bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Aesthetics and Religion
Authors: Viladesau Richard
Published: February 2014

A systematic consideration of the multiple relationships between aesthetics and religion demands a sorting-out of concepts and issues. “Aesthetics” may be understood as practice (art) and as theory. It can refer to a number of overlapping subjects, including art, symbol, feeling, beauty, taste, imagination, and perception. A theological or religious aesthetics considers any of these topics in the light of God, revelation, and the sacred. The contemporary world has seen a renewal of interest in religious aesthetics. Art has been increasingly recognized as an important theological “text” that complements the written word, and as a crucial component of communication of the Christian message. The theological consideration of art and beauty is made complex by the secularization of the contemporary world, which raises the question of the relation of aesthetics to Christian “conversion.”
Artistic Imagination and Religious Faith
Authors: Thiessen Gesa Elsbeth
Published: February 2014

The central role of the imagination in theology and religion has often been neglected by theologians. The chapter considers how the imagination and, in particular, artistic imagination, faith and theology are related. It provides a brief outline of perspectives on the meaning and function of the imagination in relation to faith and art by leading philosophers and theologians in history from the Hebrew Bible, Plato, and Aristotle to Augustine, Aquinas, Luther, Calvin, Kant, Burke, Schleiermacher, Schelling, and Kierkegaard. The chapter discusses the act of imagination as a fundamental source and requisite in faith, art, and creativity, in beauty and the sublime, in aesthetics, and in any development of human knowledge. The role of art is explored as a locus theologicus with reference to Tillich and contemporary theologians. Finally, the eschatological dimension as the ultimate link between artistic imagination and Christian faith concludes the chapter.
Musical Ways of Being Religious
Authors: Brown Frank Burch
Published: February 2014

Religious uses of music are highly varied, manifold, and yet selective. Some traditions, such as Islam, are wary of employing music in worship. By contrast, the Christian Mass can sometimes be musical throughout. Music’s powers, often regarded religiously as God-given, have much to do with its intimate connection with emotion. Music is involved in trance or in mystical states, and engages in acts of prayer, proclamation, and praise. It functions communally to establish religious identity. When combined with specific Christian teachings, music can also function sacramentally. Since antiquity, moreover, music has been associated with mathematical order and harmony, tuning the soul to the divine and to the cosmos. In all these ways music appears able to transform, and not merely reflect, religious perceptions and experience.
Poetic Ways of Being Religious
Authors: Rosenthal Peggy
Published: February 2014

This chapter traces ways that the special affinity between religion and poetry has been expressed through the ages and across cultures. The ancient scriptural texts of all major religions are in poetic form. Poetry in the West became religious in the Middle Ages with Dante, then internalized religion during the Reformation. Beginning with Romanticism, poetry supplanted religion, leading to the secularism that dominated Western poetry and culture for most of the twentieth century. But since the 1980s, religion—along with a generalized spirituality—has again become foundational for poets.
Islam and Music
Authors: Shiloah Amnon
Published: February 2014

Following the advent of Islam, conquerors and conquered developed a new art music whose great success arose through the integration of disparate elements and a subtle process of Arabization. The new art is described in writings of the epoch as intertwined with related areas of knowledge. Quite early, a hostile attitude appeared on the part of radical jurists and theologians, who argued against the harmful influence of music and its devilish origin. They derived their evidence from the Qur’an and the hadīth (Traditions of the Prophet). In their opinion on art music, the partisans of the prohibition described other forms of sound combinations such as folk songs and the chanting or cantillation of Qur’ān as “non-music.” Unlike the hostile attitude of the radical theologians, the Sufi mystical orders exalt in their doctrine music and dance as an essential and vital part of their beliefs and ritual.
Hinduism and Music
Authors: Beck Guy L.
Published: February 2014

This chapter discusses the theoretical and practical dimensions of music in Hinduism, including the philosophy of sacred sound (Nāda-Brahman), the aesthetics of rasa (“taste”), the rise of Saṅgīta (music) as a component of pūjā (worship) and early drama, the Sanskrit musical treatises of Bharata and Dattila, the development of rāga (melodic pattern) and tāla (rhythmic cycle) from early scales and Sāma-Gāna (Sama-Veda chant), musical instruments, bhakti (devotion), and various classical and devotional genres of Bhakti-Saṅgīta, including Kriti, Dhrupad, Khyāl, Haveli-Saṅgīta, Samāj-Gāyan, Bhajan, and Nām-Kīrtan, within southern (Carnatic) and northern (Hindustani) traditions. Music is essential to Hindu mythology, where divine beings perform and instruct humans in the gentle art that facilitates both enjoyment (bhukti) and liberation (mukti). Prevalent in sacrifices, temple rites, domestic worship, sectarian movements and films, music is invariably part of Hindu worship in India or the Diaspora.
Taoism and the Arts
Authors: Sommer Deborah
Published: February 2014

In this chapter, the term Daoist refers to beliefs and practices associated with the apprehension of the Dao, a term that literally means way, ways, road, or path. At the cosmic level, the Dao is the way the cosmos operates; at the level of the individual human being, it is the way a person lives their best life within that cosmos. Understandings of the Dao might be expressed artistically in many ways, from imaged forms to constructed spaces to lived performance. Daoist ways of being artistic here include such diverse phenomena as painting, calligraphy, talismans, diagrams, sculpture, architecture, constructions of sacred space, ritual performance, body movement, and visualization.
Shintō and the Arts
Authors: Thornton Sybil
Published: February 2014

This chapter reviews the origin and development of the word Shintō as well as the basic beliefs, practices, and objects of worship associated with the religion. It then describes the emergence and development of plastic representations of objects of worship (sculpture) and permanent structures for worship (architecture). Shintō’s development in conjunction with mainland developments is stressed as well as the homogenizing influences of government control and modern training institutions.
Artistry and Aesthetics in Modern and Postmodern Worship
Authors: Saliers Don
Published: February 2014

Worship and its practices occupy a central place in every religious tradition, from Christianity and Judaism to Buddhism and Hinduism. Understanding aesthetics in religion requires paying attention to the role of the human body and its artistry in devotional acts, such as the use of paintings and sculptures as aids to prayer and meditative practices. Artistic means are employed in communal worshiping traditions; sacred rituals involve artistic expressions such as dance, song, poetry, story, images, and symbolic acts. This article examines artistry and aesthetics in modern and postmodern liturgy and worship practices of the world’s religious traditions. It first looks at scholarly sources that provide evidence on the aesthetic dimensions of liturgy. It then discusses the history of worship, whether communal or individual, in a cultural context, along with the concept of worship as verbal and non-verbal performance. It also considers the “art” of leading a worshiping community and concludes with a discussion of improvisation in religious worship.
Art, Morality, and Justice
Authors: de Gruchy John W.
Published: February 2014

This article examines visual art and its relationship with morality and justice. It first considers justice-related ethical issues raised by the relationship between art and morality, including censorship, plagiarism, and property rights. It then discusses the link between aesthetics and ethics, or beauty and morality, and situates art within particular historical contexts and cultures. It also analyzes the views of four post-Enlightenment philosophers toward aesthetics: Immanuel Kant, Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, Friedrich Nietzsche, and Søren Kierkegaard. Furthermore, it comments on the extent to which bias of race, gender and class can influence the work of artists. The article also looks at the connections between art, beauty, morality, and social justice and the moral power of art to change society for the better. Finally, it describes the role of the arts in the struggle against apartheid and liberation.
Art, Material Culture, and Lived Religion
Authors: Morgan David
Published: February 2014

This chapter discusses how the rise of interest in the materiality of religions that has taken place in the last twenty years or so has tended to focus on popular media, everyday life, and the material practices involving things, images, and devotional concerns of people facing the common problems of life. It is important to recognize that lived religion is not a degenerate form of refined religion, a corruption of theology, or the beliefs of simple people, but rather a range of practices and ideas that exhibit a discrete aesthetic that depends on objects. The disinterestedness that is vital for the evaluation of fine art does not capture the experiences of lived religion. This chapter explores the visuality of everyday religion.
Anarchism
Authors: Franks Benjamin
Published: February 2014

This chapter identifies some of the conceptual problems in providing a stable, inclusive interpretation of anarchism. It rejects accounts of anarchism constructed on the supposed universal minimum of ‘anti-statism’, as these synthesize radically antipathetic movements, in particular free-market individualisms along with the main socialist variants of anarchist communism and syndicalism. These purportedly comprehensive versions overlook the distinctive conceptual arrangements of social and individualist anarchisms. These separate ideological forms support radically different practices and generate conflicting interpretations of ‘anti-statism’. Instead, a conceptual analytical approach is best suited to identifying stable, intersecting families of anarchism (such as Green anarchism, anarcha-feminism and post-anarchism), as this method is sensitive to the malleable and variable conception of the political agent, which is a feature of the main constellations of social anarchism.
Communism
Authors: Brown Archie
Published: February 2014

The chapter traces pre-Marxist ideas of a communist society before outlining the main elements of the Communist doctrine of Marx, Engels, and Lenin. Particular attention is paid to the theory and practice of Communist parties in power. The Soviet Union, China, and Yugoslavia developed models which varied both over time and from each other. Nevertheless, six defining characteristics of Communist ideology are identified and elaborated—the monopoly of power of the ruling Communist party; democratic centralism; state ownership of the means of production; centrally planned rather than market economy; membership of an international Communist movement; and the aspiration, in principle, to move eventually to a stateless, classless communist society. During the Soviet perestroika all six of these features were discarded. In contemporary China only the first two of the six remain. Communism no longer exists as a serious ideological and political force.
Feminism
Authors: Chambers Clare
Published: February 2014

This chapter characterizes feminism as a rejection of the ideology of patriarchy. Feminism rejects two patriarchal tenets, the fetishism of choice and the prison of biology, by which patriarchal ideology in Western liberal societies insists that gender inequality is inevitable yet unproblematic. Against this patriarchal story, feminism insists that women are neither imprisoned by biology nor liberated by individual choice. Instead, feminists hold three theses: the entrenchment of gender, the existence of patriarchy and the need for change. Gender remains one of the most salient social cleavages, one which advantages men and disadvantages women. However, it can and must be disrupted by social action.
Islamic Political Ideologies
Authors: Browers Michaelle L.
Published: February 2014

This chapter traces the development of an ideological understanding of Islam in the modern period as an alternative to secular ideologies; the conceptualization of a revolutionary project in the 1950s and 1960s, which politicized Islamic notions of struggle (jihad) aimed at replacing what they saw as corrupt regimes with an Islamic state; the emergence in the late 1970s and early 1980s of a transnational Islamism, galvanized by Iran’s Islamic revolution and the Soviet intervention in Afghanistan, alongside a growing moderate Islamism aimed at competing in the limited elections taking place in a number of Muslim majority countries. The chapter concludes with a discussion of current debates over what some scholars have identified as ‘post-Islamism’—a shift from Islamism aimed at establishing an Islamic state to the notion of a civil state with an Islamic referent—and an examination of the recent, so-called ‘Arab Spring’, which has opened up space for Islamists to gain political power through elections.
Political Ideologies in the Age of Globalization
Authors: Steger Manfred B.
Published: February 2014

This chapter reflects on why and how the forces of globalization have altered the conventional political belief systems codified by social power elites since the French Revolution. In order to explain these dramatic transformations, the chapter discusses at some length the crucial relationship between two ‘social imaginaries’—the national and the global—that underpin the articulation of political ideologies. The chapter suggests a new typology of three contemporary ‘globalisms’ based on the disaggregation of new ideational clusters not merely into core concepts, but, perhaps more dynamically, into various sets of central ideological claims that play crucial semantic and political roles. These three globalisms—market globalism, justice globalism, and religious globalism—represent a set of political ideas and beliefs coherent and conceptually thick enough to warrant the status of mature ideologies.
Populism
Authors: Mudde Cas , Kaltwasser Cristóbal Rovira
Published: February 2014

In consonance with much of the existing scholarship, this chapter develops an ideational approach to the study of populism. Furthermore, it proposes a minimal concept of populism that can be used to analyse populist forces across time and space. According to this minimal concept, populism is defined as a thin-centred ideology, which is based not only on the Manichean distinction between ‘the pure people’ and ‘the corrupt elite’, but also on the defence of popular sovereignty at any cost. The chapter also examines the most common subtypes of populism and sheds light on current examples of populism in North and South America as well as in Eastern and Western Europe. Lastly, the article discusses the complex relationship that populism maintains with democracy, nationalism, and gender.
Postcolonialism
Authors: Rao Rahul
Published: February 2014

The chapter traces key moments in the development of postcolonialism, principally through an engagement with the work of Edward Said, Homi Bhabha, and Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak. Among its principal contributions are its accounts of orientalism as a strategy of Western power/knowledge in relation to the rest of the world and of hybridity as its consequence, besides a considerable investment in the fraught project of taking the subaltern seriously. The chapter outlines Marxist objections to postcolonialism, namely that its poststructuralist-influenced critique of essentialism both fails to offer a historically compelling account of anticolonial resistance and undermines possibilities for resistance to contemporary capitalism. The third section of the chapter suggests that debates between Marxism and poststructuralism are anticipated in the archives of anti-colonial liberation, in which nativist essentialism, universal humanism, and deconstruction are all visible as strategies of resistance to power. Postcolonialism today is a divided house, bearing the inheritance of anti-colonial thought in its dissonant entirety.
Social Democracy
Authors: Jackson Ben
Published: February 2014

Social democracy has often been seen as a pragmatic compromise between capitalism and socialism. This chapter shows that social democracy is in fact a distinctive body of political thought: an ideology which prescribes the use of democratic collective action to extend the principles of freedom and equality valued by democrats in the political sphere to the organization of the economy and society, chiefly by opposing the inequality and oppression created by laissez-faire capitalism. The chapter makes this case by examining three distinct eras in the development of social democratic ideas: the emergence of social democracy in the decades before the Second World War; the so-called ‘golden age’ of social democracy between 1945 and 1970; and the period of social democratic retreat from 1970 until the present.
Thermal and non-thermal X-rays from the Galactic supernova remnant G348.5+0.1
Authors: Yamauchi Shigeo , Minami Sari , Ota Naomi , Koyama Katsuji
Published: February 2014

We report on Suzaku results of the two distinct regions in the Galactic supernova remnant G348.5+0.1: extended thermal X-rays (“soft diffuse”) at the north-east region and non-thermal X-rays (CXOU J171419.8−383023) at the north-west region. The X-ray spectrum of the soft diffuse X-rays can be fitted with neither an ionization equilibrium nor a non-equilibrium (ionizing) plasma model, leaving saw- tooth residuals in the 1.5–3 keV energy band. The residual structures can be produced when free electrons are recombined to the K-shells of highly ionized Mg and Si ions. In fact, the X-ray spectrum is nicely fitted with a recombination-dominant plasma model. We propose a scenario whereby the plasma in a nearly fully ionized state at high temperature quickly changed to a recombining phase due to selective cooling of electrons to a lower temperature of ∼ 0.5 keV. The spectrum of CXOU J171419.8−383023 is well explained by a simple power-law model with a photon index of 1.9, nearly equal to the typical value for pulsar wind nebulae. Since the distance is estimated to be the same as that of the soft diffuse radiation, we infer that both the soft diffuse X-rays and CXOU J171419.8−383023 are associated with the same object, SNR G348.5+0.1.
Confirmation and revision on the orbital period change of the possible type Ia supernova progenitor V617 Sagittarii
Authors: Shi Guang , Qian Sheng-Bang , Fernández Lajús Eduardo
Published: February 2014

This work reports new photometric results of eclipsing cataclysmic variable V617 Sagittarii (V617 Sgr). We analyzed the orbital period change of V617 Sgr by employing three new (since 2010) CCD eclipse timings along with all the available data from the literature. It was found that the orbital period of V617 Sgr undergoes an obvious long-term increase, which confirms the result revealed by Steiner et al. (2006). The rate of orbital period increase was calculated to be ${\dot{P}}$ = +2.14(0.05) × 10−7 d yr−1. This suggests the lifetime of the secondary star will end in a timescale of 0.97 × 106 yr faster than that predicted previously. In particular, a cyclic variation with a period of 4.5 yr and an amplitude of 2.3 min may appear in the O − C diagram. Dominated by the wind-accretion mechanism, high mass transfer from the low mass secondary to the white dwarf is expected to continue in the V Sge-type star V617 Sgr during its long-term evolution. The mass transfer rate $|\skew4\dot{M}_{ \, {\rm tr}}|$ was estimated to be in the range of about 2.2 × 10−7 to 5.2 × 10−7 M⊙ yr−1. Accordingly, the already massive (≥ 1.2 M⊙) white dwarf primary will process stable nuclear burning, accrete a fraction of the mass from its companion to reach the standard Chandrasekhar mass limit (≃ 1.38 M⊙), and ultimately produce a type Ia supernova (SN Ia) within about 4–8 × 105 yr or earlier.
Iliac Crest Regeneration
Authors: Christodoulou Anastasios , Boutsiadis Achilleas , Christodoulou Evangellos , Antonarakos Petros , Givissis Panagiotis , Hatzokos Ippokratis
Published: February 2014

Study Design:

This is a retrospective study analysis.

Objective:

The purpose of our study was to evaluate the healing process of the ilium after being used as a bone graft donor site in the treatment of adolescent idiopathic scoliosis.

Summary of Background Data:

Iliac crest bone grafts have been proven to be the most reliable means for solid fusion in spine surgery. Nevertheless, few reports in the literature describe the ability of the iliac crest to regenerate.

Methods:

Thirty-one patients with a mean age of 15.1 years had undergone posterior spinal fusion for idiopathic scoliosis. An autogenous bone graft was harvested from the right posterior iliac crest in all cases. Computed tomography scans of the pelvis were performed preoperatively and shortly after operation to evaluate the presence of any deformity and the size of the defect formed during surgery, respectively. All patients were reexamined 14 years postoperatively, and computed tomography scans were performed to evaluate the status of ossification at the donor site.

Results:

In 21 cases (67.74%), bone deficits were fully restored (mean volume 12.053 cm3), whereas partial regeneration was present in the remaining 10 cases (mean volume 8.766 cm3). Hounsfield units (HUs) revealed that cancellous bone quality had been restored in 21 cases, whereas cysts with sclerotic bone margins were present in the remaining 10 cases. Immature patients [Risser sign (RS) 3, 4] have greater ability in restoring bone stock compared with patients with almost complete growth (RS 5; P<0.001). In addition, the gluteus maximus muscle preserved its volume and quality in cases with complete bone restoration (volume 51.3 cm3, HU 55.9) compared with cases with partial regeneration (volume 43.43 cm3, HU 38.35; P<0.001).

Conclusions:

The iliac wing of skeletally immature patients has considerable ability to fully regenerate and could probably be used as a graft donor site again.
En Bloc Cervical Laminoplasty Using Translaminar Screws (T-laminoplasty)
Authors: Lee Soo Eon , Jahng Tae-Ahn , Kim Hyun-Jib
Published: February 2014

Study Design:

Prospectively maintained and retrospectively analyzed study.

Objective:

The authors have newly developed an en bloc cervical laminoplasty using translaminar screws (T-laminoplasty) to preserve the posterior midline structures so as to maintain spinal stability and prevent postoperative axial pain and deformity.

Summary of Background Data:

Cervical laminoplasty is a popular surgical procedure for patients with multilevel compressive cervical lesions. However, several reports have noted its limitations and shortcomings.

Methods:

After exposure of the posterior cervical spine with preservation of the midline ligamentous structure, en bloc laminotomy was performed and made a laminectomized block. While the laminotomized block was being lifted, the translaminar trajectory from the lamina to the contralateral lateral mass was prepared. Then a translaminar screw was inserted with suspension of the laminotomized block to expand the spinal canal, passed through the laminar spacer, and finally fixed in the contralateral lateral mass. Next, another screw was inserted into the adjacent segment from the opposite side, and further screw fixations were made in this alternating manner.

Results:

Twenty patients underwent T-laminoplasty and 83 segments were operated upon. Clinical outcomes were statistically improved during the mean follow-up period of 19.7 months. Radiologic outcomes of cervical lordosis and range of motion were preserved with the expansion of the cross-sectional area of the spinal canal. In addition, no restenosis or laminar settlement was observed at the last follow-up.

Conclusions:

T-laminoplasty can be one of the surgical options for multilevel compressive cervical lesions. With midline ligamentous structures preserving the procedure, it was possible to get enough canal decompression and foraminal decompression, while obtaining good clinical and radiologic outcomes.
Is Brace Treatment Appropriate for Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis Patients Refusing Surgery With Cobb Angle Between 40 and 50 Degrees
Authors: Zhu Zezhang , Xu Leilei , Jiang Long , Sun Xu , Qiao Jun , Qian Bang-Ping , Mao Saihu , Qiu Yong
Published: February 2014

Study Design:

A retrospective study to determine whether brace treatment is appropriate for adolescent idiopathic scoliosis patients with Cobb angle between 40 and 50 degrees who utterly refuse surgery.

Objective:

To investigate whether it is possible to halt the curve progression of adolescent idiopathic scoliosis patients with Cobb angle between 40 and 50 degrees through bracing, and to identify factors that could influence the effectiveness of brace treatment in such patients.

Summary of Background Data:

Despite of the great achievements in treating patients with mild curve, bracing has been considered to be inappropriate for those with curves of >40 degrees. However, in clinical practice surgeons could encounter a series of patients who utterly refused surgery and insisted on wearing brace despite having a curve >40 degrees.

Methods:

A cohort of 54 patients with Cobb angle between 40 and 50 degrees were reviewed in the current study. All the patients refused surgery at their first visit and insisted on receiving brace treatment. Each patient was followed up at an interval of 3–6 months. Variants such as initial Risser sign, initial age, sex, curve pattern, and initial curve magnitude were compared between patients with and without curve progression. A logistic regression analysis was performed to determine the independent predictors of the curve progression.

Results:

On the whole, the curve progressed in 35 patients, remained stable in 12 patients, and improved in the else 7 patients. All the patients with curve progression finally received surgical intervention. The mean grade of initial Risser sign in patients with curve progression was significantly lower than that in patients with stable or improved curve (0.3±0.8 vs. 1.2±1.4, P=0.02). In terms of sex, age, curve pattern, and curve magnitude, there were no significant differences between the 2 categories. The results of the logistic regression analysis showed that initial Risser sign of grade 0 or 1 had significant associations with the curve progression of patients with curves >40 degrees (odds ratio, 7.51, 95% confidence intervak, 1.27–24.43, P=0.02).

Conclusions:

The effectiveness of brace treatment significantly decreases when applied to patients with curve magnitude between 40 and 50 degrees. Although a majority of these patients will inevitably undergo a surgical intervention, and thus wearing a brace may not be the best alternative to surgical intervention; there are patients who will stabilize with the brace until skeletal maturity thus warranting this option for those patients refusing surgical intervention with curves between 40 and 50 degrees.
An In Vitro Biomechanical Study Evaluating Cervical Extension Plates for Stabilizing Degenerated Adjacent Levels
Authors: Majid Kamran , Moldavsky Mark , Khalil Saif , Gudipally Manasa
Published: February 2014

Study Design:

To evaluate the biomechanical stability of 2 extender plates in a human cervical cadaveric model.

Objectives:

To evaluate 2 extender plates, placed adjacent to initially implanted plates and to compare their biomechanical stability with traditional techniques.

Summary of Background Data:

Traditionally, adjacent level degeneration is surgically treated by removing the previously implanted plate and extending the instrumentation to the new degenerated level. The exposure needed to remove the previously implanted plate may be extensive. To overcome these complications, cervical extension plates, which add-on to the initially implanted plate, were developed.

Materials and Methods:

Fourteen fresh-frozen human cadaver cervical spines (C2–C7) were divided into 2 groups of 7 for a series of constructs to be tested. In group 1, an extender plate, which attaches to its own primary plate, was tested. In group 2, a universal extender plate, which can be placed adjacent to any previously implanted plate, was tested. The specimens prepared were mounted on a 6-degree-of-freedom spine simulator and were sequentially tested in the following order: (1) intact; (2) single-level plate; (3) single-level plate with extender plates; and (4) 2-level plate. An unconstrained pure moment of ±1.5 N m was used in flexion-extension, lateral bending, and axial rotation.

Results:

All instrumented constructs significantly reduced the range of motion compared with the intact condition. In both the groups, single-level plates with adjacent extender plates demonstrated stability comparable to their respective 2-level plates in all loading modes.

Conclusions:

Extender plates give surgeons the opportunity to treat adjacent levels without removing the primary implants, which may reduce the overall risk of damage to vital neurovascular structures. From this cadaveric biomechanical model, both types of extender plates prove to be viable options for treating adjacent level degeneration.
Surpassing Mt. Everest: extreme flight performance of alpine bumble-bees
Authors: Dillon Michael E. , Dudley Robert
Published: February 2014

Animal flight at altitude involves substantial aerodynamic and physiological challenges. Hovering at high elevations is particularly demanding from the dual perspectives of lift and power output; nevertheless, some volant insects reside and fly at elevations in excess of 4000 m. Here, we demonstrate that alpine bumble-bees possess substantial aerodynamic reserves, and can sustain hovering flight under hypobaria at effective elevations in excess of 9000 m, i.e. higher than Mt. Everest. Modulation of stroke amplitude and not wingbeat frequency is the primary means of compensation for overcoming the aerodynamic challenge. The presence of such excess capacity in a high-altitude bumble-bee is surprising and suggests intermittent behavioural demands for extreme flight performance supplemental to routine foraging.
Cell lineage tracing in the developing enteric nervous system: superstars revealed by experiment and simulation
Authors: Cheeseman Bevan L. , Zhang Dongcheng , Binder Benjamin J. , Newgreen Donald F. , Landman Kerry A.
Published: February 2014

Cell lineage tracing is a powerful tool for understanding how proliferation and differentiation of individual cells contribute to population behaviour. In the developing enteric nervous system (ENS), enteric neural crest (ENC) cells move and undergo massive population expansion by cell division within self-growing mesenchymal tissue. We show that single ENC cells labelled to follow clonality in the intestine reveal extraordinary and unpredictable variation in number and position of descendant cells, even though ENS development is highly predictable at the population level. We use an agent-based model to simulate ENC colonization and obtain agent lineage tracing data, which we analyse using econometric data analysis tools. In all realizations, a small proportion of identical initial agents accounts for a substantial proportion of the total final agent population. We term these individuals superstars. Their existence is consistent across individual realizations and is robust to changes in model parameters. This inequality of outcome is amplified at elevated proliferation rate. The experiments and model suggest that stochastic competition for resources is an important concept when understanding biological processes which feature high levels of cell proliferation. The results have implications for cell-fate processes in the ENS.
Longitudinal shock waves in solids: the piston shock analogue
Authors: Cohen Tal , Durban David
Published: February 2014

Propagation of longitudinal deformation in hardening elastoplastic solids is investigated by the way of analogy with the shock tube pattern in fluid mechanics. Conditions for the appearance of a shock discontinuity are formulated and steady-state continuous and discontinuous solutions are derived. Field characteristics are then investigated for a representative family of hardening elastoplastic Mises solids accounting for finite strains. A critical limit value of the imposed velocity for the emergence of a shock wave is found and sensitivity to material parameters is assessed. Evaluation of dissipation effects is conducted and field response is compared with other uniaxial stress fields. In agreement with available experimental results, it is established that the field may consist of both an elastic precursor and a plastic shock separated by a continuous elastoplastic range. Or, alternatively, when the imposed velocity is higher, the plastic shock overtakes those regions allowing for a variety of resulting fields.
A constitutive model for cytoskeletal contractility of smooth muscle cells
Authors: Liu Tao
Published: February 2014

The constitutive model presented in this article aims to describe the main bio-chemo-mechanical features involved in the contractile response of smooth muscle cells, in which the biochemical response is modelled by extending the four-state Hai–Murphy model to isotonic contraction of the cells and the mechanical response is mainly modelled based on the phosphorylation-dependent hyperbolic relation between isotonic shortening strain rate and tension. The one-dimensional version of the model is used to simulate shortening-induced deactivation with good agreement with selected experimental measurements. The results suggest that the Hai–Murphy biochemical model neglects the strain rate effect on the kinetics of cross-bridge interactions with actin filaments in the isotonic contractions. The two-dimensional version and three-dimensional versions of the model are developed using the homogenization method under finite strain continuum mechanics framework. The two-dimensional constitutive model is used to simulate swine carotid media strips under electrical field stimulation, experimentally investigated by Singer and Murphy, and contraction of a hollow airway and a hollow arteriole buried in a soft matrix subjected to multiple calcium ion stimulations. It is found that the transverse deformation may have significant influence on the response of the swine carotid medium. In both cases, the orientation of the maximal value of attached myosin is aligned with the orientation of maximum principal stress.
Offspring dynamics affect food provisioning, growth and mortality in a brood-caring spider
Authors: Ruch Jasmin , Herberstein Marie E. , Schneider Jutta M.
Published: February 2014

In brood-caring species, family members are faced with a conflict over resource distribution. While parents are selected to adapt the amount of care according to their offspring's needs, offspring might be selected to demand more care than optimal for parents. Recent studies on birds have shown that the social network structure of offspring affects the amount of care and thus the fitness of families. Such a network structure of repeated interactions is probably influenced by within-brood relatedness. We experimentally manipulated the group composition in a brood-caring spider to test how the presence of unrelated spiderlings affects the dynamics between female and brood as well as within broods. Broods consisting of siblings grew better and had a lower mortality compared with mixed broods, no matter whether the caring female was a genetic or foster mother. Interestingly, we found that foster mothers lost weight when caring for sibling broods, whereas females caring for mixed broods gained weight. This indicates that females may be willing to share more prey when the brood contains exclusively siblings even if the entire brood is unrelated to the female. Resource distribution may thus be negotiated by offspring dynamics that could have a signalling function to females.
Genomic changes under rapid evolution: selection for parasitoid resistance
Authors: Jalvingh Kirsten M. , Chang Peter L. , Nuzhdin Sergey V. , Wertheim Bregje
Published: February 2014

In this study, we characterize changes in the genome during a swift evolutionary adaptation, by combining experimental selection with high-throughput sequencing. We imposed strong experimental selection on an ecologically relevant trait, parasitoid resistance in
Drosophila melanogaster
against
Asobara tabida.
Replicated selection lines rapidly evolved towards enhanced immunity. Larval survival after parasitization increased twofold after just five generations of selection. Whole-genome sequencing revealed that the fast and strong selection response in innate immunity produced multiple, highly localized genomic changes. We identified narrow genomic regions carrying a significant signature of selection, which were present across all chromosomes and covered in total less than 5% of the whole
D. melanogaster
genome. We identified segregating sites with highly significant changes in frequency between control and selection lines that fell within these narrow ‘selected regions’. These segregating sites were associated with 42 genes that constitute possible targets of selection. A region on chromosome 2R was highly enriched in significant segregating sites and may be of major effect on parasitoid defence. The high genetic variability and small linkage blocks in our base population are likely responsible for allowing this complex trait to evolve without causing widespread erosive effects in the genome, even under such a fast and strong selective regime.
Wolbachia
increases susceptibility to
Plasmodium
infection in a natural system
Authors: Zélé F. , Nicot A. , Berthomieu A. , Weill M. , Duron O. , Rivero A.
Published: February 2014

Current views about the impact of
Wolbachia
on
Plasmodium
infections are almost entirely based on data regarding artificially transfected mosquitoes. This work has shown that
Wolbachia
reduces the intensity of
Plasmodium
infections in mosquitoes, raising the exciting possibility of using
Wolbachia
to control or limit the spread of malaria. Whether natural
Wolbachia
infections have the same parasite-inhibiting properties is not yet clear.
Wolbachia–
mosquito combinations with a long evolutionary history are, however, key for understanding what may happen with
Wolbachia-
transfected mosquitoes after several generations of coevolution. We investigate this issue using an entirely natural mosquito–
Wolbachia–Plasmodium
combination. In contrast to most previous studies, which have been centred on the quantification of the midgut stages of
Plasmodium
, we obtain a measurement of parasitaemia that relates directly to transmission by following infections to the salivary gland stages. We show that
Wolbachia
increases the susceptibility of
Culex pipiens
mosquitoes to
Plasmodium relictum
, significantly increasing the prevalence of salivary gland stage infections. This effect is independent of the density of
Wolbachia
in the mosquito. These results suggest that naturally
Wolbachia-
infected mosquitoes may, in fact, be better vectors of malaria than
Wolbachia
-free ones.
Identification and genetic characterization of a novel picornavirus from chickens
Authors: Bullman Susan , Kearney Karen , O’Mahony Michael , Kelly Lorraine , Whyte Paul , Fanning Seamus , Morgan John G.
Published: February 2014

A novel picornavirus from commercial broiler chickens (Gallus gallus domesticus) has been identified and genetically characterized. The viral genome consists of a single-stranded, positive-sense RNA genome of >9243 nt excluding the poly(A) tail and as such represents one of the largest picornavirus genomes reported to date. The virus genome is GC-rich with a G+C content of 54.5 %. The genomic organization is similar to other picornaviruses: 5′ UTR–L–VP0–VP3–VP1–2A–2B–2C–3A–3B–3C–3D–3′ UTR. The partially characterized 5′ UTR of >373 nt appears to possess a type II internal ribosomal entry site (IRES), which is also found in members of the genera Aphthovirus and Cardiovirus. This IRES exhibits significant sequence similarity to turkey ‘gallivirus A’. The 3′ UTR of 278 nt contains the conserved 48 nt ‘barbell-like’ structure identified in ‘passerivirus’, ‘gallivirus’, Avihepatovirus and some Kobuvirus genus members. A predicted large open reading frame (ORF) of 8592 nt encodes a potential polyprotein precursor of 2864 amino acids. In addition, the virus contains a predicted large L protein of 462 amino acids. Pairwise sequence comparisons, along with phylogenetic analysis revealed the highest percentage identity to ‘Passerivirus A’ (formerly called turdivirus 1), forming a monophyletic group across the P1, P2 and P3 regions, with <40, <40 and <50 % amino acid identity respectively. Reduced identity was observed against ‘gallivirus A’ and members of the Kobuvirus genus. Quantitative PCR analysis estimated a range of 4×105 to 5×108 viral genome copies g-1 in 22 (73 %) of 30 PCR-positive faeces. Based on sequence and phylogenetic analysis, we propose that this virus is the first member of a potential novel genus within the family Picornaviridae. Further studies are required to investigate the pathogenic potential of this virus within the avian host.
Antigenic and genetic characterization of a divergent African virus, Ikoma lyssavirus
Authors: Horton Daniel L. , Banyard Ashley C. , Marston Denise A. , Wise Emma , Selden David , Nunez Alejandro , Hicks Daniel , Lembo Tiziana , Cleaveland Sarah , Peel Alison J. , Kuzmin Ivan V. , Rupprecht Charles E. , Fooks Anthony R.
Published: February 2014

In 2009, a novel lyssavirus (subsequently named Ikoma lyssavirus, IKOV) was detected in the brain of an African civet (Civettictis civetta) with clinical rabies in the Serengeti National Park of Tanzania. The degree of nucleotide divergence between the genome of IKOV and those of other lyssaviruses predicted antigenic distinction from, and lack of protection provided by, available rabies vaccines. In addition, the index case was considered likely to be an incidental spillover event, and therefore the true reservoir of IKOV remained to be identified. The advent of sensitive molecular techniques has led to a rapid increase in the discovery of novel viruses. Detecting viral sequence alone, however, only allows for prediction of phenotypic characteristics and not their measurement. In the present study we describe the in vitro and in vivo characterization of IKOV, demonstrating that it is (1) pathogenic by peripheral inoculation in an animal model, (2) antigenically distinct from current rabies vaccine strains and (3) poorly neutralized by sera from humans and animals immunized against rabies. In a laboratory mouse model, no protection was elicited by a licensed rabies vaccine. We also investigated the role of bats as reservoirs of IKOV. We found no evidence for infection among 483 individuals of at least 13 bat species sampled across sites in the Serengeti and Southern Kenya.
SNP-guided identification of monoallelic DNA-methylation events from enrichment-based sequencing data
Authors: Steyaert Sandra , Van Criekinge Wim , De Paepe Ayla , Denil Simon , Mensaert Klaas , Vandepitte Katrien , Berghe Wim Vanden , Trooskens Geert , De Meyer Tim
Published: February 2014

Monoallelic gene expression is typically initiated early in the development of an organism. Dysregulation of monoallelic gene expression has already been linked to several non-Mendelian inherited genetic disorders. In humans, DNA-methylation is deemed to be an important regulator of monoallelic gene expression, but only few examples are known. One important reason is that current, cost-affordable truly genome-wide methods to assess DNA-methylation are based on sequencing post enrichment. Here, we present a new methodology that combines methylomic data from MethylCap-seq with associated SNP profiles to identify monoallelically methylated loci. Using the Hardy-Weinberg theorem for each SNP locus, it could be established whether the observed frequency of samples featured by biallelic methylation was lower than randomly expected. Applied on 334 MethylCap-seq samples of very diverse origin, this resulted in the identification of 80 genomic regions featured by monoallelic DNA-methylation. Of these 80 loci, 49 are located in genic regions of which 25 have already been linked to imprinting. Further analysis revealed statistically significant enrichment of these loci in promoter regions, further establishing the relevance and usefulness of the method. Additional validation of the found loci was done using 14 whole-genome bisulfite sequencing data sets. Importantly, the developed approach can be easily applied to other enrichment-based sequencing technologies, such as the ChIP-seq-based identification of monoallelic histone modifications.
Polarity of Water Transport across Epidermal Cell Membranes in Tradescantia virginiana
Authors: Wada Hiroshi , Fei Jiong , Knipfer Thorsten , Matthews Mark A. , Gambetta Greg , Shackel Kenneth
Published: February 2014

Using the automated cell pressure probe, small and highly reproducible hydrostatic pressure clamp (PC) and pressure relaxation (PR) tests (typically, applied step change in pressure = 0.02 MPa and overall change in volume = 30 pL, respectively) were applied to individual Tradescantia virginiana epidermal cells to determine both exosmotic and endosmotic hydraulic conductivity (L  p  OUT and L  p  IN, respectively). Within-cell reproducibility of measured hydraulic parameters depended on the method used, with the PR method giving a lower average coefficient of variation (15.2%, 5.8%, and 19.0% for half-time, cell volume [V  o], and hydraulic conductivity [L  p], respectively) than the PC method (25.4%, 22.0%, and 24.2%, respectively). V  o as determined from PC and PR tests was 1.1 to 2.7 nL and in the range of optically estimated V  o values of 1.5 to 4.9 nL. For the same cell, V  o and L  p estimates were significantly lower (about 15% and 30%, respectively) when determined by PC compared with PR. Both methods, however, showed significantly higher L  p  OUT than L  p  IN (L  p  OUT/L  p  IN ≅ 1.20). Because these results were obtained using small and reversible hydrostatically driven flows in the same cell, the 20% outward biased polarity of water transport is most likely not due to artifacts associated with unstirred layers or to direct effects of externally applied osmotica on the membrane, as has been suggested in previous studies. The rapid reversibility of applied flow direction, particularly for the PR method, and the lack of a clear increase in L  p  OUT/L  p  IN over a wide range of L  p values suggest that the observed polarity is an intrinsic biophysical property of the intact membrane/protein complex.