bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Plasma kallikrein: the bradykinin-producing enzyme
Authors: Björkqvist Jenny , Jämsä Anne , Renné Thomas
Published: July 2013

Plasma prekallikrein is the liver-derived precursor of the trypsin-like serine protease plasma kallikrein (PK) and circulates in plasma bound to high molecular weight kininogen. The zymogen is converted to PK by activated factor XII. PK drives multiple proteolytic reaction cascades in the cardiovascular system such as the intrinsic pathway of coagulation, the kallikrein-kinin system, the fibrinolytic system, the renin-angiotensin system and the alternative complement pathway. Here, we review the biochemistry and cell biology of PK and focus on recent in vivo studies that have established important functions of the protease in procoagulant and proinflammatory disease states. Targeting PK offers novel strategies not previously appreciated to interfere with thrombosis and vascular inflammation in a broad variety of diseases.
Comparison of calibrated chromogenic anti-Xa assay and PT tests with LC-MS/MS for the therapeutic monitoring of patients treated with rivaroxaban
Authors: Tamigniau Anne , Chatelain Bernard , Chatelain Christian , Wallemacq Pierre , Dogné Jean-Michel , Mullier François , Douxfils Jonathan
Published: July 2013

Possibilities to monitor rivaroxaban therapy could be useful in certain circumstances. Prothrombin time (PT) or chromogenic anti-Xa assays such as the Biophen Direct Factor Xa Inhibitor® (DiXaI) have been proposed to estimate rivaroxaban concentrations but are mainly based on in vitro studies. The study aim was to compare PT and Biophen DiXaI® measurements with liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) measurements in plasma samples from patients treated with Xarelto®. Fifty-two plasma samples were included. PT was performed using Innovin® and Triniclot PT Excel S®. Biophen DiXaI® was performed according to instructions from the manufacturer. The rivaroxaban plasma concentration ranged between 0 and 485 ng/ml as measured by LC-MS/MS. The limits of quantification were 30 ng/ml and 5 ng/ml for Biophen DiXaI® and LC-MS/MS, respectively. The linear correlation between Biophen DiXaI® and LC-MS/ MS analyses was high for all rivaroxaban concentrations (r2 = 0.95). For concentrations ≤100 ng/ml, r2-value was 0.83. The Bland-Altman analysis showed a mean difference of −16 ng/ml (SD: 25 ng/ml). The PT methods did not correlate well with plasma concentrations measured by LC-MS/MS (r2 ≈ 0.60). In conclusion, the important interindividual variability and the poor correlation with LC-MS/MS preclude the use of PT to estimate rivaroxaban concentrations. Thanks to its small inter-individual variability and good agreement with LC-MS/ MS measurements, we recommend the use of Biophen DiXaI® assays to estimate concentrations of rivaroxaban >30 ng/ml. Quantification of low rivaroxaban levels (<30 ng/ml) requires the LC-MS/MS method.
Liver-Specific Phospholipid Transfer Protein Deficiency Reduces High-Density Lipoprotein and Non–High-Density Lipoprotein Production in Mice
Authors: Yazdanyar Amirfarbod , Quan Wei , Jin Weijun , Jiang Xian-Cheng
Published: July 2013

Objective—

The liver is one of the critical organs for lipoprotein metabolism and a major source for phospholipid transfer protein (PLTP) expression. The effect of liver-specific PLTP deficiency on plasma lipoprotein production and metabolism in mice was investigated.

Approach and Results—

We created a liver-specific PLTP-deficient mouse model. We measured plasma high-density lipoprotein (HDL) and apolipoprotein B (apoB)–containing lipoprotein (or non-HDL) levels and their production rates. We found that hepatic ablation of PLTP leads to a significant decrease in plasma PLTP activity, HDL lipids, non-HDL lipids, apoAI, and apoB levels. In addition, nuclear magnetic resonance examination of lipoproteins showed that the deficiency decreases HDL and apoB-containing lipoprotein particle numbers, as well as very low-density lipoprotein particle size, which was confirmed by electron microscopy. Moreover, HDL particles from the deficient mice are lipid-poor ones. To unravel the mechanism, we evaluated the apoB and triglyceride production rates. We found that hepatic PLTP deficiency significantly decreases apoB and triglyceride secretion rates. To investigate the role of liver PLTP on HDL production, we set up primary hepatocyte culture studies and found that the PLTP-deficient hepatocytes produce less nascent HDL. Furthermore, we found that exogenous PLTP promotes nascent HDL production through an ATP-binding cassette A 1-mediated pathway.

Conclusions—

Liver-specific PLTP deficiency significantly reduces plasma HDL and apoB-containing lipoprotein levels. Reduction of production rates of both particles is one of the mechanisms.
Contributions of Leukocyte Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme to Development of Atherosclerosis
Authors: Chen Xiaofeng , Lu Hong , Zhao Mingming , Tashiro Katsuya , Cassis Lisa A. , Daugherty Alan
Published: July 2013

Objective—

This study determined the role of angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) on the development of angiotensin I–induced atherosclerosis and the contribution of leukocyte-specific expression of this enzyme.

Approach and Results—

To define the contribution of ACE-dependent activity to angiotensin II synthesis in atherosclerotic development, male low-density lipoprotein receptor
−/−
mice were fed a fat-enriched diet and infused with either angiotensin I or angiotensin II. The same infusion rate of these peptides had equivalent effects on atherosclerotic development. Coinfusion of an ACE inhibitor, enalapril, ablated angiotensin I–augmented atherosclerosis but had no effect on angiotensin II–induced lesion development. ACE protein was detected in several cell types in atherosclerotic lesions, with a predominance in macrophages. This cell type secreted angiotensin II, which was ablated by ACE inhibition. To study whether leukocyte ACE contributed to atherosclerosis, irradiated male low-density lipoprotein receptor
−/−
mice were repopulated with bone marrow–derived cells from either ACE
+/+
or ACE
−/−
mice and fed the fat-enriched diet for 12 weeks. Chimeric mice with ACE deficiency in bone marrow–derived cells had modestly reduced atherosclerotic lesions in aortic arches but had no effects in aortic roots.

Conclusions—

ACE mediates angiotensin I–induced atherosclerosis, and ACE expression in leukocytes modestly contributes to atherosclerotic development in hypercholesterolemic mice.
Lipodystrophy-Linked
LMNA
p.R482W Mutation Induces Clinical Early Atherosclerosis and In Vitro Endothelial Dysfunction
Authors: Bidault Guillaume , Garcia Marie , Vantyghem Marie-Christine , Ducluzeau Pierre-Henri , Morichon Romain , Thiyagarajah Kayathri , Moritz Sylviane , Capeau Jacqueline , Vigouroux Corinne , Béréziat Véronique
Published: July 2013

Objective—

Some mutations in
LMNA
, encoding A-type lamins, are responsible for Dunnigan-type-familial partial lipodystrophy (FPLD2), with altered fat distribution and metabolism. The high prevalence of early and severe cardiovascular outcomes in these patients suggests that, in addition to metabolic risk factors, FPLD2-associated
LMNA
mutations could have a direct role on the vascular wall cells.

Approach and Results—

We analyzed the cardiovascular phenotype of 19 FPLD2 patients aged >30 years with
LMNA
p.R482 heterozygous substitutions, and the effects of p.R482W-prelamin-A overexpression in human coronary artery endothelial cells. In 68% of FPLD2 patients, early atherosclerosis was attested by clinical cardiovascular events, occurring before the age of 45 in most cases. In transduced endothelial cells, exogenous wild-type-prelamin-A was correctly processed and localized, whereas p.R482W-prelamin-A accumulated abnormally at the nuclear envelope. Patients’ fibroblasts also showed a predominant nuclear envelope distribution with a decreased rate of prelamin-A maturation. Only p.R482W-prelamin-A induced endothelial dysfunction, with decreased production of NO, increased endothelial adhesion of peripheral blood mononuclear cells, and cellular senescence. p.R482W-prelamin-A also induced oxidative stress, DNA damages, and inflammation. These alterations were prevented by treatment of endothelial cells with pravastatin, which inhibits prelamin-A farnesylation, or with antioxidants. In addition, pravastatin allowed the correct relocalization of p.R482W-prelamin-A within the endothelial cell nucleus. These data suggest that farnesylated p.R482W-prelamin-A accumulation at the nuclear envelope is a toxic event, leading to cellular oxidative stress and endothelial dysfunction.

Conclusions—

LMNA
p.R482 mutations, responsible for FPLD2, exert a direct proatherogenic effect in endothelial cells, which could contribute to patients’ early atherosclerosis.
Single Subcortical Infarction and Atherosclerotic Plaques in the Middle Cerebral Artery
Authors: Yoon Youngshin , Lee Deok Hee , Kang Dong-Wha , Kwon Sun U. , Kim Jong S.
Published: July 2013

Background and Purpose—

Single subcortical infarction (SSI) may be classified as proximal SSI (pSSI) or distal SSI (dSSI) according to its extension to the middle cerebral artery (MCA). We investigated the differences between pSSI and dSSI in terms of their clinical features, lesion size, and the frequency of MCA plaques detected by high-resolution MRI.

Methods—

Thirty-nine patients with SSI (20 pSSI and 19 dSSI) were prospectively enrolled who did not show relevant MCA disease on MR angiography. Lesion size, neurological status (initial National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale score and modified Rankin Scale at 3 months), and the presence and location (superior versus inferior) of high-resolution MRI–identified plaques were evaluated.

Results—

The frequencies of MCA plaques did not differ between patients with pSSI and those with dSSI (8 [40%] versus 12 [63.2%];
P
=0.205); however, superiorly located plaques were significantly more common in patients with pSSI than in those with dSSI (6 [75%] versus 2 [16.7%];
P
=0.019). Initial lesion volumes were larger (1.96±1.18 versus 1.11±1.11 mm
3
;
P
=0.025), National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale scores were higher (5 [3–6.75] versus 3 [1–3] points;
P
=0.017), and microbleeds were fewer (1 [5%] versus 10 [52.6%];
P
=0.001) in patients with pSSI than in those with dSSI. Three-month modified Rankin Scale scores were higher in patients with superior plaques than in those with inferior plaques.

Conclusions—

Compared with dSSI, pSSI is closely associated with large lesions, severe clinical symptoms, and superiorly located MCA plaques, suggesting that the location, rather than simple presence of plaques, determines the SSI location.
Association of Chronic Kidney Disease With Cerebral Microbleeds in Patients With Primary Intracerebral Hemorrhage
Authors: Ovbiagele Bruce , Wing Jeffrey J. , Menon Ravi S. , Burgess Richard E. , Gibbons M. Christopher , Sobotka Ian , German Laura , Shara Nawar M. , Fernandez Stephen , Jayam-Trouth Annapurni , Edwards Dorothy Farrar , Kidwell Chelsea S.
Published: July 2013

Background and Purpose—

To investigate the relationship between chronic kidney disease (CKD) and MRI-defined cerebral microbleeds (CMB), a harbinger of future intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH), among patients with a recent history of primary ICH.

Methods—

Using data from a predominantly black cohort of patients with a recent ICH-enrolled in an observational study between September 2007 and June 2011, we evaluated the association between CKD (defined as estimated low glomerular filtration rate<60 mL/min per 1.73 m
2
) and CMB on gradient-echo MRI. Multivariable models were generated to determine the contribution of CKD to the presence, number, and location of CMB.

Results—

Of 197 subjects with imaging data, mean age was 59 years, 48% were women, 73% were black, 114 (58%) had ≥1 CMBs, and 52 (26%) had CKD. Overall, CKD was associated with presence of CMB (adjusted odds ratio, 2.70; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.10–6.59) and number of CMB (adjusted relative risk, 2.04; 95% CI, 1.27–3.27). CKD was associated with CMB presence (adjusted odds ratio, 3.44; 95% CI, 1.64–7.24) and number (adjusted relative risk, 2.46; 95% CI, 1.11–5.42) in black patients, but not CMB presence (adjusted odds ratio, 3.00; 95% CI, 0.61–14.86) or number (adjusted relative risk, 1.03; 95% CI: 0.22–4.89) in non-Hispanic white patients (interactions by race were statistically not significant).

Conclusions—

CKD is associated with a greater presence and number of CMB in ICH patients, particularly in patients of black race. Future studies should assess whether low estimated glomerular filtration rate may be a CMB risk marker or potential therapeutic target for mitigating the development of CMB.
Knowledge Indicative and Knowledge Conductive Consensus
Authors: Gasparri Luca
Published: July 2013

Abstract

A traditional proposition in the philosophy and the sociology of science wants that consensus between specialists of a scientific discipline is a reliable indicator of their access to genuine knowledge. In an interesting reassessment of this principle, Aviezer Tucker has analyzed the implications and the significance of this thesis in relation to historical research, and has established that parts of the historiographical community that display high degrees of consensus among their practitioners can be described in terms of the same relationship existing in empirical sciences between the exemplification of significant level of agreement and shared knowledge. After a concise summary of Tucker’s general view of the relationship between consensus and knowledge and an analysis of its discussion by Boaz Miller, this paper proposes a critical discussion of the limits and the virtues of this approach and concludes that it is possible to assume that a theory of the sort outlined by Tucker and Miller may describe in an exhaustive way the dynamics of the consensual communities only after some important caveats and integrations. In the closing section, a brief review of Tucker’s picture of historiographical consensus will be proposed.
The Subject of History: Historical Subjectivity and Historical Science
Authors: Tucker Ericka
Published: July 2013

Abstract

In this paper, I show how the phenomenological and hermeneutic traditions and method converge on their treatment of the historical subject. Thinkers from both traditions converge on the following thesis: that subjectivity is shaped by a historical worldview. Each tradition provides independent grounds and methodological approaches which provide accounts of how these worldviews are shaped, and thus how essentially historical subjective experience is molded. In the second part of this paper I argue that both traditions, although offering helpful ways of understanding the way history shapes subjectivity, go too far in their epistemic claims for the superiority of subjective over positivist or academic history. They propose that the historicity of subjective experience is unexpressed and therefore inexpressible in positivist or academic history. I propose that although the phenomenological-hermeneutic approach to historical subjectivity is both fruitful and valuable for understanding both history and human nature, it cannot and ought not replace academic or what I will call ‘critical’ history. By showing the importance of historicity, and the force of historical consciousness on our actions, philosophers of history in these traditions expose the epistemic and perhaps even ethical requirement to engage in a rigorous critical history, one which recognizes the importance of historical consciousness. Such critical history is necessary to move beyond the subjective horizon of history as experienced to understand how events shaped this historical horizon.
Application of the Weather Research and Forecasting Model for Air Quality Modeling in the San Francisco Bay Area
Authors: Rogers Raphael E. , Deng Aijun , Stauffer David R. , Gaudet Brian J. , Jia Yiqin , Soong Su-Tzai , Tanrikulu Saffet
Published: July 2013

The Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model is evaluated by conducting various sensitivity experiments over central California including the San Francisco Bay Area (SFBA), with the goal of establishing a WRF model configuration to be used by the Bay Area Air Quality Management District (BAAQMD) for its air quality applications. For the two selected cases, a winter particulate matter case and a summer ozone case, WRF solutions are evaluated both quantitatively by comparing the error statistics and qualitatively by analyzing the model-simulated mesoscale features. Model evaluation is also performed for the SFBA, Sacramento Valley, and San Joaquin Valley subregions. The recommended WRF configuration includes use of the Rapid Radiative Transfer Model/Dudhia (or RRTMG) radiation schemes and the Pleim–Xiu land surface physics, combined with a multiscale four-dimensional data assimilation strategy throughout the simulation period to assimilate the available observations, including standard observations from the World Meteorological Organization and local special observations. With the recommended model configuration, WRF is able to simulate the meteorological variables with reasonable error, with the added value, although relatively small, of assimilating the additional BAAQMD local special observations. Mesoscale features, simulated reasonably well for both cases, include the upslope and downslope flows that occur along the mountains that surround the Central Valley of California, as well as the mesoscale eddies that develop within the valley.
Compensation between Resolved and Unresolved Wave Driving in the Stratosphere: Implications for Downward Control
Authors: Cohen Naftali Y. , Gerber, and Oliver Bühler Edwin P.
Published: July 2013

Perturbations to the orographic gravity wave parameterization scheme in an idealized general circulation model reveal a remarkable degree of compensation between the parameterized and the resolved wave driving: when the orographic gravity wave driving is changed, the resolved wave driving tends to change in the opposite direction, so there is little impact on the Brewer–Dobson circulation. Building upon earlier observations of such compensation, an analysis based on quasigeostrophic theory suggests that the compensation between the resolved and parameterized waves is inevitable when the stratosphere is driven toward instability by the parameterized gravity wave driving. This instability, however, is quite likely for perturbations of small meridional length scale in comparison with the Rossby radius of deformation. The insight from quasigeostrophic theory is confirmed in a systematic study with an idealized general circulation model and supported by analyses of comprehensive models. The compensation between resolved and unresolved waves suggests that the commonly used linear separation of the Brewer–Dobson circulation into components (i.e., resolved versus parameterized wave driving) may provide a potentially misleading interpretation of the role of different waves. It may also, in part, explain why comprehensive models tend to agree more on the total strength of the Brewer–Dobson circulation than on the flow associated with individual components. This is of particular relevance to diagnosed changes in the Brewer–Dobson circulation in climate scenario integrations as well.
Factors for Interannual Variations of September–October Rainfall in Hainan, China
Authors: Feng Xiao , Wu Renguang , Chen Jiepeng , Wen Zhiping
Published: July 2013

The present study investigates the year-to-year variations of September–October rainfall in Hainan, China, for the period 1965–2010. The dominant circulation anomalies feature a cyclone (an anticyclone) over the Indochina Peninsula and northern South China Sea, an anticyclone (a cyclone) over subtropical western North Pacific and lower-level convergence (divergence) over the Maritime Continent in the wet (dry) years. These circulation anomalies are responses to an east–west sea surface temperature (SST) anomaly pattern with negative (positive) SST anomalies in the equatorial central Pacific and positive (negative) SST anomalies around the Maritime Continent in the wet (dry) years. Although the SST anomaly pattern is similar (but with opposite anomaly), the SST signal in the equatorial central Pacific is more significant in the dry years than in the wet years. This difference indicates a larger case-to-case variability in the wet years than in the dry years. The large variability in the wet years is attributed to contributions of tropical cyclones (TCs) and intraseasonal oscillations (ISOs). There are more TCs impinging on Hainan and the TC tracks are closer to the island in the wet years than in the dry years. The rainfall shows large intraseasonal variations with periods of 10–20 and 30–60 days during September–October in the wet years. The 10–20-day ISO originates from the Maritime Continent, whereas the 30–60-day ISO develops over tropical Indian Ocean and propagates northeastward to northern South China Sea. In contrast, the ISO signal is much weaker in the dry years.
Object-Based Evaluation of the Impact of Horizontal Grid Spacing on Convection-Allowing Forecasts
Authors: Johnson Aaron , Wang Xuguang , Kong Fanyou , Xue Ming
Published: July 2013

Forecasts generated by the Center for Analysis and Prediction of Storms with 1- and 4-km grid spacing using the Advanced Research Weather Research and Forecasting Model (ARW-WRF; ARW1 and ARW4, respectively) for the 2009–11 NOAA Hazardous Weather Testbed Spring Experiments are compared and verified. Object-based measures, including average values of object attributes, the object-based threat score (OTS), and the median of maximum interest (MMI) are used for the verification. Verification was first performed against observations at scales resolvable by each forecast model and then performed at scales resolvable by both models by remapping ARW1 to the ARW4 grid (ARW1to4). Thirty-hour forecasts of 1-h accumulated precipitation initialized at 0000 UTC on 22, 36, and 33 days during the spring of 2009, 2010, and 2011, respectively, are evaluated over a domain covering most of the central and eastern United States. ARW1, ARW1to4, and ARW4 all significantly overforecasted the number of objects during diurnal convection maxima. The overforecasts by ARW1 and ARW1to4 were more pronounced than ARW4 during the first convection maximum at 1-h lead time. The average object area and aspect ratio were closer to observations for ARW1 and ARW1to4 than for ARW4. None of the models showed a significant advantage over the others for average orientation angle and centroid location. Increased accuracy for ARW1, compared to ARW4, was statistically significant for the MMI but not the OTS. However, ARW1to4 had similar MMI and OTS as ARW4 at most lead times. These results are consistent with subjective evaluations that the greatest impact of grid spacing is on the smallest resolvable objects.
Quantification of urinary 18-hydroxycortisol using LC-MS/MS
Authors: Jin Shigeki , Wada Norio , Takahashi Yuji , Hui Shu-Ping , Sakurai Toshihiro , Fuda Hirotoshi , Takeda Seiji , Fujikawa Masato , Yanagisawa Katsuyuki , Ikegawa Shigeo , Kurosawa Takao , Chiba Hitoshi
Published: July 2013

Background

Urinary 18-hydroxycortisol has been investigated as a marker of aldosterone-producing adenoma (APA). The aim of this study was to develop and validate a method for the measurement of 18-hydroxycortisol using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS).

Methods

Urine was collected over a 24-hour period in patients with APA ( n = 11), idiopathic hyperaldosteronism (IHA, n = 9), and essential hypertension (EH, n = 6). 18-Hydroxycortisol was extracted in solid-phase, and measured by LC-MS/MS based on selected reaction monitoring.

Results

The method allowed quantification of 18-hydroxycortisol with a lower quantification limit of 0.26 nmol/L, intra- and inter-assay coefficients of variation of <3.4% and a range of analytical recovery of 98.0–103.7%. Urinary 18-hydroxycortisol excretion for APA, IHA and EH were determined as 725 (SD 451), 102 (SD 68) and 88 (SD 76) nmol/day, respectively.

Conclusions

The proposed method met the basic analytical requirements and was considered to be useful in the screening and differential diagnosis of APA.
Discordance in thyroglobulin measurements by radioimmunoassay and immunometric assay: a useful means of identifying thyroglobulin assay interference
Authors: Crane Michael S , Strachan Mark WJ , Toft Anthony D , Beckett Geoffrey J
Published: July 2013

Background

Serum thyroglobulin (Tg) is useful for monitoring patients with differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC) but is limited by interference from anti-Tg antibodies (TgAb). We determined Tg assay discordance between a radioimmunoassay (RIA) and one of two immunometric assays (IMA) in DTC patients over a 9-year period to gauge assay performance against evidence of recurrent/progressive DTC.

Methods

Patients with DTC monitored for >1 year attending local clinics between September 2000 and January 2010 were included. All samples were analysed for Tg using both RIA and IMA. TgAb were measured on all Tg requests made after May 2006. Bias plots comparing RIA against IMA were established to calculate a 2-SD outlier limit. Clinical records were viewed to compare discordant Tg results against clinical evidence of recurrent/progressive DTC.

Results

Discordant Tg results were observed in 53/433 patients (12.2%). Four were discordant owing to a higher IMA result, one of which demonstrated recurrence. The remaining 49 patients demonstrated a disproportionately higher RIA result, of which four had recurrent/persistent disease. Twelve patients with a higher RIA result but no evidence of recurrence underwent thyrogen stimulation testing, which was negative in all 12. In many cases, assay discordance appeared more sensitive at indicating interference than direct measurement of TgAb.

Conclusions

Interference was evident with both Tg assays, such that neither could be solely relied upon to provide the correct result in the presence of TgAb. The concomitant measurement of Tg by RIA and IMA methods should be considered as an alternative to monitoring TgAb status.
An association between post-meal bile acid response and bone resorption in normal subjects
Authors: Ewang-Emukowhate M , Alaghband-Zadeh J , Vincent RP , Sherwood RA , Moniz CF
Published: July 2013

Background

The mechanism surrounding bone suppression after a meal may involve several mediators, but is yet to be clarified. Bile acids (BA) function as signalling molecules in response to feeding, and may be directly involved in bone suppression acutely after a meal. The aim of this study was to test the hypothesis that BA are involved in the acute bone suppression observed after a meal.

Methods

A prospective study in which samples collected from volunteers fed a 400 Kcal test meal after an overnight fast were analysed for parathyroid hormone (PTH), BA, and carboxyterminal of type 1 collagen telopeptide (CTX). The study was carried out in 10 healthy male volunteers. Ethical approval was obtained from the Local Research and Ethics Committee at King's College Hospital.

Results

Total BA, glycine conjugated bile acids (GCBA), PTH and CTX showed a response to meal ingestion. There was a negative correlation between percentage change in PTH and CTX ( R2 = −0.82, P = 0.004), and between PTH and GCBA ( R2 = −0.39, P = 0.005).

Conclusion

This study demonstrated an association between GCBA and PTH suppression after a meal. The drop in PTH concentration after a meal may be responsible for the suppression of bone resorption as observed by the decrease in CTX concentration.
A Review of the Neurological and Neurosurgical Implications of Tuberculosis in Children
Authors: Vadivelu Sudhakar , Effendi Sabih , Starke Jeffrey R. , Luerssen Thomas G. , Jea Andrew
Published: July 2013

Tuberculous involvement of the central nervous system (CNS) and vertebral column is the most lethal and disabling form of tuberculosis (TB). Several factors contribute to poor outcome, including cerebrovascular involvement with ischemia, hydrocephalus, direct parenchymal injury and formation of abscess and inflammation in the brain and spinal cord, hyponatremia, seizures, and delayed diagnosis. Spinal spondylitis from TB and associated spinal deformity is the leading cause of paraplegia in developing countries. The evidence for supportive treatment of TB infection of the CNS is limited, leading to substantial differences in management protocols. Many of the treatment approaches used in TB infection of the CNS have been extrapolated from treatment of other acute neurological disorders such as bacterial meningitis and traumatic brain injury. We review data from the available literature and highlight questions relating to the neurological and neurosurgical care of children with TB infection of the CNS and vertebral column.
Crowd theory and the management of crowds: A controversial relationship
Authors: Borch Christian
Published: July 2013

Sociologists of policing and collective protest have made a plea for eradicating from police literature and training programmes which aim to provide guidelines for crowd management any references to classical crowd theory where crowds are depicted as irrational entities. Instead, these scholars suggest, rational conceptions of crowds should inform contemporary crowd management. This article questions this plea on two grounds. First, it demonstrates that there is no unidirectional connection between sociological crowd theory (whatever its content) and practical strategies for governing crowds. The tactical polyvalence of crowd theory is illustrated by showing how the irrational conception of crowds has given rise to very different strategies for the management of crowds (urban reform programmes in the Progressive Era and Hitler’s mobilization strategies, respectively). Second, the article argues that, in spite of its current scholarly popularity, there is no guarantee that the call for a practical employment of the rational notion of crowds will necessarily be successful. This is demonstrated by stressing, on the one hand, that irrational notions of crowds continue to thrive, thereby rendering a turn towards rational approaches difficult, and, on the other hand, that the rational approaches in their ignorance of collective emotional arousal present an inadequate picture of crowds and consequently have limited scope as guidelines for crowd management strategies.
Defining the conversation about Shari’a: Representations in Australian newspapers
Authors: Possamai Adam , Turner Bryan S , Roose Joshua , Dagistanli Selda , Voyce Malcolm
Published: July 2013

Debates about Shari’a law and legal pluralism have come to the fore of political discourse in many western multicultural societies including Australia. The mass media, in particular newspapers, have been active in reporting on Shari’a related news items and in doing so, have made a significant contribution to shaping political debate across western nations from governmental to grassroots levels. Understanding how newspapers report on Shari’a will provide important insights into how political discourse about Islam, western Muslims and Shari’a is formed. Utilizing the example of newspapers in Sydney, Australia, this article draws upon methodologies used to analyse the negative portrayals of new religious movements in the press. The article aims to analyse the way that Shari’a has been reported in key newspapers in Sydney over the last five years. It explores a variety of issues influencing the reporting of Shari’a including reporting of Shari’a at the local and international levels, the division between ‘good’ Shari’a (Islamic finance) and ‘bad’ Shari’a (family and criminal law) and differences between newspapers and media owners.
Community embeddedness and work outcomes: The mediating role of organizational embeddedness
Authors: Ng Thomas WH , Feldman Daniel C
Published: July 2013

The article examines the relationship between community embeddedness and work outcomes (e.g. job motivation, networking behavior, and organizational identification) and the mediating role that organizational embeddedness plays in those relationships. We draw upon conservation of resources theory to explain this mediating effect. Data were collected from 338 employees from multiple organizations at three points in time over a ten-month period; this design allowed us to use latent growth modeling to examine the relationships among changes in the independent, mediating, and outcome variables over time. Results from latent growth modeling analyses generally supported the proposed model. Although community embeddedness has been somewhat marginalized in recent empirical research on organizational embeddedness, this article highlights that it is indeed relevant in predicting job attitudes and job behaviors.
Me, myself, and allies: Understanding the external sources of power
Authors: Sobek David , Clare Joe
Published: July 2013

As far back as Thucydides, scholars have hypothesized that power affects the onset of conflict. Despite its importance, power remains a difficult concept to measure, and scholars have primarily relied on material measures that quantify the internal resources available to a state. This concentration on internal sources of power, however, excludes an important power resource available to a state: its external relations. It is reasonable to expect that when a state estimates the power of a potential opponent it looks not only at the internal resources but also at the power of states that would likely join the conflict. In this article, we develop a new measure of external power that explicitly accounts for the external sources of state power. Unlike previous studies that aggregate a state’s expected alliance contributions, our measure is based on the expected contribution of all states, allies and non-allies alike. We conduct a preliminary test of this new measure on dispute onset, and our results provide support for power preponderance over balance of power theories. External power parity contributes to dispute onset rather than deterrence. In addition, we show that examining the combined, rather than individual, effects of external and internal power produces some intriguing results, suggesting that one state’s internal power preponderance can be offset by another state’s preponderance of external power. These results altogether suggest that further studies examining the role of external power can produce fruitful results.
Introducing the UCDP Georeferenced Event Dataset
Authors: Sundberg Ralph , Melander Erik
Published: July 2013

This article presents the UCDP Georeferenced Event Dataset (UCDP GED). The UCDP GED is an event dataset that disaggregates three types of organized violence (state-based conflict, non-state conflict, and one-sided violence) both spatially and temporally. Each event – defined as an instance of organized violence with at least one fatality – comes with date, geographical location, and identifiers that allow the dataset to be linked to and merged with other UCDP datasets. The first version of the dataset covers events of fatal violence on the African continent between 1989 and 2010. This article, firstly, introduces the rationale for the new dataset, and explains the basic coding procedures as well as the quality controls. Secondly, we discuss some of the data’s potential weaknesses in representing the universe of organized violence, as well as some potential biases induced by the operationalizations. Thirdly, we provide an example of how the data can be used, by illustrating the association between cities and organized violence, taking population density into account. The UCDP GED is a useful resource for conflict analyses below the state and country-year levels, and can provide us with new insights into the geographical determinants and temporal sequencing of warfare and violence.
Do Birds of a Feather Flock Together? The Impact of Ethnic Segregation Preferences on Neighbourhood Choice
Authors: Ibraimovic Tatjana , Masiero Lorenzo
Published: July 2013

Ethnic residential segregation can arise from voluntary or imposed clustering of some ethnicities in specific urban areas. However, up to now it has been difficult to untangle the real causes underlying the segregation phenomena. In particular, voluntary segregation preferences could not be revealed from the observed location choices given the existence of constraints in the real housing market. This study aims at analysing the voluntary segregation drivers through a stated preferences experiment of neighbourhood choice. This method obviates the choice-constraint issue by allowing a hypothetically free choice of alternative urban locations. The results suggest that ethnic preferences exist, positive for co-national neighbours and negative for other foreign groups. However, such preferences do not constitute a major location choice driver given relatively modest willingness-to-pay for ethnic neighbourhood characteristics. Certain heterogeneity in preferences for higher concentration of own co-nationals is captured for households of different origins and educational attainment.
The Spatial Puzzle of Mobilising for Car Alternatives in the Montreal City-region
Authors: Van Neste Sophie L. , Bherer Laurence
Published: July 2013

Scholars have recently advocated going beyond a fetishism for one spatiality to consider a diversity of socio-spatial relations in the study of political mobilisation. The objective of this article is to propose an operationalisation of the four spatialities framework (networks, scale, place and territory) and use it in an investigation of the mobilisation for car alternatives in the Montreal city-region. The approach is to start with the spatiality and structure of the network, to identify brokers and focus on them for the detailed analysis of scale, territory and place. The article sheds light on the particular assets which the use of each spatiality, and their combination, offers for mobilisation in the city-regional context. The findings also illustrate how city-regionalism is experienced by civic actors building coalitions to defend specific causes.
From City-region Concept to Boundaries for Governance: The English Case
Authors: Coombes Mike
Published: July 2013

Defining city-region boundaries for governance or policy requires robust data analysis reflecting a conceptualisation of city-regions. Geddes introduced the concept to England and both fundamental and contingent features he identified remain valid. Subsequent work has not clarified issues raised by the contingent features and one of these—whether or not cities dominate the region definitions—here structures the review of city-region definition methods. Following a historical review of the failure of proposals for English city-region governance geography—which ascribes a key role in those failures to institutional inertia fuelled by rural interests—a review of the ‘city-centric’ methods which exacerbate rural opposition shows they fail to meet essential requirements. By contrast a ‘regions first’ approach to city-region definition is shown capable of implementing all the fundamental features of the concept, including the analysis of flows over and above those of commuting.
City-Dyad Analyses of China’s Integration into the World City Network
Authors: Taylor Peter , Derudder Ben , Hoyler Michael , Ni Pengfei , Witlox Frank
Published: July 2013

The business connections between Beijing, Hong Kong and Shanghai and other major world cities are investigated using the interlocking network model based upon the location strategies of advanced producer service firms. This approach emphasises non-hierarchical relations between cities. A key new finding is that city-dyad analysis enhances the prominence of these China cities compared with simple ranking by total global network connectivity. This suggests that Hong Kong, Shanghai and Beijing have developed more strategically important roles in the world city network than previously understood. Yet the geographies of these links are distinctive, with Shanghai shown to be better connected to the more important world cities such as London and New York than Beijing; and Beijing is found to be better connected to political world cities such as Washington and Brussels, and to other Pacific Asian cities, than Shanghai. The results are interpreted as suggestions for developing a new research programme.
The Logic of Urban Fragmentation: Organisational Ecology and the Proliferation of American Cities
Authors: Howell Matthew Lee
Published: July 2013

Much research has been done on the causes of metropolitan consolidation and its rarity. However, the causes of metropolitan fragmentation are rarely considered. Without considering the reasons for fragmentation, it is difficult to make wise decisions, especially when state policies granting power to local governments cause fragmentation. This article proposes that city formation follows a niche model, much like the formation of interest groups, and that the factors governing interest group origination also affect city formation. To form, cities need residents, resources and entrepreneurs to come together such that a new city can be affordably created. It tests this theory against data from the US Census of Governments and other sources, and finds that Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSA’s) fragment differently from non-MSA counties, state grants of local power increase fragmentation, and more resources allow for more fragmentation. It concludes with a discussion of the results and how they should influence urban policy.
Smartmentality: The Smart City as Disciplinary Strategy
Authors: Vanolo Alberto
Published: July 2013

The paper analyses the concept of the smart city in critical perspective, focusing on the power/knowledge implications for the contemporary city. On the one hand, smart city policies support new ways of imagining, organising and managing the city and its flows; on the other, they impress a new moral order on the city by introducing specific technical parameters in order to distinguish between the ‘good’ and ‘bad’ city. The smart city discourse may therefore be a powerful tool for the production of docile subjects and mechanisms of political legitimisation. The paper is largely based on theoretical reflections and uses smart city politics in Italy as a case study. The paper analyses how the smart city discourse proposed by the European Union has been reclassified to produce new visions of the ‘good city’ and the role of private actors and citizens in the management of urban development.
Dynamics and Constraints of State-led Global City Formation in Emerging Economies: The Case of Shanghai
Authors: Zhang Le-Yin
Published: July 2013

This article seeks to contribute to a better understanding of the role of the state in influencing the formation of global cities in emerging economies. It highlights the complexity of this role due to challenging external environments, divergent interests of state actors and socioeconomic and institutional constraints that these actors are under. At an empirical level, it examines the progress of Shanghai in its state-led development as an emerging global city and the respective roles of the national and local governments in this process.
Introduction to the AF&S Forum on National/Social Resilience
Authors: Werther Guntram F. A.
Published: July 2013

This AF&S Forum on National/Social Resilience includes four connected papers, each looking at the concept and its applications in different ways that are individually and collectively useful for a military leadership and practitioner audience. Each article, its perspectives, approaches, and implications, is briefly discussed in this Introduction, and also formally referenced in the hope that readers will engage the entire Forum. Moreover, the Forum authors hope that reader’s interest will be heightened leading to further research on this important topic.
Policy Representation and Evaluations of State Government
Authors: Flavin Patrick
Published: July 2013

Using data on citizens’ ideological preferences and state policy outputs, this article examines the linkage between how well citizens’ preferences are reflected in state government policy decisions and their level of confidence in state elected officials. The analysis reveals that citizens report less confidence in state government as the ideological distance between themselves and state policy outputs increases and that the substantive effect rivals other common predictors of confidence in government. Notably, this relationship is stronger among respondents with higher levels of political interest and holds only for evaluations of state government and not of local or the federal government.
The role of thoracoscopic debridement in the treatment of parapneumonic empyema
Authors: Bagheri Reza , Tavassoli Alireza , Haghi Seyed Ziaollah , Attaran Davoud , Sadrizadeh Ali , Asnaashari Amir , Basiri Reza , Salehi Maryam , Moghadam Kamran Adhami , Tabari Azadeh , Sheibani Shima
Published: July 2013

Aim

To evaluate the efficacy of early video-assisted thoracoscopic debridement in patients with the fibropurulent phase of parapneumonic empyema.

Patients and methods

40 patients with parapneumonic empyema resistant to 2 weeks of antibiotic therapy, were randomly divided into 2 groups. In group 1 (20 patients), antibiotic therapy and irrigation was continued, and in group 2 (20 patients), video-assisted thoracoscopic debridement was performed. The 2 groups were compared in terms of therapeutic results.

Results

The male/female ratio was 29/11. Group 1 included 16 men and 4 women with a mean age of 54 years, and mean hospital stay was 41 days. Group 2 consisted of 14 men and 6 women with a mean age of 51 years, and mean hospital stay was 23 days. Considering the therapeutic results, 12 patients in group 1 were cured by antibiotic therapy and irrigation, whereas 8 required decortication and pleurectomy with thoracotomy. In group 2, 18 patients were cured by video-assisted thoracoscopic debridement, and 2 underwent thoracotomy and decortication due to intraoperative bleeding. A significant difference in therapeutic results was noted between the groups ( p = 0.028).

Conclusion

Video-assisted thoracoscopic debridement provides a high success rate and less invasive treatment for the early stages of empyema.
Wedge resection verses lobectomy for stage 1 non-small-cell lung cancer
Authors: Warwick Richard , Mediratta Neeraj , Shackcloth Michael , Page Richard , McShane James , Shaw Matthew , Poullis Michael
Published: July 2013

Background

Lobectomy remains the gold standard with regard to potentially curative resection of non-small-cell lung carcinoma. We aimed to investigate whether there is a survival difference in stage 1 non-small-cell lung cancer patients who undergo lobectomy compared to a wedge resection.

Methods

We retrospectively analyzed a prospective database of 1283 patients who had potentially curative resection for stage 1 non-small-cell lung cancer. Only patients with adenocarcinoma, squamous or adenosquamous carcinoma were included. We benchmarked our 5-year survival against the 6th International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer results. Three techniques were used to assess the effect of a lobectomy compared to a wedge resection with regard to long-term survival: Cox multivariate regression analysis, neuronal network analysis, and propensity matching.

Results

Benchmarking failed to reveal any significant difference compared to the 6th International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer results. Crude analysis demonstrated superiority of lobectomy compared to wedge resection, p = 0.02. Cox regression analysis confirmed that age, body mass index, female sex, being a current smoker, tumor diameter, and preoperative forced expiratory volume in 1 s were all significant factors determining long-term survival. Wedge resection was not a significant factor. Neuronal network analysis concurred with the Cox regression analysis. Propensity matching with 1:1 matching demonstrated that wedge resections was not inferior to a lobectomy, p = 0.10.

Conclusions

Cox regression analysis, neuronal network analysis, and propensity matching in stage 1 non-small-cell lung cancer demonstrate no difference in long-term survival after wedge resection compared to lobectomy.