bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Locking the unlockable: Children’s invocation of pretence to define and manage place
Authors: Cobb-Moore Charlotte , Danby Susan , Farrell Ann
Published: September 2010

Young children use pretence in their interactions with their peers. This article focuses on their use of pretence to establish, define and formulate places within their peer interaction. A talk-in-interaction approach is used to analyse video-recorded and transcribed interactions of children aged 4—6 years in the block area of an early childhood classroom in Australia. The complex and collaborative interactive work of the children produced shared understandings of pretence, which they used as a device to manage their use of classroom physical and social spaces.
Regional development and regional networks: The role of regional development officers in Finland
Authors: Sotarauta Markku
Published: September 2010

People responsible for regional development often understand fairly well the need to construct regional advantage and build clusters. They also know the importance of industry—university interaction and they have been taught to respect innovation systems and to build them. But what they have not been given much advice on is how to do it — how to create networks for these purposes, how to direct and maintain them, how to lead complex policy networks. Network management, or leadership in networks, in the context of regional economic development is a black box not only for practitioners but for academics too. The research questions discussed here are: a) what do regional development officers actually do in the early 21st century to gain influence in policy networks, and hence in their efforts to promote regional development, and b), related to the first question, what are the key processes in their efforts to mobilize policy networks and guide them. The empirical research is based on data gathered through 41 interviews with Finnish actors responsible for the promotion of regional development at different levels of regional development activity.
Feasibility of a Webinar for Coaching Patients With Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease on End-of-Life Communication
Authors: Reinke Lynn F. , Griffith Randall G. , Wolpin Seth , Donesky-Cuenco DorAnne , Carrieri-Kohlman Virginia , Nguyen Huong Q.
Published: September 2010

Rationale: Previous research has shown that patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) desire conversations about end-of-life wishes. However, most clinicians do not initiate these discussions. We explored whether educating patients via Web conferencing (webinar) would equip them with knowledge and skills to engage in conversations about end-of-life care. Results: Prewebinar, 6 of the 7 patients had completed advanced care planning forms but only half had shared these with their clinicians. Most patients felt confident about discussing end-of-life preferences. At 3 months, all participants had taken further action on end-of-life planning. Five felt the webinar was an acceptable option if unable to participate in person. All patients voiced that adding a video stream would have promoted interaction in the context of these sensitive conversations. Conclusions: This pilot project demonstrated that a webinar to educate patients on end-of-life communication was acceptable for the majority of patients. Improvements in audio and video bandwidth may facilitate more interaction among virtual participants. This may be particularly useful for patient education on sensitive topics.
Characteristics of Prison Hospice Programs in the United States
Authors: Hoffman Heath C. , Dickinson George E.
Published: September 2010

Hospice programs have emerged over the last 40 years as both an effective and humane practice for responding to terminal illnesses in the free society. More recently, hospice has diffused throughout state, federal, and municipal correctional systems. Thus, we sought via a mailed survey of the 69 known prison hospice programs in the United States (response rate of 62%) to determine how prison hospice programs were similar or dissimilar to hospices in the free society. Our findings suggest that prison hospices have a more stringent screening process for volunteers and require more volunteer training prior to interacting with a hospice patient. Prison hospice programs tend to follow both the National Prison Hospice Association and the GRACE Project guidelines.
Introduction: The Continuing Legacy of Melvin Ember (1933-2009)
Authors: Peregrine Peter N.
Published: September 2010

This article introduces the special issue and provides a brief overview of Melvin Ember’s life and work.
Monitoring of the Anticoagulants Argatroban and Lepirudin
Authors: Ivandic Boris , Zorn Markus
Published: September 2010

Monitoring of direct inhibitors of thrombin (DTI) is critical for their safe and effective use as anticoagulants. We examined samples containing several concentrations of argatroban or lepirudin in reconstituted standard human plasma and plasma from medical outpatients and intensive care patients. Prothrombin time (PT), activated partial thromboplastin time (aPTT), and thrombin time (TT) were determined using automated analyzers. Ecarin clotting time (ECT) was measured using a 10 IU/mL dilution of ecarin in 0.05 mol/L CaCl2. Calibration curves were approximately linear for TT and ECT in samples containing argatroban and lepirudin, respectively. Activated partial thromboplastin curves reached a plateau at DTI concentrations ≥2 µg/mL, suggesting that the aPTT may not reliably detect overdosing. Prothrombin time increased exponentially. A broad range of clotting times was seen in patient samples with all tests suggesting that individual morbidity and therapies may strongly influence test results and may lead to underestimation of DTI doses.
Treatment of concurrent metastatic renal cell carcinoma and chronic myelogenous leukemia – easier said than done? A case report
Authors: Al-Najjar Fouad , Jarkowski Anthony
Published: September 2010

Treating two active malignancies concurrently can be exceedingly difficult. Complications can occur from the different treatment regimens, especially if they share common targets, and the progressing diseases can make managing treatment side-effects even more challenging. We report a case of a patient with coexisting CML and mRCC who progressed on multiple lines of mRCC therapy while experiencing significant dose limiting side-effects.
Transcriptional characteristics of CD4+ T cells in multiple sclerosis: Relative lack of suppressive populations in blood
Authors: Edström M , Mellergård J , Mjösberg J , Jenmalm MC , Vrethem M , Press R , Dahle C , Ernerudh J
Published: September 2010

Background:Multiple sclerosis (MS) is hypothetically caused by autoreactive Th1 and Th17 cells, whereas Th2 and regulatory T cells may confer protection. The development of Th subpopulations is dependant on the expression of lineage-specific transcription factors.

Objective:The aim of this study was to assess the balance of CD4+T cell populations in relapsing-remitting MS.

Methods:Blood mRNA expression of TBX21, GATA3, RORC, FOXP3 and EBI3 was assessed in 33 patients with relapsing-remitting MS and 20 healthy controls. In addition, flow cytometry was performed to assess T lymphocyte numbers.

Results:In relapsing-remitting MS, diminished expression of FOXP3 (Treg) was found ( p < 0.05), despite normal numbers of CD4+CD25hiTreg. Immunoregulatory EBI3 and Th2-associated GATA3 ([a-z]+) was also decreased in MS ( p < 0.005 and p < 0.05, respectively). Expression of TBX21 (Th1) and RORC (Th17) did not differ between patients and controls. Similar changes were observed when analysing beta-interferon treated ( n = 12) or untreated ( n = 21) patients. Analysis of transcription factor ratios, comparing TBX21/GATA3 and RORC/FOXP3, revealed an increase in the RORC/FOXP3 ratio in patients with relapsing-remitting MS ( p < 0.005).

Conclusion:Our findings indicate systemic defects at the mRNA level, involving downregulation of beneficial CD4+phenotypes. This might play a role in disease development by permitting activation of harmful T cell populations.
Organ Donation in Aotearoa/New Zealand: Cultural Phenomenology and Moral Humility
Authors: Shaw Rhonda
Published: September 2010

In Aotearoa/New Zealand, organ donation and transplantation rates for Māori and non-Māori differ. This article outlines why this is so, and why some groups may be reticent about or object to organ donation and transplantation. In order to do this, I draw on the conceptual and methodological lens of phenomenology and apply what Van Manen calls the existential themes of lived body (corporeality), lived space (spatiality), lived time (temporality) and lived other (relationality and communality) to a discussion of the cultural values and spiritual beliefs of Māori around tissue donation. Specifically, the aim of the article is to encourage non-Māori, who will already be aware that diverse cultural traditions transmit different beliefs about organ donation and transplantation, to recognize the existence of a deeper understanding of what this difference may mean for people on a felt level and how it might impact on lived experience.
Hand Transplants and Bodily Integrity
Authors: Slatman Jenny , Widdershoven Guy
Published: September 2010

In this article, we present an analysis of bodily integrity in hand transplants from a phenomenological narrative perspective, while drawing on two contrasting case stories. We consider bodily integrity as the subjective bodily experience of wholeness which, instead of referring to actual bodily intactness, involves a positive identification with one’s physical body. Bodily mutilations, such as the loss of a hand, may severely affect one’s bodily integrity. A possible restoration of one’s experience of wholeness requires a process of re-identification. Medical interventions, such as a hand transplant, may improve the possibility of a successful re-identification. However, since the experience of wholeness does not refer simply to physical intactness or impairment, the choice for medical intervention should not be based merely upon the degree of physical mutilation. It should also be based upon the degree to which a person fails in re-identifying with his or her mutilated body. We argue that a normalizing operation is only ethically justifiable if the intervention enables the person to be the body he or she has.
Living a ‘Phantom Limb’: On the Phenomenology of Bodily Integrity
Authors: Sobchack Vivian
Published: September 2010

This article is a phenomenological exploration and description of certain selected aspects of living the specificities and conundrums posed by what is usually, if problematically, called a ‘phantom limb’. Using my own body as an ‘intimate laboratory’, I attend to the dynamics and mutability of the supposed ‘phantom’, both during the post-operative period of the above-the-knee amputation of my left leg as well as after I began to use and incorporate my prosthetic leg. Throughout, I explore the reversible aspects of my two legs as ‘phantom’ and ‘real’, present and absent, and visible and invisible — paying attention, as well, to the lived and linguistic sense we make of our bodies in ‘parts’ and our bodies as ‘whole’.
Fetal sex determination: Obstetricians’ attitudes in antenatal screening units in Finland
Authors: Jylhä Marika E. , Kirkinen Pertti P. , Puura Kaija L. , Tomas Eija I.
Published: September 2010

Aim: To study obstetricians’ attitudes in Finnish antenatal screening units concerning fetal sex determination without medical indication. Methods: A structured questionnaire to all delivery units (n = 37) and the main outpatient screening units (n = 18) in the country. Results: The majority of units made fetal sex determination without medical indication at patient’s request during the second-trimester ultrasonographic screening. This examination was seen to have consequences for maternal—fetal attachment, but it was also considered medically useless and sometimes harmful. Only three out of the responding 32 units maintained quality control of the examination. A false diagnosis resulted extremely seldom in any litigation process. Conclusions: More precise guidelines are needed for fetal sex determination in healthcare organisation.
Deliberate self-harm and associated factors in 17-year-old Swedish students
Authors: Landstedt Evelina , Gillander Gådin Katja
Published: September 2010

Background: Deliberate self-harm (DSH) in young people is an important public health issue. To prevent DSH, more knowledge is needed about its prevalence and associated contextual factors in community samples of adolescents. Aims: To determine the prevalence of deliberate self-harm in 17-year-old Swedish students and to explore the association of demographic variables, psychological distress, experiences of violence, and school-related factors with DSH. Methods: Data were derived from a cross-sectional study in which 17-year-old students completed questionnaires during school hours (n = 1,663; 78.3%). The variables used in this analysis are as follows: deliberate self-harm, demographic variables, psychological distress, experiences of violence, and school-related factors. Data were analysed using chi-squared statistics and logistic regression. Results: The lifetime prevalence of DSH was 17%, and it was more common among girls (23.3%) than boys (10.5%). There were considerable socioeconomic differences in reports of DSH. Psychological distress was strongly associated with DSH in both boys and girls, as were experiences of bullying, sexual harassment, physical violence and sexual assault. Social support, safety and academic factors in school were related to reports of DSH in both girls and boys. There were some gender differences with respect to which factors were associated with DSH. Conclusions: Deliberate self-harm is common and more frequently reported by girls than boys. Psychological distress, experiences of different types of violence, and school-related factors (academic, social and safety-related), should be considered risk factors for DSH in young people. Findings can be applied to health-promotion policy and interventions in various contexts, for example schools.
Psychometric Properties of the HRQOLISP-40: A Novel, Shortened Multiculturally Valid Holistic Stroke Measure
Authors: Ojo Owolabi Mayowa
Published: September 2010

Background. A recent review showed that no existing instrument measured the entire spectrum of health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in stroke patients. However, the HRQOL in stroke patients (HRQOLISP) questionnaire is valid and exceptionally comprehensive. Founded on a holistic model of human life, it comprises both physical and spiritual spheres. However, its 102-item length may discourage routine use. Therefore, the aim was to determine the psychometric attributes of a shortened version based on a multicultural transnational study. Methods. HRQOLISP was administered to 100 stroke patients in Ibadan, 103 in Berlin, and control groups of 100 apparently healthy adults in Ibadan and 50 in Berlin. Analyzing data from both cities, items were reduced to 40. Construct validity of the resulting HRQOLISP-40 was assessed by comparison with the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS), Stroke Levity Scale (SLS), modified Rankin Scale (mRS), and Short Form 36 (SF-36) Health Survey. Results. In multicultural settings, the HRQOLISP-40 showed good internal consistency (α = .76, .86) and test-retest reliability. It retained its discriminant validity between stroke and healthy participants and demonstrated good “known-groups” validity in its relationship to the SLS, NIHSS, and mRS in the physical sphere. The physical sphere showed good convergent validity with corresponding facets of the SF-36. Conclusions. Despite item reduction, the HRQOLISP-40 demonstrated excellent psychometric properties and is valid for routine use and clinical trials in stroke. The relative preservation of the spiritual sphere demonstrated the concept of disability disparity. Its ability to simultaneously assess the physical and spiritual spheres may be beneficial in studies aimed at potentiating internal adaptation in stroke patients.
Managerial Use of Power Bases in a Model of Managerial Empowerment Practices and Employee Psychological Empowerment
Authors: Randolph W. Alan , Kemery Edward R.
Published: September 2010

This paper explores the potentially central role that managers play in a model of empowerment. Issues of organizational goal accomplishment and employee trust often plague application of empowerment practices, and managers likely play a vital role in the successful implementation of empowerment. In this study, managerial use of power bases (reward, expert, referent, legitimate, coercive) was proposed to impact the relationship between managerial empowerment practices and employee psychological empowerment. We found a positive relationship between empowerment practices and psychological empowerment. Managerial use of power bases (as perceived by subordinates) was related to empowerment practices and psychological empowerment. Finally, managerial use of power bases fully mediated the relationship between managerial empowerment practices and employee psychological empowerment. We call for further research into the managerial use of power bases in developing a more complete model of empowerment.
The Relationship of Employee Perceptions of the Immediate Supervisor and Top Management With Collective Efficacy
Authors: Borgogni Laura , Dello Russo Silvia , Latham Gary P.
Published: September 2010

Middle-level managers ( N = 1,149) in an Italian service organization were administered a questionnaire that assessed self- and collective efficacy in dealing with job responsibilities and tasks, perceptions of their immediate supervisor regarding support and encouragement, perceptions of top management regarding the coordination of different units and communication, and affective organizational commitment and job satisfaction. Structural equation modeling supported (a) the differential relationship of perceptions of two levels of leadership with group collective efficacy and (b) their mediating role between self- and collective efficacy. Moreover, both perceptions of the immediate supervisor and group collective efficacy displayed a strong relationship with job satisfaction. Perceptions of top management and group collective efficacy were related to organizational commitment. These results suggest ways to enhance group collective efficacy beliefs.
Indirect Catastrophic Injuries in Olympic Styles of Wrestling in Iran
Authors: Kordi Ramin , Ziaee Vahid , Rostami Mohsen , Wallace W. Angus
Published: September 2010

Background:

Data on indirect catastrophic injuries in wrestling are scarce.

Objectives:

To develop a profile of indirect catastrophic injuries in international styles of wrestling and to describe possible risk factors.

Study Design:

Retrospective case series; Level of evidence, 3.

Methods:

Indirect catastrophic injuries that occurred in wrestling clubs in Iran from July 1998 to June 2005 were identified by contacting several sources. The cases were retrospectively reviewed.

Results:

The injuries included 9 indirect catastrophic injuries. The injury rate was 0.62 injuries per 100 000 wrestlers per year. The majority of indirect injuries were cardiovascular events in veteran groups of wrestlers.

Conclusions:

Indirect catastrophic wrestling injuries are rare and present most commonly in older athletes. Coronary artery disease was the main cause.
T-cell receptor signals direct the composition and function of the memory CD8+ T-cell pool
Authors: Smith-Garvin Jennifer E. , Burns Jeremy C. , Gohil Mercy , Zou Tao , Kim Jiyeon S. , Maltzman Jonathan S. , Wherry E. John , Koretzky Gary A. , Jordan Martha S.
Published: September 2010

SH2 domain-containing leukocyte phosphoprotein of 76 kDa (SLP-76) nucleates a signaling complex critical for T-cell receptor (TCR) signal propagation. Mutations in the tyrosines of SLP-76 result in graded defects in TCR-induced signals depending on the tyrosine(s) affected. Here we use 2 strains of genomic knock-in mice expressing tyrosine to phenylalanine mutations to examine the role of TCR signals in the differentiation of effector and memory CD8+ T cells in response to infection in vivo. Our data support a model in which altered TCR signals can determine the rate of memory versus effector cell differentiation independent of initial T-cell expansion. Furthermore, we show that TCR signals sufficient to promote CD8+ T-cell differentiation are different from those required to elicit inflammatory cytokine production.
Knockdown and overexpression of Unc-45b result in defective myofibril organization in skeletal muscles of zebrafish embryos
Authors: Bernick Elena P , Zhang Pei-Jun , Du Shaojun
Published: September 2010

Background

Unc-45 is a myosin chaperone and a Hsp90 co-chaperone that plays a key role in muscle development. Genetic and biochemical studies in C. elegans have demonstrated that Unc-45 facilitates the process of myosin folding and assembly in body wall muscles. Loss or overexpression of Unc-45 in C. elegans results in defective myofibril organization. In the zebrafish Danio rerio, unc-45b, a homolog of C. elegans unc-45, is expressed in both skeletal and cardiac muscles. Earlier studies indicate that mutation or knockdown of unc-45b expression in zebrafish results in a phenotype characterized by a loss of both thick and thin filament organization in skeletal and cardiac muscle. The effects of unc-45b knockdown on other sarcomeric structures and the phenotype of Unc-45b overexpression, however, are poorly understood in vertebrates.

Results

Both knockdown and overexpression provide useful tools to study gene function during animal development. Using such methods, we characterized the role of Unc-45b in myofibril assembly of skeletal muscle in Danio rerio. We showed that, in addition to thick and thin filament defects, knockdown of unc-45b expression disrupted sarcomere organization in M-lines and Z-lines of skeletal muscles in zebrafish embryos. Western blotting analysis showed that myosin protein levels were significantly decreased in unc-45b knockdown embryos. Similarly, embryos overexpressing Unc-45b also exhibited severely disorganized myosin thick filaments. Disruption of thick filament organization by Unc-45b overexpression depends on the C-terminal UCS domain in Unc-45b required for interaction with myosin. Deletion of the C-terminal UCS domain abolished the disruptive activity of Unc-45b in myosin thick filament organization. In contrast, deletion of the N-terminal TPR domain required for binding with Hsp90α had no effect.

Conclusion

Collectively, these studies indicate that the expression levels of Unc-45b must be precisely regulated to ensure normal myofibril organization. Loss or overexpression of Unc-45b leads to defective myofibril organization.
Duodenal carcinoma at the ligament of Treitz. A molecular and clinical perspective
Authors: Kalogerinis Peter T , Poulos John E , Morfesis Andrew , Daniels Anthony , Georgakila Stavroula , Daignualt Thomas , Georgakilas Alexandros G
Published: September 2010

Background

There is very small occurrence of adenocarcinoma in the small bowel. We present a case of primary duodenal adenocarcinoma and discuss the findings of the case diagnostic modalities, current knowledge on the molecular biology behind small bowel neoplasms and treatment options.

Case

The patient had a history of iron deficiency anemia and occult bleeding with extensive workup consisting of upper endoscopy, colonoscopy, capsule endoscopy, upper gastrointestinal series with small bowel follow through and push enteroscopy. Due to persistent abdominal pain and iron deficiency anemia the patient underwent push enteroscopy which revealed adenocarcinoma of the duodenum. The patient underwent en-bloc duodenectomy which revealed T3N1M0 adenocarcinoma of the 4th portion of the duodenum.

Conclusions

Primary duodenal carcinoma, although rare should be considered in the differential diagnosis of occult gastrointestinal bleeding when evaluation of the lower and upper GI tract is unremarkable. We discuss the current evaluation and management of this small bowel neoplasm.
A method for encoding clinical datasets with SNOMED CT
Authors: Lee Dennis H , Lau Francis Y , Quan Hue
Published: September 2010

Background

Over the past decade there has been a growing body of literature on how the Systematised Nomenclature of Medicine Clinical Terms (SNOMED CT) can be implemented and used in different clinical settings. Yet, for those charged with incorporating SNOMED CT into their organisation's clinical applications and vocabulary systems, there are few detailed encoding instructions and examples available to show how this can be done and the issues involved. This paper describes a heuristic method that can be used to encode clinical terms in SNOMED CT and an illustration of how it was applied to encode an existing palliative care dataset.

Methods

The encoding process involves: identifying input data items; cleaning the data items; encoding the cleaned data items; and exporting the encoded terms as output term sets. Four outputs are produced: the SNOMED CT reference set; interface terminology set; SNOMED CT extension set and unencodeable term set.

Results

The original palliative care database contained 211 data elements, 145 coded values and 37,248 free text values. We were able to encode ~84% of the terms, another ~8% require further encoding and verification while terms that had a frequency of fewer than five were not encoded (~7%).

Conclusions

From the pilot, it would seem our SNOMED CT encoding method has the potential to become a general purpose terminology encoding approach that can be used in different clinical systems.
Vectors and malaria transmission in deforested, rural communities in north-central Vietnam
Authors: Do Manh Cuong , Beebe Nigel W , Thi Van Van Nguyen , Le Quang Tao , Lein Chau Tran , Van Nguyen Dung , Xuan Thanh Nguyen , Le Ngoc Anh , Cooper Robert D
Published: September 2010

Background

Malaria is still prevalent in rural communities of central Vietnam even though, due to deforestation, the primary vector Anopheles dirus is uncommon. In these situations little is known about the secondary vectors which are responsible for maintaining transmission. Basic information on the identification of the species in these rural communities is required so that transmission parameters, such as ecology, behaviour and vectorial status can be assigned to the appropriate species.

Methods

In two rural villages - Khe Ngang and Hang Chuon - in Truong Xuan Commune, Quang Binh Province, north central Vietnam, a series of longitudinal entomological surveys were conducted during the wet and dry seasons from 2003 - 2007. In these surveys anopheline mosquitoes were collected in human landing catches, paired human and animal bait collections, and from larval surveys. Specimens belonging to species complexes were identified by PCR and sequence analysis, incrimination of vectors was by detection of circumsporozoite protein using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.

Results

Over 80% of the anopheline fauna was made up of Anopheles sinensis, Anopheles aconitus, Anopheles harrisoni, Anopheles maculatus, Anopheles sawadwongporni, and Anopheles philippinensis. PCR and sequence analysis resolved identification issues in the Funestus Group, Maculatus Group, Hyrcanus Group and Dirus Complex. Most species were zoophilic and while all species could be collected biting humans significantly higher densities were attracted to cattle and buffalo. Anopheles dirus was the most anthropophilic species but was uncommon making up only 1.24% of all anophelines collected. Anopheles sinensis, An. aconitus, An. harrisoni, An. maculatus, An. sawadwongporni, Anopheles peditaeniatus and An. philippinensis were all found positive for circumsporozoite protein. Heterogeneity in oviposition site preference between species enabled vector densities to be high in both the wet and dry seasons allowing for year round transmission.

Conclusions

In rural communities in north central Vietnam, malaria transmission was maintained by a number of anopheline species which though collected feeding on humans were predominantly zoophilic, this behaviour allows for low level but persistent malaria transmission. The important animal baits - cattle and buffalo - were kept in the village and barrier spraying around these animals may be more effective at reducing vector densities and longevity than the currently used indoor residual spraying.
Production, purification and characterization of polyclonal antibody against the truncated gK of the duck enteritis virus
Authors: Zhang Shunchuan , Xiang Jun , Cheng Anchun , Wang Mingshu , Li Xin , Li Lijuan , Chen Xiwen , Zhu Dekang , Luo Qihui , Chen Xiaoyue
Published: September 2010

Duck virus enteritis (DVE) is an acute, contagious herpesvirus infection of ducks, geese, and swans, which has produced significant economic losses in domestic and wild waterfowl. With the purpose of decreasing economic losses in the commercial duck industry, studying the unknown glycoprotein K (gK) of DEV may be a new method for preferably preventing and curing this disease. So this is the first time to product and purify the rabbit anti-tgK polyclonal antibody. Through the western blot and ELISA assay, the truncated glycoprotein K (tgK) has good antigenicity, also the antibody possesses high specificity and affinity. Meanwhile the rabbit anti-tgK polyclonal antibody has the potential to produce subunit vaccines and the functions of neutralizing DEV and anti-DEV infection because of its neutralization titer. Indirect immunofluorescent microscopy using the purified rabbit anti-tgK polyclonal antibody as diagnostic antibody was susceptive to detect a small quantity of antigen in tissues or cells. This approach also provides effective experimental technology for epidemiological investigation and retrospective diagnose of the preservative paraffin blocks.
A 64-week, multicenter, open-label study of aripiprazole effectiveness in the management of patients with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder in a general psychiatric outpatient setting
Authors: Hsieh Ming-Hong , Lin Wei-Wen , Chen Shao-Tsu , Chen Kao-Ching , Chen Kuang-Peng , Chiu Nan-Ying , Huang Chao , Chang Ching-Jui , Lin Cheng-Hsiu , Lai Te-Jen
Published: September 2010

Objective

To evaluate the overall long-term effectiveness of aripiprazole in patients with schizophrenia in a general psychiatric practice setting in Taiwan.

Methods

This was a prospective, open-label, multicenter, post-market surveillance study in Taiwanese patients with a Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV) diagnosis of schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder requiring a switch in antipsychotic medication because current medication was not well tolerated and/or clinical symptoms were not well controlled. Eligible patients were titrated to aripiprazole (5-30 mg/day) over a 12-week switching phase, during which their previous medication was discontinued. Patients could then enter a 52-week, long-term treatment phase. Aripiprazole was flexibly dosed (5-30 mg/day) at the discretion of the treating physicians. Efficacy was assessed using the Clinical Global Impression scale Improvement (CGI-I) score, the Clinical Global Impression scale Severity (CGI-S) score, The Brief Psychiatry Rating Scale (BPRS), and the Quality of Life (QOL) scale, as well as Preference of Medicine (POM) ratings by patients and caregivers. Safety and tolerability were also assessed.

Results

A total of 245 patients were enrolled and switched from their prior antipsychotic medications, and 153 patients entered the 52-week extension phase. In all, 79 patients (32.2%) completed the study. At week 64, the mean CGI-I score was 3.10 and 64.6% of patients who showed response. Compared to baseline, scores of CGI-S, QOL, and BPRS after 64 weeks of treatment also showed significant improvements. At week 12, 65.4% of subjects and 58.9% of caregivers rated aripiprazole as better than the prestudy medication on the POM. The most frequently reported adverse events (AEs) were headache, auditory hallucinations and insomnia. A total of 13 patients (5.3%) discontinued treatment due to AEs. No statistically significant changes were noted with respect to fasting plasma glucose, lipid profile, body weight, and body mass index after long-term treatment with aripiprazole.

Conclusions

Although the discontinuation rate was high, aripiprazole was found to be effective, safe and well tolerated in the long-term treatment of Taiwanese patients with schizophrenia who continued to receive treatment for 64 weeks.
Analysis and characterization of the genes encoding the Dicer and Argonaute proteins of Schistosoma japonicum
Authors: Luo Rong , Xue Xiangyang , Wang Zhangxun , Sun Jun , Zou Ying , Pan Weiqing
Published: September 2010

Background

The Dicer and Argonaute(AGO) proteins within the small RNA regulatory pathways (SRRPs) play an indispensable role in regulation of gene expression. In this study, we analyzed two genes, Dicer and Argonaute, from Schistosoma japonicum, along with their expression through a combination of bioinformatics and experimental approaches.

Results

Our results indicate that one Dicer and four Argonaute genes exist in Schistosoma japonicum, termed SjDicer and SjAGO1, 2, 3, and 4, respectively. SjDicer encodes 2590 amino acid residues that contains 5 conserved domains, including one amino-terminal helicase domain, one PAZ (Piwi-Argonaut-Zwille) domain, two RNAse III domains, and one dsRNA-binding domain. SjAGO1, 2, and 3 encode 1009, 945, and 904 amino acid residues, respectively, all of which contain PAZ and PIWI domains. In addition, we analyzed the expression profiles of SjDicer and SjAGO1 genes by qRT-PCR in eggs, miracidium, cercariae, schistosomula, and adult worms. Results showed consistent expression of both SjDicer and SjAGO1 in different stages; however, their expression levels were stage-dependent, with the highest being in the miracidium stage.

Conclusions

This study provided the sequence of the Dicer and Ago genes of S. japonicum and their expression profiles which are essential for further investigation of functions of miRNA in Schistosoma japonicum.
A study of association between expression of hOGG1, VDAC1, HK-2 and cervical carcinoma
Authors: Guo-Qing Peng , Yuan Yang , Cai-Gao Zhong , Hongling Yin , Gonghua Hu , Yan Tian
Published: September 2010

Background

Human 8-oguanine glycosylase 1(hOGG1), voltage-dependent anion channel 1(VDAC1), hexokinase 2(HK-2), represented the process of oxidative DNA damage, cell apoptosis and glycolysis, respectively. This study aims to explore the association between expression of hOGG1, VDAC1, HK-2 and cervical carcinoma.

Methods

A case-control study was conducted. 65 cervical biopsy samples consist of 20 control and 45 cases. The expression of hOGG1, VDAC1 and HK-2 were examined with immunohistochemistry(IHC), immunolabeling was evaluated with stereological cell counts.

Results

The data showed that the positive proportion of hOGG1 and HK-2 in the case group was higher than that of the control group (P < 0.05). Further, there was an increasing trend for the positive proportion and expression degree of hOGG1 and HK-2 from Control, Mild cervical carcinoma (MCC), Intermediate cervical carcinoma(ICC) to Severe cervical carcinoma(SCC) in order (P < 0.05). To VDAC1, the significant result was not obtained.

Conclusions

The results suggested that there was a close association between expression of hOGG1, HK-2 and cervical cancer. hOGG1 and HK-2 might play a key role at the early stage of cervical cancer, and the findings of hOGG1 and HK-2 should be considered as a significant biomarker at the early stage of cervical cancer.
INTRODUCTION
Authors: Hochberg Gil Z.
Published: September 2010

The introduction to this special issue of GLQ analyzes the intricate and most complex dynamics defining the relationship between what can be called “queer politics” and “the question of Palestine/Israel.” It sets the parameters for the theoretical questions raised by the following essays, reviews, and interviews, and offers a broad sociopolitical and cultural context that frames the discussion and grounds it historically.

Discussions of “queerness” (and sexual politics more extensively) are essential for our understandings of national movements, colonial oppression, new technologies of state surveillance, and new modes of racial/ethnic/religious segregation. This is true as a general rule, and it is certainly the case for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the complex set of ideologies and technologies that help sustain and regulate the separation between Jews and Arabs/Palestinians, occupiers and occupied. The discourses about gay rights and sexual tolerance, on the one hand, and the strict state regulation of sexual behaviors, identifications, and bonds, on the other, both come to crisscross and complicate the more common and openly discussed concerns associated with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, such as national security, militarism, border control, colonial oppression, terrorism, secularism, religious conviction, and ethnonational self-determination. Indeed, as clearly demonstrated by the following essays, sexual politics and most specifically issues concerning queerness, which might initially seem marginal in this context, do in fact play a central role in both facilitating and transgressing the current hostile and oppressive relationship between Israelis and Palestinians.
EXPLOSIVE
Authors: Stein Rebecca L.
Published: September 2010

This essay examines two works by the Israeli director Eytan Fox—Florentin, a television serial, and The Bubble, a feature film—and the highly divergent ways they negotiate the interplay between queerness, the Israeli state, and the Israeli military occupation. Reading Fox's works symptomatically, the essay proposes that Florentin and The Bubble can be understood as indexes of the changing Israeli political landscape of the last decade—both the vacillating landscape of gay rights and visibility within the nation-state and the changing landscape of Israeli occupation and Palestinian struggle that the Oslo process of the 1990s made possible. In keeping with the tradition of symptomatic reading, the analysis pays close attention to storylines and populations that Fox has excluded from these works, arguing that Fox's representations of gay Israeli life are intimately enmeshed with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, even at moments when, through cinematic silence, the conflict is implicitly disavowed.
HOW DO YOU SAY “COME OUT OF THE CLOSET” IN ARABIC?
Authors: Ritchie Jason
Published: September 2010

In this essay, I draw on ethnographic interviews with Israeli and Palestinian queer activists in Israel to interrogate the centrality of the politics of visibility in “mainstream” queer activism. I suggest that queer Israeli activists' reliance on visibility as a political strategy is embedded in and supportive of the racist discourses of Israeli nationalism and the violent practices of the Israeli state. I argue that the “checkpoint,” rather than the “closet,” offers a more productive metaphor against which queer activists and thinkers might organize their efforts. I conclude with a discussion of the subversive potential of queer Palestinian activism as a politics that challenges multiple oppressions and undermines, rather than naturalizes, the racist, antidemocratic logic of the nation.
“CHECK ME OUT”
Authors: Hochberg Gil Z.
Published: September 2010

In his seven-minute film Chic Point: Fashion for Israeli Checkpoints (2003), Palestinian artist Sharif Waked introduces a slew of beautiful young men striding down a catwalk to the sound of heavy beat music, wearing “the latest in checkpoint fashion”: a tight mini black jacket that exposes a flat stomach in a sudden opening of a hidden side zipper, a white T-shirt with a large heart-shaped opening exposing most of the chest, and many more articles of designed clothing, all partially covering, but mostly exposing, the top part of the body. In her reading of this piece, Hochberg argues that in drawing attention to the body of the Palestinian who is stopped daily at Israeli checkpoints for long and humiliating searches, and resituating this body in a radically different context (fashion show, or perhaps strip show?), Waked resists common representations of the Palestinian as (always and only) a victim of military inspection, turning him instead into an object of desire well aware of his desirability. Furthermore, focusing on the most common search routine practiced by the Israeli soldiers at the checkpoint, the lifting of Palestinian shirts to ensure that they are not strapped with explosives, Waked gives this practice a new, and explicitly homoerotic, interpretation, presenting it as a means for Israeli soldiers to “check out” Palestinian men, who “dress up for the occasion.” In Waked's film, Hochberg concludes, the Israeli soldiers' treatment of the Palestinian body as a “security threat” and the Palestinian's forced cooperation function as pretexts for underlying hidden and forbidden (homoerotic) desire, here exposed as the subtext of a toxic national conflict sealed in heteronormative sexual perceptions of masculinity and its absence.
APOCALYPTIC PASTS, ORWELLIAN FUTURES
Authors: El Shakry Hoda
Published: September 2010

Elle Flanders's 2005 documentary film Zero Degrees of Separation subtly weaves together two seemingly distinct narratives: the settlement of Palestine in the 1950s by a hopeful generation of pioneering Jewish immigrants and the challenges of gay Israeli-Palestinian relationships in contemporary Israel/Palestine. By innovatively interlacing archival footage shot by Flanders's own grandparents as early as the 1920s with interviews conducted with Israeli and Palestinian queers in 2002, Flanders demonstrates the mutual implication of these narratives. This essay examines how through the unique temporal collision of these two historical moments, prominent tensions of the current conflict are made visible in the haunting utopian images of the early Zionist movement. By filtering the Israeli-Palestinian conflict through the lens of sexuality, Flanders's film deconstructs certain constitutive myths of the modern nation-state, offering an intimately personal glimpse into questions seminal to both the political genealogy of the current conflict and the quotidian lives of Israelis and Palestinians: human rights violations, violence, the policing of bodies, the geopolitics of Israeli expansion, the politics of mobility, and the mapping of Western colonial ideologies onto racialized conflicts—both between Israelis and Palestinian and within the Israeli community itself between Jews of Arab (Mizrahim) and European (Ashkenazim) descent.
AFTERWORD
Authors: Amireh Amal
Published: September 2010

In this afterword I engage the essays of this special issue by highlighting the challenges military occupation, racism, and homophobia pose for discussions of queer issues in the Palestine/Israel context and for Palestinian queer activism. I argue that the visibility/invisibility of Palestinian queers in Israeli public discourse is overdetermined by a colonial agenda that seeks to suppress Palestinian national rights. After discussing instances of the queer demonization of Palestinians (the rumor that Yaser Arafat died of AIDS, for example, or the representation of the demonic Palestinian lover in Eytan Fox's film The Bubble), I investigate the intimate connection between homophobia and the Israeli use of collaborators as a tool of military control. I conclude by calling for a theoretical paradigm that is attentive to the complex lived reality of Palestinian queers.
Prevalence of hepatitis C virus among users attending a voluntary testing centre in Rio Grande, southern Brazil: predictive factors and hepatitis C virus genotypes
Authors: Germano F N , dos Santos C A , Honscha G , Strasburg A , Gabbi B , Mendoza-Sassi R A , Soares E A , Seuánez H N , Soares M A , Martínez A M B
Published: September 2010

We estimated the prevalence of hepatitis C (HCV) infection and associated risk factors in 750 individuals attending the Voluntary Counseling and Testing Center of Rio Grande (VCT/RG), in Southern Brazil, and identified viral genotypes. Demographic data and risk factors for HCV transmission were also collected and analysed. Anti-HCV antibody-positive individuals were tested for HCV-RNA and genotyped by sequencing the 5′ untranslated region of the viral genome. Prevalence estimates of anti-HCV and HCV-RNA were 6% and 5.5%, respectively. We identified genotypes 1 (67%), 2 (2%) and 3 (31%); the latter was more prevalent than in other regions of Brazil. Anti-HCV prevalence in VCT/RG users was similar to previous reports. Age, previous blood transfusion, sexual orientation and injecting drug use were independent predictors of HCV infection. The presence of multiple risk factors was also associated with a higher risk for HCV infection. HCV genotype was not associated with any variable analysed in this study.
National audit of asymptomatic screening in UK genitourinary medicine clinics: case-notes audit
Authors: McClean H , Carne C A , Sullivan A K , Menon-Johansson A , Gokhale R , Sethi G , Mammen-Tobin A G , Daniels D
Published: September 2010

A national audit of screening of asymptomatic patients seen in UK genitourinary medicine clinics in 2009 was conducted against the national guidelines. Data were aggregated by regions and clinics in regions, allowing practice to be compared within and between regions, as well as to national averages and against national guidelines. The case-notes of 4428 patients were audited. Performance was over 80% against the national guidelines for screening of asymptomatic heterosexual men, men who have sex with men (MSM) and women for chlamydial, gonorrhoeal, syphilis and HIV infections. However, the recommended method of endocervical culture for gonorrhoea was performed in only 65% of women, with a further one-quarter being screened with endocervical or vulvovaginal nucleic acid amplification tests (NAATs). Although significant NAAT use for gonorrhoea was seen in all groups, testing for gonorrhoea by culture is still recommended as a first-line test on invasive samples. Over 80% of MSM, who were not known to be immune, were screened for hepatitis B. Urethral microscopy was performed in 22% of heterosexual men and 17% of MSM, and cervical microscopy in 12% of women.
Risk factors associated with chlamydia and gonorrhoea infection among female sex workers in two Mexico–USA border cities
Authors: Loza O , Strathdee S A , Martinez G A , Lozada R , Ojeda V D , Staines-Orozco H , Patterson T L
Published: September 2010

Female sex workers (FSWs) aged ≥18 years without known HIV infection living in Tijuana and Ciudad Juarez, Mexico who had recent unprotected sex with clients underwent interviews and testing for chlamydia and gonorrhoea using nucleic acid amplification. Correlates of each infection were identified with logistic regression. Among 798 FSWs, prevalence of chlamydia and gonorrhoea was 13.0% and 6.4%, respectively. Factors independently associated with chlamydia were younger age, working in Tijuana versus Ciudad Juarez and recent methamphetamine injection. Factors independently associated with gonorrhoea were working in Tijuana versus Ciudad Juarez, using illegal drugs before or during sex, and having a recent male partner who injects drugs. Chlamydia and gonorrhoea infection were more closely associated with FSWs' drug use behaviours and that of their sexual partners than with sexual behaviours. Prevention should focus on subgroups of FSWs and their partners who use methamphetamine and who inject drugs.
Conjunctivitis due to Phthirus pubis: a trap for the unwary
Authors: Zvandasara T , Lam F C
Published: September 2010

It is not uncommon for patients to present to eye casualties with a red eye and where treatment has already been started by the general practitioner, usually in the form of antibiotic drops or ointment for presumed bacterial/viral conjunctivitis. Occasionally, the diagnosis is not simply a bacterial conjunctivitis and this can only be clarified by close ocular inspection.