bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
CD47: A Cell Surface Glycoprotein Which Regulates Multiple Functions of Hematopoietic Cells in Health and Disease
Authors: Oldenborg Per-Arne
Published: January 2013

Interactions between cells and their surroundings are important for proper function and homeostasis in a multicellular organism. These interactions can either be established between the cells and molecules in their extracellular milieu, but also involve interactions between cells. In all these situations, proteins in the plasma membranes are critically involved to relay information obtained from the exterior of the cell. The cell surface glycoprotein CD47 (integrin-associated protein (IAP)) was first identified as an important regulator of integrin function, but later also was shown to function in ways that do not necessarily involve integrins. Ligation of CD47 can induce intracellular signaling resulting in cell activation or cell death depending on the exact context. By binding to another cell surface glycoprotein, signal regulatory protein alpha (SIRPα), CD47 can regulate the function of cells in the monocyte/macrophage lineage. In this spotlight paper, several functions of CD47 will be reviewed, although some functions may be more briefly mentioned. Focus will be on the ways CD47 regulates hematopoietic cells and functions such as CD47 signaling, induction of apoptosis, and regulation of phagocytosis or cell-cell fusion.
TIPS Placement via Combined Transjugular and Transhepatic Approach for Cavernous Portal Vein Occlusion: Targeted Approach
Authors: Jourabchi Natanel , McWilliams Justin Pryce , Lee Edward Wolfgang , Sauk Steven , Kee Stephen Thomas
Published: January 2013

Purpose. We report a novel technique which aided recanalization of an occluded portal vein for transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS) creation in a patient with symptomatic portal vein thrombosis with cavernous transformation. Some have previously considered cavernous transformation a contraindication to TIPS.Case Presentation. 62-year-old man with chronic pancreatitis, portal vein thrombosis, portal hypertension and recurrent variceal bleeding presents with melena and hematemesis. The patient was severely anemic, hemodynamically unstable, and required emergent portal decompression. Attempts to recanalize the main portal vein using traditional transjugular access were unsuccessful. After percutaneous transhepatic right portal vein access and navigation of a wire through the occluded main portal vein, an angioplasty balloon was inflated at the desired site of shunt takeoff. The balloon was targeted and punctured from the transjugular approach, and a wire was passed into the portal system. TIPS placement then proceeded routinely.Conclusion. Although occlusion of the portal vein increases difficulty of performing TIPS, it should not be considered an absolute contraindication. We have described a method for recanalizing an occluded portal vein using a combined transhepatic and transjugular approach for TIPS. This approach may be useful to relieve portal hypertension in patients who fail endoscopic and/or surgical therapies.
Targeting the Immunogenetic Diseases with the Appropriate HLA Molecular Typing: Critical Appraisal on 2666 Patients Typed in One Single Centre
Authors: Guarene M. , Capittini C. , De Silvestri A. , Pasi A. , Badulli C. , Sbarsi I. , Cremaschi A. L. , Garlaschelli F. , Pizzochero C. , Monti M. C. , Montecucco C. , Corazza G. R. , Larizza D. , Bianchi P. E. , Salvaneschi L. , Martinetti M.
Published: January 2013

We compared the immunogenetic data from 2666 patients affected by HLA-related autoimmune diseases with those from 4389 ethnically matched controls (3157 cord blood donors CBD, 1232 adult bone marrow donors BMD), to verify the appropriateness of HLA typing requests received in the past decade. The frequency of HLA-B*27 phenotype was 10.50% in 724 ankylosing spondylitis, 16.80% in 125 uveitis (3.41% BMD, 4.24% CBD,P<0.0001); HLA-B*51 allele was 15.57% in 212 Behçet’s disease (12.91% BMD, 9.88% CBD,P<0.0001); the HLA-DRB1-rheumatoid arthritis (RA) shared epitope was 13.72% in 554 RA (10.85% BMD, 13.48% CBD,P=0.016); the carriers of almost one of HLA-DQB1 susceptibility alleles were 84.91% in 795 celiac disease (CD) and 59.37% in 256 insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM) (46.06% in 875 CBD, 42.75% in 662 BMDP<0.0001). Overall, our results show that the HLA marker frequencies were higher in patients than controls, but lower than expected from the literature data (excluding CD and IDDM) and demonstrate that, in complex immunogenetic conditions, a substantial number of genetic analyses are redundant and inappropriate, burdening to the public health costs. For this reason, we suggest the Italian Scientific Society of Immunogenetics to establish guidelines to improve the appropriateness of typing requests.
Impact of Inflammation-Metaplasia-Adenocarcinoma Sequence and Prevention in Surgical Rat Models
Authors: Miyashita Tomoharu , Shah Furhawn A. , Miwa Koichi , Sasaki Shozo , Nishijima Koji , Oyama Katsunobu , Ninomiya Itasu , Fushida Sachio , Fujimura Takashi , Hattori Takanori , Harmon John W. , Ohta Tetsuo
Published: January 2013

The incidence of esophageal cancer continues to rise in the Western world. Prior studies have suggested that gastroduodenal content reflux from gastroesophageal reflux disease induces the inflammation-mediated progression from hyperplasia to metaplasia, and to adenocarcinoma. We further investigated the sequential development of esophageal adenocarcinoma (EADC) with the use of an established surgical rat model. The present paper will describe the impact of the inflammation-metaplasia-adenocarcinoma sequence and chemoprevention in surgical rat models. A clinically relevant rat reflux model was used to investigate the cause of carcinogenesis, the sequential development of adenocarcinoma and chemoprevention with the use of a proton pump inhibitor. We found that duodenal reflux plays an important role in the inflammation-induced transformation of esophageal mucosa to adenocarcinoma. We were able to inhibit this transformation with rabeprazole, a proton pump inhibitor. Duodenal reflux promotes inflammation in the esophagus. The inflammation-metaplasia-adenocarcinoma sequence is important in the progression and development of EADC. Carcinogenesis can be prevented with chemoprevention agents such as rabeprazole. These results will need to be validated in clinical trials.
Cyclooxygenase, Cancer Stem Cells and DNA Methylation Play Important Roles in Colorectal Carcinogenesis
Authors: Tsujii Masahiko
Published: January 2013

Many effective anticancer therapies against colorectal cancer have been developed, but chemoresistance and recurrence are still inevitable problems and their counter measures are urgently needed. Recently, cancer stem cells have been indicated to play a pivotal role in chemoresistance and recurrence and have gained attention as a novel target. On the other hand, both aberrant hyper- and hypomethylation have been shown to be involved in carcinogenesis and the simultaneous amendment is indispensable. Cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) has already been reported to play an important role in carcinogenesis. Our latest study indicates that COX-2 inhibitors remedy aberrant methylation and beat cancer stemness, suggesting that COX-2 inhibitors hold great promise for cancer prevention and therapy.
Comparison of the Clinicopathological Characteristics and Results of Endoscopic Submucosal Dissection for Esophagogastric Junction and Non-Junctional Cancers
Authors: Hoteya Shu , Matsui Akira , Iizuka Toshiro , Kikuchi Daisuke , Yamada Akihiro , Yamashita Satoshi , Furuhata Tsukaka , Domon Kaoru , Nakamura Masanori , Mitani Toshihumi , Ogawa Osamu , Kasie Mitsuru
Published: January 2013

Background: Esophagogastric junction (EGJ) cancers are not only located in regions anatomically difficult for endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD), but they also have higher clinicopathological malignant potential than non-junctional gastric cancers (NJC). Despite this, no ESD-based comparative studies of junctional cancer (JC) and NJC have been conducted to date. The aims of this study were to clarify the clinicopathological characteristics of EGJ cancers and the short- and long-term outcomes after ESD. Methods: Between April 2005 and December 2010, ESD was performed on 1,463 lesions that were divided into the following three groups: Barrett’s adenocarcinoma (BA; n = 25); JC (n = 103), and NJC (n = 1,335). They were assessed for short-term outcomes, clinicopathological malignancy and long-term outcomes. Results: Rates of complete and curative resection were significantly lower for BA than for JC and NJC (64.0 vs. 96.1 and 96.0%; and 48.0 vs. 80.6 and 85.8%, respectively). The perforation rate was significantly higher for BA than for JC and NJC (20.0 vs. 2.9 and 2.7%). Clinicopathologically, submucosal invasion rates were higher in BA and JC than in NJC (32.0 and 30.1 vs. 13.6%), and positive rates of lymphatic and/or vascular invasion were remarkably higher in BA and JC versus NJC (24.0 vs. 9.7 vs. 4.8%, respectively). The 5-year survival rate in all patients with curative resection was 100%. Conclusion: This study confirmed the technical and theoretical validity of ESD for EGJ as a diagnostic treatment. However, we have to pay attention to the high rates of submucosal and lymphovascular invasive malignant potential of these cancers.
Hemorrhagic Ulcers after Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami: Features of Post-Disaster Hemorrhagic Ulcers
Authors: Kanno Takeshi , Iijima Katsunori , Abe Yasuhiko , Koike Tomoyuki , Shimada Norihiro , Hoshi Tatsuya , Sano Nozomu , Ohyauchi Motoki , Ito Hirotaka , Atsumi Tomoaki , Konishi Hidetomo , Asonuma Sho , Shimosegawa Tooru
Published: January 2013

Background: We investigated the characteristic features and treatment of hemorrhagic peptic ulcers after the Great East Japan Earthquake, which occurred on 11 March 2011. Methods: Clinical data of patients with hemorrhagic peptic ulcers were retrospectively collected during the 3 months after the earthquake from seven major hospitals in the middle of the stricken area, and were compared with those during the same period of the previous year. Results: After the earthquake, the number of hemorrhagic ulcers increased 2.2 fold as compared with the previous year, and gastric ulcers were significantly more frequent compared with duodenal ulcers (p <0.05) and more often presented multiple forms (p <0.05). Nonetheless, the proportion of re-bleeding cases after hemostasis treatment (8% in 2010 vs. 5% in 2011) or total mortality rate (2.5% in 2010 vs. 1.2% in 2011) was rather lower after the earthquake compared with that of the previous year. Conclusion: We clarified that post-disaster hemorrhagic ulcers existed frequently in the stomach, often as multiple ulcers at the same time. The Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami caused many cases of hemorrhagic ulcer. However, because of the high success rate of endoscopic hemostasis, the mortality remained as low as in the previous year. Our present study provides important information for large-scale disasters which can occur anywhere.
Long-Term Follow-Up Outcome of Imatinib Mesylate Treatment for Recurrent and Unresectable Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumors
Authors: Saito Seiko , Nakata Katsunori , Kajiura Shinya , Ando Takamaso , Hosokawa Ayumu , Sugiyama Toshiro
Published: January 2013

Background: The follow-up study of up to 71 months of a randomized phase II B2222 trial has demonstrated a long-term survival in patients with recurrent or unresectable gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs). One subset of the patients (17.7%) has been alive for over 9 years with continuous imatinib mesylate (imatinib) treatment. Here, we report the retrospective analysis of recurrent or unresectable GIST patients with imatinib treatment at our institution. Methods: We summarized the data of 20 patients with recurrent or unresectable GIST treated with imatinib. Results: Patients were followed for a median of 40 months (range 2.5–103) under imatinib treatment. The median progression-free survival (PFS) was 89 months and overall survival for 8 years was 67%. Fifteen patients showed continuous partial response or stable disease with imatinib treatment. The median PFS was 45 months and the median size of the primary tumor was 7.6 cm (range 2.8–18). Four patients showed progressive disease. The median PFS was 56 months and the median size of the primary tumor was 11.9 cm (range 6.7–19). Grade 3 or 4 adverse events occurred in neutropenia (10%), anemia (15%) and renal dysfunction (5%). However, all patients were well managed by supportive treatment and none were discontinued from imatinib treatment due to toxicity or adverse events. Conclusion: Imatinib had a high efficacy in patients with unresectable and recurrent GIST during long-term follow-up. All patients were well managed by supportive treatment against adverse events and they were able to take imatinib without discontinuation. The management of adverse events was a key factor for achieving a long-term survival. In addition, the potential risk of imatinib-resistant GISTs tends to depend on the size of the primary GISTs.
Clinical and Ultrastructural Effects of Different Liners/Restorative Materials on Deep Carious Dentin: A Randomized Clinical Trial
Authors: Corralo D.J. , Maltz M.
Published: January 2013

We evaluated the effect of calcium hydroxide cement (CHC) and glass ionomer cement (GIC) on carious dentin and bacterial infections after partial caries removal and sealing. Sixty permanent teeth with deep lesions underwent partial caries removal, the application of CHC, GIC or wax, i.e. negative control (NC), and were then sealed for 3–4 months. After the partial caries removal and the sealing period, the dentin was clinically assessed (colour and consistency) and analysed by scanning electron microscopy to assess dentin organization and bacterial infections. The effect of the treatment in each group was assessed by the Wilcoxon and χ2 tests, differences among groups by the Kruskal-Wallis test and the correlations between variables by Spearman correlation. No clinical symptoms or radiographic signals of pulpits or pulp necrosis were observed during the study. Dentin darkening was observed after the sealing period in the CHC and NC groups (p < 0.05). However, there was no difference in the colour after treatment among the 3 groups (p > 0.05). Dentin hardening occurred in all groups after treatment (p < 0.05), also with no differences (p > 0.05). Dentin samples showed better organization after the sealing period than after partial caries removal, with total or partial obliteration of dentinal tubules (CHC p < 0.03, GIC p < 0.05, NC p < 0.01) and a reduction of bacterial infections (CHC p < 0.03, GIC p < 0.05, NC p < 0.03). No differences were observed. Correlations between the different criteria, except for colour and bacterial infection, were detected in all cases. Partial caries removal and sealing resulted in dentin hardening, decreased bacterial numbers and dentin reorganization, irrespective of the dentin protection used.
Rhabdomyolysis after Cytoreductive Surgery and Hyperthermic Intraperitoneal Chemotherapy: A Case Report
Authors: Bielen Rob , Verswijvel Geert , Van der Speeten Kurt
Published: January 2013

Gastric cancer with peritoneal carcinomatosis is a disease with a poor prognosis. Cytoreductive surgery (CRS) and hyperthermic intraperitoneal perioperative chemotherapy (HIPEC) can improve prognosis, although in most cases this should still be considered as a palliative treatment. Therefore, morbidity has to be avoided at all cost as quality of life is of utmost importance. We describe the case of a 64-year-old female with an adenocarcinoma of the stomach that was initially treated with a Billroth II gastrectomy, adjuvant chemotherapy and radiotherapy. During follow-up, the diagnosis of peritoneal carcinomatosis was made, and the patient was referred for CRS and HIPEC. Postoperatively, she developed rhabdomyolysis in both gastrocnemius muscles. Renal function remained within normal limits, but ultrasonography of the lower legs suggested the presence of bilateral abscesses. Drainage with pigtail catheters was necessary for more than 1 month, significantly impairing quality of life. The objective of this case report is to heighten awareness for this complication. Rhabdomyolysis is a rare complication of CRS and HIPEC, with a significant impact on quality of life. Prevention is necessary and can be achieved by adequate surgical positioning, using the altered lithotomy position, sufficient padding and by preventing hypovolemia.
Taxonomic revision of the spider genus Ixchela Huber, 2000 (Araneae: Pholcidae), with description of ten new species from Mexico and Central America
Authors: VALDEZ-MONDRAGÓN ALEJANDRO
Published: January 2013

A taxonomic revision of the genus Ixchela Huber, 2000 is presented. The previously described five species are redescribed with new taxonomic information and new distribution records. The males of Ixchela placida (Gertsch, 1971) and Ixchela simoni  (O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1898) are described for the first time. Ten new species are described, nine from Mexico and one from Honduras: Ixchela mixe new species, Ixchela huberi new species, Ixchela juarezi new species, Ixchela grix new species, Ixchela taxco new species, Ixchela franckei new species, Ixchela tzotzil new species, Ixchela santibanezi new species, Ixchela huasteca new species, and Ixchela viquezi new species. Identification keys for males and females are presented.
A new late Cenozoic species of Abertella (Echinoidea: Clypeasteroida) from Patagonia
Authors: KROH ANDREAS , MOOI RICH , DEL RÍO CLAUDIA , NEUMANN CHRISTIAN
Published: January 2013

A new species of abertellid sand dollar, Abertella miskellyi n. sp., is described from the Miocene Camarones Formation of Patagonia, southern Argentina. The new taxon corroborates the existence of the genus in South America, given that Abertella is most common in the southeastern USA and the eastern coast of Central America. It is characterized by a unique basicoronal circle, in which the interambulacral basicoronal plates are very heterogeneous in size (small in interambulacrum 5, largest in interambulacra 2 and 3). Additionally, it features disjunct oral interambulacra involving two ambulacral plates in some of the interambulacra rather than one, thus being the most disjunct of all known species of Abertella. A key to the species of the genus is provided.
Microlepidogaster arachas, a new species of hypoptopomatine catfish (Siluriformes: Loricariidae) from the upper rio Paraná basin, Brazil
Authors: MARTINS FERNANDA O. , CALEGARI BÁRBARA B. , LANGEANI FRANCISCO
Published: January 2013

Microlepidogaster arachas Martins, Calegari & Langeani, sp. nov., a new Hypoptopomatinae, is described from the upper rio Paraná basin. The new species is distinguished from M. longicolla and M. dimorpha by having the anterior portion of the compound supraneural plus first dorsal-fin proximal radial contacting the neural spine of the ninth vertebra. The new species differs from M. perforatus by having 18–29 dentary teeth; median series of lateral plates complete, reaching caudal-peduncle end, and continuous lateral line; and 20–24 mid-dorsal plates. Microlepidogaster arachas is further distinguished from its congeners by several other osteological features.
A new species of Pseudopaludicola Miranda-Ribeiro (Leiuperinae: Leptodactylidae: Anura) from the Cerrado of southeastern Brazil
Authors: DE ANDRADE FELIPE SILVA , DE CARVALHO THIAGO RIBEIRO
Published: January 2013

A new species of Pseudopaludicola is described from the Cerrado of southeastern Brazil. Pseudopaludicola facureae sp. nov. is diagnosed from the P. pusilla species group by the absence of either T-shaped terminal phalanges or toe tips expanded, and distinguished from almost all recognized taxa currently assigned to Pseudopaludicola (except P. canga, P. giarettai, and P. hyleaustralis) by possessing a non-pulsed advertisement call. However, the advertisement call of the new species consists of the emission of well-defined call series, whereas the advertisement call of P. giarettai is long (117–187 ms) and with an isolated emission pattern; respecting to P. canga, the new species emits very long notes series (up to 53 notes/advertisement call), compared to the short call series of P. canga (up to 9 notes/advertisement call); considering P. hyleaustralis, the new species has a shorter note duration (15–35 ms), higher note rate per minute (480–1860), and higher dominant frequency (4076–5108).
Remote Measurement of Heat Flux from Power Plant Cooling Lakes
Authors: Garrett Alfred J. , Kurzeja Robert J. , Villa-Aleman Eliel , Bollinger James S. , Pendergast Malcolm M.
Published: January 2013

Laboratory experiments have demonstrated a correlation between the rate of heat loss q″ from an experimental fluid to the air above and the standard deviation σ of the thermal variability in images of the fluid surface. These experimental results imply that q″ can be derived directly from thermal imagery by computing σ. This paper analyses thermal imagery collected over two power plant cooling lakes to determine if the same relationship exists. Turbulent boundary layer theory predicts a linear relationship between q″ and σ when both forced (wind driven) and free (buoyancy driven) convection are present. Datasets derived from ground- and helicopter-based imagery collections had correlation coefficients between σ and q″ of 0.45 and 0.76, respectively. Values of q″ computed from a function of σ and friction velocity u* derived from turbulent boundary layer theory had higher correlations with measured values of q″ (0.84 and 0.89). This research may be applicable to the problem of calculating losses of heat from the ocean to the atmosphere during high-latitude cold-air outbreaks because it does not require the information typically needed to compute sensible, evaporative, and thermal radiation energy losses to the atmosphere.
A Probabilistic Bulk Model of Coupled Mixed Layer and Convection. Part II: Shallow Convection Case
Authors: Gentine Pierre , Betts Alan K. , Lintner Benjamin R. , Findell Kirsten L. , van Heerwaarden Chiel C. , D’Andrea Fabio
Published: January 2013

The probabilistic bulk convection model (PBCM) developed in a companion paper is here extended to shallow nonprecipitating convection. The PBCM unifies the clear-sky and shallow convection boundary layer regimes by obtaining mixed-layer growth, cloud fraction, and convective inhibition from a single parameterization based on physical principles. The evolution of the shallow convection PBCM is based on the statistical distribution of the surface thermodynamic state of convective plumes.

The entrainment velocity of the mixed layer is related to the mass flux of the updrafts overshooting the dry inversion capping the mixed layer. The updrafts overcoming the convective inhibition generate active cloud-base mass flux, which is the boundary condition for the shallow cumulus scheme. The subcloud-layer entrainment velocity is directly coupled to the cloud-base mass flux through the distribution of vertical velocity and fractional cover of the updrafts.

Comparisons of the PBCM against large-eddy simulations from the Barbados Oceanographic and Meteorological Experiment (BOMEX) and from the Southern Great Plains Atmospheric Radiation Measurement Program (ARM) facility demonstrate good agreement in terms of thermodynamic structure, cloud-base mass flux, and cloud top.

The equilibrium between the cloud-base mass flux and rate of growth of the mixed layer determines the equilibrium convective inhibition and cloud cover. This process is an important new insight on the coupling between the mixed-layer and cumulus dynamics. Given its relative simplicity and transparency, the PBCM represents a powerful tool for developing process-based understanding and intuition about the physical processes involved in boundary layer–convection interactions, as well as a test bed for diagnosing and validating shallow convection parameterizations.
Factors Influencing the Development and Maintenance of Nocturnal Heavy-Rain-Producing Convective Systems in a Storm-Scale Ensemble
Authors: Schumacher Russ S. , Clark Adam J. , Xue Ming , Kong Fanyou
Published: January 2013

From 9 to 11 June 2010, a mesoscale convective vortex (MCV) was associated with several periods of heavy rainfall that led to flash flooding. During the overnight hours, mesoscale convective systems (MCSs) developed that moved slowly and produced heavy rainfall over small areas in south-central Texas on 9 June, north Texas on 10 June, and western Arkansas on 11 June. In this study, forecasts of this event from the Center for the Analysis and Prediction of Storms' Storm-Scale Ensemble Forecast system are examined. This ensemble, with 26 members at 4-km horizontal grid spacing, included a few members that very accurately predicted the development, maintenance, and evolution of the heavy-rain-producing MCSs, along with a majority of members that had substantial errors in their precipitation forecasts. The processes favorable for the initiation, organization, and maintenance of these heavy-rain-producing MCSs are diagnosed by comparing ensemble members with accurate and inaccurate forecasts. Even within a synoptic environment known to be conducive to extreme local rainfall, there was considerable spread in the ensemble's rainfall predictions. Because all ensemble members included an anomalously moist environment, the precipitation predictions were insensitive to the atmospheric moisture. However, the development of heavy precipitation overnight was very sensitive to the intensity and evolution of convection the previous day. Convective influences on the strength of the MCV and its associated dome of cold air at low levels determined whether subsequent deep convection was initiated and maintained. In all, this ensemble provides quantitative and qualitative information about the mesoscale processes that are most favorable (or unfavorable) for localized extreme rainfall.
Contrasting Economic Analyses of Equal Remuneration: The Social and Community Services (SACS) Case
Authors: Austen Siobhan , Jefferson Therese , Preston Alison
Published: January 2013

Industrial tribunals and stakeholders involved in wage hearings are sometimes called upon to consider and weigh contrasting evidence that, due to its technical nature, may be inaccessible to non-specialists. This article investigates the example of two different economic analyses of gender and pay that were submitted to Fair Work Australia as part of an ‘equal remuneration’ case for workers in the social and community services sector. It demonstrates how the different analyses partly reflect the different theoretical approaches to the analysis of labour exchange implicit in the alternative submissions, and investigates the strengths and weaknesses these approaches posed when attempting to explain gendered patterns of pay in the care sector. The article argues that understanding the key assumptions and definitions underlying each type of economic analysis can contribute to an improved comprehension of the different viewpoints on gender pay equity among economists. Of particular importance are: the contrasting approaches to understanding differences between specific jobs and a group of jobs categorized as occupations; the meanings attached to the terms ‘value’ and ‘productivity’; and the distinction between discrimination and undervaluation.
Women and the Modernization of British Trade Unions: Meanings, Dimensions and the Challenge of Change
Authors: Stuart Mark , Tomlinson Jennifer , Lucio Miguel Martinez
Published: January 2013

This article examines the position of women within the modernization processes of British trade unions, based on the first analysis to date of projects funded under the British government’s Trade Union Modernisation Fund. The focus of the article on the Trade Union Modernisation Fund provides unique insights into the relatively underexplored ‘inner workings’ of unions, and allows an examination of the types of modernization projects that may advance women’s interests within unions and the types of challenges such initiatives face. The projects suggested that reflection and learning around women’s interests and equality agendas were taking place, along with a degree of mainstreaming and embedding activity within union structures. However, projects had to face not only deeply entrenched constraints, but also a new set of challenges raised by the process of modernization itself.
Gay-Straight Alliances
Authors: Mayberry Maralee
Published: January 2013

This article explores sexual minority youth empowerment by examining the experiences of Gay-Straight Alliance (GSA) club members, advisors, and school administrators from four public high schools in the southeastern United States. Twelve GSA members, four GSA advisors, two high school principals, and two district administrators consented to be part of this study. Drawing on current research into heteronormativity and social stigma, the author applies Zimmerman’s three levels of empowerment—psychological, organizational, and community—to examine the ways in which GSA members are empowered (or not empowered) to challenge the heteronormative culture upon which their stigmatized sexual identity and the need for GSAs is based. The voices featured here suggest that GSAs successfully empower their members on a psychological level to “speak out” against antigay sentiments and behaviors but are limited by the fear of parental and community resistance in their ability to develop into fully empowered organizations or to strategically build substantive coalitions with community organizations beyond the school setting. Consequently, GSA’s efforts to engage in activist projects aimed at disrupting the heteronormative practices underlying lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender stigmatized sexual identities are constricted. The author considers the implications of these findings and concludes with questions for future research.
Civil Society Leaders’ Perceptions of Hopes and Fears for the Future
Authors: Ahmed Kawser , Byrne Sean , Karari Peter , Skarlato Olga
Published: January 2013

Civil society actors such as nongovernmental voluntary community group leaders as well as funding agency development officers have taken a leading role in implementing grassroots-level peacebuilding efforts in post peace accord Northern Ireland. It is important to map these civil society leaders’ direct experience and their perceptions to assess the impact of the funding in the overall peace process in Northern Ireland. This article captures the hopes and fears of 120 civil society leaders and funding agency development officers in Northern Ireland and the Border Counties whose projects are funded by the International Fund for Ireland and/or the European Union Peace III Fund. Many respondents concurred that both funds have genuinely contributed toward achieving the overall goals of peacebuilding (though mostly at the grassroots level) while some were skeptical about the future sustainability of the peace process. Their skepticism was evident, as few tangible changes at the macro political–economic level have occurred since 1998 as the funding draws to an end in 2013. However, the respondents also highlighted the uncertain future that now exists for the younger generation. There is also an absence of effective leadership in the wake of the recent trend of dissident violence, which has a denegrating effect on envisioning a peaceful and just society for all citizens in Northern Ireland.
Democracy in Central and Eastern Europe One Hundred Years On
Authors: Ekiert Grzegorz , Ziblatt Daniel
Published: January 2013

In the twenty years since communism’s collapse, scholars of postcommmunist Central and Eastern Europe have increasingly converged on the insight that long-run continuities reaching back to the nineteenth century are crucial in shaping some of the most important contemporary macro- and micro-level political outcomes in the region. Today’s political cleavages, political discourses, patterns of partisan affiliation, institutional choice, and the quality of democracy itself all appear to correlate to a remarkable degree with patterns from the “deep past.” To date, social scientists, however, have not sufficiently reflected on what might explain this finding and how to study the impact of the general phenomenon of the long-run in the region. This article makes two contributions. First, we contend that in general, long-run continuities may ironically be more important in contexts of discontinuous institutional change such as in Central and Eastern Europe since frequent institutional disjunctures paradoxically open chasms between formal and informal institutions, preventing gradual change and producing patterns of institutional mimicry to cope with institutional ruptures. This insight may travel to other contexts of weak institutionalization. Second, we reject efforts to identify “deep causes” of contemporary outcomes without specifying how intervening events and crises intersect with these longer-run patterns. The article resuscitates Fernand Braudel’s notion of the longue duree to propose a new cumulative approach to the study of the long-run that complicates accounts that too starkly juxtapose precommunist and communist-era “legacies” on the present and argues that scholars should study how these periods reinforce each other and jointly determine contemporary outcomes.
The Synchronisation of ASEAN-5 Stock Markets with the Growth Rate Cycles of Selected Emerging and Developed Economies
Authors: Teng Kee Tuan , Yen Siew Hwa , Chua Soo Y.
Published: January 2013

This study explores the changing direction and degree of financial integration of the emerging economies, People’s Republic of China (PRC) and India, with ASEAN-5 and compares it to the developed economies, the US and Japan, in a time-varying framework. The concordance and rolling concordance indices are used to study the cyclical behaviour in the ASEAN-5 stock markets with the economic activity of the emerging and developed economies. This study covers the period between January 1991 and June 2010. One of the more significant findings from this study is that ASEAN-5 stock markets do not react as a whole to external shock from these four trading partners. Each stock market in ASEAN-5 responded differently in terms of direction and degree towards the influences of the economic condition in these emerging and developed economies. The ASEAN-5 stock markets were less correlated with economic activities in emerging economies but were more aligned with economic activities in developed economies. In summary, ASEAN-5 stock market cycles were still more dependent on the developed economies’ growth rate cycles.
The building of economic governance in the European Union
Authors: Verdun Amy
Published: January 2013

This article seeks to shed light on the development over the past decades of the concept of economic governance. It asks what is understood by economic governance and what role the social dimension has played. The article offers an analysis of the problems and possible issues confronting the EU as it seeks ways to address the sovereign debt crisis by embarking on deeper economic integration. The article concludes that from the early days there have been questions about the exact interaction between economic and monetary integration and thus between ‘economic’ and ‘monetary’ union. Despite Delors’ original inclination, few were willing to establish any linkage between EMU and social matters. The crises have again brought out the need to consider the two in tandem. Moreover, with the increased role in economic governance accorded to EU-level institutions, there is a need to rethink the EU democratic model.
Macroeconomic imbalances and competitiveness in the euro area
Authors: Collignon Stefan
Published: January 2013

This article challenges the new revisionist consensus, whereby current account imbalances have caused the euro crisis. In a monetary union, current accounts are not useful indicators for macroeconomic imbalances, because a currency area is not a fixed exchange rate system. It is a payment union and it is therefore more appropriate to analyse the flow of funds and payments between sectors and Member States. Applying the analysis, it turns out that excessive lending in the north has financed the borrowing in the south, thereby contributing to unequal development in the euro area. To remedy this situation, incentives for competitive investment need to be adjusted. The article describes an innovative approach for determining equilibrium unit labour costs as a benchmark for stable and fair wage setting. It then discusses policy implications and recommends better wage coordination between European trade unions.
Varus External Rotation Stress Test for Radiographic Detection of Deep Deltoid Ligament Disruption With and Without Syndesmotic Disruption
Authors: Femino John E. , Vaseenon Tanawat , Phistkul Phinit , Tochigi Yuki , Anderson Donald D. , Amendola Annunziato
Published: January 2013

Background:

External rotation stress is used intraoperatively for diagnosing medial ankle and syndesmotic instability in rotational ankle fractures after reduction and fixation of the fibula. However, external rotation includes hindfoot, midfoot, and ankle motion. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of hindfoot positioning when using the external rotation stress test. Isolated deep deltoid ligament (DDL) instability and combined DDL and syndesmotic instability were modeled. An intact fibula was used as a surrogate for an anatomically fixed fibula fracture.

Methods:

Six cadaver specimens with full-length tib-fib articulations were used. Specimens were fixed into a Taylor Spatial Frame (Smith&Nephew, Memphis, TN) with 4 to 5 points of fixation in the tibia and the foot. Specimens were mounted in ankle and foot neutral position. Metal markers were placed at the medial gutter and syndesmosis. Anteroposterior (AP) and mortise radiographs were obtained in 3 positions: neutral hindfoot, valgus external rotation stress, and varus external rotation stress. For both valgus and varus external rotation stress, the frame was loosened and stressed to a hard end point and then locked. Three modes were studied: intact ligaments, DDL transected, and DDL+ syndesmosis transected. Digital radiographs were used to measure the displacement of the markers.

Results:

The varus external rotation stress test demonstrated significant widening of the medial gutter in specimens with isolated DDL instability, in both AP ( P = .01) and mortise ( P = .02) views. Both maneuvers demonstrated significant medial gutter widening with combined DDL and syndesmosis disruption ( P ≤ .01), although the varus external rotation stress test produced nearly twice as much displacement (10.7 vs 5.4 mm). Syndesmotic widening was not significant with either maneuver.

Conclusions:

Varus external rotation stress was more effective than valgus external rotation stress in demonstrating displacement of markers at the medial gutter and on AP and mortise radiographs for both DDL and DDL with syndesmotic instability.

Clinical Relevance:

These findings may lead to improved clinical detection of rotational ankle instability from combined DDL and syndesmotic disruption, which may affect decision making for using syndesmotic fixation when using intraoperative stress fluoroscopy images. Occult DDL instability may be underdiagnosed, and this may affect future directions of the treatment of rotational ankle fractures and severe sprains.
Community as context: EastEnders, public service and neoliberal ideology
Authors: Lamuedra María , O’Donnell Hugh
Published: January 2013

This article uses 21 in-depth interviews with viewers of the British soap opera EastEnders to investigate the extent to which it can be described, in particular through its handling of social issues, as a site of cultural citizenship and, via the concept of public service, of resistance to the current neoliberal hegemony. The article’s analysis of viewers’ talk confirms previous claims that EastEnders mobilises a nostalgic sense of community with which viewers identify, and goes on to argue that this is in fact a cultural expression of a social-democratic worldview which has lost its once-hegemonic position. Following a comparison of the British and the highly commercialised Spanish media ecosystems and their corresponding popular public spheres, the article concludes that a commitment to public service ideals contributes to sustaining spaces which, like EastEnders, can work as counter-hegemonic sites to the cultural logic of late capitalism.
Communities of memory and the problem of transmission
Authors: Pickering Michael , Keightley Emily
Published: January 2013

In this article we explore the issue of memory transmission by considering it along the two temporal planes on which it occurs: vertically, through time; and horizontally, in time. It is because we regard memory transmission as involving the mutual interaction of these two planes that we introduce the concept of the mnemonic imagination. The value of the concept is that it enables us to see, inter alia, how communities of memory emerge. Our route into this is the sociology of generations and most particularly the evidence of mnemonic transmission provided by second-generation Holocaust narratives. The purpose of the article is to bring together a range of work relevant to the sharing and inheritance of memory across and within time, to explore the application of collective mnemonic frames in processes of personal remembering, and so move us closer to understanding the mechanism by which experience derived from others becomes integrated into our own life-stories.
Social distance portrayed: television news in Japan and the UK
Authors: Koga-Browes Scott
Published: January 2013

The potential of the camera framing, or shot-size, semiotic resource to encode meanings related to social distance has been recognized for some time. This study seeks to bring this resource into the remit of systematic analysis. Data are taken from screen measurements of portrayals of social actors in news programming produced by two national broadcasters, NHK in Japan and the BBC in the UK. Results for these two media outlets are compared and an attempt made to place the results in a meaningful cultural context. Analysis focuses on NHK’s images and the less familiar Japanese media system.
Modern anthropology and the problem of the racial type: the photographs of Franz Boas
Authors: Maxwell Anne
Published: January 2013

Franz Boas is best known for his pioneering work in the area of cultural anthropology. However in the 1890s, Boas created hundreds of anthropometric photographs as part of a vast study aimed at documenting the physical characteristics of Native Americans. The primary purpose of the Jesup Expedition, as the study was called, was to discover the racial origins of America’s Native peoples, but the data collected and the knowledge gained were also later used by Boas to report on the physical changes occurring to migrant children in the USA, and to mount an attack on the scientific credibility of the racial theories being used to hound and discriminate against Jewish and other racial minorities in Germany and Europe.
Reconstruction of phyletic trees by global alignment of multiple metabolic networks
Authors: Ma Cheng-Yu , Lin Shu-Hsi , Lee Chi-Ching , Tang Chuan Yi , Berger Bonnie , Liao Chung-Shou
Published: January 2013

Background

In the last decade, a considerable amount of research has been devoted to investigating the phylogenetic properties of organisms from a systems-level perspective. Most studies have focused on the classification of organisms based on structural comparison and local alignment of metabolic pathways. In contrast, global alignment of multiple metabolic networks complements sequence-based phylogenetic analyses and provides more comprehensive information.

Results

We explored the phylogenetic relationships between microorganisms through global alignment of multiple metabolic networks. The proposed approach integrates sequence homology data with topological information of metabolic networks. In general, compared to recent studies, the resulting trees reflect the living style of organisms as well as classical taxa. Moreover, for phylogenetically closely related organisms, the classification results are consistent with specific metabolic characteristics, such as the light-harvesting systems, fermentation types, and sources of electrons in photosynthesis.

Conclusions

We demonstrate the usefulness of global alignment of multiple metabolic networks to infer phylogenetic relationships between species. In addition, our exhaustive analysis of microbial metabolic pathways reveals differences in metabolic features between phylogenetically closely related organisms. With the ongoing increase in the number of genomic sequences and metabolic annotations, the proposed approach will help identify phenotypic variations that may not be apparent based solely on sequence-based classification.
Human CD3γ, but not CD3δ, haploinsufficiency differentially impairs γδ versus αβ surface TCR expression
Authors: Muñoz-Ruiz Miguel , Pérez-Flores Verónica , Garcillán Beatriz , Guardo Alberto C , Mazariegos Marina S , Takada Hidetoshi , Allende Luis M , Kilic Sara S , Sanal Ozden , Roifman Chaim M , López-Granados Eduardo , Recio María J , Martínez-Naves Eduardo , Fernández-Malavé Edgar , Regueiro José R
Published: January 2013

Background

The T cell antigen receptors (TCR) of αβ and γδ T lymphocytes are believed to assemble in a similar fashion in humans. Firstly, αβ or γδ TCR chains incorporate a CD3δε dimer, then a CD3γε dimer and finally a ζζ homodimer, resulting in TCR complexes with the same CD3 dimer stoichiometry. Partial reduction in the expression of the highly homologous CD3γ and CD3δ proteins would thus be expected to have a similar impact in the assembly and surface expression of both TCR isotypes. To test this hypothesis, we compared the surface TCR expression of primary αβ and γδ T cells from healthy donors carrying a single null or leaky mutation inCD3G(γ+/−) orCD3D(δ+/−, δ+/leaky) with that of normal controls.

Results

Although the partial reduction in the intracellular availability of CD3γ or CD3δ proteins was comparable as a consequence of the mutations, surface TCR expression measured with anti-CD3ε antibodies was significantly more decreased in γδ than in αβ T lymphocytes in CD3γ+/−individuals, whereas CD3δ+/−and CD3δ+/leakydonors showed a similar decrease of surface TCR in both T cell lineages. Therefore, surface γδ TCR expression was more dependent on available CD3γ than surface αβ TCR expression.

Conclusions

The results support the existence of differential structural constraints in the two human TCR isotypes regarding the incorporation of CD3γε and CD3δε dimers, as revealed by their discordant surface expression behaviour when confronted with reduced amounts of CD3γ, but not of the homologous CD3δ chain. A modified version of the prevailing TCR assembly model is proposed to accommodate these new data.
A computational method using multiresolution for volumetric data integration
Authors: Akinlar Mehmet Ali , Kurulay Muhammet , Secer Aydin , Celenk Mehmet
Published: January 2013

In this paper, we present a new method for integration of 3-D medical data by utilizing the advantages of 3-D multiresolution analysis and techniques of variational calculus. We first express the data integration problem as a variational optimal control problem where we express the displacement field in terms of wavelet expansions and, secondly, we write the components of the displacement field in terms of wavelet coefficients. We solve this optimization problem with a blockwise descent algorithm. We demonstrate the registration of 3-D brain MR images in the size of

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as an application of the present method. Experimental results indicate that the method can integrate 3-D MR images better than only variational or only wavelet-based methods.

MSC: 68U10, 65D18, 65J05, 97N40.