bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Just War against Barbarians: Revisiting the Valladolid Debates between Sepúlveda and Las Casas
Authors: Brunstetter Daniel R. , Zartner Dana
Published: September 2010

Contemporary just war theory is experiencing a period of renegotiation as scholars grapple with the dimensions the war on terror places on the relationship between justice and war. A closer examination of the history of the tradition reveals that such intellectual moments have occurred before, and represent a philosophical heritage which can be probed for insight into current questions. We turn to the 1550–1 Valladolid debates between Sepúlveda and Las Casas to gain insight into some of the questions facing just war theorists today because the debates lay bare the logic for expanding jus ad bellum in the case of those perceived to be barbarians, and a compelling counter-argument. Sepúlveda proposes that a more expansive understanding of jus ad bellum is necessary in the case of barbarians, defining just cause in terms of identity and the natural law, balanced by humanitarian ends such as saving the innocent and spreading the natural law. Las Casas illustrates the dangers of Sepúlveda's position and offers an alternative framework of jus ad bellum that focuses on injury and warns against including humanitarian benefits in the just cause criterion. Las Casas' ultimate wisdom lies in arguing for the restriction of jus ad bellum in the face of those who make compelling arguments, draped in moral universals and humanitarian imperatives, for its expansion.
A Stereotype, Wrapped in a Cliché, inside a Caricature: Russian Foreign Policy and Orientalism
Authors: Brown James D.J.
Published: September 2010

This article distils Edward Said's celebrated critique of Orientalism and applies it to the mainstream Western discourse on Russian foreign policy. It finds that the literature in this field, while not as afflicted as the material towards which Said's strident criticism was originally directed, displays a number of the characteristic symptoms of Orientalism – the exaggeration of difference, assumption of Western superiority and resort to clichéd analytical models. To overcome this malaise, it is proposed that scholars make greater efforts to break free of these ‘mind-forg'd manacles’ and reflect more deeply upon the assumptions underpinning their scholarship.
Justice and Transition in Mississippi: Opening the Books on the American South
Authors: Lamont Christopher
Published: September 2010

Mississippi's contemporary revisiting of racial violence that marred the state's transition from a white supremacist political order, colloquially known as Jim Crow, to a post-Jim Crow polity constitutes a valuable case study for transitional justice scholarship and practice. It is within the context of an often overlooked yet violently contested transition that transitional justice discourses have increasingly permeated debates on how, and even whether or not, to confront Mississippi's violent past. Mississippi's recent attempts to confront past abuses through criminal prosecutions and non-state community-based initiatives provides an important insight into the limits of criminal prosecutions and a growing turn towards the establishment of a truth commission to confront past human rights abuses perpetrated within the state.
In Praise of the Popular Press: The Need for Tabloid Racism
Authors: Temple Mick
Published: September 2010

This article argues that the mainstream public sphere needs to provide a more accurate portrayal of public opinion on race and immigration. British newspapers are often accused of racism: that they might be representing the views of many of their readers is dismissed. The free circulation of ideas, however unpalatable some might be to ‘enlightened’ thought, is essential. The press can play a key role in a more inclusive public debate by allowing readers’ views greater prominence and by opening their news and comment pages to a wider range of opinion. Concerns that readers will be seduced by extremism say more about elite perceptions of the malleability of the masses than about concern for democratic debate.
Estimating Research Performance by Using Research Grant Award Gradings
Authors: Goldstein Harvey
Published: September 2010

In the UK and elsewhere, there has been considerable debate about the use of quantitative indicators, known as ‘metrics’, to judge research performance of individual academics and university departments. We carry out an analysis of the grades that are awarded to research grant applications to explore the extent to which such information can be used for this purpose. Our results suggest that the usefulness of these data is limited and also that similar important limitations are associated with other metrics such as those based on journal paper citation indices.
Fast Stable Restricted Maximum Likelihood and Marginal Likelihood Estimation of Semiparametric Generalized Linear Models
Authors: Wood Simon N.
Published: September 2010

Recent work by Reiss and Ogden provides a theoretical basis for sometimes preferring restricted maximum likelihood (REML) to generalized cross-validation (GCV) for smoothing parameter selection in semiparametric regression. However, existing REML or marginal likelihood (ML) based methods for semiparametric generalized linear models (GLMs) use iterative REML or ML estimation of the smoothing parameters of working linear approximations to the GLM. Such indirect schemes need not converge and fail to do so in a non-negligible proportion of practical analyses. By contrast, very reliable prediction error criteria smoothing parameter selection methods are available, based on direct optimization of GCV, or related criteria, for the GLM itself. Since such methods directly optimize properly defined functions of the smoothing parameters, they have much more reliable convergence properties. The paper develops the first such method for REML or ML estimation of smoothing parameters. A Laplace approximation is used to obtain an approximate REML or ML for any GLM, which is suitable for efficient direct optimization. This REML or ML criterion requires that Newton–Raphson iteration, rather than Fisher scoring, be used for GLM fitting, and a computationally stable approach to this is proposed. The REML or ML criterion itself is optimized by a Newton method, with the derivatives required obtained by a mixture of implicit differentiation and direct methods. The method will cope with numerical rank deficiency in the fitted model and in fact provides a slight improvement in numerical robustness on the earlier method of Wood for prediction error criteria based smoothness selection. Simulation results suggest that the new REML and ML methods offer some improvement in mean-square error performance relative to GCV or Akaike’s information criterion in most cases, without the small number of severe undersmoothing failures to which Akaike’s information criterion and GCV are prone. This is achieved at the same computational cost as GCV or Akaike’s information criterion. The new approach also eliminates the convergence failures of previous REML- or ML-based approaches for penalized GLMs and usually has lower computational cost than these alternatives. Example applications are presented in adaptive smoothing, scalar on function regression and generalized additive model selection.
SEXUAL DIFFERENCE AND TRINITARIAN DEATH: CROSS, KENOSIS, AND HIERARCHY IN THE THEO‐DRAMA
Authors: TONSTAD LINN MARIE
Published: September 2010

Hans Urs von Balthasar's “Theo‐Drama: Theological Dramatic Theory” exhibits a mutual funding of a hierarchical ordering of the relation between “man” and “woman” and a hierarchical ordering of the relation between the Father, the Son, and the Spirit. The two hierarchies explain, illustrate, and support one another. Von Balthasar's oscillation between hierarchy and equality, particularly in the divine case, results in a tortured understanding of personhood where being in relation means handing oneself over to another with the threat of death always present. Von Balthasar's understanding of personhood turns out to be fundamentally masochistic. Further, difference collapses into hierarchy and thus turns out to be no more than repetition in the mode of reception, which then poses a serious challenge to Balthasar's account of divine and human being. Since the point of connection between the two is found in his account of the way inner‐trinitarian relations of origin are extended into the world in the sending of the Son, this is the thesis which needs problematizing. For von Balthasar, the kenotic nature of the inner‐trinitarian processions explains what in the life of God makes the cross possible, but this move ascribes something like suffering and death to the inner life of God in a way that undercuts the fullness of divine love while undergirding a hierarchical understanding of divine relationality.
POLICING A LIBERAL SOCIETY
Authors: Blundell John
Published: September 2010

Better policing can only come by devolving accountability and responsibility. This, combined with decentralisation and privatisation where possible, will create an environment where innovation flourishes and good practice is copied. There are many lessons from the USA which could usefully be adopted by the UK.
MEDDLING IN OTHER MEN'S AFFAIRS: THE CASE FOR ANARCHY
Authors: Casey Gerard
Published: September 2010

This paper calls into question the foundational myth of political theory, the myth of the necessity of the state. The anarchic counterposition is briefly sketched before some central anti‐anarchic arguments are considered and rejected.
TRANSITION AND POLITICAL MARKETS: POST‐WAR GERMAN VERSUS POST‐SOCIALIST SLOVENIAN RECONSTRUCTION
Authors: Mrkaić Mićo , Pezdir Rado
Published: September 2010

In this paper we try to explain why the economic and political transition in Germany after World War II was successful, and why the transition in post‐communist Slovenia was not. We analyse interactions between political markets and economies in both countries. The differences between the two transitions can be explained by different institutional transformations and different roles of interest groups. In Slovenia, the slow pace of political reform inhibited economic liberalisation.
Performance and Performativity: Undoing Fictions of Women Business Owners
Authors: Phillips Mary , Knowles Deborah
Published: September 2010

This article explores the representation of women small business owners in three contemporary novels; Chocolat, The Shipping News and Back When We Were Grownups. The primary contribution is to demonstrate how fiction can both challenge and collude in dominant constructions of entrepreneurship, which is more generally gendered as male and masculine. Judith Butler's thinking on performativity with regard to gender and sexual desire is applied to women's identities and extended to include their behaviour as entrepreneurs. The article demonstrates that these novels both ‘do’ and ‘undo’ gender and business ownership. They portray women who are successful in business while displaying culturally accepted norms of femininity but who are set apart from other female characters. However, their partial and conflictual identification with norms of gender and entrepreneurship could lead a reader to question those norms and through the undoing of the protagonists, the novels offer alternative performances and performativities of doing gender and of doing business.
From bench to bedside – translational research in psoriasis
Authors: Prinz JC
Published: September 2010

For many years, psoriasis was firmly believed to be a disease of epidermal keratinocytes, but now is attributed to a combination of genetic and environmental factors that promote a T‐cell mediated immune response in the skin. Psoriasis is now understood to be a systemic T‐cell mediated autoimmune disease with the innate immune system playing an important role. Progress in understanding the pathogenesis of psoriasis has shown that following a stimulus, dendritic and T cell activation leads to the release of cytokines, chemokines and growth factors that initiate the proliferation and altered differentiation of keratinocytes. These factors subsequently lead to continuous activation of T cells and antigen‐presenting cells, particularly dendritic cells, within the psoriatic plaque. This vicious cycle of psoriasis, in which the cytokines interleukin 12 (IL‐12) and IL‐23 play a pivotal role, is a logical target for biological therapy.
Incidence of tuberculosis infection in psoriatic patients on anti‐TNF therapy: report of a case series with 144 patients
Authors: Sánchez‐Moya AI , Dauden E
Published: September 2010

Background  Worldwide clinical trials and post‐marketing surveillance data have demonstrated an increased incidence of tuberculosis (TB) disease associated with antitumour necrosis factor (anti‐TNF) agents. The majority of these cases are presumed to result from a reactivation of latent disease, while the rate of new infections is unknown. A study was performed to evaluate the incidence of latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) in psoriatic patients screened for biological therapy in a high‐incidence area, such as Madrid, Spain.

Patients and methods  One hundred and forty‐four patients with moderate‐to‐severe psoriasis treated with anti‐TNF agents were recruited. All of them were screened for active TB or LTBI before therapy. The screening included a detailed medical study, physical examination, chest X‐ray, tuberculin skin test (TST) with purified protein derivative and re‐TST.

Results  A total of 42 (29%) patients were diagnosed with LTBI based on a positive TST or re‐TST, and/or signs of past TB in the chest X‐ray. All of them received chemoprophylaxis with isoniazide. One patient developed a primary active lymphnode TB.

Conclusion  This is the first study to underscore the incidence of LTBI in patients with psoriasis treated with anti‐TNF therapy in the Spanish population. We support that the use of TST is still reliable and an effective diagnostic method for the detection of LTBI in anti‐TNF therapy.
A randomized clinical trial in psoriasis: synchronous balneophototherapy with bathing in Dead Sea salt solution plus narrowband UVB vs. narrowband UVB alone (TOMESA‐study group)
Authors: Klein A , Schiffner R , Schiffner‐Rohe J , Einsele‐Krämer B , Heinlin J , Stolz W , Landthaler M
Published: September 2010

Background  Synchronous balneophototherapy (sBPT) simulates treatment conditions at the Dead Sea for outpatient use. In the past, sBPT proved to be an effective treatment for psoriasis. However, there is a lack of sufficiently large randomized controlled clinical trials evaluating the additional benefit of sBPT compared with ultraviolet B (UVB) monotherapy.

Objectives  The purpose of this study was to compare the effectiveness and safety of sBPT with UVB phototherapy (PT) alone in a randomized controlled effectiveness study.

Methods  In this phase III, multicentre effectiveness study, 367 patients with moderate to severe psoriasis were randomly allocated in a 1 : 1 ratio to receive either sBPT consisting of narrowband UVB PT with 311 nm and synchronous bathing in 10% Dead Sea salt solution or PT with 311 nm alone. Primary endpoint, analysed on an intention‐to‐treat basis (n = 356), was the relative improvement of the Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI) from baseline to end of treatment (35 sessions or clearance). Sample size calculation aimed at the detection of superiority of at least 10%.

Results  Median PASI values were comparable at baseline (sBPT: 15.1, interquartile range: 10.9–24.3; PT: 15.3, interquartile range: 10.0–23.7). A clinically relevant and statistically significant difference of 49.5% between sBPT and PT could be proven at the end of the therapy phase (P < 0.001; Wilcoxon–Mann–Whitney test). Exploratory testing showed a statistically significant superiority of sBPT after 6 months.

Conclusions  In routine clinical practice, sBPT is superior to PT alone after 35 treatment sessions and a follow‐up of 6 months. Both treatments demonstrated to be safe.
Renewed focus on the developing human neocortex
Authors: Clowry Gavin , Molnár Zoltán , Rakic Pasko
Published: September 2010

Many specifically human psychiatric and neurological conditions have developmental origins. Rodent models are extremely valuable for the investigation of brain development, but cannot provide insight into aspects that are specifically human. The human brain, and particularly the cerebral cortex, has some unique genetic, molecular, cellular and anatomical features, and these need to be further explored. Cortical expansion in human is not just quantitative; there are some novel types of neurons and cytoarchitectonic areas identified by their gene expression, connectivity and functions that do not exist in rodents. Recent research into human brain development has revealed more elaborated neurogenetic compartments, radial and tangential migration, transient cell layers in the subplate, and a greater diversity of early‐generated neurons, including predecessor neurons. Recently there has been a renaissance of the study of human brain development because of these unique differences, made possible by the availability of new techniques. This review gives a flavour of the recent studies stemming from this renewed focus on the developing human brain.
Absence of lymphatic vessels in the dog dental pulp: an immunohistochemical study
Authors: Martin Anna , Gasse Hagen , Staszyk Carsten
Published: September 2010

In spite of numerous investigations it has not been precisely determined whether lymphatic vessels are present in the dental pulp of dogs. Therefore, this study attempted a specific immunohistochemical detection of lymphatic endothelium. The canine teeth of 19 healthy beagle dogs were dissected into three segments (apical, intermediate and occlusal). After decalcification, specimens were embedded in paraffin wax and histologic cross‐sections were stained immunohistochemically using a reliable antibody (anti‐Prox‐1) against the homeobox transcription factor Prox‐1, which is located within the nucleus of lymphatic endothelium. Anti‐Prox‐1 reacted positively with canine control tissues (lymph nodes, gingiva, nasal mucosa), but showed no staining in tissue sections of the dental pulp. The dog dental pulp contained no vascular structures lined with lymphatic endothelium. This suggests that drainage of interstitial fluid makes use of other routes, i.e. extravascular pathways.
Implementing safe motherhood: a low‐cost intervention to improve the management of eclampsia in a referral hospital in Malawi
Authors: Drost E , van Lonkhuijzen LRCW , Meguid T , Landis Lewis D , Zeeman GG
Published: September 2010

Please cite this paper as: Drost E, van Lonkhuijzen L, Meguid T, Landis Lewis D, Zeeman G. Implementing safe motherhood: a low‐cost intervention to improve the management of eclampsia in a referral hospital in Malawi. BJOG 2010;117:1553–1557.

We evaluated the effect of so‐called monitoring and treatment charts on the management of eclampsia in a referral hospital in Malawi. Baseline characteristics, clinical management, as well as overall maternal and perinatal outcome were compared by reviewing the medical files of two groups, before and after introduction of the charts in 2006. The use of the charts has resulted in improved monitoring of women with eclampsia and may have contributed to the reduction in the planned prelabour caesarean section rate from 87% to 33%, as more women underwent induction of labour after stabilisation (P = 0.020). Overall maternal and perinatal outcomes were similar.
Proportion of excision and cervical healing after large loop excision of the transformation zone for cervical intraepithelial neoplasia
Authors: Founta C , Arbyn M , Valasoulis G , Kyrgiou M , Tsili A , Martin‐Hirsch P , Dalkalitsis N , Karakitsos P , Kassanos D , Prendiville W , Loufopoulos A , Paraskevaidis E
Published: September 2010

Please cite this paper as: Founta C, Arbyn M, Valasoulis G, Kyrgiou M, Tsili A, Martin‐Hirsch P, Dalkalitsis N, Karakitsos P, Kassanos D, Prendiville W, Loufopoulos A, Paraskevaidis E. Proportion of excision and cervical healing after large loop excision of the transformation zone for cervical intraepithelial neoplasia. BJOG 2010;117:1468–1474.

Objective  To determine how the proportion of the cervical volume excised affects cervical regeneration.

Design  Prospective observational study.

Setting  University Hospital.

Population  Women planning to undergo excisional treatment for cervical intraepithelial neoplasia who wish to have future pregnancies.

Methods  The cervical volume (and dimensions) is calculated with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) before treatment. The volume (and dimensions) of the cone is assessed before fixation by a volumetric tube and a ruler; the percentage (%) of excision is computed. Cervical regeneration is estimated by repeat MRI at 6 months.

Main outcome measures  Cervical regeneration in relation to proportion of excision. Statistical analysis was performed by box plots and analysis of variance.

Results  A total of 48 women have been recruited; 29 have completed 6 months follow up. Both the total cervical volume (from MRI) before treatment and the volume of the excised/ablated cone varied substantially. The estimated proportion of excision varied significantly between 4% and 39% (median 11%). Multivariate linear regression revealed that the proportional deficit at 6 months post‐treatment was determined mainly by the proportion of the excised volume.

Conclusions  Careful assessment of risks and benefits of treatment is essential when deciding to treat women who wish to have future pregnancies. Assessment of the proportion of the cervical volume and length excised might identify those that need further surveillance during future pregnancy.
An economic analysis of induction of labour and expectant monitoring in women with gestational hypertension or pre‐eclampsia at term (HYPITAT trial)
Authors: Vijgen SMC , Koopmans CM , Opmeer BC , Groen H , Bijlenga D , Aarnoudse JG , Bekedam DJ , van den Berg PP , de Boer K , Burggraaff JM , Bloemenkamp KWM , Drogtrop AP , Franx A , de Groot CJM , Huisjes AJM , Kwee A , van Loon AJ , Lub A , Papatsonis DNM , van der Post JAM , Roumen FJME , Scheepers HCJ , Stigter RH , Willekes C , Mol BWJ , Van Pampus MG ,   for the HYPITAT study group
Published: September 2010

Please cite this paper as:Vijgen S, Koopmans C, Opmeer B, Groen H, Bijlenga D, Aarnoudse J, Bekedam D, van den Berg P, de Boer K, Burggraaff J, Bloemenkamp K, Drogtrop A, Franx A, de Groot C, Huisjes A, Kwee A, van Loon A, Lub A, Papatsonis D, van der Post J, Roumen F, Scheepers H, Stigter R, Willekes C, Mol B, Van Pampus M for the HYPITAT study group. An economic analysis of induction of labour and expectant monitoring in women with gestational hypertension or pre‐eclampsia at term (HYPITAT trial). BJOG 2010;117:1577–1585.

Objective To assess the economic consequences of labour induction compared with expectant monitoring in women with gestational hypertension or pre‐eclampsia at term.

Design An economic analysis alongside the Hypertension and Pre‐eclampsia Intervention Trial At Term (HYPITAT).

Setting Obstetric departments of six university and 32 teaching and district hospitals in the Netherlands.

Population Women diagnosed with gestational hypertension or pre‐eclampsia between 36+0and 41+0 weeks of gestation, randomly allocated to either induction of labour or expectant monitoring.

Methods A trial‐based cost‐effectiveness analysis was performed from a societal perspective during a 1‐year time horizon.

Main outcome measures One‐year costs were estimated and health outcomes were expressed as the prevalence of poor maternal outcome defined as either maternal complications or progression to severe disease.

Results The average costs of induction of labour (n = 377) were €7077 versus €7908 for expectant monitoring (n = 379), with an average difference of −€831 (95% CI −€1561 to −€144). This 11% difference predominantly originated from the antepartum period: per woman costs were €1259 for induction versus €2700 for expectant monitoring. During delivery, more costs were generated following induction (€2190) compared with expectant monitoring (€1210). No substantial differences were found in the postpartum, follow‐up and for non‐medical costs.

Conclusion In women with gestational hypertension or mild pre‐eclampsia at term, induction of labour is less costly than expectant monitoring because of differences in resource use in the antepartum period. As the trial already demonstrated that induction of labour results in less progression to severe disease without resulting in a higher caesarean section rate, both clinical and economic consequences are in favour of induction of labour in these women.

Trial registration The trial has been registered in the clinical trial register as ISRCTN08132825.
Gender‐specific aspects in the clinical presentation of cardiovascular disease
Authors: Leuzzi Chiara , Sangiorgi Giuseppe Massimo , Modena Maria Grazia
Published: September 2010

More than a quarter of a million women die each year in the industrialized countries from cardiovascular diseases (CVD), and current projections indicate that this number will continue to rise with our ageing population. Important sex‐related differences in the prevalence, presentation, management and outcomes of different CVD have discovered in the last two decades of cardiovascular research. Nevertheless, much evidence supporting contemporary recommendations for testing, prevention and treatment of CVD in women is still extrapolated from studies conducted predominantly in men. The compendium of CVD indicates that current research and strategy development must focus on gender‐specific issues to address the societal burden and costs related to these incremental shifts in female gender involvement. Indeed, this significant burden of CVD in women places unique diagnostic, treatment and financial encumbrances on our society that are only further intensified by a lack of public awareness about the disease on the part of patients and clinicians alike. This societal burden of the disease is, in part, related to our poor understanding of gender‐specific pathophysiologic differences in the presentation and prognosis of CVD and the paucity of diagnostic and treatment guidelines tailored to phenotypic differences in women. In this, scenario is of outmost importance to know these differences to provide the best care for female patients, because under‐recognition of CVD in women may contribute to a worse clinical outcome. This review will provide a synopsis of available evidence on gender‐based differences in the initial presentation, pathophysiology and clinical outcomes of women affected by CVD.
THE INFLUENCE OF AGE AND SEX ON CARDIAC, RENAL AND CAUDAL ARTERY CATECHOLAMINE CONTENT IN SPONTANEOUSLY HYPERTENSIVE (SHR) AND WISTAR KYOTO (WKY) RATS
Authors: HOWES L. G. , SUMMERS R. J. , LOUIS W. J.
Published: September 2010

Noradrenaline (NA), adrenaline (A) and dopamine (DA) levels were measured in the heart, kidney and caudal artery of male and female SHR and WKY rats aged 6, 14 and 28 weeks, and the influence of strain, sex and age on catecholamine content determined.

Levels of A were elevated in all three regions of SHR compared to WKY rats, independent of age and sex. This may represent increased A accumulation in sympathetic nerves resulting from the increased sympatho‐adrenomedullary hyper‐reactivity of the SHR strain.

DA levels were also elevated in the heart and kidney of SHR rats, independent of sex and age.

NA levels were lower in the heart of SHR rats, but this appeared to be partly a consequence of cardiac hypertrophy and partly due to strain differences between older male but not female rats. Thus a simple association between decreased cardiac NA levels and hypertension appeared unlikely.

It is emphasised that further genetic studies of F2 backcross rats would be required to establish an etiological association between these differences in catecholamine levels and differences in blood pressure between the SHR and WKY strains.
THE CHRONIC EFFECTS OF β‐ADRENORECEPTOR ANTAGONISTS ON THE EFFLUX OF TRITIATED NORADRENALINE FROM SYMPATHETIC NERVES OF THE PITHED RAT
Authors: DRAPER A. J. , KENDALL H. E. , REDFERN P. H.
Published: September 2010

The effect of chronic administration of two β‐adrenoreceptor blocking drugs, propranolol and timolol, on transmitter noradrenaline release from sympathetic nerves has been investigatedin vivousing the pithed rat preparation.

Oral treatment for 4 weeks with either propranolol (46.3 mg/kg/day) or timolol (7.1 mg/kg/day) significantly raised the stimulation frequency threshold for release of radioactivity on stimulation of the whole spinal outflow of the pithed rat after i.v. injection of3H‐NA.

No differences in the stimulation‐evoked rise in mean arterial pressure were observed between control or treated rats nor was the heart rate response to stimulation altered after timolol treatment. However, in propranolol treated rats the mean rises in heart rate were significantly higher with 3 and 30 Hz stimulation than in control rats.

Timolol treatment significantly increased the blood concentration and lowered the heart content of3H‐NA whilst propranolol treatment did not significantly change either blood or heart levels.

Log dose‐response curves for mean rises in heart rate after i.v. isoprenaline were not shifted to the right in either propranolol or timolol treated pithed rats. With the lowest doses of isoprenaline (1 and 25 ng), the mean rises in heart rate in timolol treated rats were significantly greater than in the controls.

Thus chronic administration of propranolol or timolol decreased the stimulation‐induced increase in plasma3H‐NA but this change in release was not related to reduced rises in blood pressure or heart rate.
PHARMACOLOGICAL CHARACTERIZATION OF NEURONAL DOPAMINE RECEPTORS IN THE RAT HINDQUARTERS, RENAL AND SUPERIOR MESENTERIC VASCULAR BEDS
Authors: DUPONT A. G. , VANDERNIEPEN P. , LEFEBVRE R. A. , BOGAERT M. G.
Published: September 2010

The present study was designed to characterize the neuronal dopamine receptors involved in the inhibitory effect of apomorphine on neurogenic vasoconstriction in the isolated autoperfused hindquarters, renal and superior mesenteric vascular beds of the rat.

In the three vascular beds, the inhibitory effect of apomorphine on neurogenic vasoconstriction was antagonized by the selective DA2‐receptor antagonist domperidone, but not by the selective DA1‐receptor antagonist SCH 23390. Local administration of these antagonists had no effect on the perfusion pressure per se or on the pressure response to electrical stimulation of the sympathetic innervation.

These results show that the neuronal dopamine receptors present in the rat hindquarters, renal and superior mesenteric vascular beds can be classified as DA2‐receptors.
REDUCED α1‐ADRENORECEPTOR MEDIATED RESPONSIVENESS IN VAS DEFERENS FROM SPONTANEOUSLY HYPERTENSIVE RATS
Authors: DOCHERTY J. R. , WARNOCK PAULA
Published: September 2010

α‐adrenoreceptor‐mediated responses were investigated in isolated vasa deferentia from spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR), Wistar Kyoto rats (WKY) and normotensive rats (NWR).

There was no significant difference between NWR, WKY and SHR in the inhibition of the isometric contraction to single pulse field stimulation by the α2‐selective agonist xylazine in prostatic portions, nor by xylazine and the α1‐selective agonist amidephrine in epididymal portions in the presence of nifedipine to prevent postjunctional actions of α1‐selective agonists.

There was no significant difference between NWR, WKY and SHR in the potency of amidephrine in causing a postjunctionally mediated potentiation of the isometric contraction to single pulse field stimulation in prostatic portions but the maximum potentiation was significantly reduced in SHR. However contraction by the calcium entry facilitator, Bay K 8644, was not significantly different between NWR, WKY and SHR. The maximum direct contraction to amidephrine, but not to Bay K 8644, was also significantly reduced in SHR.

It is concluded that the altered α1‐adrenoreceptor‐mediated responsiveness in SHR is due not to genetic strain, but is presumably linked to development of hypertension.
The use of otoliths as indicators of Little Penguin Eudyptula minor diet
Authors: GALES R. P.
Published: September 2010

The validity of using otoliths from stomach contents quantitatively to determine the number and size of fish consumed was tested on Little Penguins. They were fed different meal sizes of known number and size of fish and the stomach contents were recovered after various time intervals. There were no differences in estimates of original fish size when calculated from otolith length or weight. Rate of digestion of otoliths tended to decrease with increased meal size but increased with time after ingestion. Digestion of otoliths proceeds rapidly and, if ignored, estimates of numbers of fish consumed and of original fish size can be significantly underestimated. This problem can be partially solved by inspection of otolith condition and restricting calculations of fish size to otoliths unaffected by digestion. Many factors introduce variations into rate of otolith degradation and further species‐specific studies are required before appropriate correction factors can be applied.
Rosuvastatin restored adrenergic and nitrergic function in mesenteric arteries from obese rats
Authors: Blanco‐Rivero Javier , de las Heras Natalia , Martín‐Fernández Beatriz , Cachofeiro Victoria , Lahera Vicente , Balfagón Gloria
Published: September 2010

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE We investigated whether high‐fat diet (HFD)‐induced obesity was associated with changed function of components of the mesenteric innervation (adrenergic, sensory and nitrergic), the mechanisms involved and the possible effects of rosuvastatin on these changes.

EXPERIMENTAL APPROACH Male Wistar rats were divided into three groups. (i) rats fed a standard diet (control group); (ii) rats fed a HFD (33.5% fat) for 7 weeks; and (iii) rats fed a HFD and treated with rosuvastatin (15 mg·kg−1·day−1) for 7 weeks. Segments of isolated mesenteric arteries were exposed to electric field stimulation (EFS) with or without tetrodotoxin, phentolamine, 7‐nitroindazole (7NI) or Nω nitro‐L‐arginine methyl ester (L‐NAME). Noradrenaline, ATP and NO release, and nNOS expression were also measured.

KEY RESULTS EFS induced a greater frequency‐dependent contraction in obese than in control rats. In HFD rats, phentolamine reduced contractions elicited by EFS, but noradrenaline release was greater and ATP release decreased. L‐NAME and 7NI increased contractions to EFS in segments from control rats, but not in those from HFD rats. NO release and nNOS expression were lower in arterial segments from HFD rats than in control rats. All these changes in HFD rats were reversed by treatment with rosuvastatin.

CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS Neural control of mesenteric vasomotor tone was altered in HFD rats. Enhanced adrenergic and diminished nitrergic components both contributed to increased vasoconstrictor responses to EFS. All these changes were reversed by rosuvastatin, indicating novel mechanisms of statins in neural regulation of vascular tone.
Intra-executive Conflict and Cabinet Instability: Effects of Semi-presidentialism in Central and Eastern Europe
Authors: Sedelius Thomas , Ekman Joakim
Published: September 2010

Comparing eight post-communist semi-presidential systems (Bulgaria, Croatia, Lithuania, Moldova, Poland, Romania, Ukraine and Russia), comprising a total of 65 instances of intra-executive coexistence between 1991 and 2007, this article asks to what extent and in what ways president–cabinet conflicts increase the risk of cabinet instability. Previous studies of intra-executive conflicts in semi-presidential regimes have mainly been occupied with explaining why conflicts occur in the first place, and have neglected the question of how such conflicts are actually related to political outcomes. The present empirical investigation demonstrates that the occurrence of intra-executive conflict in transitional semi-presidential systems is likely to produce high rates of cabinet turnover.
Marshall Revisited: The Sequence of Citizenship Rights in the Twenty-first Century
Authors: Møller Jørgen , Skaaning Svend-Erik
Published: September 2010

As described by T. H. Marshall sixty years ago, the Western itinerary to modern democracy and the welfare state followed the sequence of civil, political and social citizenship rights. We demonstrate that Marshall's sequence is no longer the prevalent one in the developing and transformation countries of the contemporary era. Instead, political rights are generally at least as effective as civil liberties which are at least as effective as social rights. This new sequencing is attributable to the combination of ‘liberal hegemony’ and inauspicious structural constraints. More generally, our results suggest that the historical route to liberal democracy and the welfare state – beginning with liberal constitutionalism – is unlikely in today's world.
Seasonal life cycle of Zatypota albicoxa (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae), an ectoparasitoid of Achaearanea tepidariorum (Araneae: Theridiidae), in northern Japan
Authors: TANAKA Kazuhiro
Published: September 2010

The seasonal life cycle of Zatypota albicoxa (Walker, 1874), a koinobiont ectoparasitoid of the house spider, Achaearanea tepidariorum, was examined at Hirosaki (40°36′N), Japan. In winter, larvae were found on the abdomen of host spiders. They grew rapidly, emerged as adults in mid‐May, and reproduced shortly after emergence. The seasonal occurrence of the developmental stages in the field indicated that this parasitoid is multivoltine in Aomori Prefecture.
Maintenance of Helicobacter pylori Cultures in Agar Stabs
Authors: Xu Jinghua , Czinn Steven J. , Blanchard Thomas G.
Published: September 2010

Background:  Helicobacter pylori requires frequent passage at 37 °C with reduced oxygen tension to maintain viability, and recovery from frozen stocks can be unpredictable and slow. Agar stab cultures were assessed as a possible means of maintaining viability without the need to passage every 4–7 days.

Materials and Methods:  Agar stabs prepared from either Brucella or Brain Heart Infusion media were inoculated deeply with H. pylori strains or H. felis and grown under varying conditions for up to 13 weeks. Subcultures were prepared from these stabs at various intervals to test for viability.

Results:  Established cultures in agar stabs failed to survive at room temperature but did survive at 37 °C with 10% CO2 for up to 56 days. H. felis remained viable for up to 28 days. No difference was observed between the two media formulations.

Conclusion:  H. pylori grown in agar stabs remains viable for prolonged periods of time without the need to subculture and may represent an improved method for storing H. pylori for infrequent use.
The Bifidogenic Growth Stimulator Inhibits the Growth and Respiration of Helicobacter pylori
Authors: Nagata Kumiko , Inatsu Sakiko , Tanaka Mamoru , Sato Harumi , Kouya Tomoaki , Taniguchi Masayuki , Fukuda Yoshihiro
Published: September 2010

Background:  Triple therapy with amoxicillin, clarithromycin, and a proton‐pump inhibitor is a common therapeutic strategy for the eradication of Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori). However, frequent appearance of clarithromycin‐resistant strains is a therapeutic challenge. While various quinones are known to specifically inhibit the growth of H. pylori, the quinone 1,4‐dihydroxy‐2‐naphthoic acid (DHNA) produced by Propionibacterium has strong stimulating effect on Bifidobacterium. We were interested to see whether DHNA could inhibit the growth of H. pylori in in vitro or in vivo experimental setting.

Materials and Methods:  The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of DHNA was determined by the agar dilution method. The inhibitory action of DHNA on the respiratory activity was measured by using an oxygen electrode. Germ‐free mice infected with H. pylori were given DHNA in free drinking water containing 100 μg/mL for 7 days.

Results:  DHNA inhibited H. pylori growth at low MIC values, 1.6–3.2 μg/mL. Likewise, DHNA inhibited clinical isolates of H. pylori, resistant to clarithromycin. However, DHNA did not inhibit other Gram negative or anaerobic bacteria in the normal flora of the human intestine. Both H. pylori cellular respiration and adenosine 5′‐triphosphate (ATP) generation were dose‐dependently inhibited by DHNA. Similarly, the culture filtrates of propionibacterial strains inhibited the growth of H. pylori, and oral administration of DHNA could eradicate H. pylori in the infected germ‐free mice.

Conclusions:  The bifidogenic growth stimulator DHNA specifically inhibited the growth of H. pylori including clarithromycin‐resistant strains in vitro and its colonization activity in vivo. The bactericidal activity of DHNA was via inhibition of cellular respiration. These actions of DHNA may have clinical relevance in the eradication of H. pylori.
Is the Association Between Helicobacter pylori Infection and Anemia Age Dependent?
Authors: Muhsen Khitam , Barak Mira , Henig Clara , Alpert Gershon , Ornoy Asher , Cohen Dani
Published: September 2010

Background:  The relationship between H. pylori infection and anemia in childhood is still unclear. The aim of the study was to examine the association between H. pylori infection and anemia or iron deficiency in school‐age children and in infants.

Materials and Methods:  Six‐ to 9‐ year‐old Israeli Arab children (N = 202) and infants (N = 197) were examined for hemoglobin and ferritin levels. ELISA was used to detect H. pylori antigens in stool specimens collected from the participants. Household characteristics were obtained through personal interviews with the mothers.

Results:  The prevalence of anemia was 15.5 versus 5.5% in H. pylori‐positive and ‐negative school‐age children, respectively and 34.5 versus 29.8% in H. pylori‐positive and ‐negative infants, respectively. The Mantel–Haenszel age‐adjusted prevalence ratio (PR) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were 1.6 (95%CI 1.0, 2.6). In multivariate analysis controlling for socioeconomic variables, H. pylori infection was associated with 2.8 higher prevalence of anemia only in school‐age children: adjusted PR 2.8 (95% CI 0.9, 9.3). The adjusted mean difference in hemoglobin levels between H. pylori infected school‐age children and uninfected ones was −0.372 gr/dL (95% CI −0.704, −0.039) (p = .04). The respective mean ferritin difference was −6.74 μg/L (95% CI −13.38, −.011) (p = .04). Such differences were not found in infants.

Conclusions:  H. pylori infection is associated with higher prevalence of anemia in school‐age children independently of socioeconomic variables. Such association was not observed in infants. These findings are of clinical and public health importance.
Integrating Human and Ecosystem Health in the Great Lakes Basin: The Rationale for Sunsetting Industrial Chlorine
Authors: Vallentyne J. R.
Published: September 2010

ABSTRACT

Pollution from persistent toxic substances, interpreted as downward causation from the Biosphere, was the primary factor causing the integration of human and ecosystem health in the Great Lakes Basin. Institutional measures that set the political stage for integration were the Boundary Waters Treaty of 1909 and the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreements of 1972 and 1978 (the latter with an accent on an ecosystem approach and persistent toxic substances). Fish and wildlife biologists played a crucial role as “eco‐catalysts” in alerting the public and the International Joint Commission (IJC) to reproductive and developmental health problems associated with persistent toxic substances in fish, reptiles, birds, mammals, and—by implication—humans.

The rationale for the recommendation to sunset industrial chlorine stemmed from the IJC’s conclusion that persistent toxic substances, including many organochlorines, are harmful to humans and the Biosphere. It is conjectured that the focus on chlorinated chemicals arose from the fact that more than half of the 373 persistent toxic substances identified in the Great Lakes Basin Ecosystem were organochlorines; the uncontrollability of many organochlorines in the production phase, in long‐range transport in air and water, in chemical transformations in the environment, and in bioaccumulation in food chains; and the need for a strategic spearhead to break the dysfunctional, after‐the‐fact, one‐by‐one approach to regulating persistent toxic substances. Generic controls are necessary whenever public health or property is threatened by environmental conversion from harmless to harmful forms (as in the case of phosphorus, lead, mercury, and PCBs).

Attention is drawn to the rarity of organochlorines in vertebrates and their general use in defense also to the bypassing of lower halogens in favor of iodine (as thyroxine) in regulating basal metabolism in vertebrates. The sunsetting of industrial chlorine is considered essential to the protection of human and biospheric health; however, because of the current requirement for proof of harm, chemical by chemical, the process is likely to take decades.
An Agenda for Studying Human and Ecosystem Health in the Boreal Forest
Authors: Guidotti Tee L. , Teschke Kay , Wein Eleanor , Soskolne Colin L.
Published: September 2010

ABSTRACT

The Network of Centres of Excellence (NCE) in Sustainable Forestry Management is a new research initiative in Canada that examines management practices that protect boreal forest resources while permitting controlled economic development. A critical factor in the viability of such practices is socioeconomic and cultural acceptability in the communities of the region. Health is an essential factor in this dimension of sustainability. The NCE includes a health component that examines issues of human and ecosystem health related to boreal forest communities in western and northern Canada. These may be direct, involving direct health effects on the human body, or indirect, mediated by social mechanisms. Communities in the region are generally small, remote, limited in economic resources, and support a mixed economic development of forest products, oil and gas, and traditional aboriginal activities. The small and dispersed population and the time frame for the study do not permit application of the usual methods of broad‐based community health research. Instead, emphasis is placed on four main elements with a variety of robust and sometimes qualitative methods to suit the problems. The four elements are: (1) ”Population health,“ a conceptual model of determinants of health, as interpreted for boreal forest communities; (2) application of the population health model to anticipate and prevent human health problems associated with various scenarios of sustainable forestry management; (3) occupational health and safety issues associated with increased activity in the forest products sector; and (4) large‐scale ecosystem change and human health. The NCE presents an unusual opportunity to study both the ecosystem and human health implications of an ecological intervention. Its activities may provide insight into the complex relationship between human and ecosystem health.
Ecological Risk Assessment and Ecosystem Health: Fallacies and Solutions
Authors: Shrader‐Frechette Kristin
Published: September 2010

ABSTRACT

After surveying the two main paradigms for ecological risk assessment, this commentary discusses two mistakes often associated with the paradigm based on ecosystem health. These are the beard fallacy and the pragmatist fallacy. The argument is that if you really learn from experience with quantitative (human health) risk assessment, you can avoid importing similar fallacies into ecological risk assessment. The commentary suggests strategies for avoiding each of these fallacies and thus for improving analyses of ecosystem health.