bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A low-cost electromechanical impedance-based SHM architecture for multiplexed piezoceramic actuators
Authors: Finzi Neto Roberto M , Steffen Valder , Rade Domingos A , Gallo Carlos A , Palomino Lizeth V
Published: August 2010

The electromechanical impedance (EMI) method has been regarded as a promising tool for structural health monitoring (SHM) in real time. Usually, massive, high-cost, single-channel impedance analyzers are used to process the time domain data, aiming at obtaining the complex, frequency-dependent, EMI functions, from which features related to the presence, position, and extent of damage can be extracted. However, for large structures, it is desirable to deploy an array of piezoelectric transducers over the area to be monitored and interrogate these transducers successively so as to increase the probability of successful detection of damage in an early phase. In this context, a miniaturized, low-cost, highly expandable SHM architecture for monitoring an array of multiplexed piezoelectric transducers is proposed. Each logical block of the proposed architecture is presented in detail. The proposed architecture does not use costly fast Fourier transform analyzers/algorithms nor requires a digital computer for processing. A personal computer is only necessary for user interfacing. It has been verified that the system can work for frequencies ranging from 0 to 400 kHz with high accuracy and stability. A prototype using inexpensive integrated circuits and a digital signal processor was built and tested for two different types of structures: an aluminum beam and an aircraft aluminum panel. Simulated damages were introduced to each structure and the detection performance of the prototype was tested. The actual prototype uses a universal serial bus connection to communicate with a personal computer; however, a WiFi® connection is also available.
von Willebrand factor self-association on platelet GpIbα under hydrodynamic shear: effect on shear-induced platelet activation
Authors: Dayananda Kannayakanahalli M. , Singh Indrajeet , Mondal Nandini , Neelamegham Sriram
Published: August 2010

The function of the mechanosensitive, multimeric blood protein von Willebrand factor (VWF) is dependent on its size. We tested the hypothesis that VWF may self-associate on the platelet glycoprotein Ibα (GpIbα) receptor under hydrodynamic shear. Consistent with this proposition, whereas Alexa-488–conjugated VWF (VWF-488) bound platelets at modest levels, addition of unlabeled VWF enhanced the extent of VWF-488 binding. Recombinant VWF lacking the A1-domain was conjugated with Alexa-488 to produce ΔA1-488. Although ΔA1-488 alone did not bind platelets under shear, this protein bound GpIbα on addition of either purified plasma VWF or recombinant full-length VWF. The extent of self-association increased with applied shear stress more than ∼ 60 to 70 dyne/cm2. ΔA1-488 bound platelets in the milieu of plasma. On application of fluid shear to whole blood, half of the activated platelets had ΔA1-488 bound, suggesting that VWF self-association may be necessary for cell activation. Shearing platelets with 6-μm beads bearing either immobilized VWF or anti-GpIbα mAb resulted in cell activation at shear stress down to 2 to 5 dyne/cm2. Taken together, the data suggest that fluid shear in circulation can increase the effective size of VWF bound to platelet GpIbα via protein self-association. This can trigger mechanotransduction and cell activation by enhancing the drag force applied on the cell-surface receptor.
Expression patterns of NKG2A, KIR, and CD57 define a process of CD56dim NK-cell differentiation uncoupled from NK-cell education
Authors: Björkström Niklas K. , Riese Peggy , Heuts Frank , Andersson Sandra , Fauriat Cyril , Ivarsson Martin A. , Björklund Andreas T. , Flodström-Tullberg Malin , Michaëlsson Jakob , Rottenberg Martin E. , Guzmán Carlos A. , Ljunggren Hans-Gustaf , Malmberg Karl-Johan
Published: August 2010

Natural killer (NK) cells are lymphocytes of the innate immune system that, following differentiation from CD56bright to CD56dim cells, have been thought to retain fixed functional and phenotypic properties throughout their lifespan. In contrast to this notion, we here show that CD56dim NK cells continue to differentiate. During this process, they lose expression of NKG2A, sequentially acquire inhibitory killer cell inhibitory immunoglobulin-like receptors and CD57, change their expression patterns of homing molecules, and display a gradual decline in proliferative capacity. All cellular intermediates of this process are represented in varying proportions at steady state and appear, over time, during the reconstitution of the immune system, as demonstrated in humanized mice and in patients undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. CD56dim NK-cell differentiation, and the associated functional imprint, occurs independently of NK-cell education by interactions with self–human leukocyte antigen class I ligands and is an essential part of the formation of human NK-cell repertoires.
An improved classification of G-protein-coupled receptors using sequence-derived features
Authors: Peng Zhen-Ling , Yang Jian-Yi , Chen Xin
Published: August 2010

Background

G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) play a key role in diverse physiological processes and are the targets of almost two-thirds of the marketed drugs. The 3 D structures of GPCRs are largely unavailable; however, a large number of GPCR primary sequences are known. To facilitate the identification and characterization of novel receptors, it is therefore very valuable to develop a computational method to accurately predict GPCRs from the protein primary sequences.

Results

We propose a new method called PCA-GPCR, to predict GPCRs using a comprehensive set of 1497 sequence-derived features. The principal component analysis is first employed to reduce the dimension of the feature space to 32. Then, the resulting 32-dimensional feature vectors are fed into a simple yet powerful classification algorithm, called intimate sorting, to predict GPCRs at five levels. The prediction at the first level determines whether a protein is a GPCR or a non-GPCR. If it is predicted to be a GPCR, then it will be further predicted into certain family, subfamily, sub-subfamily and subtype by the classifiers at the second, third, fourth, and fifth levels, respectively. To train the classifiers applied at five levels, a non-redundant dataset is carefully constructed, which contains 3178, 1589, 4772, 4924, and 2741 protein sequences at the respective levels. Jackknife tests on this training dataset show that the overall accuracies of PCA-GPCR at five levels (from the first to the fifth) can achieve up to 99.5%, 88.8%, 80.47%, 80.3%, and 92.34%, respectively. We further perform predictions on a dataset of 1238 GPCRs at the second level, and on another two datasets of 167 and 566 GPCRs respectively at the fourth level. The overall prediction accuracies of our method are consistently higher than those of the existing methods to be compared.

Conclusions

The comprehensive set of 1497 features is believed to be capable of capturing information about amino acid composition, sequence order as well as various physicochemical properties of proteins. Therefore, high accuracies are achieved when predicting GPCRs at all the five levels with our proposed method.
Lamellipodium extension and membrane ruffling require different SNARE-mediated trafficking pathways
Authors: Skalski Michael , Yi Qing , Kean Michelle J , Myers Dennis W , Williams Karla C , Burtnik Angela , Coppolino Marc G
Published: August 2010

Background

Intracellular membrane traffic is an essential component of the membrane remodeling that supports lamellipodium extension during cell adhesion. The membrane trafficking pathways that contribute to cell adhesion have not been fully elucidated, but recent studies have implicated SNARE proteins. Here, the functions of several SNAREs (SNAP23, VAMP3, VAMP4 and syntaxin13) are characterized during the processes of cell spreading and membrane ruffling.

Results

We report the first description of a SNARE complex, containing SNAP23, syntaxin13 and cellubrevin/VAMP3, that is induced by cell adhesion to an extracellular matrix. Impairing the function of the SNAREs in the complex using inhibitory SNARE domains disrupted the recycling endosome, impeded delivery of integrins to the cell surface, and reduced haptotactic cell migration and spreading. Blocking SNAP23 also inhibited the formation of PMA-stimulated, F-actin-rich membrane ruffles; however, membrane ruffle formation was not significantly altered by inhibition of VAMP3 or syntaxin13. In contrast, membrane ruffling, and not cell spreading, was sensitive to inhibition of two SNAREs within the biosynthetic secretory pathway, GS15 and VAMP4. Consistent with this, formation of a complex containing VAMP4 and SNAP23 was enhanced by treatment of cells with PMA. The results reveal a requirement for the function of a SNAP23-syntaxin13-VAMP3 complex in the formation of lamellipodia during cell adhesion and of a VAMP4-SNAP23-containing complex during PMA-induced membrane ruffling.

Conclusions

Our findings suggest that different SNARE-mediated trafficking pathways support membrane remodeling during ECM-induced lamellipodium extension and PMA-induced ruffle formation, pointing to important mechanistic differences between these processes.
Microsatellite-based genetic diversity and population structure of domestic sheep in northern Eurasia
Authors: Tapio Miika , Ozerov Mikhail , Tapio Ilma , Toro Miguel A , Marzanov Nurbiy , Ćinkulov Mirjana , Goncharenko Galina , Kiselyova Tatyana , Murawski Maziek , Kantanen Juha
Published: August 2010

Background

Identification of global livestock diversity hotspots and their importance in diversity maintenance is essential for making global conservation efforts. We screened 52 sheep breeds from the Eurasian subcontinent with 20 microsatellite markers. By estimating and weighting differently within- and between-breed genetic variation our aims were to identify genetic diversity hotspots and prioritize the importance of each breed for conservation, respectively. In addition we estimated how important within-species diversity hotspots are in livestock conservation.

Results

Bayesian clustering analysis revealed three genetic clusters, termed Nordic, Composite and Fat-tailed. Southern breeds from close to the region of sheep domestication were more variable, but less genetically differentiated compared with more northern populations. Decreasing weight for within-breed diversity component led to very high representation of genetic clusters or regions containing more diverged breeds, but did not increase phenotypic diversity among the high ranked breeds. Sampling populations throughout 14 regional groups was suggested for maximized total genetic diversity.

Conclusions

During initial steps of establishing a livestock conservation program populations from the diversity hot-spot area are the most important ones, but for the full design our results suggested that approximately equal population presentation across environments should be considered. Even in this case, higher per population emphasis in areas of high diversity is appropriate. The analysis was based on neutral data, but we have no reason to think the general trend is limited to this type of data. However, a comprehensive valuation of populations should balance production systems, phenotypic traits and available genetic information, and include consideration of probability of success.
Multi-locus analysis of human infective Cryptosporidium species and subtypes using ten novel genetic loci
Authors: Bouzid Maha , Tyler Kevin M , Christen Richard , Chalmers Rachel M , Elwin Kristin , Hunter Paul R
Published: August 2010

Background

Cryptosporidium is a protozoan parasite that causes diarrheal illness in a wide range of hosts including humans. Two species, C. parvum and C. hominis are of primary public health relevance. Genome sequences of these two species are available and show only 3-5% sequence divergence. We investigated this sequence variability, which could correspond either to sequence gaps in the published genome sequences or to the presence of species-specific genes. Comparative genomic tools were used to identify putative species-specific genes and a subset of these genes was tested by PCR in a collection of Cryptosporidium clinical isolates and reference strains.

Results

The majority of the putative species-specific genes examined were in fact common to C. parvum and C. hominis. PCR product sequence analysis revealed interesting SNPs, the majority of which were species-specific. These genetic loci allowed us to construct a robust and multi-locus analysis. The Neighbour-Joining phylogenetic tree constructed clearly discriminated the previously described lineages of Cryptosporidium species and subtypes.

Conclusions

Most of the genes identified as being species specific during bioinformatics in Cryptosporidium sp. are in fact present in multiple species and only appear species specific because of gaps in published genome sequences. Nevertheless SNPs may offer a promising approach to studying the taxonomy of closely related species of Cryptosporidia.
Automated quantitative gait analysis in animal models of movement disorders
Authors: Vandeputte Caroline , Taymans Jean-Marc , Casteels Cindy , Coun Frea , Ni Yicheng , Van Laere Koen , Baekelandt Veerle
Published: August 2010

Background

Accurate and reproducible behavioral tests in animal models are of major importance in the development and evaluation of new therapies for central nervous system disease. In this study we investigated for the first time gait parameters of rat models for Parkinson's disease (PD), Huntington's disease (HD) and stroke using the Catwalk method, a novel automated gait analysis test. Static and dynamic gait parameters were measured in all animal models, and these data were compared to readouts of established behavioral tests, such as the cylinder test in the PD and stroke rats and the rotarod tests for the HD group.

Results

Hemiparkinsonian rats were generated by unilateral injection of the neurotoxin 6-hydroxydopamine in the striatum or in the medial forebrain bundle. For Huntington's disease, a transgenic rat model expressing a truncated huntingtin fragment with multiple CAG repeats was used. Thirdly, a stroke model was generated by a photothrombotic induced infarct in the right sensorimotor cortex. We found that multiple gait parameters were significantly altered in all three disease models compared to their respective controls. Behavioural deficits could be efficiently measured using the cylinder test in the PD and stroke animals, and in the case of the PD model, the deficits in gait essentially confirmed results obtained by the cylinder test. However, in the HD model and the stroke model the Catwalk analysis proved more sensitive than the rotarod test and also added new and more detailed information on specific gait parameters.

Conclusion

The automated quantitative gait analysis test may be a useful tool to study both motor impairment and recovery associated with various neurological motor disorders.
Self-medication with antibiotics in rural population in Greece: a cross-sectional multicenter study
Authors: Skliros Eystathios , Merkouris Panagiotis , Papazafiropoulou Athanasia , Gikas Aristofanis , Matzouranis George , Papafragos Christos , Tsakanikas Ioannis , Zarbala Irene , Vasibosis Alexios , Stamataki Petroula , Sotiropoulos Alexios
Published: August 2010

Background

Self-medication is an important driver of antimicrobial overuse as well as a worldwide problem. The aim of the present study was to estimate the use of antibiotics, without medical prescription, in a sample of rural population presenting in primary care in southern Greece.

Methods

The study included data from 1,139 randomly selected adults (545 men/594 women, mean age ± SD: 56.2 ± 19.8 years), who visited the 6 rural Health Centres of southern Greece, between November 2009 and January 2010. The eligible participants were sought out on a one-to-one basis and asked to answer an anonymous questionnaire.

Results

Use of antibiotics within the past 12 months was reported by 888 participants (77.9%). 508 individuals (44.6%) reported that they had received antibiotics without medical prescription at least one time. The major source of self-medication was the pharmacy without prescription (76.2%). The antibiotics most frequently used for self-medication were amoxicillin (18.3%), amoxicillin/clavulanic acid (15.4%), cefaclor (9.7%), cefuroxim (7.9%), cefprozil (4.7%) and ciprofloxacin (2.3%). Fever (41.2%), common cold (32.0%) and sore throat (20.6%) were the most frequent indications for the use of self-medicated antibiotics.

Conclusion

In Greece, despite the open and rapid access to primary care services, it appears that a high proportion of rural adult population use antibiotics without medical prescription preferably for fever and common cold.
Irradiation of the potential cancer stem cell niches in the adult brain improves progression-free survival of patients with malignant glioma
Authors: Evers Patrick , Lee Percy P , DeMarco John , Agazaryan Nzhde , Sayre James W , Selch Michael , Pajonk Frank
Published: August 2010

Background

Glioblastoma is the most common brain tumor in adults. The mechanisms leading to glioblastoma are not well understood but animal studies support that inactivation of tumor suppressor genes in neural stem cells (NSC) is required and sufficient to induce glial cancers. This suggests that the NSC niches in the brain may harbor cancer stem cells (CSCs), Thus providing novel therapy targets. We hypothesize that higher radiation doses to these NSC niches improve patient survival by eradicating CSCs.

Methods

55 adult patients with Grade 3 or Grade 4 glial cancer treated with radiotherapy at UCLA between February of 2003 and May of 2009 were included in this retrospective study. Using radiation planning software and patient radiological records, the SVZ and SGL were reconstructed for each of these patients and dosimetry data for these structures was calculated.

Results

Using Kaplan-Meier analysis we show that patients whose bilateral subventricular zone (SVZ) received greater than the median SVZ dose (= 43 Gy) had a significant improvement in progression-free survival if compared to patients who received less than the median dose (15.0 vs 7.2 months PFS; P = 0.028). Furthermore, a mean dose >43 Gy to the bilateral SVZ yielded a hazard ratio of 0.73 (P = 0.019). Importantly, similarly analyzing total prescription dose failed to illustrate a statistically significant impact.

Conclusions

Our study leads us to hypothesize that in glioma targeted radiotherapy of the stem cell niches in the adult brain could yield significant benefits over radiotherapy of the primary tumor mass alone and that damage caused by smaller fractions of radiation maybe less efficiently detected by the DNA repair mechanisms in CSCs.
Restoration of radiation therapy-induced salivary gland dysfunction in mice by post therapy IGF-1 administration
Authors: Grundmann Oliver , Fillinger Jamia L , Victory Kerton R , Burd Randy , Limesand Kirsten H
Published: August 2010

Background

Radiotherapy for head and neck cancer results in severe and chronic salivary gland dysfunction in most individuals. This results in significant side effects including xerostomia, dysphagia, and malnutrition which are linked to significant reductions in patients' quality of life. Currently there are few xerostomia treatment approaches that provide long-term results without significant side effects. To address this problem we investigated the potential for post-therapeutic IGF-1 to reverse radiation-induced salivary gland dysfunction.

Methods

FVB mice were treated with targeted head and neck radiation and significant reductions in salivary function were confirmed 3 days after treatment. On days 4-8 after radiation, one group of mice was injected intravenously with IGF-1 while a second group served as a vehicle control. Stimulated salivary flow rates were evaluated on days 30, 60, and 90 and histological analysis was performed on days 9, 30, 60, and 90.

Results

Irradiated animals receiving vehicle injections have 40-50% reductions in stimulated salivary flow rates throughout the entire time course. Mice receiving injections of IGF-1 have improved stimulated salivary flow rates 30 days after treatment. By days 60-90, IGF-1 injected mice have restored salivary flow rates to unirradiated control mice levels. Parotid tissue sections were stained for amylase as an indicator of functioning acinar cells and significant reductions in total amylase area are detected in irradiated animals compared to unirradiated groups on all days. Post-therapeutic injections of IGF-1 results in increased amylase-positive acinar cell area and improved amylase secretion. Irradiated mice receiving IGF-1 show similar proliferation indices as untreated mice suggesting a return to tissue homeostasis.

Conclusions

Post-therapeutic IGF-1 treatment restores salivary gland function potentially through normalization of cell proliferation and improved expression of amylase. These findings could aid in the rational design of therapy protocols or drugs for the treatment of radiation-induced salivary gland dysfunction in patients who have completed their anti-cancer therapies.
A treatment applying a biomechanical device to the feet of patients with knee osteoarthritis results in reduced pain and improved function: a prospective controlled study
Authors: Bar-Ziv Yaron , Beer Yiftah , Ran Yuval , Benedict Shaike , Halperin Nahum
Published: August 2010

Background

This study examined the effect of treatment with a novel biomechanical device on the level of pain and function in patients with knee OA.

Methods

Patients with bilateral knee OA were enrolled to active and control groups. Patients were evaluated at baseline, at 4 weeks and at the 8-week endpoint. A novel biomechanical device was individually calibrated to patients from the active group. Patients from the control group received an identical foot-worn platform without the biomechanical elements. Primary outcomes were the WOMAC Index and ALF assessments.

Results

There were no baseline differences between the groups. At 8 weeks, the active group showed a mean improvement of 64.8% on the WOMAC pain scale, a mean improvement of 62.7% on the WOMAC function scale, and a mean improvement of 31.4% on the ALF scale. The control group demonstrated no improvement in the above parameters. Significant differences were found between the active and control groups in all the parameters of assessment.

Conclusions

The biomechanical device and treatment methodology is effective in significantly reducing pain and improving function in knee OA patients.

The study is registered at clinicaltrials.gov, identifier NCT00457132, http://www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct/show/NCT00457132?order=1
Automated seamless DNA co-transformation cloning with direct expression vectors applying positive or negative insert selection
Authors: Olieric Natacha , Kuchen Melanie , Wagen Sandro , Sauter Marion , Crone Stephanie , Edmondson Sonia , Frey Daniel , Ostermeier Christian , Steinmetz Michel O , Jaussi Rolf
Published: August 2010

Background

Molecular DNA cloning is crucial to many experiments and with the trend to higher throughput of modern approaches automated techniques are urgently required. We have established an automated, fast and flexible low-cost expression cloning approach requiring only vector and insert amplification by PCR and co-transformation of the products.

Results

Our vectors apply positive selection for the insert or negative selection against empty vector molecules and drive strong expression of target proteins in E.coli cells. Variable tags are available both in N-terminal or C-terminal position. A newly developed β-lactamase (ΔW290) selection cassette contains a segment inside the β-lactamase open reading frame encoding a stretch of hydrophilic amino acids that result in a T7 promoter when back-translated. This position of the promoter permits positive selection and attenuated expression of fusion proteins with C-terminal tags. We have tested eight vectors by inserting six target sequences of variable length, provenience and function. The target proteins were cloned, expressed and detected using an automated Tecan Freedom Evo II liquid handling work station. Only two colonies had to be picked to score with 85% correct inserts while 80% of those were positive in expression tests.

Conclusions

Our results establish co-transformation and positive/negative selection cloning in conjunction with the provided vectors and selection cassettes as an automatable alternative to commercialized high-throughput cloning systems like Gateway® or ligase-independent cloning (LIC) .
Genetic variations of nucleoprotein gene of influenza A viruses isolated from swine in Thailand
Authors: Thippamom Nattakarn , Sreta Donreuthai , Kitikoon Pravina , Thanawongnuwech Roongroje , Poovorawan Yong , Theamboonlers Apiradee , Suwannakarn Kamol , Parchariyanon Sujira , Damrongwatanapokin Sudarat , Amonsin Alongkorn
Published: August 2010

Background

Influenza A virus causes severe disease in both humans and animals and thus, has a considerably impact on economy and public health. In this study, the genetic variations of the nucleoprotein (NP) gene of influenza viruses recovered from swine in Thailand were determined.

Results

Twelve influenza A virus specimens were isolated from Thai swine. All samples were subjected to nucleotide sequencing of the complete NP gene. Phylogenetic analysis was conducted by comparing the NP gene of swine influenza viruses with that of seasonal and pandemic human viruses and highly pathogenic avian viruses from Thailand (n = 77). Phylogenetic analysis showed that the NP gene from different host species clustered in distinct host specific lineages. The NP gene of swine influenza viruses clustered in either Eurasian swine or Classical swine lineages. Genetic analysis of the NP gene suggested that swine influenza viruses circulating in Thailand display 4 amino acids unique to Eurasian and Classical swine lineages. In addition, the result showed 1 and 5 amino acids unique to avian and human lineages, respectively. Furthermore, nucleotide substitution rates showed that the NP gene is highly conserved especially in avian influenza viruses.

Conclusion

The NP gene sequence of influenza A in Thailand is highly conserved within host-specific lineages and shows amino acids potentially unique to distinct NP lineages. This information can be used to investigate potential interspecies transmission of influenza A viruses. In addition, the genetic variations of the NP gene will be useful for monitoring the viruses and preparing effective prevention and control strategies for potentially pandemic influenza outbreaks.
Preliminary experiments to evaluate the Gassmann equation in carbonate rocks: calcite and dolomite
Authors: Vega S. , Prajapat J. V. , Al Mazrooei A. A.
Published: August 2010

Fluid substitution is used to predict potential changes in seismic data due to production in oil reservoirs. The fluid changes in clastic rocks are often predicted by the Gassmann equation. However, the applicability of Gassmann's equation in carbonates is not well understood. Apparently, part of this failure is due to the violation of the assumption of a constant shear modulus for different fluids (Baechle et al., 2005; Adam et al., 2006), but it is not clear yet.
Introduction to this special section: Shallow hazards
Authors: Miller Rick
Published: August 2010

Every living thing on our planet could be affected, directly or indirectly by a geohazard of some kind, at some time. Whether directly by landslides, sinkholes, liquefaction of soils, swelling clays or indirectly by volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, or unstable sea-floor slopes, and overpressured zones threatening deepwater drilling half a world away—no region is completely immune. Many regional and even some local-scale geohazards have the potential for a worldwide impact. While sinkholes induced by limestone dissolution or elevated saturation of slide plains resulting in slope instability in alpine regions are predominantly local threats in specific geologic settings, entire continents can be affected by a massive offshore oil spill, soil amplification from large-magnitude earthquakes, or the saturation of commercial air space from a volcanic eruption. Exploration geophysicists are increasingly being called upon to use the many tools of their trade to either evaluate potential hazards or determine the ultimate impact a recently developed hazard will have.
Energy Balance, Host-Related Factors, and Cancer Progression
Authors: Hursting Stephen D. , Berger Nathan A.
Published: August 2010

Obesity is associated with an increased risk and worsened prognosis for many types of cancer, but the mechanisms underlying the obesity–cancer progression link are poorly understood. Several energy balance–related host factors are known to influence tumor progression and/or treatment responsiveness after cancer develops, and these have been implicated as key contributors to the complex effects of obesity on cancer outcome. These host factors include leptin, adiponectin, steroid hormones, reactive oxygen species associated with inflammation, insulin, insulin-like growth factor–1, and sirtuins. Each of these host factors is considered in this article in the context of energy balance and cancer progression. In addition, future research directions in this field are discussed, including the importance of study designs addressing energy balance across the life course, the development and application of highly relevant animal models, potential roles of cancer stem cells in the response to energy balance modulation, and emerging pharmacologic approaches that target energy balance–related pathways.
Allogeneic Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation for Patients With Mycosis Fungoides and Sézary Syndrome: A Retrospective Analysis of the Lymphoma Working Party of the European Group for Blood and Marrow Transplantation
Authors: Duarte Rafael F. , Canals Carmen , Onida Francesco , Gabriel Ian H. , Arranz Reyes , Arcese William , Ferrant Augustin , Kobbe Guido , Narni Franco , Deliliers Giorgio Lambertenghi , Olavarría Eduardo , Schmitz Norbert , Sureda Anna
Published: August 2010

Purpose

To analyze the outcome of allogeneic transplantation for mycosis fungoides and Sézary syndrome (MF/SS) in terms of nonrelapse mortality (NRM), relapse/progression (REL), progression-free survival (PFS), and overall survival (OS) and to identify factors associated with the outcome.

Patient and Methods

Sixty patients with MF (n = 36) and SS (n = 24) who received a first allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) from a matched related (mRD; n = 45) or unrelated donor (mUD; n = 15) between 1997 and 2007 and who were registered in the European Group for Blood and Marrow Transplantation database were analyzed: 37 men and 23 women, median age 46.5 years (range, 22 to 66 years). Forty-four patients had TNM stage IV, and 40 patients were at advanced phase at transplantation. Forty-four patients received reduced-intensity conditioning (RIC) regimens, and 25 underwent T-cell depletion (TCD).

Results

Allogeneic transplantation in MF/SS offers an estimated OS of 66% at 1 year and 54% at 3 years, primarily driven by donor type, disease phase, and type of conditioning. RIC decreased NRM (relative risk [RR] = 4.7; P = .008) without increasing REL, leading to a higher OS (RR = 2.8; P = .03). Advanced-phase disease increases REL (RR = 3.0; P = .03) and reduces PFS (RR = 4.4; P = .002) and OS (RR = 3.5; P = .023). Recipients of mRD allogeneic HCT had better PFS (RR = 2.7; P = .006) and OS (RR = 4.0; P = .001) than their mUD counterparts. The risk of REL increases with TCD (RR = 3.2; P = .005). Some patients who experience relapse can successfully undergo rescue treatment with donor lymphocyte infusions.

Conclusion

Allogeneic transplantation is a valid therapeutic alternative for high-risk patients with advanced-stage MF/SS. Our data also suggest the existence of a clinically relevant graft-versus-lymphoma effect in MF/SS.
The control of axillary meristem fate in the maizeramosapathway
Authors: Gallavotti Andrea , Long Jeff A. , Stanfield Sharon , Yang Xiang , Jackson David , Vollbrecht Erik , Schmidt Robert J.
Published: August 2010

Plant axillary meristems are composed of highly organized, self-renewing stem cells that produce indeterminate branches or terminate in differentiated structures, such as the flowers. These opposite fates, dictated by both genetic and environmental factors, determine interspecific differences in the architecture of plants. The Cys2-His2 zinc-finger transcription factor RAMOSA1 (RA1) regulates the fate of most axillary meristems during the early development of maize inflorescences, the tassel and the ear, and has been implicated in the evolution of grass architecture. Mutations in RA1 or any other known members of the ramosa pathway, RAMOSA2 and RAMOSA3, generate highly branched inflorescences. Here, we report a genetic screen for the enhancement of maize inflorescence branching and the discovery of a new regulator of meristem fate: the RAMOSA1 ENHANCER LOCUS2 (REL2) gene. rel2 mutants dramatically increase the formation of long branches in ears of both ra1 and ra2 mutants. REL2 encodes a transcriptional co-repressor similar to the TOPLESS protein of Arabidopsis, which is known to maintain apical-basal polarity during embryogenesis. REL2 is capable of rescuing the embryonic defects of the Arabidopsis topless-1 mutant, suggesting that REL2 also functions as a transcriptional co-repressor throughout development. We show by genetic and molecular analyses that REL2 physically interacts with RA1, indicating that the REL2/RA1 transcriptional repressor complex antagonizes the formation of indeterminate branches during maize inflorescence development. Our results reveal a novel mechanism for the control of meristem fate and the architecture of plants.
Microeconomic Approaches to Development: Schooling, Learning, and Growth
Authors: Rosenzweig Mark R
Published: August 2010

Within the field of economic development over the past 15 years or so, particularly significant advances have been made in what can be loosely called micro-development, an area defined principally by the units that are examined, not by a particular methodological approach. The units may be individuals, households, networks, banks, government agencies and so on, as opposed to countries. Within this area, economists use a wide variety of empirical methods informed to different degrees by economic models, they use data from developed and developing countries, and some use no data at all, to shed light on development questions. The best of this work speaks to the major questions of development and even informs, if not provides the foundation for, macro models of development and growth. I will illustrate the variety of approaches to development issues that microeconomists have employed by focusing on studies that illuminate and quantify the major mechanisms posited by growth theorists who highlight the role of education in fostering growth.
Searching for Effective Teachers with Imperfect Information
Authors: Staiger Douglas O , Rockoff Jonah E
Published: August 2010

Over the past four decades, empirical researchers—many of them economists—have accumulated an impressive amount of evidence on teachers. In this paper, we ask what the existing evidence implies for how school leaders might recruit, evaluate, and retain teachers. We begin by summarizing the evidence on five key points, referring to existing work and to evidence we have accumulated from our research with the nation's two largest school districts: Los Angeles and New York City. First, teachers display considerable heterogeneity in their effects on student achievement gains. Second, estimates of teacher effectiveness based on student achievement data are noisy measures. Third, teachers' effectiveness rises rapidly in the first year or two of their teaching careers but then quickly levels out. Fourth, the primary cost of teacher turnover is not the direct cost of hiring and firing, but rather is the loss to students who will be taught by a novice teacher rather than one with several years of experience. Fifth, it is difficult to identify at the time of hire those teachers who will prove more effective. As a result, better teachers can only be identified after some evidence on their actual job performance has accumulated. We then explore what these facts imply for how principals and school districts should act, using a simple model in which schools must search for teachers using noisy signals of teacher effectiveness. The implications of our analysis are strikingly different from current practice. Rather than screening at the time of hire, the evidence on heterogeneity of teacher performance suggests a better strategy would be identifying large differences between teachers by observing the first few years of teaching performance and retaining only the highest-performing teachers.
Surgical anatomy of the swine face
Authors: Sasaki Ryo , Watanabe Yorikatsu , Yamato Masayuki , Aoki Shunsuke , Okano Teruo , Ando Tomohiro
Published: August 2010

In order to develop tissue engineering applications for oral and maxillofacial surgery, the surgical anatomy of the miniature pig's face was investigated in three miniature pig cadavers and three anaesthetized miniature pigs using identical procedures that were previously described for humans. A preauricular incision with a retromandibular and a submandibular extension was initially made through the facial skin and subcutaneous tissues. The underlying tissues were then carefully dissected in order to progressively expose the platysma muscle, the superficial layer of deep cervical fascia, the marginal mandibular branch and buccal branch of the facial nerve, the mental nerve and the mandibular skeleton. The marginal mandibular branch of the facial nerve has an upper and lower division. Stimulation of the facial nerve and its branches showed that the upper division of the marginal mandibular branch innervates muscles and tissues in the upper lip and nose region, and the lower division innervates muscles and tissues in the lower lip region. The gross anatomy of the maxillofacial region in the pigs was found to be similar to that of humans. Although the distributions of the marginal mandibular branch of the facial nerve and the mental nerve are different from that of humans, we concluded that miniature pigs are a suitable experimental model for the preclinical development of tissue engineering applications in oral and maxillofacial surgery.
Book Reviews
Authors: Toocaram Linda , York Lorraine , Richert Lucas
Published: August 2010

FICTIONS OF AMERICA: NARRATIVES OF GLOBAL EMPIRE, JUDIE NEWMAN (2007), London and New York: Routledge, 208 pp., ISBN 978-0-4153-3384-9 (pbk), 18.99

MARGARET ATWOOD AND THE FEMALE BILDUNGSROMAN, ELLEN McWILLIAMS (2009) Farnham: Ashgate, 170 pp., ISBN 978-0-7546-6027-9
(hbk), 45.00

HAPPY PILLS IN AMERICA: FROM MILTOWN TO PROZAC, DAVID HERZBERG (2009) Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 279 pp., ISBN: 978-0-8018-9030-7, 23.50 (hbk)
A combinatorial approach to Alexander–Hirschowitz's Theorem based on toric degenerations
Authors: Brannetti Silvia
Published: August 2010

We present an alternative proof of the Alexander–Hirschowitz Theorem in dimension 3 using degenerations of toric varieties.
Triply periodic minimal surfaces which converge to the Hoffman–Wohlgemuth example
Authors: Simões Plinio , Ramos Batista Valério
Published: August 2010

We get a continuous one-parameter new family of embedded minimal surfaces, of which the period problems are two-dimensional. Moreover, one proves that it has Scherk's second surface and Hoffman–Wohlgemuth's example as limit-members.
Reducible Veronese surfaces
Authors: Alzati Alberto , Ballico Edoardo
Published: August 2010

Here we describe all degree n + 3 non-degenerate surfaces in , n ≥ 1, connected in codimension 1, which may be isomorphically projected into . There are three of them. One is a suitable union of n + 3 planes (for all n ≥ 1); it was discovered by Floystad. The other two are unions of a smooth quadric and two planes (only for n = 1).
A New Laboratory Evaluation Method for the Adhesive Performance of Crack Sealants
Authors: Hu Xiaodi , Zhou Fujie , Hu Sheng , Scullion Tom
Published: August 2010

Crack sealing is a practice used for routine and preventive maintenance as part of a pavement’s preservation strategy. However, crack sealant failures are common in Texas, particularly within the first 3 years of application (or service life). The major causes of sealant failures can be classified under two categories: Adhesion failure and cohesion failure. Although both failures can lead to a significant reduction in the service life of a pavement structure, adhesive failure is in most cases the dominant failure type. Several laboratory tests such as rotational viscosity, penetration, softening point, ductility, and bond tests are currently used to evaluate the properties of crack sealants. Among these tests, the bond test is specifically used to evaluate the adhesive failure of crack sealants and the procedure of the bond test is well documented in ASTM D5329-07. However, the bond test often takes several days to complete, and the pass/fail criterion is determined through visual observation, which is a very subjective process. Furthermore, the correlation between the bond test and adhesive failure performance of crack sealants in the field was found to be either weak or non-existent. In an attempt to minimize these problems, a simple, fast, and adhesive performance-related laboratory test method is developed in this paper to ensure the proper selection of a sealant for a given project.
Organizational Performance Measurement System and International Tourist Hotels: A New Conceptual Framework
Authors: Lin Shin-Yi , Lin Hung-Lung
Published: August 2010

Due to the change of market structure and other important tourism competitors’ appearance, in Taiwan, the international tourist hotel (ITH) industry has been experiencing great competition for the past decade. Under these circumstances, hotel corporations not only attempt to establish more adequate services but also promote more incentives to attract consumers. The ITH intended to consolidate their market shares and enhanced their organizational operation and performance. Therefore, this study proposed a model to evaluate the ITH organizational performance. The proposed model adopted both Balanced Scorecard (BSC) and Analytic Hierarchic Process (AHP) techniques; then, based on combining BSC and AHP, a decision-making method for constructing evaluation model can provide the ITH industry decision-makers and administrators with valuable references of evaluating organizational performance. More importantly, the proposed model in this study can provide the ITH industry an accreditation policy as a reference material, making it highly applicable for academic and government purposes.
Free Shrinkage of High Performance Steel Fiber Reinforced Concrete
Authors: Bandelj Branko , Saje Drago , Šušteršič Jakob , Lopatič Jože , Saje Franc
Published: August 2010

The paper deals with the results of an experimental investigation into the free shrinkage of high performance steel fiber reinforced concrete (HP-SFRC). The development over time of the autogenous, total, and drying shrinkage of HP-SFRC, with a steel fiber content of between 0.25 % and 2 % by volume and that of a comparable high performance concrete (HPC) without fibers, was studied. The laboratory investigations were also concerned with the effect of the length of steel fibers on the shrinkage of the composites. The results of measurements of the autogenous shrinkage of the investigated concretes, at an early age, are also shown. From the results of the experimental investigation, it can be seen that both the autogenous shrinkage and the total shrinkage of HP-SFRC are less than the values corresponding to the comparable HPC. By gradually adding longer steel fibers (l=30 mm) up to 1 % of the composite volume, the shrinkage of the HP-SFRC can be significantly reduced, whereas if the fiber content is further increased, only a relatively small reduction in the composite shrinkage can be achieved. When using shorter steel fibers (l=16 mm), the shrinkage of the composite can, with an increase in the fiber content, be noticeably reduced only up to a fiber content of 0.75 % by volume of the composite. When the volume content of the steel fibers is higher than 1 %, the workability of the composite becomes significantly poorer, especially when longer fibers are used.
The choriocarcinoma cell line BeWo: syncytial fusion and expression of syncytium-specific proteins
Authors: Orendi Kristina , Gauster Martin , Moser Gerit , Meiri Hamutal , Huppertz Berthold
Published: August 2010

Fusion of the trophoblast-derived choriocarcinoma cell line BeWo can be triggered by forskolin. BeWo cells are regularly used as a cell culture model to mimicin vivosyncytialisation of placental villous trophoblast. The β subunit of human chorionic gonadotropin (CGB), placental alkaline phosphatase as well as placental protein 13 (PP13, LGALS13) are exclusively expressed in the syncytiotrophoblast of the human placenta, and CGB is commonly used as a marker of syncytial differentiation. Here we tested the hypothesis that syncytial fusion precedes CGB and LGALS13 expression in trophoblast-derived BeWo cells. BeWo cells were cultured for 48 h in the presence or absence of forskolin and varying concentrations of H-89, a protein kinase A inhibitor that interferes with the forskolin-mediated pathway of syncytial fusion. LGALS13 and CGB expression were quantified by DELFIA and real-time PCR. Cell fusion was determined by morphological analysis and cell counting after immunofluorescence staining. In forskolin-stimulated BeWo cells that were hindered to fuse by treatment with H-89, levels of CGB protein expression were not altered, while LGALS13 protein and mRNA expression decreased significantly to control levels without forskolin. The LGALS13 protein expression data coincided with a significant decrease in syncytial fusion, while CGB protein expression was unaffected by rates of cell fusion and proliferation. We postulate that CGB protein expression is not necessarily linked to syncytial fusion, and thus CGB should be used with great caution as a marker of BeWo cell fusion.