bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A possible cause of the variable detectability of macroprolactin by different immunoassay systems
Authors: Hattori Naoki , Aisaka Kohzo , Shimatsu Akira
Published: October 2015

Macroprolactinaemia is a major cause of hyperprolactinaemia. The detectability of macroprolactin varies widely among different immunoassay systems, but the causes are not fully known. This study aimed to identify the factors influencing the detectability of macroprolactin by immunoassay systems.

The study included 1544 patients who visited an obstetric and gynaecological hospital. Macroprolactinaemia was screened using the polyethylene glycol (PEG) method and confirmed using gel filtration chromatography and the protein G method. The prolactin (PRL) values determined by enzyme immunoassay (EIA) were compared with those of a chemiluminescence immunoassay system (Centaur) that is known to cross-react the least with macroprolactin.

Macroprolactinaemia was found in 62 of 1544 patients (4.02%) who visited an obstetric and gynaecological hospital. The ratio of EIA-determined total PRL to free PRL in the supernatant after PEG precipitation was significantly elevated in all 62 serum samples with macroprolactin compared to those in 1482 serum samples without macroprolactin. In contrast, the ratio of Centaur-determined total PRL to free PRL was significantly elevated in 32 serum samples (group 1) and was within the normal range in 30 (group 2) of 62 serum samples with macroprolactin. The prevalence of non-IgG-type macroprolactin was significantly higher in group 1 than in group 2. Centaur diagnosed hyperprolactinaemia less frequently than EIA (n=2 vs. 16) in 62 patients with macroprolactinaemia. Those two hyperprolactinaemic patients diagnosed by Centaur had non-IgG-type macroprolactin.

Macroprolactinaemia was present in 4% of patients visiting an obstetric and gynaecological hospital. The nature of macroprolactin (IgG-type or non-IgG-type) may partly explain why macroprolactin detectability varies among different immunoassay systems.
Evaluation of a hand-held blood gas analyzer for rapid determination of blood gases, electrolytes and metabolites in intensive care setting
Authors: Luukkonen Antti A.M. , Lehto Tiina M. , Hedberg Pirjo S.M. , Vaskivuo Tommy E.
Published: October 2015

Intensive care units, operating rooms, emergency departments, and neonatology units need rapid measurements of blood gases, electrolytes, and metabolites. These analyses can be performed in a central laboratory or at the clinic with traditional or compact cassette-type blood gas analyzers such as the epoc blood gas testing system for analyzing whole blood samples at the bedside. In this study, the performance and interchangeability of a hand-held epoc blood gas analyzer was evaluated.

The analytical performance of the epoc analyzer was evaluated by determining within-and between-run precisions. The accuracy of the epoc analyzer was assessed by comparing patient results from the device with those obtained with the Siemens Rapidlab 1265 and Rapidpoint RP500 and Siemens Dimension Vista and Sysmex XE-2100 analyzers. The following parameters were measured: pH, pCO

The CV% of the epoc’s between-day imprecision for the various parameters varied from 0.4 to 8.6. The within-run imprecision CV% varied from 0.6 to 5.2. The squared regression coefficient (R

With most of the measured blood gas parameters, the epoc analyzer correlated well with reference techniques. The epoc analyzer is suitable for rapid measurement of the blood gases, the electrolytes, and the metabolites in the ICU.
Progress of Chemistry in South Korea
Authors: Do Choon H.
Published: October 2015

It was an historic event for the Korean Chemical Society (KCS) to host the 45th IUPAC World Chemistry Congress (WCC) and the 48th IUPAC General Assembly (GA) in August 2015. It was the first time that the WCC and GA have been hosted in Korea since KCS became a member in the early 1960s. KCS applied for membership in 1961 and the application was approved the following year. Dr. Dong Il Kim and Prof. Sun Kyung Kim attended the 22nd GA in London in 1963 as the first KCS delegates.
Youth Views on Sustainability: Chemical Waste Management at Clinical Laboratories
Authors: Díaz–Sánchez David Yafté
Published: October 2015

Waste, a very popular word these days, commonly refers to a human-made product with no significant value, which must be eliminated. When I was younger, I studied at a technical college in the south of Mexico City. I used to ask my teachers what happens to chemical waste generated at the clinical laboratory. Today, I study metallurgical chemical engineering, but I cannot forget my old questions about chemical waste, because some chemical waste has properties that make it hazardous to health and the environment.
Language research and language community change: Italian Sign Language 1981–2013
Authors: Fontana Sabina , Corazza Serena , Braem Penny Boyes , Volterra Virginia
Published: October 2015

By providing evidence that sign language is an autonomous language, research has contributed to various changes both within and beyond the signing communities. The aim of this article is to show an example of how sign language change is driven not only by language internal factors but also by changes in language perception, as well as in the changing groups of users and the contexts of use. Drawing from data collected at a sign language research centre in Italy on Italian Sign Language during a time span of over thirty years, the present study will show how language research was a major impetus for a new linguistic awareness and changes in language attitude has influenced new linguistic practices and has forced Italian signers to think about rules governing the use of their language.
Predictors of immigrants’ second-language proficiency: a Dutch study of immigrants with a low level of societal participation and second-language proficiency
Authors: van Niejenhuis Coby , van der Werf Margaretha P. C. , Otten Sabine
Published: October 2015

This article examines the predictors of second-language proficiency for a group that until now has hardly been investigated: immigrants who rarely participate in the host society and who have a low level of second-language proficiency (sample characteristics are for example: no paid job, low educational and literacy level, high mean age and number of years since migration). In contrast with earlier research, not only self-assessments were used as indicator for second-language proficiency, but also language test scores. Results from a sample of 624 immigrants partly replicate findings from earlier studies: self-assessed second-language proficiency is higher among immigrants who have followed a language course, do voluntary work, have a high educational level, high mother-tongue proficiency, a low migration age, and a large number of years since migration. No links, however, were found between having psychological problems, gender, and migration motive and self-assessed second-language proficiency. Furthermore, some new predictors of self-assessed second-language proficiency were identified, namely similarity in alphabet between mother tongue and second language, daily interactions with natives in the public domain, and speaking the second language at home. For a subsample (N=98) second-language proficiency was also assessed via (objective) lexicon tests. When using scores on this test as dependent variables, only years since migration turned out to be a significant predictor. Though certainly tentative, this finding indicates that different predictors of second-language proficiency may apply depending on how it has been measured.
Studying sustainable bilingualism: comparing the choices of languages in Hungary’s six bilingual national minorities
Authors: Borbély Anna
Published: October 2015

This article compares “synchronic variation of language choice” (see
Variation in Macau Cantonese: the case of initial and final segments
Authors: Botha Werner , Barnes Lawrie
Published: October 2015

This article considers how meaningful social differences are conveyed through the use of initial and final segments in Macau Cantonese. The research presented in this article provides a sociolinguistic account of the use of initial and final segments in Macau Cantonese, and specifically illustrates how social meanings of initials and finals are variable, and do not only subsume explanations that derive from internal linguistic constraint categories. This study employed an eclectic and multidimensional sociolinguistic approach that combines sociolinguistic survey methods, social network theory and constructionist approaches, with a view to accounting for the dynamics underlying initial and final segment variation in Macau Cantonese. Results of this study indicate that social constraints such as conversation topic, the affective relations between interlocutors, and other social factors such as gender and social class possibly impinge on the distribution and use of initials and finals in Macau Cantonese.
Language competition: an economic theory of language learning and production
Authors: Wiese Harald
Published: October 2015

This article employs game theory to contribute to sociolinguistics (or the economics of language). From both the synchronic and the diachronic perspective, we are interested in the conditions (of language learning and literary production) that make some languages dominate others. Two results are particularly noteworthy: (i) Translations have an ambiguous effect on domination. (ii) We offer three different explanations of how a past language like Latin or Sanskrit can develop into a standard for literary production.
The first record of Litarachna duboscqi Walter, 1925 (Acari, Pontarachnidae) outside the Mediterranean Sea
Authors: Zawal Andrzej , Pešić Vladimir
Published: October 2015

A single female of Litarachna duboscqi Walter, 1925 was collected on the coast of the island of Tenerife (Canary Islands) extending the currently known distribution of this species by more than 2000 km southwestward into the eastern Atlantic.
Common time variation of parameters in reduced-form macroeconomic models
Authors: Stevanovic Dalibor
Published: October 2015

Standard time varying parameter (TVP) models usually assume independent stochastic processes. In this paper, I show that the number of underlying sources of parameters’ time variation is likely to be small, and provide empirical evidence for factor structure amongst TVPs of popular macroeconomic models. In order to test for the presence of low dimension sources of time variation in parameters and estimate their magnitudes, I develop the factor time varying parameter (Factor-TVP) framework and apply it to [Primiceri, G.E. (2005), “Time Varying Structural Vector Autoregressions and Monetary Policy,” The Review of Economic Studies, 72, 821–852] monetary TVP-VAR model. I find that one factor explains most of the variability in VAR coefficients, while the stochastic volatility parameters vary independently. The inclusion of post-“Great Recession” data causes an important change within VAR coefficients and the procedure suggests two factors. The roots of variability in the VAR parameters are likely to have derived from the financial markets and the real sector. The TVP factors have predictive power for a large number of output, investment, and employment series, as well as for the term structure of interest rates.
Heat Shock Protein 27 Response to Wrestling Training in Relation to the Muscle Damage and Inflammation
Authors: Zembron-Lacny Agnieszka , Ziemann Ewa , Zurek Piotr , Hübner-Wozniak Elzbieta
Published: October 2015

Zembron-Lacny, A, Ziemann, E, Zurek, P, and Hübner-Wozniak, E. Heat shock protein 27 response to wrestling training in relation to the muscle damage and inflammation. J Strength Cond Res 31(5): 1221–1228, 2017—One of the unique features of an exercise is that it leads to a simultaneous increase of antagonistic mediators. On the one hand, exercise elevates catabolic proinflammatory cytokines. On the other hand, exercise stimulates anabolic components such as heat shock proteins (HSPs), which protect against stressors. Therefore, the study was designed to evaluate the blood level of HSP27 and its relationship with muscle damage and inflammatory mediators in elite Greco-Roman wrestlers during training periods differed in type and intensity exercise. Ten male wrestlers (21.2 ± 2.1 years) were observed during the conditioning camps at preseason (January), at the beginning of tournament season (April), and during tournament season (June). Twelve healthy and untrained men (19.2 ± 0.4 years) were considered a reference group. The serum levels of inflammatory mediators and HSP27 in wrestlers were significantly different from nonathletes. In wrestlers, reactive oxygen and nitrogen species H2O2, NO, and 3-nitro, cytokines interleukin-1β and tumor necrosis factor α, and also HSP27 reached the highest levels at preseason (January) or tournament season (June) when the special training predominated (>30% training load) over directed training (approximately 10% training load). Creatine kinase activity also demonstrated the highest level during the same training periods (January 2,315 ± 806 IU·L−1; June 3,139 ± 975 IU·L−1). The regression analysis revealed the relationship of HSP27 level with muscle damage (r
s = −0.613, p < 0.001), and also with inflammatory mediators. The results of this study show that wrestling training modulates HSP27 level, which is significantly related with skeletal muscle damage and inflammatory response, and suggest that measure of HSP27 level can be useful diagnostic tool in biochemical assessment of athletes to increase their performance.
Berlioz, Love, and Béatrice et Bénédict
Authors: Harper-Scott J. P. E.
Published: October 2015

Berlioz's final opera, Béatrice et Bénédict (1860–62) has generally been considered a light-hearted work, revelling in the simple joys of love. Yet his final development of the theme of love, which had preoccupied him at least since the Symphonie fantastique (1830), makes this opéra comique more serious than it might appear to be. Drawing on theories of the human subject by Badiou, Žižek, and Lacan, as well as on the resources of Schenkerian theory, this article invites a new attention on the ideological violence done both by conventional models of love (in this case, on the main characters in the opera) and by the language of tonality. Evaluation of the musical means by which Berlioz psychoanalyzes the characters of a masochist, Héro, and a hysteric, Béatrice, ultimately reveals a surprisingly provocative work of vivid psychological drama.
Middle English: English or Frenglish?
Authors: Ikalyuk L. , Tatsakovych U.
Published: October 2015

The article focuses on a general description of Middle English considering the impact ofthe French language on its development during this period. Despite an extensive number of Frenchborrowings in different layers of the English language, the language remained English and itspredominant features were still those of Germanic origin
Psycholinguistic Characteristics of Autists and Their Prototypes in American Cinema Discourse (Based on the Films "Rain Man" and "The Real Rain Man")
Authors: Ikalyuk L. , Kuzmyn O.
Published: October 2015

The article focuses on the study of the main characteristics of people with autisticspectrum disorders. The comparison between the famous American savant, Kim Peek, and hisprototype in the American cinema discourse has been made on the basis of the films Rain Man andThe Real Rain Man. With the help of psychographological analysis, the speech of the man and hisfictional prototype has been examined. The analysis showed that the difference between the twopersons is indubitable, which can be explained by the fact that the savant syndrome was caused bydifferent disorders.
Authorship Concerns and Who Truly Owns a Research Idea?
Authors: Syed Sana , Tran Duc Q. , Kemper Alex R. , Geme Joseph W. St. , Lantos John D.
Published: October 2015

Researchers often face dilemmas about authorship. When the researchers are graduate students, fellows, or junior faculty, the dilemmas might involve discussions about fair criteria for more senior faculty to be acknowledged as key contributors or authors on manuscripts. This “Ethics Rounds” presents a case in which a fellow faced such a dilemma. We review current journal guidelines for authorship and some ethical considerations that should help make this process more streamlined.
Point-of-Care Quantitative Measure of Glucose-6-Phosphate Dehydrogenase Enzyme Deficiency
Authors: Bhutani Vinod K. , Kaplan Michael , Glader Bertil , Cotten Michael , Kleinert Jairus , Pamula Vamsee
Published: October 2015

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES:

Widespread newborn screening on a point-of-care basis could prevent bilirubin neurotoxicity in newborns with glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) deficiency. We evaluated a quantitative G6PD assay on a digital microfluidic platform by comparing its performance with standard clinical methods.

METHODS:

G6PD activity was measured quantitatively by using digital microfluidic fluorescence and the gold standard fluorescence biochemical test on a convenience sample of 98 discarded blood samples. Twenty-four samples were designated as G6PD deficient.

RESULTS:

Mean ± SD G6PD activity for normal samples using the digital microfluidic method and the standard method, respectively, was 9.7 ± 2.8 and 11.1 ± 3.0 U/g hemoglobin (Hb), respectively; for G6PD-deficient samples, it was 0.8 ± 0.7 and 1.4 ± 0.9 U/g Hb. Bland-Altman analysis determined a mean difference of –0.96 ± 1.8 U/g Hb between the digital microfluidic fluorescence results and the standard biochemical test results. The lower and upper limits for the digital microfluidic platform were 4.5 to 19.5 U/g Hb for normal samples and 0.2 to 3.7 U/g Hb for G6PD-deficient samples. The lower and upper limits for the Stanford method were 5.5 to 20.7 U/g Hb for normal samples and 0.1 to 2.8 U/g Hb for G6PD-deficient samples. The measured activity discriminated between G6PD-deficient samples and normal samples with no overlap.

CONCLUSIONS:

Pending further validation, a digital microfluidics platform could be an accurate point-of-care screening tool for rapid newborn G6PD screening.
Functional Organotin Alkynides as Precursors of Tin-Based Hybrid
Materials
Authors: Jaumier Pascale , Jousseaume Bernard , Riague Hocine , Toupance Thierry , Lahcini Mohamed
Published: October 2015

Functional trialkynylorganotins were obtained by alkynylation of the
corresponding organotin trichlorides. When functional organotin trichlorides
were not stable, a selective monoalkynylation of tetraalkynyltins by
Grignard reagents was used. It was the first example of selective
monoalkylation reactions of symmetrically tetrasubstituted tin compounds.
Then, reactions of the functional trialkynylorganotins with alcohols, water
and carboxylic acids afforded respectively the corresponding functional
monoorganotin alkoxides and oxides, and monoorgano-oxotins carboxylates.
Ion Tracks in Metals and Intermetallic Compounds
Authors: Barbu A. , Dammak H. , Dunlop A. , Lesueur D.
Published: October 2015

When an energetic ion penetrates a target, it loses its energy via two nearly independent processes: (1) elastic collisions with the nuclei (nuclear-energy loss (dE/dx)n), which dominate the ion slowing down in the low energy range (i.e., in the stopping region); (2) electronic excitation and ionization (electronic-energy loss (dE/dx)e), which strongly overwhelm (dE/dx)n in the high energy range (typically above 1 MeV/nucleon). Until the 1980s, researchers considered that electronic-energy deposition could participate in damaging creation in many insulators, but the effects observed in bulk metals were solely ascribed to elastic nuclear collisions. This widely held opinion was due to the fact that in metallic systems the numerous very mobile conduction electrons allow a fast spreading of the deposited energy and an efficient screening of the space charge created in the projectile wake so that it seemed unreasonable to hope for damage creation or track formation in metallic targets following high levels of electronic-energy deposition.

A particular case is the observation more than 30 years ago of damage in thin or discontinuous. metallic films after fission fragment irradiation or MeV heavy ion bombardment. The spreading of the deposited energy is then strongly limited by the close vicinity of surfaces and interfaces.
Recognising the Kariong Hieroglyphs as a Sacred Site
Authors: Penicka-Smith Sarah
Published: October 2015

In a beautiful but unremarkable Australian bush setting, just above picturesque Brisbane Waters and near the town of Kariong, a cluster of approximately three hundred hieroglyphs has been carved on two sandstone rock walls. The academic interest excited by these glyphs, chie?y on the part of the Department of Egyptology at Macquarie University, has been limited to a decisive debunking of claims that the hieroglyphs are genuine relics of an ancient Egyptian voyage to Australia. Yet the glyphs have become part of the belief stories of a number of people both local and global, and are part of a complex understanding of a very different reality, one in which Australia becomes the new Indus Valley, the Pharaohs walked in Woy Woy, and the local area gains centrality in the spiritual understanding of some people. This paper examines the rich layers of cultural signi?cance the Kariong site has accrued.
Religion and Art
Authors: Guthrie Stewart Elliott
Published: October 2015

Religion and art both have resisted scientific analysis and even definition. Multi-disciplinary research on these two and on cognition, however, supports particular definitions and analyses of both terms by setting them in a context of evolved strategies for dealing with cognitive uncertainty. In my view, what religion and art most importantly share is their attempt (shared also by science) to make sense of the world, and their Pascal?s Wager-like strategy (nominally not shared by science) of doing so first by positing human characteristics in non-human phenomena. This necessary, better-safe-than-sorry strategy cross-culturally results in representing the world as humanlike.
Skoolhoofde se onderwyspraktyke binne die veld van plattelandse dorpe
Authors: Spies J , Heystek J
Published: October 2015

Hierdie artikel fokus op die inwerking van die veld van plattelandse dorpe op skoolhoofde se onderwyspraktyke. Die fokus is op aspekte van skoolhoofde se onderwyspraktyke in 'n spesifieke landelike dorpkonteks. Die navorsingsmateriaal vir die artikel is afkomstig uit 'n omvattende navorsingsprojek oor die skoolhoofde van plattelandse skole op 'n dorp met die skuilnaam Cogmans in die Wes-Kaap. Gefokusde semi-gestruktureerde een-tot-een onderhoude is gebruik om inligting te versamel deur na skoolhoofde se eie stories te luister oor hul eie leefwêreld, ten einde dit moontlik te maak om die storie van elkeen se sosiale leefwêreld te kan konstrueer. Op hierdie wyse is "professionele" verhale oor skoolhoof-wees op 'n plattelandse dorp verbind aan die kritiese ontleding van die skoolhoofde se onderwyspraktyke. Die artikel is geskoei op die toepassing van die teorie van Pierre Bourdieu. Bourdieu se konsepte van veld, kapitaal, praktyke en habitus word aangewend as teoretiese lense om die ontledende fokus van hierdie artikel uit te lig, naamlik die onderwyspraktyke van skoolhoofde binne die veld van plattelandse dorpe. Die belangrikste argument wat ons in hierdie artikel aanbied, is dat die veld van skoolhoofde op die platteland inwerk op die skoolpraktyke van die betrokke skoolhoofde. Elk van die skoolhoofde se praktyke reageer op 'n unieke wyse op die eiesoortigheid van hulle plaaslike en selfs nasionale veld.
Ion’s Spiritual Journey
Authors: Torres Milton L.
Published: October 2015

El Ion ha provocado reacciones muy diferentes en sus lectores en cuanto al papel de la agenda religiosa de Eurípides. Algunos lo ven, como un intento de socavar la fe en los dioses; otros lo ven como un esfuerzo para mantener la devoción. Es cierto que Apolo no puso todo correctamente en orden y su sabiduría parece estar justificada en el final, pero eso no garantiza ninguna buena intención inicial por parte del dramaturgo. Mi sugerencia es que Ion simplemente parece santo. Él sólo se refiere a la forma de su religiosidad y no a su esencia. Ion se comporta santurronamente porque quiere preservar la integridad del templo que hace cierto grado de poder a su disposición. Sugiero que el tipo de crisis espiritual que Ion enfrenta es similar en el Antiguo Testamento a la atribución de Asaf, un ministro en el santuario judío en Jerusalén. De hecho, este trabajo trata de mostrar que el viaje espiritual de Ion, es sin embargo, un esfuerzo oportunista para salir adelante. Él no tiene ningún plan o principio moral que no sea convencerse que tiene ese tipo de cosas.
Cultura organizacional, compromiso cristiano y la satisfacción laboral en los docentes de la Universidad Peruana Unión
Authors: Esteban Silva Felipe Reynaldo
Published: October 2015

El artículo tiene por objetivo analizar y encontrar la valoración de la satisfacción laboral en relación con la cultura organizacional y el compromiso cristiano de 426 docentes de la Universidad Peruana Unión de Lima durante el periodo 2013. El diseño utilizado corresponde a un tipo descriptivo correlacional, pues las variables de estudio ya existen en la realidad. La técnica de análisis que se utiliza corresponde a una correlación múltiple con cierta causalidad que pretende
 explicar las relaciones existentes entre las variables estudiadas estableciendo una dirección, identificando cuáles son las causas y efectos. Es decir se trató de establecer la contribución independiente de diversas variables predictoras sobre la variable criterio. Considerando el análisis de regresión múltiple para explicar los distintos modelos según las hipótesis de trabajo formuladas se llegó a determinar mediante el coeficiente de determinación R del modelo final una medición sobre satisfacción laboral equivalente a un valor de 0,720, lo cual explica que un 50.7% de la variabilidad de satisfacción laboral, intrínseca y extrínseca del personal docente de la UPeU depende de las subvariables de cultura organizacional-implicación y misión asumidas, así mismo del compromiso cristiano-compromiso con Dios asumido.
Sulfhydryl variable-5 extended spectrum β-lactamase in nosocomial enteric bacteria causing sepsis in mexican children
Authors: Flores-Pérez Angélica , Gayosso-Vázquez Catalina , Alcántar-Curiel María Dolores , Arzate-Barbosa Patricia , Alpuche-Aranda Celia , Arredondo-García José Luis
Published: October 2015

Introduction: Enteric bacteria causing nosocomial infections are often resistant to third-generation cephalosporins due to the production of extended-spectrum β-lactamases (ESBLs).

Objective: To describe and characterize the ESBLs pattern present in Klebsiella pneumoniae and Serratia marcescens strains, isolated as causative of nosocomial sepsis in pediatric patients at Instituto Nacional de Pediatría (National Institute of Pediatrics).

Material and methods: We analyzed 94 strains of K. pneumoniae and 7 of S. marcescens isolated from clinical specimens from 2002-2005, causative of sepsis in a children’s hospital. We evaluated antibiotic susceptibility and detection of ESBL phenotypes by disk diffusion methods; ceftazidime-resistant isolates were further characterized by pulsed field gel electrophoresis (PFGE); and ESBLs were phenotypically and genotypically characterized by isoelectric focusing, polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and sequencing. We also assed for presence of conjugative plasmids bearing the ESBL gene.

Results: 51/94 (54%) of K. pneumoniae isolates, and 5/7 (71%) of S. marcescens isolates were resistant to ceftazidime; all carried a blaSHV-5 gene. All K. pneumoniae isolates had a distinct PFGE profile, yet all carried a ~48-Kb plasmid, that was conjugatively transferable to an Escherichia coli receptor, which expressed the resistance phenotype. On the other hand, all S. marcescens isolates had a similar PFGE profile, were unable to transfer the ceftazidime-resistance phenotype, and were isolated from the same ward in a short time-span suggesting an outbreak.

Conclusions: The overall prevalence of ESBL-producing enteric bacteria in this hospital is high but similar to other Latin American reports. The sulfhydryl variable-5 (SHV-5) ESBL gene appears to reside in a highly mobile plasmid, capable of spreading among different K. pneumoniae clones and perhaps even to S. marcescens.
The Gendering of Pastors in Contemporary Nordic Films: Norms, Conventions and Contemporary Views
Authors: Sjö Sofia
Published: October 2015

The article examines how Lutheran pastors are gendered in six well-known Nordic films. Building on the theory of mediatisation of religion, the study argues for the need to look at how media shapes religion and gender for a thorough understanding of views on religion today. The film analyses show a connection between female pastors and less problematised forms of religion, but also traditional ways of undermining women in films. The films are argued to present a problematised religious view on sexuality, mostly connected to male pastors. Both aspects of gendering religion are tied to larger debates and discussions of religion and gender in the Nordic countries today. The article suggests that media have the potential to challenge traditional religious norms and to present their own norms, and highlights the need for further comparative studies.
Seeking the Image of ‘Unmarked’ Sikh Women: Text, Sacred Stitches, Turban
Authors: Jakobsh Doris R.
Published: October 2015

With the inauguration of the Khalsa in 1699 by the tenth guru of the Sikhs, Guru Gobind Singh, a new understanding of ‘being Sikh’ was put in place. In examining the earliest prescriptive texts of the Khalsa, manifestations of Sikh religio-cultural identity and visual distinctiveness were deeply connected to the male Sikh body. This study locates Sikh women within a number of these early ritual and textual ordinances while also exploring how Sikh female religio-cultural materiality is contradistinct to the normative Khalsa male body. The production of phulkaris, a form of embroidered head covering (but having other uses as well) was historically associated with Sikh women and are here examined as alternate forms of religious belonging, ritual production and devotion. This study concludes with an examination of how the turban, for a small number of diasporic Sikh women, can be understood both as a rejection of traditional Sikh female ideals, as well as a novel form of Sikh women’s identity construction that is closely aligned with Sikh masculine ideals.
Aloe Gel Enhances Angiogenesis in Healing of Diabetic Wound
Authors: Sargowo Djanggan , Handaya Adeodatus Yuda , Widodo Mohammad Aris , Lyrawati Diana , Tjokroprawiro Askandar
Published: October 2015

BACKGROUND: Diabetic micro and macroangiophathy lead to the incident of diabetic foot ulcers characterized by an increased number of circulating endothelial cells (CECs) and decreased function of endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs). This fact is correlated with ischemia and diabetic wound healing failure. Aloe vera gel is known to be able to stimulate vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) expression and activity by enhancing nitric oxide (NO) production as a result of nitric oxide synthase (NOS) enzyme activity. Aloe vera is a potential target to enhancing angiogenesis in wound healing.OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to explore the major role of Aloe vera gel in wound healing of diabetic ulcers by increasing the level of EPCs, VEGF, and endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS), as well as by reducing the level of CECs involved in angiogenesis process of diabetic ulcers healing.METHODS: The experimental groups was divided into five subgroups consisting of non diabetic wistar rats, diabetic rats without oral administration of aloe gel, and treatment subgroup (diabetic rats) with 30, 60 and 120 mg/day of aloe gel doses for 14 days. All subgroups were wounded and daily observation was done on the wounds areas. Measurement of the number of EPCs (CD34), and CECs (CD45 and CD146) was done by flowcytometry, followed by measurement of VEGF and eNOS expression on dermal tissue by immunohistochemical method on day 0 and day 14 after treatment. The quantitative data were analyzed by One-Way ANOVA and Linear Regression, with a cofidence interval 5% and significance level (p<0.05) using SPSS 16 software to compare the difference and correlation between wound diameters, number of EPCs and CECs as well as the levels of VEGF and eNOS.RESULTS: The results of this study showed that aloe gel oral treatment in diabetic wistar rats was able to accelerate the wound healing process. It was shown by significant reduction of wound diameter (0.27±0.02); the increased number of CECs (0.42±0.57), respectively (p<0.05). On the other hand, the wound diameter and eNOS indicators showed significant differences at the dose of 60 mg, while the number of EPCs and CECs and the level of VEGF showed significantly different results at a dose of 120 mg. Aloe gel oral therapy showed a positive indication of wound healing acceleration at the optimum dose range 60-120 mg a day.CONCLUSIONS: Aloe gel is potential to be a herbal therapy candidate for diabetic wound healing through enhancing EPCs homing, decreasing the CECs number, and stimulating the increase of VEGF and eNOS levels,hence proving to be a dominant factor in the angiogenesis process.KEYWORDS: aloe gel, diabetes, wound healing, angiogenesis
YKL-40 Correlates with Soluble CD 40 Ligand in Old Myocardial Infarction with Hypertension
Authors: Kumalasari Diah , Wijaya Andi , Santoso Anwar
Published: October 2015

BACKGROUND: Myocardial infarction is one of the coronary artery diseases caused by plaque rupture, plaque erosion or calcified nodules, with the occurence of thrombus formation and artery occlusion. YKL-40 has a functional role in plaque fibrous formation because of its high expression during fibrosis development, vascular smooth muscle cells differentiation, elevated matrix turnover and tissue remodelling in old myocardial infarction, whereas CD40 ligand, which is stored in the cytoplasm of resting platelets, rapidly presents on the surface. After cleavage, a soluble functional CD40 ligand (sCD4OL) is generated. The aim of this study was to assess the association between YKL-40 and sCD4OL in old myocardial infarction.METHODS: This study used the cross sectional study design. Fifty six patients with old myocardial infarction were selected based on their electrocardiographical results. Among these patients, 23 subjects had hypertension and 15 subjects had hsCRP >3-l0 mg/L. YKL-40 and sCD40L were measured by ELISA method.RESULTS: There was no significant correlation between YKL-40 and sCD40L (r=0.078; p=0.569) in old myocardial infarction and in subjects with hsCRP >3-10 mg/L (r=0.524; p=0.045). However, significant positive correlations Were found in subjects with hypertension (r=0.447; p=0.029).CONCLUSIONS: Our findings showed that YKL 40 correlated significantly with sCD4OL in subjects with hypertension.KEYWORDS: myocardial infarction, ruptured plaque, coronary artery disease, YKL-40, soluble CD40 ligand
GFAP and S100B Protein are Associated with Discharged NIHSS of Anterior Circulation Ischemic Stroke
Authors: Surjawan Yenny , As'ad Suryani , Ranakusuma Teguh A S , Wijaya Andi
Published: October 2015

BACKGROUND: Patient with larger ischemic lesion will suffer more severe neurogical deficit. The utility of MRI for lesion size measurement is still limited, therefore additional approach was pursued through examination of markers released by damaged brain cell, GFAP and S100B protein. The aim of this study is to know whether both markers are associated with the neurological deficit of anterior circulation ischemic stroke. METHODS: This observational prospective study enrolled 74 patients with anterior circulation ischemic stroke diagnosis. GFAP and S100B protein were measured with ELISA using blood collected at 48 to 72 hours after onset. The neurological deficit was assessed with NIHSS ad discharged.RESULTS: There was a significant association between GFAP level and discharged NIHSS (p=0.008) with 100% sensitivity and 100% negative predictive value. S100B protein also showed a significant correlation with discharged NIHSS (r=0.488; p=0.000) and this correlation could be described with an equation (OR=1.009; 95% CI=1.0003-1.0188; p=0.044). S100B protein at 78.3215 ng/L would give true prediction as 73.9% (95% CI=62.7%-85.2%, p=0.001). CONCLUSIONS: GFAP and S100B protein that were measured at 48 to 72 hours after onset were significantly associated with NIHSS at discharge. KEYWORDS: GFAP, S100B protein, discharged NIHSS, ischemic stroke
A multidimensional functional trait analysis of resource exploitation in European ants
Authors: Retana Javier , Arnan Xavier , Cerdá Xim
Published: October 2015

The major factors explaining ecological variation in plants have been widely discussed over the last decade thanks to numerous studies that have examined the covariation that exists between pairs of traits. However, multivariate relationships among traits remain poorly characterized in animals. In this study, we aimed to identify the main multivariate trait dimensions that explain variance in important functional traits related to resource exploitation in ants. To this end, we created a large ant trait database. This database includes information on 11 traits that are important in ant resource exploitation; data were obtained for 150 European species found in different biomes. First, we examined the pairwise correlations between the traits included in the database. Second, we used multivariate analyses to identify potential trait dimensions. Our study shows that, to a great extent, resource exploitation strategies align along two main trait dimensions. The first dimension emerged in both the overall and group‐specific analyses, where it accounted for the same pairwise trait correlations. The second dimension was more variable, as species were grouped by levels of taxonomy, habitat, and climate. These two dimensions included most of the significant pairwise trait correlations, thus highlighting that complementarity, but also redundancy, exists among different pairs of traits. The first dimension was associated with behavioral dominance: dominance was associated with large colony size, presence of multiple nests per colony, worker polymorphism, and a collective foraging strategy. The second dimension was associated with resource partitioning along dietary and microhabitat lines: it ranged from species that consume liquid foods, engage in group foraging, and mainly nest in the vegetation to species that consume insects and seeds, engage in individual foraging, and demonstrate strictly diurnal activity. Our findings establish a proficient ecological trait‐based animal research that minimizes the number of traits to be measured while maximizing the number of relevant trait dimensions. Overall, resource exploitation in animals might be framed by behavioral dominance, foraging strategy, diet, and nesting habitat; the position of animal species within this trait space could provide relevant information about their distribution and abundance, for today as well as under future global change scenarios.
First Application of Cemented Sliding Sleeves with Degradable Drop Ball Technique Optimizes Horizontal Multistage Fracturing Operations in the Middle East: Egypt Western Desert Case Study
Authors: Salah Mohamed , ElSebaee Mohamed , Raouf Pilar , Keshishian Avo
Published: October 2015

The ultimate goal of increased production has led to exploring new techniques to stimulate unconventional reservoirs in an efficient and economical manner. Globally, the trend towards horizontal drilling is increasing to enhance production by increasing the contact area with the producing interval. Likewise, operators are looking to maximize the volume of reservoir rock that is fracture stimulated, using horizontal drilling to create lateral sections and combining this with the efficient placement of propped fracturing treatment. Nevertheless, individual fracturing of numerous zones with bridge plug isolation or the conventional perf-and-plug method poses several concerns regarding cost and operational efficiency in horizontal wells. A new multistage stimulation technique has been successfully deployed in the Western Desert, Egypt, for the first time allowing for multiple stages to be fracture stimulated in one continuous operation.

The technique using cemented fracturing sliding sleeves and degradable-ball drop was successfully implemented. This technique utilizes valves with preset seats and matching degradable balls to achieve zonal isolation. The balls are dropped from the surface, to isolate the stimulated interval. Once the ball lands on the seat, applying surface pressure activates the sleeve and opens up the fracturing port at the next target zone of the formation to be stimulated.

This completion system allows for maximum operational efficiency because it eliminates the need for and risks associated with the use of wireline for perforations or coiled tubing services to mill out a bridge plug or clean up a sand plug. Fewer needed services and personnel allows for reduced operating time and lower cost. In one well, implementation of the cemented sliding sleeves with degradable ball technique was successful in efficiently completing seven hydraulic fracturing stages efficiently. The subject well, 3H Pinot was drilled to a measured depth of 10,330 ft with a lateral length of over 3,300 ft. This well provides a model for the completion strategy, operational procedures, adeptness of the isolation, and time frame. Another benefit that was demonstrated during the execution was precise fracture placement in utilizing the innovative fracturing ports. Implementation of the fracturing sliding sleeves system resulted in achievement of completions and stimulation goals while significantly increasing operational efficiency by means of reduced time between fracture stages and effective isolation. Enumeration of operational setbacks encountered during the execution of the multistage fracturing treatment provides areas for future improvement and recommendations for future field operations. In the subject well, the technique impacted production because immediate and simultaneous flowback of all the stages was possible.
Modeling Multi-Stage Twisted Hydraulic Fracture Propagation in Shale Reservoirs Considering Geomechanical Factors
Authors: Jang Y. , Kim J. , Ertekin T. , Sung W. M.
Published: October 2015

To model hydraulic fracture propagation in naturally fractured reservoirs, fracture propagation is generally assumed to be a single planar fracture propagated only in the vertical direction from a horizontal well, regardless of the presence of natural fractures. In this paper, we developed a multi-stage hydraulic fracture propagation model using a twisted multiple planar fracture that is able to describe the propagation of hydraulic fractures more realistically. In propagating hydraulic fractures, we used two criteria: maximum tangential stress, to determine the fracture initiation angle, and whether a hydraulic fracture passes through a natural fracture. The developed model was used with a commercial reservoir simulator through grid mapping in the form of a discrete fracture network using microseismic data. The results of the verification matched the experimental results well for various intersection angles and maximum horizontal stress directions. In the investigation of the direction of maximum horizontal stress, the frictional coefficient of the fracture interface, and fracture orientation, hydraulic fracture propagation modeling results showed that the hydraulic fracture passed through a natural fracture, and thereafter propagated in a manner suitably consistent with the theoretical results, based on a fracture interaction criterion. After confirming the twisted multiple planar fracture model suggested in this work, discrepancies were found in the fracture connectivity and the stimulated reservoir volume. This indicates that the twisted multiple planar fracture approach, which is more realistic in terms of fracture propagation, is extremely important in evaluating the initial gas in place, calculated according to the stimulated reservoir volume.
Production Analysis of a Shale Gas Reservoir Using Modified Deconvolution Method in the Presence of Sorption Phenomena
Authors: Kim J. , Jang Y. , Ertekin T. , Sung W. M.
Published: October 2015

When analyzing production data during reservoir characterization, pressure transient analysis requires a constant production rate during the entire production period. However, because of the extremely low permeability of shale formations, the flow regime changes over the long period of production. Therefore, it is rarely possible to acquire production data at a constant rate. In addition, as pressure declines with production in a shale gas reservoir, desorption of gas occurs, leading to nonlinearities due to large changes in gas compressibility, and it should be linearized for the use of deconvolution. In this study, we suggest sorption correction for pseudopressure using material balance equation to linearize the pseudopressure–rate relationship. By using this sorption correction term for pseudopressure in the deconvolution, we carried out pressure transient analysis with production data from a shale gas well to obtain the reservoir characteristics. The results show that, without sorption correction, the pseudopressure decline and its derivative varied depending on the magnitude of the desorption. However, with the correction applied, the curves were almost identical regardless of desorption. In the results of the deconvolution analysis with and without the sorption correction, pseudo-linear and pseudo-pseudosteady state flow periods appeared at different times, which explains the anomalous results in the pressure transient analysis. By implementing those results, we analyzed production data acquired from Fayetteville shale. The results show that the reservoir permeability, stimulated reservoir volume, and fracture half-length depended on the use of sorption correction for pseudopressure.
Temperature Dependence of the Optical Band Gap and Optical Parameters of Tetramethyl Ammonium Tetrachlorozincate (TMA)2ZnCl4 single Crystals Around the Normal and Incommensurate Phase Transitions
Authors: El-Fadl A. Abu , Nashaat A.M.
Published: October 2015

Single crystals of tetramethylammonium tetrachlorozincate [N(CH3)4]ZnCl4 abbreviated hereafter as
(TMA)2ZnCl4 were grown using the slow evaporation technique at 315 K. The X-ray powder diffraction patterns indicated
that [N(CH)]ZnCl belongs to the orthorhombic system with Pmcn symmetry at room temperature. The lattice constants
are found to be a= 12.360 Å, b= 15.687 Å and c= 8.985 Å. The values were in good agreement with the values in
previous studies. Ultraviolet–visible–near-infrared (UV–Vis–NIR) spectral studies were carried out in the temperature
range 276–307 K. This range of temperature involves two phase transition temperatures (Ti=296 K) from normal (parent)
to incommensurate phase and (T=279 K) from incommensurate to commensurate-ferroelectric phase. The cut off wavelength
was found to be 195.016 nm at room temperature. The optical transmittance increases with increasing temperature,
and the cut off shifts to higher wavelengths. Analysis reveals that the type of optical transition is the indirect allowed one.
The optical energy gap (Eg) has the value of 5.903 eV at room temperature. The value of optical energy gap (Eg) decreases
with increasing temperature. The changes in the values of the cut off wavelength and optical energy gap (Eg) with changing
the temperature were found to take different rates at the two phases under study, besides anomalous takes place at Ti
and Tc. The absorption coefficient (α) as a function of the incident photon energy shows an exponential behavior near the
absorption edge which suggests that the Urbach rule is obeyed and indicated the formation of a band tail. Urbach parameters
were calculated at different temperatures and the frequencies of effective phonons and electron–phonon interaction
constants were determined for various phases.