an alternatively gendered view of leadership for sustainability.
The future of inter‐country adoption: A paradigm shift for this century
Authors: Fronek Patricia , Cuthbert Denise
Published: April 2011

Fronek P, Cuthbert D. The future of inter‐country adoption: a paradigm shift for this century

The only existing international framework for inter‐country adoption (ICA) is a legal one. Current legal and welfare approaches have limitations in that ICA tends to be conceptualised in individualistic terms, while strategies that prevent ICA by strengthening communities and addressing structural inequalities in the first instance are neglected and divorced from ICA practice. A vision and an overarching framework based on a socioecological approach that informs other arenas, such as health promotion, are proposed. The article concludes that the development of collaborative, intersectoral approaches, the reorientation of public and private resources and international leadership from academics, legislators, policy makers, practitioners and communities are necessary for a paradigm shift for this century.
In vitro CNS tissue analogues formed by self‐organisation of reaggregated post‐natal brain tissue
Authors: Bailey Joanne L. , O’Connor Vincent , Hannah Matthew , Hewlett Lindsay , Biggs Thelma E. , Sundstrom Lars E. , Findlay Matt W. , Chad John E.
Published: April 2011

J. Neurochem. (2011) 117, 1020–1032.

In this paper, we report the characterization of ‘Hi‐Spot’ cultures formed by the re‐aggregation of dissociated postnatal CNS tissue grown at an air‐liquid interface. This produces a self‐organised, dense, organotypic cellular network. Western blot, immunohistochemical, viral transfection and electron microscopy analyses reveal neuronal and glial populations, and the development of a synaptic network. Multi‐electrode array recordings show synaptically driven network activity that develops through time from single unit spiking activity to global network bursting events. This activity is blocked by tetanus toxin and modified by antagonists of glutamatergic and GABAergic receptors suggesting tonic activity of excitatory and inhibitory synaptic signaling. The tissue‐like properties of these cultures has been further demonstrated by their relative insensitivity to glutamate toxicity. Exposure to millimolar concentrations of glutamate for hours is necessary to produce significant excitotoxic neuronal death, as in vivo. We conclude that ‘Hi‐Spots’ are biological analogues of CNS tissue at a level of complexity that allows for detailed functional analyses of emergent neuronal network properties.
A late methanogen origin for molybdenum‐dependent nitrogenase
Authors: BOYD E. S. , ANBAR A. D. , MILLER S. , HAMILTON T. L. , LAVIN M. , PETERS J. W.
Published: April 2011

Mounting evidence indicates the presence of a near complete biological nitrogen cycle in redox‐stratified oceans during the late Archean to early Proterozoic (c. 2.5–2.0 Ga). It has been suggested that the iron (Fe)‐ or vanadium (V)‐dependent nitrogenase rather than molybdenum (Mo)‐dependent form was responsible for dinitrogen fixation during this time because oceans were depleted in Mo and rich in Fe. We evaluated this hypothesis by examining the phylogenetic relationships of proteins that are required for the biosynthesis of the active site cofactor of Mo‐nitrogenase in relation to structural proteins required for Fe‐, V‐ and Mo‐nitrogenase. The results are highly suggestive that among extant nitrogen‐fixing organisms for which genomic information exists, Mo‐nitrogenase is unlikely to have been associated with the Last Universal Common Ancestor. Rather, the origin of Mo‐nitrogenase can be traced to an ancestor of the anaerobic and hydrogenotrophic methanogens with acquisition in the bacterial domain via lateral gene transfer involving an anaerobic member of the Firmicutes. A comparison of substitution rates estimated for proteins required for the biosynthesis of the nitrogenase active site cofactor and for a set of paralogous proteins required for the biosynthesis of bacteriochlorophyll suggests that Nif emerged from a nitrogenase‐like ancestor approximately 1.5–2.2 Ga. An origin and ensuing proliferation of Mo‐nitrogenase under anoxic conditions would likely have occurred in an environment where anaerobic methanogens and Firmicutes coexisted and where Mo was at least episodically available, such as in a redox‐stratified Proterozoic ocean basin.
Bond Analysis of Timber Structures Strengthened with FRP Systems
Authors: Juvandes L. F. P. , Barbosa R. M. T.
Published: April 2011

Abstract:  This study focuses on the adhesion analysis of glued joints between Norway Spruce and Carbon fibre reinforced polymer (CFRP) regarding timber reinforcement. An experimental programme was carried out on two different test series to evaluate the behaviour of timber‐CFRP bonded joints. ‘Pull‐Off’ tests were achieved to evaluate the strength of the adhesion connection between materials. Two strengthening techniques [externally bonded reinforcement (EBR), near‐surface mounted (NSM)] and several composite systems (laminate, sheets and textile) were analysed. Through ‘Four Point Bending’ tests, the adhesion behaviour of timber‐CFRP joints along the fibres direction was evaluated. Three trials were performed on models strengthened with different criteria (one EBR and two NSM series), each with three different bonding lengths. The maximum anchor strength of the composite, the effective bonding length between the materials, the medium shear strength developed along the interface and the maximum composite strain for the EBR and NSM reinforcements were obtained. The experimental results were compared with equivalent values from concrete‐CFRP joints found in literature. Furthermore, the theoretical model proposed in Fib Bulletin 14 was calibrated to predict the maximum anchor strength of the composite according to its bonding length. Finally, some recommendations are proposed for the design of timber structures reinforced with CFRP systems.
Effect of Thermal Cycles on the Deformation State at the Crack Tip of Crystallisable Natural Rubber
Authors: Le Cam J.‐B. , Toussaint E. , Dubois O.
Published: April 2011

Abstract:  This article deals with the effect of temperature variations on crack tip kinematics in rubbers, especially in crystallising rubbers. In such materials, the high deformation level encountered at the crack tip engenders the formation of crystallites. As a consequence, the crack tip is reinforced and resists crack growth. However, this phenomenon is significantly affected by variations in material temperature. This is classically observed at the macroscopic scale in terms of crack propagation rate and path. In this study, the effect of temperature is studied at the local scale, by measuring the change in the kinematic field at the crack tip during thermal cycles. Results show that, in crystallisable natural rubber, the effect of temperature depends on the stretch ratio attained in the zone under consideration. In slightly stretched zones, the stretch ratio increases with the increase in temperature, whereas it decreases in highly stretched zones. This highlights the competition between the effects of the variations in internal energy and in entropy on the thermomechanical response. Moreover, if crystallites form in highly stretched zones, the increase in temperature leads to crystallite melting, which increases the stretch ratio. This is explained by the fact that crystallites act as fillers by concentrating the stress and therefore by increasing the apparent stiffness of the material.
The fatty acid amide hydrolase (FAAH) inhibitor PF‐3845 acts in the nervous system to reverse LPS‐induced tactile allodynia in mice
Authors: Booker Lamont , Kinsey Steven G , Abdullah Rehab A , Blankman Jacqueline L , Long Jonathan Z , Ezzili Cyrine , Boger Dale L , Cravatt Benjamin F , Lichtman Aron H
Published: April 2011

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Inflammatory pain presents a problem of clinical relevance and often elicits allodynia, a condition in which non‐noxious stimuli are perceived as painful. One potential target to treat inflammatory pain is the endogenous cannabinoid (endocannabinoid) system, which is comprised of CB1 and CB2 cannabinoid receptors and several endogenous ligands, including anandamide (AEA). Blockade of the catabolic enzyme fatty acid amide hydrolase (FAAH) elevates AEA levels and elicits antinociceptive effects, without the psychomimetic side effects associated with Δ9‐tetrahydrocannabinol (THC).

EXPERIMENTAL APPROACH Allodynia was induced by intraplantar injection of LPS. Complementary genetic and pharmacological approaches were used to determine the strategy of blocking FAAH to reverse LPS‐induced allodynia. Endocannabinoid levels were quantified using mass spectroscopy analyses.

KEY RESULTS FAAH (−/−) mice or wild‐type mice treated with FAAH inhibitors (URB597, OL‐135 and PF‐3845) displayed an anti‐allodynic phenotype. Furthermore, i.p. PF‐3845 increased AEA levels in the brain and spinal cord. Additionally, intraplantar PF‐3845 produced a partial reduction in allodynia. However, the anti‐allodynic phenotype was absent in mice expressing FAAH exclusively in the nervous system under a neural specific enolase promoter, implicating the involvement of neuronal fatty acid amides (FAAs). The anti‐allodynic effects of FAAH‐compromised mice required activation of both CB1 and CB2 receptors, but other potential targets of FAA substrates (i.e. µ‐opioid, TRPV1 and PPARα receptors) had no apparent role.

CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS AEA is the primary FAAH substrate reducing LPS‐induced tactile allodynia. Blockade of neuronal FAAH reverses allodynia through the activation of both cannabinoid receptors and represents a promising target to treat inflammatory pain.

LINKED ARTICLES This article is part of a themed section on Cannabinoids in Biology and Medicine. To view the other articles in this section visit http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/bph.2012.165.issue‐8. To view Part I of Cannabinoids in Biology and Medicine visit http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/bph.2011.163.issue‐7
Intermediate‐conductance calcium‐activated potassium channels participate in neurovascular coupling
Authors: Longden TA , Dunn KM , Draheim HJ , Nelson MT , Weston AH , Edwards G
Published: April 2011

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Controlling vascular tone involves K+ efflux through endothelial cell small‐ and intermediate‐conductance calcium‐activated potassium channels (KCa2.3 and KCa3.1, respectively). We investigated the expression of these channels in astrocytes and the possibility that, by a similar mechanism, they might contribute to neurovascular coupling.

EXPERIMENTAL APPROACH Transgenic mice expressing enhanced green fluorescent protein (eGFP) in astrocytes were used to assess KCa2.3 and KCa3.1 expression by immunohistochemistry and RT‐PCR. KCa currents in eGFP‐positive astrocytes were determined in situ using whole‐cell patch clamp electrophysiology. The contribution of KCa3.1 to neurovascular coupling was investigated in pharmacological experiments using electrical field stimulation (EFS) to evoke parenchymal arteriole dilatation in FVB/NJ mouse brain slices and whisker stimulation to evoke changes in cerebral blood flow in vivo, measured by laser Doppler flowmetry.

KEY RESULTS KCa3.1 immunoreactivity was restricted to astrocyte processes and endfeet and RT‐PCR confirmed astrocytic KCa2.3 and KCa3.1 mRNA expression. With 200 nM [Ca2+]i, the KCa2.1‐2.3/KCa3.1 opener NS309 increased whole‐cell currents. CyPPA, a KCa2.2/KCa2.3 opener, was without effect. With 1 µM [Ca2+]i, the KCa3.1 inhibitor TRAM‐34 reduced currents whereas apamin (KCa2.1‐2.3 blocker) had no effect. CyPPA also inhibited currents evoked by NS309 in HEK293 cells expressing KCa3.1. EFS‐evoked Fluo‐4 fluorescence confirmed astrocyte endfoot recruitment into neurovascular coupling. TRAM‐34 inhibited EFS‐evoked arteriolar dilatation by 50% whereas charybdotoxin, a blocker of KCa3.1 and the large‐conductance KCa channel, KCa1.1, inhibited dilatation by 82%. TRAM‐34 reduced the cortical hyperaemic response to whisker stimulation by 40%.

CONCLUSION AND IMPLICATIONS Astrocytes express functional KCa3.1 channels, and these contribute to neurovascular coupling.

LINKED ARTICLES This article is part of a themed issue on Vascular Endothelium in Health and Disease. To view the other articles in this issue visit http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/bph.2011.164.issue‐3
Changes in aldehyde dehydrogenase 2 expression in rat blood vessels during glyceryl trinitrate tolerance development and reversal
Authors: D'Souza Y , Dowlatshahi S , Bennett BM
Published: April 2011

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Recent studies have suggested an essential role for aldehyde dehydrogenase 2 (ALDH2) in the bioactivation of organic nitrates such as glyceryl trinitrate (GTN). In the present study, we utilized an in vivo GTN tolerance model to further investigate the role of ALDH2 in GTN bioactivation and tolerance.

EXPERIMENTAL APPROACH We assessed changes in aortic ALDH activity, and in ALDH2 protein expression in various rat blood vessels (aorta, vena cava, femoral artery and femoral vein) during continuous GTN exposure (0.4 mg·h−1 for 6, 12, 24 or 48 h) or after a 1‐, 3‐ or 5‐day drug‐free period following a 48 h exposure to GTN, in relation to changes in vasodilator responses to GTN and in vascular GTN biotransformation.

KEY RESULTS A decrease was observed in both ALDH2 protein expression (80% in tolerant veins and 30% in tolerant arteries after 48 h exposure to GTN) and aortic ALDH activity, concomitant with decreased vasodilator responses to GTN and decreased aortic GTN biotransformation. However, after a 24 h drug‐free period following 48 h of GTN exposure, vasodilator responses to GTN and aortic GTN biotransformation activity had returned to control values, whereas vascular ALDH2 expression and aortic ALDH activity were still significantly depressed, and remained so for 3–5 days following cessation of GTN exposure.

CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS The dissociation of reduced ALDH activity and ALDH2 expression from the duration of the impaired vasodilator and biotransformation responses to GTN in nitrate‐tolerant blood vessels, suggests that factors other than changes in ALDH2‐mediated GTN bioactivation contribute to nitrate tolerance.
Neonatal Skin Maturation—Vernix Caseosa and Free Amino Acids
Authors: Visscher Marty O. , Utturkar Radhika , Pickens William L. , LaRuffa Angela A. , Robinson Marisa , Wickett R. Randell , Narendran Vivek , Hoath Steven B.
Published: April 2011

Abstract:  Neonatal skin hydration decreases rapidly postnatally and then increases, indicating adaptive changes in stratum corneum water handling properties. Transition from high to low humidity at birth may initiate filaggrin proteolysis to free amino acids. Neonatal skin with vernix caseosa retained is more hydrated than skin with vernix removed. This study examines the potential roles of free amino acids and vernix in postnatal adaptation of infant stratum corneum in vivo. Specifically, the ontogeny of free amino acid generation in neonatal stratum corneum and the role of vernix caseosa in postnatal adaptation were examined using high performance liquid chromatography. Free amino acids were quantified for infant skin samples collected at (i) birth and 1 month and (ii) birth and 24 hours after vernix caseosa retention or removal and compared to neonatal foreskin, vernix caseosa, and adult stratum corneum using t‐tests, analysis of variance, or univariate procedures. Free amino acids were extremely low at birth, significantly higher 1 month later but lower than in adults. Vernix caseosa retention led to significantly higher free amino acids 24 hours after birth compared to infants with vernix caseosa removed, and it paralleled the higher stratum corneum hydration of vernix caseosa‐retained skin. Vernix caseosa contained free amino acids, with glutamic acid and histidine levels higher than in infants. Free amino acids in vernix caseosa‐retained skin appear to originate from vernix caseosa. Free amino acids were lower in neonatal foreskin than adult forearm stratum corneum. Arginine was higher than citrulline at birth, but levels were comparable in older infants. The free amino acid increase at 1 month may be initiated by the humidity transition at birth and supports results in animals. The findings have implications for infant skin care practices.
Cutaneous Metastases in Neonates: A Review
Authors: Isaacs Hart
Published: April 2011

Abstract:  Two hundred eight neonates with malignant tumors and cutaneous metastases were reviewed. Malignancies most often associated with cutaneous metastases, in order of rank, were leukemia, multisystem Langerhans cell histiocytosis, neuroblastoma, rhabdoid tumor, rhabdomyosarcoma, primitive neuroectodermal tumor, choriocarcinoma, and adrenocortical carcinoma. Bluish skin nodules producing the “blueberry muffin baby”‐like appearance were the most common dermatologic finding in 171, or 82% of 208 neonates. The tendency of newborns to present with skin nodules is one of the significant differences between malignancies in younger and older children. Patients with rhabdoid tumor and rhabdomyosarcoma had the lowest survival rates, 4% and 15%, respectively, compared with leukemia, 37.5%, and neuroblastoma, 58%. Overall survival was 39%.
Marie‐Unna Hereditary Hypotrichosis: Case Report and Review of the Literature
Authors: PODJASEK JOSHUA O. , HAND JENNIFER L.
Published: April 2011

Abstract:  We present an 18‐year‐old girl with progressively worsening hair thinning and loss since puberty. Her clinical history, physical examination, and pathology results were consistent with Marie‐Unna hereditary hypotrichosis, a rare cause of autosomal dominant hereditary hair loss. She had no family history of similar hair loss and represents the first report of a new case of Marie‐Unna hereditary hypotrichosis within a previously unaffected family.
A Child with PFAPA Syndrome Complicated by Pityriasis Lichenoides et Varioliformis Acuta
Authors: IBA YOSHINORI , SUGIMOTO KEISUKE , SAKATA NAOKI , KAWADA AKIRA , TAKEMURA TSUKASA
Published: April 2011

Abstract:  We encountered a boy with periodic fever, aphthous‐stomatitis, pharyngitis, adenitis syndrome, complicated by a papular rash representing pityriasis lichenoides et varioliformis acuta. Proinflammatory cytokines have been implicated in both diseases and may represent the underlying common immunologic mechanism causing the two diseases.
Increases in Thimerosol Patch Tests in Greece
Authors: DÓREA JOSÉ G. , ROONEY JAMES P.K.
Published: April 2011

Letters to the Editor are welcomed for publication (subject to editing). Letters must be signed by all authors, and must not exceed two pages of text including references. Letters should not duplicate material submitted or published in other journals. Prepublication proofs will not be provided.
In Vitro and In Vivo Assessment of an Intelligent Artificial Anal Sphincter in Rabbits
Authors: Huang Zong‐Hai , Shi Fu‐Jun , Chen Fei , Liang Fei‐Xue , Li Qiang , Yu Jin‐Long , Li Zhou , Han Xin‐Jun
Published: April 2011

Artificial sphincters have been developed for patients with fecal incontinence, but finding a way to make such sphincters more “intelligent” remains a problem. We assessed the function of a novel intelligent artificial anal sphincter (IAAS) in vitro and in vivo in rabbits. After the prosthesis was activated, rabbits were continent of feces during 81.4% of the activation time. The fecal detection unit provided 100% correct signals on stool in vitro and 65.7% in vivo. The results indicated that the IAAS could efficiently maintain continence and detect stool; however, the IAAS is still in the preliminary experimental stage and more work is needed to improve the system.
Discriminative validity and test–retest reliability of the Dellon‐modified Moberg pick‐up test in carpal tunnel syndrome patients
Authors: Amirjani Nasim , Ashworth Nigel L. , Olson Jaret L. , Morhart Michael , Ming Chan K.
Published: April 2011

There is a scarcity of validated hand performance tests with proven reliability for quantifying functional deficits in patients with carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS). The Dellon‐modified Moberg pick‐up test (DMMPUT), composed of commonly used daily objects, is potentially well suited for that purpose. This study was designed to evaluate the test–retest reliability and discriminative validity of the DMMPUT in CTS patients. We compared 162 CTS patients with 116 age‐matched controls. CTS severity was determined based on electrophysiological parameters and Levine's Self‐Assessment Questionnaire. The mean time to complete each subset of the DMMPUT by the CTS patients was compared with that by the healthy subjects. Test–retest reliability was examined in 46 CTS patients. Discriminative validity was demonstrated through a significant difference in test completion time between the CTS subjects and their age‐matched controls. With few exceptions, the test scores declined with increasing severity of electrophysiological abnormalities and subjective symptom severity. Test–retest reliability of the DMMPUT was high with an intra‐class correlation coefficient of 0.91. The DMMPUT has discriminative validity and high test–retest reliability in patients with CTS. It can be a useful standardized outcome measure to gauge disease severity.
Revised normative values for grip strength with the Jamar dynamometer
Authors: Peters Martine J. H. , van Nes Sonja I. , Vanhoutte Els K. , Bakkers Mayienne , van Doorn Pieter A. , Merkies Ingemar S. J. , Faber Catharina G. ,   on behalf of the PeriNomS Study group
Published: April 2011

The Jamar dynamometer has been widely used in various chronic illnesses and has demonstrated its strength as a potential prognostic indicator. Various stratified normative values have been published using different methodologies, leading to conflicting results. No study used statistical techniques considering the non‐Gaussian distribution of the obtained grip strength (GS) values. Jamar GS was assessed in 720 healthy participants, subdivided into seven age decade groups consisting of at least 50 men and 50 women each. Normative values (median and fifth values) were calculated using quantile regressions with restricted cubic spline functions on age. Possible confounding personal factors (hand dominance, length, weight, hobby, and job categorization) were examined. Clinically applicable revised normative values for the Jamar dynamometer, stratified for age and gender, are presented. Hand dominance had no influence. Other personal factors only minimally influenced final values. This study provides revised normative GS values for the Jamar dynamometer.
Déjerine‐Sottas syndrome with a silent nucleotide change of myelin protein zero gene
Authors: Taioli Federica , Cabrini Ilaria , Cavallaro Tiziana , Simonati Alessandro , Testi Silvia , Fabrizi Gian Maria
Published: April 2011

Charcot‐Marie‐Tooth disease type 1B (CMT1B) and Déjerine‐Sottas syndrome type B (DSSB) are caused by missense or frameshift mutations of myelin protein zero (MPZ) gene. We identified an apparently silent synonymous c.411C>T transition in MPZ exon 3 (p.Gly137Gly) which segregated with DSS in a two‐generation pedigree. Retro‐transcriptional analysis of MPZ in the proband's archive sural nerve biopsy identified an r.410_448del mutant transcript which resulted from an activated cryptic splice site in exon 3 and led to an in‐frame partial deletion of exon 3 (p.Gly137_Lys149del). Quantitative real‐time polymerase chain reaction (QRT‐PCR) compared with two unrelated CMT1B nerves carrying a frameshift c.306delA mutation (p.Asp104ThrfsX13) indicated that the r.410_448del was stable differing from the p.Asp104ThrfsX13‐associated transcript which was subjected to nonsense‐mediated decay. The report highlighted the possible pathogenic role of synonymous MPZ mutations and difficulties in interpreting results from routine mutational screenings.
Time course of acetylcholine‐induced activation of sympathetic efferents matches axon reflex sweating in humans
Authors: Schmidt Roland , Weidner Christian , Schmelz Martin
Published: April 2011

Action potentials from postganglionic C‐fibres were recorded in healthy volunteers by microneurography in the peroneal nerve. Their responsiveness to mechanical or heat stimuli or to sympathetic reflex provocation tests was determined by transient slowing of conduction velocity following activation. Twenty units were classified as sympathetic efferent units. Acetylcholine (ACh) iontophoresis (10%, 1 mA, 1 min) inside their innervation territory activated 8 of 20 sympathetic fibres with a mean delay of 61 ± 12 s, peak response at 175 ± 38 s, and a duration of 240 ± 42 s, whereas iontophoresis of saline did not activate any of them. The time course of neuronal activation correlated with the axon reflex sweating measured by an evaporimeter in a separate session (delay 76 ± 9 s, peak at 195 ± 12 s, decline to 50% of peak 312 ± 25 s). No ACh‐induced vasoconstriction was observed by laser Doppler scanning (n = 11) even after depletion of neuropeptides by chronic topical capsaicin treatment (n = 8). We conclude that ACh iontophoresis activates about half of the sympathetic fibres in human skin and provokes a corresponding axon reflex sweating. The absence of ACh‐induced vasoconstriction even after the depletion of neuropeptides by capsaicin suggests that only sudomotor fibres, but not sympathetic vasoconstrictor fibres are activated by this stimulus.
A novel mutation in the nerve‐specific 5′UTR of the GJB1 gene causes X‐linked Charcot‐Marie‐Tooth disease
Authors: Murphy Sinéad M. , Polke James , Manji Hadi , Blake Julian , Reiniger Lilla , Sweeney Mary , Houlden Henry , Brandner Sebastian , Reilly Mary M.
Published: April 2011

X‐linked Charcot‐Marie‐Tooth disease (CMT1X) is the second most common cause of CMT, and is usually caused by mutations in the gap junction protein beta 1 (GJB1) gene which codes for connexin 32 (CX32). CX32 has three tissue‐specific promoters, P1 which is specific for liver and pancreas, P1a specific for liver, oocytes and embryonic stem cells, and P2 which is nerve‐specific. Over 300 mutations have been described in GJB1, spread throughout the coding region. We describe two families with X‐linked inheritance and a phenotype consistent with CMT1X who did not have mutations in the GJB1 coding region. The non‐coding region of GJB1 was sequenced and an upstream exon‐splicing variant found at approximately – 373G>A which segregated with the disease in both families and was not present in controls. This substitution is located at the last base of the nerve‐specific 5′UTR and thus may disrupt splicing of the nerve‐specific transcript. Online consensus splice‐site programs predict a reduced score for the mutant sequence vs. the normal sequence. It is likely that other mutations within the GJB1 non‐coding regions account for the CMT1X families who do not have coding region mutations.
Charcot‐Marie‐Tooth disease
Authors: Reilly Mary M. , Murphy Sinéad M. , Laurá Matilde
Published: April 2011

Charcot‐Marie‐Tooth (CMT) disease is the commonest inherited neuromuscular disorder affecting at least 1 in 2,500. Over the last two decades, there have been rapid advances in understanding the molecular basis for many forms of CMT with more than 30 causative genes now described. This has made obtaining an accurate genetic diagnosis possible but at times challenging for clinicians. This review aims to provide a simple, pragmatic approach to diagnosing CMT from a clinician's perspective.
Strategic Buying to Prevent Seller Exit
Authors: Clark C. Robert , Polborn Mattias K.
Published: April 2011

We consider a dynamic oligopoly model in which a seller may drop out of the market when demand for its product is insufficient in the first period. Buyers suffer some disutility if a seller exits the market and so their first‐period purchase decision not only depends on current period preferences and prices, but also on the potential effect that their behavior has on the probability of seller survival. Specifically, some buyers may choose to purchase from the seller with the lower survival probability even though they like the other seller's product better, a behavior that we call “strategic buying.” We analyze how the incidence of strategic buying depends on parameters and also the implications of the strategic buying motive for sellers' first‐period pricing decisions.
Asymmetric Price Adjustment and Consumer Search: An Examination of the Retail Gasoline Market
Authors: Lewis Matthew S.
Published: April 2011

This article proposes a new explanation for why retail prices respond more quickly to cost increases than cost decreases. I develop a search model that assumes consumers’ expectations of prices are based on prices observed during previous purchases. This model predicts that consumers search less when prices are falling, which results in higher profit margins and a slower price response to cost changes. I then empirically examine patterns of retail gasoline price response and price dispersion to show that this model predicts observed price behavior better than previously suggested explanations.
Pricing Experience Goods: The Effects of Customer Recognition and Commitment
Authors: Jing Bing
Published: April 2011

In a two‐period model of nondurable experience goods, we compare the profit and social welfare effects of behavior‐based price discrimination (BBPD) and price commitment (PC) (relative to time‐consistent pricing) in a monopoly. We find that when the static, full‐information monopoly price is higher (lower) than the mean consumer valuation, PC yields higher (lower) profits and social welfare than BBPD. We also identify the market conditions under which BBPD does not increase firm profits and provide an explanation as to when the firm should discriminate against its first‐time and repeat customers, respectively.
Customization with Vertically Differentiated Products
Authors: Loginova Oksana , Wang X. Henry
Published: April 2011

We consider a duopoly market with heterogeneous consumers. The firms initially produce vertically differentiated standard products located at the end points of the variety interval. Customization provides ideal varieties for consumers but has no effect on quality. The firms first choose whether to customize their products, then engage in price competition. We show that the low‐quality firm never customizes alone; customization becomes more likely as the difference between the firms’ qualities increases; and less likely as the fixed cost of customization increases. We extend the base model by relaxing two important assumptions—uniform pricing and exogenous quality. The main conclusions with uniform pricing continue to hold when price customization is allowed. In the second extension the firms’ qualities are endogenously determined. We show that the firms choose to be either substantially differentiated in quality or nondifferentiated.
Molecular relatedness of Propionibacterium species isolated from blood products and on the skin of blood donors
Authors: Rood Ineke G.H. , de Korte Dirk , Savelkoul Paul H.M. , Pettersson Annika
Published: April 2011

BACKGROUND: In this study it was investigated whether Propionibacterium acnes present in platelet concentrates (PCs) and related red blood cells (RBCs), originate from the skin of the donor.

STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: P. acnes that were cultured throughout 2007 and 2008 from PCs and their accompanying RBCs and in 2010 from the phlebotomy site of a selection of the respective donors (n = 22) were typed by amplified fragment length polymorphism. A part of the strains was also determined to species level by sequencing of the 16S rRNA and recA genes.

RESULTS: Three different phylogenetic groups of P. acnes were found. The distribution of the P. acnes in three groups was confirmed by sequencing of the recA gene. All strains that were found in PCs and their accompanying RBCs were identical, which indicates that the strain is already present in the whole blood donation. P. acnes could be found on the skin of almost all screened donors. In eight of 22 cases (36.4%), one of the strains from the donor skin was identical to the strains found in PCs and their accompanying RBCs. In two other cases the strains belonged to the same phylogenetic group.

CONCLUSION: This study supports the theory that the source of P. acnes contamination is in many cases the skin of the donor. However, further study is necessary to rule out other sources of contamination. Because it is difficult to prevent bacterial contamination by P. acnes completely, it is necessary to further investigate the clinical significance of blood products contaminated with P. acnes.
A comparison of self‐reported and record‐linked blood donation history in an Australian cohort
Authors: Bertalli Nadine A. , Allen Katrina J. , McLaren Christine E. , Turkovic Lidija , Osborne Nicholas J. , Constantine Clare C. , Delatycki Martin B. , English Dallas R. , Giles Graham G. , Hopper John L. , Anderson Gregory J. , Olynyk John K. , Powell Lawrie W. , Gurrin Lyle C. ,   for the HealthIron Study Investigators
Published: April 2011

BACKGROUND: Questionnaire‐based studies investigating blood donation history rely on the accurate recall of information from participants for results to be valid. This study aimed to retrieve electronic records from a national blood donation service and link them to self‐reported history of donation to assess agreement between the two sources.

STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: Between 2004 and 2006, a sample of participants of northern European descent was selected from the Melbourne Collaborative Cohort Study (n = 31,192) to participate in the “HealthIron” study (n = 1438). A total of 1052 participants completed questionnaires that included questions about blood donation history. In 2009, consenting participants' records were linked to the Australian Red Cross Blood Service (ARCBS) to provide information on blood donations made between 1980 and follow‐up (2004‐2006). Those who commenced blood donation before 1980 were excluded.

RESULTS: A total of 718 participants were available for analysis. Of these, 394 (55%) provided signed consent, including 182 (82%) of the 227 participants who self‐reported ever donating blood. The two data sources were concordant for 331 (87%) of participants, with a κ statistic of 0.74 (SE, 0.05) indicating a high level of agreement. Participants tended to overstate by a factor of 2.0 (95% confidence interval, 1.7‐2.2) the number of donations they had made when compared with ARCBS records.

CONCLUSION: Participants in studies assessing self‐reported blood donation history are likely to correctly indicate whether or not they have ever donated blood. Quantitative estimates are potentially inaccurate and could benefit from validating a sample of records to quantify the bias.
Foreign Language Anxiety and Oral Exam Performance: A Replication of Phillips's MLJ Study
Authors: HEWITT ELAINE , STEPHENSON JEAN
Published: April 2011

This article reports on a replication study of a substantial piece of research published in The Modern Language Journal, carried out by Elaine Matties Phillips in 1992, and entitled “The Effects of Language Anxiety on Students’ Oral Test Performance and Attitudes.” The aim of both studies was to assess the influence of language anxiety experienced by university foreign language students on their performance in an oral examination. In both investigations, Pearson correlations and partial correlations were conducted between oral exam grades and the Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale (FLCAS; Horwitz, Horwitz, & Cope, 1986) and between 8 oral performance criteria and the FLCAS. Analyses of variance were used to evaluate relationships between speaking performance and language anxiety at 3 levels (low, moderate, and high). Individual interviews were held with selected highly anxious students immediately after the oral exam. By replicating Phillips's study, the present researchers confirmed certain aspects of her outcomes and improved on it in various ways. Additionally, some differing results came to light.
Structural and Optical Characterization of Rutile TiO2@SiO2 Nanopowders Doped with Iron Ions
Authors: Chen Jing , Yang MingShu
Published: April 2011

Core–shell structures of Fe‐doped nanostructured TiO2@SiO2 were synthesized through the ammonium hydroxide catalyzed hydrolysis of tetraethylorthosiliane in isopropanol media containing presynthesized Fe3+‐doped rutile TiO2 nanorods. Fe3+‐doped titanium dioxide were prepared from aqueous titanium (III) chloride solution in the presence of powder Fe2O3 (0–30 wt% relative to TiCl3) using hydrothermal method. The structure of the powders was characterized by X‐ray diffraction, X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy, ICP–OES, and transmission electron microscopy. The experimental results showed that the core structure appeared to be composed of rutile titania nanocrystals. The optimum dopant content was about 5 wt%. The thickness of the amorphous SiO2 shell was about 2.5 nm. Ultraviolet–Vis reflection measurements revealed that the absorption of pure TiO2 was significantly blue‐shifted upon the incorporation of Fe3+ into the TiO2 host.
A Facile Route to the Synthesis of BiFeO3at Low Temperature
Authors: Liu Ting , Xu Yebin , Feng Shangshen , Zhao Jingyuan
Published: April 2011

A facile sol–gel methodology based on the glycerol‐gel reaction was used to prepare single‐phase BiFeO3crystallites. The particle size and morphologies of BiFeO3crystallites were characterized by field‐emission scanning electron microscope and transmission electron microscope. X‐ray diffraction results indicated that single‐phase and well‐crystallized BiFeO3has been synthesized at the temperature as low as 400°C. In present work, single‐phase BiFeO3can be formed at lower temperature and less organics is required, furthermore, the process is simple and easy to control.