bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Rangewide Survey of the Introgressive Status of Guadalupe Bass: Implications for Conservation and Management
Authors: Bean Preston T. , Lutz‐Carrillo Dijar J. , Bonner Timothy H.
Published: April 2013

The stocking of fishes outside of their native range for the purpose of sport fisheries can lead to secondary contact and introgression between species that were historically allopatrically distributed. Smallmouth Bass Micropterus dolomieu were introduced within the range of Guadalupe Bass M. treculii in central Texas and introgressive hybridization subsequently occurred. One recent survey of temporal changes in introgression in the Blanco River found that introgression had increased and that Guadalupe Bass had been extirpated. Thus, a survey of changes in introgression across the range of the Guadalupe Bass was conducted in 12 subbasins in the Brazos, Colorado, Guadalupe–San Antonio, and Nueces drainages in Texas using 15 microsatellite loci. The results indicate that introgression is now occurring in four subbasins but no longer occurring in the Lampasas and San Gabriel rivers, where rates were previously 6% and 46%, respectively. Additionally, we found no evidence that stocking of hatchery‐reared individuals in the Guadalupe and Nueces rivers has led to severely depressed genetic variation. The variable success of restoration efforts to prevent extirpation of the Guadalupe Bass suggests that protection of the remaining nonintrogressed populations should be a priority for the conservation of this species.
The Effect of Short‐Duration Seawater Exposure and Acoustic Tag Implantation on the Swimming Performance and Physiology of Presmolt Juvenile Coho Salmon
Authors: Morrison Phillip R. , Groot Erick P. , Welch David W.
Published: April 2013

To assess the potential impact of “tag effect” on seaward‐migrating Coho Salmon Oncorhynchus kisutch, presmolt juveniles were surgically implanted with acoustic transmitters followed by exposure to freshwater (FW, 0‰ salinity) or seawater (SW; 30‰ salinity) for 24 h and then subjected to repeated critical swimming speed (Ucrit) trials. Three different experimental tag‐treatment groups were established: control (no surgery), sham (surgery but no tag), and tagged (surgically implanted tag), with a range of 9–12 fish in each group. Tagged fish were implanted with Vemco V6 dummy acoustic transmitters (DAT: 17.0 mm long × 6 mm diameter, 1.0 g in air). After completion of two Ucrit trials, separated by a recovery period, all fish were euthanized and sampled to determine hematocrit (Hct) and plasma osmolality. In the FW exposure, the mean Ucrit of the control treatment was significantly higher than that of the tagged treatment (P = 0.04). No significant differences in swimming performance were observed among the SW treatment groups, and no significant differences were observed between Ucrit trials (Ucrit1 and Ucrit2) for any of the experimental treatments groups. Seawater exposure did, however, result in slightly reduced, but not statistically different, swimming speeds and concomitantly higher plasma osmolalities (P < 0.001) compared with FW exposure. Predictions made with data from this study suggest that sample sizes (per tag treatment) of n = 25 are sufficient to detect a 15–20% difference in Ucrit sample means with 80% power. Collectively, these data do not provide substantial statistical evidence that the swimming performance of juvenile Coho Salmon tagged with surgically implanted acoustic transmitters is significantly reduced compared with untagged fish.
Ethics and practices of re‐presentation: Witnessing self and other
Authors: Crocket Kathie
Published: April 2013

Context: The challenge of producing ethical representational practices is of critical interest to both practitioner‐researchers and research theorists. For practitioners becoming researchers a central ethical question may be how to manage a relational presence in writing their research, in ways that acknowledge participants, the research relationship, and a researcher's own subjectivity. Focus: The article offers examples from practitioner research to illustrate and theorise how researcher subjectivity is managed through the use of witnessing practices as a representational strategy. Witnessing practices – translated into counselling research from narrative therapy – offer researchers a strategy to take up a reflexive, relational presence in research reports. Discussion: Researcher witnessing honours the contributions of research participants as well as making visible the shaping effects of the research on a researcher's life. Through witnessing self and other, and thus declaring presence, privilege and partiality, re‐presentational ethics are made transparent.
Ethical beginnings: Reflexive questioning in designing child sexuality research
Authors: Flanagan Paul
Published: April 2013

Background: Counselling young children referred for sexualised behaviour can challenge therapists' ideas about childhood and sexuality. This area of practice is complex and sensitive, and calls upon collaboration with a range of significant adults in children's lives. Purpose: This paper examines a researcher's process of movement from counselling practice into qualitative research practice, and the use of reflexive questioning to explore ethical issues within the study. Design: Shaped by social constructionist ideas and discourse theory, ethical questions are outlined within the design stage of a doctoral research project on sexuality in children's lives in Aotearoa New Zealand. Limitations: This paper explores ethics in the design of a current study: there are no results or conclusions.
Exploring the clinical experiences of novice counsellors working with LGBT clients: Implications for training
Authors: Owen-Pugh Valerie , Baines Laura
Published: April 2013

Aim: This study was designed to explore the clinical experiences of novice counsellors working with LGBT clients. Method: Sixteen counsellors participated in semi‐structured interviews. As an elicitation technique, they were asked to recall critical incidents in relation to LGBT clients. Findings: The interview transcripts were subjected to a thematic analysis. Identified meaning units fell into three superordinate categories, namely, Engaging with Learning, Finding Strategies that Work, and Entering the Client's World. A core category of Confronting Homophobia and Heterosexism was also identified. Conclusions: Participants felt unprepared by their training but had gained valuable learning from the challenges they had faced. Recommendations: Initial counsellor training should include an emphasis on contemporary, inclusive theory and allow trainees opportunities for facilitated, challenging exploration of sexuality issues.
Ablation of the mTORC2 component rictor in brain or Purkinje cells affects size and neuron morphology
Authors: Thomanetz Venus , Angliker Nico , Cloëtta Dimitri , Lustenberger Regula M. , Schweighauser Manuel , Oliveri Filippo , Suzuki Noboru , Rüegg Markus A.
Published: April 2013

The mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) assembles into two distinct multi-protein complexes called mTORC1 and mTORC2. Whereas mTORC1 is known to regulate cell and organismal growth, the role of mTORC2 is less understood. We describe two mouse lines that are devoid of the mTORC2 component rictor in the entire central nervous system or in Purkinje cells. In both lines neurons were smaller and their morphology and function were strongly affected. The phenotypes were accompanied by loss of activation of Akt, PKC, and SGK1 without effects on mTORC1 activity. The striking decrease in the activation and expression of several PKC isoforms, the subsequent loss of activation of GAP-43 and MARCKS, and the established role of PKCs in spinocerebellar ataxia and in shaping the actin cytoskeleton strongly suggest that the morphological deficits observed in rictor-deficient neurons are mediated by PKCs. Together our experiments show that mTORC2 has a particularly important role in the brain and that it affects size, morphology, and function of neurons.
The MIA complex is a conserved and novel dynein regulator essential for normal ciliary motility
Authors: Yamamoto Ryosuke , Song Kangkang , Yanagisawa Haru-aki , Fox Laura , Yagi Toshiki , Wirschell Maureen , Hirono Masafumi , Kamiya Ritsu , Nicastro Daniela , Sale Winfield S.
Published: April 2013

Axonemal dyneins must be precisely regulated and coordinated to produce ordered ciliary/flagellar motility, but how this is achieved is not understood. We analyzed two Chlamydomonas reinhardtii mutants, mia1 and mia2, which display slow swimming and low flagellar beat frequency. We found that the MIA1 and MIA2 genes encode conserved coiled-coil proteins, FAP100 and FAP73, respectively, which form the modifier of inner arms (MIA) complex in flagella. Cryo–electron tomography of mia mutant axonemes revealed that the MIA complex was located immediately distal to the intermediate/light chain complex of I1 dynein and structurally appeared to connect with the nexin–dynein regulatory complex. In axonemes from mutants that lack both the outer dynein arms and the MIA complex, I1 dynein failed to assemble, suggesting physical interactions between these three axonemal complexes and a role for the MIA complex in the stable assembly of I1 dynein. The MIA complex appears to regulate I1 dynein and possibly outer arm dyneins, which are both essential for normal motility.
Coordinated transcriptional regulation of bone homeostasis by Ebf1 and Zfp521 in both mesenchymal and hematopoietic lineages
Authors: Kiviranta Riku , Yamana Kei , Saito Hiroaki , Ho Daniel K. , Laine Julius , Tarkkonen Kati , Nieminen-Pihala Vappu , Hesse Eric , Correa Diego , Määttä Jorma , Tessarollo Lino , Rosen Evan D. , Horne William C. , Jenkins Nancy A. , Copeland Neal G. , Warming Soren , Baron Roland
Published: April 2013

Bone homeostasis is maintained by the coupled actions of hematopoietic bone-resorbing osteoclasts (OCs) and mesenchymal bone-forming osteoblasts (OBs). Here we identify early B cell factor 1 (Ebf1) and the transcriptional coregulator Zfp521 as components of the machinery that regulates bone homeostasis through coordinated effects in both lineages. Deletion of Zfp521 in OBs led to impaired bone formation and increased OB-dependent osteoclastogenesis (OC-genesis), and deletion in hematopoietic cells revealed a strong cell-autonomous role for Zfp521 in OC progenitors. In adult mice, the effects of Zfp521 were largely caused by repression of Ebf1, and the bone phenotype of Zfp521+/− mice was rescued in Zfp521+/−:Ebf1+/− mice. Zfp521 interacted with Ebf1 and repressed its transcriptional activity. Accordingly, deletion of Zfp521 led to increased Ebf1 activity in OBs and OCs. In vivo, Ebf1 overexpression in OBs resulted in suppressed bone formation, similar to the phenotype seen after OB-targeted deletion of Zfp521. Conversely, Ebf1 deletion led to cell-autonomous defects in both OB-dependent and cell-intrinsic OC-genesis, a phenotype opposite to that of the Zfp521 knockout. Thus, we have identified the interplay between Zfp521 and Ebf1 as a novel rheostat for bone homeostasis.
A Randomized Controlled Trial of Enhanced Cleaning to Reduce Contamination of Healthcare Worker Gowns and Gloves with Multidrug-Resistant Bacteria
Authors: Hess Aaron S. , Shardell Michelle , Johnson J. Kristie , Thom Kerri A. , Roghmann Mary-Claire , Netzer Giora , Amr Sania , Morgan Daniel J. , Harris Anthony D.
Published: April 2013

Objective.

To determine whether enhanced daily cleaning would reduce contamination of healthcare worker (HCW) gowns and gloves with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) or multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii (MDRAB).

Design.

A cluster-randomized controlled trial.

Setting.

Four intensive care units (ICUs) in an urban tertiary care hospital.

PARTICIPANTS.

ICU rooms occupied by patients colonized with MRSA or MDRAB.

INTERVENTION.

Extra enhanced daily cleaning of ICU room surfaces frequently touched by HCWs.

Results.

A total of 4,444 cultures were collected from 132 rooms over 10 months. Using fluorescent dot markers at 2,199 surfaces, we found that 26% of surfaces in control rooms were cleaned and that 100% of surfaces in experimental rooms were cleaned (P < .001). The mean proportion of contaminated HCW gowns and gloves following routine care provision and before leaving the rooms of patients with MDRAB was 16% among control rooms and 12% among experimental rooms (relative risk, 0.77 [95% confidence interval, 0.28-2.11]; P = .23). For MRSA, the mean proportions were 22% and 19%, respectively (relative risk, 0.89 [95% confidence interval, 0.50-1.53]; P = .16).

Discussion.

Intense enhanced daily cleaning of ICU rooms occupied by patients colonized with MRSA or MDRAB was associated with a nonsignificant reduction in contamination of HCW gowns and gloves after routine patient care activities. Further research is needed to determine whether intense environmental cleaning will lead to significant reductions and fewer infections.

Trial Registration.

ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT01481935.
Reliability Testing for Portable Adenosine Triphosphate Bioluminometers
Authors: Whiteley Greg S. , Derry Chris , Glasbey Trevor
Published: April 2013

Measurement of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) using portable bioluminometers has been adapted from the food manufacturing sector, and it has been suggested that it could be used as an indicator of surface soiling or cleanliness in hospital settings. Some healthcare authorities are considering the use of portable ATP bioluminometers as a tool for standard setting for surface cleanliness to improve cleaning standards. Central to this approach is the use of a commonly accepted level of detected ATP—expressed as relative light units (RLUs)—that may be used as a surrogate for underlying soiling, including the presence of pathogenic microorganisms.

It has been demonstrated that improvements can be made to cleaning processes with fluorescent markers through a simpler approach that provides a qualitative efficiency measurement of the cleaning process. Measurement of surface hygiene using ATP bioluminometers is thought to provide a more quantitative surrogate of surface cleanliness.
Rapid Hospital Room Decontamination Using Ultraviolet (UV) Light with a Nanostructured UV-Reflective Wall Coating
Authors: Rutala William A. , Gergen Maria F. , Tande Brian M. , Weber David J.
Published: April 2013

We tested the ability of an ultraviolet C (UV-C)–reflective wall coating to reduce the time necessary to decontaminate a room using a UV-C-emitting device (Tru-D SmartUVC). The reflective wall coating provided the following time reductions for decontamination: for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, from 25 minutes 13 seconds to 5 minutes 3 seconds (P < .05), and for Clostridium difficile spores, from 43 minutes 42 seconds to minutes 24 seconds (P < .05).
Hospital Room Sterilization Using Far-Ultraviolet Radiation: A Pilot Evaluation of the Sterilray Device in an Active Hospital Setting
Authors: Varma Gaurav , Savard Patrice , Coles Christian , Ross Tracy , Carroll Karen , Perl Trish , Labrique Alain
Published: April 2013

Environmental contamination of hospital rooms is well recognized as a reservoir for highly resistant nosocomial pathogens such as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureu (MRSA) and vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus (VRE), which can be transferred to patients through contact with healthcare providers and contaminated surfaces. Numerous studies dedicated to environmental cleaning and disinfection have found promising results with several novel technologies, including vaporized hydrogen peroxide and ultraviolet over-head lighting or wands. We conducted a pilot study of one such device, the Sterilray Disinfection Wand (Healthy Environment Innovations), a handheld ultraviolet (UV) room decontamination wand. The Sterilray device claims to generate UV radiation in the far-UV spectrum (185-230 nm), resulting in the rapid killing of contaminant bacteria. The goal of this pilot was to collect preliminary data on the efficacy of this device in reducing surface contamination, particularly of common nosocomial pathogens, in an active hospital setting.
Risk of Acquiring Extended-Spectrumβ-Lactamase–ProducingKlebsiellaSpecies andEscherichia colifrom Prior Room Occupants in the Intensive Care Unit
Authors: Ajao Adebola O. , Johnson J. Kristie , Harris Anthony D. , Zhan Min , McGregor Jessina C. , Thom Kerri A. , Furuno Jon P.
Published: April 2013

Objective.

To quantify the association between admission to an intensive care unit (ICU) room most recently occupied by a patient positive for extended-spectrumβ-lactamase (EBSL)-producing gram-negative bacteria and acquisition of infection or colonization with that pathogen.

Design.

Retrospective cohort study.

Setting and Patients.

The study included patients admitted to medical and surgical ICUs of an academic medical center between September 1, 2001, and June 30, 2009.

Methods.

Perianal surveillance cultures were obtained at admission to the ICU, weekly, and at discharge from the ICU. Patients were included if they had culture results that were negative for ESBL-producing gram-negative bacteria at ICU admission and had an ICU length of stay longer than 48 hours. Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) was performed on ESBL-positive isolates from patients who acquired the same bacterial species (eg,Klebsiellaspecies orEscherichia coli) as the previous room occupant.

Results.

Among 9, 371 eligible admissions (7, 651 unique patients), 267 (3%) involved patients who acquired an ESBL-producing pathogen in the ICU; of these patients, 32 (12%) were hospitalized in a room in which the prior occupant had been positive for ESBL. Logistic regression results suggested that the prior occupant's ESBL status was not significantly associated with acquisition of an ESBL-producing pathogen (adjusted odds ratio, 1.39 [95% confidence interval, 0.94-2.08]) after adjusting for colonization pressure and antibiotic exposure in the ICU. PFGE results suggested that 6 (18%) of 32 patients acquired a bacterial strain that was the same as or closely related to the strain obtained from the prior occupant.

Conclusions.

These data suggest that environmental contamination may not play a substantial role in the transmission of ESBL-producing pathogens among ICU patients. Intensifying environmental decontamination may be less effective than other interventions in preventing transmission of ESBL-producing pathogens.
Challenge of N95 Filtering Facepiece Respirators with Viable H1N1 Influenza Aerosols
Authors: Harnish Delbert A. , Heimbuch Brian K. , Husband Michael , Lumley April E. , Kinney Kimberly , Shaffer Ronald E. , Wander Joseph D.
Published: April 2013

Objective.

Specification of appropriate personal protective equipment for respiratory protection against influenza is somewhat controversial. In a clinical environment, N95 filtering facepiece respirators (FFRs) are often recommended for respiratory protection against infectious aerosols. This study evaluates the ability of N95 FFRs to capture viable H1N1 influenza aerosols.

Methods.

Five N95 FFR models were challenged with aerosolized viable H1N1 influenza and inert polystyrene latex particles at continuous flow rates of 85 and 170 liters per minute. Virus was assayed using Madin-Darby canine kidney cells to determine the median tissue culture infective dose (TCID50). Aerosols were generated using a Collison nebulizer containing H1N1 influenza virus at 1 × 108 TCID50/mL. To determine filtration efficiency, viable sampling was performed upstream and downstream of the FFR.

Results.

N95 FFRs filtered 0.8-μm particles of both H1N1 influenza and inert origins with more than 95% efficiency. With the exception of 1 model, no statistically significant difference in filtration performance was observed between influenza and inert particles of similar size. Although statistically significant differences were observed for 2 models when comparing the 2 flow rates, the differences have no significance to protection.

Conclusions.

This study empirically demonstrates that a National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health-approved N95 FFR captures viable H1N1 influenza aerosols as well as or better than its N95 rating, suggesting that a properly fitted FFR reduces inhalation exposure to airborne influenza virus. This study also provides evidence that filtration efficiency is based primarily on particle size rather than the nature of the particle's origin.
Weak solutions to the heat flow for surfaces of prescribed mean curvature
Authors: Bögelein Verena , Duzaar Frank , Scheven Christoph
Published: April 2013

In this paper we establish the existence of global weak solutions to the heat flow for surfaces of prescribed mean curvature, i.e. the existence for the Cauchy-Dirichlet problem to parabolic systems of the type
<mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" alttext="StartLayout Enlarged left-brace 1st Row partial-differential Subscript t Baseline u minus normal upper Delta u equals minus 2 left-parenthesis upper H ring u right-parenthesis upper D 1 u times upper D 2 u in upper B times left-parenthesis 0 comma normal infinity right-parenthesis comma 2nd Row u equals u Subscript o Baseline on partial-differential Subscript par Baseline left-parenthesis upper B times left-parenthesis 0 comma normal infinity right-parenthesis right-parenthesis comma EndLayout">

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\begin{equation*} \left \{ \begin {array}{c} \partial _t u-\Delta u =-2 (H\circ u)D_1u\times D_2u\quad \mbox {in $B\times (0,\infty )$,}\\[3pt] u=u_o\quad \mbox {on $\partial _\textrm {par} \big (B\times (0,\infty )\big )$}, \end{array} \right . \end{equation*}

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. As one of the possible applications we show that the problem has a solution with values in

B
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, whenever

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⊆

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and furthermore there holds
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\begin{equation*} \int _{\{ \xi \in B_R: |H(\xi )|\ge \frac {3}{2R}\}}|H|^3\, d\xi >\frac {9\pi }{2}, \qquad |H(a)|\le \tfrac {1}{R}\quad \mbox {for $a\in \partial B_R$.} \end{equation*}
Asian Sudden Cardiac Death in Heart Failure (ASIAN‐HF) registry
Authors: Lam Carolyn S.P. , Anand Inder , Zhang Shu , Shimizu Wataru , Narasimhan Calambur , Park Sang Weon , Yu Cheuk‐Man , Ngarmukos Tachapong , Omar Razali , Reyes Eugene B. , Siswanto Bambang , Ling Lieng H. , Richards A. Mark
Published: April 2013

Aims

Our aim is to determine mortality and morbidity in Asian patients under clinical management for heart failure (HF). Specifically, we will define the incidence of, and risk factors for, sudden cardiac death, as well as the socio‐cultural factors influencing therapeutic choices in these patients.

Methods

This is a prospective observational multinational Asian registry of 5000 patients with symptomatic HF (stage C) and LV systolic dysfunction (EF ≤ 40%) involving 44 centres across 11 Asian regions (China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan and Thailand). Data collection includes demographic variables, clinical symptoms, functional status, date of HF diagnosis and prior cardiovascular investigations, clinical risk factors, lifestyle factors, socio‐economic status, and survey of cultural beliefs, health practices, and attitudes towards device therapy. Centre‐level characteristics (case load, referral pattern, specialization, and infrastructure) are also obtained. Patients uniformly undergo standard 12‐lead ECG and transthoracic echocardiography at baseline, and are followed over 3 years for outcomes of death or hospitalization. The mode of death and cause of hospitalization are adjudicated by a central event adjudication committee using pre‐specified criteria.

Perspective

By providing prospective data regarding the demographics, risk factors, and outcomes of Asian patients under treatment for HF, the ASIAN‐HF registry is expected to advance fundamental understanding of the burden and predictors of death and hospitalization among these patients. The knowledge gained will be important for guiding resource allocation and planning preventive strategies to address the unmet and growing clinical needs of patients with cardiovascular disease in Asia.

Trial registration

NCT01633398
Sevoflurane Protects Ventricular Myocytes against Oxidative Stress-induced Cellular Ca2+ Overload and Hypercontracture
Authors: Kojima Akiko , Kitagawa Hirotoshi , Omatsu-Kanbe Mariko , Matsuura Hiroshi , Nosaka Shuichi
Published: April 2013

Background:

Oxidative stress is implicated in pathogenesis of cardiac reperfusion injury, characterized by cellular Ca2+ overload and hypercontracture. Volatile anesthetics protect the heart against reperfusion injury primarily by attenuating Ca2+ overload. This study investigated electrophysiological mechanisms underlying cardioprotective effects of sevoflurane against oxidative stress-induced cellular injury.

Methods:

The cytosolic Ca2+ levels and cell morphology were assessed in mouse ventricular myocytes, using confocal fluo-3 fluorescence imaging, whereas membrane potentials and L-type Ca2+ current (I
Ca,L) were recorded using whole-cell patch-clamp techniques. Phosphorylation of Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II was examined by Western blotting.

Results:

Exposure to H2O2 (100 μm) for 15 min evoked cytosolic Ca2+ elevation and hypercontracture in 56.8% of ventricular myocytes in 11 experiments, which was partly but significantly reduced by nifedipine, tetracaine, or SEA0400. Sevoflurane prevented H2O2-induced cellular Ca2+ overload in a concentration-dependent way (IC50 = 1.35%). Isoflurane (2%) and desflurane (10%) also protected ventricular myocytes by a degree similar to sevoflurane (3%). Sevoflurane suppressed H2O2-induced electrophysiological disturbances, including early afterdepolarizations, voltage fluctuations in resting potential, and abnormal automaticities. H2O2 significantly enhanced I
Ca,L by activating Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II, and subsequent addition of sevoflurane, isoflurane, or desflurane similarly reduced I
Ca,L to below baseline levels. Phosphorylated Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II increased after 10-min incubation with H2O2, which was significantly prevented by concomitant administration of sevoflurane.

Conclusions:

Sevoflurane protected ventricular myocytes against H2O2-induced Ca2+ overload and hypercontracture, presumably by affecting multiple Ca2+ transport pathways, including I
Ca,L, Na+/Ca2+ exchanger and ryanodine receptor. These actions appear to mediate cardioprotection against reperfusion injury associated with oxidative stress.
Intraoperative Transit-Time Flow Measurement is Not Altered in Venous Bypass Grafts Covered by the eSVS Mesh
Authors: Emery Robert W. , Solien Eric
Published: April 2013

Objective

The aim of this study was to determine whether the eSVS Mesh interferes with transit-time flow measurement (TTFM) assessing intraoperative coronary vein graft patency.

Methods

In four swine undergoing off-pump bypass grafting to the anterior descending coronary artery, five TTFMs were sequentially obtained on meshed and bare grafts at baseline and under Dobutamine stress at five separate locations on the graft in each animal. The Medistim VeriQ was used for TTFM. The grafts were examined for patency after the swine were killed.

Results

There was no difference in hemodynamics or TTFM either at baseline or under Dobutamine stress between the eSVS Mesh covered and uncovered grafts. Dobutamine, however, significantly increased hemodynamics and graft flow parameters measured from baseline.

Conclusions

The eSVS Mesh does not interfere with Doppler flow measurement in covered coronary vein grafts.
Constraints and flexibility in mammalian social behaviour: introduction and synthesis
Authors: Kappeler Peter M. , Barrett Louise , Blumstein Daniel T. , Clutton-Brock Tim H.
Published: April 2013

This paper introduces a Theme Issue presenting the latest developments in research on the interplay between flexibility and constraint in social behaviour, using comparative datasets, long-term field studies and experimental data from both field and laboratory studies of mammals. We first explain our focus on mammals and outline the main components of their social systems, focusing on variation within- and among-species in numerous aspects of social organization, mating system and social structure. We then review the current state of primarily ultimate explanations of this diversity in social behaviour. We approach the question of how and why the balance between behavioural flexibility and continuity is achieved by discussing the genetic, developmental, ecological and social constraints on hypothetically unlimited behavioural flexibility. We introduce the other contributions to this Theme Issue against this background and conclude that constraints are often crucial to the evolution and expression of behavioural flexibility. In exploring these issues, the enduring relevance of Tinbergen's seminal paper ‘On aims and methods in ethology’, with its advocacy of an integrative, four-pronged approach to studying behaviour becomes apparent: an exceptionally fitting tribute on the 50th anniversary of its publication.
The interplay between social networks and culture: theoretically and among whales and dolphins
Authors: Cantor Mauricio , Whitehead Hal
Published: April 2013

Culture is increasingly being understood as a driver of mammalian phenotypes. Defined as group-specific behaviour transmitted by social learning, culture is shaped by social structure. However, culture can itself affect social structure if individuals preferentially interact with others whose behaviour is similar, or cultural symbols are used to mark groups. Using network formalism, this interplay can be depicted by the coevolution of nodes and edges together with the coevolution of network topology and transmission patterns. We review attempts to model the links between the spread, persistence and diversity of culture and the network topology of non-human societies. We illustrate these processes using cetaceans. The spread of socially learned begging behaviour within a population of bottlenose dolphins followed the topology of the social network, as did the evolution of the song of the humpback whale between breeding areas. In three bottlenose dolphin populations, individuals preferentially associated with animals using the same socially learned foraging behaviour. Homogeneous behaviour within the tight, nearly permanent social structures of the large matrilineal whales seems to result from transmission bias, with cultural symbols marking social structures. We recommend the integration of studies of culture and society in species for which social learning is an important determinant of behaviour.
Identifying constraints in the evolution of primate societies
Authors: Thierry Bernard
Published: April 2013

The evolutionary study of social systems in non-human primates has long been focused on ecological determinants. The predictive value of socio-ecological models remains quite low, however, in particular because such equilibrium models cannot integrate the course of history. The use of phylogenetic methods indicates that many patterns of primate societies have been conserved throughout evolutionary history. For example, the study of social relations in macaques revealed that their social systems are made of sets of correlated behavioural traits. Some macaque species are portrayed by marked social intolerance, a steep dominance gradient and strong nepotism, whereas others display a higher level of social tolerance, relaxed dominance and a weaker influence of kinship. Linkages between behavioural traits occur at different levels of organization, and act as constraints that limit evolutionary responses to external pressures. Whereas these constraints can exert strong stabilizing selection that opposes the potential changes required by the ecological environment, selective mechanisms may have the potential to switch the whole social system from one state to another by acting primarily on some key behavioural traits that could work as pacemakers.
Scalar social dynamics in female vervet monkey cohorts
Authors: Henzi S. Peter , Forshaw Nicola , Boner Ria , Barrett Louise , Lusseau David
Published: April 2013

Primate social life and behaviour is contingent on a number of levels: phylogenetic, functional and proximate. Although this contingency is recognized by socioecological theory, variability in behaviour is still commonly viewed as ‘noise’ around a central tendency, rather than as a source of information. An alternative view is that selection has acted on social reaction norms that encompass demographic variation both between and within populations and demes. Here, using data from vervet monkeys (
Chlorocebus aethiops pygerythrus
), we illustrate how this alternative approach can provide a more nuanced account of social structure and its relation to contingent events at the ecological and demographic levels. Female vervets in our South African study population live in large groups, where they experience demographic stress and increased levels of feeding competition relative to an East African population in Amboseli, Kenya. Females in the South African population did not respond to this stress by intensifying competition for high-value grooming partners to help alleviate the effects of this stress, did not show the expected rank-related patterns of grooming, nor did they show any spatial association with their preferred grooming partners. Increased group size therefore resulted in a reorganization of female social engagement that was both qualitatively and quantitatively different to that seen elsewhere, and suggests that female vervets possess the flexibility to shift to alternative patterns of social engagement in response to contingent ecological and demographic conditions.
Taking note of Tinbergen, or: the promise of a biology of behaviour
Authors: Barrett Louise , Blumstein Daniel T. , Clutton-Brock Timothy H. , Kappeler Peter M.
Published: April 2013

In this concluding paper, we revisit Tinbergen's 1963 article and assess its impact on the field of behavioural research in general, and the papers in this volume in particular. We show how Tinbergen's insistence that greater attention should be paid to studies of ‘survival value’ has yielded immense returns over the past 50 years, allowing an integrative biology of behaviour to emerge and thrive, and that his addition of ontogeny to the ‘major problems of biology’ was both insightful and prescient.
Nuclear Accumulation of Cytosolic Glyceraldehyde-3-Phosphate Dehydrogenase in Cadmium-Stressed Arabidopsis Roots
Authors: Vescovi Marco , Zaffagnini Mirko , Festa Margherita , Trost Paolo , Lo Schiavo Fiorella , Costa Alex
Published: April 2013

NAD-dependent glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) is a ubiquitous enzyme involved in the glycolytic pathway. It has been widely demonstrated that mammalian GAPDH, in addition to its role in glycolysis, fulfills alternative functions mainly linked to its susceptibility to oxidative posttranslational modifications. Here, we investigated the responses of Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) cytosolic GAPDH isoenzymes GAPC1 and GAPC2 to cadmium-induced stress in seedlings roots. GAPC1 was more responsive to cadmium than GAPC2 at the transcriptional level. In vivo, cadmium treatments induced different concomitant effects, including (1) nitric oxide accumulation, (2) cytosolic oxidation (e.g. oxidation of the redox-sensitive Green fluorescent protein2 probe), (3) activation of the GAPC1 promoter, (4) GAPC1 protein accumulation in enzymatically inactive form, and (5) strong relocalization of GAPC1 to the nucleus. All these effects were detected in the same zone of the root tip. In vitro, GAPC1 was inactivated by either nitric oxide donors or hydrogen peroxide, but no inhibition was directly provided by cadmium. Interestingly, nuclear relocalization of GAPC1 under cadmium-induced oxidative stress was stimulated, rather than inhibited, by mutating into serine the catalytic cysteine of GAPC1 (C155S), excluding an essential role of GAPC1 nitrosylation in the mechanism of nuclear relocalization, as found in mammalian cells. Although the function of GAPC1 in the nucleus is unknown, our results suggest that glycolytic GAPC1, through its high sensitivity to the cellular redox state, may play a role in oxidative stress signaling or protection in plants.
Antihyperalgesic effects of a novel muscarinic agonist (LASSBio‐873) in spinal nerve ligation in rats
Authors: Mendes Thaiana CF , Antunes Fernanda , Trachez Margarete M , Nascimento Nailton M , Fraga Carlos AM , Barreiro Eliezer J , Zapata‐Sudo Gisele , Sudo Roberto T
Published: April 2013

New chemicals or adjuvants with analgesic effects on chronic pain are needed and clinically relevant due to the limited number of effective compounds that possess these characteristics. LASSBio‐873, a pyrazolo[3,4‐b]pyrrolo[3,4‐d]pyridine derivative, activates muscarinic cholinergic receptors and has potent analgesic effects on acute and inflammatory pain.

The present study evaluated the therapeutic and prophylactic effects of oral administration of LASSBio‐873 in a spinal nerve ligation (SNL) model of chronic peripheral nerve injury.

LASSBio‐873 (100 mg/kg) inhibited the development of thermal hyperalgesia and mechanical allodynia when administered once daily for 7 consecutive days after SNL surgery and reversed these symptoms. LASSBio‐873 treatment did not alter rat behaviour in open field testing measured during the first 24 h after administration and again after 7 continuous days administration. The analgesic effect of LASSBio‐873 was inhibited by intrathecal methoctramine, an M2 receptor antagonist, implicating the muscarininc M2 receptor signalling pathway in the drug's action.

These results reinforce the potential of LASSBio‐873 as a possible prototype for the development of more effective alternatives for the treatment of neuropathic pain.
Effects of phosphorus starvation versus limitation on the marine cyanobacterium Prochlorococcus MED4 II: gene expression
Authors: Reistetter Emily Nahas , Krumhardt Kristen , Callnan Kate , Roache‐Johnson Kathryn , Saunders Jaclyn K. , Moore Lisa R. , Rocap Gabrielle
Published: April 2013

Phosphorus (P) availability drives niche differentiation in the most abundant phytoplankter in the oceans, the marine cyanobacterium Prochlorococcus. We compared the molecular response of Prochlorococcus strain MED4 to P starvation in batch culture to P‐limited growth in chemostat culture. We also identified an outer membrane porin, PMM0709, which may allow transport of organic phosphorous compounds, rather than phosphate as previously suggested. The expression of three P uptake genes, pstS, the high‐affinity phosphate‐binding component of the phosphate transporter, phoA, an alkaline phosphatase, and porin PMM0709, were strongly upregulated (between 10‐ and 700‐fold) under both P starvation and limitation. pstS exhibits high basal expression under P‐replete conditions and is likely necessary for P uptake regardless of P availability. A P‐stress regulatory gene, ptrA, was upregulated in response to both P starvation and limitation although a second regulatory gene, phoB, was not. Elevated expression levels (> 10‐fold) of phoR, a P‐sensing histidine kinase, were only observed under conditions of P limitation. We suggest Prochlorococcus in P‐limited systems are physiologically distinct from cells subjected to abrupt P depletion. Detection of expression of both pstS and phoR in field populations will enable discernment of the present P status of Prochlorococcus in the oligotrophic oceans.
Interactions between specific phytoplankton and bacteria affect lake bacterial community succession
Authors: Paver Sara F. , Hayek Kevin R. , Gano Kelsey A. , Fagen Jennie R. , Brown Christopher T. , Davis‐Richardson Austin G. , Crabb David B. , Rosario‐Passapera Richard , Giongo Adriana , Triplett Eric W. , Kent Angela D.
Published: April 2013

Time‐series observations and a phytoplankton manipulation experiment were combined to test the hypothesis that phytoplankton succession effects changes in bacterial community composition. Three humic lakes were sampled weeklyMay–August and correlations between relative abundances of specific phytoplankton and bacterial operational taxonomic units (OTUs) in each time series were determined. To experimentally characterize the influence of phytoplankton, bacteria from each lake were incubated with phytoplankton from one of the three lakes or no phytoplankton. Following incubation, variation in bacterial community composition explained by phytoplankton treatment increased 65%, while the variation explained by bacterial source decreased 64%. Free‐living bacteria explained, on average, over 60% of the difference between phytoplankton and corresponding no‐phytoplankton control treatments. Fourteen out of the 101 bacterialOTUsthat exhibited positively correlated patterns of abundance with specific algal populations in time‐series observations were enriched in mesocosms following incubation with phytoplankton, and one out of 59 negatively correlated bacterialOTUswas depleted in phytoplankton treatments. Bacterial genera enriched in mesocosms containing specific phytoplankton assemblages includedLimnohabitans(cladebetI‐A),BdellovibrioandMitsuaria. These results suggest that effects of phytoplankton on certain bacterial populations, including bacteria tracking seasonal changes in algal‐derived organic matter, result in correlations between algal and bacterial community dynamics.
Expressing Compassion in the Face of Crisis: Organizational Practices in the Aftermath of the Brisbane Floods of 2011
Authors: Simpson Ace Volkmann , Clegg Stewart , Pina e Cunha Miguel
Published: April 2013

Compassion is almost universally acknowledged as an important issue in the crisis management literature. The dominant perspective, however, approaches compassion instrumentally. The findings of this study on the compassionate support offered (or not) to employees during and after the Brisbane flood crisis of January 2011 provide insight into crisis management as a continuous process rather than a reactionary response when disaster arises. Three significant policy implications are generated: First, compassionate discourses and categorization schemas should be clearly articulated within the organization before crisis. Second, compassionate policies and practices need to be embedded in ongoing organizational routines and policies. Third, initiatives framed as compassion responses should not be assumed to necessarily create positive outcomes; rather, outcomes should be assessed on an ongoing basis.
Agreement between arterial and venous pH and pCO2 in patients undergoing non‐invasive ventilation in the emergency department
Authors: Kelly Anne‐Maree , Klim Sharon
Published: April 2013

Background

Blood gas analysis is an important part of the assessment of ventilatory function in patients with respiratory distress. Traditionally, analysis of arterial blood has been used, but recently, there has been a move towards venous blood gas analysis for selected conditions. Arteriovenous agreement for pH and pCO2 in adult patients undergoing non‐invasive ventilation (NIV) has not been explored to date. The aim of this study was to address this question.

Methods

This was a prospective study of adult patients undergoing NIV for acute respiratory compromise in an ED. When arterial blood gas analysis was required for clinical purposes, staff also drew a venous sample as close to simultaneously as possible. Data collected included demographics, clinical diagnosis and results of blood gas analyses. Primary outcome of interest was arteriovenous agreement for pH and pCO2. Bland‐Altman bias plot analysis was used.

Results

Eighty‐nine sample pairs in 53 patients were studied. Median age was 74, and 64% of patients were male. The principal diagnoses were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (43%) and acute pulmonary oedema (40%). Mean difference for pH (a‐v) was 0.04 pH units (95% limits of agreement −0.02, 0.11). Mean difference for pCO2 (a‐v) was −8.02 mmHg (95% limits of agreement −22.63, 6.58)

Conclusion

For adult patients undergoing NIV in an ED, arteriovenous agreement for pH was close with narrow limits of agreement making venous pH clinically interchangeable with arterial pH. Agreement for pCO2 was poor with unacceptably wide limits of agreement.
First case report of Nocardia veterana causing nodular lymphangitis in an immunocompromised host
Authors: Dua Janet , Clayton Rima
Published: April 2013

We report a unique case of ascending cutaneous lymphangitis in a 72‐year‐old immunocompromised man from which a newly described Nocardia species was isolated by 16S ribosomal gene sequencing. Treatment with trimethoprim‐sulfamethoxazole resulted in successful resolution of symptoms. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first case report of N. veterana implicated in causing ascending cutaneous lymphangitis.
Serum Soluble‐Fas, Inflammation, and Anemia in Acute Kidney Injury
Authors: Góes Miguel Angelo , Iizuka Ilson Jorge , Quinto Beata Marie , Dalboni Maria Aparecida , Monte Julio César , Santos Bento Cardoso , dos Santos Oscar Fernando Pavão , Pereira Virgilio Gonçalves , Durão Marcelino de Souza , Batista Marcelo Costa , Cendoroglo Miguel
Published: April 2013

Anemia is a common feature in critically ill patients. Serum soluble‐Fas (sFas) levels are associated with anemia in chronic kidney disease. It is possible that sFas levels are also associated with anemia in acute kidney injury (AKI) patients. The study aims to investigate the relationship between serum levels of sFas, erythropoietin (Epo), inflammatory cytokines, and hemoglobin (Hb) concentration in critically ill patients with AKI. We studied 72 critically ill patients with AKI (AKI group; n = 53) or without AKI (non‐AKI group; n = 19), and 18 healthy volunteers. Serum sFas, Epo, tumor necrosis factor‐alpha (TNF‐α), interleukin (IL)‐6, IL‐10, iron status, and Hb concentration were analyzed in all groups. We also investigated the correlation between these variables in the AKI group. Critically ill patients (AKI and non‐AKI groups) had higher serum levels of Epo than healthy volunteers. Hb concentration was lower in the AKI group than in the other groups. Serum sFas, IL‐6, TNF‐α, and ferritin levels were higher in the AKI group. Hb concentration correlated negatively with serum IL‐6 (r = −0.37, P = 0.008), sFas (r = −0.35, P = 0.01), and Epo (r = −0.27, P = 0.04), while serum sFas correlated positively with iron levels (r = 0.36, P = 0.008) and IL‐6 (r = 0.28, P = 0.04) in the AKI group. In multivariate analysis, after adjusting for markers of inflammation and iron stores, only serum sFas levels (P = 0.03) correlated negatively with Hb concentration in the AKI group. Serum Epo and inflammatory cytokine levels are elevated in critically ill patients with or without AKI. Serum levels of sFas are elevated and independently associated with anemia in critically ill patients with AKI.