bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Habitat differentiation and population traits variation between the rare Meconopsis napaulensis and the common congener M. paniculata: Implications for rare plant management
Authors: Poudeyal Mukti Ram , Ghimire Suresh Kumar
Published: March 2012

Understanding the causes of rarity has become increasingly important for the conservation and management of plant species. In this study, we compared spatial distribution, habitat characteristics, and population size and structure of two closely related species of poppy occurring in the Himalaya, the rare and endemic Meconopsis napaulensis and the widespread common congener M. paniculata in order to explain the causes of rarity of the former species. This study was carried out in Langtang National Park, north-central Nepal covering six populations of M. napaulensis and four populations of M. paniculata. Analysis of the habitat features revealed greater tendency of M. napaulensis to exhibit high habitat specificity. It was restricted to nutrient-poor, open and rocky habitats at >3700 m asl. Sites where M. paniculata were sampled showed high variability in terms of edaphic and topographic features. Mean ‘area of occupancy’ tended to be high for M. paniculata compared to M. napaulensis. M. paniculata showed larger population size and greater abundance as compared to M. napaulensis. The poor representation of younger life stages in M. napaulensis despite high proportion of reproductive adults indicated lower recruitment potential. The present study has illustrated that the rarity of M. napaulensis is strongly related to a combination of ecological and geographical constraints, which prevent reproduction, dispersal and colonization. It further demonstrates that the maintenance of population size of rare species largely depends on the survival and abundance of plants of younger stages. Thus, management directed towards reducing the impact on plants of young stages and protecting reproductive individuals from flower and fruit harvesting would help to maintain population size. Finally, development of action plans and guidelines incorporating scientific findings and accommodating local peoples’ socio-economic and cultural factors associated with the extinction risks is imperative for the conservation of rare and endemic species.doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.3126/botor.v8i0.5959 Botanica Orientalis – Journal of Plant Science (2011) 8: 57-69
Anxieties of Englishness and participation in democracy
Authors: Smith Katherine
Published: March 2012

This article uncovers the distinction between calls of the far right to address what they consider to be an imbalance in political representation in Britain and local frustrations in Higher Blackley, North Manchester, England about feeling ignored by local and national government. Exploring how voting for the far right is used strategically in an attempt to communicate political disenchantment with the Labour Party, the article explains the shift in voting patterns as a protest against Labour rather than as a statement of affiliation with the core values of the British National Party. The extent of residents' anger is revealed as they explain the “unfairness“ of politicians' general neglect of the kind of people who live in Higher Blackley. This is compounded by perceptions of the preferential and “unfair“ treatment given to people from ethnic minorities. The article explains how the labeling of residents of Higher Blackley as white working class is rejected as also being “unfair“ because it ascribes negative attributes, wholesale, to the very people who were once respected for their participation in a Labour movement of their own making. The ethnographic idea of “fairness“ is revealed in the article as the opposite of labeling/fixing and as the acknowledgement of contingency, chance, and choice.
"It's building up to something and it won't be nice when it erupts"
Authors: Grill Jan
Published: March 2012

Drawing on research among Slovak Roma labor migrants to the UK, this article examines differentiated modalities of belonging and a crystallization of the category of Roma/Gypsy in one neighborhood in a post-industrial Scottish city. This originally working-class, predominantly white area has been transformed, through several waves of migration, into a multicultural neighborhood. Established residents of the neighborhood express a sense of growing crisis and blame for local decline is frequently placed on migrants and, in particular, Gypsy migrants from Eastern Europe. The article focuses on the shifting forms of ethnocultural categorization that mark Roma difference in Glasgow.
Workplace cosmopolitanization and "the power and pain of class relations" at sea
Authors: McCall Howard Penny
Published: March 2012

This article examines the "power and the pain of class relations" (Ortner 2006) through the experience of Scottish men working in the global shipping, offshore oil, and fishing industries: industries in which the nationality of workers has changed significantly since the 1980s. It combines recent anthropological literature on subjectivity and cosmopolitanism with a Marxist understanding of class as generated through differing relationships to production. The article describes how British seafarers have experienced the cosmopolitanization of their workplaces, as workers from Portugal, Eastern Europe, and the Philippines have been recruited by employers in order to reduce wages, working conditions, and trade union organization. Drawing on Therborn (1980), it concludes that the experiences gained through this process have led to the development of multiple and often contradictory subjectivities, which people draw on as they choose how to act in moments of crisis, and as they imagine possible futures.
"The lonely cows"
Authors: Harboe Knudsen Ida
Published: March 2012

This article focuses on small-scale farming in Lithuania in light of the country's European Union (EU) entrance in 2004. Although the EU, together with the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, had encouraged a rapid privatization of the former collective farms, the result was not an economically viable farming sector, but a multitude of unspecialized farms run by ageing farmers with but a single cow. These farmers are now viewed as the main obstacle to further development and are encouraged to retire. However, the farmers have proven reluctant to do so. Looking at different attempts to reduce the number of small farms, the article analyzes how the outcomes of the EU programs often are quite different from what was originally intended. Such processes are coined as EUropeanization: a term that embraces how the EU is interpreted and implemented in daily life by the farmers.
Caste, class, and the politics of personhood in neo-liberal India
Authors: Rao Anumpama
Published: March 2012

Craig Jeffrey. Timepass: Youth, Class, and the Politics of Waiting. Stanford, CA: Stanford University
Press, 2010. vii + 221 pages.

Manuela Ciotti. Retro-Modern: Forging the Low-Caste Self. London, New York, and New Delhi: Routledge,
2010. xvii + 292 pages.
Intractable epilepsy in paralimbic World Health Organization Grade II gliomas: should the hippocampus be resected when not invaded by the tumor?
Authors: Ghareeb Fadi , Duffau Hugues
Published: March 2012

Object

Beyond its oncological benefit, surgery could improve seizure control in paralimbic frontotemporoinsular or temporoinsular WHO Grade II gliomas generating intractable seizures. However, no studies have examined the impact of hippocampal resection on chronic epilepsy when the hippocampus is not invaded by Grade II gliomas. Here, the authors compared the epileptological outcomes and return to work in 2 groups of patients who underwent surgery with or without hippocampectomy for paralimbic Grade II gliomas eliciting intractable epilepsy despite no tumoral involvement of the hippocampus.

Methods

Surgery was performed in 15 consecutive patients who were unable to work (median Karnofsky Performance Scale [KPS] Score 70) because of refractory epilepsy due to paralimbic Grade II gliomas that were not invading the hippocampus. In Group A (8 patients), the hippocampus was preserved. In Group B (7 patients), glioma removal was associated with hippocampectomy.

Results

No patient died or suffered a permanent deficit after surgery. Postoperatively, in Group A, no patients were seizure free (4 patients were in Engel Class II and 4 were in Class III). In Group B, all 7 patients were seizure free (Class I) (p = 0.02). Only 62.5% of patients returned to work in Group A, whereas all patients are working full time in Group B. The postsurgical median KPS score was 85 in Group A, that is, not significantly improved in comparison with the preoperative score, while the postsurgical median KPS was 95 in Group B, that is, significantly improved in comparison with the preoperative score (p = 0.03).

Conclusions

The authors' data support, for the first time, the significant impact of hippocampectomy in patients with intractable epilepsy generated by a paralimbic Grade II glioma, even if it does not invade the hippocampus. Hippocampal resection allowed seizure control in all patients, with an improvement in KPS scores, since all patients resumed their social and professional activities. Thus, the authors suggest performing a resection of the nontumoral hippocampus in addition to resection of the tumor in patients with refractory epilepsy due to paralimbic Grade II gliomas.
Immunoselected STRO-3+mesenchymal precursor cells and restoration of the extracellular matrix of degenerate intervertebral discs
Authors: Ghosh Peter , Moore Robert , Vernon-Roberts Barrie , Goldschlager Tony , Pascoe Diane , Zannettino Andrew , Gronthos Stan , Itescu Silviu
Published: March 2012

Object

Chronic low-back pain of discal origin is linked strongly to disc degeneration. Current nonsurgical treatments are palliative and fail to restore the disc extracellular matrix. In this study the authors examined the capacity of ovine mesenchymal precursor cells (MPCs) to restore the extracellular matrix of degenerate discs in an ovine model.

Methods

Three adjacent lumbar discs of 24 adult male sheep were injected intradiscally with chondroitinase-ABC (cABC) to initiate disc degeneration. The remaining lumbar discs were used as normal controls. Three months after cABC injection, the L3–4 discs of all animals were injected with either a high dose (4 × 106cells, in 12 sheep) or low dose (0.5 × 106cells, in 12 sheep) of MPCs suspended in hyaluronic acid (HA). The adjacent L4–5 degenerate discs remained untreated; the L5–6 discs were injected with HA only. The animals were euthanized at 3 or 6 months after MPC injections (6 sheep from each group at each time point), and histological sections of the lumbar discs were prepared. Radiographs and MR images were obtained prior to cABC injection (baseline), 3 months after cABC injection (pretreatment), and just prior to necropsy (posttreatment).

Results

Injection of cABC decreased the disc height index (DHI) of target discs by 45%–50%, confirming degeneration. Some recovery in DHI was observed 6 months after treatment in all cABC-injected discs, but the DHI increased to within baseline control values only in the MPC-injected discs. This improvement was accompanied by a reduction in MRI degeneration scores. The histopathology scores observed at 3 months posttreatment for the high-dose MPC–injected discs and at 6 months posttreatment for the low-dose MPC–injected discs were significantly different from those of the noninjected and HA-injected discs (p <0.001) but not from the control disc scores.

Conclusions

On the basis of the findings of this study, the authors conclude that the injection of MPCs into degenerate intervertebral discs can contribute to the regeneration of a new extracellular matrix.
Endoscopic balloon dilation as an adjunct to extended endoscopic approaches to the skull base
Authors: Bedrosian Jeffrey C. , Garcia-Navarro Victor , McCoul Edward D. , Anand Vijay K. , Schwartz Theodore H.
Published: March 2012

Cholesterol granulomas (CGs) are benign, expanding cystic lesions surrounded by a thick fibrous capsule and filled with fluid, formed by the degradation of blood elements. The goal of surgery is to open the granuloma widely, creating a well-drained cavity. The endonasal endoscopic approach for this extradural lesion is a minimal access method for surgical removal or fenestration. The role of balloon dilation in creating a wide fenestration has not been previously described.

The authors describe a patient with a recurrent petrous apex CG who underwent an endoscopic, endonasal, transmaxillary transpterygoid approach to the petrous apex. A balloon sinuplasty catheter was used to dilate the surgical fenestration to maintain continued patency.

The authors report on their first experience using balloon dilation combined with endoscopic drainage of the petrous apex. The excellent surgical outcome of this minimally invasive technique holds promise for future endonasal approaches to the middle cranial fossa.
Panacea or problem: flow diverters in the treatment of symptomatic large or giant fusiform vertebrobasilar aneurysms
Authors: Siddiqui Adnan H. , Abla Adib A. , Kan Peter , Dumont Travis M. , Jahshan Shady , Britz Gavin W. , Hopkins L. Nelson , Levy Elad I.
Published: March 2012

Object

The use of flow-diverting stents has gained momentum as a curative approach in the treatment of complex proximal anterior circulation intracranial aneurysms. There have been some reported attempts of treating formidable lesions in the posterior circulation. Posterior circulation giant fusiform aneurysms have a particularly aggressive natural history. To date, no one approach has been shown to be comprehensively effective or low risk. The authors report the initial results, including the significant morbidity and mortality encountered, with flow diversion in the treatment of large or giant fusiform vertebrobasilar aneurysms at Millard Fillmore Gates Circle Hospital.

Methods

The authors retrospectively reviewed their prospectively collected endovascular database to identify patients with intracranial aneurysms who underwent treatment with flow-diverting devices and determined that 7 patients had presented with symptomatic large or giant fusiform vertebrobasilar aneurysms. The outcomes of these patients, based on the modified Rankin Scale (mRS), were tabulated, as were the complications experienced.

Results

Among the 7 patients, Pipeline devices were placed in 6 patients and Silk devices in 1 patient. At the last follow-up evaluation, 4 patients had died (mRS score of 6), all of whom were treated with the Pipeline device. The other 3 patients had mRS scores of 5 (severe disability), 1, and 0. The deaths included posttreatment aneurysm ruptures in 2 patients and lack of improvement in neurological status related to presenting brainstem infarcts and subsequent withdrawal of care in the other 2 patients.

Conclusions

Whether flow diversion will be an effective strategy for treatment of large or giant fusiform vertebrobasilar aneurysms remains to be seen. The authors' initial experience suggests substantial morbidity and mortality associated with the treatment and with the natural history. As outcomes data slowly become available for patients receiving these devices for fusiform posterior circulation aneurysms, practitioners should use these devices judiciously.
An Unexpected Elimination Reaction of 3, 14, 19-Triacetylandrographolide
Authors: Yang Yi , Lan Tian , Zhang Qianqian , Wang Jin-Tao , Xu Li , Zhang Xi-min , Geng Jian-Guo , Wang Li-jing
Published: March 2012

A Prévost reaction of 3,14,19-triacetylandrographolide yielded the 7-ene of 3,14,17,19-tetraacetyl-andrographolide; a plausible mechanism involved in its formation is described.
A Facile and Efficient Iodination of 5,6-Di(Arylamino)Pyridine-2,3-Diones
Authors: Xie Wenlin , Zhou Ying , Xiao Chuangping , Xie Ling , Tang Xufu , Liu Renyuan
Published: March 2012

A simple and efficient method for the iodination of 5,6-di(arylamino)pyridine-2,3-diones using iodine with ethanol at room temperature is described. Notable advantages include mild reaction condition, no need for a catalyst, short reaction time, simple practical procedure, giving excellent yield of the product. Iodopyridines have important medical applications as drug or diagnostic aids and radiolabelled compounds.
Synthesis and Biological Evaluation of Curcumin Analogues having a Piperidone Core as Potential Antioxidant Agents
Authors: Wang Jian , Sun Gangchun , Li Zhicheng , Mai Wenpeng , Xie Jingxi
Published: March 2012

A series of new unsymmetrical curcumin derivatives were designed and synthesised to which the indole fragment was introduced according to the principle of association. These compounds were characterised by 1H NMR, IR, ESI-MS and elemental analysis and their antioxidant activity was investigated using the 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl method. The results indicated that curcumin analogues having a piperidone structure exhibit varying degrees of antioxidant activity.
Solid-Phase Organic Synthesis of α-Iodo Ketones using Recyclable Resin-Bound Selenium Bromide
Authors: Mao Xue-Chun , Liu Xiao-Ling , Deng Qiang , Sheng Shou-Ri
Published: March 2012

A novel facile method for the traceless solid-phase synthesis of α-iodo ketones using a recyclable resin-bound selenium bromide reagent is reported. Various ketones and β-dicarbonyl compounds can be converted to the corresponding α-iodo-substituted compounds in excellent yields and purities with simple workup procedure and mild conditions.
‘That invisible dance’. Reflections on the ‘Dance of the Seven Veils’ in Richard Strauss's Salome
Authors: Santini Daria
Published: March 2012

The Dance of the Seven Veils is one of the main reasons for the scandalous success of Richard Strauss's Salome, whose premiere in Dresden on 9 December 1905 shook the musical world and brought extraordinary fame to its author. Just as Oscar Wilde, in the play on which Strauss based his libretto, had written no instructions as to how the dance should be performed, the composer left this section of the opera to the imagination. The quotation in the title of this article is taken from Wilde's inscription to Aubrey Beardsley in his copy of ‘Salomé’ and aims to draw attention to the ambiguous nature of the dance in Strauss's opera. The source of endless fascination and moral disapproval, his Dance of the Seven Veils is characterized by contradictions: it marks a stasis as well as a frenzied advancement of the plot; it is performed to pleasure the king and yet it is also Salome's supreme moment of self-expression; it is a separate entity from the opera and yet it is at the heart of the story. In my article, I will examine the role of this pivotal episode within the opera and highlight its uniqueness as an early example of modern expressive dance on the operatic stage. I will also mention other examples of the use of dance in literature and music, with a particular focus on the works of Heinrich Heine. Finally, I will analyze Strauss's own scenario for the piece, which he wrote many years after the opera was first performed. This is a text of important documentary value despite the fact that, ironically, the composer's choreographic suggestions amplify the sense of the elusive quality of the piece.
Desmoid Tumors in the Pediatric Population
Authors: Honeyman Joshua N. , Quaglia Michael P. La
Published: March 2012

Desmoid tumors are benign soft tissue tumors associated with locally aggressive growth and high rates of morbidity, but they do not metastasize via lymphatic or hematogenous routes. While most of the data on desmoid tumors originates in the adult literature, many of the findings have been applied to the management of pediatric patients. This article discusses the epidemiology, etiology, clinical presentation, pathology, and treatment of this rare tumor in the pediatric population and includes a literature review of the most recent large series of pediatric patients with desmoid tumors.
Curvature Entropy for Curved Profile Generation
Authors: Ujiie Yoshiki , Kato Takeo , Sato Koichiro , Matsuoka Yoshiyuki
Published: March 2012

In a curved surface design, the overall shape features that emerge from combinations of shape elements are important. However, controlling the features of the overall shape in curved profiles is difficult using conventional microscopic shape information such as dimension. Herein two types of macroscopic shape information, curvature entropy and quadrature curvature entropy, quantitatively represent the features of the overall shape. The curvature entropy is calculated by the curvature distribution, and represents the complexity of a shape (one of the overall shape features). The quadrature curvature entropy is an improvement of the curvature entropy by introducing a Markov process to evaluate the continuity of a curvature and to approximate human cognition of the shape. Additionally, a shape generation method using a genetic algorithm as a calculator and the entropy as a shape generation index is presented. Finally, the applicability of the proposed method is demonstrated using the side view of an automobile as a design example.
Temperature Prediction for High Pressure High Temperature Condensate Gas Flow Through Chokes
Authors: Li Changjun , Jia Wenlong , Wu Xia
Published: March 2012

This study developed a theoretical model for predicting the downstream temperatures of high pressure high temperature condensate gas flowing through chokes. The model is composed of three parts: the iso-enthalpy choke model derived from continuity equation and energy conservation equation; the liquid-vapor equilibrium model based on the SRK equation of state (EoS); and the enthalpy model based on the Lee-Kesler EoS. Pseudocritical properties of mixtures, which are obtained by mixing rules, are very important in the enthalpy model, so the Lee-Kesler, Plocker-Knapp, Wong-Sandler and Prausnitz-Gunn mixing rules were all researched, and the combination mixing rules with satisfactory accuracy for high pressure high temperature condensate gases were proposed. The temperature prediction model is valid for both the critical and subcritical flows through different kinds of choke valves. The applications show the model is reliable for predicting the downstream temperatures of condensate gases with upstream pressures up to 85.54 MPa and temperatures up to 93.23 °C. The average absolute errors between the measured and calculated temperatures are expected for less than 2 °C by using the model.
Deviation of Cup and Propeller Anemometer Calibration Results with Air Density
Authors: Pindado Santiago , Sanz Alfredo , Wery Alain
Published: March 2012

The effect of air density variations on the calibration constants of several models of anemometers has been analyzed. The analysis was based on a series of calibrations between March 2003 and February 2011. Results indicate a linear behavior of both calibration constants with the air density. The effect of changes in air density on the measured wind speed by an anemometer was also studied. The results suggest that there can be an important deviation of the measured wind speed with changes in air density from the one at which the anemometer was calibrated, and therefore the need to take this effect into account when calculating wind power estimations.
Treatment of Clinical Solid Waste Using a Steam Autoclave as a Possible Alternative Technology to Incineration
Authors: Hossain Md. Sohrab , Balakrishnan Venugopal , Rahman Nik Norulaini Nik Ab , Sarker Md. Zaidul Islam , Kadir Mohd Omar Ab
Published: March 2012

A steam autoclave was used to sterilize bacteria in clinical solid waste in order to determine an alternative to incineration technology in clinical solid waste management. The influence of contact time (0, 5, 15, 30 and 60 min) and temperature (111 °C, 121 °C and 131 °C) at automated saturated steam pressure was investigated. Results showed that with increasing contact time and temperature, the number of surviving bacteria decreased. The optimum experimental conditions as measured by degree of inactivation of bacteria were 121 °C for 15 minutes (min) for Gram negative bacteria, 121 °C and 131 °C for 60 and 30 min for Gram positive bacteria, respectively. The re-growth of bacteria in sterilized waste was also evaluated in the present study. It was found that bacterial re-growth started two days after the inactivation. The present study recommends that the steam autoclave cannot be considered as an alternative technology to incineration in clinical solid waste management.
A Combined DNA-Affinic Molecule and N-Mustard Alkylating Agent Has an Anti-Cancer Effect and Induces Autophagy in Oral Cancer Cells
Authors: Lo Wen-Liang , Chu Pen-Yuan , Lee Tsung-Heng , Su Tsann-Long , Chien Yueh , Chen Yi-Wei , Huang Pin-I , Tseng Ling-Ming , Tu Pang-Hsien , Kao Shou-Yen , Lo Jeng-Fan
Published: March 2012

Although surgery or the combination of chemotherapy and radiation are reported to improve the quality of life and reduce symptoms in patients with oral cancer, the prognosis of oral cancer remains generally poor. DNA alkylating agents, such as N-mustard, play an important role in cancer drug development. BO-1051 is a new 9-anilinoacridine N-mustard-derivative anti-cancer drug that can effectively target a variety of cancer cell lines and inhibit tumorigenesis in vivo. However, the underlying mechanism of BO-1051-mediated tumor suppression remains undetermined. In the present study, BO-1051 suppressed cell viability with a low IC50 in oral cancer cells, but not in normal gingival fibroblasts. Cell cycle analysis revealed that the tumor suppression by BO-1051 was accompanied by cell cycle arrest and downregulation of stemness genes. The enhanced conversion of LC3-I to LC3-II and the formation of acidic vesicular organelles indicated that BO-1501 induced autophagy. The expression of checkpoint kinases was upregulated as demonstrated with Western blot analysis, showing that BO-1051 could induce DNA damage and participate in DNA repair mechanisms. Furthermore, BO-1051 treatment alone exhibited a moderate tumor suppressive effect against xenograft tumor growth in immunocompromised mice. Importantly, the combination of BO-1051 and radiation led to a potent inhibition on xenograft tumorigenesis. Collectively, our findings demonstrated that BO-1051 exhibited a cytotoxic effect via cell cycle arrest and the induction of autophagy. Thus, the combination of BO-1051 and radiotherapy may be a feasible therapeutic strategy against oral cancer in the future.
Evaluation of Traditional Chinese Medicinal Plants for Anti-MRSA Activity with Reference to the Treatment Record of Infectious Diseases
Authors: Zuo Guo-Ying , Zhang Xin-Juan , Yang Cui-Xian , Han Jun , Wang Gen-Chun , Bian Zhong-Qi
Published: March 2012

The in vitro antimicrobial activities of 30 Chinese medicinal plants were evaluated with reference to the treatment record of infectious diseases in the Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) literature. The plant materials were extracted with 80% ethanol and the extracts were primarily screened against conventional clinical pathogens like Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Candida albicans by the agar diffusion method. Their inhibition zone diameters (IZDs, mm, 50 mg/mL) ranged from 2,048 by the standard broth microdilution method. The seven extracts from M. yunnanensis, S. sinensis, G. morella, E. daneillii, M. squamulata, S. arborescens and B. hancei were determined as the most active extracts, with MICs of 8–64 μg/mL. The results were in good agreement with their traditional applications in skin and other infections.
Isolation of Glycinin (11S) from Lipid-Reduced Soybean Flour: Effect of Processing Conditions on Yields and Purity
Authors: Deng Kequan , Huang Youru , Hua Yufei
Published: March 2012

Defatted soybean flour was treated with hexane and ethanol to reduce lipid content and heated to inactivate lipoxygenase (LOX, linoleate:oxygen reductase; EC 1.13.11.12) to obtain lipid-reduced soybean flour (LRSF). The effects of processing conditions such as pH, reducing agent and storage time on yields and purity of glycinin (11S) were evaluated in the fractionation of soybean glycinin isolated from LRSF. Adjusting the pH of protein extract from 6.2 to 6.6, the yield of glycinin decreased by 16.71%, while the purity of the protein increased by 4.60%. Sulfhydryl and disulfide content of proteins increased by degrees with increasing pH. Compared with dithiothreitol (DTT) or β-mercaptoethanol (ME) as reducing agent, the yield of glycinin was the highest when sodium bisulfite (SBS) was added to the protein extract at pH 6.4. The effect of DTT on yields of glycinin was the lowest of the three kinds of reducing agent. The purity of glycinin was similar when the three kinds of reducing agent were used. These results showed that SBS was the best choice for the isolation of 11S-rich fraction. Prolonging storage time in the precipitation stage, 10 h was the best for yields and purity of glycinin in the experiment, while there was no significant difference at P ≥ 0.05 for total sulfhydryl and disulfide content. The decreased free sulfhydryl content of glycinin indicated that the oxidation of free sulfhydryls and the formation of disulfide bonds occurred when the extraction time was prolonged.
Effect of Electrospun Non-Woven Mats of Dibutyryl Chitin/Poly(Lactic Acid) Blends on Wound Healing in Hairless Mice
Authors: Jang Seon Il , Mok Ji Ye , Jeon In Hwa , Park Kwang-Hyun , Nguyen Thuy Thi Thu , Park Jun Seo , Hwang Hee Min , Song Mi-Sun , Lee Duckhee , Chai Kyu Yun
Published: March 2012

The aim of this study was to examine the proliferative ability of dibutyryl chitin (DBC) on scratch wounds in HaCaT keratinocytes and to evaluate the effect of nanoporous non-woven mat (DBCNFM) on skin wound healing in hairless mice using the advantages of DBCNFM, such as high porosity and high surface area to volume. The cell spreading activity of DBC was verified through a cell spreading assay in scratched human HaCaT keratinocytes. Scratch wound experiments showed that DBC notably accelerates the spreading rate of HaCaT keratinocytes in a dose dependent manner. The molecular aspects of the healing process were also investigated by hematoxylin & eosin staining of the healed skin, displaying the degrees of reepithelialization and immunostaining on extracellular matrix synthesis and remodeling of the skin. Topical application of DBCNFM significantly reduced skin wound rank scores and increased the skin remodeling of the wounded hairless mice in a dose dependent way. Furthermore, DBCNFM notably increased the expression of the type 1 collagen and filaggrin. These results demonstrate that DBC efficiently accelerates the proliferation of HaCaT keratinocytes and DBCNFM notably increases extracellular matrix synthesis on remodeling of the skin, and these materials are a good candidate for further evaluation as an effective wound healing agent.
Recovery and Concentration of Antioxidants from Winery Wastes
Authors: Soto María Luisa , Conde Enma , González-López Noelia , Conde María Jesús , Moure Andrés , Sineiro Jorge , Falqué Elena , Domínguez Herminia , Núñez María José , Parajó Juan Carlos
Published: March 2012

Grape and wine byproducts have been extensively studied for the recovery of phenolic compounds with antioxidant activity and a variety of biological actions. The selective recovery and concentration of the phenolic compounds from the liquid phase separated from further diluted winery wastes has been proposed. Adsorption onto non ionic polymeric resins and further desorption with ethanolic solutions was studied. Several commercial food grade resins were screened with the aim of selecting the most suited for the practical recovery of phenolic compounds with radical scavenging activity. Under the optimized desorption conditions (using Sepabeads SP207 or Diaion HP20 as adsorbents and eluting with 96% ethanol at 50 °C) a powdered yellow-light brown product with 50% phenolic content, expressed as gallic acid equivalents, was obtained. The radical scavenging capacity of one gram of product was equivalent to 2–3 g of Trolox.
1H and 13C-NMR Data of the Simplest Plumeran Indole Alkaloids Isolated from Aspidosperma Species
Authors: Guimarães Heloisa Alves , Braz-Filho Raimundo , Vieira Ivo José Curcino
Published: March 2012

Indole alkaloids are the chemotaxonomic markers of the Aspidosperma genera. Those that have the simplest plumeran skeleton are classified as the precursors of biosynthetic routes and the intermediates for several synthetic reactions. This work aims to review the 1H and 13C-NMR data, up to 2011, describing the skeleton of 35 different plumeran indole alkaloids, from a group of 46 of them, and highlight the main spectral differences amongst them.
La Fortune mi-partie : un exemple de la symbolique de la droite et de la gauche au moyen âge
Authors: Bertrand Pierre-Michel
Published: March 2012

Dans l'imagerie médiévale, Fortuna personnifie les aléas de la condition humaine. À l'époque romane, les artistes la figurent sous les traits d'une déesse qui fait aller et venir les hommes autour d'une roue, portant les uns au pinacle, faisant déchoir les autres, alternativement. Par la suite, sans abandonner complètement cette formule, ils prendront l'habitude de doter leur personnage d'une morphologie mi-partie, blanche du côté droit, noire du côté gauche afin qu'à l'idée de fluctuation verticale induite par le motif de la roue réponde celle de dualisme latéral. En effet, selon une tradition dont les échos sont innombrables au moyen âge, la droite et la gauche symbolisent l'antithèse du bien et du mal. Sous la forme mi-partie, la Fortune est ainsi clairement désignée comme une puissance capricieuse, à la fois propice du côté droit et adverse du côté gauche.
Les jongleurs dans les psautiers du haut moyen âge : nouvelles hypothèses sur la symbolique de l'histrion médiéval
Authors: Marchesin Isabelle
Published: March 2012

For almost a century now, the medieval juggler has been the subject of a large number of studies. Whether discussed as a representative of a social category, as one of the earliest representations of the artist or as a moral type, the treatment to which this figure has been subjected reverberates, almost invariably, with negative undertones. There are as yet only timid attempts to view the juggler as anything but an archetype of perversion. To attempt such a rethinking is one of the purposes of the present study. I propose to look at the juggler, within the image, as being first and foremost a body in action, an "actor" characterized by a specific language of gestures. Such an iconographie approach might prove fruitful in redefining this figure, by enabling us to go back to the primary (bodily, gestural) sources of its symbolism. It is through his relationship with the other elements in the iconographic context that the juggler acquires a specific symbolic function. When he seems to be submitted to a music of the body (we might speak of instinctual drives), he signifies the submission of the spirit to the flesh. On the other hand, when the iconographic context expresses a spiritual music, that is to say a music founded on the mathematical dynamics generated in the soul and in the entire Church by the Holy Spirit, it becomes clear that the body can be, and should be an instrument enabling the true Christian to speak or sing or behave according to the laws of God.
Exendin-4 Increases the Expression of Hypoxia-Inducible Factor-1α in Rat Islets and Preserves the Endocrine Cell Volume of Both Free and Macroencapsulated Islet Grafts
Authors: Jia Xiaohui , Sharma Amit , Kumagai-Braesch Makiko , Wernerson Annika M. , Sörenby Anne K. , Yamamoto Shinji , Wang Feng , Tibell Annika B.
Published: March 2012

In this study, we evaluated the effects of exendin-4 on free and encapsulated islet grafts in a rodent model. We also investigated the role of a transcription factor, hypoxia-inducible factor-1 (HIF-1), in mediating the beneficial effects of exendin-4. Diabetic athymic mice were transplanted with free rat islets under the kidney capsule or with macroencapsulated rat islets SC with or without exendin-4, islet preculture (exendin-4 0.1 nM for 20 h), and/or recipient treatment (IP 100 ng/day, day 0–7). The mice were followed for 4 weeks and the graft function and β-cell volume were evaluated. The effects of exendin-4 on islet HIF-1α mRNA and protein expression and on ATP content in a rat insulinoma cell line (INS-1E) were also examined. Preculture with exendin-4 followed by recipient treatment improved the outcome of both free (73% graft function vs. 26% in controls, p = 0.03) and macroencapsulated islet grafts (100% vs. 25% in controls, p = 0.02). In macroencapsulated grafts, the exendin-4-treated group had significantly larger endocrine volume, less graft necrosis, and more blood vessels around the capsule. In rat islets cultured with exendin-4, HIF-1α mRNA and protein expression were significantly enhanced. ATP content was increased in exendin-4-treated INS-1E cells under hypoxic conditions. The improved functional outcome after transplantation of a marginal islet mass with a brief initial treatment with exendin-4 is related to a larger surviving endocrine cell volume. Exendin-4 may improve islet graft resistance to hypoxia during the peritransplant period by increasing the expression of HIF-1α.
Highly Malignant Behavior of a Murine Oligodendrocyte Precursor Cell Line following Transplantation into the Demyelinated and Nondemyelinated Central Nervous System
Authors: Hansmann Florian , Pringproa Kidsadagon , Ulrich Reiner , Sun Yanyong , Herder Vanessa , Kreutzer Mihaela , Baumgärtner Wolfgang , Wewetzer Konstantin
Published: March 2012

Understanding the basic mechanisms that control CNS remyelination is of direct clinical relevance. Suitable model systems include the analysis of naturally occurring and genetically generated mouse mutants and the transplantation of oligodendrocyte precursor cells (OPCs) following experimental demyelination. However, aforementioned studies were exclusively carried out in rats and little is known about the in vivo behavior of transplanted murine OPCs. Therefore in the present study, we (i) established a model of ethidium bromide-induced demyelination of the caudal cerebellar peduncle (CCP) in the adult mouse and (ii) studied the distribution and marker expression of the murine OPC line BO-1 expressing the enhanced green fluorescent protein (eGFP) 10 and 17 days after stereotaxic implantation. Injection of ethidium bromide (0.025%) in the CCP resulted in a severe loss of myelin, marked astrogliosis, and mild to moderate axonal alterations. Transplanted cells formed an invasive and liquorogenic metastasizing tumor, classified as murine giant cell glioblastoma. Transplanted BO-1 cells displayed substantially reduced CNPase expression as compared to their in vitro phenotype, low levels of MBP and GFAP, prominent upregulation of NG2, PDGFRα, nuclear p53, and an unaltered expression of signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT)-3. Summarized environmental signaling in the brain stem was not sufficient to trigger oligodendrocytic differentiation of BO-1 cells and seemed to block CNPase expression. Moreover, the lack of the remyelinating capacity was associated with tumor formation indicating that BO-1 cells may serve as a versatile experimental model to study tumorigenesis of glial tumors.
Changes in Employee Commuting: A Comparative Analysis of Employee Commuting to Major Slovenian Employment Centers from 2000 to 2009
Authors: Bole David
Published: March 2012

This paper discusses changes in employee commuting in the ten largest Slovenian employment centers from 2000 to 2009. Based on analysis of the SRDAP database, changes are presented in employee commuter routes between source and target municipalities. The results show a significant increase in both the scope of employee commuting and number of routes. Reasons for these changes are explained by the construction of freeway infrastructure, which has made it possible to travel faster from one municipality to another and to commute to employment centers. The scope and direction of commuting also depend on changes in the socioeconomic structure of the urban system, especially suburbanization, the economic crisis affecting local employment centers, and changing job locations within the regions themselves.
Protecting trees through an inventory and typology: Heritage trees in the Karavanke Mountains, Slovenia
Authors: Šmid Hribar Mateja , Lisec Anka
Published: March 2012

Both research and policy require a transparent approach to monitoring and managing natural and cultural heritage because landscape quality has become a key concept in landscape planning. This paper introduces an advanced approach to natural and cultural heritage inventory for the study of heritage trees. Because trees play different roles in society, different regulations apply to their preservation, which can lead to inconsistencies in records for heritages trees. The inventory of heritage trees and their types in the study area identified within the Karavanke Natura 2000 project, which is presented in this paper, is based on existing lists of heritage trees, fieldwork, and interviews. A new database of heritage trees has been established in which the advantage of geographical information systems unifying various data sources is emphasized.
Spatial research study of Peruvian immigrants in Santiago de Chile
Authors: Gomez Segovia Aloisia
Published: March 2012

The article offers results of the social-spatial research study of Peruvian immigrants in the Chilean capital of Santiago de Chile. The permanent Peruvian immigration to Santiago started at the beginning of the 1990s, and has been quickly rising since 1995 . Peruvians are, next to Argentineans, the second largest group of immigrants in Chile, while in the urban area of Santiago they are even the largest immigrant group. The concentration of Peruvian immigrants in the old city centre is clearly visible, what raised the attention of the Chilean society, media and scientists. With the help of demographic data from 2002 we want to show the structure of Peruvian immigrants and visualize their spatial distribution by maps.
International law's invisible hand and the future of corporate accountability for violations of human rights
Authors: Simons Penelope
Published: March 2012

In May 2011, the United Nations Special Representative of the Secretary-General on the Issue of Human Rights and Transnational Corporations and other Business Enterprises (SRSG), Professor John G Ruggie, submitted to the Human Rights Council his ‘Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights’ aimed at implementing his ‘Protect, Respect and Remedy’ policy framework. The Council unanimously adopted the Guiding Principles at its June 2011 session. Ruggie's work has been both welcomed and criticised and his Guiding Principles are likely to remain controversial. Apart from the SRSG's recommendation to the HRC to develop a process to clarify the legal obligations of business entities not to commit international crimes, his work on this issue did not include a recommendation that the future development of binding international obligations should be one of the goals of his policy framework and guiding principles.

This article argues that Ruggie's approach to addressing corporate human rights impunity was misconceived. For Ruggie, ‘[t]he root cause of the business and human rights predicament today lies in the governance gaps created by globalization – between the scope and impact of economic forces and actors, and the capacity of societies to manage their adverse consequences’. It is argued here, however, that to address corporate impunity effectively, one cannot simply deal with the governance gaps alone. One must also identify and address the root causes of those gaps. This article contends that corporate human rights impunity is deeply embedded in the international legal system. It seeks to demonstrate the problems with the SRSG's approach by arguing that, along with the interventions of international financial institutions in the economies of developing states, one of the most significant impediments to corporate human rights accountability is the structure of the international legal system itself. The validity of this assertion is explored through an examination of the critiques of the international legal system by Third World Approaches to International Law (TWAIL) scholars, as well as insights drawn from feminist critiques of international law. It is argued that powerful states have used international law and international institutions to create a globalised legal environment which protects and facilitates corporate activity and, although the SRSG identified symptoms of this reality during his tenure, he did not examine the deep structural aspects of this problem. This article demonstrates that such an examination would have revealed the crucial need for binding international human rights obligations for business entities in any adequate strategy aimed at addressing corporate impunity. It concludes with some recommendations for developing such obligations incrementally.
Jurisdictional arbitrage by multinational companies: a national law solution?
Authors: Dine Janet
Published: March 2012

This article suggests that innovative provisions in Albanian company law provide a promising initial framework for the future construction of multinational corporations' accountability for environmental and human rights abuses. Such robust national provisions hold out hope for overcoming the limitations and inhibitions presented by extraterritoriality, while exceeding the promise of universal jurisdiction, to offer a relatively detailed ‘enterprise liability’ construct in national company law.
Climate change, Hans Jonas and indirect investors1
Authors: Wheeler Sally
Published: March 2012

This article considers how corporate behaviour in relation to climate change might be reconfigured and the role that indirect investors might play in this reconfiguring. The article suggests that the consequences of climate change are serious enough that indirect investors might be prevailed upon, using a model of behaviour suggested by the work of Hans Jonas, to pressure institutional investors into demanding changes in corporate policy towards climate change. Jonas' work represents a plea for the recognition and acceptance of responsibility in the face of nature's vulnerability and humanity's power over technology. The article suggests that this ethic can be operationalised in relation to corporate governance by building on the changes in the pattern of investment holdings that have taken place in large public companies in the preceding two decades or so. The idea is to appeal to individuals who may perceive themselves as currently being outsiders – or at least only distant stakeholders in relation to the corporation – to realise the responsibility vested in them as beneficiaries through their interest in pension funds, life assurance policies, annuities and other arm's-length financial arrangements with corporations. The hope is that these individuals may, through the influence of a model of responsibility, become active investors and beneficiaries interested in corporate practices that impact on climate change and, encourage others to do likewise.