bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Late Holocene fire and vegetation reconstruction from the western Klamath Mountains, California, USA: A multi-disciplinary approach for examining potential human land-use impacts
Authors: Crawford Jeffrey N , Mensing Scott A , Lake Frank K , Zimmerman Susan RH
Published: May 2015

The influence of Native American land-use practices on vegetation composition and structure has long been a subject of significant debate. This is particularly true in portions of the western United States where tribal hunter-gatherers did not use agriculture to meet subsistence and other cultural needs. Climate has been viewed as the dominant determinant of vegetation structure and composition change over time, but ethnographic and anthropological evidence suggests that Native American land-use practices (particularly through the use of fire) had significant landscape effects on vegetation. However, it is difficult to distinguish climatically driven vegetation change from human-caused vegetation change using traditional paleoecological methods. To address this problem, we use a multidisciplinary methodology that incorporates paleoecology with local ethnographic and archaeological information at two lake sites in northwestern California. We show that anthropogenic impacts can be distinguished at our Fish Lake site during the cool and wet ‘Little Ice Age’, when we have evidence for open-forest or shade-intolerant vegetation, fostered for subsistence and cultural purposes, rather than the closed-forest or shade-tolerant vegetation expected due to the climatic shift. We also see a strong anthropogenic influence on modern vegetation at both sites following European settlement, decline in tribal use, and subsequent fire exclusion. These results demonstrate that Native American influences on vegetation structure and composition can be distinguished using methods that take into account both physical and cultural aspects of the landscape. They also begin to determine the scale at which western forests were influenced by Native American land-use practices and how modern forests of northwestern California are not solely products of climate alone.
‘I am Limpeh (your father)!’ Parodying Hegemony, Anti-nostalgic Cultural Insurgency and the Visual Amplification of Lee Kuan Yew in Late Authoritarian Singapore
Authors: Khiun Liew Kai
Published: May 2015

The soft-authoritarian and severe image of contemporary Singapore has often been associated with the imposing and paternalistic presence of Lee Kuan Yew who has overseen the city-state as prime minister and subsequently, senior statesman since 1959. Unlike the statues and street-names dedicated to other founding leaders in newly decolonized countries, Lee has consciously discouraged any public portraitures of himself in Singapore. However, as his presence fades with ailing health in the recent years, his images are beginning to surface in figurines, coffee table books and even street art. Over in the social and alternative media, there is an increasingly more irreverent use of the Hokkien/Minan term ‘limpeh’ or ‘your father’ as parodies of Lee’s unyielding paternalism. As a masculinistic self-assertion of one’s authority, ‘limpeh’ is often crudely associated with the Hokkien/Minan-speaking ethnic Singaporean Chinese working class. Singaporeans have also recognized the characteristics of ‘limpeh’ with the authoritarian legacy of Lee who had displayed little mercy in crushing his political rivals and pushing his social vision to society. In this respect, these popular communications can be seen as the cacophony of emerging voices of the city-state in a late authoritarian phase.
Assessing the sociology of sport: On changing masculinities and homophobia
Authors: Anderson Eric
Published: May 2015

On the 50th anniversary of the ISSA and IRSS, a leading international scholar on masculinities and sport, Eric Anderson, assesses developments in the field by focusing on changing masculinities and homophobia studies within the sociology of sport. Anderson reflects on how early understandings about sport’s social roles were anchored in moral panics over homosexuality in companion with the growth of industrialization. In his assessment, Anderson considers how the work of Connell and others on ‘hegemonic masculinity’ reseated thinking about masculinities and their dynamic in sporting cultures. In response to the challenges of masculinities and homophobia in sport studies, Anderson situates the development of an inclusive masculinity theory that posed that the historical situation and social factors concerning homophobia in sport were beginning to change in ways that serve to secure and broaden understandings of masculinity. Noting research centred in the Western sporting cultures and focusing on white men, Anderson sees future needs for research examining the intersection of decreasing homophobia according to race, geography, age and other confounding variables.
Assessing the sociology of sport: On national identity and nationalism
Authors: Bairner Alan
Published: May 2015

On the 50th anniversary of the ISSA and IRSS, Alan Bairner, one of the most influential scholars to study the socio-cultural relationship between sport and nation, reflects on the dynamics of national identity and nationalism in sport. Because the sociology of sport has too often taken for granted concepts such as nation, nation-state, nationality, national identity and nationalism, an ongoing need has been to engage debates about those concepts in mainstream nationalism studies. Because the most powerful form of national performance today may be seen in sport, understanding tensions between not only the national and global, but also between the nation-state and the historic nation and between nationality and national identity remain key challenges. Complex dynamics of competing identities may be seen in exemplar studies of sport in Spain relative to Catalonia and the ‘united’ (or not) qualities of the United Kingdom relative to Ireland, Scotland, Wales and, indeed, England. In the future, it is posed that the study of sport and nation must move beyond reliance on media analysis and received notions of ‘imagined community’ and seek more access to and understanding of elite performers and organizational actors.
Assessing the sociology of sport: On controversies and scandals
Authors: Palmer Catherine
Published: May 2015

On the 50th anniversary of the ISSA and IRSS, Catherine Palmer, a wide-ranging scholar of sporting subcultures, examines one of more intriguing artifacts of sport in contemporary times: the inevitability of controversies and scandals. Palmer notes that the controversies, scandals and crimes that have become a regular feature of sport represent ‘empirical gold’ for sociological inquiry and cultural critique. While sporting scandals are most often ‘middle order moral events,’ their sociological analysis can lead to important changes in the governance of sport. Four key challenges in the ‘ecology of scandal’ in sport are identified and discussed: scandal susceptibility, polysemia, intertextuality and scandal hierarchy. It is argued that in the future, sociological inquiry will need to consider why it is that sports scandals are often presented in media and popular discourse with little critical reflection on specificity or context, given that such scandals can give rise to questions about a wider social logic which can help focus analyses of contemporary cultural politics that underpin sport.
Assessing the sociology of sport: On Brazil and Latin American perspectives
Authors: Marchi Júnior Wanderley
Published: May 2015

On the 50th anniversary of the ISSA and IRSS, Wanderley Marchi Júnior, a key foundational scholar in the development of the sociology of sport in Latin America, considers the trajectory of inquiry and the unique challenges confronting Latin American scholars in mounting socio-cultural inquiry about sport. In assessing the development of the field, it is noted that the relatively new academic discipline of sociology of sport grew from its seating in physical education to incorporate understandings from fields such as education, history, sociology, and economics in a necessary ‘academic oxygenation’. The present challenges for scholarly development are regarded as standing at a crossroads of critical and Marxist perspectives, with studies in Brazil being influenced by the work of Elias and Bourdieu, and empirical, statistical and analytical research traditions from the United States. It is suggested that the future for sociology in sport in Brazil and Latin America, where the discipline has developed in three identifiable stages, can be viewed with considerable optimism. In the third stage, the sociology of sport has been expanded by reconstructing its legitimacy through increased intersectional analysis that bridges the knowledge and understanding across the social sciences and humanities.
Assessing the sociology of sport: On lifestyle sport and gender
Authors: Sisjord Mari Kristin
Published: May 2015

On the 50th anniversary of the ISSA and the IRSS, an influential Norwegian scholar in understanding sporting cultures, Mari Kristin Sisjord, considers the trajectory, challenges, and future opportunities for sociological inquiry about lifestyle sport and gender. It is noted that the emergence of lifestyle sport research was built on interpretive inquiry, the rise of the cooperative new leisure movement, and subculture research stimulated by cultural studies. Driven by diverse theoretical influences, including Bourdieu and Foucault, questions of power relations, voluntary risk-taking, commercialization, mediation, identity development, and community-building have been key topics. A central challenge has been to untangle the complexities of gender in the often high risk context of lifestyle sports perceived as masculine; here, understanding how women negotiate their identities presents important questions. In considering future research, Sisjord follows Thorpe’s counsel in recognizing the need to put female participation and leadership in lifestyle sport into historical and cultural contexts as the exercise of power and organizational engagement are redefined.
Assessing the sociology of sport: On sociological understandings and local sport policy
Authors: Slepičková Irena
Published: May 2015

On the 50th anniversary of the ISSA and IRSS, a foundational scholar in the development of the sociology of sport in the Czech Republic and Eastern Europe, Irena Slepičková, reflects on the relationship between sociological understandings and local sport policy. Even with considerable interest in sport across the social sciences, the development of an explicit sociology of sport was hindered by discouraged engagement with Western bourgeois sociology, resulting in stifled theoretical development and bias towards scientific research linked to priorities of administration. Key challenges for the field’s development can be seen in the needs to prioritize theory and scientific method over “linguistic equilibristics” and subjective advocacy. Key areas for development in the future for the sociology of sport center on issues of social stratification and remedying problems of social exclusion in and through sport. Future research on the sociology of sport needs to focus on laying a scientific basis for the implementation of public policies that can make a healthy difference in everyday lived experience.
Assessing the sociology of sport: On the Latin American Association of Sociocultural Studies in Sport and research development in Latin America
Authors: Cornejo Améstica Miguel
Published: May 2015

On the 50th anniversary of the ISSA and IRSS, a key scholar in the development of the sociology of sport in Latin America, Miguel Cornejo, reflects on the trajectory, challenges, and future opportunities for the field in light of recent organizational and disciplinary developments. It is noted that much development of the sociology of sport in Latin America can be credited to the inclusion of a “sociology of sport and society” Working Group at the 1999 Congress of the Latin America Association of Sociology; developments at subsequent meetings of that organization were solidified in 2007 with the formation of the Latin American Association of Sociocultural Studies in Sport (ALESDE). Development in the field of inquiry has been complex as Latin America is divided, not only along national borders, but by diverse and distinct local group and ethnic cultures. Early research in the sociology of sport in Latin America focused on football and much was influenced by the work of Elias, Bourdieu, and Dunning. Beyond figurational approaches, diverse theoretical vantage points have had application, including those taking functionalist approaches, using conflict theory and ethnography, and the adoption of symbolic approaches. An ongoing challenge has been to transact in the scholarly community where English is the dominant language. ALESDE has played an important role, mirroring development of more localized professional societies from around the world focused on the sociology of sport, in enabling the voices of Latin American scholars to be part of the larger disciplinary conversation.
Talofibular Bony Impingement in the Ankle
Authors: Ahn Ji-Yong , Choi Hong-Joon , Lee Woo-Chun
Published: May 2015

Background:

Talofibular bony impingement has not previously been reported, since it is difficult to detect on plain radiograph, similar to the spur on the anterior border of the medial malleolus and anterior portion of the medial talar facet. We hypothesized that talofibular bony impingement can cause limited dorsiflexion of the ankle. The aim of this study was to evaluate talofibular bony impingement as a distinct form of impingement that limits dorsiflexion of the ankle.

Methods:

This study included 20 consecutive patients (21 ankles) with talofibular impingement and 19 consecutive patients (19 ankles) with lateral ankle instability without talofibular impingement. Presence or absence of talofibular impingement was confirmed under direct intraoperative visualization. Dorsiflexion before and after excision of the impinging spurs was measured. Findings on plain radiographs and computed tomography were compared between the groups. Pre- and postoperative clinical assessments were done with Foot Function Index, visual analog scale for pain, and American Orthopaedic Foot & Ankle Society ankle-hindfoot score at a mean follow-up of 1.4 years.

Results:

After removal of the bony impingement, the range of dorsiflexion increased by a mean 7.9 degrees (range, 2.5 to 11.0 degrees) in the impingement group. The mean distance between the fibula and lateral process of the talus on weight- bearing anteroposterior radiograph of the ankle was 1.2 mm (range, 0 to 4.5) in the impingement group and 3.2 mm (range, 1 to 4.5) in the control group. On axial computed tomography image, bony protrusion of the lateral process of the talus was frequently present in the impingement group, and the mean amount of protrusion was more than that of the control group. Clinical findings improved overall.

Conclusions:

Talofibular impingement was a cause of limited dorsiflexion, and the diagnosis was confirmed intraoperatively.

Level of Evidence:

Level III, retrospective comparative study.
Antiplane–inplane shear mode delamination between two second-order shear deformable composite plates
Authors: Szekrényes András
Published: May 2015

The second-order laminated plate theory is utilized in this work to analyze orthotropic composite plates with asymmetric delamination. First, a displacement field satisfying the system of exact kinematic conditions is presented by developing a double-plate system in the uncracked plate portion. The basic equations of linear elasticity and Hamilton’s principle are utilized to derive the system of equilibrium and governing equations. As an example, a delaminated simply supported plate is analyzed using Lévy plate formulation and the state-space model by varying the position of the delamination along the plate thickness. The displacements, strains, stresses and the J-integral are calculated by the plate theory solution and compared with those by linear finite-element calculations. The comparison of the numerical and analytical results shows that the second-order plate theory captures very well the mechanical fields. However, if the delamination is separated by only a relatively thin layer from the plate boundary surface, then the second-order plate theory approximates badly the stress resultants and so the mode-II and mode-III J-integrals and thus leads to erroneous results.
Balancing Public Interest and a Fair Trial in Police Informer Privilege: A Critical Australian Perspective
Authors: Mares Henry
Published: May 2015

The name of a police informer is not to be revealed in court unless certain conditions are met. What this article shows is that the historical basis for this rule of evidence, ‘the informer rule’, is not particularly authoritative, that the rule has changed over the past 200 years, most recently in favour of the prosecution, that it is not well defined, and that it may not be appropriately applied. Despite widespread agreement that an informant's name must be revealed in certain circumstances, this article shows that in practice Australian courts almost never order that the name be revealed, and suggests a theoretical basis for understanding why the procedural right to know the name of an informer is subordinate to the perceived requirements of crime control.
An Evaluation of the Use of Videotaped Evidential Interviews in Child Abuse Investigations
Authors: Wilson J. C. , Davies G. M.
Published: May 2015

Since 1992, children who make complaints of sexual abuse are usually the subject of an investigative interview conducted by a police officer and social worker. The conduct of the interview is guided by the recommendations of the ‘Memorandum of Good Practice’ (Home Office and Department of Health, 1992). The interview is videotaped for possible later use at court. This permanent record allows the Crown Prosecution Service, and ultimately the judge, to decide whether the interview has been conducted in an appropriate manner and consequently whether the video will be admissible in court. This paper reports the first analysis of the content of a sample of those interviews, both in terms of their adherence to the ‘Memorandum of Good Practice’ guidelines and in terms of the quantity and quality of the information elicited from the child.
Training Inexperienced Marksmen to Shoot at Night: The Effectiveness of a Basic Law Enforcement Night-Shooting Class
Authors: Charles Michael T. , Copay Anne G.
Published: May 2015

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a night-shooting lecture and night sights in improving nighttime shooting accuracy. The shooting scores of police recruits with and without night sights were compared before and after the night-shooting lecture in three low-light shooting conditions: shooting at a back-lighted target, shooting at a front-lighted target, and shooting with the assistance of a flashlight. The shooting scores did not improve after the lecture for shooting at a back-lighted target and for shooting with a flashlight, indicating that the recruits had not yet mastered the specific shooting techniques taught for these specific low-light conditions. The shooting scores did improve for shooting at a front-lighted target, even though no specific shooting technique, other than what the recruits had previously learned in their firearms training, is required in this lighting condition. Night sights significantly improved the scores when shooting at a back-lighted target.
Provision of Police Leadership Development Opportunities, Bramshill: Problem, Solution and a Critical Engagement
Authors: Adlam Robert
Published: May 2015

This paper notes the current interest in the question of police leadership effectiveness. It restates the complex role that Bramshill plays in relation to the development of police leaders and the leadership of police organisations. It indicates the core function of the National Police Leadership Faculty situated at National Police Training, Bramshill, and suggests that a sufficient body of knowledge has accumulated showing that police leadership is a distinct and difficult practice. It raises the possibility that the current provision of police leadership development is inadequate, and presents a comprehensive ‘set of moves' that could be adopted if a programme of police leadership development were to be, at least, comprehensive.

The paper then moves on to raise a series of questions that are designed to challenge the assumption that better ‘leadership’ is the solution to the problem of police effectiveness. In this latter part of the paper a discussion is developed in relation to the apparent continuation of ‘heroic’ images of leadership. In addition, the paper considers the psychological effects of power wielding — as they are described in Weber's (1967) essay ‘Politics as a vocation’ — and argues that the current content of the police leadership development curriculum is superficial and inadequate because it fails to include this type of analysis in its courses and programmes of study.
Policing in a Multicultural Society: A Changing Society, a Changing Police Culture?
Authors: Srinivasan Nara , Hearn Lydia
Published: May 2015

For many years Australia has been known for its all-white policy, but in recent years the government has undertaken a series of radical measures to improve ‘access' and ‘equity’ of all groups living in Australia — a process which has involved improving the ability of government bodies to understand the intricate relations which arise within a multicultural society so that they can better attend to the different values and needs of the various groups. In this paper, the authors look at an innovative, proactive programme entitled ‘Policing in a multicultural community’ set up by the Western Australian Police Service, the Department of Multicultural Affairs, the Ethnic Communities Council and Edith Cowan University, in coordination with the Northern Suburbs Migrant Resource Centre. The programme is based on the premise that ‘only through understanding people's needs, expectations and fears can compatibility between police and society be achieved’. The findings of this comprehensive evaluation showed that by fostering a sense of partnership it is possible to achieve significant impacts in terms of promoting an understanding of cultural diversity among police officers, and overcoming issues which in the past have prevented ethnic minority groups from accessing police services.
Police Detectives' Aims regarding Their Interviews with Suspects: Any Change at the Turn of the Millennium?
Authors: Soukara Stavroula , Bull Ray , Vrij Aldert
Published: May 2015

How can valid information be obtained in police interviews with suspects? How can false confessions be avoided? Answers to these questions will help convict the guilty and avoid miscarriages of justice. Unfortunately, very little research on real-life interviews with suspects has been carried out due to the sensitive nature of the topic, and all the difficulties of access such research entials. The present study sought to gather police detectives' views on the ways they conducted interviews with uncooperative suspects. It was found that specialised training in the investigative interviewing of suspects, as well as good preparation of the interview beforehand and the social skills of the interviewers, are judged by the detectives to be of utmost importance when dealing with uncooperative suspects. In addition, the actual style of the interview was reported to be influenced by various factors, such as the available evidence in a given case, the actual nature of the crime, and the interviewer's approach towards the suspect (and vice versa).
Directors’ defence of reliance on professional advisers under Anglo-Australian law
Authors: Wan Wai Yee
Published: May 2015

This paper analyses the issue of whether directors may use reliance on professional advice as a defence to a claim for breach of duty to exercise care, skill and diligence under common law or companies legislation in England and Australia. While England and Australia share the same common law tradition and have similar statutory provisions on the standard of care of directors, an English court generally regards a director as acting reasonably when he seeks advice from a qualified and independent professional adviser in a specialist matter within his expertise. In the absence of any conflict of interest, reliance is only unreasonable if the circumstances are so plain and obvious that no prudent person will rely on the advice. In contrast, recent Australian cases, particularly ASIC v Healey, ASIC v MacDonald and ASIC v Fortescue, restrict the circumstances in which directors can rely on professional advisers, even in specialist matters. This paper argues that the difference in approach between the two jurisdictions can be explained on two grounds. First, the Australian cases can be distinguished from the English cases because the former are special situations dealing with matters involving non-delegable duties of care imposed by legislation. Second, the potential outcomes of the breach of the duty of care differ in England and Australia, and this difference has a much deeper, substantive influence on the content of the standard of care. Contrary to academic suggestion, it is suggested that the Australian developments may not always be appropriate in determining the scope of the defence of reliance on professional advice in England.
Effects of a DVD-delivered exercise intervention on physical function in older adults with multiple sclerosis: A pilot randomized controlled trial
Authors: McAuley Edward , Wójcicki Thomas R , Learmonth Yvonne Charlotte , Roberts Sarah A , Hubbard Elizabeth Anne , Kinnett-Hopkins Dominique , Fanning Jason , Motl Robert W
Published: May 2015

Background

Older adults with multiple sclerosis (MS) exhibit disease-related impairments such as compromised strength, balance, mobility, coordination, and quality of life (QOL). Exercise training as an intervention to reverse these conditions in older adults with MS is limited.

Objective

The objective of this pilot trial was to examine the effects of a DVD exercise intervention targeting flexibility, strength, and balance in older adults with MS in order to generate effect sizes to power a larger trial.

Methods

Participants were randomly assigned to a six-month DVD exercise intervention ( n = 24) or a healthy aging DVD control condition ( n = 24). Measures of physical function, physical activity, sedentary behavior, QOL and program satisfaction were assessed at baseline and at follow-up.

Results

The DVD exercise intervention was well received with no adverse events. Effects sizes ranged from small to modest reflecting improved function, increased physical activity, decreased sitting time, and improved QOL in the intervention condition compared to the control condition.

Conclusion

This pilot randomized controlled trial suggests that older adults with MS are receptive to an exercise program via DVD, and the program results in modest but potentially important improvements in function and physical activity.
A balance between TFPI and thrombin-mediated platelet activation is required for murine embryonic development
Authors: Ellery Paul E. R. , Maroney Susan A. , Cooley Brian C. , Luyendyk James P. , Zogg Mark , Weiler Hartmut , Mast Alan E.
Published: May 2015

Key Points

Modulation of thrombin-dependent platelet activation by TFPI is required for successful embryonic development. TFPI dampens intravascular thrombin generation even in the absence of thrombin-mediated platelet activation.
Advanced light-trapping effect of thin-film solar cell with dual photonic crystals
Authors: Zhang Anjun , Guo Zhongyi , Tao Yifei , Wang Wei , Mao Xiaoqin , Fan Guanghua , Zhou Keya , Qu Shiliang
Published: May 2015

A thin-film solar cell with dual photonic crystals has been proposed, which shows an advanced light-trapping effect and superior performance in ultimate conversion efficiency (UCE). The shapes of nanocones have been optimized and discussed in detail by self-definition. The optimized shape of nanocone arrays (NCs) is a parabolic shape with a nearly linearly graded refractive index (GRI) profile from the air to Si, and the corresponding UCE is 30.3% for the NCs with a period of 300 nm and a thickness of only 2 μm. The top NCs and bottom NCs of the thin film have been simulated respectively to investigate their optimized shapes, and their separate contributions to the light harvest have also been discussed fully. The height of the top NCs and bottom NCs will also influence the performances of the thin-film solar cell greatly, and the result indicates that the unconformal NCs have better light-trapping ability with an optimal UCE of 32.3% than the conformal NCs with an optimal UCE of 30.3%.
HaploShare: identification of extended haplotypes shared by cases and evaluation against controls
Authors: Ying Dingge , Sham Pak Chung , Smith David Keith , Zhang Lu , Lau Yu Lung , Yang Wanling
Published: May 2015

Recent founder mutations may play important roles in complex diseases and Mendelian disorders. Detecting shared haplotypes that are identical by descent (IBD) could facilitate discovery of these mutations. Several programs address this, but are usually limited to detecting pair-wise shared haplotypes and not providing a comparison of cases and controls. We present a novel algorithm and software package, HaploShare, which detects extended haplotypes that are shared by multiple individuals, and allows comparisons between cases and controls. Testing on simulated and real cases demonstrated significant improvements in detection power and reduction of false positive rate by HaploShare relative to other programs.
Activation of Notch1 signalling promotes multi-lineage differentiation of c-KitPOS/NKX2.5POS bone marrow stem cells: implication in stem cell translational medicine
Authors: Ding Ranran , Jiang Xiaofan , Ha Yanping , Wang Zhenliang , Guo Junli , Jiang Hanguo , Zheng Shaojiang , Shen Zhihua , Jie Wei
Published: May 2015

Introduction

Transplantation of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) can repair injured hearts. However, whether BMSC populations contain cells with cardiac stem cell characteristics is ill-defined. We report here that Notch signalling can promote differentiation of c-KitPOS/NKX2.5POS BMSCs into cardiomyocyte-like cells.

Methods

Total BMSCs were isolated from Sprague–Dawley rat femurs and c-KitPOS cells were purified. c-KitPOS/NKX2.5POS cells were isolated by single-cell cloning, and the presence of cardiomyocyte, smooth muscle cell (SMC), and endothelial cell differentiation markers assessed by immunofluorescence staining and semi-quantitative reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) analysis. Levels of c-Kit and Notch1–4 in total BMSCs and c-KitPOS/NKX2.5POS BMSCs were quantitated by flow cytometry. Following infection with an adenovirus over-expressing Notch1 intracellular domain (NICD), total BMSCs and c-KitPOS/NKX2.5POS cells were assessed for differentiation to cardiomyocyte, SMC, and endothelial cell lineages by immunofluorescence staining and real-time quantitative RT-PCR. Total BMSCs and c-KitPOS/NKX2.5POS cells were treated with the Notch1 ligand Jagged1 and markers of cardiomyocyte, SMC, and endothelial cell differentiation were examined by immunofluorescence staining and real-time quantitative RT-PCR analysis.

Results

c-KitPOS/NKX2.5POS cells were present among total BMSC populations, and these cells did not express markers of adult cardiomyocyte, SMC, or endothelial cell lineages. c-KitPOS/NKX2.5POS BMSCs exhibited a multi-lineage differentiation potential similar to total BMSCs. Following sorting, the c-Kit level in c-KitPOS/NKX2.5POS BMSCs was 84.4%. Flow cytometry revealed that Notch1 was the predominant Notch receptor present in total BMSCs and c-KitPOS/NKX2.5POS BMSCs. Total BMSCs and c-KitPOS/NKX2.5POS BMSCs overexpressing NICD had active Notch1 signalling accompanied by differentiation into cardiomyocyte, SMC, and endothelial cell lineages. Treatment of total BMSCs and c-KitPOS/NKX2.5POS BMSCs with exogenous Jagged1 activated Notch1 signalling and drove multi-lineage differentiation, with a tendency towards cardiac lineage differentiation in c-KitPOS/NKX2.5POS BMSCs.

Conclusions

c-KitPOS/NKX2.5POS cells exist in total BMSC pools. Activation of Notch1 signalling contributed to multi-lineage differentiation of c-KitPOS/NKX2.5POS BMSCs, favouring differentiation into cardiomyocytes. These findings suggest that modulation of Notch1 signalling may have potential utility in stem cell translational medicine.
Investigation into the annotation of protocol sequencing steps in the sequence read archive
Authors: Alnasir Jamie , Shanahan Hugh P
Published: May 2015

Background

The workflow for the production of high-throughput sequencing data from nucleic acid samples is complex. There are a series of protocol steps to be followed in the preparation of samples for next-generation sequencing. The quantification of bias in a number of protocol steps, namely DNA fractionation, blunting, phosphorylation, adapter ligation and library enrichment, remains to be determined.

Results

We examined the experimental metadata of the public repository Sequence Read Archive (SRA) in order to ascertain the level of annotation of important sequencing steps in submissions to the database. Using SQL relational database queries (using the SRAdb SQLite database generated by the Bioconductor consortium) to search for keywords commonly occurring in key preparatory protocol steps partitioned over studies, we found that 7.10%, 5.84% and 7.57% of all records (fragmentation, ligation and enrichment, respectively), had at least one keyword corresponding to one of the three protocol steps. Only 4.06% of all records, partitioned over studies, had keywords for all three steps in the protocol (5.58% of all SRA records).

Conclusions

The current level of annotation in the SRA inhibits systematic studies of bias due to these protocol steps. Downstream from this, meta-analyses and comparative studies based on these data will have a source of bias that cannot be quantified at present.
The age of quality innovation
Authors: Lee Sang M
Published: May 2015

In this inaugural issue of International Journal of Quality Innovation, the Editor-in-Chief reports the evolution of quality management and the need for innovative research for creating new quality values.
Quality management and innovation: new insights on a structural contingency framework
Authors: Schniederjans Dara , Schniederjans Marc
Published: May 2015

With increasing market competition, organizations are striving for greater innovation in products and services. Quality management has the potential to invigorate an organization’s product, process and administrative innovation when strategically aligned with internal contingencies. This paper seeks to address the relationship between social and technical quality management with innovation. Moreover, this paper empirically assesses contingency factors including organization size, task and managerial ethics which play roles in moderating the relationship between quality management and innovation. Based on an empirical study we find social quality management practices, not technical quality management practices, are positively associated with innovation. We also find a reciprocal positive relationship between social quality management and technical quality management. In addition our research reveals the positive relationship between quality management and innovation is moderated by the effects of organizational size, task and managerial ethics.
Psychotic experiences and risk of death in the general population: 24–27 year follow-up of the Epidemiologic Catchment Area study
Authors: Sharifi Vandad , Eaton William W. , Wu Li Tzy , Roth Kimberly B. , Burchett Bruce M. , Mojtabai Ramin
Published: May 2015

Background

Psychotic experiences are common in the general population and are associated with adverse psychiatric and social outcomes, even in the absence of a psychotic disorder.

Aims

To examine the association between psychotic experiences and mortality over a 24–27 year period.

Method

We used data on 15 049 adult participants from four sites of the Epidemiologic Catchment Area baseline survey in the USA in the early 1980s, linked to the National Death Index and other sources of vital status up until 2007. Psychotic experiences were assessed by the Diagnostic Interview Schedule.

Results

Lifetime psychotic experiences at baseline (n = 855; weighted prevalence, 5.5%) were significantly associated with all-cause mortality at follow-up after adjustment for sociodemographic characteristics and psychiatric diagnoses, including schizophrenia spectrum disorders (P<0.05). Baseline psychotic experiences were associated with over 5 years' shorter median survival time. Among the underlying causes of death, suicide had a particularly high hazard ratio (9.16, 95% CI 3.19–26.29).

Conclusions

Future research needs to explore the association of psychotic experiences with physical health and lifestyle factors that may mediate the relationship of psychotic experiences with mortality.
Being Cellular
Authors: Brown Jayna
Published: May 2015

Taking suggestion from the case of Henrietta Lacks and the HeLa cells, this essay is profoundly interested in the possibilities for new, and alternative, forms of life and being. What forms of sociality and the communal are available for us if we estrange ourselves from the life of our species? And how might these practices of estrangement—queering—actually allow for a new ethical landscape? The essay explores the politics of science in relation to race and sex in historical context. Fantasies about the plasticity of life in speculative thought must consider the histories of social and scientific racism and eugenics. The essay considers two scientific speculators, H. G. Wells and Julian Huxley, whose works demonstrate risks that we must be mindful of in embracing an ontology of life. There are ramifications of self-directed scientific modification of the biological, as Wells's and Huxley's ideas include advanced ideas of the plasticity of life but also the theory and practice of eugenics. The essay still argues for the importance of the utopian, of dreams that reach to new paradigms, that search out the ineffable moments of life that confound us.
The cytoskeleton-associated protein SCHIP1 is involved in axon guidance, and is required for piriform cortex and anterior commissure development
Authors: Klingler Esther , Martin Pierre-Marie , Garcia Marta , Moreau-Fauvarque Caroline , Falk Julien , Chareyre Fabrice , Giovannini Marco , Chédotal Alain , Girault Jean-Antoine , Goutebroze Laurence
Published: May 2015

SCHIP1 is a cytoplasmic partner of cortical cytoskeleton ankyrins. The IQCJ-SCHIP1 isoform is a component of axon initial segments and nodes of Ranvier of mature axons in peripheral and central nervous systems, where it associates with membrane complexes comprising cell adhesion molecules. SCHIP1 is also expressed in the mouse developing central nervous system during embryonic stages of active axonogenesis. Here, we identify a new and early role for SCHIP1 during axon development and establishment of the anterior commissure (AC). The AC is composed of axons from the piriform cortex, the anterior olfactory nucleus and the amygdala. Schip1 mutant mice displayed early defects in AC development that might result from impaired axon growth and guidance. In addition, mutant mice presented a reduced thickness of the piriform cortex, which affected projection neurons in layers 2/3 and was likely to result from cell death rather than from impairment of neuron generation or migration. Piriform cortex neurons from E14.5 mutant embryos displayed axon initiation/outgrowth delay and guidance defects in vitro. The sensitivity of growth cones to semaphorin 3F and Eph receptor B2, two repulsive guidance cues crucial for AC development, was increased, providing a possible basis for certain fiber tract alterations. Thus, our results reveal new evidence for the involvement of cortical cytoskeleton-associated proteins in the regulation of axon development and their importance for the formation of neuronal circuits.
Compression therapy in obese patients
Authors: Reich-Schupke S.
Published: May 2015

Triggered by obesity, venous (obesity-associated dependency syndrome) and lymphatic drainage disorders (obesity-associated lymphoedema) can develop, which in themselves require compression therapy, or other comorbidities with indication for compression therapy may exist. In obese patients, some specific features have to be observed in compression therapy:

- An adequate initial decongestive phase with padding and bandage materials,

- Compression hosiery with a high degree of stiffness (high-strength materials, where appropriate, flat-knitted) and optimal fit (meticulous fitting),

- Garment types that are suitable for daily use, if necessary, multi-part garment,

- Need for aids or auxiliary persons to ensure correct use,

- Concomitant consistent, intensive, lipid-replenishing skin care and optimised hygiene to reduce complications and side effects

- Regular medical check-ups to ensure correct fit of the leg compression garment.

Sometimes, particularly at the initial provision and in patients with a complicated physical shape, the stockings have to be modified several times before an optimal fit is achieved.
Effect of environmental and cultural conditions on medium pH and explant growth performance of Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) shoot cultures
Authors: Chen Chien-Chih , Bates Rick , Carlson John
Published: May 2015

The medium pH level of plant tissue cultures has been shown to be essential to many aspects of explant development and growth. Sensitivity or tolerance of medium pH changein vitrovaries according to specific requirements of individual species. The objectives of this study are to 1) determine medium pH change over time in storage conditions and with presence of explants, 2) evaluate the effects of medium pH change on explant growth performance and 3) assess the effects of adding a pH stabilizer, 2-(N-morpholino)ethanesulfonic acid (MES) that is commonly used in Douglas-fir micropropagation medium. Vegetative buds were collected in the spring before breaking dormancy from juvenile and mature donor trees for conducting these evaluations. Medium, with or without MES, was pre-adjusted to five pH levels before adding MES, agar and autoclaving. Medium pH changes and explant growth parameters were measured at eight different incubation times. Overall, MES provided a more stable medium pH, relative to starting pH values, under both light and dark storage conditions as well as with presence of explants. A general trend of decreasing medium pH over time was found comparing explants from juvenile and mature donor genotypes. Explant height and weight growth increased over time, but differ among explants from juvenile and mature donor genotypes. Our findings suggest that a 21-day subculture practice may best sustain medium freshness, medium pH level and desirable explant growth.
Keyword Search Advertising and Limited Budgets
Authors: Shin Woochoel
Published: May 2015

In keyword search advertising, many advertisers operate on a limited budget. Yet how limited budgets affect keyword search advertising has not been extensively studied. This paper offers an analysis of the generalized second-price auction with budget constraints. We find that the budget constraint may induce advertisers to raise their bids to the highest possible amount for two different reasons, i.e., to accelerate the elimination of the budget-constrained competitor, and to reduce their own advertising cost. Thus, in contrast to the current literature, our analysis shows that both budget-constrained and unconstrained advertisers could bid more than their own valuation. We further extend the model to consider dynamic bidding and budget-setting decisions.
Linear lesions, in images
Authors: Watkins Jean
Published: May 2015

Jean Watkins describes the causes, symptoms and treatment of linear lesions, which vary from common to more unusual presentations
Intermittent pneumatic compression reduces the risk of deep vein thrombosis during post-operative lower limb immobilisation
Authors: Domeij-Arverud E. , Labruto F. , Latifi A. , Nilsson G. , Edman G. , Ackermann P. W.
Published: May 2015

Deep vein thrombosis is a common complication of immobilising the lower limb after surgery. We hypothesised that intermittent pneumatic compression (IPC) therapy in outpatients who had undergone surgical repair of acute ruptures of the Achilles tendon could reduce the incidence of this problem.

A total of 150 patients who had undergone surgical repair of the Achilles tendon were randomised to either treatment with IPC for six hours per day (n = 74) under an orthosis or treatment as usual (n = 74) in a plaster cast without IPC. At two weeks post-operatively, the incidence of deep vein thrombosis was assessed using blinded, double-reported compression duplex ultrasound. At this point, IPC was discontinued and all patients were immobilised in an orthosis for a further four weeks. At six weeks post-operatively, a second compression duplex ultrasound scan was performed.

At two weeks, the incidence of deep vein thrombosis was 21% in the treated group and 37% in the control group (p = 0.042). Age over 39 years was found to be a strong risk factor for deep vein thrombosis (odds ratio (OR) = 4.84, 95% confidence interval (CI) 2.14 to 10.96). Treatment with IPC, corrected for age differences between groups, reduced the risk of deep vein thrombosis at the two-week point (OR = 2.60; 95% CI 1.15 to 5.91; p =0.022). At six weeks, the incidence of deep vein thrombosis was 52% in the treated group and 48% in the control group (OR 0.94, 95% CI 0.49 to 1.83). IPC appears to be an effective method of reducing the risk of deep vein thrombosis in the early stages of post-operative immobilisation of outpatients. Further research is necessary to elucidate whether it can confer similar benefits over longer periods of immobilisation and in a more heterogeneous group of patients.

Cite this article: Bone Joint J 2015;97-B:675–80.
Are two different projections of the inlet view necessary for the percutaneous placement of iliosacral screws?
Authors: Ozmeric A. , Yucens M. , Gultaç E. , Açar H. I. , Aydogan N. H. , Gül D. , Alemdaroglu K. B.
Published: May 2015

We hypothesised that the anterior and posterior walls of the body of the first sacral vertebra could be visualised with two different angles of inlet view, owing to the conical shape of the sacrum. Six dry male cadavers with complete pelvic rings and eight dry sacrums with K-wires were used to study the effect of canting (angling the C-arm) the fluoroscope towards the head in 5° increments from 10° to 55°. Fluoroscopic images were taken in each position. Anterior and posterior angles of inclination were measured between the upper sacrum and the vertical line on the lateral view. Three authors separately selected the clearest image for overlapping anterior cortices and the upper sacral canal in the cadaveric models. The dry bone and K-wire models were scored by the authors, being sure to check whether the K-wire was in or out.

In the dry bone models the mean score of the relevant inlet position of the anterior or posterior inclination was 8.875 (standard deviation (sd) 0.35), compared with the inlet position of the opposite inclination of –5.75 (sd 4.59). We found that two different inlet views should be used separately to evaluate the borders of the body of the sacrum using anterior and posterior inclination angles of the sacrum, during placement of iliosacral screws.

Cite this article: Bone Joint J 2015;97-B:705–10.