bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Racism and Power
Authors: Orozco Richard A.
Published: January 2012

The article discusses a legislation that would effectively terminate Mexican American Studies programs in k-12 was passed in Arizona in 2010. In this article, the author traces how this legislation drew from discourses of anti-Americanism and wickedness initiated by the state’s superintendent of public instruction against Mexican American Studies and from larger social antagonistic language regarding Mexican ethnics. The author uses critical discourse analysis (CDA) and van Dijk’s notion of the discourse-power circle, in particular, to demonstrate how the superintendent along with the author of the legislation, were successful in controlling the voting actions of enough legislators to pass the bill.
I Want to Move, But Cannot
Authors: Strohschein Lisa
Published: January 2012

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to investigate characteristics of seniors in the Canadian population who are involuntary stayers and to assess associations with health. Method: Data come from the 1994 Canadian National Population Health Survey, with the sample restricted to those 65 and older ( N = 2,551). Results: Nearly 1 in 10 seniors identified as an involuntary stayer. Seniors with few socioeconomic resources, poor health, greater need for assistance, and low social involvement were more likely to identify as an involuntary stayer. Furthermore, seniors who were involuntary stayers report significantly more distress and greater odds of low self-rated health than other seniors. Discussion: This study brings into visibility an understudied segment of the elderly population: seniors who are unable to move from their present location despite their desire to do so. Further research and policy responses assisting seniors to age in a setting of their own choosing are needed.
Dropping the unitary actor assumption: The impact of intra-party delegation on coalition governance
Authors: Meyer Thomas M
Published: January 2012

What happens to cabinet governance if parties do not act as ‘unitary actors’? In this paper, I examine the consequences of intra-party dissent for coalition governments in parliamentary systems. Drawing on the principal–agent literature, I develop a model in which party agents, namely cabinet ministers and legislators rather than parties as collective actors, decide on specific policies. The individuals’ amount of loyalty determines the degree of party unity. I use simulation techniques to analyze the power of an agenda-setting minister in a two-party coalition conditional on the level of party unity. The results suggest that the minister’s agenda-setting power diminishes if parliamentarians and cabinet members aim at implementing their personal policy preferences. However, the party not in charge of the respective portfolio may benefit from disunity within its own ranks. This counter-intuitive result raises doubts about the widespread view that internal unity strengthens the bargaining power of political parties.
Managing for local resilience: towards a strategic approach
Authors: Shaw Keith , Maythorne Louise
Published: January 2012

The term resilience is increasingly being used to capture the challenges involved in managing in ‘hard times’. This article aims to provide one of the first empirical studies of the term’s application to local authority interventions around emergency planning and climate change: two areas in which resilience has been particularly emphasised in local policy making. Drawing upon research undertaken in the north east of England, the article considers how local managers have understood and applied the term, the extent to which it has been developed as a coherent policy agenda, and its strategic significance. In reframing the debate on resilience in terms of discourses of ‘recovery’ and ‘transformation’, the article examines how, in addition to informing policy realities on the ground, resilience is also a normative, politically laden term, within which conservative narratives of uncertainty, vulnerability and anxiety compete with a more radical focus on hope, adaptation and transformation. The study reveals concerns over the term’s longevity, tensions between the different interpretations of resilience, and the lack of a coherent strategic framework within which the different discourses on resilience could be considered and reconciled. However, the article also captures the growing importance of a resilience narrative that is seen to add value in a period of austerity, integrate key features of climate change adaptation and emergency planning, and act as a ‘strategic lynchpin’ in relation to other policy areas, such as economic resilience.
Mainstreaming intersectional equality for older people? Exploring the impact of quasi-federalism in the UK
Authors: Chaney Paul
Published: January 2012

Using an analytical framework based on European Commission directives and United Nations resolutions calling for a mainstreamed and intersectional approach to age equality, this paper examines the UK’s devolved administrations’ governance practices and territorially specific public policy on older people. The findings reveal mixed progress. Whilst a number of mainstreaming prerequisites have been secured and divergent, ‘regional’ equality rights and welfare entitlements established, shortcomings are also apparent including reliance on an intercategorical, additive approach to intersectionality, one that falls short of fully addressing the diverse needs and identities of older people.
Meta-analysis of incidence of rare events
Authors: Lane Peter W
Published: January 2012

This is a review of methods for the meta-analysis of incidence of rare events using summary-level data. It is motivated and illustrated by the dataset used in a published analysis of cardiovascular safety in rosiglitazone trials. This review compares available methods for binary data, considering risk-difference, relative-risk and odds-ratio scales, fixed-effect and random-effects models, and frequentist and Bayesian approaches. Particular issues in this dataset include low incidence rates, the occurrence of studies with no events under one or all treatments, and discrepancy among results achieved using different statistical methodologies. The common method of adding a correction factor to handle zeroes may introduce bias where the incidence of events is small, as in this case. Alternative analyses on the log-odds scale are shown to give similar results, but the choice between them is less important than the potential sources of bias in any meta-analysis arising from limitations in the underlying dataset. It is important to present results carefully, including numerical and graphical summaries on the natural scale of risk when the analysis is on a statistically appropriate scale such as log-odds: the incidence rates should accompany an estimated ratio (of odds or risk) to put the analysis into the proper context. Beyond the statistical methodologies which are the focus of this paper, this dataset highlights the importance of understanding the limitations of the data being combined. Because the rosiglitazone dataset contains clinically heterogeneous trials with low event rates that were not designed or intended to assess cardiovascular outcomes, the findings of any meta-analysis of such trials should be considered hypothesis-generating.
Cultures of local economy in a Celtic fringe region
Authors: Heley Jesse , Gardner Graham , Watkin Suzie
Published: January 2012

This paper seeks to help reconceptualize the spaces of local and regional economies by developing the idea of the ‘compound economy’. It is set in the context of a growing body of work in geography that emphasizes the importance of culture as a factor shaping differentiated local and regional economic development and, correspondingly, as an important dynamic informing the ability of localities and regions to negotiate economic forces operating at national and supranational scales. Exploring both dominant and counter-hegemonic economic imaginaries as articulated in academic debates, we draw on the case study of Central Wales and demonstrate how these imaginaries are variously manifested in government policy discourse of the National Assembly for Wales and in the understandings and practices of business stakeholders in the region. Through comparing and contrasting these representations, we provide an empirical illustration of what, building on the work of Gibson-Graham and others, we term the ‘compound economy’, whose drivers, relations and logics are far more diverse and complex than mainstream and alternative models tend to suggest. We conclude by assessing the implications of the compound economy for both economic policy and geographical theory.
School-Based Mentoring for Adolescents
Authors: Wood Sarah , Mayo-Wilson Evan
Published: January 2012

Objectives: To evaluate the impact of school-based mentoring for adolescents (11–18 years) on academic performance, attendance, attitudes, behavior, and self-esteem. Method: A systematic review and meta-analysis. The authors searched 12 databases from 1980 to 2011. Eight studies with 6,072 participants were included, 6 were included in meta-analysis. Studies were assessed using the Cochrane Collaboration Risk of Bias Tool. Results: Across outcomes, effect sizes were very small (random effects), and most were not significant. The magnitude of the largest effect (for self-esteem) was close to zero, g = 0.09, [0.03, 0.14]. Conclusions: The mentoring programs included in this review did not reliably improve any of the included outcomes. Well-designed programs implemented over a longer time might achieve positive results.
ICD’s near end of life
Authors: Singh Balraj , Singh Jasmeet
Published: January 2012

The number of annual implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) implants has substantially increased over the last 5 years and is expected to grow rapidly. Implantable cardioverter defibrillators have a proven mortality benefit by terminating the life-threatening arrhythmias, even near end of life. In patients with moderate/severe symptomatic heart failure, enough clinical literature representing mortality benefits has been published, but limited numbers of studies have reviewed the dwindling risk–benefit profile near end of life, studying quality of life (QoL)/psychosocial impact. Criteria outlining either continued use or deactivation policy/procedures near end of life have not been clearly defined and/or largely implemented, which in turn requires more focused research using multifactorial approach to determine improved patient-centered outcomes.
Critical rationalism and the state of unawareness in managers’ theories
Authors: Faran Doron , Wijnhoven Fons
Published: January 2012

This essay highlights the state of unawareness to which the theories held by managers are susceptible. The essay opens up the question whether the critical rationalist approach, which specifically addresses the unawareness problem in science, is indeed inadequate for organizations as commonly argued. We suggest that organizations apply fragments of the critical rationalist approach anyway, but fail to make the whole because of certain obstructers. By specifying these obstructers we theorize that the critical rationalist approach is applicable once its obstructers are addressed properly. The most fundamental obstructer is the ‘mindless derivation’, meaning the unawareness of the major premise in managers’ theories, by which it cannot be critically discussed and consequently the theories cannot be systematically falsified. We draw an organizational theoretical system as a basis for systematic detection of unawareness and exercise it in a real illustrative case.
The effectiveness of a live case study approach: Increasing knowledge and understanding of ‘hard’ versus ‘soft’ skills in executive education
Authors: Culpin Victoria , Scott Hamish
Published: January 2012

This study sought to examine the effectiveness of a live case methodology for individuals engaged in executive development. In particular, the research examined whether ‘hard’ skills such as strategy could be developed by using a case study approach that is traditionally known for improving transferable or ‘soft’ skills. A three-day live case study was undertaken by 19 participants as part of an executive development programme on strategy. Through completion of both pre and post case study questionnaires, change scores on knowledge and understanding of a range of both ‘hard’ (strategy related) and ‘soft’ (transferable skills) skills and confidence to perform these skills effectively was calculated. The results clearly demonstrated that the use of the live case study was an excellent method for improving knowledge and understanding of strategy. However, the more surprising result was that with middle and senior managers on an executive education programme, the live case study did not significantly improve knowledge, understanding or confidence for transferable skills. The findings are discussed in relation to the current literature on the benefits of live cases, and the specific characteristics of the executive development cohort.
Work as dance
Authors: Chandler John
Published: January 2012

This article argues that use of the dance analogy has potential as an heuristic device in ethnographies of work. The nature and variety of dance is explored as a way of studying movement, gendered embodiment, audience, emotion and rhythm at work. It can thus serve to provide a richly multi-dimensional view of work, while also having the potential to draw attention to the unfolding of patterns of work over time. While such an approach has much in common with classic studies of work, as well as some more recent work that emphasizes work as embodied practice, it may also open up new avenues or at least unsettle some of the dominant ways of researching work and its organization. As such it is offered as a stimulus to debate on the nature of work and its organization and how it might be undertood. There are, however, limitations to the dance analogy and these mean that the approach might be best seen as a useful complement to approaches which focus on the verbal, rather than sufficient in itself.
Crossing party lines: Political identity and partisans’ reactions to violating party norms
Authors: Prewitt-Freilino Jennifer L. , Bosson Jennifer K. , Burnaford Rochelle M. , Weaver Jonathan R.
Published: January 2012

The current studies examined the experiences of undergraduate political partisans who cross party lines to support a preferred, out-of-party candidate, and thus open themselves to the possibility of being misclassified as a member of a rival political party. Strongly identified partisans who endorsed an out-of-party candidate, and thus expected others to misclassify them, reported heightened threats to belonging and coherence (Study 1), unless they disclaimed rival party status by asserting their political affiliation. In Study 2, strongly identified partisans who could be misclassified were less confident in their choice of an out-of-party candidate compared to partisans who asserted their political affiliation. These results highlight the impact of identity misclassification concerns on strongly identified partisans whose personal preferences are inconsistent with party norms.
Gender threats and men’s antigay behaviors: The harmful effects of asserting heterosexuality
Authors: Bosson Jennifer K. , Weaver Jonathan R. , Caswell T. Andrew , Burnaford Rochelle M.
Published: January 2012

Whereas recent work on gender role violations suggests that asserting their heterosexuality may diminish the harmful effects of gender threats (versus gender affirmations) on men’s antigay reactions, predictions derived from social identity theory suggest that asserting heterosexuality can exacerbate the negative effects of a gender threat on antigay reactions. Two studies tested these competing hypotheses. In Study 1, gender threatened versus affirmed men sent more intense noise blasts at a gay partner, but only if they asserted their heterosexuality. In Study 2, men high in sexual prejudice who underwent a gender threat sat farther from a gay confederate than gender affirmed men, but only if they asserted heterosexuality. Discussion considers the theoretical and practical implications of these findings, and highlights directions for future research.
Parametric Evaluation of Indoor Particulate Matters in Elementary Schools in the Central Parts of Tehran
Authors: Halek Farah , Kianpour-Rad Mansoor , Kavousirahim Ali
Published: January 2012

The objective of this work was to evaluate the indoor-outdoor particle size distribution in elementary schools located in central parts of Tehran and to evaluate those parameters that could be influencing the indoor particles concentrations in the classrooms. Concentrations of particles including PM10, PM2.5 and PM1.0, as some of the main air pollutants in Tehran, were measured in the schools, during winter 2009. It was found that the average indoor concentrations of PM10, PM2.5 and PM1.0 were 274 µg/m3, 42 µg/m3 and 19 µg/m3, respectively, while the outdoor concentrations for these particles were 140 µg/m3, 38 µg/m3 and 22 µg/m3, respectively. The main factors influencing indoor particle pollution were found to be the outdoor concentrations of the particles and the physical activity of the students, but other factors such as the differences between indoor and outdoor temperatures, class size dimensions and types of boards in the classrooms had negligible effects.
Unequal recognition, misrecognition and injustice: The case of religious minorities in Denmark
Authors: Lægaard Sune
Published: January 2012

Euro-multiculturalism is (1) concerned with religiously defined immigrant minorities; (2) sees policies of recognition as a means to secure multicultural equality between groups; (3) endorses the moderate secularism of European states; and (4) adopts a contextualist approach to answering the normative question. Proponents of ‘Euro-multiculturalism’ want to ask when unequal recognition by the state of religious communities is a form of misrecognition and when it is unjust (or wrong). The article discusses the question by way of an examination of the Danish case of unequal recognition by the state of religious minorities. It argues that state–religion relations can be analysed as relations of recognition, which are not only unequal but also multi-dimensional, and that it is difficult to answer the question whether multi-dimensional recognitive inequalities are unjust or wrong if one endorses moderate secularism and contextualism.
The ethnic label Zinjibari: Politics and language choice implications among Swahili speakers in Oman
Authors: Kharusi Nafla S.
Published: January 2012

The ethnic label Zinjibari in Omani society has various connotations that depend on who is using the term and about whom it is being used. Through participant observation and within the context of ethnolinguistic identity theory, this qualitative study aims to demonstrate how the label Zinjibari can function as an outgroup or ingroup label, as a mark of solidarity, as a term of prestige or as a slur. It is also proposed that these different connotations influence language choice among Oman’s Swahili speakers.
European Shiism? Counterpoints from Shiites’ organization in Britain and the Netherlands
Authors: Bos Matthijs van den
Published: January 2012

European Shiism is a neglected area in studies of European Islam, which raises the question of to what extent Shiism in Europe represents a particular realm of organization and a particular religiosity. Shiism’s striking transnational features, and general findings on European Islam, suggest prolific border-crossing and cross-ethnic organization among Shiites in Europe. Exploring British and Dutch cases, however, leaves little room for the notion of a specific European Shiite realm. When focusing on the ethnic-national background of board members of Shiite organizations and on their formal organizational interlocks, ethnically articulate identities come to the fore, particular mixes of which take shape within sub-European frameworks of states. The last section explores sociopolitical implications of Shiites’ organizational life in Europe, as seen through the Dutch and British samples. A contrast is drawn between the relative scarcity of Shiite organization, which delimits the role of Shiism as a political actor in Europe, and recent indications of civic engagement.
What a teacher hears, what a reader sees: Eye movements from a phonics-taught second grader
Authors: Brown Joel , Kim Koomi , O'Brien Ramirez Kathleen
Published: January 2012

This article examines how a second-grader demonstrates that reading is not about decoding letters and words in linear order but is a more complex activity involving the reader's decisions with respect to several aspects of their knowledge of their language and how comprehension is key to transacting with texts. The paper observes and documents the reader's reading comprehension process using eye-movement and miscue analysis (EMMA). EMMA data illuminate this reader's strengths as a reader while also demystifying misconceptions about the reading process, thus challenging the politicized phonics-first perspective found in many English-speaking countries regarding how reading is being assessed and taught.
Differences between overachieving and underachieving classes in reading: Teacher, classroom and student characteristics
Authors: Damber Ulla , Samuelsson Stefan , Taube Karin
Published: January 2012

The main purpose of this study was to examine the classroom, teacher and student factors distinguishing grade three classes performing at higher levels than expected, in relation to socioeconomic status (SES) and language factors, from classes performing below their potential with regard to the same factors. Data from a standardized reading comprehension test and student and teacher questionnaires covering teacher, classroom and student characteristics were collected. The participants were 1,092 grade three classes and their class teachers, from Stockholm, Sweden. By use of regression and a twin-matching procedure, one group of 94 underachieving classes and another group of 94 overachieving classes were formed for comparison. Data about extended voluntary reading, classroom climate, teacher experience and the use of authentic literature were seen to be the main four indicators discriminating between over- and underachieving classes beyond the impact of SES and language background.
“Deviants” and Democracy
Authors: Owens Michael Leo , Smith Adrienne R.
Published: January 2012

Punitive policy designs diminish felons as citizens. Scholars know much about the designs’ influence on felons’ political and civil rights. They know little of how policy influences felons’ social rights. Examining the discretion of states to retain or reform federal bans on drug felons receiving cash and food assistance between 1997 and 2004, we explain the choices states make about extending social rights to “deviants.” We draw from theories of neoinstitutional organization, group threat, and political incorporation. Multivariate analysis suggest that the severity of states’ penal regimes and the degree to which felons and poor people threaten social order have the greatest influence on states’ responses to the federal sanctions on drug felons. Our study informs understandings of why some states take a “punitive turn” while other states may counter convention, exercising discretion to reduce rather than increase their punitiveness toward felons specifically and lawbreaking generally.
Sevelamer for hyperphosphataemia in kidney failure: controversy and perspective
Authors: Cozzolino Mario , Rizzo Maria Antonietta , Stucchi Andrea , Cusi Daniele , Gallieni Maurizio
Published: January 2012

The term ‘chronic kidney disease–mineral and bone disorder’ (CKD–MBD), coined in 2006, was introduced in a position statement by the Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO) organization. According to the KDIGO guidelines, CKD–MBD is a systemic disorder and patients with vascular or valvular calcifications should be included in the group with the greatest cardiovascular risk. Therefore, the presence or absence of calcification is a key factor in strategy decisions for such patients. In particular, it is recommended that the use of calcium-based phosphate binders should be restricted in patients with hypercalcaemia, vascular calcification, low levels of parathyroid hormone (PTH) or adynamic bone disease. In this respect, it should be underscored that treatment with phosphate-binding agents can normalise the levels of phosphate and PTH, but the use of calcium carbonate can favour the progression of vascular calcifications. There is evidence of reduced progression of vascular calcification in patients treated with sevelamer compared with high doses of calcium-based binders, but there is as yet no strong evidence regarding hard outcomes, such as mortality or hospitalization, to support the use of one treatment over another. Nevertheless, a number of experimental and observational findings seem to suggest that sevelamer should be preferred over calcium-based binders, in as much as these can increase cardiovascular mortality when used in high doses. A threshold dose below which calcium-based binders can be used safely in CKD patients with hyperphosphatemia has yet to be established.
On the reciprocal relationship between basic and applied psychological theory
Authors: Wiesenfeld Batia M. , Brockner Joel
Published: January 2012

Good theory in organizational psychology is not only novel and interesting but also has the potential to extend existing theory. We suggest that organizational psychology can most effectively contribute to theory in the broader discipline of psychology when it leverages features that make organizations distinct from other social entities, such as families and communities. We identify several of these distinctive features and provide examples to illustrate how they can serve as a foundation for advancing theory.
High-Energy Proximal Femur Fractures in Geriatric Patients
Authors: Hahnhaussen Jens , Hak David J , Weckbach Sebastian , Ertel Wolfgang , Stahel Philip F
Published: January 2012

Background: There is limited information in the literature on the outcomes and complications in elderly patients who sustain high-energy hip fractures. As the population ages, the incidence of high-energy geriatric hip fractures is expected to increase. The purpose of this study was to analyze the outcomes and complications in patients aged 65 years or older, who sustained a high-energy proximal femur fracture. Methods: Retrospective review of a prospective trauma database from January 2000 to April 2011 at a single US academic level-1 trauma center. Inclusion criteria consisted of all patients of age 65 years or older, who sustained a proximal femur fracture related to a high-energy trauma mechanism. Details concerning injury, acute treatment, and clinical course and outcome were obtained from medical records and radiographs. Results: We identified 509 proximal femur fractures in patients older than 65 years of age, of which 32 (6.3%) were related to a high-energy trauma mechanism. The mean age in the study group was 72.2 years (range 65-87), with a mean injury severity score of 20 points (range 9-57). Three patients died before discharge (9.4%), and 22 of 32 patients sustained at least one complication (68.8%). Blunt chest trauma represented the most frequently associated injury, and the main root cause of pulmonary complications. The patients' age and comorbidities did not significantly correlate with the rate of complications and the 1-year mortality. Conclusions: High-energy proximal femur fractures in elderly patients are not very common and are associated with a low in-hospital mortality rate of less than 10%, despite high rate of complications of nearly 70%. This selective cohort of patients requires a particular attention to respiratory management due to the high incidence of associated chest trauma.
Synthesis of fluorinated methacrylate/epoxy siloxane copolymer coatings applied on glass substrates and analysis of some physical properties
Authors: Tang Chunyi , Nan Gao
Published: January 2012

By using glycidyl methacrylate, methacrylate and 2,2,3,4,4,4-hexafluorobutyl methacrylate as monomers, a series of binary and ternary cationic ultraviolet (UV)-curable copolymers were synthesized, and their structures were characterized. These copolymers were coated on glass substrates and cured with an epoxy siloxane under UV irradiation, and the contact angle, chemical ability, gloss, light transmittance, as well as thermal degradation on set temperature of the cured films were determined. The results indicated that the cured coatings showed more than 80% gloss and more than 85% visible light transmittance. The ternary copolymers showed relatively high stability if immersed in water and if immersed in acidic and basic solutions. The observed higher stability was considered as a result of the highly stable chemical structure of the terpolymer and of the presence of fluorinated- and siloxane-containing moieties.
Endotoxin-induced cytokine and chemokine expression in the HIV-1 transgenic rat
Authors: Homji Natasha F , Mao Xin , Langsdorf Erik F , Chang Sulie L
Published: January 2012

Background

Repeated exposure to a low dose of a bacterial endotoxin such as lipopolysaccharide (LPS) causes immune cells to become refractory to a subsequent endotoxin challenge, a phenomenon known as endotoxin tolerance (ET). During ET, there is an imbalance in pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokine and chemokine production, leading to a dysregulated immune response. HIV-1 viral proteins are known to have an adverse effect on the immune system. However, the effects of HIV-1 viral proteins during ET have not been investigated.

Methods

In this study, HIV-1 transgenic (HIV-1Tg) rats and control F344 rats (n = 12 ea) were randomly treated with 2 non-pyrogenic doses of LPS (LL) to induce ET, or saline (SS), followed by a high challenge dose of LPS (LL+L, SS+L) or saline (LL+S, SS+S). The gene expression of 84 cytokines, chemokines, and their receptors in the brain and spleen was examined by relative quantitative PCR using a PCR array, and protein levels in the brain, spleen, and serum of 7 of these 84 genes was determined using an electrochemiluminescent assay.

Results

In the spleen, there was an increase in key pro-inflammatory (IL1α, IL-1β, IFN-γ) and anti-inflammatory (IL-10) cytokines, and inflammatory chemokines (Ccl2, Ccl7, and Ccl9,) in response to LPS in the SS+L and LL+L (ET) groups of both the HIV-1Tg and F344 rats, but was greater in the HIV-1Tg rats than in the F344. In the ET HIV-1Tg and F344 (LL+L) rats in the spleen, the LPS-induced increase in pro-inflammatory cytokines was diminished and that of the anti-inflammatory cytokine was enhanced compared to the SS+L group rats. In the brain, IL-1β, as well as the Ccl2, Ccl3, and Ccl7 chemokines were increased to a greater extent in the HIV-1Tg rats compared to the F344; whereas Cxcl1, Cxcl10, and Cxcl11 were increased to a greater extent in the F344 rats compared to the HIV-1Tg rats in the LL+L and SS+L groups.

Conclusion

Our data indicate that the continuous presence of HIV-1 viral proteins can have tissue-dependent effects on endotoxin-induced cytokine and chemokine expression in the ET state.
Effect of pre-weaning concentrate supplementation on peripheral distribution of leukocytes, functional activity of neutrophils, acute phase protein and behavioural responses of abruptly weaned and housed beef calves
Authors: Lynch Eilish M , McGee Mark , Doyle Sean , Earley Bernadette
Published: January 2012

Background

The effect of pre-weaning concentrate supplementation on peripheral distribution of leukocytes, functional activity of neutrophils, acute phase protein response, metabolic and behavioural response, and performance of abruptly weaned and housed beef calves was investigated. Calves were grazed with their dams until the end of the grazing season when they were weaned and housed (day (d) 0) in a concrete slatted floor shed, and offered grass silage ad libitum plus supplementary concentrates. Twenty-six days prior to weaning and housing, 20 singled suckled, pure-bred Simmental male (non-castrated), (n = 10, m) and female (n = 10, f) calves were assigned to one of two treatments (i) concentrate supplement (CS: n = 10 (5 m and 5 f), mean age (s.d.) 201 (12.8) d, mean weight (s.d.) 258 (20.2) kg) or (ii) no concentrate supplement (controls) (NCS: n = 10, (5 m and 5 f), mean age (s.d.) 201 (13.4) d, mean weight (s.d.) 257 (19.6) kg) pre-weaning.

Results

There was a treatment × sampling time interaction (P < 0.05) for percentage CD4+ and WC1+ (γδ T cells) lymphocytes and concentration of plasma globulin. On d 2, percentage CD4+ lymphocytes decreased (P < 0.001) in both treatments. Subsequently on d 7, percentage of CD4+ lymphocytes increased (P < 0.01) in CS compared with d 0, whereas percentage of CD4+ lymphocytes in NCS did not differ (P > 0.05) from d 0. On d 2, WC1+ lymphocytes decreased (P < 0.05) in both treatments but the decrease was greater (P < 0.05) in NCS than CS. Subsequently, percentages did not differ (P > 0.05) from pre-weaning baseline. On d 2, the increase in concentration of globulin was greater (P < 0.05) in CS compared with NCS, and subsequently there was no difference between treatments. Pre-weaning ADG was 1.07 (s.e.m.) (0.26) kg and 0.99 (s.e.m.) (0.26) kg for CS and NCS, respectively. Post-weaning, CS calves spent more time lying compared with NCS calves.

Conclusions

Calves supplemented with concentrate prior to weaning had a lesser reduction in WC1+ lymphocytes, increased percentage CD4+ lymphocytes and concentration of total protein, and spent more time lying post-weaning, compared with non-supplemented calves.
NMDA receptor activation stimulates transcription-independent rapid wnt5a protein synthesis via the MAPK signaling pathway
Authors: Li Yichen , Li Bei , Wan Xianzi , Zhang Wei , Zhong Ling , Tang Shao-Jun
Published: January 2012

Wnt proteins are emerging key regulators of the plasticity and functions of adult brains. However, the mechanisms by which the expression of Wnt proteins is regulated in neurons are unclear. Using cortical primary cultures, we show here that activation of NMDA receptors (NMDARs) induces rapid Wnt5a protein synthesis and secretion. This NMDAR-regulated Wnt5a synthesis does not require transcription and is a result of activity-dependent translation. We also show that NMDAR-regulated Wnt5a translation depends on MAPK signaling but not mTOR signaling. Our findings suggest that the synaptic activity of CNS neurons activates NMDARs, which in turn stimulate translation from stored Wnt5a mRNA via the MAPK signaling pathway.
Bmp signaling regulates a dose-dependent transcriptional program to control facial skeletal development
Authors: Bonilla-Claudio Margarita , Wang Jun , Bai Yan , Klysik Elzbieta , Selever Jennifer , Martin James F.
Published: January 2012

We performed an in depth analysis of Bmp4, a critical regulator of development, disease, and evolution, in cranial neural crest (CNC). Conditional Bmp4 overexpression, using a tetracycline-regulated Bmp4 gain-of-function allele, resulted in facial skeletal changes that were most dramatic after an E10.5 Bmp4 induction. Expression profiling uncovered a signature of Bmp4-induced genes (BIG) composed predominantly of transcriptional regulators that control self-renewal, osteoblast differentiation and negative Bmp autoregulation. The complimentary experiment, CNC inactivation of Bmp2, Bmp4 and Bmp7, resulted in complete or partial loss of multiple CNC-derived skeletal elements, revealing a crucial requirement for Bmp signaling in membranous bone and cartilage development. Importantly, the BIG signature was reduced in Bmp loss-of-function mutants, indicating Bmp-regulated target genes are modulated by Bmp dose. Chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) revealed a subset of the BIG signature, including Satb2, Smad6, Hand1, Gadd45γ and Gata3, that was bound by Smad1/5 in the developing mandible, revealing direct Smad-mediated regulation. These data support the hypothesis that Bmp signaling regulates craniofacial skeletal development by balancing self-renewal and differentiation pathways in CNC progenitors.
Aripiprazole: Trichotillomania
Authors: Joyce A. Generali , Dennis J. Cada
Published: January 2012

This Hospital Pharmacy feature is extracted from Off-Label Drug Facts, a quarterly publication available from Wolters Kluwer Health. Off-Label Drug Facts is a practitioner-oriented resource for information about specific drug uses that are unapproved by the US Food and Drug Administration. This new guide to the literature enables the health care professional or clinician to quickly identify published studies on off-label uses and determine if a specific use is rational in a patient care scenario. References direct the reader to the full literature for more comprehensive information before patient care decisions are made. Direct questions or comments regarding Off-Label Drug Uses to jgeneral@kumc.edu .
Approvals, Submission, and Important Labeling Changes for us Marketed Pharmaceuticals
Authors: Danial E. Baker
Published: January 2012

This monthly feature will help readers keep current on new drugs, new indications, dosage forms, and safety-related changes in labeling or use. Efforts have been made to ensure the accuracy of this information; however, if there are any questions, please let me know at bakerdan@wsu.edu .
Two Important Topics for 2012: Electronic Health Records and mHealth
Authors: Brent I. Fox , Bill G. Felkey
Published: January 2012

As the new year begins, we like to reflect on where health information technology (IT) has been and where it is going. We are not fond of rehashing the minutia regarding every event that occurred in the health IT domain, so we will not spend our time and space presenting an exhaustive review. We will, however, touch on the continuing efforts surrounding electronic health records (EHRs). We will also focus forward in discussing an emerging area that we are closely following.
The Energetics of CNS White Matter
Authors: Harris Julia J. , Attwell David
Published: January 2012

The energetics of CNS white matter are poorly understood. We derive a signaling energy budget for the white matter (based on data from the rodent optic nerve and corpus callosum) which can be compared with previous energy budgets for the gray matter regions of the brain, perform a cost-benefit analysis of the energetics of myelination, and assess mechanisms for energy production and glucose supply in myelinated axons. We show that white matter synapses consume ≤0.5% of the energy of gray matter synapses and that this, rather than more energy-efficient action potentials, is the main reason why CNS white matter uses less energy than gray matter. Surprisingly, while the energetic cost of building myelin could be repaid within months by the reduced ATP cost of neuronal action potentials, the energetic cost of maintaining the oligodendrocyte resting potential usually outweighs the saving on action potentials. Thus, although it dramatically speeds action potential propagation, myelination need not save energy. Finally, we show that mitochondria in optic nerve axons could sustain measured firing rates with a plausible density of glucose transporters in the nodal membrane, without the need for energy transfer from oligodendrocytes.
Echoes of the Brain within the Posterior Cingulate Cortex
Authors: Leech Robert , Braga Rodrigo , Sharp David J.
Published: January 2012

There is considerable uncertainty about the function of the posterior cingulate cortex (PCC). The PCC is a major node within the default mode network (DMN) and has high metabolic activity and dense structural connectivity to widespread brain regions, which suggests it has a role as a cortical hub. The region appears to be involved in internally directed thought, for example, memory recollection. However, recent nonhuman primate work provides evidence for a more active role in the control of cognition, through signaling an environmental change and the need to alter behavior. For an organism to flexibly react to a changing environment, information processed in functionally distinct brain networks needs to be integrated by such a cortical hub. If the PCC is involved in this process, its brain activity should show a complex and dynamic pattern that partially reflects activity in other brain networks. Using fMRI in humans and a multivariate analysis, we demonstrate that the PCC shows this type of complex functional architecture, where echoes of multiple other brain networks are seen in separable yet overlapping subregions. For example, a predominantly ventral region shows strong functional connectivity to the rest of the DMN, whereas two subregions within the dorsal PCC show high connectivity to frontoparietal networks involved in cognitive control. PCC subregions showed distinct patterns of activity modulation during the performance of an attentionally demanding task, suggesting that parts of the dorsal PCC interact with frontoparietal networks to regulate the balance between internally and externally directed cognition.
Micro-Positron Emission Tomography Imaging of Rat Brain Metabolism during Expression of Contextual Conditioning
Authors: Luyten Laura , Casteels Cindy , Vansteenwegen Debora , van Kuyck Kris , Koole Michel , Van Laere Koen , Nuttin Bart
Published: January 2012

Using18F-fluorodeoxygluose microPET imaging, we investigated the neurocircuitry of contextual anxiety versus control in awake, conditioned rats (n= 7–10 per group). In addition, we imaged a group expressing cued fear. Simultaneous measurements of startle amplitude and freezing time were used to assess conditioning. To the best of our knowledge, no neuroimaging studies in conditioned rats have been conducted thus far, although visualizing and quantifying the metabolism of the intact brain in behaving animals is clearly of interest. In addition, more insight into the neurocircuitry involved in contextual anxiety may stimulate the development of new treatments for anxiety disorders. Our main finding was hypermetabolism in a cluster comprising the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BST) in rats expressing contextual anxiety compared with controls. Analysis of a subset of rats showing the best behavioral results (n= 5 per subgroup) confirmed this finding. We also observed hypermetabolism in the same cluster in rats expressing contextual anxiety compared with rats expressing cued fear. Our results provide novel evidence for a role of the BST in the expression of contextual anxiety.
Initiation and Propagation of Action Potentials in Gonadotropin-Releasing Hormone Neuron Dendrites
Authors: Iremonger Karl J. , Herbison Allan E.
Published: January 2012

Gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) neurons are the final output neurons in a complex neuronal network that regulates fertility. The morphology of GnRH neuron dendrites is very different to other central neurons in that they are very long, thin, and unbranched. To study the function of these dendrites, we have used Na+and Ca2+imaging in combination with dual soma and dendrite electrical recordings in brain slices from GnRH-GFP mice. Here, we show that GnRH neurons actively propagate Na+spikes throughout their dendrites. Multisite dendritic recordings confirmed that these spikes were observed in one of the dendrites before the soma in the great majority of neurons tested. Na+imaging experiments revealed that the initial 150 μm of dendrite has a higher density of functional Na+channels than more distal regions, suggesting that this region of dendrite is highly excitable and may be the site of spike initiation. Finally, we show that the depolarization from dendritic spikes opens voltage-gated Ca2+channels giving rise to dendritic Ca2+transients. Together, these findings suggest that the proximal dendrites of GnRH neurons are highly excitable and are likely to be the site of action potential initiation in these neurons.
Transformation-Tolerant Object Recognition in Rats Revealed by Visual Priming
Authors: Tafazoli Sina , Di Filippo Alessandro , Zoccolan Davide
Published: January 2012

Successful use of rodents as models for studying object vision crucially depends on the ability of their visual system to construct representations of visual objects that tolerate (i.e., remain relatively unchanged with respect to) the tremendous changes in object appearance produced, for instance, by size and viewpoint variation. Whether this is the case is still controversial, despite some recent demonstration of transformation-tolerant object recognition in rats. In fact, it remains unknown to what extent such a tolerant recognition has a spontaneous, perceptual basis, or, alternatively, mainly reflects learning of arbitrary associative relations among trained object appearances. In this study, we addressed this question by training rats to categorize a continuum of morph objects resulting from blending two object prototypes. The resulting psychometric curve (reporting the proportion of responses to one prototype along the morph line) served as a reference when, in a second phase of the experiment, either prototype was briefly presented as a prime, immediately before a test morph object. The resulting shift of the psychometric curve showed that recognition became biased toward the identity of the prime. Critically, this bias was observed also when the primes were transformed along a variety of dimensions (i.e., size, position, viewpoint, and their combination) that the animals had never experienced before. These results indicate that rats spontaneously perceive different views/appearances of an object as similar (i.e., as instances of the same object) and argue for the existence of neuronal substrates underlying formation of transformation-tolerant object representations in rats.
Dihydromyricetin As a Novel Anti-Alcohol Intoxication Medication
Authors: Shen Yi , Lindemeyer A. Kerstin , Gonzalez Claudia , Shao Xuesi M. , Spigelman Igor , Olsen Richard W. , Liang Jing
Published: January 2012

Alcohol use disorders (AUDs) constitute the most common form of substance abuse. The development of AUDs involves repeated alcohol use leading to tolerance, alcohol withdrawal syndrome, and physical and psychological dependence, with loss of ability to control excessive drinking. Currently there is no effective therapeutic agent for AUDs without major side effects. Dihydromyricetin (DHM; 1 mg/kg, i.p. injection), a flavonoid component of herbal medicines, counteracted acute alcohol (EtOH) intoxication, and also withdrawal signs in rats including tolerance, increased anxiety, and seizure susceptibility; DHM greatly reduced EtOH consumption in an intermittent voluntary EtOH intake paradigm in rats. GABAAreceptors (GABAARs) are major targets of acute and chronic EtOH actions on the brain. At the cellular levels, DHM (1 μm) antagonized both acute EtOH-induced potentiation of GABAARs and EtOH exposure/withdrawal-induced GABAAR plasticity, including alterations in responsiveness of extrasynaptic and postsynaptic GABAARs to acute EtOH and, most importantly, increases in GABAAR α4 subunit expression in hippocampus and cultured neurons. DHM anti-alcohol effects on both behavior and CNS neurons were antagonized by flumazenil (10 mg/kgin vivo; 10 μmin vitro), the benzodiazepine (BZ) antagonist. DHM competitively inhibited BZ-site [3H]flunitrazepam binding (IC50, 4.36 μm), suggesting DHM interaction with EtOH involves the BZ sites on GABAARs. In summary, we determined DHM anti-alcoholic effects on animal models and determined a major molecular target and cellular mechanism of DHM for counteracting alcohol intoxication and dependence. We demonstrated pharmacological properties of DHM consistent with those expected to underlie successful medical treatment of AUDs; therefore DHM is a therapeutic candidate.