bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
PRSS8 is Downregulated and Suppresses Tumour Growth and Metastases in Hepatocellular Carcinoma
Authors: Zhang Li , Jia Guozhan , Shi Binya , Ge Guanqun , Duan Hongbin , Yang Yunsheng
Published: December 2016

Background: Protease serine 8 (PRSS8), a trypsin-like serine peptidase, has been shown to function as a tumour suppressor in various malignancies. The present study aimed to investigate the expression pattern, prognostic value and the biological role of PRSS8 in human hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Methods: PRSS8 expression in 106 HCC surgical specimens was examined by Real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and immunohistochemistry, and its clinical significance was analysed. The role of PRSS8 in cell proliferation, apoptosis and invasion were examined in vitro and in vivo. Results: PRSS8 mRNA and protein expression were decreased in most HCC tumours from that in matched adjacent non-tumour tissues. Low intratumoral PRSS8 expression was significantly correlated with poor overall survival (OS) in patients with HCC (P = 0.001). PRSS8 expression was an independent prognostic factor for OS (hazard ratio [HR] = 1.704, P = 0.009). Furthermore, restoring PRSS8 expression in high metastatic HCCLM3 cells significantly inhibited cell proliferation and invasion. In contrast, silencing PRSS8 expression in non-metastatic HepG2 cells significantly enhanced cell growth and invasion. Moreover, our in vivo data revealed that attenuated PRSS8 expression in HepG2 cells greatly promoted tumour growth, while overexpression of PRSS8 remarkably inhibited tumour growth in an HCCLM3 xenograft model. Enhanced cell growth and invasion ability mediated by the loss of PRSS8 expression was associated with downregulation of PTEN, Bax and E-cadherin and an upregulation in Bcl-2, MMP9 and N-cadherin. Conclusions: Our data demonstrate that PRSS8 may serve as a tumour suppressor in HCC progression, and represent a valuable prognostic marker and potential therapeutic target for HCC.
Network Meta-Analysis of Pharmacological Agents for Osteoporosis Treatment and Fracture Prevention
Authors: Yang Xu-cheng , Deng Zhen-han , Wen Ting , Luo Wei , Xiao Wen-feng , Zhao Rui-bo , Li Yu-sheng
Published: December 2016

Background and Objective: Osteoporosis afflicts a large number of populations in the world and is featured by systemic impairment of bone mass and strength which may further trigger an increase in the risk of fragile fractures. This network meta-analysis (NMA) is designed to distinguish therapies more preferable than others with respect to efficacy and safety. Methods: We searched the medical literature for relevant studies systematically. Both direct and indirect evidence were synthesized to compare the efficacy, described by odds ratios (OR) and 95% credible intervals (CrI). Moreover, the surface under cumulative ranking curve was calculated to rank probabilities with respect to clinical outcomes. The new non-vertebral fractures, hip and wrist fractures, and adverse events were evaluated in this NMA. Results: Patients treated by alendronate, denosumab, teriparatide were associated with a reduced risk of new non-vertebral fractures compared to those treated by placebo. Alendronate, denosumab and zoledronic acid had better efficacy in preventing hip fractures. With respect to wrist fractures prevention, no significant difference was observed. Zoledronic acid exhibited significantly increased risk of adverse events than placebo, alendronate, denosumab, and raloxifene. According to SUCRA, teriparatide ranked highest in new non-vertebral fractures prevention, etidronate and denosumab balanced safety and efficacy well. Conclusion: In summary, teriparatide appeared to be the most efficacious drug for preventing new non-vertebral fractures, while etidronate and denosumab were preferable for balancing safety and efficacy well.
Nordic Walking and the Isa Method for Breast Cancer Survivors: Effects on Upper Limb Circumferences and Total Body Extracellular Water - a Pilot Study
Authors: Di Blasio Andrea , Morano Teresa , Napolitano Giorgio , Bucci Ines , Di Santo Serena , Gallina Sabina , Cugusi Lucia , Di Donato Francesco , D'Arielli Alberto , Cianchetti Ettore
Published: December 2016

Background: The negative side effects of breast cancer treatments can include upper limb lymphoedema. The growing literature indicates that Nordic walking is an effective discipline against several disease symptoms. The aim of this study was to determine whether introduction to Nordic walking alone is effective against total body extracellular water and upper limb circumferences in breast cancer survivors compared to its combination with a series of specifically created exercises (i.e. the Isa method). Methods: 16 breast cancer survivors (49.09 ± 2.24 years) were recruited and randomly assigned to 1 of 2 different training groups. Results: 10 lessons on Nordic walking technique plus the Isa method significantly reduced both extracellular body water and the extracellular-to-total body water ratio (p = 0.01 for both), and also the circumference of the upper limb, (both relaxed arm and forearm circumferences) (p = 0.01 for all), whereas Nordic walking alone did not. Conclusions: Introduction to Nordic walking does not seem to affect lymphoedema in breast cancer survivors. This might be because novice Nordic Walkers do not adequately generate an effective muscular pump through coordination of the alternated bimanual open-close cycle. The Isa method appears to close this gap.
Patent Foramen Ovale With Atrial Septal Aneurysm Is Strongly Associated With Migraine With Aura: A Large Observational Study
Authors: Snijder Roel J. R. , Luermans Justin G. L. M. , de Heij Albert H. , Thijs Vincent , Schonewille Wouter J. , Van De Bruaene Alexander , Swaans Martin J. , Budts Werner I. H. L. , Post Martijn C.
Published: December 2016

Background

A patent foramen ovale (
PFO
) with atrial septal aneurysm (
ASA
) has been identified as a risk factor for cryptogenic stroke. Patients with migraine with aura (
MA
) appear to be at risk for silent brain infarction, which might be related to the presence of a
PFO
. However, the association between
MA
and
PFO
with
ASA
has never been reported. We examined this association in a large observational study.

Methods and Results

Patients (>18 years) who underwent an agitated saline transesophageal echocardiography (c
TEE
) at our outpatient clinics within a timeframe of 4 years were eligible to be included. Before c
TEE
they received a validated headache questionnaire. Two neurologists diagnosed migraine with or without aura according to the International Headache Criteria. A total of 889 patients (mean age 56.4±14.3 years, 41.7% women) were included. A
PFO
was present in 23.2%, an isolated
ASA
in 2.7%, and a
PFO
with
ASA
in 6.9%. The occurrence of migraine was 18.9%; the occurrence of
MA
was 8.1%. The prevalence of
PFO
with
ASA
was significantly higher in patients with
MA
compared to patients without migraine (18.1% vs 6.1%;
OR
3.72, 95%
CI
1.86‐7.44,
P
<0.001). However, a
PFO
without
ASA
was not significantly associated with
MA
(
OR
1.50, 95%
CI
0.79‐2.82,
P
=0.21). Interestingly, a
PFO
with
ASA
was strongly associated with
MA
(
OR
2.71, 95%
CI
1.23‐5.95,
P
=0.01).

Conclusion

In this large observational study,
PFO
with
ASA
was significantly associated with
MA
only.
PFO
closure studies should focus on this specific intra‐atrial anomaly.
Polymorphisms in the GNAS Gene as Predictors of Ventricular Tachyarrhythmias and Sudden Cardiac Death: Results From the DISCOVERY Trial and Oregon Sudden Unexpected Death Study
Authors: Wieneke Heinrich , Svendsen Jesper Hastrup , Lande Jeffrey , Spencker Sebastian , Martinez Juan Gabriel , Strohmer Bernhard , Toivonen Lauri , Le Marec Hervé , Garcia‐Fernandez F. Javier , Corrado Domenico , Huertas‐Vazquez Adriana , Uy‐Evanado Audrey , Rusinaru Carmen , Reinier Kyndaron , Foldesi Csaba , Hulak Wieslaw , Chugh Sumeet S. , Siffert Winfried
Published: November 2016

Background

Population‐based studies suggest that genetic factors contribute to sudden cardiac death (
SCD
).

Methods and Results

In the first part of the present study (Diagnostic Data Influence on Disease Management and Relation of Genetic Polymorphisms to Ventricular Tachy‐arrhythmia in ICD Patients [DISCOVERY] trial) Cox regression was done to determine if 7 single‐nucleotide polymorphisms (
SNP
s) in 3 genes coding G‐protein subunits (
GNB
3,
GNAQ
,
GNAS
) were associated with ventricular tachyarrhythmia (
VT
) in 1145 patients receiving an implantable cardioverter‐defibrillator (
ICD
). In the second part of the study,
SNP
s significantly associated with
VT
were further investigated in 1335 subjects from the Oregon
SUDS
, a community‐based study analyzing causes of
SCD
. In the
DISCOVERY
trial, genotypes of 2
SNP
s in the
GNAS
gene were nominally significant in the prospective screening and significantly associated with
VT
when viewed as recessive traits in post hoc analyses (
TT
vs
CC
/
CT
in c.393C>T:
HR
1.42 [
CI
1.11‐1.80],
P
=0.005;
TT
vs
CC
/
CT
in c.2273C>T:
HR
1.57 [
CI
1.18‐2.09],
P
=0.002).
TT
genotype in either
SNP
was associated with a
HR
of 1.58 (
CI
1.26‐1.99) (
P
=0.0001). In the Oregon
SUDS
cohort significant evidence for association with
SCD
was observed for
GNAS
c.393C>T under the additive (
P
=0.039,
OR
=1.21 [
CI
1.05‐1.45]) and recessive (
P
=0.01,
OR
=1.52 [
CI
1.10‐2.13]) genetic models.

Conclusions

GNAS
harbors 2
SNP
s that were associated with an increased risk for
VT
in
ICD
patients, of which 1 was successfully replicated in a community‐based population of
SCD
cases. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first example of a gene variant identified by
ICD VT
monitoring as a surrogate parameter for
SCD
and also confirmed in the general population.

Clinical Trial Registration

URL
:
http://www.clinicaltrials.gov
. Unique identifier:
NCT
00478933.
Prediction of Blood–Brain Barrier Disruption and Intracerebral Hemorrhagic Infarction Using Arterial Spin-Labeling Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Authors: Niibo Takeya , Ohta Hajime , Miyata Shirou , Ikushima Ichiro , Yonenaga Kazuchika , Takeshima Hideo
Published: December 2016

Background and Purpose—

Arterial spin-labeling magnetic resonance imaging is sensitive for detecting hyperemic lesions (HLs) in patients with acute ischemic stroke. We evaluated whether HLs could predict blood–brain barrier (BBB) disruption and hemorrhagic transformation (HT) in acute ischemic stroke patients.

Methods—

In a retrospective study, arterial spin-labeling was performed within 6 hours of symptom onset before revascularization treatment in 25 patients with anterior circulation large vessel occlusion on baseline magnetic resonance angiography. All patients underwent angiographic procedures intended for endovascular therapy and a noncontrast computed tomography scan immediately after treatment. BBB disruption was defined as a hyperdense lesion present on the posttreatment computed tomography scan. A subacute magnetic resonance imaging or computed tomography scan was performed during the subacute phase to assess HTs. The relationship between HLs and BBB disruption and HT was examined using the Alberta Stroke Program Early Computed Tomography Score locations in the symptomatic hemispheres.

Results—

A HL was defined as a region where CBF
relative
≥1.4 (CBF
relative
=CBF
HL
/CBF
contralateral
). HLs, BBB disruption, and HT were found in 9, 15, and 15 patients, respectively. Compared with the patients without HLs, the patients with HLs had a higher incidence of both BBB disruption (100% versus 37.5%;
P
=0.003) and HT (100% versus 37.5%;
P
=0.003). Based on the Alberta Stroke Program Early Computed Tomography Score locations, 21 regions of interests displayed HLs. Compared with the regions of interests without HLs, the regions of interests with HLs had a higher incidence of both BBB disruption (42.8% versus 3.9%;
P
<0.001) and HT (85.7% versus 7.8%;
P
<0.001).

Conclusions—

HLs detected on pretreatment arterial spin-labeling maps may enable the prediction and localization of subsequent BBB disruption and HT.
Infarct Pattern and Collateral Status in Adult Moyamoya Disease
Authors: Kim Dong Yeop , Son Jeong Pyo , Yeon Je Young , Kim Gyeong-Moon , Kim Jong-Soo , Hong Seung-Chyul , Bang Oh Young
Published: December 2016

Background and Purpose—

Moyamoya disease (MMD) is a unique cerebrovascular disease characterized by the progressive stenosis of large intracranial arteries and a hazy network of basal collaterals, called moyamoya vessels. Although hemodynamic studies have been applied in MMD patients, the mechanisms of stroke in MMD are still unclear. The present study evaluated the infarct pattern and collateral status using multimodal magnetic resonance imaging in MMD patients.

Methods—

Adult MMD patients with acute ischemic stroke were prospectively recruited, and infarct pattern on diffusion-weighted imaging was evaluated. A collateral flow map, derived from magnetic resonance perfusion–weighted imaging data, was generated through automatic postprocessing, and collateral status was assigned into 3 grades. Transcranial Doppler monitoring was performed to detect microembolic signals in selected patients.

Results—

A total of 67 hemispheres (31 patients with bilateral and 5 patients with unilateral MMD) were analyzed. Most patients (83.7%) showed embolic pattern and rarely deep (9.3%) or hemodynamic infarct pattern (7.0%) on diffusion-weighted imaging. Most cases (86%) showed good collateral status, and few patients with acute infarcts of embolic pattern showed poor collateral status (n=7). One third (31.6%) of patients who underwent transcranial Doppler monitoring showed microembolic signals.

Conclusions—

In the studied population of adult MMD patients, embolic phenomenon played an important role in ischemic stroke. Therapeutic strategies against thromboembolism, as well as collateral enhancing strategies targeting improvement of hemodynamic status or increased washout of emboli, are warranted.
Lipid Changes Around the Final Menstrual Period Predict Carotid Subclinical Disease in Postmenopausal Women
Authors: Matthews Karen A. , El Khoudary Samar R. , Brooks Maria M. , Derby Carol A. , Harlow Siobán D. , Barinas-Mitchell Emma J.M. , Thurston Rebecca C.
Published: December 2016

Background and Purpose—

Atherogenic changes in lipids occur among women around the time of the natural menopause, that is, within 1 year of the final menstrual period (FMP). We investigated whether lipid changes around the FMP are related to carotid intima-media thickness, interadventitial diameter, and plaque in postmenopausal women.

Methods—

A total of 863 natural postmenopausal women with no history of heart attack or stroke underwent carotid ultrasound scans at follow-up year 12 or 13 of the Study of Women’s Health Across the Nation. Estimates of their annual change in lipids were segmented into the year before and after the FMP, before the year before FMP, and 1 year after FMP. Multivariate analyses were adjusted for sociodemographic characteristics, time from FMP to scan, baseline body mass index and systolic blood pressure, and use of medications for hypertension and diabetes mellitus at the scan.

Results—

Smaller increases in high-density lipoprotein cholesterol and apolipoprotein A1 within 1 year of the FMP were related to greater interadventitial diameter, β (SE)=−0.036 (0.015),
P
=0.02, and β (SE)=−0.035 (0.013),
P
=0.006, respectively. Greater increases in low-density lipoprotein cholesterol within 1 year of FMP were related to greater likelihood of plaque scores ≥2, odds ratio, 1.071; 95% confidence interval, 1.018–1.127;
P
=0.009. Magnitude of associations was reduced but remained significant with further adjustment for premenopausal lipid levels. The difference in probability of elevated plaque scores was 50% between those in the highest and lowest low-density lipoprotein cholesterol change tertiles.

Conclusions—

Changes in lipids as women approach the FMP provide useful clinical information for understanding postmenopausal carotid indices.
ExCITE Project: A Review of Forty-Two Months of Robotic Telepresence Technology Evolution
Authors: Orlandini Andrea , Kristoffersson Annica , Almquist Lena , Björkman Patrik , Cesta Amedeo , Cortellessa Gabriella , Galindo Cipriano , Gonzalez-Jimenez Javier , Gustafsson Kalle , Kiselev Andrey , Loutfi Amy , Melendez Francisco , Nilsson Malin , Hedman Lasse Odens , Odontidou Eleni , Ruiz-Sarmiento Jose-Raul , Scherlund Mårten , Tiberio Lorenza , von Rump Stephen , Coradeschi Silvia
Published: December 2016

This article reports on the EU project ExCITE with specific focus on the technical development of the telepresence platform over a period of 42 months. The aim of the project was to assess the robustness and validity of the mobile robotic telepresence (MRP) system Giraff as a means to support elderly people and to foster their social interaction and participation. Embracing the idea of user-centered product refinement, the robot was tested over long periods of time in real homes. As such, the system development was driven by a strong involvement of elderly people and their caregivers but also by technical challenges associated with deploying the robot in real-world contexts. The results of the 42-months’ long evaluation is a system suitable for use in homes rather than a generic system suitable, for example, in office environments.
Fortune and Fairness in Global Economic Life
Authors: James Aaron
Published: December 2016

This paper develops John Rawls’s famous objection to the system of natural liberty as against the contemporary system of international trade. Even as “dynamic” policies have proven successful in several recent development success stories, the current system enforces a “static,” laissez-faire system of comparative advantage that threatens to consign poorly-endowed countries to a low-productivity, low-income destiny in agriculture and raw materials. I discuss two very different fairness arguments in favor of allowing and encouraging “dynamic,” pro-development polices: an argument from “structural equity” and an argument from “equity of fortune.” I suggest that the former is of more central importance, and that the difference between the two kinds of fairness argument shows why Rawls’s original objection to the (domestic) system of natural liberty does not imply “luck egalitarianism.”
Fair Play and Wrongful Benefits
Authors: Pasternak Avia
Published: December 2016

According to the fair play defense of political obligations citizens have a reciprocity-based duty to share the costs involved in the production of public goods. But sometimes, states produce collective goods through wrongdoing. For example, sometimes states’ wrongful immigration policies can contribute to the welfare of their own populations. Do citizens have duties of reciprocity in light of such wrongful benefits? I argue that the answer to this question is negative. Drawing on the observation that beneficiaries of wrongdoing incur compensatory duties to the victims of that wrongdoing, I argue that, rather than having a duty of reciprocity for wrongful benefits, citizens have a duty to disgorge the benefits in compensation. Furthermore, the fair play defense of political obligations entails that citizens can be justified in disobeying the law in order to comply with their compensatory duties to victims of their state’s wrongdoing.
Climate Change, Individual Emissions, and Foreseeing Harm
Authors: Vance Chad
Published: December 2016

There are a number of cases where, collectively, groups cause harm, and yet no single individual’s contribution to the collective makes any difference to the amount of harm that is caused. For instance, though human activity is collectively causing climate change, my individual greenhouse gas emissions are neither necessary nor sufficient for any harm that results from climate change. Some (e.g., Sinnott-Armstrong) take this to indicate that there is no individual moral obligation to reduce emissions. There is a collective action problem here, to which I offer a solution. My solution rests on an argument for a (sometimes) bare moral difference between intending harm and foreseeing with near certainty that harm will result as an unintended side-effect of one’s action. I conclude that we have a moral obligation to reduce our individual emissions, and, more broadly, an obligation to not participate in many other harmful group activities (e.g., factory-farming).
Social Equality and the Global Society
Authors: Cloarec Pierre
Published: December 2016

Are democratic egalitarians bound to endorse statism? It seems so, since they insist on democratic reciprocity, and no such relation exists in the global realm. Would it not, then, be inconsistent to endorse both cosmopolitanism and democratic egalitarianism? Democratic egalitarians seemingly face a dilemma: either they accept statism, or they must explain why not. Luck egalitarianism, by contrast, seemingly grounds more straightforwardly the claim that justice is global in scope. My thesis is twofold: first, I show that democratic egalitarians can escape the dilemma, to the effect that, as such, they need be committed neither to statism nor to cosmopolitanism, and that luck egalitarians are not as shielded from the dilemma as it might seem. Second, I defend the plausibility of global social egalitarianism against both statist variants of democratic egalitarianism and luck egalitarianism, and suggest a form of division of labor between domestic and global justice.
Imagining Social Transformations: Territory Making and the Project of Radical Pragmatism
Authors: Dorstewitz Philipp
Published: December 2016

Saskia Sassen today and Jane Adams more than 100 years ago are both social scientists and public philosophers of reconstruction. Both offer defining contributions to a philosophical tradition that will be identified here as “radical pragmatism”. Sassen’s theoretical stance “before method” serves as a key to understand Addams’s locally embedded urban activist projects as a form of social scientific inquiry. Sassen introduces the concept of “territory making” as a spark of hope against rampant and destructive global trends of “expulsions”, which her approach reveals. In this article this concept of “territory making” will be explored in various contexts and with particular attention to Addams’s Hull house project. It will be shown how a pragmatist brand of human imagination is critical in “territory making”. This leads to reconsidering the role of art in social transformation projects.
Rorty as Virtue Liberal
Authors: Curtis William M.
Published: December 2016

Virtue liberalism holds that the success of liberal politics and society depends on the citizenry possessing a set of liberal virtues, including traits like open-mindedness, toleration, and individual autonomy. Virtue liberalism is thus an ethically demanding conception of liberalism that is at odds with conceptions, like Rawlsian political liberalism andmodus vivendiliberalism, that attempt to minimize liberalism’s ethical impact in order to accommodate a greater range of ethical pluralism. Although he claims to be a Rawlsian political liberal, Richard Rorty’s pragmatic liberalism is best understood as a version of virtue liberalism that, in particular, recommends a controversial civic virtue of irony for good liberal citizenship. Indeed, Rorty ultimately joins Dewey in conceiving of liberal democracy as a “way of life,” rather than merely a set of political relations that have a minimal effect on our characters or on the shape of our private commitments and projects.
Liberation Pragmatism: Dussel and Dewey in Dialogue
Authors: Sager Alex , Spencer Albert R.
Published: December 2016

Enrique Dussel and John Dewey share commitments to philosophical theory and practice aimed at addressing human problems, democratic modes of inquiry, and progressive social reform, but also maintain productive differences in their fundamental starting point for political philosophy and their use of the social sciences. Dussel provides a corrective to Dewey’s Eurocentrism and to his tendency to underplay the challenges of incorporating marginalized populations by insisting that social and political philosophy begin from the perspective of the marginalized and excluded. Simultaneously, Dewey encourages a modest experimental and fallibilist approach to social transformation that promises more feasible social reforms than Dussel’s approach rooted in phenomenology and the critical social sciences.
Before ṣūfiyyāt
Authors: Melchert Christopher
Published: December 2016

Some scholars have attempted to identify a distinctive, feminine spirituality among early Muslim renunciants and Sufis. Studies by Roded, Azad, Dakake, and Silvers are reviewed. Content analysis of Ibn al-Jawzī, Ṣifat al-ṣafwa, suggests that renunciant women and men (of the period before classical Sufism) were remembered for similar devotional activities in similar frequencies. The Damascene Yazīd b. Maysara (fl. earlier 2nd/8th cent.) is quoted as saying, “A reprobate woman is like a thousand reprobate men, while a virtuous woman will be credited with the work of a hundred male saints.” There is no room here to say that collections of renunciant sayings name surprisingly many saintly women, or that the tradition systematically suppressed reports of saintly women from disbelief in female saintliness. On the contrary, saintly women were part of the prevailing ideology.
A Glimpse of Sufism from the Circle of Ibn Taymiyya
Authors: Post Arjan
Published: December 2016

This article provides yet another testament to the reality that some form of Sufism existed amidst the circle of students and followers of Ibn Taymiyya (d. 728/1328). Based on a unique manuscript from Damascus, presented here for the first time is an Arabic edition and English translation of Risālat al-sulūk (Epistle on the Spiritual Way) by al-Baʿlabakkī (d. 734/1333), a Ḥanbalite student of Ibn Taymiyya who was also trained in the Sufi way. This is preceded by a study that sheds light on al-Baʿlabakkī’s intellectual context, which is primarily concerned with the place of Sufism in Ibn Taymiyya’s circle. The article then proceeds with a biography of al-Baʿlabakkī, followed by some relevant notes on the manuscript of Risālat al-sulūk and its edition and translation.
A new species of Hypodematium (Polypodiaceae, Hypodematioideae) from a limestone cave in Thailand
Authors: PONGKAI PUTTAMON , ZHANG LI-BING , POLLAWATN ROSSARIN
Published: November 2016

A new fern species, Hypodematium boonkerdii (Polypodiaceae subfamily Hypodematioideae), is described and illustrated from a limestone area in northeastern Thailand. It is distinguished from its closest relative, H. crenatum, by having a membranous lamina texture, sessile or subsessile pinnae and only one sorus per pinnule segment.
A new hydryphantid genus from the Tien Shan Mountains of Kazakhstan (Acari, Hydrachnidia: Hydryphantidae)
Authors: SMIT HARRY
Published: November 2016

Kazakhithyas pectinatus, n. gen. n. sp., is described from a rheohelocrene spring from the Tien Shan Mountains, Kazakhstan.
Early-diverging bumblebees from across the roof of the world: the high-mountain subgenus Mendacibombus revised from species’ gene coalescents and morphology (Hymenoptera, Apidae)
Authors: WILLIAMS PAUL H. , HUANG JIAXING , RASMONT PIERRE , AN JIANDONG
Published: December 2016

The bumblebees of the subgenus Mendacibombus of the genus Bombus are the sister group to all other extant bumblebees and are unusual among bees for specialising in some of the highest elevation habitats with entomophilous plants on Earth. Most named taxa in this group (24 available names, from a total of 49 published names) were described originally from small differences in the colour pattern of the hair, many as parts (e.g. subspecies) of just one species. Subsequent taxonomic treatments recognised multiple species, but have described very few morphological characters, most of which are in the male genitalia. We examined 4413 specimens representing all of the named taxa from throughout the group’s global range to describe variation in DNA, in skeletal morphology, and in the colour patterns of the hair. Using Bayesian inference of the phylogeny from an evolutionary model for the fast-evolving COI gene, and fitting either general mixed Yule/coalescent models or Poisson tree process models, we identify COI gene coalescents, which are expected to characterise species as evolutionarily independent lineages. None of the conditions most likely to compromise this interpretation (biased sampling, paralogy, introgression, heteroplasmy, incomplete lineage sorting) appears to be a substantial problem in this case. In an integrative analysis, we show that colour patterns are often variable within these groups and do not diagnose the same groups as we recognise from genes; in contrast, the groups recognised from gene coalescents can also be diagnosed from differences we identify in morphology. We infer that the 12 groups with coalescents in the COI gene that are corroborated by morphology constitute species, whereas many of these species are polymorphic in colour pattern. Lectotypes are designated for 15 taxa in order to reduce uncertainty in the identity and application of the names. We provide new morphological keys and distribution maps for the species. Then we use four genes (fast-evolving mitochondrial COI and 16S; and slower nuclear PEPCK and opsin) to obtain an absolute chronogram of phylogenetic relationships among the species. From published estimates that the most recent common ancestor of the subgenus Mendacibombus diverged from the other bumblebees at the beginning of the Oligocene, our results support the crown group of Mendacibombus as having diversified in the late Miocene, events that both appear to have been associated with periods of climate cooling. Relative conservatism in the alpine/subalpine climate niche of Mendacibombus, as compared with the much more diversified climate niches in the sister group of all other bumblebees, may have contributed to constraining the number of Mendacibombus species to just one twentieth of the total number of extant bumblebee species.
Research and Teaching on Social Issues: Some Accomplishments and Future Challenges
Authors: Cavanagh Gerald F.
Published: December 2016

This essay comments on some accomplishments and future challenges concerning research and teaching in social issues. The author chaired the All-Academy of Management Task Force on Ethics. The SIM Division’s role is to examine critically the suitability of the actions and policies of business managers, organizations (mostly business firms), and the free market system itself. The scope of inquiry covers ethics, governance of organizations, and stakeholders. The emphasis in that inquiry is on the benefits and harms to people from businesses and the market system. Three major issues deserve our examination: 1) the growing influence of the global corporation, 2) global climate change and the negative environmental impact of our lifestyles, and 3) the moral maturity or lack thereof of contemporary decision makers and citizens. Corporations have immense influence, reflected in the growing role of lobbying. Environmental degradation is one of the most serious problems that face people of our ever smaller planet, so it challenges us to examine our lifestyles and the carbon footprint of our actions. We are now able to research and teach the development of good moral habits (virtues) and character.
The effect of job loss on depressive symptoms: The results from the Korean Welfare Panel Study (2007–2013)
Authors: Yoon Hyo Jung , Choi Jae Woo , Jang Suk-Young , Lee Sang Ah , Park Eun-Cheol
Published: December 2016

Background:

Unemployment is closely associated with depressive symptoms. We conducted analysis to find whether the job loss increased the risk of depressive symptoms according to job status, occupation and tenure.

Methods:

Data were collected from Korean Welfare Panel Study (KOWEPS) from 2007 to 2013. To measure the increase in depressive score, we selected respondents who answered for at least 2 years of continuous waves. We performed a longitudinal analysis by generalized estimating equation (GEE) method with a total of 19,399 cases. Among them, 608 cases (3.1%) experienced job loss.

Results:

There was a significant rise in depressive score after job loss (β = 1.34, p = .000). In subgroup analysis, precarious and low-tenure workers are considerably more depressed after job loss (precarious: β = 1.98, p < .0001, low-tenure workers: β = 1.31, p = .001). Both white and blue collar workers showed a rise in depressive score significantly (white collar: β = 1.16, p = .031; blue: β = 2.03, p = .001).

Conclusion:

The results showed that precarious and low-tenure workers were relatively vulnerable in mental health after experiencing job loss with low and negative expectation for re-employment. It implies that supports for encouraging work skill and financial supports during the unemployment period should be needed.
Objectifying Climate Change
Authors: Lehtonen Turo-Kimmo
Published: December 2016

For quite some time, reinsurance companies have been pricing the ongoing climate change using weather- and catastrophe-related instruments and thus have been able to make money through climate change. Yet, at the same time, for reinsurance companies it is crucial that the likelihood of the events they underwrite is diminished as much as possible. Consequently, while profiting from the situation, these key actors of global capitalism also work to prevent climate change from taking place, and support the kinds of measures, on all political scales, that diminish the likelihood of severe climate change destruction. This article analyzes the materials that the reinsurance company Munich Re has distributed to stakeholders and asks how climate change is objectified by the reinsurance industry. How are weather-related catastrophes made into a financial risk and opportunity? The key conceptual tools for answering these questions are provided by Michel Serres’s work on world-objects.
Pronoun preferences of children in a language without typical third-person pronouns
Authors: Iraola Azpiroz Maialen , Santesteban Mikel , Sorace Antonella , Ezeizabarrena Maria-José
Published: December 2016

This study presents comprehension data from 6–7-and 8–10-year-old children as well as adults on the acceptability of null vs overt anaphoric forms (the demonstrative hura ‘that’ and the quasipronoun bera ‘(s)he, him-/herself’) in Basque, a language without true third-person pronouns. In an acceptability judgement task, a developmental change occurred in the preference for hura (Experiment 1): 6–7-year-olds showed a preference for the null pronoun in both topic-shift and topic-continuity contexts, while 8–10-year-olds, like adults, preferred hura in topic-shift contexts and null pronouns in topic-continuity contexts. However, no developmental shift was observed in the preference for bera (Experiment 2): unlike adults, neither 6–7 nor 8–10-year-old children selected bera over null pronouns in topic-shift contexts. They instead showed a general preference for null pronouns, an indication of tolerance for ambiguity – a pattern which differs from prior studies in other null-subject languages, where ambiguous pronouns declined with age. The results reveal a different developmental pattern for hura and bera, which may be explained by the more rigid (syntactic) constraints operating on hura in comparison to bera in antecedent choice.
What makes a word easy to acquire? The effects of word class, frequency, imageability and phonological neighbourhood density on lexical development
Authors: Hansen Pernille
Published: December 2016

This article analyses how a set of psycholinguistic factors may account for children’s lexical development. Age of acquisition is compared to a measure of lexical development based on vocabulary size rather than age, and robust regression models are used to assess the individual and joint effects of word class, frequency, imageability and phonological neighbourhood density on Norwegian children’s early lexical development. The Norwegian Communicative Development Inventories (CDI) norms were used to calculate each CDI word’s age of acquisition and vocabulary size of acquisition. Lexical properties were downloaded from the lexical database Norwegian Words, supplemented with data on frequency in adult and child-directed speech. Age of acquisition correlated highly with vocabulary size of acquisition, but the new measure was more evenly distributed and more sensitive to lexical effects. Frequency in child-directed speech was the most important predictor of lexical development, followed by imageability, which seems to account for the dominance of nominals over predicates in Norwegian.
Understanding Socioenvironmental Contributors to Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Disability Among Older Americans
Authors: Brenner Allison B. , Clarke Philippa J.
Published: December 2016

Our understanding of the mechanisms through which racial/ethnic disparities in disability in older adults develop and are maintained is limited. We examined the role of physical impairment, socioeconomic factors and health for racial/ethnic disparities in activities of daily living (ADL), and the modifying role of the indoor home environment. Data come from the National Health and Aging Trends Study ( N = 5,640), and negative binomial regression models were specified separately for men and women. Blacks and Hispanics reported more ADL difficulty than Whites. Living in homes with clutter was associated with higher rates of ADL difficulty, but it was not related to racial/ethnic disparities. Racial/ethnic differences were explained by physical impairment for men, but not for women. Socioeconomic factors and health accounted for remaining disparities for Black, but not for Hispanic women. Attention to individual and environmental factors is necessary to fully understand and address race/ethnic disparities in disability in older Americans.
Evaluating precision and repeatability of hand calipers
Authors: Dorland Steven G H
Published: December 2016

Often, statistical evaluations of metric data are overlooked in ceramic studies. This paper evaluates degrees of precision and repeatability through the application of a coefficient of variation analysis and a repeated measures ANOVA. First, the author assessed the use of calipers for measuring metric data that pertains to decorative elements. Second, the author assessed the degree of statistical difference between measurements taken and measurements that have been rounded, a technique used to account for intra-observer error. The results demonstrate that the precision and repeatability of calipers is suitable for effectively measuring metric data values, and the precision of non-rounded values does not differ greatly from rounded values. The author argues that calipers are an effective metric measuring aid that further contribute to studies of personal actions and thought processes of potters. As a result, archaeological focus can integrate a micro-scale understanding of potting communities to consider finding individual variation and the learning landscapes of inexperienced potters.
Reliability of infarct volumetry: Its relevance and the improvement by a software-assisted approach
Authors: Friedländer Felix , Bohmann Ferdinand , Brunkhorst Max , Chae Ju-Hee , Devraj Kavi , Köhler Yvette , Kraft Peter , Kuhn Hannah , Lucaciu Alexandra , Luger Sebastian , Pfeilschifter Waltraud , Sadler Rebecca , Liesz Arthur , Scholtyschik Karolina , Stolz Leonie , Vutukuri Rajkumar , Brunkhorst Robert
Published: December 2016

Despite the efficacy of neuroprotective approaches in animal models of stroke, their translation has so far failed from bench to bedside. One reason is presumed to be a low quality of preclinical study design, leading to bias and a low a priori power. In this study, we propose that the key read-out of experimental stroke studies, the volume of the ischemic damage as commonly measured by free-handed planimetry of TTC-stained brain sections, is subject to an unrecognized low inter-rater and test-retest reliability with strong implications for statistical power and bias. As an alternative approach, we suggest a simple, open-source, software-assisted method, taking advantage of automatic-thresholding techniques. The validity and the improvement of reliability by an automated method to tMCAO infarct volumetry are demonstrated. In addition, we show the probable consequences of increased reliability for precision, p-values, effect inflation, and power calculation, exemplified by a systematic analysis of experimental stroke studies published in the year 2015. Our study reveals an underappreciated quality problem in translational stroke research and suggests that software-assisted infarct volumetry might help to improve reproducibility and therefore the robustness of bench to bedside translation.
Global ablation of the mitochondrial calcium uniporter increases glycolysis in cortical neurons subjected to energetic stressors
Authors: Nichols Matthew , Elustondo Pia A , Warford Jordan , Thirumaran Aruloli , Pavlov Evgeny V , Robertson George S
Published: December 2016

The effects of global mitochondrial calcium (Ca2+) uniporter (MCU) deficiency on hypoxic-ischemic (HI) brain injury, neuronal Ca2+ handling, bioenergetics and hypoxic preconditioning (HPC) were examined. Forebrain mitochondria isolated from global MCU nulls displayed markedly reduced Ca2+ uptake and Ca2+-induced opening of the membrane permeability transition pore. Despite evidence that these effects should be neuroprotective, global MCU nulls and wild-type (WT) mice suffered comparable HI brain damage. Energetic stress enhanced glycolysis and depressed Complex I activity in global MCU null, relative to WT, cortical neurons. HI reduced forebrain NADH levels more in global MCU nulls than WT mice suggesting that increased glycolytic consumption of NADH suppressed Complex I activity. Compared to WT neurons, pyruvate dehydrogenase (PDH) was hyper-phosphorylated in MCU nulls at several sites that lower the supply of substrates for the tricarboxylic acid cycle. Elevation of cytosolic Ca2+ with glutamate or ionomycin decreased PDH phosphorylation in MCU null neurons suggesting the use of alternative mitochondrial Ca2+ transport. Under basal conditions, global MCU nulls showed similar increases of Ca2+ handling genes in the hippocampus as WT mice subjected to HPC. We propose that long-term adaptations, common to HPC, in global MCU nulls compromise resistance to HI brain injury and disrupt HPC.
A full-scale study on thermal degradation of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans in municipal solid waste incinerator fly ash and its secondary air pollution control in China
Authors: Gao Xingbao , Ji Bingjing , Yan Dahai , Huang Qifei , Zhu Xuemei
Published: December 2016

Degradation of polychlorinated dibenzo- p-dioxins and dibenzofurans in municipal solid waste incinerator fly ash is beneficial to its risk control. Fly ash was treated in a full-scale thermal degradation system (capacity 1 t d−1) to remove polychlorinated dibenzo- p-dioxins and dibenzofurans. Apart from the confirmation of the polychlorinated dibenzo- p-dioxin and dibenzofuran decomposition efficiency, we focused on two major issues that are the major obstacles for commercialising this decomposition technology in China, desorption and regeneration of dioxins and control of secondary air pollution. The toxic equivalent quantity values of polychlorinated dibenzo- p-dioxins and dibenzofurans decreased to <6 ng kg−1 and the detoxification rate was ⩾97% after treatment for 1 h at 400 °C under oxygen-deficient conditions. About 8.49% of the polychlorinated dibenzo- p-dioxins and dibenzofurans in toxic equivalent quantity (TEQ) of the original fly ash were desorbed or regenerated. The extreme high polychlorinated dibenzo- p-dioxin and dibenzofuran levels and dibenzo- p-dioxin and dibenzofuran congener profiles in the dust of the flue gas showed that desorption was the main reason, rather than de novo synthesis of polychlorinated dibenzo- p-dioxins and dibenzofurans in the exhaust pipe. Degradation furnace flue gas was introduced to the municipal solid waste incinerator economiser, and then co-processed in the air pollution control system. The degradation furnace released relatively large amounts of cadmium, lead and polychlorinated dibenzo- p-dioxins and dibenzofurans compared with the municipal solid waste incinerator, but the amounts emitted to the atmosphere did not exceed the Chinese national emission limits. Thermal degradation can therefore be used as a polychlorinated dibenzo- p-dioxin and dibenzofuran abatement method for municipal solid waste incinerator source in China.
Disclosure Recipients’ Social Reactions to Victims’ Disclosures of Intimate Partner Violence
Authors: Edwards Katie M. , Dardis Christina M.
Published: December 2016

Prior research indicates that victims of intimate partner violence (IPV) are most likely to disclose their victimization experiences to an informal support (e.g., friend, family), and that IPV disclosures are often met with both positive (e.g., empathic support) and negative (e.g., victim blame) reactions. However, research on social reactions to disclosure largely has neglected the perspectives of disclosure recipients. Guided by the attribution framework, the current study extends prior research by assessing factors (i.e., situation-specific, individual, relational, attributional, and emotional response) related to positive and negative reactions from the perspective of disclosure recipients ( N = 743 college students). Linear regression analyses indicated that positive social reactions were related to the victim being a woman, greater frequency of IPV victimization by the victim, greater frequency of IPV victimization by the disclosure recipient, less accepting attitudes toward IPV, a closer relationship with the victim, a less close relationship with the perpetrator, lower perceptions of victim responsibility, more empathy for the victim, and more emotional distress experienced by the disclosure recipient during the disclosure. Negative social reactions were associated with more accepting attitudes toward IPV, greater frequency of IPV victimization by the disclosure recipient, a less close relationship with the victim, higher perceptions of victim responsibility, and more emotional distress experienced by the disclosure recipient. Results suggest that programs to improve responses to victim disclosure should focus on decreasing IPV-supportive attitudes, increasing empathy, and assisting disclosure recipients in managing difficult emotional responses effectively.
On Moral-Natural and Moral-Positive Duties: A Combination Metaethical Theory in the Restoration Tradition
Authors: Martin Kraig , Clanton J. Caleb
Published: December 2016

This article elucidates a unique metaethical theory implicit in the work of several thinkers associated with the Stone-Campbell Restoration Movement. After positioning that theory within a broader landscape of metaethical positions endorsed by several prominent contemporary Christian philosophers and theologians, we address the concern that, when attending to the Euthyphro dilemma, the Restoration-inspired combination metaethical theory inevitably collapses into either an unalloyed divine command theory or an unalloyed natural law theory. In explaining how this sort of worry can be mitigated, we offer reason to think that the nonreductive, combination metaethical theory in question constitutes potentially fertile territory for further scholarly work in Christian ethics.