bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Diabetes reduces statherin in human parotid: immunogold study and comparison with submandibular gland
Authors: Isola M , Cossu M , Diana M , Isola R , Loy F , Solinas P , Lantini MS
Published: November 2011

Oral Diseases (2012) 18, 360–364

Background and Objective:  Alteration of salivary gland secretion is one of the consequences of diabetes. In a recent study on the submandibular gland of diabetic subjects, we found changed expression of statherin, a salivary protein of fundamental importance in preserving tooth integrity, whose reduction was related with the high incidence of oral diseases in patients with diabetes. The goal of this report is to extend the study to human parotid gland and to compare the effects of diabetes on statherin expression with those previously described in submandibular gland.

Materials and Methods:  Fragments of parotid glands obtained from diabetic and non‐diabetic patients were fixed, dehydrated, embedded in Epon Resin and processed for the immunogold histochemistry. The staining density was expressed as number of gold particles per μm2 and statistically evaluated.

Results and Conclusions:  In all samples, statherin reactivity was specifically localized in secretory granules of acinar cells. The statistical analysis showed that labelling density was significantly lower in diabetic than in non‐diabetic parotid glands and that diabetes affects protein expression at identical extent in parotid and submandibular glands. The results strengthen the hypothesis that a reduced statherin secretion may be responsible for the higher incidence of oral disorders in diabetic subjects.
Predicting Civil Jury Verdicts: How Attorneys Use (and Misuse) a Second Opinion
Authors: Jacobson Jonas , Dobbs‐Marsh Jasmine , Liberman Varda , Minson Julia A.
Published: November 2011

When predicting potential jury verdicts, trial attorneys often seek second opinions from other attorneys. But how much weight do they give to these opinions, and how optimally do they use them? In a four‐round estimation task developed by Liberman et al. (under review), pairs of law students and pairs of experienced trial attorneys estimated actual jury verdicts. When participants were given access to a partner's estimates, participants' accuracy improved in both groups. However, participants in both groups underweighted their partners' estimates relative to their own, with experienced attorneys giving less weight to their partners' opinions than did law students. In doing so, participants failed to reap the full benefits of statistical aggregation. In both groups, requiring partners to reach agreement on a joint estimate improved accuracy. This benefit was then largely retained when participants gave final individual estimates. In a further analysis, we randomly sampled estimates of various‐sized groups. The accuracy of mean estimates substantially increased as group size increased, with the largest relative benefit coming from the first additional estimate. We discuss the implications of these findings for the legal profession and for the study of individual versus collective estimation.
Bicyclic Hydroxy‐1H‐pyrrolopyridine‐trione Containing HIV‐1 Integrase Inhibitors
Authors: Zhao Xue Zhi , Maddali Kasthuraiah , Metifiot Mathieu , Smith Steven J. , Vu B. Christie , Marchand Christophe , Hughes Stephen H. , Pommier Yves , Burke Terrence R.
Published: November 2011

HIV‐1 integrase (IN) is a validated therapeutic target for the treatment of AIDS. However, the emergence of resistance to raltegravir, the sole marketed FDA‐approved IN inhibitor, emphasizes the need to develop second‐generation inhibitors that retain efficacy against clinically relevant IN mutants. We report herein bicyclic hydroxy‐1H‐pyrrolopyridine‐triones as a new family of HIV‐1 integrase inhibitors that were efficiently prepared using a key ‘Pummerer cyclization deprotonation cycloaddition’ cascade of imidosulfoxides. In in vitro HIV‐1 integrase assays, the analogs showed low micromolar inhibitory potencies with selectivity for strand transfer reactions as compared with 3′‐processing inhibition. A representative inhibitor (5e) retained most of its inhibitory potency against the three major raltegravir‐resistant IN mutant enzymes, G140S/Q148H, Y143R, and N155H. In antiviral assays employing viral vectors coding these IN mutants, compound 5e was approximately 200‐ and 20‐fold less affected than raltegravir against the G140S/Q148H and Y143R mutations, respectively. Against the N155H mutation, 5e was approximately 10‐fold less affected than raltegravir. Thus, our new compounds represent a novel structural class that may be further developed to overcome resistance to raltegravir, particularly in the case of the G140S/Q148H mutations.
Similar in Their Differences: Transnational Legal Processes Addressing Money Laundering in Brazil and Argentina
Authors: Machado Maira
Published: November 2011

The purpose of this article is to provide a comparative analysis of the transnational legal processes that Brazil and Argentina underwent to address money laundering. The article discusses the interaction between the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) norms and a number of changes both countries have experienced in the last decade. The comparison focuses on the three central pillars of the anti-money laundering order (AMLO): criminalization, administrative obligations imposed on the financial sectors, and the creation of a financial intelligence unit. Building from the analytical framework developed by Shaffer (2011), the evidence gathered in this study illustrates different dimensions of state change and highlights the main challenges to assess the effectiveness (output legitimacy) of transnational legal orders empirically.
Thromboelastography in healthy, sick non‐septic and septic neonatal foals
Authors: Mendez‐Angulo JL , Mudge M , Zaldivar‐Lopez S , Vilar‐Saavedra P , Couto G
Published: November 2011

Objectives To evaluate citrated recalcified thromboelastography (TEG) in healthy newborn foals, and to determine intra‐assay, inter‐individual and intra‐individual (at 12 h, 24 h and 7 days after birth) variations. Additionally, to compare TEG variables, haematological values and conventional coagulation profiles from healthy, sick non‐septic, and septic foals.

Design Prospective study.

Methods The study group comprised 18 healthy, 15 sick non‐septic and 17 septic foals. Two citrated (3.2%; 1 : 9 anticoagulant : blood ratio) blood samples were submitted for haemostatic evaluation using a TEG analyser and conventional coagulation profile. TEG values (R time (R), K time (K), angle (α), maximum amplitude (MA) and G value (G)), complete blood count (CBC) and conventional coagulation profile (prothrombin time (PT), activated partial thromboplastin time (aPTT), fibrinogen concentration (Fib) and antithrombin (AT)) were evaluated. Signalment, presenting complaint, sepsis scores, blood culture results and outcome were taken from the medical records of the sick foals.

Results Mean values ± SD for TEG variables in healthy neonatal foals were: R = 11.82 ± 5.35 min, K = 3.06 ± 1.34 min, α= 51.19 ± 12.66 degrees, MA = 55.06 ± 6.67 mm and G = 6361 ± 1700 dyn/cm2. Mean coefficients of variation for intra‐assay/inter‐individual/intra‐individual in healthy foals were: R = 3.5/45.2/43.1%; K = 5.3/58.7/28.7%; α= 1.5/24.7/11.9%; MA = 0.3/12.1/6.1%; G = 1.6/26.7/14.7%. Septic foals had significantly greater α, MA and G values than sick non‐septic foals, and significantly greater MA and G than healthy foals, changes that are consistent with hypercoagulability. Weak correlations were detected between TEG variables and haematological or haemostatic values.

Conclusions TEG could be used to provide additional information about the haemostatic system in equine neonates.
Territorial Agglomeration and Industrial Symbiosis: Sitakunda‐Bhatiary, Bangladesh, as a Secondary Processing Complex
Authors: Gregson Nicky , Crang Mike , Ahamed Farid Uddin , Akter Nasreen , Ferdous Raihana , Foisal Sadat , Hudson Ray
Published: November 2011

abstract

[Correction added after online publication March 16, 2011: The contact information for two authors was listed incorrectly. The email addresses for Farid Uddin Ahamed and Nasreen Akter have been corrected in this version.]

This article both joins with recent arguments in economic geography that have made connections between work on industrial symbiosis and agglomerative tendencies and recasts this work. Drawing on the case of Sitakunda‐Bhatiary, Bangladesh, it shows that symbiosis is intricately bound up in the global circulation of wastes and their recovery through secondary processing. It draws attention to the importance of key places as conduits in the transformation of materials and secondary processing; emphasizes their importance as sites of symbiotic activity; and shows how such places exemplify economies of recycling, reuse, and remanufacturing, but in conditions of minimal environmental regulation. It therefore shows that contemporary symbiosis is not necessarily clean and green and may be very messy; that it can be generative of agglomerations, not just dependent upon prior agglomerations; that such agglomerations may be cross sectoral, not just interplant; and that symbiosis needs to be thought of not just through geographic proximity, but through the spatialities of globalization.
A New Approach to the Control Design of Fuzzy Dynamical Systems
Authors: Chen Ye-Hwa
Published: November 2011

A new approach to the control design for fuzzy dynamical systems is proposed. For a fuzzy dynamical system, the uncertainty lies within a fuzzy set. The desirable system performance is twofold: one deterministic and one fuzzy. While the deterministic performance assures the bottom line, the fuzzy performance enhances the cost consideration. Under this setting, a class of robust controls is proposed. The control is deterministic and is not if-then rules-based. An optimal design problem associated with the control is then formulated as a constrained optimization problem. We show that the problem can be solved and the solution exists and is unique. The closed-form solution and cost are explicitly shown. The resulting control is able to guarantee the prescribed deterministic performance and minimize the average fuzzy performance.
Hard stamp processes for the EVG 620 full field nanoimprint system
Authors: Conway James , Kruger James B. , Mansourpour Mahnaz , Rissman Paul
Published: November 2011

The EVG 620 nanoimprint system is a 4 in. full wafer system suitable for university and research environments (EV Group, A-4782 Sankt Florian am Inn, Austria). By limiting the area printed and by the use of hard masks, nanoimprint lithography resolution can be extended to well below the design resolution of the system. The EVG 620 has found application primarily with soft stamps, such as those made of polydimethylsiloxane [Plachetka et al., Microelectron. Eng. 73-74, 167 (2004)]. However, soft stamps can have limited resolution and are difficult to clean, meaning they should be disposed of after a single stamp. Hard stamps made from quartz wafers have ultimate resolution limited only by the e-beam exposure system used for definition and are easy to clean in sulfuric peroxide or oxygen plasma strippers. Hard stamps have been demonstrated on the EVG 620 instrument at Stanford Nanofabrication Facility with resolution down to 20 nm. Both positive tone (PMMA, ZEP-520) and negative tone templates [hydrogen silsequioxane (HSQ)] have been fabricated. The positive tone templates require a plasma etch step, while the HSQ templates [Mancini et al., J. Vac. Sci. Technol. B 20, 2896 (2002)] can be used directly for nanoimprint. A process for creation of daughter templates from silicon master e-beam exposures has been demonstrated on the EVG 620. The silicon master with HSQ patterns is placed on the wafer stage and a quartz wafer coated with nanoimprint polymer is mounted where the template is normally placed. The resultant image on the quartz wafer is then transferred into the substrate with plasma etching, and these daughter templates can then be used for image transfer. Minimal loss of resolution has been demonstrated with this process.
Evaluation of high thermal stability cyclopentadienyl Hf precursors with H2O as a co-reactant for advanced gate logic applications
Authors: Consiglio Steven , Clark Robert D. , Nakamura Genji , Wajda Cory S. , Leusink Gert J.
Published: November 2011

For the purpose of extending the upper temperature limit of metallorganic atomic layer deposition, mixed ligand precursors containing cyclopentadienyl (Cp, C5H5) ligands have been shown to exhibitsuperior thermal stability compared to the widely adopted tetrakis(ethylmethylamino)hafnium (TEMAH) precursor while also possessing adequate vapor pressure characteristics for use in atomic layer deposition (ALD) processing. In order to prevent the deleterious oxidation of the underlying Si from O3 the use of a milder oxidant such as H2O is preferred. Accordingly in this study, we investigated ALD using the liquid precursors CpHf(NMe2)3 and (CpMe)2Hf(OMe)Me in the temperature range 305 – 410 °C with H2O as a co-reactant and compared the film growth and electrical properties with films deposited using a conventional TEMAH/H2O process at 305 °C as well as the same process with an optimized annealing scheme. The CpHf(NMe2)3/H2O process was observed toexhibit a growth-per-cycle (GPC) in the range 0.23 – 0.36 Å/cycle which is roughly half that of the TEMAH/H2O process (∼0.6 Å/cycle). In the 340 – 375 °C range this process is comparable toTEMAH/H2O in terms of equivalent oxide thickness but with slightly higher leakage. Even thoughthis process allows for higher processing temperatures it is not able to scale to the level of theTEMAH/H2O process using an optimized annealing scheme. For (CpMe)2Hf(OMe)Me withH2O,in the process space investigated in this study this process was unable to afford a viable growth rate (<0.03 Å/cycle) for device testing although a GPC of 0.33 Å/cycle was obtained using O3.
About the International System of Units (SI) Part II. Organization and General Principles
Authors: Aubrecht Gordon J. , French Anthony P. , Iona Mario
Published: November 2011

As all physicists know, all units are arbitrary. The numbering system is anthropocentric; for example, the Celsius scale of temperature has 100 degrees between the boiling point of water at STP and the freezing point of water. The number 100 is chosen because human beings have 10 fingers. The best units might be based on physical constants, for example, defining temperature in terms of absolute zero and the triple point of water, which are presumably the same everywhere in the universe. Even these units are anthropocentric, though, because, for example, why should water be more fundamental than another material? (Answer: only because we live on Earth, where the abundance of liquid water has made our lives possible.) The basic SI units (base units, see Sec. 2) are as arbitrary as any other set.
Phenylethyl Butyrate Enhances the Potency of Second-Line Drugs against Clinical Isolates of Mycobacterium tuberculosis
Authors: Grau Thomas , Selchow Petra , Tigges Marcel , Burri Reto , Gitzinger Marc , Böttger Erik C. , Fussenegger Martin , Sander Peter
Published: November 2011

Ethionamide (ETH) is a second-line drug for the treatment of tuberculosis. As a prodrug, ETH has to be activated by EthA.
ethA
is controlled by its repressor EthR. 2-Phenylethyl-butyrate (2-PEB) inhibits EthR binding, enhances expression of EthA, and thereby enhances the growth-inhibitory effects of ethionamide, isoxyl, and thiacetazone in
Mycobacterium tuberculosis
strains with resistance to ETH due to
inhA
promoter mutations but not
ethA
mutations.
PmrB Mutations Promote Polymyxin Resistance of Pseudomonas aeruginosa Isolated from Colistin-Treated Cystic Fibrosis Patients
Authors: Moskowitz Samuel M. , Brannon Mark K. , Dasgupta Nandini , Pier Miyuki , Sgambati Nicole , Miller Amanda K. , Selgrade Sara E. , Miller Samuel I. , Denton Miles , Conway Steven P. , Johansen Helle K. , Høiby Niels
Published: November 2011

Pseudomonas aeruginosa
can develop resistance to polymyxin and other cationic antimicrobial peptides. Previous work has shown that mutations in the PmrAB and PhoPQ regulatory systems can confer low to moderate levels of colistin (polymyxin E) resistance in laboratory strains and clinical isolates of this organism (MICs of 8 to 64 mg/liter). To explore the role of PmrAB in high-level clinical polymyxin resistance,
P. aeruginosa
isolates from chronically colistin-treated cystic fibrosis patients, most with colistin MICs of >512 mg/liter, were analyzed. These cystic fibrosis isolates contained probable gain-of-function
pmrB
alleles that conferred polymyxin resistance to strains with a wild-type or
pmrAB
deletion background. Double mutant
pmrB
alleles that contained mutations in both the periplasmic and dimerization-phosphotransferase domains markedly augmented polymyxin resistance. Expression of mutant
pmrB
alleles induced transcription from the promoter of the
arnB
operon and stimulated addition of 4-amino-
l
-arabinose to lipid A, consistent with the known role of this lipid A modification in polymyxin resistance. For some highly polymyxin-resistant clinical isolates, repeated passage without antibiotic selection pressure resulted in loss of resistance, suggesting that secondary suppressors occur at a relatively high frequency and account for the instability of this phenotype. These results indicate that
pmrB
gain-of-function mutations can contribute to high-level polymyxin resistance in clinical strains of
P. aeruginosa
.
In Vitro
Activity of JPC 2067 Alone and in Combination with Sulfamethoxazole against Nocardia Species
Authors: Mookherjee Swagatam , Shoen Carolyn , Cynamon Michael
Published: November 2011

JPC 2067 is a novel dihydrotriazine dihydrofolate reductase inhibitor that is being developed as an antimalarial therapeutic. We evaluated the
in vitro
activity of JPC 2067 alone and in combination with sulfamethoxazole (SMX) against a panel of nocardia isolates. The MIC
50
s and MIC
90
s for JPC 2067, SMX, and the combination were 0.125 μg/ml and 4 μg/ml, 16 μg/ml and 32 μg/ml, and 0.03 μg/ml and 2 μg/ml, respectively. JPC 2067 alone and in combination with SMX should be evaluated further to understand its clinical potential.
Kinetics of Humoral and Memory B Cell Response Induced by the Plasmodium falciparum 19-Kilodalton Merozoite Surface Protein 1 in Mice
Authors: Kafuye-Mlwilo Mwanaidi Y. , Mukherjee Paushali , Chauhan Virander S.
Published: November 2011

The 19-kDa carboxyl-terminal fragment of the merozoite surface protein-1 (MSP-1
19
) has been shown to regulate antibody (Ab)-mediated protective immunity to blood-stage malaria infection. But the serological memory to this antigen tends to be short-lived, and little is known of the mechanisms that regulate the formation of B cell memory to MSP-1
19
antigen. We studied the formation of B cell memory response after immunization with the recombinant 19-kDa
Plasmodium falciparum
merozoite surface protein 1 (PfMSP-1
19
). Immunization with PfMSP-1
19
resulted in delayed increase in germinal center (GC) B cell numbers. This poor GC reaction correlated with short-lived PfMSP-1
19
-specific antibodies in serum and the short life of PfMSP-1
19
-specific plasma cells and memory B cells (MBCs) in spleen and bone marrow. PfMSP-1
19
-specific MBCs were capable of producing antigen (Ag)-specific Ab-secreting cell (ASC) responses that were short-lived following challenge immunization of the immune mice with antigen or transgenic
Plasmodium berghei
parasite expressing PfMSP-1
19
in place of native
P. berghei
MSP-1
19
at 8 weeks after the last immunization or following adoptive transfer into naive hosts. However, no protection was achieved in PfMSP-1
19
immune mice or recipient mice with PfMSP-1
19
-specific MBCs following challenge with transgenic
P. berghei
. Our findings suggest that PfMSP-1
19
-specific IgG production by short-lived plasma cells combined with the poor ability of the PfMSP-1
19
-induced MBCs to maintain the anamnestic IgG responses failed to contribute to protection against infection.
ON THE UNDERSTANDING AND USE OF "UNINTEGRATED" PARTON DISTRIBUTIONS IN SMALL-X QCD
Authors: AVSAR EMIL
Published: November 2011

We review and discuss the use of TMD, or "unintegrated", gluon distributions in the domain of small-x physics. The definitions employed, and the hazards of the naive applications of the TMD factorization and the associated gluon distributions are discussed.
(BESSEL-)WEIGHTED ASYMMETRIES
Authors: MUSCH B. U. , PROKUDIN A.
Published: November 2011

Semi-inclusive deep inelastic scattering experiments allow us to probe the motion of quarks inside the proton in terms of so-called transverse momentum dependent parton distribution functions (TMD PDFs), but the information is convoluted with fragmentation functions (TMD FFs) and soft factors. It has long been known that weighting the measured event counts with powers of the hadron momentum before forming angular asymmetries de-convolutes TMD PDFs and TMD FFs in an elegant way, but this also entails an undesirable sensitivity to high momentum contributions. Using Bessel functions as weights, we find a natural generalization of weighted asymmetries that preserves the de-convolution property and features soft-factor cancellation, yet allows us to be less sensitive to high transverse momenta. The formalism also relates to TMD quantities studied in lattice QCD. We briefly show preliminary lattice results from an exploratory calculation of the Boer-Mulders shift using lattices generated by the MILC and LHP collaborations at a pion mass of 500 MeV.
TRANSVERSE-MOMENTUM-DEPENDENT PARTON DISTRIBUTIONS AT THE EDGE OF THE LIGHTCONE
Authors: CHEREDNIKOV I. O. , STEFANIS N. G.
Published: November 2011

We present a completely gauge-invariant operator definition of transverse-momentum-dependent parton densities (TMD), supplied with longitudinal lightlike gauge links as well as transverse gauge links at lightcone infinity. Within this framework, we consider the consistent treatment of specific divergences, emerging in the "unsubtracted" TMD beyond the tree approximation, and construct the soft factors to cancel unphysical singularities. We confront this approach with factorization schemes, which make use of covariant gauges with off-the-lightcone gauge links, and discuss their mutual connection.
SCALE DEPENDENCE OF TWIST-3 CORRELATION FUNCTIONS
Authors: Kang Zhong-Bo , Qiu Jian-Wei
Published: November 2011

In this talk, we introduce two sets of twist-3 quark-gluon correlation functions that are relevant to transverse single spin asymmetries, and present corresponding evolution equations at the leading order in strong coupling constant, αs. The similarities and differences between the evolution of the leading power parton distributions and that of the twist-3 multiparton correlation functions are also discussed.
Cervical Myelopathy in Rheumatoid Arthritis
Authors: Mukerji N. , Todd N. V.
Published: November 2011

Involvement of the cervical spine is common in rheumatoid arthritis. Clinical presentation can be variable, and symptoms may be due to neck pain or compressive myeloradiculopathy. We discuss the pathology, grading systems, clinical presentation, indications for surgery and surgical management of cervical myelopathy related to rheumatoid arthritis in this paper. We describe our surgical technique and results. We recommend early consultation for surgical management when involvement of the cervical spine is suspected in rheumatoid arthritis. Even patients with advanced cervical myelopathy should be discussed for surgical treatment, since in our experience improvement in function after surgery is common.
Bilateral Renal Cortical Necrosis in Meningococcal Meningitis
Authors: Kennedy C. , Khilji S. , Dorman A. , Walshe J.
Published: November 2011

Bacterial meningitis is a relatively common infection of the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and leptomeninges. The clinical picture evolves rapidly and, if treatment is delayed, can result in a variety of long-term sequelae, including death. Acute kidney injury in the setting of bacterial meningitis usually results from hypotension and volume depletion and resolves with appropriate treatment. Meningococcaemia with profound hypotension, and/or disseminated intravascular coagulopathy (DIC) may very rarely lead to bilateral renal cortical necrosis. In this context, renal recovery is extremely unlikely. We present two cases of meningococcaemia complicated by bilateral renal cortical necrosis and, ultimately, end stage kidney disease. We also present a review of the literature on the subject. The cases outline the importance of early aggressive intervention by a multidisciplinary team.
Formation of Biofilms and Biocorrosion on AISI-1020 Carbon Steel Exposed to Aqueous Systems Containing Different Concentrations of a Diesel/Biodiesel Mixture
Authors: Melo Ivanilda Ramos de , Urtiga Filho Severino Leopoldino , Oliveira Fernando Jorge Santos , de França Francisca Pessoa
Published: November 2011

Environmental and economic concerns accelerated biofuels research and industrial production. Many countries have been using diesel and biodiesel blends as fuels justifying research on biofilms formation and metals corrosion. Cylinders made of AISI-1020 carbon steel with an exposed area of 1587 mm2, water, and water associated with B3 fuel (diesel/biodiesel blend at 97 : 3 v/v) were used.The formation of biofilms was detected, and biocorrosion was detected on AISI-1020. The results showed a variation in sessile microflora during the experiments. In the biofilms, a significant concentration of aerobic, anaerobic, IOB,Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and sulfate-reducing bacteria was observed. The corrosion rates varied between0.45±0.01and0.12±0.01 mm/year, depending on the experimental conditions. The main corrosion products identified were various forms of FeOOH, magnetite, and all forms of FexSy. In systems where there were high levels of sulfate reducing bacteria, corrosion pits were observed. In addition, the aliphatic hydrocarbons present in the fluid containing 10% B3 were totally degraded.
Urothelial Carcinoma of the Urinary Bladder in Young Adults: Presentation, Clinical behavior and Outcome
Authors: Nomikos Michael , Pappas Athanasios , Kopaka Maria-Emmanouela , Tzoulakis Stavros , Volonakis Ioannis , Stavrakakis Georgios , Avgenakis Georgios , Anezinis Ploutarchos
Published: November 2011

Introduction.There is not much evidence regarding clinical behavior of bladder cancer in younger patients. We evaluated clinical characteristics, tumor recurrence and progression in patients younger than 40 years old with urothelial bladder carcinoma.Methods.We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of 31 patients less than 40 years old who were firstly managed with bladder urothelial carcinoma in our department. Data were analysed with the Chi-square test.Results.Mean age was 31.7 years. Mean followup was 38.52 months (11–72 months). Nineteen (61%) patients were diagnosed with GII and 2 (6%) patients with GIII disease. Five (16%) patients presented with T1 disease. Three (9%) patients with invasive disease underwent cystectomy and adjuvant chemotherapy and one developed metastatic disease. Ten (32%) patients recurred during followup with a disease free recurrence rate of 65% the first 2 years after surgery. From those, 1 patient progressed to higher stage and three to higher grade disease. No patient died during followup.Conclusions.Bladder urothelial carcinoma in patients younger than 40 years is usually low stage and low grade. Management of these patients should be according to clinical characteristics and no different from older patients with the same disease.
Frequency of Dental Caries in Four Historical Populations from the Chalcolithic to the Middle Ages
Authors: Grimoud A.-M. , Lucas S. , Sevin A. , Georges P. , Passarrius O. , Duranthon F.
Published: November 2011

The majority of dental carie studies over the course of historical period underline mainly the prevalence evolution, the role of carbohydrates consumption and the impact of access to dietary resources. The purpose of the present investigation was to compare population samples from two archaeological periods the Chacolithic and Middle Age taking into account the geographical and socio economical situation. The study concerned four archaelogical sites in south west France and population samples an inlander for the Chalcolithic Age, an inlander, an costal and urban for the Middle Age. The materials studied included a total of 127 maxillaries, 103 mandibles and 3316 teeth. Data recorded allowed us to display that the Chalcolithic population sample had the lowest carie percentage and the rural inlander population samples of Middle Age the highest; in all cases molars were teeth most often affected. These ones differences could be explained according to time period, carious lesions were usually less recorded in the Chalcolithic Age than the Middle because of a lesser cultivation of cereals like in les Treilles Chacolithic population sample. In the Middle Age population samples, the rural inland sample Marsan showed the highest frequency of caries and ate more cereal than the coastal Vilarnau and the poor urban St Michel population samples, the first one ate fish and Mediterranean vegetal and fruits and the second one met difficulties to food access, in both cases the consumption of carbohydrates was lesser than Marsan population sample who lived in a geographical land convice to cereals cultivation.
Management of Neovascular Age-Related Macular Degeneration in Clinical Practice: Initiation, Maintenance, and Discontinuation of Therapy
Authors: Keane Pearse A. , Tufail Adnan , Patel Praveen J.
Published: November 2011

Neovascular age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a leading cause of irreversible visual loss in elderly populations. In recent years, pharmacological inhibition of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), via intravitreal injection of ranibizumab (Lucentis) or bevacizumab (Avastin), has offered the first opportunity to improve visual outcomes in patients diagnosed with this disorder. In this paper, we provide recommendations on how bevacizumab and ranibizumab may be best applied in current clinical practice, with an emphasis on their underlying pharmacology and efficacy. In addition, we review current guidelines for the initiation, maintenance, and discontinuation of anti-VEGF therapies, as well as emerging treatment strategies and future directions in the field.
Existence of Solutions for a Class of Variable Exponent Integrodifferential System Boundary Value Problems
Authors: Zhi Guizhen , Guo Yunrui , Wang Yan , Zhang Qihu
Published: November 2011

This paper investigates the existence of solutions for a class of variable exponent integrodifferential system with multipoint and integral boundary value condition in half line. When the nonlinearity term f satisfies sub‐(p− − 1) growth condition or general growth condition, we give the existence of solutions and nonnegative solutions via Leray‐Schauder degree at nonresonance, respectively. Moreover, the existence of solutions for the problem at resonance has been discussed.
Point-of-Care Tests for Bladder Cancer: The Influencing Role of Hematuria
Authors: Hennenlotter Joerg , Huber Severine , Todenhöfer Tilman , Kuehs Ursula , Schilling David , Aufderklamm Stefan , Gakis Georgios , Schwentner Christian , Stenzl Arnulf
Published: November 2011

Introduction. Several point-of-care tests (POCT) are available for the diagnosis of bladder cancer (BC). We evaluate the impact of HU (hematuria) on performance of POCTs.Materials and Methods. Urine from 10 donors was diluted with blood from 0.5 to 0.00625%. BladderCheckR, BTAstatR, BCMR, and BTARtests were applied. Tests were additionally conducted in 54 patients with HU. HU was stratified according to the amount of erythrocytes (RBC)/μL using two systems: (1) no HU; mild microscopic HU; severe microscopic HU; gross HU; (2) I <25 RBCs; <250 II; ≥250 III. Results were compared to HU status and histopathology.Results. Gross HU became evident between 2090 RBCs/μL and 1065/μL. Addition of blood led to default tests in all 4: BladderCheckR0.25%; BCM 0.025%, BioNexia 0.00625%, and BTAstat <0.00625%. Rates of false positives for BladderCheck, BTAstat, BCM, and BioNexia were 5.9, 11.8, 0, and 1.8% without HU and 0, 66.7, 44.4, and 66.7% with HU. BTAstat, BCM, and BioNexia were independently influenced by HU (P<0.0002).Conclusions. NMP22-BladderCheck was most resistant to blood. The diagnostic yield of all others was significantly influenced by HU. A well-defined HU grading helps to define limits of HU for a reliable interpretation of BC-POCTs.
Ruptured Intramural Pregnancy with Myometrial Invasion Treated Conservatively
Authors: Fadhlaoui Anis , Khrouf Mohamed , Nouira Kais , Chaker Anis , Zhioua Fethi
Published: November 2011

Background. Intramural pregnancy is a rare form of ectopic pregnancy, difficult to diagnose and generally complicated by uterine rupture.Case. A 38-year-old woman, gravida 5 para 1, was diagnosed with intramural pregnancy by ultrasound and confirmed with MRI. A uterine rupture occurred, which lead to laparotomy and a conservative treatment.Conclusion. Early diagnosis is necessary for conservative treatment.
Antitumor Activity of Artemisinin and Its Derivatives: From a Well-Known Antimalarial Agent to a Potential Anticancer Drug
Authors: Crespo-Ortiz Maria P. , Wei Ming Q.
Published: November 2011

Improvement of quality of life and survival of cancer patients will be greatly enhanced by the development of highly effective drugs to selectively kill malignant cells. Artemisinin and its analogs are naturally occurring antimalarials which have shown potent anticancer activity. In primary cancer cultures and cell lines, their antitumor actions were by inhibiting cancer proliferation, metastasis, and angiogenesis. In xenograft models, exposure to artemisinins substantially reduces tumor volume and progression. However, the rationale for the use of artemisinins in anticancer therapy must be addressed by a greater understanding of the underlying mechanisms involved in their cytotoxic effects. The primary targets for artemisinin and the chemical base for its preferential effects on heterologous tumor cells need yet to be elucidated. The aim of this paper is to provide an overview of the recent advances and new development of this class of drugs as potential anticancer agents.
Organic Amendments and Earthworm Addition Improve Properties of Nonacidic Mine Tailings
Authors: Rutherford P. M. , Arocena J. M.
Published: November 2011

In many mined areas, lack of topsoil limits conversion of disturbed landscapes to former or other productive uses. We examined the use of biosolids (10 or 20% by dry mass), with or without sawdust, pulp sludge, and the contribution of an earthworm species (Dendrobaena veneta) to improve the properties of nonacidic mine tailings. Pulp sludge more rapidly immobilized excessiveNH4 +concentrations from biosolids early in the study; however, total mineral N concentrations were similar in pulp sludge and sawdust treatments by week 29. AlthoughNO3 −-N concentrations were generally greater in treatments with earthworms, these trends were not statistically significant (P>0.05). In general, Bray P concentrations were greater in the presence of earthworms. Soil thin sections showed that earthworms mixed organic residues into elongated spherical units within mine tailings. Organic residues in combination with earthworm addition may improve the chemical and microstructural properties of non-acidic mine tailings, producing a substrate conducive for plant establishment.
Modulating the Focus of Attention for Spoken Words at Encoding Affects Frontoparietal Activation for Incidental Verbal Memory
Authors: Christensen Thomas A. , Almryde Kyle R. , Fidler Lesley J. , Lockwood Julie L. , Antonucci Sharon M. , Plante Elena
Published: November 2011

Attention is crucial for encoding information into memory, and current dual-process models seek to explain the roles of attention in both recollection memory and incidental-perceptual memory processes. The present study combined an incidental memory paradigm with event-related functional MRI to examine the effect of attention at encoding on the subsequent neural activation associated with unintended perceptual memory for spoken words. At encoding, we systematically varied attention levels as listeners heard a list of single English nouns. We then presented these words again in the context of a recognition task and assessed the effect of modulating attention at encoding on the BOLD responses to words that were either attended strongly, weakly, or not heard previously. MRI revealed activity in right-lateralized inferior parietal and prefrontal regions, and positive BOLD signals varied with the relative level of attention present at encoding. Temporal analysis of hemodynamic responses further showed that the time course of BOLD activity was modulated differentially by unintentionally encoded words compared to novel items. Our findings largely support current models of memory consolidation and retrieval, but they also provide fresh evidence for hemispheric differences and functional subdivisions in right frontoparietal attention networks that help shape auditory episodic recall.
Speech Outcomes after Tonsillectomy in Patients with Known Velopharyngeal Insufficiency
Authors: Paulson L. M. , MacArthur C. J. , Beaulieu K. B. , Brockman J. H. , Milczuk H. A.
Published: November 2011

Introduction. Controversy exists over whether tonsillectomy will affect speech in patients with known velopharyngeal insufficiency (VPI), particularly in those with cleft palate.Methods. All patients seen at the OHSU Doernbecher Children's Hospital VPI clinic between 1997 and 2010 with VPI who underwent tonsillectomy were reviewed. Speech parameters were assessed before and after tonsillectomy. Wilcoxon rank-sum testing was used to evaluate for significance.Results. A total of 46 patients with VPI underwent tonsillectomy during this period. Twenty-three had pre- and postoperative speech evaluation sufficient for analysis. The majority (87%) had a history of cleft palate. Indications for tonsillectomy included obstructive sleep apnea in 11 (48%) and staged tonsillectomy prior to pharyngoplasty in 10 (43%). There was no significant difference between pre- and postoperative speech intelligibility or velopharyngeal competency in this population.Conclusion. In this study, tonsillectomy in patients with VPI did not significantly alter speech intelligibility or velopharyngeal competence.
The Complexity of the Minimum Sensor Cover Problem with Unit-Disk Sensing Regions over a Connected Monitored Region
Authors: Ko Ren-Song
Published: November 2011

This paper considers the complexity of the Minimum Unit-Disk Cover (MUDC) problem. This problem has applications in extending the sensor network lifetime by selecting minimum number of nodes to cover each location in a geometric connected region of interest and putting the remaining nodes in power saving mode. MUDC is a restricted version of the well-studied Minimum Set Cover (MSC) problem where the sensing region of each node is a unit-disk and the monitored region is geometric connected, a well-adopted network model in many works of the literature. We first present the formal proof of its NP-completeness. Then we illustrate several related optimum problems under various coverage constraints and show their hardness results as a corollary. Furthermore, we propose an efficient algorithm for reducing MUDC to MSC which has many well-known algorithms for approximated solutions. Finally, we present a decentralized scalable algorithm with a guaranteed performance and a constant approximation factor algorithm if the maximum node density is fixed.
Sudden Gains in the Treatment of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
Authors: Aderka Idan M. , Anholt Gideon E. , van Balkom Anton J.L.M. , Smit Johannes H. , Hermesh Haggai , van Oppen Patricia
Published: November 2011

Background: The present study examined sudden gains during treatment for obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and their relationship to short- and long-term outcome. Methods: Ninety-one individuals (age 19–64) completed either cognitive treatment, exposure treatment, or their combination with fluvoxamine for OCD. Participants’ obsessive-compulsive symptoms were assessed before each weekly treatment session. In addition, obsessive-compulsive and depressive symptoms were assessed pre treatment and post treatment as well as 12 months following treatment termination. Results: Sudden gains were found among 34.1% of participants and constituted 65.5% of the total reduction in obsessive-compulsive symptoms. Compared to individuals who did not experience sudden gains, individuals who experienced sudden gains reported lower levels of OCD symptoms post treatment, and this was maintained during follow-up. Conclusions: Sudden gains are common in treatments for OCD and are predictive of treatment outcome and follow-up. Sudden gains mark a distinct trajectory of response to treatment for OCD. Individuals with sudden gains greatly improve during treatment and maintain their gains during follow-up, whereas individuals without sudden gains improve to a significantly lesser extent. Thus, treatment planning and development can benefit from considering sudden gains and the intra-individual course of improvement.
Combined Lifestyle Factors and Cardiovascular Disease Mortality in Chinese Men and Women
Authors: Odegaard Andrew O. , Koh Woon-Puay , Gross Myron D. , Yuan Jian-Min , Pereira Mark A.
Published: November 2011

Background—

Lifestyle factors directly influence cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk, yet little research has examined the association of combined lifestyle factors with CVD mortality, especially in Asian populations.

Methods and Results—

We examined the association of 6 combined lifestyle factors (dietary pattern, physical activity, alcohol intake, usual sleep, smoking status, and body mass index) with CVD mortality in 50 466 (44 056 without a history of diabetes mellitus, CVD, or cancer and 6410 with diabetes mellitus or history of clinical CVD) Chinese men and women in Singapore who were 45 to 74 years of age during enrollment in the Singapore Chinese Health Study in 1993 to 1998 and followed up through 2009. Each lifestyle factor was independently associated with CVD mortality. When combined, there was a strong, monotonic decrease in age- and sex-standardized CVD mortality rates with an increasing number of protective lifestyle factors. Relative to participants with no protective lifestyle factors, the hazard ratios of CVD mortality for 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 to 6 protective lifestyle factors were 0.60 (95% confidence interval, 0.45–0.84), 0.50 (95% confidence interval, 0.38–0.67), 0.40 (95% confidence interval, 0.30–0.53), 0.32 (95% confidence interval, 0.24–0.43), and 0.24 (95% confidence interval, 0.17–0.34), respectively, among those without a history of diabetes mellitus, CVD, or cancer (
P
for trend <0.0001). A parallel graded inverse association was observed in participants with a history of CVD or diabetes mellitus at baseline. Results were consistent for coronary heart disease and cerebrovascular disease mortality.

Conclusion—

An increasing number of protective lifestyle factors is associated with a marked decreased risk of coronary heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, and overall CVD mortality in Chinese men and women.
Revisionism Triumphant: Hanoi's Diplomatic Strategy in the Nixon Era
Authors: Asselin Pierre
Published: November 2011

After the Tet Offensive of early 1968, Hanoi agreed to hold talks with U.S. representatives in Paris. The North Vietnamese, however, used the resulting talks with the Johnson administration not to negotiate in any traditional sense but to probe the intentions of Washington and to manipulate domestic and world opinion. Hanoi continued this charade for approximately a year, until domestic and international circumstances forced a meaningful reassessment of its position on a negotiated settlement of the war with the United States. This article explores that reassessment, as well as the evolution of North Vietnam's diplomatic strategy thereafter. Specifically, it considers the factors that conditioned the thinking and policies of Vietnamese Communist leaders, including the balance of forces below the seventeenth parallel and the behavior of close allies in Beijing and Moscow vis-à-vis the United States. The article proposes that military and economic setbacks in the South and in the North combined with recognition of the limits of socialist solidarity forced Hanoi to talk secretly and then to negotiate seriously with the Nixon administration and, ultimately, to accept a peace settlement that fell far short of the goals set by the Vietnamese Communists at the onset of the war.
Improving the Representation of Resolved and Unresolved Topographic Effects on Surface Wind in the WRF Model
Authors: Jiménez Pedro A. , Dudhia Jimy
Published: November 2011

The Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model presents a high surface wind speed bias over plains and valleys that constitutes a limitation for the increasing use of the model for several applications. This study attempts to correct for this bias by parameterizing the effects that the unresolved topographic features exert over the momentum flux. The proposed parameterization is based on the concept of a momentum sink term and makes use of the standard deviation of the subgrid-scale orography as well as the Laplacian of the topographic field. Both the drag generated by the unresolved terrain and the possibility of an increase in the speed of the flow over the mountains and hills, where it is herein shown that WRF presents a low wind speed bias, are considered in the scheme. The surface wind simulation over a complex-terrain region that is located in the northeast of the Iberian Peninsula is improved with the inclusion of the new parameterization. In particular, the underestimation of the wind speed spatial variability resulting from the mentioned biases is corrected. The importance of selecting appropriate grid points to compare with observations is also examined. The wind speed from the nearest grid point is not always the most appropriate one for this comparison, nearby ones being more representative. The new scheme not only improves the climatological winds but also the intradiurnal variations at the mountains, over which the default WRF shows limitations in reproducing the observed wind behavior. Some advantages of the proposed formulation for wind-resource evaluation are also discussed.
A Framework for Parameterizing Eddy Potential Vorticity Fluxes
Authors: Marshall David P. , Maddison James R. , Berloff Pavel S.
Published: November 2011

A framework for parameterizing eddy potential vorticity fluxes is developed that is consistent with conservation of energy and momentum while retaining the symmetries of the original eddy flux. The framework involves rewriting the residual-mean eddy force, or equivalently the eddy potential vorticity flux, as the divergence of an eddy stress tensor. A norm of this tensor is bounded by the eddy energy, allowing the components of the stress tensor to be rewritten in terms of the eddy energy and nondimensional parameters describing the mean shape and orientation of the eddies. If a prognostic equation is solved for the eddy energy, the remaining unknowns are nondimensional and bounded in magnitude by unity. Moreover, these nondimensional geometric parameters have strong connections with classical stability theory. When applied to the Eady problem, it is shown that the new framework preserves the functional form of the Eady growth rate for linear instability. Moreover, in the limit in which Reynolds stresses are neglected, the framework reduces to a Gent and McWilliams type of eddy closure where the eddy diffusivity can be interpreted as the form proposed by Visbeck et al. Simulations of three-layer wind-driven gyres are used to diagnose the eddy shape and orientations in fully developed geostrophic turbulence. These fields are found to have large-scale structure that appears related to the structure of the mean flow. The eddy energy sets the magnitude of the eddy stress tensor and hence the eddy potential vorticity fluxes. Possible extensions of the framework to ensure potential vorticity is mixed on average are discussed.