bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Long-wavelength room-temperature luminescence from InAs/GaAs quantum dots with an optimized GaAsSbN capping layer
Authors: Utrilla Antonio D , Ulloa Jose M , Guzman Alvaro , Hierro Adrian
Published: January 2014

An extensive study on molecular beam epitaxy growth conditions of quaternary GaAsSbN as a capping layer (CL) for InAs/GaAs quantum dots (QD) was carried out. In particular, CL thickness, growth temperature, and growth rate were optimized. Problems related to the simultaneous presence of Sb and N, responsible for a significant degradation of photoluminescence (PL), are thereby solved allowing the achievement of room-temperature (RT) emission. A particularly strong improvement on the PL is obtained when the growth rate of the CL is increased. This is likely due to an improvement in the structural quality of the quaternary alloy that resulted from reduced strain and composition inhomogeneities. Nevertheless, a significant reduction of Sb and N incorporation was found when the growth rate was increased. Indeed, the incorporation of N is intrinsically limited to a maximum value of approximately 1.6% when the growth rate is at 2.0 ML s−1. Therefore, achieving RT emission and extending it somewhat beyond 1.3 μm were possible by means of a compromise among the growth conditions. This opens the possibility of exploiting the versatility on band structure engineering offered by this QD-CL structure in devices working at RT.

PACS

81.15.Hi (molecular beam epitaxy); 78.55.Cr (III-V semiconductors); 73.21.La (quantum dots)
Analysis of Abel-type nonlinear integral equations with weakly singular kernels
Authors: Wang JinRong , Zhu Chun , Fečkan Michal
Published: January 2014

In this paper, we investigate Abel-type nonlinear integral equations with weakly singular kernels. Existence and uniqueness of nontrivial solution are presented in an order interval of a cone by using fixed point methods. As a byproduct of our method, we improve a gap in the proof of Theorem 5 in Buckwar (Nonlinear Anal. TMA 63:88-96, 2005). As an extension, solutions in closed form of some Erdélyi-Kober-type fractional integral equations are given. Finally theoretical results with three illustrative examples are presented.

MSC:26A33, 45E10, 45G05.
Center-of-pressure total trajectory length is a complementary measure to maximum excursion to better differentiate multidirectional standing limits of stability between individuals with incomplete spinal cord injury and able-bodied individuals
Authors: Lemay Jean-François , Gagnon Dany H , Nadeau Sylvie , Grangeon Murielle , Gauthier Cindy , Duclos Cyril
Published: January 2014

Background

Sensorimotor impairments secondary to a spinal cord injury affect standing postural balance. While quasi-static postural balance impairments have been documented, little information is known about dynamic postural balance in this population. The aim of this study was to quantify and characterize dynamic postural balance while standing among individuals with a spinal cord injury using the comfortable multidirectional limits of stability test and to explore its association with the quasi-static standing postural balance test.

Methods

Sixteen individuals with an incomplete spinal cord injury and sixteen able-bodied individuals participated in this study. For the comfortable multidirectional limits of stability test, participants were instructed to lean as far as possible in 8 directions, separated by 45° while standing with each foot on a forceplate and real-time COP visual feedback provided. Measures computed using the center of pressure (COP), such as the absolute maximal distance reached (COPmax) and the total length travelled by the COP to reach the maximal distance (COPlength), were used to characterize performance in each direction. Quasi-static standing postural balance with eyes open was evaluated using time-domain measures of the COP. The difference between the groups and the association between the dynamic and quasi-static test were analyzed.

Results

The COPlength of individuals with SCI was significantly greater (p ≤ 0.001) than that of able-bodied individuals in all tested directions except in the anterior and posterior directions (p ≤ 0.039), indicating an increased COP trajectory while progressing towards their maximal distance. The COPmax in the anterior direction was significantly smaller for individuals with SCI. Little association was found between the comfortable multidirectional limits of stability test and the quasi-static postural balance test (r ≥ −0.658).

Conclusion

Standing dynamic postural balance performance in individuals with an incomplete spinal cord injury can be differentiated from that of able-bodied individuals with the comfortable limits of stability test. Performance among individuals with an incomplete spinal cord injury is characterized by lack of precision when reaching. The comfortable limits of stability test provides supplementary information and could serve as an adjunct to the quasi-static test when evaluating postural balance in an incomplete spinal cord injury population.
Occurrence and molecular characterization of Cryptosporidium in dogs in Henan Province, China
Authors: Jian Fuchun , Qi Meng , He Xiaoyi , Wang Rongjun , Zhang Sumei , Dong Heping , Zhang Longxian
Published: January 2014

Background

Cryptosporidiosis in dogs has been reported worldwide, involving both asymptomatic and diarrheic dogs. Large-scale surveys ofCryptosporidiuminfection in dogs have been performed in some countries using differents diagnostic methods. But, few data are available on the infection rate and molecular characteristics ofCryptosporidiumspp. in dogs in China.

Result

In this study, 770 fecal samples from 66 locations in Henan Province were examined. The averageCryptosporidiuminfection rate was 3.8%, with dogs in kennels having the highest rate of 7.0% (χ2 = 14.82,P < 0.01). The infection rate was 8.0% in dogs younger than 90 days, which was significantly higher than that in the other age groups (1.1–3.8%;χ2 = 18.82,P < 0.01). No association was noted between the infection rate and the sex of the dogs. Twenty-nineCryptosporidium-positive samples were amplified at the small subunit rRNA (SSU rRNA), 70-kDa heat shock protein (HSP70), and actin loci using PCR. Sequence analysis of these amplicons identified onlyCryptosporidium canis, which showed 100% identity with the published sequences of the SSU rRNA, HSP70, and actin genes.

Conclusions

Our results confirm thatC. canisis popular in the dog population in China, considering the large number of dogs in China and the close contact between dogs and humans, the role ofC. canisin the transmission of human cryptosporidiosis warrants attention.
Anti-infective and cytotoxic properties of Bupleurum marginatum
Authors: Ashour Mohamed L , El-Readi Mahmoud Z , Hamoud Razan , Eid Safaa Y , El Ahmady Sherweit H , Nibret Endalkachew , Herrmann Florian , Youns Mahmoud , Tahrani Ahmed , Kaufmann Dorothea , Wink Michael
Published: January 2014

Background

Bupleurum marginatum Wall. ex DC (Apiaceae) is a perennial herb widely used in traditional Chinese and Kampo medicine for the treatment of various infectious diseases. The biological activities of B. marginatum have not been fully investigated. This study aims to investigate the antitrypanosomal, antimicrobial and antiviral activities of methanol (ME) and dichloromethane (DCM) extracts of B. marginatum aerial parts and the ability of both extracts to inhibit the growth of different cancer cell lines.

Methods

Phytochemical characterization of the extracts was performed by LC-MS profiling. The antitrypanosomal activity was evaluated using the resazurin method. The antimicrobial activity was assessed using agar diffusion and microdilution methods, and the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values were determined. The antiviral activity was determined for 6.25, 12.5, and 50 μg/mL doses using a plaque reduction assay. Cytotoxicity was investigated in eight cancer cell lines (Caco-2, CCL-81, CCRF-CEM, COS-7, HL-60, MIA PaCa-2, MCF-7, and PANC-1) using the MTT assay and the caspase 3/7 activity was determined over the range of 62.5–1000 μg/mL.

Results

Phytochemical analyses resulted in the characterization of 15 components, mainly flavonoids and lignans. The DCM extract showed significant antitrypanosomal activity (IC50: 36.21 μg/mL) and moderate activity against Streptococcus pyogenes (MIC value: 0.25 mg/mL). At a dose of 12.5 μg/mL, the DCM extract inhibited 73.6% of the plaque production by hepatitis A virus. CCRF-CEM cells were the most sensitive to both extracts (IC50: 12.5–22.7 μg/mL). The cytotoxicity was mediated by induction of apoptosis (19-fold increase in the cellular caspase 3/7 level after treatment with the DCM extract at 1 mg/mL).

Conclusions

ME and DCM extract of B. marginatum showed anti-infective and antiproliferative effects.
Spatial distribution of the sibling species of Anopheles gambiae sensu lato (Diptera: Culicidae) and malaria prevalence in Bayelsa State, Nigeria
Authors: Ebenezer Amawulu , Noutcha Aline Edith Mekeu , Agi Peter I , Okiwelu Samuel N , Commander Thomas
Published: January 2014

Background

Much of the confusing ecophenotypic plasticity of Anopheles gambiae sensu lato is attributable to the differential biological traits of the sibling species, with their heterogeneous geographical distribution, behavioral dissimilarities and divergent population dynamics. These differences are critical to their roles in malaria transmission. Studies were, therefore, undertaken on the spatial distribution of these species and malaria prevalence rates in Bayelsa State, September, 2008-August 2010.

Methods

Mosquito sampling was in 7 towns/villages in 7 Local Government Areas (LGAs) in 3 eco-vegetational zones: Fresh Water Swamp Forest (FWSF): Sagbama, Yenagoa, Kolokuma-Opokuma LGAs; Brackish Water Swamp Forest (BWSF): Ogbia, Ekeremor, Southern Ijaw LGAs; Mangrove Water Forest (MWF): Nembe LGA. Adults were collected twice quarterly by the Pyrethrum Spray Catch (PSC) technique. Anopheles was separated morphologically and the sibling species PCR- identified. Simultaneously, malaria prevalence rates were calculated from data obtained by the examination of blood smears from consenting individuals at hospitals/clinics.

Results

An. gambiae s.s. was dominant across the 3-eco-vegetational zones. Spatial distribution analyses by cell count and nearest neighbor techniques indicated a tendency to clustering of species. An. gambiae s.s. and An. arabiensis clustered in Ekeremor LGA while these 2 species and An. melas aggregated in Nembe. The gonotrophic (physiological) status examination revealed that 34.3, 23.5, 23.1 and 18.4% of the population were fed, unfed, gravid and half gravid respectively. The highest malaria prevalence rates were obtained at Kolokuma-Opokuma and Nembe LGAs. Variation in prevalence rates among LGAs was significant (t = 5.976, df = 6, p-value = 0.002, p < 0.05). The highest prevalence rate was in the age group, 30-39 yrs, while the lowest prevalence was in the 0-9 yrs group.

Conclusion

High malaria prevalence rates were associated with An. gambiae s.s. either in allopatry or sympatry across eco-vegetational zones. In areas where the sibling species clustered, they probably formed nidi for transmission. Socio-economic conditions might have contributed to reduced prevalence in Yenagoa, State Capital.
Diagnostic accuracy of blood B-cell subset profiling and autoimmunity markers in Sjögren’s syndrome
Authors: Cornec Divi , Saraux Alain , Pers Jacques-Olivier , Jousse-Joulin Sandrine , Marhadour Thierry , Roguedas-Contios Anne-Marie , Genestet Steeve , Renaudineau Yves , Devauchelle-Pensec Valérie
Published: January 2014

Introduction

The aims of this study were to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of blood B-cell subset profiling and immune-system activation marker assays in primary Sjögren’s syndrome (pSS) and to assess whether adding these tools to the current laboratory item would improve the American-European Consensus Group (AECG) criteria.

Methods

In a single-center cohort of patients with suspected pSS, we tested the diagnostic performance of anti-SSA, antinuclear antibody (ANA), rheumatoid factor (RF), gammaglobulins, IgG titers, and B-cell ratio defined as (Bm2 + Bm2′)/(eBm5 + Bm5), determined using flow cytometry. The reference standard was a clinical diagnosis of pSS established by a panel of experts.

Results

Of 181 patients included in the study, 77 had pSS. By logistic regression analysis, only ANA ≥1:640 (sensitivity, 70.4%; specificity 83.2%) and B-cell ratio ≥5 (sensitivity, 52.1%; specificity, 83.2%) showed independent associations with pSS of similar strength. In anti-SSA-negative patients, presence of either of these two criteria had 71.0% sensitivity but only 67.3% specificity for pSS; whereas combining both criteria had 96.2% specificity but only 12.9% sensitivity. Adding either of these two criteria to the AECG criteria set increased sensitivity from 83.1% to 90.9% but decreased specificity from 97.1% to 85.6%, whereas adding both criteria in combination did not substantially modify the diagnostic performance of the criteria set. The adjunction of RF + ANA ≥1:320, as proposed in the new American College of Rheumatology (ACR) criteria, did not improve the diagnostic value of anti-SSA.

Conclusions

Blood B-cell subset profiling is a simple test that has good diagnostic properties for pSS. However, adding this test, with or without ANA positivity, does not improve current classification criteria.
Towards an advanced therapy medicinal product based on mesenchymal stromal cells isolated from the umbilical cord tissue: quality and safety data
Authors: Martins José Paulo , Santos Jorge Miguel , Almeida Joana Martode , Filipe Mariana Alves , de Almeida Mariana Vargas Teixeira , Almeida Sílvia Cristina Paiva , Água-Doce Ana , Varela Alexandre , Gilljam Mari , Stellan Birgitta , Pohl Susanne , Dittmar Kurt , Lindenmaier Werner , Alici Evren , Graça Luís , Cruz Pedro Estilita , Cruz Helder Joaquim , Bárcia Rita Nogueira
Published: January 2014

Introduction

Standardization of mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) manufacturing is urgently needed to enable translational activities and ultimately facilitate comparison of clinical trial results. In this work we describe the adaptation of a proprietary method for isolation of a specific umbilical cord tissue-derived population of MSCs, herein designated by its registered trademark as UCX®, towards the production of an advanced therapy medicinal product (ATMP).

Methods

The adaptation focused on different stages of production, from cell isolation steps to cell culturing and cryopreservation. The origin and quality of materials and reagents were considered and steps for avoiding microbiological and endotoxin contamination of the final cell product were implemented. Cell isolation efficiency, MSCs surface markers and genetic profiles, originating from the use of different medium supplements, were compared. The ATMP-compliant UCX® product was also cryopreserved avoiding the use of dimethyl sulfoxide, an added benefit for the use of these cells as an ATMP. Cells were analyzed for expansion capacity and longevity. The final cell product was further characterized by flow cytometry, differentiation potential, and tested for contaminants at various passages. Finally, genetic stability and immune properties were also analyzed.

Results

The isolation efficiency of UCX® was not affected by the introduction of clinical grade enzymes. Furthermore, isolation efficiencies and phenotype analyses revealed advantages in the use of human serum in cell culture as opposed to human platelet lysate. Initial decontamination of the tissue followed by the use of mycoplasma- and endotoxin-free materials and reagents in cell isolation and subsequent culture, enabled the removal of antibiotics during cell expansion. UCX®-ATMP maintained a significant expansion potential of 2.5 population doublings per week up to passage 15 (P15). They were also efficiently cryopreserved in a DMSO-free cryoprotectant medium with approximately 100% recovery and 98% viability post-thaw. Additionally, UCX®-ATMP were genetically stable upon expansion (up to P15) and maintained their immunomodulatory properties.

Conclusions

We have successfully adapted a method to consistently isolate, expand and cryopreserve a well-characterized population of human umbilical cord tissue-derived MSCs (UCX®), in order to obtain a cell product that is compliant with cell therapy. Here, we present quality and safety data that support the use of the UCX® as an ATMP, according to existing international guidelines.
Psychotic traits in comedians
Authors: Ando Victoria , Claridge Gordon , Clark Ken
Published: January 2014

Background

The popular belief that creativity is associated with madness has increasingly become the focus of research for many psychologists and psychiatrists. However, despite being prime examples of creative thinking, comedy and humour have been largely neglected.

Aims

To test the hypothesis that comedians would resemble other creative individuals in showing a higher level of psychotic characteristics related to both schizophrenia and manic depression.

Method

A group of comedians (n=500+) and a control sample of actors (n = 350+) completed an online questionnaire containing the short version of the Oxford–Liverpool Inventory of Feelings and Experiences (O-LIFE), with scales measuring four dimensions of psychotic traits. Scores were compared with general population norms.

Results

Comedians scored significantly above O-LIFE norms on all four scales. Actors also differed from the norms but on only three of the scales. Most striking was the comedians' high score on both introverted anhedonia and extraverted impulsiveness.

Conclusions

This unusual personality structure may help to explain the facility for comedic performance.
Do Community-Based Patient Assistance Programs Affect the Treatment and Well-Being of Patients With Breast Cancer?
Authors: Bickell Nina A. , Geduld Andrea N. , Joseph Kathie-Ann , Sparano Joseph A. , Kemeny M. Margaret , Oluwole Soji , Menes Tehillah , Srinivasan Anitha , Franco Rebeca , Fei Kezhen , Leventhal Howard
Published: January 2014

Patients with breast cancer who connect to relevant patient assistance programs receive useful informational and psychosocial but not practical help.
Using Quality Oncology Practice Initiative Metrics for Physician Incentive Compensation
Authors: Makari-Judson Grace , Wrenn Tamara , Mertens Wilson C. , Josephson Gordon , Stewart James A.
Published: January 2014

The combination of the QOPI program through ASCO and use of various QOPI metrics can drive continuous improvement in an oncology group.
Potential Benefits of Treatment Summaries for Survivors' Health and Information Needs: Results From a LIVESTRONG Survey
Authors: Rechis Ruth , Beckjord Ellen B. , Nutt Stephanie
Published: January 2014

Cancer survivors cannot benefit from treatment summaries or survivorship care plans if health care teams are not able to execute them. The authors discuss aims to help bridge this gap and equip survivors with the best resources possible at the start of primary treatment.
Why Oncologists Should Support Single-Payer National Health Insurance
Authors: Drasga Ray E. , Einhorn Lawrence H.
Published: January 2014

The authors support the establishment of a single-payer national health insurance plan and encourage ASCO to put its advocacy behind such a program.
Evaluating Physician Performance in Oncology: Moneyball Becomes Impactball
Authors: Fisch Michael J. , Abbruzzese James L. , Hong Waun K.
Published: January 2014

The current payment system for medical oncology is focused on the perspectives of the physician and organization, with an emphasis on revenue and cost. There is a need for modification of traditional surrogates to accommodate the perspectives of the patient and consumer.
Enhancing the American Society of Clinical Oncology Workforce Information System With Geographic Distribution of Oncologists and Comparison of Data Sources for the Number of Practicing Oncologists
Authors: Kirkwood M. Kelsey , Bruinooge Suanna S. , Goldstein Michael A. , Bajorin Dean F. , Kosty Michael P.
Published: January 2014

Efforts to survey oncologists about practice patterns will help determine whether productivity and service delivery will change significantly. ASCO is committed to tracking oncologist supply and demand and providing analysis of strategies to address shortages.
FoxO1 Is a Negative Regulator of FSHβ Gene Expression in Basal and GnRH-Stimulated Conditions in Female
Authors: Choi Young-Suk , Lee Hyeon Jeong , Ku Cheol Ryong , Cho Yoon Hee , Seo Mi Ran , Lee Yoo Jeoung , Lee Eun Jig
Published: January 2014

The importance of forkhead box class O (FoxO) proteins in reproductive endocrinology has been confirmed by age-dependent infertility in females in a FoxO3a-knockout mouse model. In this study, FoxO1 was detected in gonadotropes in the anterior pituitary. Overexpression of FoxO1 in primary pituitary cells decreased FSHβ gene expression in both basal and GnRH-stimulated conditions, and this result was replicated by the human FSHβ promoter activity. Although direct binding of FoxO1 to FoxO-binding element (FBE) (at −124 to −119 bp of the human FSHβ promoter) was not detected in an electrophoretic mobility shift assay, a DNA pull-down assay and transfection study using the mutant FBE reporter vector revealed that FBE is necessary in FSHβ suppression by FoxO1, suggestive of other cofactor requirements. GnRH stimulated the phosphoinositide 3-kinase pathway, which induced posttranslational modification of FoxO1 and retained it in the cytoplasm. We also confirmed this result in primary cell cultures; most of the FoxO1 was detected in the cytoplasm when treated with GnRH but in the nucleus when the phosphoinositide 3-kinase pathway was inhibited. These findings suggest that FoxO1 is regulated by the GnRH signaling pathway and functions as a negative regulator of FSHβ gene expression.
Epithelial and Stromal Cells of Bovine Endometrium Have Roles in Innate Immunity and Initiate Inflammatory Responses to Bacterial Lipopeptides In Vitro via Toll-Like Receptors TLR2, TLR1, and TLR6
Authors: Turner Matthew L. , Cronin James G. , Healey Gareth D. , Sheldon Iain Martin
Published: January 2014

Bacteria often infect the endometrium of cattle to cause endometritis, uterine disease, and infertility. Lipopeptides are commonly found among bacteria and are detected by the Toll-like receptor (TLR) cell surface receptor TLR2 on immune cells. Heterodimers of TLR2 with TLR1 or TLR6 activate MAPK and nuclear factor-κB intracellular signaling pathways to stimulate inflammatory responses. In the endometrium, epithelial and stromal cells are the first to encounter invading bacteria, so the present study explored whether endometrial cells can also mount inflammatory responses to bacterial lipopeptides via TLRs. The supernatants of pure populations of primary bovine endometrial epithelial and stromal cells accumulated the cytokine IL-6 and the chemokine IL-8 in response to triacylated or diacylated bacterial lipopeptides. The accumulation of IL-6 and IL-8 in response to triacylated lipopeptides was reduced by small interfering RNA targeting TLR2 or TLR1 but not TLR6, whereas cellular responses to diacylated lipopeptide were reduced by small interfering RNA targeting TLR2, TLR1, or TLR6. Both lipopeptides induced rapid phosphorylation of ERK1/2, p38, and nuclear factor-κB in endometrial cells, and inhibitors of ERK1/2 or p38 limited the accumulation of IL-6. The ovarian steroids estradiol and progesterone had little impact on inflammatory responses to lipopeptides. The endometrial epithelial and stromal cell responses to lipopeptides via TLR2, TLR1, and TLR6 provide a mechanism linking a wide range of bacterial infections to inflammation of the endometrium.
FoxO6 Integrates Insulin Signaling With MTP for Regulating VLDL Production in the Liver
Authors: Kim Dae Hyun , Zhang Ting , Lee Sojin , Calabuig-Navarro Virtu , Yamauchi Jun , Piccirillo Ann , Fan Yong , Uppala Radha , Goetzman Eric , Dong H. Henry
Published: January 2014

Excessive production of triglyceride-rich very low-density lipoproteins (VLDL-TG) contributes to hypertriglyceridemia in obesity and type 2 diabetes. To understand the underlying mechanism, we studied hepatic regulation of VLDL-TG production by (forkhead box O6) FoxO6, a forkhead transcription factor that integrates insulin signaling to hepatic metabolism. We showed that transgenic mice expressing a constitutively active FoxO6 allele developed hypertriglyceridemia, culminating in elevated VLDL-TG levels and impaired postprandial TG clearance. This effect resulted in part from increased hepatic VLDL-TG production. We recapitulated these findings in cultured HepG2 cells and human primary hepatocytes, demonstrating that FoxO6 promoted hepatic VLDL-TG secretion. This action correlated with the ability of FoxO6 to stimulate hepatic production of microsomal triglyceride transfer protein (MTP), a molecular chaperone that catalyzes the rate-limiting step in VLDL-TG assembly and secretion. FoxO6 was shown to bind to the MTP promoter and stimulate MTP promoter activity in HepG2 cells. This effect was inhibited by insulin, consistent with the ability of insulin to promote FoxO6 phosphorylation and disable FoxO6 DNA-binding activity. Mutations of the FoxO6 target site within the MTP promoter abrogated FoxO6-mediated induction of MTP promoter activity. Hepatic FoxO6 expression became deregulated in insulin-resistant mice with obesity and type 2 diabetes. FoxO6 inhibition in insulin-resistant liver suppressed hepatic MTP expression and curbed VLDL-TG overproduction, contributing to the amelioration of hypertriglyceridemia in obese and diabetic db/db mice. These results characterize FoxO6 as an important signaling molecule upstream of MTP for regulating hepatic VLDL-TG production.
The Price of Bread
Authors: Fullilove Courtney
Published: January 2014

This article analyzes a flour riot in New York City in 1837 as a conflict over capitalist food systems waged in a nascent center of finance during a period of rapid economic and territorial expansion. In the wake of the riot, the burgeoning “penny press” geared toward working people pitched a battle with newspapers catering to the mercantile elite over the meaning of the violence. The conflicting sympathies of the newspapers provide an opportunity to assess the vulnerabilities of a food system characterized by new economies of scale and a speculative commodities trade unmoored from the physical realities of production. The debates pitted expectations that “the necessaries of life” be secured at a fair price against a prevailing faith that markets operate according to natural laws of supply and demand.
Framing Finance
Authors: Rosenberg Jordana , Rusert Britt
Published: January 2014

This essay provides a framework for the literary analysis of financialization during the period recently termed “the long 1970s” and contributes to recent historical scholarship on the rise of finance and economic crises by focusing on literary forms of popular resistance that also flourished during this period of acute crisis. The authors concentrate on two conditions undergirding financialization: the intensified dispossession of people of color in the United States and the acceleration of enclosures worldwide. They explore these transformations via Samuel Delany's Nevèrÿon series, a four-volume fantasy series published between 1979 and 1987. If financialization is conditioned on the interweaving of domestic and international dispossessions and enclosures, Nevèrÿon, they argue, crystallizes — and protests — this interweaving in literary form.
The Rules of Abstraction
Authors: La Berge Leigh Claire
Published: January 2014

This essay tracks how discourses of abstraction and complexity have been deployed in both academic and popular writing about finance, financialization, and the financial services industry. It begins with the assumption that “abstract” is perhaps the most commonly used qualification of finance in humanities-oriented criticism and suggests that although the concept of abstraction has a rich and varied conceptual archive, it is almost always used generically in such criticism. Through a reading of historical and contemporary political economic texts, the essay reviews some variations on the concept of abstraction and presents specific forms of abstraction — real abstraction, lived abstraction, and second-order abstraction — that might help humanities scholars specify how and when finance is abstract and how and when it is concrete. Finally, through a reading of the discourse of financial “complexity” in popular writing, the essay argues that the use of complexity might be read as an allegory of the problem of abstraction in the emerging field of critical studies of finance.
The Creative and the Derivative
Authors: Haiven Max
Published: January 2014

This essay seeks to draw connections between, on the one hand, the financialization of the global economy and everyday life in the post – Bretton Woods era (post-1973) and, on the other, the simultaneous rise to prominence of discourses of creativity in the “new economy.” It argues that the financial sector both orchestrates a fundamentally unequal global division of creative labor and lays claim to an inherent creative power and a duty to unleash “creative destruction” on social and economic life. The essay suggests that the idea of the derivative can help illuminate the wooly rhetoric of “creative capitalism,” “creative cities,” and the “creative economy,” as well as the stark realities of precariousness and self-exploitation that animate labor today. Not only is the derivative the emblematic technology of a financial system based on the quasi-scientific management of risk, it also names creativity's antonym, and the tension between the two allows one to reconceive both the financial system and the idea of creativity itself.
“Redress State” in a Boom/Bust Country
Authors: Phillips Áine
Published: January 2014

Irish artist Áine Phillips describes her 2011 performance series “Redress State” in which she confronts issues of greed, status, and currency flows in the boom/bust economy of Ireland's current recession. The impossibility of redress for its casualties lies at the heart of her work.
Finance Is Just Another Word for Other People's Debts
Authors: Appel Hannah Chadeayne
Published: January 2014

In this interview David Graeber discusses the radical politics of his childhood, his own political trajectory through the globalization movement, and how Occupy Wall Street both emerged and departed from that genealogy. Turning to questions of intensifying financialization in recent years, Graeber takes analysts to task for not understanding the relationship between private debt and finance — that far from making value out of nothing, finance has been making value out of the income and debt streams of working- and middle-class people. As he traces his own intellectual ancestry from Marx to Mauss to economic anthropologist Keith Hart, Graeber also shares his vision of the present moment, in which the cancellation of private debts in some form seems inevitable and the democratization of finance and the money-creation system, increasingly possible.
The Voice Spoken but Not Heard
Authors: Wosnitzer Robert
Published: January 2014

This article uses the popular film The Artist to interrogate the ways cultural products shape narratives about finance and the new ways subjects are positioned in relation to the global circulation of capital. The article argues that a stubborn view of labor as a site par excellence for the production of value is presented in the narrative of The Artist, misrecognizing and misinterpreting the ways finance intensely recalibrates value production. As a silent film, the spoken voice appears to be absent, in much the same way that finance appeared silent throughout the history of capitalism. In the wake of the 2008 financial crisis, it appeared as if finance's voice had finally spoken, just as the introduction of sound technology gave the appearance of an embodied, laboring voice. As the voice and finance were both always present throughout, the article attempts to locate the consequences for such misrecognitions in history, critiquing the kinds of restorative nostalgia that come to dominate political responses to capital's volatilities.
History with a Capital H
Authors: Garrett Matthew
Published: January 2014

This review of two recent titles in the field of the “history of capitalism” takes stock of attempts to describe capitalism as a market system without reference to social relations in capitalist modernity. The result of this endeavor is, in the cases under review, a rich picture of the institutional and cultural instantiations of the value form and a stinting of the social relations that have been traditionally understood to determine those institutions.
PIP-box mediated degradation prohibits re-accumulation of Cdc6 during S phase
Authors: Clijsters Linda , Wolthuis Rob
Published: January 2014

Cdc6 and Cdt1 initiate DNA replication licensing when cells exit mitosis. In cycling cells, Cdc6 is efficiently degraded from anaphase onwards as a result of APC/CCdh1 activity. When APC/CCdh1 is switched off again at the end of G1 phase, Cdc6 could thus reappear, risking DNA re-licensing as long as Cdt1 is still present. Here, we carefully investigated the dynamics of Cdt1 and Cdc6 in cycling cells. We reveal a novel APC/CCdh1 independent degradation pathway that prevents nuclear Cdc6 re-accumulation at the G1/S transition and during S-phase. Similar to Cdt1, nuclear clearance of Cdc6 depends on an N-terminal PIP-box and CRL4-Cdt2. When cells reach G2 phase, Cdc6 re-appears rapidly but at this time Cdt1 is mostly absent and Cdc6 expression is limited to the cytoplasm. We propose that Cdk1 contributes to the nuclear export of Cdc6 at the S-to-G2 transition. Summarized, our results show that different Cdc6 control mechanisms restrain erroneous DNA replication licensing during G1 phase, S phase and G2 phase.
Regulation of theRana sylvaticabrevinin-1SY antimicrobial peptide during development and in dorsal and ventral skin in response to freezing, anoxia, and dehydration
Authors: Katzenback Barbara A. , Holden Helen A. , Falardeau Justin , Childers Christine , Hadj-Moussa Hanane , Avis Tyler J. , Storey Kenneth B.
Published: January 2014

Brevinin-1SY is the only described antimicrobial peptide (AMP) of Rana sylvatica. As AMPs are important innate immune molecules that inhibit microbes, this study examined brevinin-1SY regulation during development and in adult frogs in response to environmental stress. The brevinin-1SY nucleotide sequence was identified and used for protein modelling. Brevinin-1SY was predicted to be an amphipathic, hydrophobic, alpha helical peptide that inserts into a lipid bilayer. Brevinin-1SY transcripts were detected in tadpoles and were significantly increased during the later stages of development. Effects of environmental stress (24 h anoxia, 40% dehydration, or 24 h freezing) on the mRNA levels of brevinin-1SY in the dorsal and ventral skin were examined. The brevinin-1SY mRNA levels were increased in dorsal and ventral skin of dehydrated frogs, and in ventral skin of frozen frogs, compared to controls (non-stressed). Brevinin-1SY protein levels in dorsal skin peptide extracts showed a similar, but not significant, trend to that of brevinin-1SY mRNA levels. Antimicrobial activity of skin extracts from control and stressed animals were assessed for the Escherichia coli, Bacillus subtilis, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Botrytis cinerea, Rhizopus stolonifer, and Pythium sulcatum using disk diffusion assays. Dorsal skin peptide extracts from anoxic, frozen and dehydrated animals showed significantly higher inhibition of E. coli and P. sulcatum than from control animals. In ventral skin peptide extracts, significant growth inhibition was observed in frozen animals for E. coli and P. sulcatum, and in anoxic animals for B. cinerea, compared to controls. Environmental regulation of brevinin-1SY may have important implications for defense against pathogens.
Structured variability of steady-speed locomotion in rats
Authors: Schmidt André , Biknevicius Audrone R.
Published: January 2014

By examining key locomotor parameters during terrestrial locomotion on a substrate without irregularities, we show that rats frequently accelerate and decelerate between two consecutive steps while maintaining an overall steady-speed and that the touchdown order of contralateral limbs significantly influences those speed adjustments. The latter highly correlates with significant adjustments in relative forelimb protraction at touchdown and hindlimb extension at lift off. We conclude that this remarkable level of variability in limb coordination would clearly be advantageous for the functional flexibility needed during terrestrial locomotion on much more irregular (rough) natural terrain. In addition, its occurrence on a substrate lacking irregularities suggests that much of stable, terrestrial steady-speed locomotion in rats is mechanically controlled.
Simultaneous high-resolution pH and spectrophotometric recordings of oxygen binding in native blood microvolumes
Authors: Oellermann Michael , Pörtner Hans-Otto , Mark Felix C.
Published: January 2014

Oxygen equilibrium curves have been widely used to understand oxygen transport in numerous organisms. A major challenge has been to monitor oxygen binding characteristics and concomitant pH changes as they occur in vivo, in limited sample volumes. Here we report a technique allowing highly resolved and simultaneous monitoring of pH and blood pigment saturation in minute blood volumes. We equipped a gas diffusion chamber with a broad range fibre optic spectrophotometer and a micro-pH optode and recorded changes of pigment oxygenation along PO2 and pH gradients to test the setup. Oxygen binding parameters derived from measurements in only 15 μl of haemolymph from the cephalopod Octopus vulgaris showed low instrumental error (0.93%) and good agreement with published data. Broad range spectra, each resolving 2048 data points, provided detailed insight into the complex absorbance characteristics of diverse blood types. After consideration of photobleaching and intrinsic fluorescence, pH optodes yielded accurate recordings and resolved a sigmoidal shift of 0.03 pH units in response to changing PO2 from 0-21 kPa. Highly resolved continuous recordings along pH gradients conformed to stepwise measurements at low rates of pH changes. In this study we showed that a diffusion chamber upgraded with a broad range spectrophotometer and an optical pH sensor accurately characterizes oxygen binding with minimal sample consumption and manipulation. We conclude that the modified diffusion chamber is highly suitable for experimental biologists who demand high flexibility, detailed insight into oxygen binding as well as experimental and biological accuracy combined in a single set up.
Activation of the cnidarian oxidative stress response by ultraviolet light, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and crude oil
Authors: Tarrant Ann M. , Reitzel Adam M. , Kwok Chun K. , Jenny Matthew J.
Published: January 2014

Organisms are continuously exposed to reactive chemicals capable of causing oxidative stress and cellular damage. Antioxidant enzymes, such as superoxide dismutases (SODs) and catalases, are present in both prokaryotes and eukaryotes and provide an important means of neutralizing such oxidants. Studies in cnidarians have previously documented the occurrence of antioxidant enzymes (transcript expression, protein expression, and/or enzymatic activity), but most of these studies have not been conducted in species with sequenced genomes or included phylogenetic analyses, making it difficult to compare results across species due to uncertainties in the relationships between genes. Through searches of the genome of the sea anemone Nematostella vectensis Stephenson, one catalase gene and six SOD family members were identified, including three copper zinc SODs (CuZnSODs), two manganese SODs (MnSODs), and one copper chaperone of SOD (CCS). In 24-hour acute toxicity tests, juvenile N. vectensis showed enhanced sensitivity to combinations of ultraviolet radiation (UV) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs, specifically pyrene, benzo[a]pyrene, and fluoranthene) relative to either stressor alone. Adult N. vectensis exhibited little or no mortality following UV, benzo[a]pyrene or crude oil exposure but exhibited changes in gene expression. Antioxidant enzyme transcripts were both up- and downregulated following UV and/or chemical exposure. Expression patterns were most strongly affected by UV exposure but varied between experiments, suggesting that responses vary according to the intensity and duration of exposure. These experiments provide a basis for comparison with other cnidarian taxa and for further studies of the oxidative stress response in N. vectensis.
Honeybee drones are attracted by groups of consexuals in a walking simulator
Authors: Brandstaetter Andreas S. , Bastin Florian , Sandoz Jean-Christophe
Published: January 2014

During the mating season, honeybee males, the drones, gather in congregation areas 10-40 m above ground. When a receptive female, a queen, enters the congregation, drones are attracted to her by queen-produced pheromones and visual cues and attempt to mate with the queen in mid-air. It is still unclear how drones and queens find the congregations. Visual cues on the horizon are most probably used for long-range orientation. For shorter-range orientation, however, attraction by a drone-produced aggregation pheromone has been proposed, yet its existence was never confirmed conclusively. The low accessibility of congregation areas high up in the air is a major hurdle and precise control of experimental conditions remains often unsatisfactory in field studies. Here, we used a locomotion compensator-based walking simulator to investigate drones' innate odor preferences under controlled laboratory conditions. We tested behavioral responses of drones to 9-oxo-2-decenoic acid (9-ODA), the major queen-produced sexual attractant, and to queen mandibular pheromone (QMP), an artificial blend of 9-ODA and several other queen-derived components. While 9-ODA strongly dominates the odor bouquet of virgin queens, QMP rather resembles the bouquet of mated queens. In our assay, drones were attracted by 9-ODA, but not by QMP. We also investigated the potential attractiveness of male-derived odors by testing drones’ orientation responses to the odor bouquet of groups of 10 living drones or workers. Our results demonstrate that honeybee drones are attracted by groups of other drones (but not by workers), which may indicate a role of drone-emitted cues for the formation of congregations.
Physiological correlates of symbiont migration during bleaching of two octocoral species
Authors: Netherton Sarah E. , Scheer Daniele M. , Morrison Patrick R. , Parrin Austin P. , Blackstone Neil
Published: January 2014

Perturbed colonies of Phenganax parrini and Sarcothelia sp. exhibit migration of symbionts of Symbiodinium spp. into the stolons. Densitometry and visual inspection indicated that polyps bleached, while stolons did not. When migration was triggered by temperature, light, and confinement, colonies of Sarcothelia sp. decreased rates of oxygen formation in the light (due to the effects of perturbation on photosynthesis and respiration) and increased rates of oxygen uptake in the dark (due to the effects of perturbation on respiration alone). Colonies of P. parrini, by contrast, showed no significant changes in either aspect of oxygen metabolism. When migration was triggered by light and confinement, colonies of Sarcothelia sp. showed decreased rates of oxygen formation in the light and increased rates of oxygen uptake in the dark, while colonies of P. parrini maintained the former and increased the latter. During symbiont migration into their stolons, colonies of both species showed dramatic increases in reactive oxygen species (ROS), as visualized with a fluorescent probe, with stolons of Sarcothelia sp. exhibiting a nearly immediate increase of ROS. Differences in symbiont type may explain the greater sensitivity of colonies of Sarcothelia sp. Using fluorescent probes, direct measurements of migrating symbionts in the stolons of Sarcothelia sp. showed higher levels of reactive nitrogen species and lower levels of ROS than the surrounding host tissue. As measured by native fluorescence, levels of NAD(P)H in the stolons were unaffected by perturbation. Symbiont migration thus correlates with dramatic physiological changes and may serve as a marker for coral condition.
Differential effects of vitamins E and C and carotenoids on growth, resistance to oxidative stress, fledging success and plumage colouration in wild great tits
Authors: Marri Viviana , Richner Heinz
Published: January 2014

Oxidative stress is the imbalance between the production of reactive species and antioxidants, which causes damage to lipids, proteins and DNA. Antioxidants, like vitamins and carotenoids, can limit oxidative damage and can therefore regulate the trade-off between growth, which is a period of high reactive species production, and self-maintenance. However the role of carotenoids as antioxidant in vivo has been debated, and it has been suggested that carotenoid-based signals indicate the availability of non-pigmentary antioxidants (e.g. vitamins) that protect carotenoids from oxidation, known as the "protection hypothesis". To evaluate the importance of vitamins versus carotenoids as antioxidants during growth and to test the protection hypothesis, we supplemented nestling great tits Parus major 3, 5 and 7 days after hatching with a single dose of carotenoids and/or vitamins in a 2x2 full-factorial design. We subsequently measured body condition, antioxidant capacity, oxidative damage, fledging success and plumage reflectance. Vitamins enhanced antioxidant capacity, but did not affect oxidative damage. Vitamin-treated nestlings had higher growth rates and higher probability to fledge. In contrast, carotenoids did not affect any of these traits. Furthermore carotenoid-based colouration increased over the breeding season in nestlings that received vitamins only. This study shows that vitamins are limiting for growth rate and fledging success, and it suggests that vitamins could regulate the trade-off between growth and self-maintenance in favour of the former. Moreover our results are consistent with the idea that carotenoids are minor antioxidants in birds, but they do not support the "protection hypothesis".