bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Role of the intracellular domains of LRP5 and LRP6 in activating the Wnt canonical pathway
Authors: Mi Kaihong , Johnson Gail V.W.
Published: March 2005

LDL‐receptor related proteins 5 and 6 (LRP5/6) are co‐receptors of Frizzled receptors that mediate Wnt‐induced activation of the transcription factor family TCF/LEF‐1. Even though LRP5 and LRP6 are highly homologous, LRP6, but not LRP5, is expressed primarily in the nervous system and deletion of the LRP6 gene results in significant brain abnormalities, while deletion of LRP5 results in primarily decreased bone density. Additionally, the exact function of LRP5 and LRP6 have not been clearly defined, although it is clear that they both play key roles in the Wnt canonical pathway. In this study the role of the intracellular domains of LRP5/6 in mediating Wnt signaling was examined. In the absence of exogenous Wnt 3a, full‐length (FL) LRP6, but not LRP5, increased TCF/LEF‐1 transcriptional activity, however both significantly potentiated Wnt 3a‐induced TCF/LEF‐1 activation. In contrast to the findings with the FL constructs, the intracellular domains (membrane‐anchored and cytosolic) of both LRP5 and LRP6 significantly increased TCF/LEF‐1 activation in the absence of Wnt 3a, and potentiated the Wnt 3a‐induced decrease in β‐catenin phosphorylation, increase in free β‐catenin levels and the increase in TCF/LEF‐1 activity. These findings demonstrate that: (1) LRP5 and LRP6 differentially modulate TCF/LEF‐1 activation in the absence of Wnt 3a and (2) the intracellular C‐terminal domains of LRP5/6 potentiate Wnt 3a‐induced TCF/LEF‐1 activation whether or not they are membrane‐anchored. These findings provide significant new insights into the roles of LRP5/6 in modulating canonical Wnt signaling. © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Variable expression of human myeloid specific nuclear antigen MNDA in monocyte lineage cells in atherosclerosis
Authors: Briggs Robert C. , Atkinson James B. , Miranda Roberto N.
Published: March 2005

MNDA (human myeloid nuclear differentiation antigen) is expressed in specific lineages of hematopoietic cells and most notably at high levels in macrophages at sites of inflammation. MNDA and related proteins appear to modulate the activity of transcription factors and in some cases have a role in mediating cell death. The expression of MNDA was characterized in normal and diseased human aorta. MNDA positive cells double labeled for CD68 in all tissue examined. Twenty percent of normal aortas were negative or contained rare MNDA positive cells while other normal aorta contained more frequent positive cells. In atherosclerotic aorta, the number of MNDA positive cells increased with progression of disease. In normal and early lesions, MNDA positive cells adjacent to the endothelium generally displayed a strong MNDA reactivity associated with small amount of CD68 reactive cytoplasm. In the same sections, MNDA positive cells at increasing distances from the endothelium displayed lower MNDA reactivity and were associated with larger amounts of CD68 reactive cytoplasm. Foam cells in fatty streaks exhibited MNDA reactivity that ranged from strong to weak or negative. In advanced lesions, cells in the shoulder and those in fibrous tissue surrounding an atheroma were highly reactive for MNDA. However, only a fraction of the CD68 positive foam cells near the lipid core under the cap and shoulder contained MNDA reactivity. The variation in MNDA expression appeared to change with phenotypic specialization of monocytes in atherosclerosis consistent with its association with inflammation and suspected roles in regulating gene expression or in mediating cell death. © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
A multicenter study of two magnetic resonance spectroscopy techniques in individuals with HIV dementia
Authors: Sacktor Ned , Skolasky Richard L. , Ernst Thomas , Mao Xiangling , Selnes Ola , Pomper Martin G. , Chang Linda , Zhong Kai , Shungu Dikoma C. , Marder Karen , Shibata Dean , Schifitto Giovanni , Bobo Linda , Barker Peter B.
Published: March 2005

Purpose

To evaluate single‐voxel proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (SV‐MRS) and magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging (MRSI) metabolite results in individuals with HIV dementia.

Materials and Methods

Twenty HIV‐positive (HIV+) individuals underwent SV‐MRS (TE 35 msec) and MRSI (TE 280 msec). Results were stratified according to serostatus, dementia severity, psychomotor speed performance, and functional impairment.

Results

HIV+ individuals with psychomotor slowing had an increased myoinositol/creatine (mI/Cr) ratio (0.63 vs. 0.45) in the frontal white matter using SV‐MRS and an increased choline (Cho)/Cr ratio (1.88 vs. 1.41) in the mesial frontal gray matter using MRSI compared to HIV+ individuals without psychomotor slowing. Using MRSI, subjects with HIV dementia also had a decreased N‐acetyl aspartate (NAA)/Cho ratio (1.55 vs. 2.53) compared to HIV+ individuals without cognitive impairment in the mesial frontal gray matter. Both techniques detected metabolite ratio abnormalities associated with abnormal functional performance.

Conclusion

SV‐MRS and MRSI offer complementary roles in evaluating individuals with HIV dementia. Short TE SV‐MRS measures mI, which may be elevated in early HIV dementia, whereas MRSI provides wider spatial coverage to examine specific regional changes. J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2005;21:325–333. © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
High‐resolution diffusion‐weighted imaging with interleaved variable‐density spiral acquisitions
Authors: Li Tie‐Qiang , Kim Dong‐Hyun , Moseley Michael E.
Published: March 2005

Purpose

To develop a multishot magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) pulse sequence and reconstruction algorithm for diffusion‐weighted imaging (DWI) in the brain with submillimeter in‐plane resolution.

Materials and Methods

A self‐navigated multishot acquisition technique based on variable‐density spiral k‐space trajectory design was implemented on clinical MRI scanners. The image reconstruction algorithm takes advantage of the oversampling of the center k‐space and uses the densely sampled central portion of the k‐space data for both imaging reconstruction and motion correction. The developed DWI technique was tested in an agar gel phantom and three healthy volunteers.

Results

Motions result in phase and k‐space shifts in the DWI data acquired using multishot spiral acquisitions. With the two‐dimensional self‐navigator correction, diffusion‐weighted images with a resolution of 0.9 × 0.9 × 3 mm3 were successfully obtained using different interleaves ranging from 8–32. The measured apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) in the homogenous gel phantom was (1.66 ± 0.09) × 10−3 mm2/second, which was the same as measured with single‐shot methods. The intersubject average ADC from the brain parenchyma of normal adults was (0.91 ± 0.01) × 10−3 mm2/second, which was in a good agreement with the reported literature values.

Conclusion

The self‐navigated multishot variable‐density spiral acquisition provides a time‐efficient approach to acquire high‐resolution diffusion‐weighted images on a clinical scanner. The reconstruction algorithm based on motion correction in the k‐space data is robust, and measured ADC values are accurate and reproducible. J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2005;21:468–475. Published 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Conspicuity of liver hemangiomas: Short tau inversion recovery, T1, and T2 imaging with gadolinium ethoxybenzyl diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid
Authors: Brody Jeffrey M. , Schafer Leah , Tung Glenn A. , Breuer Josy , Shamsi Kohkan
Published: March 2005

Purpose

To compare conspicuity of liver hemangiomas on STIR, T1‐weighted, and T2‐weighted magnetic resonance (MR) images before and after administration of gadolinium ethoxybenzyl diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid (Gd‐EOB‐DTPA) (hepatocellular contrast agent), using contrast‐to‐noise ratios (CNRs).

Materials and Methods

Thirteen hemangiomas were imaged using breath‐hold gradient echo (GRE) T1, fat‐saturated turbo spin echo (TSE)‐T2, and short tau inversion recovery (STIR) sequences. Background noise and signal‐to‐noise ratios (SNRs) for liver and hemangioma, along with CNR for normal liver and hemangioma, were measured on each sequence before and after administration of Gd‐EOB‐DTPA. Hemangioma conspicuity was also evaluated qualitatively.

Results

After Gd‐EOB‐DTPA administration, the quantitative liver SNR decreased 54% on STIR, increased 45% on T1‐weighted images, and increased 14.5% on TSE‐T2‐weighted images. The CNR for liver and hemangioma increased 50% on STIR images (P < 0.0001), increased 46% on T1‐weighted imaging (P = 0.0033), and increased 22% on TSE‐T2‐weighted MR imaging (MRI) (P = 0.0083). After contrast, the CNR for TSE‐T2 images was greater than those for both the T1 and STIR images (P < 0.0001 for both). Qualitatively, signal change was visually apparent in the liver on T1 and STIR, but not on T2 images or in the hemangiomas on any sequence.

Conclusion

Despite the statistically significant T1 and STIR increase in CNR, liver hemangiomas were most conspicuous on TSE‐T2 images after Gd‐EOB‐DTPA. This pilot study with hemangiomas highlights the newly recognized potential benefit of TSE‐T2 imaging with hepatocellular contrast. J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2005;21:391–397. © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Symptoms of unstable angina in patients with and without diabetes
Authors: DeVon Holli A. , Penckofer Sue M. , Zerwic Julie Johnson
Published: March 2005

Patients with diabetes experience cardiac autonomic neuropathy that may affect the way they perceive the symptoms of unstable angina (UA). The purpose of this study was to examine symptom differences in patients with and without diabetes during an episode of UA. A convenience sample of 50 women and 50 men were recruited. Patients with diabetes were more likely to have a history of hypercholesterolemia (83% vs. 60%), prior history of heart disease (85% vs. 65%), and prior angiogram (85% vs. 67%). Patients with diabetes reported having less nausea (20% vs. 40%), less squeezing (25% vs. 48%) and less aching (25% vs. 45%) type pain, and more hyperventilation (27.5% vs. 11.7%). Other cardiac symptoms were similar between the groups. Further study of symptom presentation in patients with diabetes is warranted given their high levels of morbidity and mortality from cardiac disease. © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc. Res Nurs Health 28:136–143, 2005
Classification of patients with whiplash associated disorders (WAD): Reliable and valid subgroups based on the Multidimensional Pain Inventory (MPI‐S)
Authors: Söderlund Anne , Denison Eva
Published: March 2005

Background Classification of patients with chronic whiplash associated disorders (WAD) into homogenous subgroups is an important objective in order to tailor interventions and to control for subgroup differences when evaluating treatment outcome.

Aims The aims of this study were to investigate if it was possible to replicate and describe the three cluster solution and profiles found in other pain groups and describe cluster profiles based on self‐reported Multidimensional Pain Inventory‐scores for patients with WAD three months after the injury, describe characteristics of the clusters in relation to disability, self‐efficacy and coping at the same point in time and to validate the cluster solution by comparing clusters in disability, self‐efficacy and coping over time.

Methods Ninety‐one WAD‐patients three months after the accident took part in the study. The measures used were the Multidimensional Pain Inventory‐Swedish version (MPI‐S), The Self‐Efficacy Scale, The Coping Strategies Questionnaire and The Pain Disability Index. Cluster analysis was conducted for the total sample MPI‐S subscale scores.

Results The adaptive copers cluster represented 42% of the sample, dysfunctional 34% of the sample, and interpersonally distressed 24% of the sample. The external validation of cluster solution showed that there were several significant differences between clusters in self‐efficacy, disability and coping measures. There was also a significant interaction effect (cluster × time) in disability (PDI). Patients in dysfunctional cluster reported a decreased disability over time.

Conclusions These results support the presence of different subgroups among patients with whiplash associated disorders. This classification can be seen as a complement to a classification based on medical condition.
Ku70 acetylation mediates neuroblastoma cell death induced by histone deacetylase inhibitors
Authors: Subramanian Chitra , Opipari Anthony W. , Bian Xin , Castle Valerie P. , Kwok Roland P. S.
Published: March 2005

Histone deacetylase inhibitors (HDACIs) are therapeutic drugs that inhibit deacetylase activity, thereby increasing acetylation of many proteins, including histones. HDACIs have antineoplastic effects in preclinical and clinical trials and are being considered for cancers with unmet therapeutic need, including neuroblastoma (NB). Uncertainty of how HDACI-induced protein acetylation leads to cell death, however, makes it difficult to determine which tumors are likely to be responsive to these agents. Here, we show that NB cells are sensitive to HDACIs, and that the mechanism by which HDACIs induce apoptosis involves Bax. In these cells, Bax associates with cytoplasmic Ku70, a protein that typically increases chemotherapy resistance. Our data show that in NB cells Ku70 binds to Bax in an acetylation-sensitive manner. Upon HDACI treatment, acetylated Ku70 releases Bax, allowing it to translocate to mitochondria and trigger cytochrome
c
release, leading to caspase-dependent death. This study shows that Ku70 is an important Bax-binding protein, and that this interaction can be therapeutically regulated in NB cells. Whereas the Bax-binding ability of Ku70 allows it to block apoptosis in response to certain agents, it is also a molecular target for the action of HDACIs, and in this context, a mediator of NB cell death.
The Lion and the Lamb
Authors: Shea William M.
Published: March 2005

This book explores the relationship between evangelical Protestants and Roman Catholics. It looks at the historical underpinnings of the enmity between the two groups, and finds some signs of warming since the founding of the National Association of Evangelicals and the decisions of the Vatican II. It suggests that, as a healing balm, the eschatological promise to lions and lambs is worth prayerful meditation in the present.
The Illusory Nature of Leibniz's System
Authors: Wilson Catherine
Published: March 2005

Leibniz has often been described as holding to a kind of phenomenalism. Yet Leibniz did not have a single account of perception, or of the embodied mind, or of the monad, but a set of conflicting and mutually inconsistent accounts that preclude the possibility that there is any such thing as “Leibniz's System.” This difficulty raises problems of interpretation, since it is sometimes maintained that the principle of charity precludes the assignment of frankly inconsistent views to a philosopher. The essay argues that we should not be misled by the intentionalist fallacy into looking for order within a text as opposed to order commentators can impose by making a philosopher's inconsistencies intelligible.
Reforming Mary
Authors: Kreitzer Beth
Published: March 2005

This book explores how Mary is presented in the sermons of Lutheran pastors in the 16th century. It focuses on the treatment of Mary, the continuities and changes in theologies about her, and her presentation beginning with Martin Luther and continuing with clergy in the Lutheran tradition. It is shown that Lutheran preachers have transformed the traditional image of Mary — she no longer serves as the powerful Queen of Heaven, but is seen as a meek, pious, chaste and obedient girl. Because of the theological changes introduced by Luther and the Lutheran clergy, Mary could no longer be portrayed as an active figure, but must serve as a passive representative of the faithful Christian.
conclusion
Authors: Slone D. Jason
Published: March 2005

People believe what they shouldn’t because they have active minds that are continuously engaged in the construction of novel thoughts, and in the transformation of culturally transmitted ideas. The key to understanding religion is to identify the aspects of cognition that constrain religious behavior. Given the fact that religion is a natural by-product of cognition, studies of religion should include cognitive psychology in addition to theology and ethnography.
Norms with Feeling
Authors: Nichols Shaun
Published: March 2005

A large tradition of work in moral psychology explores the capacity for moral judgment by focusing on the basic capacity to distinguish moral violations (e.g., hitting another person) from conventional violations (e.g., playing with your food). This method plausibly reveals a capacity for a kind of coremoral judgment. Recent evidence indicates that affect plays a crucial role in mediating the capacity to draw the moral/conventional distinguish. However, the prevailing account of the role of affect in moral judgment is problematic. This chapter argues that the capacity to draw the moral/conventional distinction depends on both a body of information about which actions are prohibited (“a normative theory”) and an affective mechanism that confers a special status on the norms.
Government Structures
Authors: Lane Jan‐Erik , McKay David , Newton Kenneth
Published: March 2005

This section presents data on government structures in OECD countries. It features tables on chamber systems, electoral systems, elections, constitutional development, human rights, elected governments, government formation and dissolution, and female representation in parliaments.
Political Communications
Authors: Lane Jan‐Erik , McKay David , Newton Kenneth
Published: March 2005

This section presents statistics on political communications in OECD countries. It features tables on domestic and foreign lettermail, telephones per hundred inhabitants, radio broadcasting, and newspapers.
Measures of Inequality
Authors: Sen Amartya
Published: March 2005

Various measures of inequality that have been proposed in the literature are discussed. These fall into two categories: those that measure in some objective sense—positive measures that make no explicit use of any concept of social welfare and those that measure in terms of a normative notion of social welfare and the loss incurred from unequal distribution. The characteristics of positive measures are described in respect of range, relative mean deviation, variance and the coefficient of variation, the standard deviation of logarithms, the Gini coefficient, and Theil's entropy measure. Normative measures are described in terms of Dalton's measure, Atkinson's measure, axioms for additive separability, and a more general measure.
Party Support in Britain, 1964–2001
Authors: Clarke Harold D. , Sanders David , Stewart Marianne C. , Whiteley Paul
Published: March 2005

Assesses the extent to which the sociological, Downsian, and valence perspectives explain patterns of party support in the UK between 1964 and 2001. Analyses of BES data show that leader images and partisanship consistently have the largest effects on voting while issue proximities and social location are significant but less important. With the exception of the declining role of social class, the relative importance of the various signature variables associated with the sociological and individual rationality frameworks has remained quite constant from the mid-1960s onwards. This conclusion is reinforced by individual-level analyses of monthly Gallup Poll data gathered between 1992 and 2001.
The Decision (Not) to Vote
Authors: Clarke Harold D. , Sanders David , Stewart Marianne C. , Whiteley Paul
Published: March 2005

First tests rival models of voting turnout using data drawn from the 2001 BES pre- and post-election surveys. Analyses reveal that the general incentives model performs best. Crucial individual-level influences on electoral turnout are calculations of efficacy-discounted benefits and costs of participation, sense of civic duty, and age. A model of the aggregate-level dynamics of turnout between 1945 and 2001 indicate a substantial portion of the sharp decline in turnout that occurred in the 1997 and 2001 general elections was caused by the one-sided nature of the contests, coupled with the perception that the two major parties did not offer a distinctive menu of policy choices. Analyses suggest that the strong relationship between age and civic duty has a sizeable generational component.
The French Administration in Brussels
Authors: Menon Anand
Published: March 2005

France has traditionally aspired to play a leading role in shaping the development of European integration, and implicit in this approach has been a vision of integration as a process within which the member states predominate. Debates within the EU are carried out, as far as the traditional French conception has it, on the basis of competing and conflicting national interests, and the effectiveness with which individual member states can shape outputs at the EU level is intrinsically related to their success in presenting coherent positions within such debates; this emphasis on coherence has led to the creation in Paris of a centralized and institutionalized system of interministerial co-ordination. Although often overlooked, 1 the French administration in Brussels also plays a key role in ensuring the coherence of national positions and in defending French interests within the EU; this is most true of the French permanent representation, whose staff represent France in most meetings of the Council of Ministers, and which is responsible for keeping Paris appraised of developments in Brussels. Paris has increasingly, however, also come to recognize the need to exert influence over the supranational institutions of the EU, and over the Commission in particular, so the French have developed strategies both for ensuring the presence of French officials within these institutions and for maintaining close contact with them. This chapter is divided into three sections: the first examines the composition, organization, internal workings, and role of the French permanent representation to the European Union; the second investigates French strategies designed to ensure both a sufficient and an effective French presence within the supranational institutions—notably the Commission and, to a lesser extent, the European Parliament; and the final section critically evaluates the performance of the French administration in Brussels, considering first its capacity to carry out its allotted tasks, and second its effectiveness, particularly in terms of its ability to further France’s EU policy objectives.
What Constitutes a Financial System in General and the German Financial System in Particular?
Authors: Schmidt Reinhard H. , Tyrell Marcel
Published: March 2005

This is one of the two introductory chapters of the book. It first discusses what the term ‘financial system’ means and why the financial system of a country is important and for what it might be important and how a given financial system can be analysed, and provides a general overview of the German financial system. As in the entire book, the term financial system is used in this chapter in a broad sense, which sets it apart from the narrower concept of the financial sector and which includes, among other things, the demand for financial services, corporate governance, and financial accounting.

Presents four approaches to analyse a financial system and applies them to the case of the German financial system. In addition, it provides a first indication of how the various elements of a financial system are related to each other and thus supports the claim that there is some merit in emphasising the systemic features of financial systems in general and that of Germany in particular.
Prudence and the Temporal Structure of Practical Reasons
Authors: MacIntosh Duncan
Published: March 2005

According to a Humean present‐aim theory of rationality, there is no rational requirement of prudence: it is not rationally obligatory to act in light of one's foreseen future desires as well as one's current desires. It might therefore seem that on this view the acts of a rational agent could be absurdly incoherent over time. The author rebuts this worry by showing how the present‐aim approach to rationality itself generates rational constraints on the evolution of desires and hence of reasons. More generally, the author argues that reasons, whatever they are, are time‐relative rather than timeless.
Trends in Intergenerational Class Mobility in Britain in the Late Twentieth Century
Authors: Goldthorpe John H.
Published: March 2005

Analyses trends in intergenerational class mobility in Britain between the early 1970s and the early 1990s on the basis of data from the General Household Survey. Over this period there was little change in total mobility rates. Rates of upward mobility, if anything, fell while rates of downward mobility rose–in contrast to the situation in the middle decades of the twentieth century when rising rates of upward mobility were the salient feature. However, there is continuity in that relative rates of mobility, indicating the level of social fluidity, remain little altered. Education plays a major part in mediating class mobility but its influence is now tending to decrease rather than increase, and individuals’ class origins still have a significant independent effect on their class destinations.
The Suffering of the Impassible God
Authors: Gavrilyuk Paul L.
Published: March 2005

Major reconsideration of the notion of divine impassibility in patristic thought. It is commonly claimed that patristic theology fell prey to the assumption of Hellenistic philosophy about the impassibility of God and departed from the allegedly biblical view, according to which God is passible. The author argues that this standard view misrepresents the tradition. For the fathers, the attribute of divine impassibility functioned in a restricted sense as an apophatic qualifier of divine emotions. Gavrilyuk construes the development of patristic thought as a series of dialectical turning points taken to safeguard the paradox of God’s voluntary and salvific suffering in the incarnation.
On Crises, Myths, and Measurement
Authors: Castles Francis G.
Published: March 2005

Explores the themes of what follows. It argues that the welfare state literature of the past quarter century has been big on crisis theories of the welfare state and much weaker on facts. The chapter suggests that, in order to say something meaningful about the future of the welfare state, we need to test crisis accounts, such as those built around globalization and population ageing, with facts drawn from comparative analysis to establish which are myths and which are realities.
Reflecting the Mind
Authors: Corazza Eros
Published: March 2005

Indexicals (e.g.: ‘I’, ‘she’, ‘this’, ‘today’, ‘here’, etc.) designate something relative to the context in which they are used. This study shows how these expressions play a central role when dealing with such puzzling concepts as the nature of the self, the nature of perception, social interaction, psychological pathologies and psychological development.

By highlighting how indexical thoughts are irreducible and intrinsically perspectival, this inquiry shows how we can depict someone else’s indexical thought from a third person perspective. To do so, the phenomenon of quasi-indexicality plays a central role: to represent Jane saying, ‘I am prosperous’, we use what Castañeda termed a quasi-indicatorin a report of the form ‘Jane said that she (herself)is prosperous’. It is argued that quasi-indicators play such an important role in our linguistic, social, and psychological life that they have a cognitive primacy over other mechanisms of reference. It emerges that quasi-indexicality is also a key notion when we cope to understand our mindreading capacity.

Ultimately, this interdisciplinary approach recommends the view that indexicality and quasi-indexicality are two sides of the same coin. It is argued that indexicality and quasi-indexicality are best understood within the framework of direct reference, conceived from a Wittgenstein-inspired perspective.
Risking the Church
Authors: Lennan Richard
Published: March 2005

The present‐day situation of the Roman Catholic Church has been described as a state of ‘peril’. That fact alone, to say nothing of the challenges inseparable from faith in God, implies that the embrace of ecclesial faith is less likely today. Seeks both to account for the emergence of such a situation and to identify sources of possibility for the church. In order to do so, begins by examining both the internal life of the Catholic Church, especially what has occurred in the wake of the Second Vatican Council (1962–65), and the relationship between the church and the wider society, with a particular emphasis on the Western world. As the necessary foundation for expressing how the church might respond to its present situation and what might enable or support the embrace of ecclesial faith, the book focusses on a broad understanding of ‘the church’, one that highlights its multiple implications for human communion and for the communion between God and humanity. In particular, develops a contemporary theology of the foundational elements of Christian faith in regard to the church, especially its relationship to Jesus Christ and its existence as symbol of the Holy Spirit. In the light of that theology, analyses also how controversial elements of ecclesial faith – such as tradition and authority – might be appropriated positively. The final chapters identify possibilities for both a constructive relationship between the church and the surrounding culture and for a more reconciled diversity within the church. The emphasis of the final chapters is on the need to understand the church as ‘unfinished’, as not simply able to develop, but as defined by the dynamism that expresses the presence of God. Concludes that a willingness to embrace the need for movement, for being a pilgrim, is inseparable from the risk of ecclesial faith.
Behavioral Portfolios: Hope for Riches and Protection from Poverty
Authors: Statman Meir
Published: March 2005

This chapter argues that the behavioural portfolio theory offers a good description of investor behaviour and a basis for good policy prescriptions. The theory states that investors view with portfolios not as a whole, but as distinct layers in a pyramid of assets where layers are associated with specific goals, and where attitudes towards risk vary across layers. Unlike the mean-variance theory which offers portfolio descriptions that investors do not follow, the behavioural portfolio theory offers prescription of pyramid portfolios that are closer to reality.
Remittances by Emigrants: Issues and Evidence
Authors: Solimano Andrés
Published: March 2005

Remittances from migrants are a growing force, and this chapter considers the role that they can play in financing development. To an important extent, they finance consumption, and are an international mechanism of social protection based on private transfers; they can also contribute to financing investment, providing community infrastructure and funds for the financing of new enterprises. The motives for making such remittances, and the problems of measuring their extent are considered, as are the variety of financial entities through which they are channelled, and policies for reducing the cost of remittances and enhancing their development potential. The chapter is organised in five main sections which: discuss global and regional trends in remittance flows and their growing importance as a source of external transfers to developing countries; examine measurement issues and discuss the main micro‐motives for remittances and the implications of their cyclical behaviour for stability; analyse the development impact of remittances (effects on savings, investment, growth, poverty, income distribution); overview the international market for remittances, and provide evidence on the costs of sending remittances to various country groups; and highlights policies for reducing the costs of sending remittances and thus enhancing their developmental impact.
Enhancing Resistance to Sclerotinia minor in Peanut by Expressing a Barley Oxalate Oxidase Gene
Authors: Livingstone D. Malcolm , Hampton Jaime L. , Phipps Patrick M. , Grabau Elizabeth A.
Published: March 2005

Sclerotinia minor Jagger is the causal agent of Sclerotinia blight, a highly destructive disease of peanut (Arachis hypogaea). Based on evidence that oxalic acid is involved in the pathogenicity of many Sclerotinia species, our objectives were to recover transgenic peanut plants expressing an oxalic acid-degrading oxalate oxidase and to evaluate them for increased resistance to S. minor. Transformed plants were regenerated from embryogenic cultures of three Virginia peanut cultivars (Wilson, Perry, and NC-7). A colorimetric enzyme assay was used to screen for oxalate oxidase activity in leaf tissue. Candidate plants with a range of expression levels were chosen for further analysis. Integration of the transgene was confirmed by Southern-blot analysis, and gene expression was demonstrated in transformants by northern-blot analysis. A sensitive fluorescent enzyme assay was used to quantify expression levels for comparison to the colorimetric protocol. A detached leaflet assay tested whether transgene expression could limit lesion size resulting from direct application of oxalic acid. Lesion size was significantly reduced in transgenic plants compared to nontransformed controls (65%–89% reduction at high oxalic acid concentrations). A second bioassay examined lesion size after inoculation of leaflets with S. minor mycelia. Lesion size was reduced by 75% to 97% in transformed plants, providing evidence that oxalate oxidase can confer enhanced resistance to Sclerotinia blight in peanut.
Aphid Infestation Causes Different Changes in Carbon and Nitrogen Allocation in Alfalfa Stems as Well as Different Inhibitions of Longitudinal and Radial Expansion
Authors: Girousse Christine , Moulia Bruno , Silk Wendy , Bonnemain Jean-Louis
Published: March 2005

Alfalfa (Medicago sativa) stem elongation is strongly reduced by a pea aphid (Acyrthosiphon pisum Harris) infestation. As pea aphid is a phloem feeder that does not transmit virus or toxins, assimilate withdrawal is generally considered as the main mechanism responsible for growth reduction. Using a kinematic analysis, we investigated the spatial distributions of relative elemental growth rates of control and infested alfalfa stems. The water, carbon, and nitrogen contents per unit stem length were measured along the growth zone. Deposition rates and growth-sustaining fluxes were estimated from these patterns. Severe short-term aphid infestation (200 young adults over a 24-h period) induced a strong and synchronized reduction in rates of elongation and of water and carbon deposition. Reduced nitrogen content and associated negative nitrogen deposition rates were observed in some parts of the infested stems, especially in the apex. This suggested a mobilization of nitrogen from the apical part of the growth zone, converted from a sink tissue into a source tissue by aphids. Calculation of radial growth rates suggested that aphid infestation led to a smaller reduction in radial expansion than in elongation. Together with earlier observations of long-lasting effects of a short-term infestation, this supports the hypothesis that in addition to nutrient withdrawal, a thigmomorphogenesis-like mechanism is involved in the effect of aphid infestation on stem growth.
Trust in Risk Regulation: Cause or Consequence of the Acceptability of GM Food?
Authors: Poortinga Wouter , Pidgeon Nick F.
Published: March 2005

Although there is ample empirical evidence that trust in risk regulation is strongly related to the perception and acceptability of risk, it is less clear what the direction of this relationship is. This article explores the nature of the relationship, using three separate data sets on perceptions of genetically modified (GM) food among the British public. The article has two discrete but closely interrelated objectives. First, it compares two models of trust. More specifically, it investigates whether trust is the cause (causal chain account) or the consequence (associationist view) of the acceptability of GM food. Second, this study explores whether the affect heuristic can be applied to a wider number of risk‐relevant concepts than just perceived risk and benefit. The results suggest that, rather than a determinant, trust is an expression or indicator of the acceptability of GM food. In addition, and as predicted, “affect” accounts for a large portion of the variance between perceived risk, perceived benefit, trust in risk regulation, and acceptability. Overall, the results support the associationist view that specific risk judgments are driven by more general evaluative judgments The implications of these results for risk communication and policy are discussed.
Microgenesis and Ontogenesis of Perceptual Organization
Authors: Kimchi Ruth , Hadad Batsheva , Behrmann Marlene , Palmer Stephen E.
Published: March 2005

In two experiments, visual search and speeded classification were used to study perception of hierarchical patterns among participants aged 5 to 23 years. Perception of global configurations of few-element patterns and local elements of many-element patterns showed large age-related improvements. Only minor age-related changes were observed in perception of global configurations of many-element patterns and local elements of few-element patterns. These results are consistent with prior microgenetic analyses using hierarchical patterns. On the one hand, the rapid and effortless grouping of many small elements and the individuation of few large elements both mature by age 5. In contrast, the time-consuming and effortful grouping of few large elements and the individuation of many small elements improve substantially with age, primarily between ages 5 and 10. These findings support the view that perceptual organization involves multiple processes that vary in time course, attentional demands, and developmental trajectories.
Temporally Nonadjacent Nonlinguistic Sounds Affect Speech Categorization
Authors: Holt Lori L.
Published: March 2005

Speech perception is an ecologically important example of the highly context-dependent nature of perception; adjacent speech, and even nonspeech, sounds influence how listeners categorize speech. Some theories emphasize linguistic or articulation-based processes in speech-elicited context effects and peripheral (cochlear) auditory perceptual interactions in non-speech-elicited context effects. The present studies challenge this division. Results of three experiments indicate that acoustic histories composed of sine-wave tones drawn from spectral distributions with different mean frequencies robustly affect speech categorization. These context effects were observed even when the acoustic context temporally adjacent to the speech stimulus was held constant and when more than a second of silence or multiple intervening sounds separated the nonlinguistic acoustic context and speech targets. These experiments indicate that speech categorization is sensitive to statistical distributions of spectral information, even if the distributions are composed of nonlinguistic elements. Acoustic context need be neither linguistic nor local to influence speech perception.
Color Naming, Lens Aging, and Grue
Authors: Hardy Joseph L. , Frederick Christina M. , Kay Paul , Werner John S.
Published: March 2005

Many languages without separate terms for green and blue are or were spoken in locations receiving above-average exposure to ultraviolet-B (UV-B) radiation. It has been proposed that this correlation is caused by premature lens aging. This conclusion was supported by an experiment in which younger observers used the term “blue” less often when they described simulated paint chips filtered through the equivalent of an older observer's lens—removing much short-wavelength light—than when they described the unfiltered versions of the same paint chips. Some stimuli that were called “blue” without simulated aging were called “green” when filtered. However, in the experiment reported here, we found that the proportion of “blue” color-name responses did not differ between younger subjects and older observers with known ocular media optical densities. Color naming for stimuli that were nominally green, blue-green, or blue was virtually identical for older and younger observers who viewed the same (unfiltered) stimuli. Our results are inconsistent with the lens-brunescence hypothesis.
Impaired gastric motor activity after abdominal surgery in rats
Authors: Fukuda H. , Tsuchida D. , Koda K. , Miyazaki M. , Pappas T. N. , Takahashi T.
Published: March 2005

Abstract  Postoperative ileus (POI) is a transient bowel dysmotility that occurs following abdominal surgery. Several mechanisms have been proposed such as neural reflex and inflammatory changes. We focused on gastric motility after abdominal surgery in rats. To investigate the time course of gastric motility after surgery, gastric motility was continuously recorded before, during and after surgery. After laparotomy, terminal ileum was manipulated for 10 min. Gastric motility was recorded by a strain gauge transducer implanted on the serosal surface of the stomach. To investigate whether peripheral sympathetic nerve is involved in the pathogenesis of POI, effects of guanethidine and celiac ganglionectomy were tested on the postoperative gastric motility. Although isoflurane anaesthesia reduced the gastric motility to 40%, the motility recovered immediately when isoflurane was withdrawn. Intestinal manipulation reduced the postoperative gastric motility for 3–24 h after surgery, compared with preoperative levels. Guanethidine administration and celiac ganglionectomy restored the impaired gastric motility. Feeding increased the gastric motility in each group. It is suggested that the pathogenesis of postoperative gastric ileus induced by intestinal manipulation involves viscero‐sympathetic pathways. Intestinal manipulation causes impaired gastric motility via inhibitory sympathetic efferent pathway. Feeding may improve the postoperative gastric motility.
The effects of the 5‐HT3 antagonist, alosetron, on brain serotonin synthesis in patients with irritable bowel syndrome
Authors: Nakai A. , Diksic M. , Kumakura Y. , D'Souza D. , Kersey K.
Published: March 2005

Abstract  Serotonin (5‐HT) plays an important role in the pathophysiology of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). Using α‐[11C]methyl‐l‐tryptophan‐positron emission tomography (PET), it was demonstrated that brain 5‐HT synthesis is increased in patients with IBS, in a gender‐specific manner. The aims of the study were to evaluate the effects of alosetron on brain 5‐HT synthesis in patients with IBS. Six male and five female non‐constipation‐predominant IBS patients were enrolled. The subjects received alosetron or a placebo for 14 days, separated by a 2‐week washout period. On day 14, rectal distensions commenced just prior to the PET scan (which was performed for 80 min), and continued for 20‐min periods. The functional images were analysed with SPM99. Alosetron vs placebo treatments, in a randomized, double‐blinded, crossover manner, were studied. 5‐HT synthesis was greater in several regions in the males than in the females during the alosetron treatment, whereas there was no region in which the females had greater synthesis. There were significant gender‐treatment interactions of synthesis in the cingulate gyrus, caudate nucleus, globus pallidus, and cerebellum. The gender differences in the effect of alosetron on brain 5‐HT synthesis may be related to the gender differences in the efficacy of alosetron.
Unexpectedly low prevalence rates of IBS among adult Israeli Jews
Authors: Sperber A. D. , Shvartzman P. , Friger M. , Fich A.
Published: March 2005

Abstract  The irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and other functional bowel disorders (FBDs) are common functional gastrointestinal disorders. The prevalence of IBS using Rome II criteria is generally lower than with previous criteria. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of IBS and other FBDs in the adult Israeli Jewish population, which has not been surveyed to date. A telephone survey was conducted on a representative sample of the study population provided by the Israel Ministry of the Interior. IBS and other FBDs were diagnosed by Rome II criteria. The study population was 981 individuals and the overall response rate was 54%. The mean age was 45.0 years and 55% were females. In all, 2.9% had IBS (females: 3.7%, males: 1.8%, P = 0.08). The rate increased to 4.1% when the Rome II diagnostic criteria were amended to include some chronic alternators who are not picked up by the original scoring system. Approximately 26% of the respondents had a functional lower gastrointestinal (GI) disorder (females: 32.1%, males: 17.7%, P < 0.0001). Prevalence rates for IBS among Israeli Jewish adults are lower than rates reported from most countries, despite the high level of stress resulting from Israel's geopolitical circumstances. Possible reasons for this low prevalence are discussed.
Altered neuroendocrine response and gastric dysmotility in the Flinders Sensitive Line rat
Authors: Mattsson H. , Arani Z. , Astin M. , Bayati A. , Overstreet D. H. , Lehmann A.
Published: March 2005

Abstract  In the search for animal models that can replicate some features of functional dyspepsia (FD) patients, we turned our interest to the Flinders Sensitive Line (FSL) rat. Gastric motility disturbances prevalent in FD patients as well as urine corticosterone and plasma prolactin were measured following buspirone challenge. Flinders Resistant Line (FRL) rat was used as control. The results show that the FSL rats have a disturbed gastric motility, reflected as both an increased gastric accommodation rate and gastric volume during gastric distension as well as a delayed gastric emptying, the latter possibly as a consequence of the former. Lipid administration resulted in a significant increase in maximal gastric volume only in the FRL rats. Both the corticosterone response to buspirone and the 24‐h urinary output of corticosterone were normal in FSL rats. Similar to FD patients, the FSL rat showed supersensitivity to buspirone in the increase in prolactin release. Although FSL rats show some features similar to a subset of FD patients, the increased gastric accommodation contrasts to the reduced accommodation often seen in FD patients. Further studies are warranted to determine the relevance of this rat strain as a model for FD.
Translating Bourdieu: cultural capital and the English middle class in historical perspective
Authors: Gunn Simon
Published: March 2005

This article examines the ways in which Pierre Bourdieu's work on culture and cultural capital can be applied to the study of the English middle class in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Drawing on a wide historical literature, the article argues for the significance of culture as a constitutive element of middle‐class identities in England since 1800. It goes on to examine Bourdieu's ideas of ‘objectivated’, ‘instutionalized’ and ‘incorporated’ cultural capital, in the context of family, inheritance, education and the body. The article identifies changes in the historical forms which cultural capital has taken and emphasizes the importance of analysing family processes of intergenerational transmission.