bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Comparative activity of pradofloxacin and marbofloxacin against coagulase‐positive staphylococci in a pharmacokinetic–pharmacodynamic model based on canine pharmacokinetics
Authors: KÖRBER‐IRRGANG B. , WETZSTEIN H.‐G. , BAGEL‐TRAH S. , HAFNER D. , KRESKEN M.
Published: January 2012

Körber‐Irrgang, B., Wetzstein, H.‐G., Bagel‐Trah, S., Hafner, D., Kresken, M. Comparative activity of pradofloxacin and marbofloxacin against coagulase‐positive staphylococci in a pharmacokinetic–pharmacodynamic model based on canine pharmacokinetics. J. vet. Pharmacol. Therap. 35, 571–579.

Pradofloxacin (PRA), a novel veterinary 8‐cyano‐fluoroquinolone (FQ), is active against Staphylococcus pseudintermedius, the primary cause of canine pyoderma. An in vitro pharmacokinetic–pharmacodynamic model was used to compare the activities of PRA and marbofloxacin (MAR) against three clinical isolates of S. pseudintermedius and reference strain Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 6538. Experiments were performed involving populations of 1010 CFU corresponding to an inoculum density of approximately 5 × 107 CFU/mL. The time course of free drug concentrations in canine serum was modelled, resulting from once daily standard oral dosing of 3 mg of PRA/kg and 2 mg of MAR/kg. In addition, experimentally high doses of 6 mg of PRA/kg and 16 mg of MAR/kg were tested against the least susceptible strain. Viable counts were monitored over 24 h. At concentrations associated with standard doses, PRA caused a faster and more sustained killing than MAR of all strains. The ratios of free drug under the concentration–time curve for 24 h over MIC and the maximum concentration of free drug over MIC were at least 90 and 26, and 8.5 and 2.1 for PRA and MAR, respectively. At experimentally high doses, PRA was superior to MAR in terms of immediate killing. Subpopulations with reduced susceptibility to either FQ did not emerge. We conclude that PRA is likely to be an efficacious therapy of canine staphylococcal infections.
Liver kidney microsomal type 1 antibodies reduce the CYP2D6 activity in patients with chronic hepatitis C virus infection
Authors: Girardin F. , Daali Y. , Gex‐Fabry M. , Rebsamen M. , Roux‐Lombard P. , Cerny A. , Bihl F. , Binek J. , Moradpour D. , Negro F. , Desmeules J. ,   the Swiss Hepatitis C Cohort Study Group
Published: January 2012

Summary.  Liver kidney microsomal type 1 (LKM‐1) antibodies have been shown to decrease the CYP2D6 activity in vitro and are present in a minority of patients with chronic hepatitis C infection. We investigated whether LKM‐1 antibodies might reduce the CYP2D6 activity in vivo. All patients enrolled in the Swiss Hepatitis C Cohort Study and tested for LKM‐1 antibodies were assessed (n = 1723): 10 eligible patients were matched with patients without LKM‐1 antibodies. Patients were genotyped for CYP2D6 variants to exclude individuals with a poor metabolizer genotype. CYP2D6 activity was measured by a specific substrate using the dextromethorphan/dextrorphan metabolic ratio to classify patients into four activity phenotypes. All patients had a CYP2D6 extensive metabolizer genotype. The observed phenotype was concordant with the CYP2D6 genotype in most LKM‐negative patients, whereas only three LKM‐1 positive patients had a concordant phenotype (six presented an intermediate and one a poor metabolizer phenotype). The median DEM/DOR ratio was sixfold higher in LKM‐1 positive than in LKM‐1 negative patients (0.096 vs. 0.016, P = 0.004), indicating that CYP2D6 metabolic function was significantly reduced in the presence of LKM‐1 antibodies. In chronic hepatitis C patients with LKM‐1 antibodies, the CYP2D6 metabolic activity was on average reduced by 80%. The impact of LKM‐1 antibodies on CYP2D6‐mediated drug metabolism pathways warrants further translational studies.
Visceral hypersensitivity in symptomatic diverticular disease and the role of neuropeptides and low grade inflammation
Authors: Humes D. J. , Simpson J. , Smith J. , Sutton P. , Zaitoun A. , Bush D. , Bennett A. , Scholefield J. H. , Spiller R. C.
Published: January 2012

Background  Recurrent abdominal pain is reported by a third of patients with diverticulosis, particularly those with previous episodes of acute diverticulitis. The current understanding of the etiology of this pain is poor. Our aim was to assess visceral sensitivity in patients with diverticular disease and its association with markers of previous inflammation and neuropeptides.

Methods  Patients with asymptomatic and symptomatic diverticular disease underwent a flexible sigmoidoscopy and biopsy followed 5–10 days later by visceral sensitivity testing with barostat‐mediated rectal distension. Inflammation was assessed by staining of serotonin (5HT) and CD3 positive cells. mRNA levels of tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF α) and interleukin‐6 (IL‐6) were quantitated using RT‐PCR. Neuropeptide expression was assessed from percentage area staining with substance P (SP) and mRNA levels of the neurokinin 1 & 2 receptors (NK1 & NK2), and galanin 1 receptor (GALR1).

Key Results  Thirteen asymptomatic and 12 symptomatic patients were recruited. The symptomatic patients had a lower first reported threshold to pain (28.4 mmHg i.q.r 25.0–36.0) than the asymptomatic patients (47 mmHg i.q.r 36.0–52.5, P < 0.001). Symptomatic patients had a higher median overall pain rating for the stimuli than the asymptomatic patients (P < 0.02). Symptomatic patients had greater median relative expression of NK1 and TNF alpha mRNA compared with asymptomatic patients. There was a significant correlation between barostat VAS pain scores and NK 1 expression (Figure 4, r2 0.54, P < 0.02).

Conclusions & Inferences  Patients with symptomatic diverticular disease exhibit visceral hypersensitivity, and this may be mediated by ongoing low grade inflammation and upregulation of tachykinins.
Survey of genetic counselors and clinical geneticists' use and attitudes toward pharmacogenetic testing
Authors: Haga SB , O'Daniel JM , Tindall GM , Mills R , Lipkus IM , Agans R
Published: January 2012

Haga SB, O’Daniel JM, Tindall GM, Mills R, Lipkus IM, Agans R. Survey of genetic counselors and clinical geneticists' use and attitudes toward pharmacogenetic testing.

Pharmacogenetic (PGx) testing aims to improve therapeutic outcomes through tailoring treatment based on a patient's genetic risk for non‐response and/or an adverse event. Given their expertise, geneticists could facilitate the use of PGx testing; however, the preparedness and perceived role of the clinical genetics community is unclear. To assess the attitudes, preparedness, and perceived roles of geneticists in the delivery of PGx testing, we conducted a survey of 1500 randomly selected board‐certified genetic counselors and clinical geneticists in the United States [response rate: 37.8% (n = 516)]. Twelve percent of genetic counselors and 41% of clinical geneticists indicated that they had ordered or coordinated patient care for PGx testing, a seemingly high proportion at this early stage of adoption. Almost all respondents had some education on pharmacogenetics, although only 28% of counselors and 58% of clinical geneticists indicated they felt well‐informed about PGx testing. About half of counselors (52%) and clinical geneticists (46%) felt they would play ‘some’ role in the delivery of PGx testing; 17 and 19%, respectively, felt that they would play ‘no’ or ‘a little’ role. At this early stage of PGx testing, the role of geneticists and genetic counselors is unclear. However, their experience may aid in readying PGx testing and informing delivery strategies into clinical practice.
Cladocora caespitosa bioconstructions in the Columbretes Islands Marine Reserve (Spain, NW Mediterranean): distribution, size structure and growth
Authors: Kersting Diego‐Kurt , Linares Cristina
Published: January 2012

Today, living banks of the coral Cladocora caespitosa appear to be restricted to a few Mediterranean locations and are threatened by the escalating impacts affecting coastal areas. In this study the exceptional occurrence of the Mediterranean coral C. caespitosa in the Columbretes Islands Marine Reserve (NW Mediterranean, Spain) is characterised in terms of spatial distribution, cover area, colony size and growth rates. The coral colonies form beds and banks in rocky bottoms within a semi‐enclosed bay that offers both hydrodynamic protection and high water exchange. The spatial distribution of the C. caespitosa colonies, from 5 to 27 m depth, is highly aggregated, depending on sea‐floor morphology and showing up to 80% of substrate coverage. The annual corallite growth rates obtained through the alizarin red staining method and x‐ray image analysis are similar, and range between 2.55 ± 0.79 mm and 2.54 ± 0.81 mm, respectively. The exceptional nature of these bioconstructions is due to their cumulative cover area, which is comparable in size to the largest C. caespitosa bioconstructions described to date in Mljet National Park (Croatia, Adriatic Sea).
The warru (Petrogale lateralis MacDonnell Ranges Race) reintroduction project on the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Lands, South Australia
Authors: Muhic Jasmina , Abbott Eric , Ward Matthew J.
Published: January 2012

The Black‐footed Rock‐wallaby (Petrogale lateralis MacDonnell Ranges Race), or warru, as it is known by Anangu, the traditional owners of the region, formerly inhabited the rocky hills of the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (APY) Lands in north–west South Australia. However, introduced carnivores and inappropriate fire regimes have decimated the population, and there are now only 150–200 animals remaining in the wild. This prompted the formation of the Warru Recovery Team (WRT), a collaboration between Traditional Owners, Anangu communities and scientists, who are working together to recover warru populations across the APY Lands. The team are working on the Warru Reintroduction Project, which is combining modern science and the traditional ecological knowledge of Anangu to reintroduce warru back into the APY Lands. Between 2007 and 2009, 22 iti‐warru (warru‐joeys) were taken to Monarto Zoo (Monarto, South Australia) to initiate the captive population. These zoo‐warru have successfully bred in captivity, and in 2011, six founder animals and five captive bred warru were returned to the APY Lands. They are being held in a 97‐ha predator‐proof warru enclosure that will allow zoo‐warru to adjust to the local environment and to learn the survival skills of their ancestors, prior to being released into the wild. Lessons learnt from the release of warru into warru pintji will inform future release situations, as well as management of the in situ warru population, which remains the priority of the WRT.
Insights into the biodiversity and social benchmarking components of the Northern Australian fire management and carbon abatement programmes
Authors: Fitzsimons James , Russell‐Smith Jeremy , James Glenn , Vigilante Tom , Lipsett‐Moore Geoff , Morrison Joe , Looker Michael
Published: January 2012

Summary  Much of northern Australia’s tropical savannas are subject to annual intense and extensive late dry season wildfires, much of this occurring on Aboriginal land. Based on the successful West Arnhem Land Fire Abatement (WALFA) model, which has resulted in significantly reduced greenhouse gas emissions, fire abatement programmes are planned for other significant regions of northern Australia. This study offers an introduction to the ideas behind a proposed environmental and social benchmarking project that aims to evaluate the potential benefits of expanding the fire abatement program in northern Australia, under the leadership of NAILSMA and its partners. Gaining a better understanding of the biodiversity, social and cultural outcomes of these fire abatement activities is an important component of demonstrating multiple benefits of these programmes. We emphasize the role of both biodiversity and cultural mapping to establish benchmarks and baseline states, with the involvement of Indigenous communities being a key element to optimize social and biodiversity benefits. Consultation with Traditional Owners and ranger groups to establish an agreed set of targets, indicators and sampling protocols and methodologies are critical component of this process. Examples of preliminary work to date are provided.
Arafura three: Aboriginal ranger groups protecting and managing an internationally significant swamp
Authors: Weston Nigel , Bramley Chantal , Bar‐Lev Jacob , Guyula Mangay , O’Ryan Solomon
Published: January 2012

The Arafura Swamp is a globally significant wooded wetland in central Arnhem Land providing important habitat for migratory birds and fish. It is, however, threatened by saltwater intrusions from rising sea levels and a range of other threats including some cattle grazing, inappropriate fire regimes and feral plant and animal invasions. Three Indigenous Ranger groups are working to address these management issues but need stronger levels of support to be able to secure ongoing and long‐term management solutions for this important wetland.
Cross‐cultural systematic biological surveys in Australia’s Western Desert
Authors: Brennan Karl E. C. , Twigg Peter J. , Watson Alexander , Pennington Adam , Sumner Joanna , Davis Rob , Jackson Jennifer , Brooks Byron , Grant Fred , Underwood Roy
Published: January 2012

Summary  We describe small‐scale biological surveys conducted by a collaboration of biologists and Traditional Owners designed to build scientific knowledge of the biota in remote desert regions of Western Australia. Importantly, while science driven (including systematic survey methods), the project also incorporated Indigenous Ecological Knowledge (IEK). In doing so, it has assisted with cross‐generational transfer and preliminary documentation of IEK in this region. Here, we describe a case study of surveys conducted with the Pila Nguru (Spinifex People) in the Spinifex Native Title Determined Area of the Great Victoria Desert. A total of 185 native plant species were recorded (representing 37 families and 94 genera). Only one individual of a weed species was recorded. Three plant species are new to science; Grevillea ilkurlka ms. Dicrastylis sp. ‘Ilkurlka’ and Gnephosis sp., with the first two of these species of conservation interest. The survey recorded 148 species of vertebrates; 72 birds, 21 mammals (of which six were introduced), 54 reptiles and one frog. Many animal names used by the Spinifex People were documented. The following animals that are of conservation interest were recorded: Itjarri‐itjarri (Southern Marsupial Mole, Notoryctes typhlops), Nganamarra (Malleefowl, Leipoa ocellata), Murrtja (Brush‐tailed Mulgara, Dasycercus blythi), and Princess Parrot (Polytelis alexandrae). We concur with previous authors that biological surveys, when cross‐cultural, can not only build scientific knowledge, but contribute to broader social goals of assisting Aboriginal people with cross‐generational transfer and documenting of IEK.
Who’s the boss? Post‐colonialism, ecological research and conservation management on Australian Indigenous lands
Authors: Barbour Wayne , Schlesinger Christine
Published: January 2012

Summary The involvement of Indigenous people in the national conservation effort is increasingly being acknowledged and valued in Australia. Ecological research can play an important role in reinforcing the efforts of Indigenous land managers; and interest from Indigenous and non‐Indigenous ecologists and land managers to work together on ecological issues of common concern is increasing. Although there are many examples of successful collaborations there are also many instances where expectations, particularly of the Indigenous partners, are not met, and this is less frequently communicated. This paper, written from the perspective of an Arrernte researcher in partnership with his non‐Indigenous colleague, outlines a range of challenges including the need for Indigenous people to have more control of what is done and why it is done on their country and to define and prioritise their own objectives for land management, which may or may not align with mainstream conservation agendas. Currently, Western conservation paradigms play the dominant role in how Natural Resource Management is practiced and how broader policy is set, and ecological research on Indigenous land is still most often led by the Western ecologists. This can leave out the ideas of Indigenous people and does little to address underlying inequitable power relationships. Indigenous Australians do not want to become spectators in the research process, giving away knowledge, or labourers to Western conservation agendas. They want to be active partners in developing better understandings of the environment and implementers of management that reflects shared agendas. Open discussion of these issues within the mainstream ecological literature is an important step towards change and will create better opportunities for both Indigenous and non‐Indigenous ecological practitioners and Indigenous people dealing with land management policy.
Haemolytic‐uraemic syndrome during severe lupus nephritis: efficacy of plasma exchange
Authors: Samson M. , Audia S. , Leguy V. , Berthier S. , Janikashvili N. , Martin L. , Bonnotte B. , Lorcerie B.
Published: January 2012

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) has been described as a cause of thrombotic microangiopathy, especially thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP). Haemolytic‐uraemic syndrome (HUS) is less frequent in SLE. We report a case of such an association during an episode of severe lupus nephritis in a young woman, who was successfully treated with steroids, cyclophosphamide and especially plasma exchange with plasma replacement. This report highlights the importance of recognising atypical HUS in SLE patients by looking for schistocytes in case of haemolytic anemia with a negative antiglobulin test, in order to begin plasma exchange.
Asymmetrical attenuation of vibration sensation in unilateral diabetic Charcot foot neuroarthropathy
Authors: Valabhji J. , Marshall R. C. , Lyons S. , Bloomfield L. , Hogg D. , Rosenfeld P. , Gabriel C. M.
Published: January 2012

Diabet. Med. 29, 1191‐1194 (2012)

Aims  To further characterize the distal sensory neuropathy in subjects with unilateral diabetic Charcot foot neuroarthropathy.

Methods  A retrospective cohort study to assess the level to which the sensory modalities of pinprick, light touch, vibration, joint position and temperature were attenuated in the affected and unaffected limbs in subjects with unilateral Charcot. The level to which the sensory modality was attenuated in each limb was assigned a score. The Wilcoxon signed rank test was used to compare the scores in the affected and unaffected limbs and also to compare the scores of the different sensory modalities in the affected and unaffected limbs.

Results  Fifty subjects with unilateral Charcot foot neuroarthropathy were assessed. Mean age was 45 ± SD 6 years for the 17 subjects with Type 1 diabetes and 62 ± 10 years for the 33 subjects with Type 2 diabetes. Duration of diabetes was 21 ± 13 years, HbA1c was 70 ± 19 mmol/mol [8.6 ± 1.8 %] and 15 subjects (30%) required renal replacement therapy. The level of attenuation of vibration sensation was more proximal in the affected compared with the unaffected limbs (P = 0.002). Pinprick, light touch, joint position and temperature sensations were not different. Joint position sensation was less attenuated bilaterally than the other sensory modalities.

Conclusions  Asymmetrical attenuation of vibration sensation may predict the side that will develop a Charcot joint and may suggest a more important role for vibration sense loss than loss of other sensory modalities in the pathophysiology of Charcot.
Funding, Competition and the Efficiency of NGOs: An Empirical Analysis of Non‐charitable Expenditure of US NGOs Engaged in Foreign Aid
Authors: Nunnenkamp Peter , Öhler Hannes
Published: January 2012

We assess the determinants of the wide variation in the efficiency of foreign aid activities across US‐based non‐governmental organizations (NGOs). In particular, we analyze whether non‐charitable expenditures for administration, management and fundraising depend on the intensity of competition among NGOs and on the degree to which they are refinanced by governments. We control for NGO heterogeneity in various dimensions as well as major characteristics of recipient countries. We find that fiercer competition is associated with more efficient foreign aid activities of NGOs, rather than leading to “excessive” fundraising. Official funding tends to increase administrative costs. Nevertheless, officially financed NGOs spend relatively more on charitable activities since they are less concerned with collecting private donations through fundraising efforts.
Fundraising on the Internet
Authors: Bøg Martin , Harmgart Heike , Huck Steffen , Jeffers Abra Marie
Published: January 2012

We take a first step towards analysing fundraising on the internet. Internet fundraising allows amongst other things for the possibility of instantaneous feedback on campaign progress. Analysing data from a large number of small scale internet fundraising campaigns we show that the rich feedback information provided to donors alters subsequent donor behaviour. In particular, early donors set a precedent for later donors. We discuss some possible explanations for this phenomenon.
Broadband Internet and Political Participation: Evidence for Germany
Authors: Czernich Nina
Published: January 2012

Previous studies found the introduction of the today well established media radio and television to affect political participation. This paper evaluates the effect of the relatively recent introduction of a new medium, broadband internet. OLS results suggest a positive association between DSL availability and voter participation across German municipalities. However, the roll‐out of DSL networks is not random. The paper exploits the fact that DSL availability depends on a municipality's distance to the nearest interconnection point to the existing voice‐telephony network. Instrumental‐variable results using this distance to predict DSL availability confirm the effect of DSL availability on voter participation.
Fiscal Performance and Income Inequality: Are Unequal Societies More Deficit‐Prone?
Authors: Larch Martin
Published: January 2012

A bias towards running deficits is an entrenched feature of fiscal policy making in most developed economies. Our paper examines whether this tendency is in any way associated with the personal distribution of income of a country. It takes inspiration from theoretical work according to which distributional conflicts may give rise to deficit spending or to delayed fiscal adjustment. Although these theories have been around for years the empirical literature on the determinants of fiscal performance has so far paid little or no attention to the possible role played by different degrees of income inequality. Our results suggest that this neglect was not justified. Using cross‐country data we find evidence that a more unequal distribution of income can weigh on a country's fiscal performance. These findings can be relevant in the aftermath of the post‐2007 global financial and economic crisis in particular when designing fiscal exit strategies. The success and sustainability of such strategies may inter alia depend on their distributional implications.
Who Trusts Berlusconi? An Econometric Analysis of the Role of Television in the Political Arena
Authors: Sabatini Fabio
Published: January 2012

The objective of this paper is to improve our understanding on how the former Italian prime minister formed and kept his exceptional political consensus despite the never‐ending series of scandals in which he has been involved. Specifically, we carry out an empirical assessment of the relationship between trust in television and trust towards the prime minister. Many Italian commentators argue that television does not exert any particular bias on public opinion. If the assumption of television's irrelevance were true, one could reasonably expect to find no significant relationship between trust in TV and trust in Mr Berlusconi as prime minister. Contrary to this hypothesis, our empirical analysis shows that trust in television was the strongest predictor of trust in the Italian prime minister in Spring 2011, thus suggesting that Mr Berlusconi's media empire played a key role in the building of his political consensus.

This result is based on probit and ordered logit estimates and is robust to different specifications. However, there are three reasons for which this finding could be interpreted as the fruit of a spurious correlation. First, it is difficult to distinguish the effect of trust in television from that of other phenomena that potentially influence trust in the prime minister. To deal with this problem, we include in the main equation a wide set of individual and household control variables. Second, individual effects, such as individuals' exogenous shocks, may be correlated with trust both towards television and the prime minister, thus creating a common bias. Third, as we explain in the paper, it is reasonable to assume the existence of reverse causality. To deal with the last two problems, we turn to instrumental variables (IV) estimates. When we address endogeneity in IV estimates, trust in television remains the best (most significant and strongest) predictor of trust in the prime minister. By contrast, we find that the dependent variable is significantly and negatively correlated with educational qualification, trust in the judicial system and with a measure of tolerance towards immigrants.

Even if these results pass robustness checks and hold in IV estimates, it must be remarked that the cross‐sectional design of the research dictates extreme caution in the interpretation of correlations as causal relationships. Nonetheless, the paper contributes to the literature by carrying out the first econometric investigation into the role of television in individuals' political opinions, with a focus on trust towards the Italian prime minister. The relationship between television and political attitudes and beliefs is an important topic for economics, in view of the unquestionable role that political institutions, particularly the government and the prime minister, play in a country's economic performance.
Child Development in Developing Countries: Introduction and Methods
Authors: Bornstein Marc H. , Britto Pia Rebello , Nonoyama‐Tarumi Yuko , Ota Yumiko , Petrovic Oliver , Putnick Diane L.
Published: January 2012

The Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS) is a nationally representative, internationally comparable household survey implemented to examine protective and risk factors of child development in developing countries around the world. This introduction describes the conceptual framework, nature of the MICS3, and general analytic plan of articles in this Special Section. The articles that follow describe the situations of children with successive foci on nutrition, parenting, discipline and violence, and the home environment. They address 2 common questions: How do developing and underresearched countries in the world vary with respect to these central indicators of children’s development? How do key indicators of national development relate to child development in each of these substantive areas? The Special Section concludes with policy implications from the international findings.
Child Development in Developing Countries: Child Rights and Policy Implications
Authors: Britto Pia Rebello , Ulkuer Nurper
Published: January 2012

The Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey was used to provide information on feeding practices, caregiving, discipline and violence, and the home environment for young children across 28 countries. The findings from the series of studies in this Special Section are the first of their kind because they provide information on the most proximal context for development of the youngest children in the majority world using one of the only data sets to study these contexts across countries. Using the framework of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, in particular the Rights to Survival, Development and Protection, findings are explained with implications for international and national‐level social policies. Implications are also discussed, with respect to policy makers and the larger international community, who have the obligation to uphold these rights.
Infant and Young Child Feeding in Developing Countries
Authors: Arabi Mandana , Frongillo Edward A. , Avula Rasmi , Mangasaryan Nuné
Published: January 2012

Feeding practices are important determinants of growth and development of children. Using infant and young child feeding indicators and complementary feeding guidelines, 7 practices in 28 countries are described, showing substantial variation across countries. Only 25% of 0‐ to 5‐month‐olds were exclusively breastfed, and only half of 6‐ to 8‐month‐olds received complementary foods the previous day. Median duration of breastfeeding and increase of fluid intake during diarrhea were low among countries with a high Human Development Index (HDI). Living in high‐HDI countries may not translate to positive feeding practices. Across countries, there is a need for promotion, protection, and support of optimal breastfeeding and complementary feeding practices as well as better adherence to recommendations for feeding during illness.
Interactive Ray Tracing of Large Models Using Voxel Hierarchies
Authors: Áfra Attila T.
Published: January 2012

We propose an efficient approach for interactive visualization of massive models with CPU ray tracing. A voxel‐based hierarchical level‐of‐detail (LOD) framework is employed to minimize rendering time and required system memory. In a pre‐processing phase, a compressed out‐of‐core data structure is constructed, which contains the original primitives of the model and the LOD voxels, organized into a kd‐tree. During rendering, data is loaded asynchronously to ensure a smooth inspection of the model regardless of the available I/O bandwidth. With our technique, we are able to explore data sets consisting of hundreds of millions of triangles in real‐time on a desktop PC with a quad‐core CPU.
Coverage Properties of Confidence Intervals for Generalized Additive Model Components
Authors: MARRA GIAMPIERO , WOOD SIMON N.
Published: January 2012

Abstract. We study the coverage properties of Bayesian confidence intervals for the smooth component functions of generalized additive models (GAMs) represented using any penalized regression spline approach. The intervals are the usual generalization of the intervals first proposed by Wahba and Silverman in 1983 and 1985, respectively, to the GAM component context. We present simulation evidence showing these intervals have close to nominal ‘across‐the‐function’ frequentist coverage probabilities, except when the truth is close to a straight line/plane function. We extend the argument introduced byNychka in 1988for univariate smoothing splines to explain these results. The theoretical argument suggests that close to nominal coverage probabilities can be achieved, provided that heavy oversmoothing is avoided, so that the bias is not too large a proportion of the sampling variability. The theoretical results allow us to derive alternative intervals from a purely frequentist point of view, and to explain the impact that the neglect of smoothing parameter variability has on confidence interval performance. They also suggest switching the target of inference for component‐wise intervals away from smooth components in the space of the GAM identifiability constraints.
Managerial reforms and specialised psychiatric care: a study of resistive practices performed by mental health practitioners
Authors: Saario Sirpa
Published: January 2012

Throughout Western Europe, psychiatric care has been subjected to ‘modernisation’ by the implementation of various managerial reforms in order to achieve improved mental health services. This paper examines how practitioners resist specific managerial reforms introduced in Finnish outpatient clinics and a child psychiatry clinic. The empirical study involves documentary research and semi‐structured interviews with doctors, psychologists, nurses and social workers. The analysis draws on notions of Foucault’s conception of resistance as subtle strategies. Three forms of professional resistance are outlined: dismissive responses to clinical guidelines; a critical stance towards new managerial models; and improvised use of newly introduced information and communications technologies (ICTs). Resistance manifests itself as moderate modifications of practice, since more explicit opposition would challenge the managerial rhetoric of psychiatric care which is promoted in terms of positive connotations of client‐centredness, users’ rights, and the quality of the care. Therefore, instead of strongly challenging managerial reforms, practitioners keep them ‘alive’ and ongoing by continuously improvising, criticising and dismissing reforms’ non‐functional features. In conclusion it is suggested that managerial reforms in psychiatric care can only be implemented successfully if frontline practitioners themselves modify and translate them into clinical practice. The reconciliation between this task and practitioners’ therapeutic orientation is proposed for further study.
Weight stigma, addiction, science, and the medication of fatness in mid‐twentieth century America
Authors: Rasmussen Nicolas
Published: January 2012

Obesity and overweight are today recognised as subject to harmful stigma. Through an analysis of discussions of obesity in major American newspapers, the medical literature, and pharmaceutical advertising in the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s, I document a significant shift in medical thinking about overweight and obesity based in psychiatry, and explore the relationship of that shift to changes in popular understandings of fatness after the Second World War. I argue that the psychiatrically‐oriented postwar medical thinking about obesity was more stigmatising as compared with the endocrinologically‐oriented thinking of the interwar period, in that the newer biomedical theory linked fatness to the already stigmatised condition of addiction and authorised attribution of moral blame to the fat. I further argue that the pharmaceutical industry cannot be assigned the lead role in medicalisation in this period that some authors attributed to it. These events cast doubt on the received view of fatness as subject to decreasing stigma and increasing medicalisation over the course of the twentieth century, and call for exploration of the social factors influencing specific forms of medicalisation.
Stigma in an era of medicalisation and anxious parenting: how proximity and culpability shape middle‐class parents’ experiences of disgrace
Authors: Francis Ara
Published: January 2012

This study examines the stigma experiences of middle‐class parents whose children have physical, psychological and behavioural problems. Qualitative interviews with 34 mothers and 21 fathers demonstrate that parents experience two types of stigma: courtesy stigma and the stigma of being a bad parent. While the former stems from close social proximity to stigmatised children, the latter stems from ostensible culpability for children’s problems. Both characteristics are social constructs embedded in the larger contexts of an anxious, intensive parenting culture and the problematisation and medicalisation of childhood. As a consequence, mothers, parents whose children have invisible disabilities, and the parents of young children are particularly susceptible to negative labelling. These findings highlight the constructed and political nature of parents’ stigmatisation.
Effect of the HIV nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor zidovudine on the growth and differentiation of primary gingival epithelium
Authors: Mitchell D , Israr M , Alam S , Kishel J , Dinello D , Meyers C
Published: January 2012

Objectives

Oral complications associated with HIV infection and with the antiretroviral drugs used to treat it are of increasing concern in HIV‐infected patients. Protease inhibitors have been shown to change the proliferation and differentiation state of oral tissues but the effect of nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors is currently unknown. This study examined the effect of zidovudine on the growth and differentiation of the gingival epithelium.

Methods

Gingival keratinocyte organotypic (raft) cultures were established. The raft cultures were treated with a range of zidovudine concentrations. Haematoxylin and eosin staining was performed to examine the effect of zidovudine on gingival epithelium growth and stratification. Raft cultures were immunohistochemically analysed to determine the effect of this drug on the expression of key differentiation and proliferation markers, including cytokeratins and proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA).

Results

Zidovudine dramatically changed the proliferation and differentiation state of gingival tissues both when it was present throughout the growth period of the tissue and when it was added to established tissue at day 8. Zidovudine treatment increased the expression of cytokeratin 10, PCNA and cyclin A. Conversely, cytokeratin 5, involucrin and cytokeratin 6 expression was decreased. The tissue exhibited characteristics of increased proliferation in the suprabasal layers as well as an increased fragility and an inability to heal itself.

Conclusions

Zidovudine treatment, even when applied at low concentrations for short periods of time, deregulated the cell cycle/proliferation and differentiation pathways, resulting in abnormal epithelial repair and proliferation. Our system could potentially be developed as a model for studying the effects of HIV and highly active antiretroviral therapy in vitro.
Predictive value of HIV‐1 replication capacity and phenotypic susceptibility scores in antiretroviral treatment‐experienced patients
Authors: Bedimo R , Kyriakides T , Brown S , Weidler J , Lie Y , Coakley E , Holodniy M
Published: January 2012

Objectives

The aim of the study was to determine the prognostic value of HIV replication capacity (RC) for subsequent antiretroviral (ARV) treatment response in ARV‐experienced patients.

Methods

RC and phenotypic resistance testing were performed at baseline and week 12 on plasma samples from patients randomized to undergo a 12‐week ARV drug‐free period (ARDFP) or initiate immediate salvage therapy (no‐ARDFP group) in the Options in Management with Antiretrovirals (OPTIMA) trial. Dichotomous and incremental phenotypic susceptibility scores (dPSSs and iPSSs, respectively) were calculated. The predictive value of RC and PSS for ARV therapy response and/or ARDFP was evaluated using multivariate regression analysis and Pearson correlations.

Results

In 146 no‐ARDFP subjects, baseline RC (50.8%) did not change at week 12 and was not correlated with CD4 cell count or viral load changes at week 12 (P = 0.33 and P = 0.79, respectively) or at week 24 (P = 0.96 and P = 0.14, respectively). dPSS predicted virological but not CD4 cell count response to ARV therapy at weeks 12, 24 and 48 (P = 0.002, P < 0.001 and P = 0.005, respectively). RC was significantly correlated with dPSS and iPSS at baseline, but did not increase their predictive value. In the 137 ARDFP patients, RC increased significantly (from 52.4 to 85.8%), but did not predict CD4 cell count and viral load changes during ARDFP (P = 0.92 and P = 0.26, respectively). RC after ARDFP did not predict subsequent CD4 cell count and viral load changes 12 weeks following ARV treatment reinitiation (P = 0.90 and P = 0.29, respectively).

Conclusions

We found no additional predictive value of replication capacity for virological or immunological responses (above what PSS provides) in patients undergoing salvage ARV treatment.
Nonoccupational post‐exposure prophylaxis source tracing: is it really feasible in Australia?
Authors: Pierce AB , Armishaw J , Price B , Wright EJ , Dax EM , Fairley CK , Hoy JF
Published: January 2012

Objective

A Swiss nonoccupational post‐exposure prophylaxis (NPEP) source‐tracing study successfully reduced unnecessary NPEP prescriptions by recruiting and testing source partners of unknown HIV serostatus. The Victorian NPEP Service in Australia attempted to replicate this study with the addition of HIV rapid testing and a mobile service.

Methods

Patients presenting to two busy NPEP sites who reported a source partner of unknown HIV status were routinely asked if their source could be traced. If the exposed person indicated that their source partner was traceable they were asked to contact them and discuss the possibility of having an HIV test.

Results

No sources were enrolled and the study was terminated.

Conclusion

We hypothesize that there are a number of differences between Australia and Switzerland that make source tracing unfeasible in Australia.
The ‘Bandon Valley Massacre’ as a Historical Problem
Authors: REGAN JOHN M.
Published: January 2012

Over three nights in late April 1922, eighteen people were killed in west county Cork, in Ireland. All save one of the dead were Protestants. This article re‐examines one of the most iconic and contested pieces of Irish historical writing to appear in recent decades: Peter Hart's chapter ‘Taking it out on the Protestants’, published in his award winning monograph, The IRA and its Enemies (1998). It has long been acknowledged that there were problems in Hart's use of sources supporting his thesis, that the massacre was a sectarian‐inspired event. But the extent of these problems only becomes apparent when the primary sources are examined in detail. Doing this allows us to deconstruct Hart's methodology and narrative, thereby identifying the criteria for his selection of evidence, alongside examining how he addressed anomalies in the evidence, which questioned whether what motivated the killings was indeed sectarian hatred. We cannot know what precisely happened in West Cork during the massacre. Nevertheless, it is possible to identify an ahistorical methodology at work in Hart's chapter, which props up an unambiguous, and for that, an equally ahistorical narrative of random sectarian murder. Recognition of this sends a stark warning to the wider community about the necessity of verifying sources when reviewing historical writing, in order to check interpretative problems and academic fraud.
Chartism, Bronterre O'Brien and the ‘Luminous Political Example of America’
Authors: TURNER MICHAEL J.
Published: January 2012

This article explores the connections between Chartism, the most important popular reform mobilization in nineteenth‐century Britain, and the United States of America, a source of hope and inspiration for many British radicals of the period, by focusing on the ideas and publications of James Bronterre O'Brien. The article explains why Chartists admired America's political system and social condition, why Britain seemed to them to be so flawed and corrupt in comparison, and how O'Brien – Chartism's ‘schoolmaster’– used America in his political activities. Despite his key role in Chartism, especially in its early stages, O'Brien's reputation suffered thereafter, and among historians he has attracted only limited interest. His career merits another look. This article highlights in particular the ways in which he endorsed and increased the relevance of America to British radicals.
FOUCAULT, FIELDS OF GOVERNABILITY, AND THE POPULATION–FAMILY–ECONOMY NEXUS IN CHINA
Authors: THOMPSON MALCOLM
Published: January 2012

It was only in the early twentieth century that China discovered that it had a population, at least if a population is understood not as a simple number of people but instead in terms of such features as variable levels of health, birth and death rates, age, sex, dependency ratios, and so on—as an object with a distinct rationality and intrinsic dynamics that can be made the target of a specific kind of direct intervention. In 1900, such a developmentalist conception of the population simply did not exist in China; by the 1930s, it pervaded the entire social and political field from top to bottom. Through a reading of a series of foundational texts in population and family reformism in China, this paper argues that this birth of the Chinese population occurred as a result of a general transformation of practices of governing, one that necessarily also involved a reconceptualization of the family and a new logic of overall social rationalization; in short, the isolation of a population–family–economy nexus as a central field of modern governing. This process is captured by elaborating and extending Foucault's studies of the historical emergence of apparatuses (dispositifs) into a notion of fields of governability. Finally, this paper argues that the one‐child policy, launched in the late 1970s, should be understood not in isolation from the imposition of the “family‐responsibility system” in agriculture and market reforms in exactly that period, but as part—mutatis mutandis—of a return to a form of governing that was developed in the first half of the twentieth century.
Six Weeks to 45 Years: A Longitudinal Study of a Population with Down Syndrome
Authors: Carr Janet
Published: January 2012

Background  A population sample of people with Down Syndrome, repeatedly studied since infancy, has now been followed up at the age of 45 years. The paper is intended to give an overview of their abilities, as represented by the results of psychological tests, over their life span to date.

Methods  As at all previous occasions from age 30 onwards, intelligence, language, academic abilities and memory were tested, and self‐help skills assessed.

Results  Mean IQs, both non‐verbal and verbal, changed little from age 21 to 45. Disregarding the scores of two women severely affected by dementia, the remainder of the cohort lost over the whole period an average of less than one point in non‐verbal IQ and gained over five months in verbal age. Scores on memory tests by some of those not yet diagnosed with AD declined, in some cases significantly, suggesting that other members of the cohort too may be showing the early signs of the disease.

Conclusions  While most of the cohort show few indications of decline in ability, a number now are or may be affected by AD, and this may require closer monitoring in the future.
The effect of enhanced external counterpulsation on C‐reactive protein and flow‐mediated dilation in porcine model of hypercholesterolaemia
Authors: Liu Yanqiu , Xiong Yan , Liu Donghong , Luo Chufan , Zhang Yan , Wu Guifu , Xie Qiang , Dong Yugang , Zheng Zhensheng
Published: January 2012

Background:  Lipid disorder causes vascular endothelial cell damage and contributes to the early development of dyslipidaemia‐induced atherosclerosis. In vivo and in vitro, it has been found that increasing shear stress can improve endothelial function. Clinically, enhanced external counterpulsation (EECP) plays important roles in the treatment of coronary artery disease by promoting arterial shear stress. The present study aims to evaluate the effect of EECP on vascular endothelial function in porcine hypercholesterolaemic model.

Methods:  Twenty‐six hypercholesterolaemic pigs were equally divided into EECP group (HC‐EECP group) and control group (HC group). Shear stress of a right forearm superficial artery was measured during EECP in comparison with the basal physiological status in the HC‐EECP group. Endothelial‐dependent flow‐mediated vasodilation (FMD) was applied to assess endothelial function. Serum high‐sensitivity C‐reactive protein (hs‐CRP) levels were measured at indicated time points.

Results:  Endothelial shear stress was increased significantly during EECP treatment (P<0·001). Compared to HC group, hs‐CRP decreased significantly by EECP at 18‐ and 36‐h, respectively (P<0·05). FMD was improved significantly by EECP compared to that of HC group at 18 h (11·09 ± 5·63%) and at 36 h (11·42 ± 2·75%) post‐EECP, P<0·05. Meanwhile, in animals of HC group, FMD was decreased from baseline 7·76 ± 3·70% to 6·75 ± 3·57% at 18 h and 5·07 ± 1·97% at 36 h, P<0·05.

Conclusion:  Long‐term EECP can improve endothelial function partially by an increased endothelial shear stress in hypercholesterolaemic porcine model. This implies that long‐term EECP can be used as a complementary therapeutic strategy to prevent atherosclerosis in hypercholesterolaemic patients.