bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Potential mediators of the mortality reduction with zoledronic acid after hip fracture
Authors: Colón-Emeric Cathleen S , Mesenbrink Peter , Lyles Kenneth W , Pieper Carl F , Boonen Steven , Delmas Pierre , Eriksen Erik F , Magaziner Jay
Published: July 2009

Zoledronic acid reduces the risk of death by 28% after hip fracture, but the mechanisms are not known. This exploratory analysis sought to identify potential pathways for the reduction in mortality with zoledronic acid after hip fracture. This was a retrospective analysis of a randomized, controlled trial. Patients with recent hip fracture (n = 2111) were treated with zoledronic acid or placebo infusion yearly, as well as calcium and vitamin D supplementation. Causes of death were adjudicated by a blinded central review committee. Baseline comorbidities, events occurring during the study period, including subsequent fracture, change in bone density, infections, cardiovascular events, arrhythmias, and falls, were included in multivariable analyses. In a model adjusted for baseline risk factors, zoledronic acid reduced the risk of death by 25% [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.58–0.97). The effect was consistent across most subgroups. Subsequent fractures were significantly associated with death (hazard ratio 1.72, 95% CI 1.17–2.51) but explained only 8% of the zoledronic acid effect. Adjusting for acute events occurring during follow-up eliminated the death benefit, and zoledronic acid–treated subjects were less likely to die from pneumonia (interaction p = .04) and arrhythmias (interaction p = .02) than placebo-treated subjects. Only 8% of zoledronic acid's death benefit is due to a reduction in secondary fractures. Zoledronic acid may have an effect on cardiovascular events and pneumonia. Further studies of zoledronic acid in other acute illnesses may be warranted. Copyright © 2010 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research
Differentiation-dependent association of phosphorylated extracellular signal-regulated kinase with the chromatin of osteoblast-related genes
Authors: Li Yan , Ge Chunxi , Franceschi Renny T
Published: July 2009

The ERK/MAP kinase pathway is an important regulator of gene expression and differentiation in postmitotic cells. To understand how this pathway controls gene expression in bone, we examined the subnuclear localization of P-ERK in differentiating osteoblasts. Induction of differentiation was accompanied by increased ERK phosphorylation and expression of osteoblast-related genes, including osteocalcin (Bglap2) and bone sialoprotein (Ibsp). Confocal immunofluorescence microscopy revealed that P-ERK colocalized with the RUNX2 transcription factor in the nuclei of differentiating cells. Interestingly, a portion of this nuclear P-ERK was directly bound to the proximal promoter regions of Bglap2 and Ibsp. Furthermore, the level of P-ERK binding to chromatin increased with differentiation, whereas RUNX2 binding remained relatively constant. The P-ERK-chromatin interaction was seen only in RUNX2-positive cells, required intact RUNX2-selective enhancer sequences, and was blocked with MAPK inhibition. These studies show for the first time that RUNX2 specifically targets P-ERK to the chromatin of osteoblast-related genes, where it may phosphorylate multiple substrates, including RUNX2, resulting in altered chromatin structure and gene expression. © 2010 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research
Prevalence and trends in low femur bone density among older US adults: NHANES 2005–2006 compared with NHANES III
Authors: Looker Anne C , Melton L Joseph , Harris Tamara B , Borrud Lori G , Shepherd John A
Published: July 2009

Hip fracture incidence appears to be declining in the United States, but changes in bone mineral density (BMD) of the population have not been evaluated. We used femur BMD data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2005–2006 to estimate the prevalence of low femoral BMD in adults age 50 years and older and compared it with estimates from NHANES III (1988–1994). Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry systems (pencil-beam geometry in NHANES III, fan-beam geometry in NHANES 2005–2006) were used to measure femur BMD, and World Health Organization (WHO) definitions of low BMD were used to categorize skeletal status. In 2005–2006, 49% of older US women had osteopenia and 10% had osteoporosis at the femur neck. In men, 30% had femur neck osteopenia and 2% had femur neck osteoporosis. An estimated 5.3 million older men and women had osteoporosis at the femur neck, and 34.5 million more had osteopenia in 2005–2006. When compared with NHANES III, the age-adjusted prevalence of femur neck osteoporosis in NHANES 2005–2006 was lower in men (by 3 percentage units) and women (by 7 percentage units) overall and among non-Hispanic whites. Changes in body mass index or osteoporosis medication use between surveys did not fully explain the decline in osteoporosis. Owing to the increase in the number of older adults in the US population, however, more older adults had low femur neck BMD (osteoporosis + osteopenia) in 2005–2006 than in 1988–1994. Thus, despite the decline in prevalence, the estimated number of affected older adults in 2005–2006 remained high. Copyright © 2010 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research
Osteopathia striata with cranial sclerosis owing to WTX gene defect
Authors: Perdu Bram , Freitas Fenna de , Frints Suzanne GM , Schouten Meyke , Schrander-Stumpel Connie , Barbosa Mafalda , Pinto-Basto Jorge , Reis-Lima Margarida , Vernejoul Marie-Christine de , Becker Kristin , Freckmann Marie-Louise , Keymolen Kathlijn , Haan Eric , Savarirayan Ravi , Koenig Rainer , Zabel Bernhard , Vanhoenacker Filip M , Hul Wim Van
Published: July 2009

Osteopathia striata with cranial sclerosis (OSCS) is an X-linked dominant condition marked by linear striations mainly affecting the metaphyseal region of the long bones and pelvis in combination with cranial sclerosis. Recently, the disease-causing gene was identified as the WTX gene (FAM123B), an inhibitor of WNT signaling. A correlation was suggested between the position of the mutation and male lethality. We performed genotype and phenotype studies using 18 patients from eight families with possible WTX gene defects and expanded the clinical spectrum of the affected females. All investigated families diagnosed with OSCS had WTX gene defects. One family had a WTX gene deletion; three of four point mutations were novel. The earlier reported WTX c.1072C>T was detected in four sporadic patients and appears to be a hotspot for mutations. Based on the nature of the mutation present in a surviving male patient, our data do not support the hypothesis raised by Jenkins et al. (2009) regarding a genotype-phenotype correlation for male lethality. The finding of a gene involved in WNT signaling as the cause of this sclerosing bone phenotype is not unexpected, but further functional studies are needed to explain the specific features. The WTX gene is mutated in different types of cancer, and it remains to be explained why osteopathia striata patients appear not to have an increased risk of cancer. Copyright © 2010 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research
Restoration of regenerative osteoblastogenesis in aged mice: Modulation of TNF
Authors: Wahl Elizabeth C , Aronson James , Liu Lichu , Fowlkes John L , Thrailkill Kathryn M , Bunn Robert C , Skinner Robert A , Miller Mike J , Cockrell Gael E , Clark Lindsey M , Ou Yang , Isales Carlos M , Badger Thomas M , Ronis Martin J , Sims John , Lumpkin Charles K
Published: July 2009

Skeletal changes accompanying aging are associated with both increased risk of fractures and impaired fracture healing, which, in turn, is due to compromised bone regeneration potential. These changes are associated with increased serum levels of selected proinflammatory cytokines, e.g., tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α). We have used a unique model of bone regeneration to demonstrate (1) that aged-related deficits in direct bone formation can be restored to young mice by treatment with TNF blockers and (2) that the cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor p21 is a candidate for mediation of the osteoinhibitory effects of TNF. It has been hypothesized recently that TNF antagonists may represent novel anabolic agents, and we believe that the data presented here represent a successful test of this hypothesis. © 2010 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research
Randomized trial of intensive bisphosphonate treatment versus symptomatic management in paget's disease of bone
Authors: Langston Anne L , Campbell Marion K , Fraser William D , MacLennan Graeme S , Selby Peter L , Ralston Stuart H
Published: July 2009

Bisphosphonates are widely regarded as the treatment of choice for Paget's disease of bone (PDB) because of their potent inhibitory effects on bone turnover, but the effects of bisphosphonate therapy on symptoms and complications of PDB have been little studied. Here we report the results of a randomized trial that compared the effects of symptomatic treatment with intensive bisphosphonate therapy in a cohort of 1324 patients with PDB who were followed up for a median of 3 years (range 2 to 5 years). The symptomatic treatment group was treated only if they had pagetic bone pain, for which they were first given analgesics or anti-inflammatory drugs, followed by bisphosphonates if they did not respond. The intensive group received repeat courses of bisphosphonates irrespective of symptoms with the aim of reducing and maintaining serum alkaline phosphatase (ALP) levels within the normal range. The endpoints were fracture, orthopedic surgery, quality of life, bone pain, and hearing thresholds. Serum ALP levels were significantly lower in the intensive treatment group than in with the symptomatic treatment group within 4 months of commencing treatment and remained lower throughout the study (p < .001). There was no difference between the groups in quality of life (as assessed by the SF36 questionnaire), in overall bodily pain, or in pagetic bone pain. Hearing thresholds, as assessed by audiometry did not change significantly and did not differ between the treatment groups. Clinical fractures occurred in 46 of 661 patients (7.0%) in the intensive treatment group compared with 49 of 663 patients (7.4%) in the symptomatic treatment group, and orthopedic surgery was required in 50 of 661 patients (7.3%) in the intensive treatment group and in 55 of 663 patients (8.3%) in the symptomatic treatment group. These differences were not significant. Subgroup analyses of patients with elevated ALP levels at baseline and those who did or did not receive bisphosphonates during the study yielded similar results to those in the study group as a whole. We conclude that striving to maintain normal ALP levels with intensive bisphosphonate therapy confers no clinical advantage over symptom-driven management in patients with established PDB. Neither management strategy had a significant beneficial impact on pain or quality of life (Clinical trial registration number ISRCTN12989577). © 2010 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research
Deficiency of annexins A5 and A6 induces complex changes in the transcriptome of growth plate cartilage but does not inhibit the induction of mineralization
Authors: Belluoccio Daniele , Grskovic Ivan , Niehoff Anja , Schlötzer-Schrehardt Ursula , Rosenbaum Sabrina , Etich Julia , Frie Christian , Pausch Friedericke , Moss Stephen E , Pöschl Ernst , Bateman John F , Brachvogel Bent
Published: July 2009

Initiation of mineralization during endochondral ossification is a multistep process and has been assumed to correlate with specific interactions of annexins A5 and A6 and collagens. However, skeletal development appears to be normal in mice deficient for either A5 or A6, and the highly conserved structures led to the assumption that A5 and A6 may fulfill redundant functions. We have now generated mice deficient of both proteins. These mice were viable and fertile and showed no obvious abnormalities. Assessment of skeletal elements using histologic, ultrastructural, and peripheral quantitative computed tomographic methods revealed that mineralization and development of the skeleton were not significantly affected in mutant mice. Otherwise, global gene expression analysis showed subtle changes at the transcriptome level of genes involved in cell growth and intermediate metabolism. These results indicate that annexins A5 and A6 may not represent the essential annexins that promote mineralization in vivo. © 2010 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research
A randomized, controlled dose-ranging study of risedronate in children with moderate and severe osteogenesis imperfecta
Authors: Bishop Nick , Harrison Rachel , Ahmed Faisal , Shaw Nick , Eastell Richard , Campbell Mike , Knowles Elizabeth , Hill Claire , Hall Christine , Chapman Steve , Sprigg Alan , Rigby Alan
Published: July 2009

Moderate to severe osteogenesis imperfecta is associated with multiple fractures in childhood. There are no published data regarding the effects of third-generation bisphosphonates in these children. This randomized study investigated which of three different doses of risedronate was most effective in reducing fracture incidence. We randomly assigned 53 children with moderate to severe osteogenesis imperfecta to receive 0.2, 1, or 2 mg/kg per week of risedronate. We assessed safety, fracture incidence, and bone measurement outcomes at 3, 6, 12, 18, and 24 months. At 24 months, 69% of children assigned 0.2 mg/kg per week had had new fractures compared with 44% receiving 1 mg/kg per week and 75% receiving 2 mg/kg per week. Poisson regression with age and prior fracture as covariates showed that there was no difference in incident nonvertebral fracture between groups. Fracture rate diminished in each group during the trial compared with previous the 2 years (p = .005). Lumbar spine bone mineral density increased significantly (p = .009) only in the 2 mg/kg per week group. Long bone bowing deformities reduced more in children receiving 1 or 2 mg/kg per week of risedronate [odds ratio (OR) 0.67, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.48–0.93 per unit increase in risedronate dose, p = .015]. There were no serious adverse events. Bone mass increased and bowing deformities reduced with increasing risedronate dose. Children suffered fewer fractures irrespective of risedronate dose. The most appropriate dose of risedronate for children with moderate to severe osteogenesis imperfecta in this study was 2 mg/kg per week. © 2010 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research
Cancer treatment dosing regimens of zoledronic acid result in near-complete suppression of mandible intracortical bone remodeling in beagle dogs
Authors: Allen Matthew R , Kubek Daniel J , Burr David B
Published: July 2009

Bisphosphonate doses used in cancer treatment are substantially higher than those used for osteoporosis. Little is known about the effects of these high doses on tissue-level remodeling suppression. The aim of this study was to assess the effects of cancer dosing regimens of zoledronic acid on tissue-level bone remodeling at different skeletal sites. Skeletally mature female beagle dogs were treated with monthly intravenous infusions of vehicle (VEH, saline) or zoledronic acid (ZOL, 0.067 mg/kg); an additional group of animals was treated daily with oral alendronate (ALN, 0.2 mg/kg/day). Doses of ZOL and ALN were, on a milligram per kilogram basis, consistent with those used for cancer and osteoporosis, respectively. Following either 3 or 6 months of treatment, animals were euthanized, and mandible, rib, and tibia were processed for dynamic bone histology. There was no evidence of oral lesions or bone matrix necrosis in the mandibles of any animals. After 3 months, the rate of intracortical bone remodeling in the mandible was significantly suppressed with ZOL (−95%) compared with VEH; by 6 months, ZOL had produced nearly complete suppression (−99%) compared with VEH. ZOL also significantly suppressed remodeling in the rib cortex at both 3 (−83%) and 6 (−85%) months compared with VEH; tibia cortex bone formation rate was nonsignificantly lower with ZOL treatment (−68% to −75%). Remodeling suppression in ZOL-treated animals was significantly greater than in ALN-treated animals at both the mandible and the rib; ALN and VEH were not different for any of the assessed parameters at any of the sites. Compared across skeletal sites, the absolute level of remodeling suppression with ZOL treatment was significantly greater at sites with higher remodeling, whereas the percent reduction was similar among the sites. These results document nearly complete intracortical remodeling suppression resulting from monthly intravenous zoledronic acid dosing, with changes being most dramatic at the mandible. Copyright © 2010 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research
Fat and failure: Marcel Duchamp's military imagination
Authors: Lyons Kieran
Published: July 2009

Marcel Duchamp's preoccupation with the French army can be seen in a note he included in the Box of 1914. The note is known as loignement, and with it he declares his opposition to military conscription and then speculates that the army might telephonically reconnect the limbs
and organs of its soldiers that have been left scattered across the battlefield. Duchamp wrote this note before field telephones were issued to French troops but his grotesque proposition can be seen in light of his experience as an army corporal.

In 1912, before making these caustic suggestions
Duchamp had taken a motor journey and written an account of it where he describes the aggressive invasion of territory by an alien force. This invasion travelled from France's liminal frontiers to its metropolitan centre. His text is known as the Jura-Paris Road and again Duchamp reveals
his military concerns. He formulates territory that proceeds from topographical amplitude to the delimitation of a straight line. In spite of its sophisticated morphology, it is threatened by alien forces aimed at testing boundaries. Duchamp published his text as a facsimile of his handwritten
original, which displays the amendments and uncertainties of a man of military age attempting to evade the imperatives of military service.

The essay continues with an analysis of Duchamp's influences in writing this text and suggests a link with the philosopher Edmund Husserl in the context
of the profoundly anti-German atmosphere in the French military build-up to war between 1912 and 1914. The argument closes with a survey of a military thematic in Duchamp's work after he left France for America in 1915.
Drive entre Mille Sons: a psychogeographic approach to mobile music and mediated interaction
Authors: Herber Norbert
Published: July 2009

Drive en Mille Sons (Drifting in a Thousand Sounds)is a musical work that uses mobile media technology to artistically examine the relationship between music and the listener. Contemporary media technologies, be they at work, home or in your pocket, emphasize playback. These devices are designed to facilitate the storage and retrieval of pre-made media assets. This work leverages the processing capabilities that rest dormant within these technologies. Drawing from the writings of Guy Debord and the situationist/surrealist practice of the drive, drifting becomes a metaphor for instrumental performance in which the openness and emergence of interactivity is articulated through sound, as music.
Transformative navigation: energizing imagery for perceptual shifts
Authors: Dolinsky Margaret
Published: July 2009

A visitor's experience of immersion in projection technology accumulates over time with the navigational movements that are called for through the digital artwork. The visitor travels through the artwork to gain an understanding of space and a sense of place within the visual field.
An engaging display envelopes the visitor and thereby enhances their sense of immersion. An explorative movement within the virtual environment garners understanding, facilitates decision-making and intensifies navigation. Abstraction and symbolism in the visual experience offer a metaphoric
journey through the visual virtual experience. This article calls for a need to subvert and exploit rational imagery to stimulate the imagination in an effort to enhance immersion through the projection screen. The article will discuss how virtual environments fusing projection technologies
with artistic imagery energizes experiential circumstances, promotes navigational movements and instigates perceptual shifts. In interactive media, the joystick navigates through a virtual environment as if painting the imagery of a place coincidently with its discovery. This self-referential
journey shatters the sense of the fixed picture plane with a stable point of view established in traditional aesthetic engagement. The projection wall initially appears as a boundary for vision but acts, in essence, as a psychological screen for emergent experience.
HALO: An experimental station project
Authors: Courdy Keiko , Parnel Jacques
Published: July 2009

The planet is experiencing a deep metamorphosis. The pressure that is being generated nowadays on the living can be felt in a human lifetime. The extreme speed of climate change and its impact on our ecosystem can no longer be ignored. When looking at the phenomenon of ecological resilience,
we notice that after a disturbance, a shock on an ecosystem, like the burning of a forest, the resilient system rebuilds itself but not exactly as it was before, surprisingly new species grow. In social systems, humans have the capacity to anticipate, adapt and invent new patterns of behaviours.

In
a world where everything is uncertain, moving, shifting, we are making an artistic proposal as an open dynamic system. We are developing two versions of the same HALO project to be presented on the sea and in public places.
The Many Challenges of Pension Accounting
Authors: Beechy Thomas H.
Published: July 2009

Accounting for defined benefit pension plans has long been a major issue in accounting. Standard‐setters are grappling with revisions to pension accounting standards, and much change has already occurred in the United Kingdom. This paper identifies and discusses most of the major issues that standard‐setters must confront in developing new approaches to financial reporting for pensions. Key issues concern how to report the impact of changes in assumptions, how to recognize pension costs on the balance sheet and income statement, and how to reconcile the differences between accountants' and actuaries' approaches to pensions. Current standards assume that accounting estimates are independent of actuarial assumptions, and yet require a direct comparison of the accounting liability with the pension plan assets, when in fact they are incompatible measures based on differing assumptions and differing methodologies. As well, accounting has been complicit in managers' wishes to hide the volatility inherent in a pension plan investment strategy that focuses on higher‐risk equities to fund estimated monetary liabilities that have been discounted at low‐risk interest rates. Drawing on studies and research done largely in Europe, this paper attempts to consolidate some of the current thinking on the topic and to propose some preferred approaches to dealing with the problems of pension accounting.
The Development of a Conceptual Framework for the Design, Delivery, and Assessment of a Typical Management Accounting Syllabus
Authors: Wessels Philippus L. , Roos Shelley‐Anne
Published: July 2009

This article identifies common issues relating to management accounting education in order to determine whether using a competency‐based approach would assist educators in the design, delivery, and assessment of syllabi at educational institutions. A conceptual framework is developed and discussed with regard to the critical success factors methodology to design syllabi that assist educators in attaining the main outcomes in the delivery and assessment of the curriculum. This framework is applied to a typical management accounting curriculum to demonstrate how this approach will enable educators to design, deliver, and assess their syllabi in line with the critical outcomes required. In following this approach, lecturers would constantly have to focus on the knowledge and issues that are relevant and critical for students to understand and apply in order to achieve the aim of the syllabi.
Smith & Jones LLP: Charting a Path to the Future*
Authors: Sheehan Norman T.
Published: July 2009

This case requires accounting students to shift their focus from learning about the practice of auditing to learning about the business of auditing. It describes the strategy, vision, and mission of a medium‐sized, Canadian audit firm and the external and internal challenges the firm faces as it looks to improve its profitability. Students should reflect on which behaviors Smith & Jones would like to encourage and what the partners can do to encourage its employees to exhibit these behaviors.
Role of Pulse Oximetry in Examining Newborns for Congenital Heart Disease: A Scientific Statement from the AHA and AAP
Authors: Mahle William T. , Newburger Jane W. , Matherne G. Paul , Smith Frank C. , Hoke Tracey R. , Koppel Robert , Gidding Samuel S. , Beekman Robert H. , Grosse Scott D. ,   on behalf of the American Heart Association Congenital Heart Defects Committee of the Council on Cardiovascular Disease in the Young, Council on Cardiovascular Nursing, and Interdisciplinary Council on Quality of Care and Outcomes Research; and the American Academy of Pediatrics Section on Cardiology and Cardiac Surgery, and Committee on Fetus and Newborn
Published: July 2009

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this statement is to address the state of evidence on the routine use of pulse oximetry in newborns to detect critical congenital heart disease (CCHD).

METHODS AND RESULTS: A writing group appointed by the American Heart Association and the American Academy of Pediatrics reviewed the available literature addressing current detection methods for CCHD, burden of missed and/or delayed diagnosis of CCHD, rationale of oximetry screening, and clinical studies of oximetry in otherwise asymptomatic newborns. MEDLINE database searches from 1966 to 2008 were done for English-language papers using the following search terms: congenital heart disease, pulse oximetry, physical examination, murmur, echocardiography, fetal echocardiography, and newborn screening. The reference lists of identified papers were also searched. Published abstracts from major pediatric scientific meetings in 2006 to 2008 were also reviewed. The American Heart Association classification of recommendations and levels of evidence for practice guidelines were used. In an analysis of pooled studies of oximetry assessment performed after 24 hours of life, the estimated sensitivity for detecting CCHD was 69.6%, and the positive predictive value was 47.0%; however, sensitivity varied dramatically among studies from 0% to 100%. False-positive screens that required further evaluation occurred in only 0.035% of infants screened after 24 hours.

CONCLUSIONS: Currently, CCHD is not detected in some newborns until after their hospital discharge, which results in significant morbidity and occasional mortality. Furthermore, routine pulse oximetry performed on asymptomatic newborns after 24 hours of life, but before hospital discharge, may detect CCHD. Routine pulse oximetry performed after 24 hours in hospitals that have on-site pediatric cardiovascular services incurs very low cost and risk of harm. Future studies in larger populations and across a broad range of newborn delivery systems are needed to determine whether this practice should become standard of care in the routine assessment of the neonate.
On the Marcinkiewicz-Fejér means of double Fourier series with respect to the Walsh-Kaczmarz system
Authors: Gát György , Goginava Ushangi , Nagy Károly
Published: July 2009

The main aim of this paper is to prove that the maximal operator of Marcinkiewicz-Fejér means of double Fourier series with respect to the Walsh-Kaczmarz system is bounded from the dyadic Hardy-Lorentz spaceHpqinto Lorentz spaceLpqfor everyp> 2/3 and 0 <q≦ ∞. As a consequence, we obtain the a.e. convergence of Marcinkiewicz-Fejér means of double Fourier series with respect to the Walsh-Kaczmarz system. That is,σn(f, x1,x2) → (x1,x2) a.e. asn→ ∞.
Polynomial spline estimation for nonparametric (auto-)regressive models
Authors: Wu Xinqian , Tian Zheng , Wang Hongjun
Published: July 2009

In this paper we consider nonparametric (auto-)regressive models with conditional variance function. Based on polynomial spline estimation, we construct the estimators of conditional mean function and conditional variance function. Consistency of these estimators is proved under theα-mixing condition. Meanwhile, uniform and global rates of convergence of these estimators are established, and global rates of convergence can attain to the optimal ones. Moreover, a method for selecting knot number is developed based on Bayes Information Criterion. The methodology is illustrated by a simulation study and is applied to CNY/USD middle exchange rate.
On a problem of Ahlswede and Katona
Authors: Wagner Stephan , Wang Hua
Published: July 2009

Let
p
(
G
) denote the number of pairs of adjacent edges in a graph
G
. Ahlswede and Katona considered the problem of maximizing
p
(
G
) over all simple graphs with a given number
n
of vertices and a given number
N
of edges. They showed that
p
(
G
) is either maximized by a quasi-complete graph or by a quasi-star. They also studied the range of
N
(depending on
n
) for which the quasi-complete graph is superior to the quasi-star (and vice versa) and formulated two questions on distributions in this context. This paper is devoted to the solution of these problems.
Number of minimal components and homologically independent compact leaves for a morse form foliation
Authors: Gelbukh Irina
Published: July 2009

The numbers
m
(
ω
) of minimal components and
c
(
ω
) of homologically independent compact leaves of the foliation of a Morse form
ω
on a connected smooth closed oriented manifold
M
are studied in terms of the first non-commutative Betti number
b
′
1
(
M
). A sharp estimate 0 ≦
m
(
ω
) +
c
(
ω
) ≦
b
′
1
(
M
) is given. It is shown that all values of
m
(
ω
) +
c
(
ω
), and in some cases all combinations of
m
(
ω
) and
c
(
ω
) with this condition, are reached on a given
M
. The corresponding issues are also studied in the classes of generic forms and compactifiable foliations.
Double lacunary density and lacunary statistical convergence of double sequences
Authors: Çakan Celal , Altay Bilal , Çoşkun Hüsamettin
Published: July 2009

In this paper, we have defined double lacunary density and investigated the relation between statistical and lacunary statistical convergence of double sequences. Also, we have solved an inequality related to the lacunary statistical limit superior of real bounded double sequences.
On the contact Ozsváth-Szabó invariant
Authors: Etgü Tolga , Ozbagci Burak
Published: July 2009

Sarkar and Wang proved that the hat version of Heegaard Floer homology group of a closed oriented 3-manifold is combinatorial starting from an arbitrary nice Heegaard diagram and in fact every closed oriented 3-manifold admits such a Heegaard diagram. Plamenevskaya showed that the contact Ozsváth-Szabó invariant is combinatorial once we are given an open book decomposition compatible with a contact structure. The idea is to combine the algorithm of Sarkar and Wang with the recent description of the contact Ozsváth-Szabó invariant due to Honda, Kazez and Matić. Here we observe that the hat version of the Heegaard Floer homology group and the contact Ozsváth-Szabó invariant in this group can be combinatorially calculated starting from a contact surgery diagram. We give detailed examples pointing out to some shortcuts in the computations.
Regularity and finite injective dimension in characteristic p > 0
Authors: Dumitrescu Tiberiu , Ionescu Cristodor
Published: July 2009

Recently, the regular local rings of prime characteristic were characterized in terms of the finiteness of injective dimension of the Frobenius map. We obtain relative versions of this result.
On the mean-value property of polyharmonic functions
Authors: Dalmasso Robert
Published: July 2009

We prove a converse of the mean-value property for polyharmonic functions: our result extends a theorem established by Kuran for harmonic functions.
On regularly varying moments for discrete laws
Authors: Simic Slavko
Published: July 2009

For a discrete law
F
and large
n
, we investigate the asymptotic relation \documentclass{aastex}
\usepackage{amsbsy}
\usepackage{amsfonts}
\usepackage{amssymb}
\usepackage{bm}
\usepackage{mathrsfs}
\usepackage{pifont}
\usepackage{stmaryrd}
\usepackage{textcomp}
\usepackage{upgreek}
\usepackage{portland,xspace}
\usepackage{amsmath,amsxtra}
\usepackage{bbm}
\pagestyle{empty}
\DeclareMathSizes{10}{9}{7}{6}
\begin{document}
$$EX_n^\mu \ell (X_n ) \sim C_\mu (EX_n )^\mu \in (a,b),C_\mu > 0(EX_n \to \infty ),$$
\end{document}, where ℓ(·) is an arbitrary slowly varying function. By a result from [6], it follows that regularly varying moments for Power Series Distributions, generated by an entire function of finite order, satisfy the above relation with
Cµ
= 1 for each µ ∈ (0, ∞).
L’avenir du français. Jacques Maurais, Pierre Dumont, Jean- Marie Klinkenberg, Bruno Maurer, Patrick Chardenet (2008) pp. 282 ISBN 978-2-914610-47-6
Authors: Rees Huw
Published: July 2009

Paris: Editions des archives contemporaines et en partenariat avec l’agence universitaire de la Francophonie (AUF).
Ideologies on multilingual practices at a rural Catalan school
Authors: Sabaté Dalmau Maria
Published: July 2009

This ethnographic study analyses ideologies on multilingualism and attitudes toward cultural diversity in a rural Catalan school located in a semirural locality which is undergoing a series of changes linked to the dynamics of globalisation. Firstly, it describes the demolinguistic processes that are affecting this small school dedicated to the teaching of and in Catalan at the turn of the century. Secondly, the study links these processes to the current linguistic and social orders of the school by looking at both the local and global social values indexed by the languages that now circulate within the institution. Thirdly, it examines the ideologies on multilingualism of the educational agents involved in the schooling process (teachers, students, parents), and attempts to understand where the historically-informed institutional stance of the school comes from. Finally, it examines how the defence of the teaching in a minority language-only and the investment in depicting the school as a Catalan monolingual monocultural space is legitimised in a largely unexplored arena: the rural Catalan schooling of the global era.
Position and the presence of subjunctive in purpose clauses in US-heritage Spanish
Authors: Martínez Mira María Isabel
Published: July 2009

Despite the general tendency to find the indicative in subordinate structures requiring the (grammatical) subjunctive in the Spanish of second/third/successive generations of heritage speakers, there are some structures where this tendency is in a less advanced stage. This is case of purpose clauses, as seen in Silva-Corvalán (2001). The current study investigates if, besides acquisitional factors, there are other elements (e.g. position of the subordinate clause) that explain the higher retention of the subjunctive in purpose clauses in heritage Spanish. Since heritage speakers share features with monolingual speakers and L2 learners (Montrul 2005), this study also investigated whether the results by heritage speakers could be compared to what monolingual Spanish speakers do, or whether there are more similarities with the results attested for the L2 learners. Different tests were administered to three groups of college students: New Mexico heritage speakers (different generations), monolingual speakers of Mexican Spanish, and US-born, L2 learners of Spanish. Position of the subordinate clause played a different role between these groups, and it did not significantly contribute to explain the higher retention of the subjunctive in purpose clauses in heritage Spanish. Similarities were found between all groups, but it depended on the type of instrument used.
EFfects of Diesel and Interactions with Copper and Other Metals in an Estuarine Sediment Microbial Community
Authors: Hedrick David B. , Peacock Aaron D. , Tita Guglielmo , Fleeger John W. , Carman Kevin R. , White David C.
Published: July 2009

Estuarine sediment microcosms were treated with combinations of diesel, copper (at two levels), and a mixture of heavy metals (mercury, cadmium, lead, and chromium; at two levels) mimicking the contaminant loadings found in harbor sediments. The effects on the microbial community were monitored by polar lipid fatty acid analysis. Diesel addition increased microbial biomass, caused shifts in some fatty acid structural groups, and decreased starvation biomarkers. Incorporation of diesel hydrocarbons into lipids was expressed as an increase in the proportion of odd-carbon-number fatty acids. No treatment with the metals mixture (mercury, cadmium, lead, and chromium) alone significantly changed any parameter derived from the polar lipid fatty acids, but the increase in microbial biomass from diesel addition was higher with the metals mixture, possibly because of indirect effects caused by reductions in grazing resulting from metal-induced toxicity to bacteriovorous nematodes. Copper also modified the effects of diesel addition, preventing biomass increase but not diesel degradation, suggesting that some of the energy gained from diesel oxidation was expended combating copper toxicity. In the present study, observations indicate that metals in general, and copper in particular, can modify the response of sedimentary microorganisms to petroleum-hydrocarbon contaminants.
Factors affecting the degradation of pharmaceuticals in agricultural soils
Authors: Monteiro Sara C. , Boxall Alistair B. A.
Published: July 2009

Pharmaceuticals may be released to the soil environment through the application of biosolids to land. To understand those factors affecting the persistence of pharmaceuticals in the soil environment, the present study was performed to assess the effects of soil type, the presence of biosolids, and the impact of chemical mixture interactions on the degradation of three pharmaceuticals: naproxen, carbamazepine, and fluoxetine. Single-compound studies showed that naproxen degraded in a range of soils with half-lives ranging from 3.1 to 6.9 d and in biosolids with a half-life of 10.2 d. No relationships were observed between degradation rate and soil physicochemical properties and soil bioactivity. For naproxen, addition of biosolids to soils reduced the degradation rate observed in the soil-only studies, with half-lives in the soil-biosolid systems ranging from 3.9 to 15.1 d. Carbamazepine and fluoxetine were found to be persistent in soils, biosolids, and soil-biosolid mixtures. When degradation was assessed using a mixture of the three study compounds and the sulfonamide antibiotic sulfamethazine, the degradation behavior of fluoxetine and carbamazepine was similar to that observed in the single compound studies (i.e., no degradation). However, the degradation rate of naproxen in soils, biosolids, and soil-biosolid systems spiked with the mixture was significantly slower than in the single-compound studies. As degradation studies for risk assessment purposes are performed using single substances in soil-only studies, it is possible that current risk assessment procedures will underestimate environmental impacts. Further work is therefore warranted on a larger range of substances, soils, biosolid types, and chemical mixtures to better understand the fate of pharmaceuticals in terrestrial systems.
A Review of the Design Process for Implantable Orthopedic Medical Devices
Authors: Aitchison G.A , Hukins D.W.L , Parry J.J , Shepherd D.E.T , Trotman S.G
Published: July 2009

The design process for medical devices is highly regulated to ensure the safety of patients. This paper will present a review of the design process for implantable orthopedic medical devices. It will cover the main stages of feasibility, design reviews, design, design verification, manufacture, design validation, design transfer and design changes.
Trends in Chemical Composition of Wet Precipitation in Mexico City, Mexico: 1992–2007
Authors: Baez A.P. , Belmont R.D. , García R.M. , Padilla H.G. , Torres MC. B.
Published: July 2009

This paper presents the results of a study of variation in the chemical composition of wet precipitation over a 16-year period. The ions SO42-, NO3-, Cl-, Mg2+ K+, Na+, NH+ and H+ were analyzed. The correlation analysis showed a high positive correlation among these ions, indicating that anthropogenic emissions were the most important source. Trends in annual concentrations of SO42-, NO3-, Cl-, NH4+, Mg2+, Ca2+, K+, H+ and alkalinity as function of time were calculated using a linear least-square regression of the volume weighted mean concentrations of these ions in rainwater collected over a 16-year period. Sulfate (SO42-) in wet precipitation showed a significant decreasing trend, corresponding to the reduction in SO2 emissions in the Mexico City valley due to the change from oil to gas fuel in thermoelectric power plants and heavy and medium sized industries. In spite of the fact that the number of motor vehicles has risen considerably in Mexico City, NO3- did not show a significant increasing trend. The NH4+/Ca2+ ratio showed a nearly significant increasing trend, due mainly to the significant decrease in Ca2+
concentration. This decreasing trend was not as marked as that of SO42-. The contribution of NH4+ to neutralization was relatively small,showing only a non significant increase in NH4+ over the study period, while a considerable decreasing SO trend occurred, which could mean that part of the NH4+ ions reacted with other ions, forming ammonium compounds.
Description of Long Term Outcome of Sublingual Immunotherapy Treatment in Children: A Follow-Up Observation Through Phone Interviews
Authors: L Steiner , T Engel , A Nöding , M Licht , A Delaney , A Distler , G Zwacka , UR Markert
Published: July 2009

Background:

Efficacy of sublingual immunotherapies (SLIT) is mostly demonstrated during or immediately after the therapy, but little is reported about long-term efficacy.

Patients and Methods:

121 phone interviews were performed to analyze the state of patients after SLIT. All patients were children who were treated in two centers in Germany. Questionnaires were developed and standardized with respect to statistical and social rules. 19 questions were designed to elucidate the subjective estimation of allergic symptoms (conjunctivitis, rhinitis, asthma, atopic dermatitis), duration of therapy (> 2 years), duration of preexisting allergy, type of allergen, symptomatical medication, age, gender and others before starting SLIT, immediately after SLIT and 1 to 6 years after having finished the therapy. All interviews were conducted with the patients’ mothers. Due to ethical considerations, for this period of up to 9 years after initiation of treatment, formation of a placebo control group was impossible.

Results:

In summary, the general state of health improved significantly in 93% of all patients during therapy. This was similar for all single symptoms. During the period after therapy, 84% of patients did not feel any worsening of their state and 15% reported a very slight return of symptoms. At the same time, no patient felt worse than before initiating SLIT, and 8% felt similar to the state before. Results were equal 1, 3 and 5 years after termination of SLIT.

Conclusion:

In comparison to the expectable allergic march, which implicates a high risk of intensifying symptoms in untreated patients, SLIT treated patients improved and demonstrated a long-lasting clinical effect (5 years) of the therapy. Rates of improvements are higher than spontaneous remissions (age dependently, 5 – 25%) as reported in previous studies.
Vaccination of rats against the rodent hookworm Nippostrongylus brasiliensis with a recombinant superoxide dismutase fails to protect against infection
Authors: Ball Glyn , Knox Dave
Published: July 2009

Anti-oxidant enzymes including superoxide dismutase (SOD) protect cells from damage by oxygen radicals produced during respiration. There is also a substantial body of evidence that anti-oxidant enzymes facilitate the survival of parasitic helminths, including gastrointestinal nematodes, within the host. Superoxide dismutase has been shown to be released by a variety of parasitic helminths and may protect them from host mediated oxidative immune responses. As it may play a parasite protective role during infections SOD has been investigated as a vaccine candidate in a range of helminth parasites including Schistosoma mansoni, Acanthocheilonema viteae and Haemonchus contortus. Here, we sought to evaluate the protective potential of SOD against the rat hookworm Nippostrongylus brasiliensis, a commonly utilised laboratory infection, as a vaccination model. A cytosolic SOD from this parasite, with high sequence homology to a putative extracellular form of the enzyme was cloned and then expressed in bacteria. The resultant recombinant protein was assessed for enzyme activity and used to immunise rats prior to a single challenge infection with the parasite. No protection was observed and monitoring systemic and mucosal antibody responses and mast cell protease levels in superoxide dismutase vaccinated rats suggested that this recombinant SOD was only weakly immunogenic.
New data on three gonad-infecting species of Philometra (Nematoda, Philometridae) from estuarine fishes in South Carolina, USA
Authors: Moravec František , Buron Isaure
Published: July 2009

The following three gonad-infecting species of Philometra Costa, 1845 (Nematoda, Philometridae) were recorded from offshore perciform fishes in South Carolina, USA: Philometra carolinensis Moravec, de Buron et Roumillat, 2006 from the southern kingfish Menticirrhus americanus (Linnaeus) (Sciaenidae) (new host record), Philometra floridensis Moravec, Fajer-Avila et Bakenhaster, 2009 from the red drum Sciaenops ocellatus (Linnaeus) (Sciaenidae), and Philometra saltatrix Ramachandran, 1973 from the bluefish Pomatomus saltatrix (Linnaeus) (Pomatomidae). Findings of the first two species represent the second records since their original descriptions and P. floridensis was for the first time recorded from South Carolina estuaries. Detailed study of these nematode species, using both light (LM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), revealed the presence of minute caudal projections in the gravid female of P. carolinensis and four pairs of caudal papillae in the conspecific male; the cephalic and caudal ends of this species were for the first time examined by SEM. The related species P. carolinensis and P. floridensis, both parasitizing sciaenid fishes, can be distinguished from each other mainly by the presence/absence of oesophageal teeth, lengths of spicules and body lengths of gravid females. The morphology of North American specimens of P. saltatrix was found to be identical with that of specimens from Europe, thus confirming their conspecificity.