bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Optimization and Quantization in Gradient Symbol Systems: A Framework for Integrating the Continuous and the Discrete in Cognition
Authors: Smolensky Paul , Goldrick Matthew , Mathis Donald
Published: June 2013

Mental representations have continuous as well as discrete, combinatorial properties. For example, while predominantly discrete, phonological representations also vary continuously; this is reflected by gradient effects in instrumental studies of speech production. Can an integrated theoretical framework address both aspects of structure? The framework we introduce here, Gradient Symbol Processing, characterizes the emergence of grammatical macrostructure from the Parallel Distributed Processing microstructure (McClelland, Rumelhart, & The PDP Research Group, 1986) of language processing. The mental representations that emerge, Distributed Symbol Systems, have both combinatorial and gradient structure. They are processed through Subsymbolic Optimization–Quantization, in which an optimization process favoring representations that satisfy well‐formedness constraints operates in parallel with a distributed quantization process favoring discrete symbolic structures. We apply a particular instantiation of this framework, λ‐Diffusion Theory, to phonological production. Simulations of the resulting model suggest that Gradient Symbol Processing offers a way to unify accounts of grammatical competence with both discrete and continuous patterns in language performance.
Protected Area Effectiveness in Reducing Conversion in a Rapidly Vanishing Ecosystem: The Brazilian Cerrado
Authors: Carranza Tharsila , Balmford Andrew , Kapos Valerie , Manica Andrea
Published: June 2013

Measuring how far protected areas (PAs) reduce threats to nature is essential for effective conservation. This is especially important where a high degree of threat is coupled with opportunities for increasing conservation investments, such as in the Brazilian Cerrado. We examined the effectiveness of strictly protected and multiple‐use PAs as well as indigenous lands (ILs) in reducing conversion in Cerrado from 2002 to 2009 by using matching methods to sample protected and unprotected sites similarly exposed to pressures. We found that both types of PAs and ILs experienced lower habitat conversion during this period than did matched unprotected sites, whether results were analysed for individual PAs or for PA networks as a whole. Judging from their matched unprotected sites, strictly PAs had similar levels of baseline conversion to multiple‐use PAs, but were more effective at reducing it. This may be expected as multiple‐use PAs are under less restrictive land‐use rules. ILs had a strong effect in reducing conversion, though baseline rates in matched areas were also high. Our results highlight the usefulness of PAs in the Cerrado and the value of research that differentiates among PA categories.
Long‐term 4‐year safety of saxagliptin in drug‐naive and metformin‐treated patients with Type 2 diabetes
Authors: Rosenstock J. , Gross J. L. , Aguilar‐Salinas C. , Hissa M. , Berglind N. , Ravichandran S. , Fleming D.
Published: June 2013

Aims

To evaluate the safety of saxagliptin ± metformin over 4 years in patients with Type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Methods

Drug‐naive (n = 401; study 11) or metformin‐treated (n = 743; study 14) adults with HbA1c of 53–86 mmol/mol (7.0–10%) were enrolled in two randomized, placebo‐controlled, double‐blind trials of saxagliptin 2.5, 5 or 10 mg/day. Patients rescued during or completing 24 weeks of treatment could continue in a 42‐month long‐term blinded phase, for which the primary goal was assessment of safety and tolerability. Between‐group efficacy was not evaluated in the long‐term phase of study 11. Time to rescue or discontinuation because of inadequate glycaemic control, change from baseline in HbA1c and percentages of patients achieving HbA1c < 53 mmol/mol (< 7.0%) were assessed in study 14.

Results

No new safety findings were noted during the long‐term phase. Most adverse events were mild or moderate, with slightly greater frequency of upper respiratory infections with saxagliptin. Hypoglycaemic event rates were similar with saxagliptin and placebo. In study 14, time to rescue or discontinuation because of inadequate glycaemic control was longer with saxagliptin plus metformin than for placebo plus metformin. From baseline to week 154, HbA1c decreased with saxagliptin but increased with placebo.

Conclusion

Saxagliptin monotherapy or add‐on to metformin is generally safe and well tolerated, with no increased risk of hypoglycaemia, for up to 4 years.
Cultivating Human Capabilities in Venturesome Learning Environments
Authors: Hogan Pádraig
Published: June 2013

The notion of competencies has been a familiar feature of educational reform policies for decades. In this essay, Pádraig Hogan begins by highlighting the contrasting notion of capabilities, pioneered by the research of Amartya Sen and Martha Nussbaum. An educational variant of the notion of capabilities then becomes the basis for exploring venturesome environments of learning: environments that are hospitable to the cultivation of such capabilities among students and their teachers. In this exploration Hogan emphasizes disclosing the kinds of relations that constitute such environments. In particular, he identifies four kinds of relations and investigates the interplay among them. In the second part of the essay, Hogan reviews an ongoing research project in Ireland that has been promoting such environments in postprimary education: Teaching and Learning for the 21st Century. Although the project avoids proffering universal claims about “what works,” its rationale and conduct nevertheless call policymakers' attention to what has worked and to the reasons why.
Predicting novel trophic interactions in a non‐native world
Authors: Pearse Ian S. , Altermatt Florian
Published: June 2013

Humans are altering the global distributional ranges of plants, while their co‐evolved herbivores are frequently left behind. Native herbivores often colonise non‐native plants, potentially reducing invasion success or causing economic loss to introduced agricultural crops. We developed a predictive model to forecast novel interactions and verified it with a data set containing hundreds of observed novel plant–insect interactions. Using a food network of 900 native European butterfly and moth species and 1944 native plants, we built an herbivore host‐use model. By extrapolating host use from the native herbivore–plant food network, we accurately forecasted the observed novel use of 459 non‐native plant species by native herbivores. Patterns that governed herbivore host breadth on co‐evolved native plants were equally important in determining non‐native hosts. Our results make the forecasting of novel herbivore communities feasible in order to better understand the fate and impact of introduced plants.
Increased sternocleidomastoid, but not trapezius, muscle activity in response to increased chewing load
Authors: Häggman‐Henrikson Birgitta , Nordh Erik , Eriksson Per‐Olof
Published: June 2013

Previous findings, during chewing, that boluses of larger size and harder texture result in larger amplitudes of both mandibular and head–neck movements suggest a relationship between increased chewing load and incremental recruitment of jaw and neck muscles. The present report evaluated jaw (masseter and digastric) and neck [sternocleidomastoid (SCM) and trapezius] muscle activity during the chewing of test foods of different sizes and textures by 10 healthy subjects. Muscle activity was recorded by surface electromyography and simultaneous mandibular and head movements were recorded using an optoelectronic technique. Each subject performed continuous jaw‐opening/jaw‐closing movements whilst chewing small and large boluses of chewing gum and rubber silicone (Optosil). For jaw opening/jaw closing without a bolus, SCM activity was recorded for jaw opening concomitantly with digastric activity. During chewing, SCM activity was recorded for jaw closing concomitantly with masseter activity. Trapezius activity was present in some, but not all, cycles. For the masseter and SCM muscles, higher activity was seen with larger test foods, suggesting increased demand and recruitment of these muscles in response to an increased chewing load. This result reinforces the previous notion of a close functional connection between the jaw and the neck motor systems in jaw actions and has scientific and clinical significance for studying jaw function and dysfunction.
Variation in training regimens in professional showjumping yards
Authors: Lönnell A. C. , Bröjer J. , Nostell K. , Hernlund E. , Roepstorff L. , Tranquille C. A. , Murray R. C. , Oomen A. , van Weeren R. , Bitschnau C. , Montavon S. , Weishaupt M. A. , Egenvall A.
Published: June 2013

Reasons for performing study

Training regimens of showjumping horses under field conditions are largely undocumented.

Objectives

The aims of this study were to quantify and compare training regimens used in professional‐level showjumping yards, with respect to time exercised and type of activity.

Study design

Prospective cohort study.

Methods

A prospective 6‐month cohort study of showjumping horses in 4 European countries (The Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland, Great Britain) was designed to analyse training and health data, in yards with several horses in training and riders competing at professional level. Riders documented the daily frequency and duration of all physical activities of the horses. Variation in training routines were compared between riders, location and time. Mixed‐models analysis was used to examine factors associated with total time exercised and time spent in flatwork.

Results

In 4 countries, the 31 participating riders trained 263 European Warmbloods. The total days at risk (e.g. days in which the horses were considered fit for exercise) was 39,262. Mean time spent in daily exercise, including ridden work, lungeing and treadmill exercise, varied between riders from 19–52 min/day at risk. There was considerable variation in activities and level of heavy work and light exercise, i.e. turnout. Total time exercised and time spent in flatwork differed with month, country and proportion of days lost to training. Low variation of activities was associated with decreased total time trained and increased time spent in flatwork.

Conclusions

Riders at this elite professional level of showjumping used training regimens that vary substantially in time spent training and other physical activities and showjumping horses are challenged differently during training despite competing at the same level. Whether all training regimens prepare the horses equally for the demands of competition remains to be determined.
Gimme shelter – the relative sensitivity of parasitic nematodes with direct and indirect life cycles to climate change
Authors: Molnár Péter K. , Dobson Andrew P. , Kutz Susan J.
Published: June 2013

Climate change is expected to alter the dynamics of host–parasite systems globally. One key element in developing predictive models for these impacts is the life cycle of the parasite. It is, for example, commonly assumed that parasites with an indirect life cycle would be more sensitive to changing environmental conditions than parasites with a direct life cycle due to the greater chance that at least one of their obligate host species will go extinct. Here, we challenge this notion by contrasting parasitic nematodes with a direct life cycle against those with an indirect life cycle. Specifically, we suggest that behavioral thermoregulation by the intermediate host may buffer the larvae of indirectly transmitted parasites against temperature extremes, and hence climate warming. We term this the ‘shelter effect’. Formalizing each life cycle in a comprehensive model reveals a fitness advantage for the direct life cycle over the indirect life cycle at low temperatures, but the shelter effect reverses this advantage at high temperatures. When examined for seasonal environments, the models suggest that climate warming may in some regions create a temporal niche in mid‐summer that excludes parasites with a direct life cycle, but allows parasites with an indirect life cycle to persist. These patterns are amplified if parasite larvae are able to manipulate their intermediate host to increase ingestion probability by definite hosts. Furthermore, our results suggest that exploiting the benefits of host sheltering may have aided the evolution of indirect life cycles. Our modeling framework utilizes the Metabolic Theory of Ecology to synthesize the complexities of host behavioral thermoregulation and its impacts on various temperature‐dependent parasite life history components in a single measure of fitness,R0. It allows quantitative predictions of climate change impacts, and is easily generalized to many host–parasite systems.
Predisposing Factors of Varicose and Telangiectatic Leg Veins
Authors: SADICK NEIL S.
Published: June 2013

Presented is an epidemiologic study on predisposing factors in telangiectatic and varicose leg veins on 500 female patients. Genetic predisposition, hyperestrogenemic states, standing vocations, and obesity were found to be the major predisposing factors. Recognition of these factors may help to prevent further progression of proliferative venous disease after sclerotherapy in susceptible individuals.
Running Vertical Mattress Suturing Technique
Authors: STIFF MARK A. , SNOW STEPHEN N.
Published: June 2013

The running vertical mattress suturing technique is a quick and simple method of providing skin edge eversion that is equivalent to the simple vertical mattress technique. The running stitch is relatively easy to master and provides excellent apposition of wound edges.
Environmental Influences on Individual Burnout and a Preventive Approach for Organizations
Authors: Brown Lee W. , Quick James Campbell
Published: June 2013

Burnout is a prevalent problem in advanced market economies, and recent economic downturns have created conditions that increase the likelihood of burnout within organizations. This present paper addresses the current absence of research in the scientific literature on how macro‐level factors may affect burnout. We propose a conceptual model of burnout, which introduces the macro environment, organization behaviors, and both individual and organizational stressors that all contribute to burnout. Furthermore, we review the burnout literature and provide a multilevel preventive approach for dealing with burnout. Trends and previous findings in the literature support the proposed conceptual model.
A Transdiagnostic Approach to Pain and Emotion
Authors: Linton Steven J.
Published: June 2013

Emotion and pain are known to be intimately related, but treating co‐occurring problems is still in its infancy mainly because we lack a clear theoretical understanding of the underlying mechanisms involved. This lack of understanding is problematic because treatment has proved challenging and co‐occurring pain and emotional problems are associated with poor outcome, relapse, and greater sick absenteeism. Transdiagnostics has emerged as one way of focusing on the shared underlying mechanisms that drive comorbid problems. This approach has not been thoroughly examined for pain and emotion. Hence, the purpose of this review is to describe a transdiagnostic approach to pain and emotion and its clinical implications. To this end, the transdiagnostic approach is applied to pain and emotion in a narrative review of the literature. A focus on the function of emotion and pain relative to the context is underscored as a way to understand the relationship better. Avoidance, catastrophic worry, and thought suppression are put forward as three examples of potential transdiagnostic mechanisms that may underlie a co‐occurring emotion and pain problem. The approach is readily translated to the clinic where assessment and treatment should focus on identifying transdiagnostic mechanisms. However, additional exploration is needed and therefore suggestions for future research are presented.
Late Pleistocene colonization of South Georgia by yellow‐billed pintails pre‐dates the Last Glacial Maximum
Authors: McCracken Kevin G. , Wilson Robert E. , Peters Jeffrey L. , Winker Kevin , Martin Anthony R.
Published: June 2013

Aim

Glacial cycles had a major influence on the distribution of high‐latitude species, and while genetic consequences of these cycles have been well studied in the Circumpolar North, notably fewer studies have been undertaken in the Antarctic. Here, we use multilocus genetic data from the South Georgia pintail (Anas georgica georgica) as a proxy to study the presence and timing of ice‐free refugia on South Georgia, a glaciated subantarctic island in the South Atlantic Ocean that has been the subject of intense geomorphological and palaeoenvironmental study.

Location

South Georgia.

Methods

Multilocus DNA sequence data from five nuclear loci and the mitochondrial DNA control region were analysed for South Georgia pintails (n = 60) and the neighbouring population of yellow‐billed pintails (A. georgica spinicauda) in Argentina (n = 64). Population genetic structure and gene flow were examined using ΦST, assignment tests, and multilocus coalescent analyses.

Results

Isolation‐with‐migration (IM) analysis revealed that the South Georgia pintail population was founded by pintails dispersing from South America. Although the confidence intervals on divergence dates inferred from genetic data are generally wide and there may be time‐dependency in rate calibrations, our analysis suggests that this founding event probably occurred c. 34,000 years ago, prior to the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). Our findings further suggest that South Georgia pintails might have experienced a bottleneck coinciding with complete replacement of mitochondrial DNA prior to 8700 years ago following the final advance of glaciers.

Main conclusions

These findings suggest that ice‐free refugia existed earlier in the chronology of deglaciation in contrast with earlier studies, but in agreement with observations that the plant community was also established on South Georgia prior to the end of the Pleistocene. Like other recent studies that have utilized genetic data to date dispersal and vicariance events in the Antarctic, our results provide a constraint on the extent of ice sheets, suggesting that past ice coverage on South Georgia through the LGM was overestimated.
Clinicopathologic features of hyperplastic/serrated polyposis syndrome in Japan
Authors: Miwata Tomohiro , Hiyama Toru , Oka Shiro , Tanaka Shinji , Shimamoto Fumio , Arihiro Koji , Chayama Kazuaki
Published: June 2013

Background and Aim

Hyperplastic/serrated polyposis syndrome (HPS) is a condition characterized by multiple hyperplastic/serrated colorectal polyps. The risk of colorectal cancer (CRC) is increased in HPS. The clinicopathologic characteristics of HPS in Japanese patients are unknown.

The aim of this study is to clarify the clinicopathologic features of HPS in Japanese patients.

Methods

We retrieved records of patients diagnosed with HPS between April 2008 and March 2011 from the endoscopy database of Hiroshima University Hospital. In addition, we mailed a questionnaire to the hospital's 13 affiliated hospitals in July 2012. Data collected from the database and questionnaires included patient age, sex, number of hyperplastic/serrated polyps and tubular adenomas, size of the largest polyp, polyp location, resection for polyps, coexistence of HPS with CRC, and the diagnostic criterion met.

Results

Of the 73 608 patients who underwent colonoscopy, 10 (0.014%) met the criteria for HPS. The mean age of these patients was 58.3 years, and 6 (60%) were men. No subjects had a first‐degree relative with HPS. Four (40%) HPS patients had more than 30 hyperplastic/serrated polyps, and average size of the largest polyp was 19 mm. Three (30%) HPS patients had coexistence of HPS with CRC. In these 3 patients, polyps were observed throughout the colorectum.

Conclusions

Although HPS was a rare condition in the overall study population, patients with the disease may have high risk of CRC. HPS should be diagnosed correctly and followed up carefully.
Elevated serum dopamine increases while coffee consumption decreases the occurrence of reddish streaks in the intact stomach
Authors: Chen Tseng‐Shing , Chang Full‐Young
Published: June 2013

Background and Aim

Reddish streaks in an intact stomach are an endoscopic feature of duodenogastric reflux. This study aimed to identify which factors are associated with gastric reddish streaks and thus help prevent mucosal damage from duodenogastric reflux.

Methods

Demographic data, personal habits, stressful life events, and psychological distress were compared between subjects with only gastric reddish streaks and those with normal mucosa who underwent upper gastrointestinal endoscopy as part of a self‐paid physical checkup. Stress hormones dopamine and cortisol were also checked by high‐performance liquid chromatography and radioimmunoassay methods respectively.

Results

There were 95 subjects with gastric reddish streaks and 52 subjects with normal mucosa. No significant differences in age, gender, blood groups, education levels, marital status, religion, aspirin or nonsteroidal anti‐inflammatory drug (NSAID) use, smoking habit, alcohol consumption, and intake of tea was found between the two groups, but intake of coffee was borderline more common in subjects with normal mucosa (38.5% vs 22.1%, P = 0.055). Subjects with gastric reddish streaks had lower Helicobacter pylori infection rate (37.8% vs 19.3%, P < 0.05). There were no significant differences in psychological distress and stressful life events between the two groups. Multivariate analysis shows that serum dopamine concentrations (odds ratio = 11.31, 95% confidence interval = 2.11–60.48, P = 0.005) and being without the consumption of coffee (odds ratio = 2.97, 95% confidence interval = 1.27–6.94, P = 0.012) were associated with gastric reddish streaks.

Conclusions

Elevated serum dopamine and less coffee consumption are associated with gastric reddish streaks. These findings implicate that increased dopamine level plays a role for abnormal duodenogastric reflux.
The effect of acute auditory stress on gastric motor responses to a meal in healthy volunteers
Authors: Lee Hong Sub , An Young‐Sil , Kang Joonkoo , Yoo Jun Hwan , Lee Kwang Jae
Published: June 2013

Background and Aim

Stress is believed to play a role in the pathogenesis of functional gastrointestinal disorders. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of acute auditory stress on gastric motor responses to a meal in healthy subjects.

Methods

A total of eight healthy volunteers (seven men and one woman; median age, 33.4 years [30–35 years]) who had no recurrent gastrointestinal symptoms participated in the prospective, randomized, crossover study. Gastric half‐emptying time and meal‐induced proximal gastric accommodation were measured using gastric scintigraphy under the auditory stress and control conditions in a randomized crossover design.

Results

The gastric half‐emptying time under the stress condition was significantly longer than that under the control condition (130.8 ± 16.6 vs 105.0 ± 13.1 min; P = 0.005 by paired t‐test). Under the stress and control conditions, the proximal gastric volume significantly increased after a meal (P < 0.001 by repeated measures analysis of variance). The degree of the postprandial increase in proximal gastric volume did not significantly differ between both conditions (P = 0.598 by tests of between‐subjects effects using repeated measures analysis of variance). The severity scores of postprandial epigastric discomfort and fullness were significantly higher under the stress condition than under the control condition (P = 0.001 and P = 0.039, respectively, by paired t‐test).

Conclusions

Acute auditory stress delays gastric emptying and increases the severity of postprandial symptoms in the healthy subjects, suggesting the relevance of psychological stress to the pathophysiological mechanism of functional dyspepsia.
Binding of the repressor complex REST‐mSIN3b by small molecules restores neuronal gene transcription in Huntington's disease models
Authors: Conforti Paola , Zuccato Chiara , Gaudenzi Germano , Ieraci Alessandro , Camnasio Stefano , Buckley Noel J. , Mutti Cesare , Cotelli Franco , Contini Alessandro , Cattaneo Elena
Published: June 2013

Transcriptional dysregulation is a hallmark of Huntington's disease (HD) and one cause of this dysregulation is enhanced activity of the REST‐mSIN3a‐mSIN3b‐CoREST‐HDAC repressor complex, which silences transcription through REST binding to the RE1/NRSE silencer. Normally, huntingtin (HTT) prevents this binding, allowing expressing of REST target genes. Here, we aimed to identify HTT mimetics that disrupt REST complex formation in HD. From a structure‐based virtual screening of 7 million molecules, we selected 94 compounds predicted to interfere with REST complex formation by targeting the PAH1 domain of mSIN3b. Primary screening using DiaNRSELuc8 cells revealed two classes of compounds causing a greater than two‐fold increase in luciferase. In particular, quinolone‐like compound 91 (C91) at a non‐toxic nanomolar concentration reduced mSIN3b nuclear entry and occupancy at the RE1/NRSE within the Bdnf locus, and restored brain‐derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) protein levels in HD cells. The mRNA levels of other RE1/NRSE‐regulated genes were similarly increased while non‐REST‐regulated genes were unaffected. C91 stimulated REST‐regulated gene expression in HTT‐knockdown Zebrafish and increased BDNF mRNA in the presence of mutant HTT. Thus, a combination of virtual screening and biological approaches can lead to compounds reducing REST complex formation, which may be useful in HD and in other pathological conditions.

image

Dysregulation of REST and its target genes have been implicated in Huntington's disease. We have coupled structured‐based virtual screening approaches to biological assays and selected molecules that interfere with the repressor complex REST‐mSIN3b. In particular, at the non‐toxic dose, compound C91 is able to increase neuronal gene transcription and to reverse low Bdnf mRNA levels in HD models.
Burkitt lymphoma of the ovary: A case report and literature review
Authors: Miyazaki Noriko , Kobayashi Yoichi , Nishigaya Yoshiko , Momomura Mai , Matsumoto Hironori , Iwashita Mitsutoshi
Published: June 2013

We report an extremely rare case of primary ovarian Burkitt lymphoma. A 15‐year‐old girl was referred to our department because of persistent constipation and abdominal distension. Abdominal computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging revealed a 10‐cm‐diameter solid tumor located on the right side of the uterus. Serum lactate dehydrogenase and carbohydrate antigen‐125 levels were elevated at 3250 IU/L and 235.7 U/mL, respectively. Initially, ovarian dysgerminoma was suspected, but poor performance and progressive disease were suggestive of malignant lymphoma. However, bone marrow aspiration and ascitic fluid cytology findings were not indicative of lymphoma. Laparotomy was performed to confirm pathology. On laparotomy, the right ovary was firm and enlarged, but the uterus and left ovary were normal. Diffuse thickness of retroperitoneal space was observed. Right salpingo‐oophorectomy was performed, and the tumor was diagnosed as Burkitt lymphoma. Although intensive chemotherapy was administered, the patient died 171 days after the initial operation.
Frequency of MEFV mutation and genotype–phenotype correlation in cases with dysmenorrhea
Authors: Ocak Zeynep , Ocak Tarık , Duran Arif , Ozlü Tülay , Kocaman Ertugrul Mevlut
Published: June 2013

Aim

We aimed to investigate the relation between mutations and polymorphisms playing roles in the onset of clinical findings of Familial Mediterranean Fever (FMF) and clinical phenotypic reflections manifesting with painful episodes, such as dysmenorrhea.

Material and Methods

A total of 1000 female patients who had not responded well to non‐steroidal anti‐inflammatory drugs in the menstrual period, and who had presented to the emergency room with the complaint of recurrent pain episodes were included in the study. All the patients were Turkish women living in Istanbul. In this study, the mutations most frequently seen in the Mediterranean Fever Gene (MEFV), namely M694V, E148Q, M680I(G/C), V726A, P369S, R761H, A744S, M694I, K695R, F479L, M680I(G/A), and I692del were examined using the DNA sequence analysis following DNA isolation.

Results

The number of individuals who had a mutation in at least one allele for FMF was 511 out of 1000 patients. Of these 511 patients, homozygous mutations were found in 21% (n = 109), compound heterozygous mutations were found in 27% (n = 136), and heterozygous mutations were found in 52% (n = 266). The most frequent homozygous genotype seen in our study population was M694V/M694V. The most common compound heterozygote genotypes were M694V/M680I, M694V/V726A, M694V/E148Q, and M680I/V726A; and 11.7% (n = 60) of the families in whom mutations were found had consanguinity.

Conclusion

Women who present to the emergency room with the complaint of dysmenorrhea that is irresponsive to non‐steroidal anti‐inflammatory drugs may have several types of MEFV mutations that are responsible for FMF.
Maternal tumor necrosis factor receptor 2 gene variants associated with pre‐eclampsia in Tunisian women
Authors: Said Lamia , Faleh Raja , Smida Samia , Laajili Hayet , Sakouhi Mohamed , Bel Hadj Jrad Besma
Published: June 2013

Aim

The tumor necrosis factor receptor 2 (TNFR2) is expressed in placental tissue and it is involved in immune responses, inflammation, angiogenesis and blood pressure regulation; which makes it an attractive pre‐eclampsia (PE) candidate gene. Furthermore, TNFR2 expression is altered in the first trimester in placentas of women who are destined to develop PE. Therefore, we examined the association between maternal and fetal genetic variants of TNFR2 and PE.

Material and Methods

Women with PE (n = 157) and their offspring with PE (n = 60) were compared to a control group of women (n = 97) and their offspring (n = 52) in the same Tunisian hospital‐based population. We genotyped by polymerase chain reaction and restriction fragment length polymorphism the T/G polymorphism at position 676 in exon 6 (rs1061622) of the TNFR2 gene and examined its association with PE.

Results

The frequencies of TNFR2 (G/G) genotype and G allele were higher in the mothers with PE (n = 154) compared to the control group (15.3% vs 4.1% and 37% vs 26.3%, respectively); furthermore, the difference reached statistical significance (P = 0.002, odds ratio = 4.9; 95% confidence interval: 1.69–17.4 and P = 0.03, odds ratio = 1.69; 95% confidence interval: 1.03–2.8, respectively). In contrast, the fetal genotype and allele frequencies of this polymorphism had no effect on the risk of PE.

Conclusions

The exon 6 polymorphism in TNFR2 (rs1061622) or a gene at proximity is associated specifically with PE at least in the Tunisian population and could increase the risk for PE for mothers carrying the homozygote minor allele. Nevertheless, these results need to be confirmed in other populations.
External Venturing and Discontinuous Strategic Renewal: An Options Perspective
Authors: Basu Sandip , Wadhwa Anu
Published: June 2013

This study examines the relationship between a firm's venturing activities and its undertaking of strategic renewal. The study was motivated by some important gaps in the corporate entrepreneurship literature on venturing and renewal. The extant literature has not focused on the different types and dimensions of firms' renewal activities. In particular, discontinuous renewal involving shifts in firms' core businesses is not well understood. Moreover, the conditions that drive firms to undertake strategic renewal have not been examined. For example, it is not known how venturing increases or reduces the benefits of undertaking renewal. This study focuses on a discontinuous form of renewal involving major changes in firms' core businesses and examines firms' external venturing activities that complement their internal development. We examine corporate venture capital (CVC) investments, which are direct minority equity investments made by established companies in privately held ventures. Discontinuous renewal is conceptualized as resulting from a set of related, and often sequential, managerial decisions. The first managerial decision is to initiate growth in a business that is relatively newer or smaller for the organization. The second decision is to move away, or even withdraw completely, from the current core business that enabled prior growth and prosperity for the firm and served as its primary revenue earner. Employing a real options perspective, we argue that CVC investments create growth options in new and existing businesses but do not result in firms' withdrawal from existing businesses. Therefore, we expect CVC activity to be negatively associated with the likelihood of a firm undertaking discontinuous renewal. We also propose that the benefits of withdrawing from existing businesses are even lower, and the costs even higher, for firms in dynamic industries and for firms that possess strong internal capabilities. The predictions of the study are tested using longitudinal data on 477 firms from the 1990 Fortune 500 list for the period 1990–2000. We find support for all our predicted hypotheses. These results help address important limitations in the corporate entrepreneurship literature. The study also contributes to the real options and organizational capabilities literatures.
Managing the Unexpected Across Space: Improvisation, Dispersion, and Performance inNPDTeams
Authors: Magni Massimo , Maruping Likoebe M. , Hoegl Martin , Proserpio Luigi
Published: June 2013

Organizations are increasingly moving toward a team‐based structure for managing complex knowledge in new product development (NPD) projects. Such teams operate in an environment characterized by dynamic project requirements and emergent nonroutine issues, which can undermine their ability to achieve project objectives. Team improvisation—a collective, spontaneous, and creative action for identifying novel solutions to emergent problems—has been identified as a key team‐situated response to unexpected challenges toNPDteam effectiveness. Geographic dispersion is increasingly becoming a reality forNPDteams that find themselves needing to improvise solutions to emergent challenges while attempting to leverage the knowledge of team members who are physically distributed across various locations. However, very little is known about how teams' improvisational actions affect performance when such actions are executed in increasingly dispersed teams. To address this gap in the literature, this paper draws on the emerging literature on different forms and degrees of team dispersion to understand how team improvisation affects team performance in such teams. In particular this paper takes into account both the structural and psychological facets of dispersion by considering the physical distance between team members, the configuration of the team across different sites, as well as the team members' perception of being distant from their teammates. Responses from 299 team leaders and team members of 71NPDprojects in the software industry were used to analyze the relationship between team improvisation and team performance, as well as the moderating effect of the three different conceptualizations of team dispersion. Results of the study indicate that team improvisation has a positive influence on project team performance by allowing team members to respond to unexpected challenges through creative and timely action. However, increasing degrees of team member dispersion (both structural and psychological) attenuate this relationship by making it difficult to have timely access to other team members' knowledge and by limiting real‐time interactions that may lead to the development of creative solutions. The results of this research offer guidance to managers about when to balance the desire to leverage expertise to cope with unexpected events. Moreover, the present paper provides directions for future research on improvisation and team dispersion. Future research is encouraged to investigate factors that may help highly dispersed teams to overcome the shortcomings of team dispersion in dealing with emergent events.
Sexual and Relationship Intimacy Among Women with Provoked Vestibulodynia and Their Partners: Associations with Sexual Satisfaction, Sexual Function, and Pain Self-Efficacy
Authors: Bois Katy , Bergeron Sophie , Rosen Natalie O. , McDuff Pierre , Grégoire Catherine
Published: June 2013

Introduction

Provoked vestibulodynia (PVD) is the most frequent subtype of vulvodynia. Women report negative consequences of PVD on their sexual and romantic relationships. Researchers have recently highlighted the importance of examining interpersonal factors such as intimacy, and of including both women and their partners in study designs.

Aim

The aim of this study was to investigate sexual and relationship intimacy as defined by the Interpersonal Process Model of Intimacy and their associations with sexual satisfaction, sexual function, pain self-efficacy, and pain intensity among women with PVD and their partners.

Methods

Ninety-one heterosexual women (M age = 27.38, SD = 6.04) diagnosed with PVD and their partners (M age = 29.37, SD = 7.79) completed measures of sexual and relationship intimacy, sexual satisfaction, sexual function, pain self-efficacy, and pain intensity.

Main Outcome Measures

Dependent measures were the (i) Global Measure of Sexual Satisfaction Scale; (ii) Female Sexual Function Index; (iii) Painful Intercourse Self-Efficacy Scale; and (iv) visual analog scale of pain intensity during intercourse.

Results

After controlling for women's age, women's greater sexual intimacy (β = 0.49, P < 0.001) was associated with women's greater sexual satisfaction and higher pain self-efficacy (β = 0.39, P = 0.001), beyond the effects of partners’ sexual intimacy. Also, women's greater sexual intimacy (β = 0.24, P = 0.05) and women's greater relationship intimacy (β = 0.54, P = 0.003) were associated with greater women's sexual function, beyond the effects of partners’ sexual and relationship intimacy.

Conclusions

Women's self-reported sexual and relationship intimacy in the couple relationship may promote higher sexual satisfaction, sexual function, and pain self-efficacy, as well as possibly foster greater sexual well-being among women with PVD. The authors discuss implications for the inclusion of emotional and interpersonal aspects of the couple's dynamic in clinical interventions and future research in PVD.
Accuracy of 30-Day Recall for Components of Sexual Function and the Moderating Effects of Gender and Mood
Authors: Weinfurt Kevin P. , Lin Li , Dombeck Carrie B. , Broderick Joan E. , Snyder Denise C. , Williams Megan S. , Fawzy Maria R. , Flynn Kathryn E.
Published: June 2013

Introduction

Despite the ubiquity of 1-month recall periods for measures of sexual function, there is limited evidence for how well recalled responses correspond to individuals' actual daily experiences.

Aim

To characterize the correspondence between daily sexual experiences and 1-month recall of those experiences.

Methods

Following a baseline assessment of sexual functioning, health, and demographic characteristics, 202 adults from the general population (101 women, 101 men) were recruited to complete daily assessments of their sexual function online for 30 days and a single recall measure of sexual function at day 30.

Main Outcome Measures

At the baseline and 30-day follow-ups, participants answered items asking about sexual satisfaction, sexual activities, interest, interfering factors, orgasm, sexual functioning, and use of therapeutic aids during the previous 30 days. Participants also completed a measure of positive and negative affect at follow-up. The main outcome measures were agreement between the daily and 1-month recall versions of the sexual function items.

Results

Accuracy of recall varied depending on the item and on the gender and mood of the respondent. Recall was better (low bias and higher correlations) for sexual activities, vaginal discomfort, erectile function, and more frequently used therapeutic aids. Recall was poorer for interest, affectionate behaviors (e.g., kissing), and orgasm-related items. Men more than women overestimated frequency of interest and masturbation. Concurrent mood was related to over- or underreporting for six items addressing the frequency of masturbation and vaginal intercourse, erectile function, and orgasm.

Conclusions

A 1-month recall period seems acceptable for many aspects of sexual function in this population, but recall for some items was poor. Researchers should be aware that concurrent mood can have a powerful biasing effect on reports of sexual function.
Conceiving Modernity
Authors: Ward Shannon
Published: June 2013

This article examines the trope of reproduction in narratives of Tibetan refugees living in Dharamsala, India. As they make sense of their personal histories, Tibetan refugees invoke a collective story that mirrors human rights literature on Tibet. Women come into contact with this literature through its incorporation into a political discourse expressed by the exile government and health institutions. The article traces facets of this discourse that deal centrally with reproduction. Political discourse on reproduction articulates pronatalism as a solution to the refugee community's concern with survival, and the discourse frames modernity as a site of violence through China's reproductive regulations. And yet, Tibetan refugees also employ the notion of modernity when discussing their own free reproductive decision‐making, positioning modern reproductive interventions in opposition to Indian society. The article demonstrates that Tibetan refugees navigate competing figurations of modernity by expressing political resistance and affiliation through the idiom of reproduction.
Making Sense of HIV in Southeastern Nigeria
Authors: Winskell Kate , Brown Peter J. , Patterson Amy E. , Burkot Camilla , Mbakwem Benjamin C.
Published: June 2013

Fictional narratives have rarely been used in medical anthropological research. This article illustrates the value of such narratives by examining how young people in southeastern Nigeria navigate the cultural resources available to them to make sense of HIV in their creative writing. Using thematic data analysis and narrative‐based methodologies, it analyzes a sample (N = 120) from 1,849 narratives submitted by Nigerian youth to the 2005 Scenarios from Africa scriptwriting contest on the theme of HIV. The narratives are characterized by five salient themes: tragedy arising from the incompatibility of sex outside marriage and kinship obligations; female vulnerability and blame; peer pressure and moral ambivalence; conservative Christian sexual morality; and the social and family consequences of HIV. We consider the strengths and limitations of this narrative approach from a theoretical perspective and by juxtaposing our findings with those generated by Daniel Jordan Smith using standard ethnographic research methods with a similar Igbo youth population.
Children's Roles in Tuberculosis Treatment Regimes
Authors: Hunleth Jean
Published: June 2013

In Zambia, the burden of HIV‐related diseases such as tuberculosis has received substantial international attention. Zambians experience and participate in a range of globally produced programs to manage TB and cure TB sufferers. Guided by WHO's Directly Observed Treatment, Short‐course protocol, TB treatment regimens now emphasize adherence to medications as the primary way to achieve cure. This article aims to understand how adherence models enter into the daily lives of children who live with and care for adult TB patients in an area disproportionately affected by the disease. I suggest that children domesticate adherence models, using them as strategies to safeguard identities, relationships, livelihoods, and futures that are increasingly under threat in the age of HIV. They draw on TB treatment and the hope and agency it affords to hold onto a version of childhood in which they are cared for by adults who will advocate for their well‐being.
Effects of Genes and Environment on the Fetoplacental Arterial Microcirculation in Mice Revealed by Micro‐Computed Tomography Imaging
Authors: Rennie Monique Y. , Sled John G. , Adamson S. Lee
Published: June 2013

The fetoplacental arterial tree is critical for efficient distribution of arterial blood to capillaries throughout the placental exchange region; yet, little is known about the factors and mechanisms that control its development. Advances in micro‐CT imaging and analysis, and available mutant mouse strains, are facilitating rapid progress. Indeed, micro‐CT studies show that genetic differences between the CD1 and C57Bl/6 mouse strains, and between Gcm1 heterozygotes and wild‐type littermates alter the developmental trajectory of the fetoplacental arterial tree as do environmental factors including maternal exposure to toxins in cigarette smoke and malarial infection. Relative to other vascular beds, the fetoplacental arterial tree is particularly tractable because veins can more easily be excluded when infusing the contrast agent and because of the placenta's small size, which means that the whole organ can be imaged (maintaining connectivity) and that the tree is simpler (fewer branching generations). Despite these differences, measured parameters were found to be similar to arterial trees in other adult rodent organs. Thus, micro‐CT analysis provides a means for advancing of our understanding of the mechanisms controlling development of the fetoplacental arterial tree. Results will likely have relevance to other arterial vasculatures as well.
Do Foreign-owned Subsidiaries in China Follow a Distinctive Pattern of Technological Knowledge Sourcing?
Authors: Cantwell John A. , Zhang Feng
Published: June 2013

This study investigates the China-located subsidiaries of foreign-owned multinational corporations (MNCs) for patterns of intra-firm and interorganizational technological knowledge accumulation. We analyze US patents attributed to those subsidiaries between 1996 and 2005 and argue that MNCs have recently tended toward open network structures, enabling subsidiaries in emerging markets to develop technological capabilities by searching for diversified inter-organizational knowledge sources beyond geographically local contexts to compensate for local limitations and deficiencies. Findings show that subsidiaries in China have gradually developed their technological capabilities through non-localized searches beyond their organizational, technological, and geographical boundaries. The study contributes to the literature on MNC organizational restructuring, subsidiary evolution, and subsidiary-level non-localized knowledge searches. The findings also have important implications for knowledge spillovers, MNC knowledge management, and government policies.