bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Risk factors for relapse in chronic hepatitis C patients who have achieved end of treatment response
Authors: Shin Su Rin , Sinn Dong Hyun , Gwak Geum‐Youn , Cho Moon Seok , Lee Joon Hyoek , Koh Kwang Cheol , Yoo Byung Chul , Paik Seung Woon
Published: November 2009

Background and Aim: Some patients with chronic hepatitis C experience virologic relapse even after achieving an end of treatment response. Prolonged therapy can be effective for helping such high‐risk patients to avoid relapse. We aimed to identify factors predictive of virologic relapse in chronic hepatitis C patients who have achieved end of treatment response.

Methods: We analyzed data from 242 chronic hepatitis C patients who achieved end of treatment response with peginterferon plus ribavirin therapy from 2003 to 2007.

Results: Virologic relapse was identified in 32 patients (13.2%). We considered age, sex, body mass index, presence of diabetes, hemoglobin, platelet, alanine aminotransferase, stage of fibrosis, baseline hepatitis C virus RNA level, rapid virologic response, and adherence to drugs. For genotype 1 patients, older age (≥ 50 years) and higher baseline RNA level (≥ 2000 000 IU/mL) were significantly correlated with occurrence of relapse. For genotypes 2 and 3, lower adherence to peginterferon (< 80%) was an independent risk factor for relapse.

Conclusions: In chronic hepatitis C patients who had achieved end of treatment response, risk factors for relapse were older age and higher baseline hepatitis C virus RNA level in genotype 1, and lower adherence to peginterferon in genotypes 2 and 3, which may be valuable to individualize duration of therapy.
Trends of spinal fusion surgery in Australia: 1997 to 2006
Authors: Harris Ian Andrew , Dao Alan Tien Thanh
Published: November 2009

Background:  This study aims to explore the trend in spine fusion surgery in Australia over the past 10 years, and to explore the possible influence of health insurance status (private versus public) on the rate of surgery.

Methods:  Data pertaining to the rate of lumbar spine fusion from 1997 to 2006 were collected from Inpatient Statistics Collection of NSW Health, Medicare Australia Statistics and the Australian Bureau of Statistics. Data on total hip and total knee arthroplasties were collected to provide a comparator.

Results:  The number of publicly performed spinal fusion procedures increased by 2% from 1997 to 2006. In comparison, privately performed spinal fusion procedures increased by 167% over the same 10‐year period. In 2006, spine fusion surgery was 10.8 times more likely to be done in the private sector than in the public sector, compared with corresponding figures of 4.2 times and 3.0 times for knee replacement and hip replacement, respectively. Waiting list data showed no increase in demand for spine fusion surgery in the public sector.

Conclusion:  There is a disproportionately high rate of lumbar spine fusion surgery performed in the private sector, given the rate of private insurance. The rate of increase was found to be higher than that for hip or knee arthroplasty procedures. Possible explanations for this difference include: over‐servicing in the private sector, under‐servicing in the public sector, differences in medical referral patterns, surgeon and patient preferences and financial incentives.
Cerebral gunshot wounds: a score based on three clinical parameters to predict the risk of early mortality
Authors: Stoffel Michael , Hüser Norbert , Kayser Kathrina , Kriner Monika , Degiannis Elias , Doll Dietrich
Published: November 2009

Background:  To provide a score to predict the risk of early mortality after single craniocerebral gunshot wound (GSW) based on three clinical parameters.

Methods:  All patients admitted to Baragwanath Hospital, Johannesburg, South Africa, between October 2000 and May 2005 for an isolated single craniocerebral GSW were retrospectively evaluated for the documentation of (i) blood pressure (BP) on admission; (ii) inspection of the bullet entry and exit site; and (iii) initial consciousness (n= 214).

Results:  Conscious GSW victims had an early mortality risk of 8.3%, unconscious patients a more than fourfold higher risk (39.2%). Patients with a systolic BP between 100 and 199 mm Hg had an 18.2% risk of mortality. Hypotension (<100 mm Hg) doubled this risk (37.7%) and severe hypertension (≥200 mm Hg) was associated with an even higher mortality rate of 57.1%. Patients without brain spilling out of the wound (‘non‐oozer’) exhibited a mortality of 19.7%, whereas it was twice as high (43.3%) in patients with brain spill (‘oozer’). By logistic regression, a prognostic index for each variant of the evaluated parameters could be established: non‐oozer:0, oozer:1, conscious:0, unconscious:2, 100 ≤RRsys < 200 mm Hg:0, RRsys < 100 mm Hg:1, RRsys≥ 200 mm Hg:2. This resulted in a score (0–5) by which the individual risk of early mortality after GSW can be anticipated.

Conclusions:  Three immediately obtainable clinical parameters were evaluated and a score for predicting the risk of early mortality after a single craniocerebral GSW was established.
Internal mammary artery perforator flap for head and neck reconstruction
Authors: Iyer N. Gopalakrishna , Clark Jonathan R. , Ashford Bruce G.
Published: November 2009

Background:  The internal mammary artery perforator (IMAP) flap is a useful modification of the classic deltopectoral flap that has a number of important roles in head and neck reconstruction.

Methods and results:  In this report, we describe the technique used to plan and raise the flap and demonstrate its use in three different clinical scenarios.

Results and conclusions:  The IMAP flap is a pedicled fasciocutaneous flap that is based on single or multiple internal mammary artery perforators. As such, it provides thin pliable tissue with a wide arc of rotation that is suitable for cutaneous, pharyngeal and tracheostomal reconstruction. Moreover, the flap is well‐vascularised, reliable and the donor site can be closed primarily.
Pilot study of operative fixation of fractured ribs in patients with flail chest
Authors: Marasco Silvana , Cooper Jamie , Pick Adrian , Kossmann Thomas
Published: November 2009

Background:  Flail chest is a serious injury in trauma with a significant mortality rate, and long‐term pain and disability. Traditionally, management has consisted of internal pneumatic splinting, leading to prolonged periods of mechanical ventilation, and its attendant complications. The aim of this study was to assess the safety of operative fixation of broken ribs in flail chest using absorbable prostheses.

Methods:  Thirteen consecutive patients with severe flail chest injury were enrolled in this pilot study. Surgery was planned after viewing three‐dimensional reconstructions of the computed tomography scans of the chest. The plates were applied to the external cortical surface of the rib after reducing the fracture. Segmentally fractured ribs were usually plated only once to convert the flail segment to simple fractured ribs and correct the paradoxical wall motion abnormality.

Results:  All patients had a good surgical result. On average, four ribs were fixed per patient. All patients were able to be weaned from mechanical ventilation and all patients were discharged from the hospital. There were no deaths. No plates had to be removed. In all patients, the flail chest was successfully stabilized and paradoxical chest wall movement was eliminated.

Conclusion:  This pilot study of operative fixation of broken ribs in patients with flail chest, using absorbable plates and screws, has shown the technique to be safe and effective. On the basis of these results, a prospective randomized trial has commenced at The Alfred Hospital, comparing this management strategy with conservative management.
Residual adenoid tissue post‐curettage: role of nasopharyngoscopy in adenoidectomy
Authors: Saxby Alex J. , Chappel Clive A.
Published: November 2009

Objective:  Curettage adenoidectomy is one of the most common methods of adenoidectomy. This study reports the incidence of residual adenoid tissue after curettage and grades the degree of post‐nasal space obstruction using fibre‐optic nasopharyngoscopy.

Methods:  A retrospective study of 425 consecutive patients undergoing curette adenoidectomy in a 5‐year period.

Results:  Of the 425 patients, 288 (68%) had some residual adenoid tissue evident with nasopharyngoscopy, of which 104 (24%) had significant obstruction (grade 2 or 3). No age or sex difference was found in the likelihood or severity of residual adenoid tissue.

Conclusions:  A significant proportion of patients will have residual adenoid tissue following curette adenoidectomy alone. Nasopharyngoscopy permits a more complete resection in a cost‐effective, quick and easily performed additional step.
Minilaparotomy abdominal aortic aneurysm repair in the era of minimally invasive vascular surgery: preliminary results
Authors: Bakoyiannis Chris N. , Tsekouras Nikolaos S. , Georgopoulos Sotiris E. , Skrapari Ioanna C. , Economopoulos Konstantinos P. , Tsigris Christos , Bastounis Elias A.
Published: November 2009

Background:  This study aimed to evaluate the early post‐operative clinical impact of minimal incision aortic surgery (MIAS) for infrarenal abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) repair in comparison with the standard open repair.

Methods:  A case‐control study was conducted. Patients of groups A (19 patients) and B (18 patients) were treated with the MIAS technique and the standard open method, respectively.

Results:  There were significant differences between the two groups in fluid resuscitation during the operation. Post‐operatively, there were significant differences between groups A and B in the time until starting liquid diet (2 ± 0.74 versus 3.55 ± 0.85 post‐operative days (PD), respectively; P < 0.05), the time until starting the solid diet (3.05 ± 0.77 versus 5.11 ± 0.75 PD, respectively; P < 0.05), the time of ambulation (2 ± 0.74 versus 3.4 ± 0.98 PD, respectively; P < 0.05) and in the hospital length of stay (4 ± 0.81 versus 9.7 ± 2.66 days, respectively; P < 0.05).

Conclusions:  The MIAS technique, for repair of infrarenal aortic aneurysms, is a safe and feasible procedure that combines the early advantages of endovascular repair with the long‐term advantages of the traditional open repair.
Computed tomography virtual intravascular endoscopy in the evaluation of fenestrated stent graft repair of abdominal aortic aneurysms
Authors: Sun Zhonghua , Mwipatayi Bibombe P. , Allen Yvonne B. , Hartley David E. , Lawrence‐Brown Michael M. D.
Published: November 2009

Background:  This study aimed to investigate the diagnostic value of computed tomography virtual intravascular endoscopy (VIE) in the follow‐up of patients with abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) treated with fenestrated stent grafts.

Methods:  A total of 19 patients (17 males and 2 females; mean age: 75 years) with AAA undergoing fenestrated stent grafts were retrospectively studied. Pre‐ and post‐fenestration computed tomography data were reconstructed for the generation of VIE images of aortic ostia and fenestrated stents and compared with two‐dimensional axial and multiplanar reformation (MPR) images. Serum creatinine was measured pre and post fenestration to evaluate the renal function.

Results:  The mean intra‐aortic length measured by VIE, two‐dimensional axial and MPR were 4.7, 4.4 and 4.6 mm, respectively, for the right renal stent; 5.0, 4.9 and 5.0 mm, respectively, for the left renal stent; and 5.9, 6.0 and 6.0 mm, respectively, for the superior mesenteric artery stent. Comparisons of these measurements did not show significant difference (P > 0.05). The mean diameters of renal artery ostia measured on VIE visualization pre and post fenestration were 9.2 × 8.3 and 10 × 8.9 mm for the right renal ostium; 8.3 × 7.1 and 9.9 × 8.9 mm for the left renal ostium, with significant changes observed (P < 0.01). No renal dysfunction was observed in this group.

Conclusion:  VIE is a valuable visualization tool in the follow‐up of fenestrated stent graft repair of AAA by providing intraluminal appearance of fenestrated stents and measuring the length of stent protrusion.
The iliac bifurcation device for endovascular iliac aneurysm repair: indications, deployment options and results at 1‐year follow‐up of 25 cases
Authors: Huilgol Ravi L. , Denton Michael J. , Cohen Toby
Published: November 2009

Background:  The iliac bifurcation device (William A Cook Australia, Brisbane, QLD, Australia) is a new endovascular device for iliac aneurysm repair. We review the indications for use, device characteristics, deployment options and the results of our case series.

Methods:  The most common indication for deployment is endovascular aortic aneurysm repair (EVAR) with common iliac aneurysm repair. The standard deployment sequence can be adapted to increase the utility of the device. Data were collected prospectively. Follow‐up was performed with plain X‐ray, ultrasound and computed tomography (CT) scan.

Results:  Between 2004 and 2007, 25 patients had their common iliac artery aneurysm repaired using the iliac bifurcation device. There were 23 male and 2 female patients. Median age was 75 years (range 60–85). The median follow‐up was 12 months (range 1–38). Twenty‐one procedures were combined with EVAR. The median abdominal aortic aneurysm diameter was 60 mm (range 31–97), and the median common iliac artery aneurysm diameter was 37 mm (range 24–71). Technical success was achieved in 100% of cases. There were no acute branch vessel occlusions. There was one early type I endoleak (4%). There was one death (4%) in the 30‐day period post‐procedure. There was one late type I endoleak (4%).

Conclusions:  The iliac bifurcation device achieves endovascular common iliac artery aneurysm repair with preservation of internal iliac artery flow. There are multiple different applications of the device and complementary deployment techniques. High rates of technical success and low rates of branch vessel occlusion are possible.
Extracellular signal‐regulated kinase activation is required for consolidation and reconsolidation of memory at an early stage of ontogenesis
Authors: Languille Solène , Davis Sabrina , Richer Paulette , Alcacer Cristina , Laroche Serge , Hars Bernard
Published: November 2009

The ability to form long‐term memories exists very early during ontogeny; however, the properties of early memory processes, brain structures involved and underlying cellular mechanisms are poorly defined. Here, we examine the role of extracellular signal‐regulated kinase (ERK), a member of the mitogen‐activated protein kinase/ERK signaling cascade, which is crucial for adult memory, in the consolidation and reconsolidation of an early memory using a conditioned taste aversion paradigm in 3‐day‐old rat pups. We show that intraperitoneal injection of SL327, the upstream mitogen‐activated protein kinase kinase inhibitor, impairs both consolidation and reconsolidation of early memory, leaving short‐term memory after acquisition and after reactivation intact. The amnesic effect of SL327 diminishes with increasing delays after acquisition and reactivation. Biochemical analyses revealed ERK hyperphosphorylation in the amygdala but not the hippocampus following acquisition, suggesting functional activation of the amygdala as early as post‐natal day 3, although there was no clear evidence for amygdalar ERK activation after reactivation. These results indicate that, despite an immature brain, the basic properties of memory and at least some of the molecular mechanisms and brain structures implicated in aversion memory share a number of similarities with the adult and emerge very early during ontogeny.
Distinct brain networks in recognition memory share a defined region in the precuneus
Authors: Dörfel Denise , Werner Annett , Schaefer Michael , Von Kummer Rüdiger , Karl Anke
Published: November 2009

Current models of recognition memory performance postulate that there are two fundamentally distinct retrieval processes, i.e. recollection and familiarity. This view has been challenged and little is known from human research about the functional connectivity of the brain areas involved in these processes. In our study we used a Remember‐Know procedure to assess the functional connectivity of brain regions under recognition memory in 30 healthy adults. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging, we analysed the blood oxygen level‐dependent responses during correct Remember, correct Know, correct Rejection and missed responses of the subjects during recognition of non‐emotional nouns. One activation cluster was found in the left precuneus associated with both recollection and familiarity answers. To acquire information about the way in which activity in one brain region modulates activity in another brain region in response to the active task, we performed a psychophysiological interaction analysis with the left precuneus as a seed region. This analysis revealed functionally distinct networks of brain areas underlying recollection and familiarity. Furthermore, we discuss the differential involvement of the hippocampus in a recollection network as compared with a familiarity network. In summary, our results further strengthen the assumptions of a dual‐process view of recognition memory [e.g. H. Eichenbaum et al. (2007) Annual Review of Neuroscience, 30, 123–152; A.P. Yonelinas (2001) Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society London B Biological Sciences, 356, 1363–1374] and add empirical findings about the functional interconnectivity of brain regions supporting either recollection or familiarity.
Single incision laparoscopic total proctocolectomy with ileopouch anal anastomosis
Authors: Geisler D. P. , Condon E. T. , Remzi F. H.
Published: November 2009

Aim  We present our initial experience of a single port laparoscopic total proctocolectomy with ileoanal J pouch anastomosis. The single incision laparoscopic surgery (SIL), (Covidien, Norwalk, Connecticut, USA) device with a multichannel cannula and specially designed curved laparoscopic instrumentation were used.

Method  A patient with familial adenomatous polyposis underwent restorative proctocoectomy. A colonoscopy had demonstrated nearly 1000 polyps in the colon with several 1‐cm polyps in the rectum. The abdomen was entered through a 2.5 cm incision sited preoperatively for the temporary ileostomy. The single port device was inserted and a total proctocolectomy was performed. Ligation of the vessels was performed with the Ligasure (Covidien). The colon and rectum were extracted through the SIL site. An 18‐cm ileoanal J pouch was created extracorporeally. The pouch anal anastomosis was performed intracorporeally and a diverting loop ileostomy created through the SIL port site.

Results  The operating time was 172 min. Blood loss was 100 ml and the hospital stay was 4 days without any complication. The patient had a virtually scar‐less abdomen other than the site of the loop ileostomy.

Conclusion  Single port laparoscopic surgery may allow complex colorectal surgery to be performed resulting in a virtually scar‐less procedure.
How good are newly qualified doctors at digital rectal examination?
Authors: Yeung J. M.‐C. , Yeeles H. , Tang S.‐W. , Hong L. L. , Amin S.
Published: November 2009

Aim  Digital rectal examination (DRE) is an essential skill which all newly qualified doctors should have. There is evidence in the literature that junior doctors lack this important examination technique. The aim of our study was to determine, with the help of a questionnaire, the abilities of foundation year 1 (FY1) doctors to perform DRE.

Method  A questionnaire was developed and sent to newly qualified FY1 doctors qualified in two universities (Nottingham and Sheffield) within the first 4 weeks of starting as a FY1 doctor.

Results  Ninety (75%) out of 120 questionnaires were completed. Most FY1 doctors had very little experience in performing DRE on a patient, and 68 (76%) had performed less than 10 procedures prior to qualification. Very few of these doctors had their clinical findings on DRE checked by a senior doctor (n = 7, 8%). Comparing DRE with other forms of examination, newly qualified doctors were most confident at groin hernia examination followed by testicular examination. They were least confident with vaginal examination and DRE (ANOVA P = 0.0082).

Conclusion  Digital rectal examination is frequently performed by the most inexperienced doctor and may not be verified by a more senior colleague. More training and supervision of junior doctors are required both prior to qualification and during the early stages of their medical career.
Metformin induces glucose uptake in human preadipocyte‐derived adipocytes from various fat depots
Authors: Fischer M. , Timper K. , Radimerski T. , Dembinski K. , Frey D. M. , Zulewski H. , Keller U. , Müller B. , Christ‐Crain M. , Grisouard J.
Published: November 2009

To evaluate the effect of metformin on basal and insulin‐induced glucose uptake in subcutaneous and visceral preadipocyte‐derived adipocytes from obese and non‐obese patients, preadipocytes were obtained from subcutaneous and visceral fat depots during abdominal surgery. Differentiation efficiency was evaluated by measurement of intracellular triglyceride accumulation. Preadipocyte‐derived adipocytes were treated with metformin (1 mM) for 24 h with or without the addition of insulin (100 nM) for 20 min and glucose uptake was measured. In cells from each donor, intracellular triglyceride accumulation was more abundant in subcutaneous preadipocyte‐derived adipocytes than in visceral preadipocyte‐derived adipocytes (p < 0.001). Insulin stimulated glucose uptake in subcutaneous preadipocyte‐derived adipocytes from both non‐obese and obese patients (p < 0.001 vs. basal). In visceral preadipocyte‐derived adipocytes, insulin did not increase basal glucose uptake. In subcutaneous preadipocyte‐derived adipocytes from non‐obese and obese patients, metformin alone increased glucose uptake to 2.7 ± 0.2 (p < 0.001) and 2.1 ± 0.1 fold (p < 0.001) respectively. Metformin increased glucose uptake in visceral preadipocyte‐derived adipocytes from non‐obese (1.7 ± 0.1 fold vs. basal, p < 0.001) and obese (2.0 ± 0.2 fold vs. basal, p < 0.001) patients. Combined treatment with metformin and insulin increased glucose uptake in subcutaneous preadipocyte‐derived adipocytes from both non‐obese and obese patients (p < 0.001 vs. insulin alone). In preadipocyte‐derived adipocytes glucose uptake is induced by metformin independent of the fat depot origin of the preadipocytes (subcutaneous or visceral) and the obesity state of the patients (non‐obese or obese). In adipocytes, metformin seems to induce glucose uptake independent of insulin suggesting an alternative mechanism of action of this drug.
Obesity does not influence the unique pharmacological properties of different biphasic insulin aspart preparations in patients with type 2 diabetes
Authors: Parkner T. , Dyrskog S. E. , Laursen T. , Chen J. W. , Mouritzen U. , Brondsted L. , Hermansen K. , Lauritzen T. , Christiansen J. S.
Published: November 2009

Aim: To investigate the influence of obesity in type 2 diabetic patients upon pharmacological properties of different biphasic preparations of insulin aspart.

Methods: A total of 75 type 2 diabetic patients were stratified according to their body mass index (BMI) into 40 non‐obese (BMI 23–28 kg/m2) and 35 obese (BMI 30–35 kg/m2) subjects. The trial was a double‐blinded crossover study. In two periods of 4 weeks each the patients received subcutaneous injections of biphasic insulin aspart 50 (BIAsp 50) or biphasic insulin aspart 70 (BIAsp 70) thrice daily in random order. Insulin doses were titrated individually. At the end of each period 24‐h serum profiles of insulin aspart, C‐peptide and glucose were recorded. The primary endpoint was the area under the curve of serum glucose concentration during 24 h (AUCGlu(0–24 h)).

Results: The insulin concentration profiles of BIAsp 50 and 70 were as expected according to the content of protamine‐bound insulin aspart (50 and 30% respectively). AUCGlu(0–24 h) BIAsp 50/BIAsp 70 ratios were 0.97 (95% CI: 0.90–1.05, p = 0.49) for non‐obese and 0.98 (95% CI: 0.92–1.05, p = 0.55) for obese. Fasting serum glucose (FSG) BIAsp 50/BIAsp 70 ratios were 0.90 (95% CI: 0.84–0.96, p = 0.002) for non‐obese and 0.90 (95% CI: 0.84–0.97, p = 0.006) for obese. During both treatment regimens the frequency of minor hypoglycaemic episodes was highest for the non‐obese group.

Conclusions: The pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic characteristics of the two preparations of biphasic insulin aspart were different; however, they were not influenced by the degree of obesity in type 2 diabetic patients.
Applying the Varieties of Capitalism Approach to Higher Education: comparing the internationalisation of German and British universities
Authors: GRAF LUKAS
Published: November 2009

In recent years, the global market for higher education has expanded rapidly, while internationalisation strategies have been developed at university, national and European levels to increase the competitiveness of higher education institutions. This article asks how institutional settings prevailing in national models of capitalism motivate distinct national approaches with regard to the internationalisation, globalisation, and Europeanisation of higher education systems. While the university is defined as an organisational actor embedded in the higher education system, the higher education system itself represents an institutional subsystem within the national model of capitalism. An analytical framework is then developed on the basis of the Varieties of Capitalism approach to compare the internationalisation of German and British universities. Findings indicate that the relations between the various actors involved in the internationalisation of universities are based largely on market coordination in the British case. In contrast, this process in Germany relies more on strategic interactions between the various organisational actors in higher education. The development paths in the internationalisation of universities are found to be influenced by and reflect the specific mode of coordination in the respective higher education system and the national model of capitalism more generally. This comparative case study shows that recent conceptions of path dependence as well as conceptual tools developed in the Varieties of Capitalism literature, such as institutional complementarity and comparative institutional advantage, may be fruitfully applied to research on institutional change in higher education systems.
From ‘Ecoles Supérieures de Commerce’ to ‘Management Schools’: transformations and continuity in French business schools
Authors: BLANCHARD MARIANNE
Published: November 2009

Part of the national system of grandes écoles, French Business schools have known radical changes since the 1980s, notably in size, and have become more attractive to students both at a national and an international level. As a consequence, the French elitist system has been questioned by the competition of foreign –especially Anglo‐Saxon — models. An organisational/institutional analysis of these transformations is presented here. Considering that French business schools have been progressively building an organisational field since the end of the 19th century, we will analyse how this field has seen a process of de‐structuration and re‐structuration since the late 1980s. The article first introduces some specificities of the French higher education system. The historical construction of the national business schools field is then presented, before analysing the increasing competition between schools and its effects over the last decades.
First Impressions of the Reorganisation of the School Network in Portugal
Authors: PINTO FERREIRA JORGE MIGUEL FONSECA
Published: November 2009

The aim of this study is to provide a retrospective on the reorganisation of the school network in Portugal between 2005 and 2007. Underlying measures predicted the closure of approximately 2000 primary schools, mainly situated in rural areas. This is a current topic of considerable controversy considering the reform which is being implemented and the fact that relatively little work has been carried out in this area. The research comes from an exploratory study which took place between February and November 2007. The conclusions were presented at the Congress of Childhood Studies (2008). The case involved 20 primary school teachers from 12 schools located in rural areas. The main results show clear differences between what the central administration and teachers are saying. Teachers question improvements to the quality of teaching, since no changes were found in teaching‐learning conditions.
Pliocene forest dynamics as a primary driver of African bird speciation
Authors: Voelker Gary , Outlaw Robert K. , Bowie Rauri C. K.
Published: November 2009

Aim  Montane tropics are areas of high endemism, and mechanisms driving this endemism have been receiving increasing attention at a global scale. A general trend is that climatic factors do not explain the species richness of species with small to medium‐sized geographic ranges, suggesting that geological and evolutionary processes must be considered. On the African continent, several hypotheses including both refugial and geographic uplift models have been advanced to explain avian speciation and diversity in the lowland forest and montane regions of central and eastern Africa; montane regions in particular are recognized as hotspots of vertebrate endemism. Here, we examine the possible role of these models in driving speciation in a clade of African forest robins.

Location  Africa.

Methods  We constructed the first robustly supported molecular phylogenetic hypothesis of forest robins. On this phylogeny, we reconstructed habitat‐based distributions and geographic distributions relative to the Albertine Rift. We also estimated the timing of lineage divergences via a molecular clock.

Results  Robust estimates of phylogenetic relationships and clock‐based divergences reject Miocene tectonic uplift and Pleistocene forest refugia as primary drivers of speciation in forest robins. Instead, our data suggest that most forest robin speciation took place in the Late Pliocene, from 3.2 to 2.2 Ma. Distributional patterns are complex, with the Albertine Rift region serving as a general east–west break across the group. Montane distributions are inferred to have evolved four times.

Main conclusions  Phylogenetic divergence dates coincide with a single period of lowland forest retraction in the late Pliocene, suggesting that most montane speciation resulted from the rapid isolation of populations in montane areas, rather than montane areas themselves being drivers of speciation. This conclusion provides additional evidence that Pliocene climate change was a major driver of speciation in broadly distributed African animal lineages. We further show that lowland forest robins are no older than their montane relatives, suggesting that lowland areas are not museums which house ‘ancient’ taxa; rather, for forest robins, montane areas should be viewed as living museums of a late Pliocene diversification event. A forest refugial pattern is operating in Africa, but it is not constrained to the Pleistocene.
Predicting the regenerative capacity of conifer somatic embryogenic cultures by metabolomics
Authors: Robinson Andrew R. , Dauwe Rebecca , Ukrainetz Nicholas K. , Cullis Ian F. , White Rick , Mansfield Shawn D.
Published: November 2009

Somatic embryogenesis in gymnosperms is an effective approach to clonally propagating germplasm. However, embryogenic cultures frequently lose regenerative capacity. The interactions between metabolic composition, physiological state, genotype and embryogenic capacity in Pinus taeda (loblolly pine) somatic embryogenic cultures were explored using metabolomics. A stepwise modelling procedure, using the Bayesian information criterion, generated a 47 metabolite predictive model that could explain culture productivity. The model performed extremely well in cross‐validation, achieving a correlation coefficient of 0.98 between actual and predicted mature embryo production. The metabolic composition and structure of the model implied that variation in culture regenerative capacity was closely linked to the physiological transition of cultures from the proliferation phase to the maturation phase of development. The propensity of cultures to advance into this transition appears to relate to nutrient uptake and allocation in vivo, and to be associated with the tolerance and response of cultures to stress, during the proliferation phase.
650. CYNORKIS GUTTATA
Authors: Hermans Johan
Published: November 2009

Cynorkis guttata Hermans & P. J. Cribb in Cynorkis sect. Gibbosorchis, a recently‐described orchid from Madagascar, is illustrated. The identities of Cynorkis purpurascens Lindl., C. calanthoides Kraenzlin and the artificial hybrid C. ‘Kewensis’ are explained.
654. IRIS ACUTILOBA subsp. LONGITEPALA
Authors: Mathew Brian , Zarrei Mehdi
Published: November 2009

Iris acutiloba subsp. longitepala Mathew & Zarrei, a recently described member of section Oncocyclus from Iran, is illustrated and its characteristics are compared with other variants of this widespread species.
Ashéninka amity: a study of social relations in an Amazonian society
Authors: Killick Evan
Published: November 2009

Starting with Ashéninka people's avowed preference for living apart, in nuclear family households, this article analyses Ashéninka social practices within the context of ongoing academic debates over reciprocity, kinship, and the relative importance of similarity and difference in Amazonian thought. I argue that instead of attempting to pull others into fixed and narrowly prescribed relationships, particularly those based on kinship, the Ashéninka prefer for all ties to be based on relations of friendship that remain voluntary, limited, and flexible. I show how these relationships are underpinned by a cultural imperative on unilateral giving that is manifested in masateadas, social gatherings centred on the consumption of manioc beer.

À partir de la préférence déclarée des Ashéninkas pour une vie isolée en maisonnées composées de familles nucléaires, l’article analyse les pratiques sociales dans le contexte des débats académiques actuels sur la réciprocité, la parenté et l’importance relative de la similitude et de la différence dans la pensée amazonienne. L’auteur avance qu’au lieu de tenter de contraindre les autres à des relations fixes et strictement prescrites, notamment sur la base de la parenté, les Ashéninkas préfèrent qu’elles soient tissées à partir de liens d’amitié volontaires, limités et souples. L’auteur montre comment ces relations sont sous‐tendues par un impératif culturel de don unilatéral, manifesté dans les masateadas, des rassemblements sociaux centrés sur la consommation de bière de manioc.
After the red passport: towards an anthropology of the everyday geopolitics of entrapment in the EU's ‘immediate outside’
Authors: Jansen Stef
Published: November 2009

Suggesting building bricks for an anthropology of everyday geopolitics, this text analyses affective engagements with regulation, here of cross‐border mobility. Following the logic of the regulation that constitutes them, I conceptualize zones of humiliating entrapment through documentary requirements – experienced by citizens of Bosnia‐Herzegovina and Serbia – as the EU's shrinking ‘immediate outside’. Using ethnography, I embed bodily experiences in visa queues in people's engagements with changing Eurocentric spatiotemporal rankings, refracting this entrapment against the privileges of certain foreigners (such as me) and against their own remembered mobility with the ‘red’ Yugoslav passport. I propose that complementing the dominant focus on the role of (national) identity politics in geopolitical affect with one on regulation and ranking is a central task for a critical anthropology of everyday geopolitics in peripheries.

L’auteur de cet article entend mettre en avant des éléments pour constituer une anthropologie de la géopolitique quotidienne. Pour cela, il analyse l’abord affectif de la régulation, en l’occurrence celle des flux transfrontaliers. Suivant la logique de la réglementation qui les constitue, il conceptualise sous l’appellation « d’extérieur immédiat » de l’Union européenne des zones, de plus en plus exiguës, où les sujets (en l’occurrence des ressortissants de Bosnie‐Herzégovine et de Serbie) sont pris dans le piège humiliant des exigences paperassières. À l’aide de l’ethnographie, il incorpore le vécu physique des files d’attente de visas dans la confrontation des gens aux classements spatiotemporels eurocentriques mouvants, confrontant cette situation d’enlisement aux privilèges de certains étrangers (comme lui‐même) et à leurs propres souvenirs de mobilité avec le passeport yougoslave « rouge ». L’auteur suggère qu’une anthropologie de la géopolitique quotidienne dans les zones périphériques requiert de compléter la focalisation sur le rôle de la politique identitaire (nationale) dans les affects géopolitiques par une attention soutenue aux régulations et aux classements.
Lexical borrowing from Chinese languages in Malaysian English
Authors: IMM TAN SIEW
Published: November 2009

ABSTRACT: This paper explores how contact between English and Chinese has resulted in the incorporation of Chinese borrowings into the lexicon of Malaysian English (ME). Using a corpus‐based approach, this study analyses a comprehensive range of borrowed features extracted from the Malaysian English Newspaper Corpus (MEN Corpus). Based on the contexts of these features, the specific processes that shape the patterns of changes in ME are deduced. Haugen's analysis of lexical borrowing is employed in the description of the linguistic changes. It is proposed that the preservation of traditional Chinese culture and practices by a multilingual society that maintains a local variety of English has created the stimulus for this type of contact phenomenon. Borrowers are conditioned not only by their need to expand the communicative and expressive powers of English but also by their need to integrate the borrowed features into the linguistic system of the English language. The outcomes of this phenomenon, as represented in the relatively formal genre of newspaper English, are mainly loanwords, compound blends and loan translations, although some inflected and derived forms based on these borrowings are also observed. This paper demonstrates the potential of corpus‐based methods in the study of new Englishes from the perspective of contact linguistics.
Circumstance adverbials in registers of Indian English
Authors: BALASUBRAMANIAN CHANDRIKA
Published: November 2009

ABSTRACT:  This is a corpus‐based investigation of also and too in 11 registers of Indian English. The corpus used for this study is a combination of a Corpus of Contemporary Indian English (CCIE), and certain sections of ICE‐India. The study: (1) determines the proportions of also and too with respect to each other in the Indian corpus; (2) compares the proportions of the adverbials in registers of Indian English versus registers of British and American English; (3) compares the position preferences (medial, initial, final) of the adverbials in registers of Indian English versus registers of British and American English; and (4) determines the position of also and its relationship to the element in semantic focus in the clause in different registers of Indian English. The study shows that there are: (1) significant differences between Indian English and British and American English in the patterns of occurrence of the circumstance adverbials studied; and (2) there are substantial differences in patterns of occurrence of the circumstance adverbials among the registers of Indian English. This study makes a contribution to the study of Indian English as it shows: (1) that Indian English is different from British and American English with respect to a core grammatical characteristic; and (2) that registers of Indian English are substantially different from each other.
Sexual Politics and Socialist Housing: Building Homes in Revolutionary Cuba
Authors: Hamilton Carrie
Published: November 2009

This article examines the interconnectedness of home and housing in oral history interviews with Cubans about their lives since the revolution of 1959. Historians and other scholars of the Cuban Revolution usually treat housing and home as separate issues. This article historicises the relationship between housing policy and the politics of home and family in revolutionary Cuba, drawing on feminist critiques of socialist housing policy as well as feminist and queer theorisations of sexuality and space. I conclude by making the case for comparative histories of sexuality and housing, arguing that an analysis of housing highlights intersections of class, race, gender and sexuality.
‘Who Should Be the Author of a Dwelling?’ Architects versus Housewives in 1950s France
Authors: Rudolph Nicole
Published: November 2009

This article draws upon archival sources, architectural trade publications and contemporary social science to trace the design and reception of the ‘cell’, a functionalist, rational apartment that was the building block of apartment complexes that sprung up all over France during the 1950s and 1960s. I argue that French Modernist architects, shaped by both professional and socio‐political concerns, believed their streamlined interiors to be key to building a classless society and restoring French greatness and thus rejected the dwelling preference and expertise of French homemakers when designing their homes. Nevertheless, Frenchwomen tried to ignore architectural dictates when it came to homemaking, and ultimately, in a changed political climate, their preferences convinced the national housing ministry to redefine its norms and standards for apartments.
Double Displacement: Western Women's Return Home from Japanese Internment in the Second World War
Authors: Twomey Christina
Published: November 2009

This article examines the homecoming of Western women from Japanese internment camps at the end of the Second World War. It focuses on British women returning to the United Kingdom, but makes reference to women from other Allied nations such as the United States, Australia and the Netherlands. The paper argues that interned women posed contradictions to gendered understandings of wartime experience and that homecoming further exacerbated this ambiguity. Return from imprisonment exposed the dual meaning of home as the natural realm for women and a national space. Women internees had been away from both and were subjected to control by non‐white men; responses to their liberation reflected these tensions. Homecoming prompted questions about released women's femininity and sexual integrity, but they faced even more difficulty having their war experiences recognised as part of a national story about war.
‘The White Wife Problem’: Sex, Race and the Contested Politics of Repatriation to Interwar British West Africa
Authors: Ray Carina E.
Published: November 2009

Based on archival research in Ghana and Britain, this article documents the sustained but failed attempts of working‐class West African seamen to repatriate to the colonies with their European wives during the interwar years. Colonial authorities crafted policies to prevent these couples from making British West Africa home because they feared that the presence of European women living ‘in native fashion’ with their African husbands would destabilise colonial race relations. After discussing the origins of this policy in the context of the 1919 race riots that swept Britain's port cities, the article draws on the case of a West African man married to a German woman to illuminate how concerns about race, sex, gender, nationality and class informed the politics of repatriation to British West Africa during the interwar years.
Inhibition of NAALADase by 2‐PMPA attenuates cocaine‐induced relapse in rats: a NAAG‐mGluR2/3‐mediated mechanism
Authors: Xi Zheng‐Xiong , Li Xia , Peng Xiao‐Qing , Li Jie , Chun Lauren , Gardner Eliot L. , Thomas Ajit G. , Slusher Barbara S. , Ashby Jr Charles R.
Published: November 2009

Pharmacological activation of group II metabotropic glutamate receptors (mGluR2/3) inhibits cocaine self‐administration and reinstatement of drug‐seeking behavior, suggesting a possible use of mGluR2/3 agonists in the treatment of cocaine dependence. In this study, we investigated whether elevation of the endogenous mGluR2/3 ligandN‐acetyl‐aspartatylglutamate (NAAG) levels by theN‐acetylated‐alpha‐linked‐acidic dipeptidase inhibitor 2‐(phosphonomethyl)pentanedioic acid (2‐PMPA) attenuates cocaine self‐administration and cocaine‐induced reinstatement of drug seeking.N‐acetylated‐alpha‐linked‐acidic dipeptidase is a NAAG degradation enzyme that hydrolyzes NAAG toN‐acetylaspartate and glutamate. Systemic administration of 2‐PMPA (10‐100 mg/kg, i.p.) inhibited intravenous self‐administration maintained by low unit doses of cocaine and cocaine (but not sucrose)‐induced reinstatement of drug‐seeking behavior. Microinjections of 2‐PMPA (3–5 μg/side) or NAAG (3–5 μg/side) into the nucleus accumbens (NAc), but not into the dorsal striatum, also inhibited cocaine‐induced reinstatement, an effect that was blocked by intra‐NAc injection of LY341495, a selective mGluR2/3 antagonist.In vivomicrodialysis demonstrated that 2‐PMPA (10‐100 mg/kg, i.p.) produced a dose‐dependent reduction in both extracellular dopamine (DA) and glutamate, an effect that was also blocked by LY341495. Finally, pre‐treatment with 2‐PMPA partially attenuated cocaine‐enhanced extracellular NAc DA, while completely blocking cocaine‐enhanced extracellular NAc glutamate in rats during reinstatement testing. Intra‐NAc perfusion of LY341495 blocked 2‐PMPA‐induced reductions in cocaine‐enhanced extracellular NAc glutamate, but not DA. These findings suggest that 2‐PMPA is effective in attenuating cocaine‐induced reinstatement of drug‐seeking behavior, likely by attenuating cocaine‐induced increases in NAc DA and glutamate via pre‐synaptic mGluR2/3s.
Identification and expression profiling of blood–brain barrier membrane proteins
Authors: Agarwal Nitin , Lippmann Ethan S. , Shusta Eric V.
Published: November 2009

J. Neurochem. (2010) 112, 625–635.

Blood–brain barrier (BBB) membrane proteins play crucial roles in the proper functioning of the BBB as well as in disease progression. Previously, we developed a novel approach for identifying membrane proteins expressed at the BBB, which we referred to as multiplex expression cloning. In this study, the proteome coverage of the multiplex expression cloning approach was expanded to allow the identification of a total of 30 BBB membrane proteins that are diverse in function and abundance. To unveil those membrane proteins that are enriched at the BBB and hence partially responsible for some of its unique characteristics, the transcript abundance levels for all 30 BBB membrane proteins were compared with those found in microvessels derived from lung, liver, heart, and kidney. Such quantitative PCR profiling of RNA samples from laser capture microdissected microvessels revealed that the transcripts for five membrane proteins, namely Lutheran glycoprotein, carbonic anhydrase IV, uncoupling protein 2, podocalyxin, and solute carrier family 38, member 5, were BBB selective, in that expression was elevated in brain microvessels when compared with all of the vascular beds tested. Many other membrane protein transcripts, whereas not as BBB‐restricted, showed selective expression within subsets of tissues indicating other potential parallels and contrasts between vascular beds in the body. The identification of BBB membrane proteins could help better understand the molecular mechanisms responsible for BBB function and those with selective expression may have utility for BBB‐targeted therapies.