bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Wavelet Analysis of Skin Perfusion in Healthy Volunteers
Authors: HÄFNER HANS‐MARTIN , BRÄUER KURT , EICHNER MARTIN , KOCH ISOLDE , HEINLE HELMUT , RÖCKEN MARTIN , STRÖLIN ANKE
Published: March 2007

Objective: Rhythmical changes in microvascular perfusion of the skin depend on various influences, which appear continuously but not in a predictable manner. For identifying and quantifying different physiological influences the authors used wavelet transformation, analyzing continuously and simultaneously measured data.

Methods: A total of 34 healthy volunteers were included in the study. At the dorsum of the left hand, skin perfusion was measured by laser Doppler fluxmetry (LDF) and skin temperature was measured. Simultaneously, the electrocardiogram and the respiration were recorded. The recorded time series were analyzed with wavelet transformation and scale correlation (S‐correlation).

Results: Semilinear analysis with wavelet transformation allowed a visualization of temporal changes in LDF frequency and amplitude in a color‐coded quasi three‐dimensional diagram. The authors found that tissue perfusion over an observation period of 327.68 s is governed by 6 closely connected, overlying waves with different degrees of freedom. The major determinants are low frequencies in LDF, which correlates with changes in skin temperature, responsible for 68.5% of the influence. Surprisingly, though indispensable for blood flow, respiration and heartbeat contributed to less then 2.5% of the rhythmic changes.

Conclusions: When wavelet transformation is used in analyzing LDF time series, the different rhythms of cutaneous blood flow are made visible and quantifiable and can be assigned to different physiological origins. The application of this novel analysis method allows identifying mechanisms regulating skin perfusion, which will greatly facilitate the diagnosis of a variety of important vascular diseases, such as chronic venous insufficiency, diabetes, or neurotrophic disorders.
Angiostatin Does Not Contribute to Skeletal Muscle Microvascular Rarefaction with Low Nitric Oxide Bioavailability
Authors: FRISBEE JEFFERSON C. , SAMORA JULIE BALCH , BASILE DAVID P.
Published: March 2007

Objective: Ischemic angiogenesis is dependent on vascular nitric oxide (NO) bioavailability, in part by reducing matrix metalloproteinases (MMP)‐2 and ‐9 activity and angiostatin production. In the metabolic syndrome, the authors have demonstrated that reduced skeletal muscle microvessel density (SKMVD) was correlated with chronic reductions in NO bioavailability, but these relationships are complicated by the presence of the multiple pathological states inherent in the metabolic syndrome. Given this, the authors hypothesized that low NO bioavailability could reduce SKMVD in normal rats, independent of any systemic pathologies associated with the metabolic syndrome, and that this would be correlated with increased angiostatin production.

Methods: Rats were separated into 3 groups: (1) control, (2) chronic NOS inhibition (10−4 M L‐NAME; drinking water), and (3) NOS inhibition/normotensive (combined L‐NAME/hydralazine treatment; 50 mg/kg/d; drinking water). Vessel structure, reactivity, and NO bioavailability were assessed in isolated vessels using standard techniques. SKMVD was determined using established immunohistochemical methods. Established protein analyses were performed for MMP‐2 and MMP‐9 expression/activity and for angiostatin expression. Alterations in vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) levels under the conditions of the study were assessed using ELISA.

Results: After 6 weeks, MAP was elevated in L‐NAME rats vs. control, although this difference was abolished in L‐NAME/hydralazine rats. NOS inhibition abrogated dilation to acetylcholine and arterial eNOS activity. While NOS inhibition reduced SKMVD vs. control, hydralazine treatment did not improve density, suggesting that rarefaction in NOS‐inhibited rats was independent of elevated pressure. Skeletal muscle demonstrated reduced active hyperemia and increased minimum vascular resistance in L‐NAME rats, which was also associated with increased arteriolar wall stiffness. L‐NAME/hydralazine treatment, while still causing an elevated resistance, prevented arteriolar wall stiffening. Protein analysis demonstrated that neither expressions nor activities of MMP‐2 or MMP‐9 were altered from control in skeletal muscle of rats treated with L‐NAME and angiostatin production was not altered in any group. Chronic NOS inhibition was associated with no consistent change in plasma VEGF levels.

Conclusions: These results suggest that a reduced SKMVD develops with low NO bioavailability, although this process was not associated with significant alterations to either VEGF or angiostatin production.
Biological Interactions of Functionalized Single-Wall Carbon Nanotubes in Human Epidermal Keratinocytes
Authors: Zhang Leshuai W. , Zeng Liling , Barron Andrew R. , Monteiro-Riviere Nancy A.
Published: March 2007

Carbon nanotube–based nanovectors, especially functionalized nanotubes, have shown potential for therapeutic drug delivery. 6-Aminohexanoic acid–derivatized single-wall carbon nanotubes (AHA-SWNTs) are soluble in aqueous stock solutions over a wide range of physiologically relevant conditions; however, their interactions with cells and their biological compatibility has not been explored. Human epidermal keratinocytes (HEKs) were dosed with AHA-SWNTs ranging in concentration from 0.00000005 to 0.05 mg/ml. MTT (3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide) cell viability decreased significantly ( p < .05) from 0.00005 to 0.05 mg/ml after 24 h. The proinflammatory mediators of inflammation cytokines interleukin (IL)-6, IL-8, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)- α, IL-10, and IL-1 β were also assessed. Cytokine analysis did not show a significant increase in IL-6 and IL-8 in the medium containing 0.000005 mg/ml of AHA-SWNTs from 1 to 48 h. IL-6 increased in cells treated with 0.05 mg/ml of AHA-SWNTs from 1 to 48 h, whereas IL-8 showed a significant increase at 24 and 48 h. No significant difference ( p < .05) was noted with TNF- α, IL-10, and IL-1 β expression at any time point. Transmission electron microscopy of HEKs treated with 0.05 mg/ml AHA-SWNTs for 24 h depicted AHA-SWNTs localized within intracytoplasmic vacuoles in HEKs. Treatment with the surfactant 1% Pluronic F127 caused dispersion of the AHA-SWNT aggregates in the culture medium and less toxicity. These data showed that the lower concentration of 0.000005 mg/ml of AHA-SWNTs maintains cell viability and induces a mild cytotoxicity, but 0.05 mg/ml of AHA-SWNTs demonstrated an irritation response by the increase in IL-8.
Remaking Italy? Place Configurations and Italian Electoral Politics under the ‘Second Republic’
Authors: Agnew John
Published: March 2007

The Italian Second Republic was meant to have led to a bipolar polity with alternation in national government between conservative and progressive blocs. Such a system it has been claimed would undermine the geographical structure of electoral politics that contributed to party system immobilism in the past. However, in this article I argue that dynamic place configurations are central to how the ‘new’ Italian politics is being constructed. The dominant emphasis on either television or the emergence of ‘politics without territory’ has obscured the importance of this geographical restructuring. New dynamic place configurations are apparent particularly in the South which has emerged as a zone of competition between the main party coalitions and a nationally more fragmented geographical pattern of electoral outcomes. These patterns in turn reflect differential trends in support for party positions on governmental centralization and devolution, geographical patterns of local economic development, and the re-emergence of the North–South divide as a focus for ideological and policy differences between parties and social groups across Italy.
Legislative Delegation to the Executive in the ‘Second’ Italian Republic
Authors: Mattei Paola
Published: March 2007

Considering the increasing quantitative usage and expanding qualitative scope of instruments of delegated legislations as the predominant means of enacting welfare reforms, this article investigates the consolidation throughout the Second Italian Republic of a new interpretation of executive prerogatives in the exercise of legislative functions. This is not only a problem in relation to the constitutional balance defining the relationship between the executive and legislature, but also an issue for executive policy leadership and capacity to steer the legislative process. It is argued that since the 1990s the usage of legislative decrees has become asui generisand the predominant means of decision-making, adopted in particular for welfare reforms. In particular, delegated legislation to the executive has changed the impact that interest groups, such as trade unions, have on the policy process. Two case studies are presented by way of illustration, namely the health care reforms of the early 1990s and the education reform in 2003.
Non‐word repetition in Spanish‐speaking children with Specific Language Impairment (SLI)
Authors: Girbau Dolors , Schwartz Richard G.
Published: March 2007

Background: A number of previous studies have revealed that children with Specific Language Impairment have limitations in Phonological Working Memory as revealed by a task that requires them to repeat non‐words of increasing syllable length. However, most published studies have used non‐words that are phonotactically English.

Aims: The purpose was to examine the repetition of non‐words that are consistent with the phonotactic patterns of Spanish. The study also examined the relationship between non‐word repetition performance and other language measures.

Methods & Procedures: Eleven Spanish‐speaking children with Specific Language Impairment and 11 age‐matched children with typical language development aged 8;3–10;11, who were part of a larger study of sentence processing, participated in the study. The primary data were the children's repetition of 20 non‐words, four at each syllable length (one, two, three, four and five syllables). The children's productions were transcribed and scored for non‐word, segmental and cluster accuracy as well as for error type.

Outcomes & Results: The children with Specific Language Impairment performed more poorly on almost all measures of accuracy, but particularly in their production of three‐, four‐, and five‐syllable non‐words. Substitutions were the most frequent error type for both groups. Likelihood ratios indicated that non‐word repetition performance is a highly accurate identifier of language status in these preselected groups. The children's non‐word repetition was highly correlated with most of the standardized language measures that were administered to the children.

Conclusions: The repetition of non‐words consistent with Spanish phonotactics reveals word‐length effects and error patterns similar to those found in previous studies. It extends these findings to older school‐age Spanish‐speaking children with Specific Language Impairment. Given the limited choices for instruments that can be used to identify children with Specific Language Impairment, a Spanish Non‐word Repetition Task has the potential to be a valuable screening test for clinical and research purposes.
Sentence repetition as a measure of early grammatical development in Italian
Authors: Devescovi Antonella , Cristina Caselli M.
Published: March 2007

Background: Research on language acquisition and disorders highlights the need to evaluate the early phases of language development for the early identification of children with language problems (screening), and to determine the nature and severity of language disorders (diagnosis).

Aims: The paper presents a new Sentence Repetition Task developed for evaluating language abilities in Italian pre‐schoolers. Two studies are reported. The first is aimed at evaluating the power of the Sentence Repetition Task in discriminating the developmental changes in children's capacity to repeat sentences of different length and morphosyntactic complexity. Moreover, the test–retest reliability was assessed. The second study explored the relationship between the Sentence Repetition Task, free speech and verbal memory span.

Methods & Procedures: The test included 27 sentences of different length and complexity. Each sentence was accompanied with a picture reproducing its global meaning. In Study 1, the Sentence Repetition Task was administrated to 100 middle‐ and lower‐class children (balanced for gender) between 2 and 4 years with a test–retest design. Test results were submitted to univariate analysis of variance, using five age levels as independent variables. To evaluate the test reliability, test–retest correlational analyses were conducted. In Study 2, 25 middle‐ and lower‐class children between 2 and 4 years of age, balanced for age and gender, participated. The performance of the children on the repetition test was compared with their spontaneous language data. Moreover, the same children received a Verbal Memory Span test, consisting of a list of ten strings of different number of words. Correlational analyses were conducted to evaluate the relationships between the Sentence Repetition Task, free speech and the Verbal Memory Span test.

Outcomes & Results: Study 1 showed that 2‐year‐old children's repeated sentences were highly telegraphic. Between the age of 2;0 and 2;6 the mean length of utterance in the Sentence Repetition Task grew from approximately two to three words, and the number of omissions of articles, prepositions and modifiers significantly decreased. After 3;0 years old, omissions of free function words practically disappeared. The results of Study 2 showed that mean length of utterance, omission of articles and use of the verbs in the Sentence Repetition Task correlated with the same measures of the free speech. Moreover, positive correlations were found between verbal memory span and performance of both the repetition task and the free speech.

Conclusions: Results demonstrate that the repetition test is reliable, discriminates between the different age groups examined, highlights the relevant developmental stages described in the literature, and provides a reliable measure of the mean length of utterance.
BETWEEN OUTCAST AND OUTSIDER: CONSTRUCTING THE IDENTITY OF THE FOREIGNER
Authors: Bagnoli Anna
Published: March 2007

Through the adoption of a dialogical, self+other model, which can appreciate the presence of different discourses and cultures within the self, I have investigated the identities of young migrants. A sample of young Europeans participated in the research, narrating their migration stories with a variety of autobiographical methods which integrated interviews with diaries and visual media. Young migrants refer to their condition as foreigners as an ambivalent one, which, involving also much suffering, oscillates between two different ways of positioning the self. A dream of return is always dominant for the outcasts, who either feel at the margins or do not wish to immerse themselves any deeper in the society they have moved into. Migrating means instead reaching a different level of experience and knowledge of the world to the outsiders, who can successfully translate the detachment of their special positioning into a creative and hybrid reconstruction of identities.
CHALLENGES FACING THE EU: SCOPE FOR A COHERENT RESPONSE
Authors: Room Graham
Published: March 2007

The EU faces a number of major challenges: to shift its support from the industries of the past to the knowledge-based industries of the future; to rescue the Lisbon strategy, designed to build a knowledge-based economy but so far achieving little; to re-engage with the European public after the difficulties with the Constitution. The paper argues that these challenges are intimately connected and that it is only by addressing them together that there is any hope for success. It elaborates these connections with particular reference to a reinvigorated Lisbon strategy with a strong social dimension. It concludes by delineating the corresponding challenge that faces the research community: to undertake a fundamental revision of its analysis of social policy in relation to modern economies; and to build a new toolkit for intelligent benchmarking.
Influence of harbour construction on mud accumulation in the Scheldt estuary
Authors: Wartel S. , Chen M. , van Eck G. T. M. , van Maldegem D.
Published: March 2007

The bottom sediments of the turbidity maximum area of the Scheldt estuary were mapped in 1999 using echo sounding, sidescan sonar and grain-size analyses of bottom sediments. Four sediment types, sand, muddy sand, sandy mud and mud were recognised. Mud, with very little sand, occurs mainly in the access channels to the sluices giving access to the harbour docks of Antwerp. The sediments of the main channel have a sandier texture. One might conclude that the total mud stock in the middle estuary has increased, both between 1964–1986 and 1986–1999, but on the contrary the mud supply from the river, the mud stock in the river channel and the mud supply to the lower estuary have all decreased. The increase in the mud stock in the area as a whole was completely at the expense of mud deposition in the access channels to the sluice gates giving access to the harbour of Antwerp.

The mud stock in the river channel decreased over the years because of a decreasing mud supply from the river. The mud stock in the river channel shows variations that are directly related to fluctuations in the river load. When the suspended matter decreased during a certain year the supply of silt and clay particles decreased correspondingly and the resuspension-deposition mechanism caused a relative increase of the sand fraction in the bottom sediments in that year.
Heavy metal distribution of the South China Sea continental shelf sediments off Sabah and Sarawak coastlines
Authors: Antonina A. Nor , Azhar M. S. Noor , Lokman H. M. , Zauyah D. Siti , Kamaruzzaman Y. , Shamsuddin A.
Published: March 2007

Fifty-one surface sediment samples from offshore Sabah and Sarawak were collected from the two cruises of the Marine Vessel Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Centre (MV SEAFDEC) before and after the northeast monsoon. The sediments were analyzed for heavy metal contents to determine the effects of monsoon seasons and spatial patterns of distribution. The contents of heavy metals were measured from the 63 μm fraction of the dried sediments and analyzed using an Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer.

The heavy metals studied were Al, Fe, Cr, Cu, Zn, Pb and Mn. Results showed that some metals were in concentrations lower than the average Earth!s crust. The lower or higher-than-normal values of some of the heavy metals studied can be attributed to the intensive weathering in the study area, mineralogy, effect of the monsoon and the Rajang River. Furthermore, normalization was done using Al as normalizer to determine whether the high levels of Pb were due to anthropogenic input or not. It was found that the values were higher but not necessarily an indication of inputs from human activities as high levels were also found far from the coast. This may be attributed to input of particulates from the Rajang River and possibly movement of bottom sediments.
Key issues on sediment quality assessment: A review of South American research with emphasis on Brazil
Authors: Nascimento Iracema Andrade
Published: March 2007

Conventional approaches to pollution prevention in South American countries have traditionally relied on scientists identifying potentially harmful substances and practices, and advising regulators concerning exposures and effects. Since the 1990s scientific knowledge and skills have contributed to the creation of pollution control legislation. However the extent, to which the legislation is effectively applied, is determined by government policies. To be effective, strategies for environmental protection must be firmly supported by political commitment. Sediment is recognized worldwide as a major repository for persistent contaminants in aquatic ecosystems. Contaminant dynamics promote changes in the overlying water quality, as well as in porewater and can affect the biota even though the overlying water may meet water quality criteria. It is recognized that traditional water quality-based controls are not enough to protect the aquatic environments in which sediment quality assessment is also required. Although chemical analysis of sediment provides information, which may allow for the estimation of potential biological effects, contaminant concentrations are not accurate predictors of biological responses. Sediment Quality Values can only be derived from a database of biological effects verified for different organisms by a variety of methods that show the relationship between effects and contaminants. Given the difficulties in establishing this database, Brazil, like other countries in South America, still does not have Sediment Quality Criteria (SQC) despite the existence of quality criteria for water. Although effluents are often controlled according to normalized standards, high levels of contamination in reservoirs, rivers, estuaries and coastal areas have been found; consequently sediments are receiving greater attention in South America. The principles and techniques globally accepted for sediment toxicity assessment are already in use in many South American countries, in an attempt to solve localized problems of environmental contamination. Most of the countries have chosen local test-species according to required criteria, and have already standardized protocols to establish the relationship between contamination and toxicity. Several integrative approaches for sediment quality evaluation such as; Apparent Effects Threshold (AET), Equilibrium Partitioning (EqP) and Sediment Quality Triad (SQT) are also being applied to hotspots to promote political measures for conservation and remediation.
Physico-chemical and environmental characterisation of sediments from Cantabrian estuaries (Northern Spain)
Authors: Coz A. , González-Piñuela C. , Andrés A. , Viguri J. R.
Published: March 2007

Previous studies show that sediments of the Cantabrian estuaries (Northern Spain) contain significant concentrations of heavy metals and organic pollutants derived from intensive industrial, agricultural and urban activities. In the most polluted sediments of two estuaries (the bay of Santander and estuary of Suances), physico-chemical and environmental characterisation has been carried out.

Water content, density, pH, specific surface, porosity and particle diameter distribution have been evaluated as physical parameters. Total metal contents have been analysed as inorganic parameters. Loss of ignition (LOI), phenol index and extractable organic halogens (EOX) have been determined as organic parameters. Two leachate assays have been carried out in order to evaluate the environmental behaviour of the sediments. Total availability has been analysed using the NEN 7341 test and the mobility of the pollutants has been determined using the EN 12457 leaching test at two liquid/solid ratios. The obtained results have been compared with European Union regulations.

The physical parameters and inorganic compounds are very similar in the studied sediments. However, the sediments from Suances have high concentrations of LOI and EOX. The obtained correlation of the physical parameters with the particle size distribution is useful in the study of the sediment addition to ceramic process as a sediment management option. A comparison of the results obtained from the total, availability and mobility analysis of the inorganic pollutant concentrations of As, Ba, Ni, Pb and Zn present in sediments has been made, giving knowledge for the development of regulations and tools that would contribute to the integral management of the estuarine areas.
A weight of evidence approach to assess sediment quality in the Guadalquivir estuary
Authors: DelValls T. A. , Riba I.
Published: March 2007

The design of a weight of evidence (WOE) approach based on the use of the sediment quality triad to assess both the feasibility and the difficulty associated with this kind of method when used under high dynamic conditions is discussed. The Guadalquivir estuary was impacted by a mining spill from 1998 to 2002 and some effects are still found in the area. The use of the WOE in the estuary implies the integration of different lines of evidence that were previously used in the area (Gulf of Cádiz); including the sediment chemistry of metals and organics, acute toxicity tests, as well the variability in salinity and pH values currently measured in estuaries. It includes the use of chronic toxicity assays, the bioaccumulation measured under field and laboratory conditions and the histopathology measured in both laboratory-exposed and field-collected organisms. The correct description and selection of the lines of evidence complement the weight of evidence approach as a powerful tool to identify the range of environmental degradation (pollution) in the area. Integration of new lines of evidence such as chronic and bioaccumulation tests, and re-defining the original sediment quality triad to a new and ‘enhanced’ triad are introduced. Finally, some recommendations are cited for the design of WOE approaches using the sediment quality triad in environments of high natural variability, such as estuaries, and specifically to address the effects associated with the changes in salinity and pH values.
Counselling supervision and the production of professional selves
Authors: Crocket Kathie
Published: March 2007

The culture of supervision is produced both in wider professional contexts and in particular local supervision conversations. This paper is shaped by the post structuralist ideas of governmentality and disciplinary power. It uses these ideas to trace the detail of a supervision conversation, noticing the shaping effects of ideas familiar within the professional culture. Excerpts from the supervision conversation demonstrate a supervision process that pays attention to the politics of its own production, and thus to the culture of supervision that it produces.
Therapist reactions in self‐experienced difficult situations: An exploration
Authors: Smith Annemarie J. M. , Kleijn Wim CHR , Hutschemaekers Giel J. M.
Published: March 2007

This article describes a qualitative study of 63 difficult therapeutic situations described by 26 therapists. The study was part of research on specific reactions of therapists to traumatized clients. The research questions for the current analyses focused on the categorization of difficult situations, of short‐term therapist reactions, and the exploration of situation‐specific reaction patterns. The therapeutic style of the therapist was also explored. Three types of difficult situations were found: ‘traumatic situations’, ‘interactional situations’ and ‘existential situations’. Therapist reactions were sorted in to 20 categories; 10 of them were part of a situation‐specific pattern. The therapeutic style of therapists was defined by a first dimension reflecting a continuum of experiencing versus actively intervening and a second dimension of feeling responsible. The relevance for therapist self‐reflection, supervision and training is to acknowledge the specific difficulties in different therapeutic situations related to therapist‐specific reactions, and to enhance constructive coping in accordance with the therapist's therapeutic style.
Outcome oriented supervision: Advantages of adding systematic client tracking to supportive consultations
Authors: Worthen Vaughn E. , Lambert Michael J.
Published: March 2007

We argue in this paper that it is time for therapists and supervisors to incorporate outcome monitoring and brief client assessments into ongoing counseling supervision. Tracking client treatment response, comparing it to expected treatment response, and alerting counselors and supervisors when a client shows poor progress is described. It is suggested that such methods can maximize recovery in those individuals who are not responding to treatment as expected. The degree to which such methods facilitate the recovery of helpful client outcomes is summarized. Incorporating an outcome management system into routine counseling and supervision is encouraged to help actualize the goals of supervision.
Career‐long supervision: Patterns and perspectives
Authors: Grant Jan , Schofield Margot
Published: March 2007

The counselling/psychotherapy profession is relatively unique in its tradition of ongoing supervision of practising professionals after training has been completed. However, it is unclear whether most counselling and psychotherapy professionals continue with supervision once they have qualified, and what kinds of factors are associated with this decision. This research describes factors associated with the frequency of ongoing supervision among psychotherapists and counsellors.

The study design used a cross‐sectional workforce survey of members of the Psychotherapy and Counselling Federation of Australia (PACFA) member associations, representing around 2,500 members. A total of 316 members participated. Ninety‐six per cent of the sample reported receiving ongoing psychotherapy supervision. Twenty percent received supervision weekly and 35% fortnightly. Most received individual supervision, with 8% receiving only group supervision and 9% only peer supervision. A multivariate logistic regression analysis identified several factors related to receiving a higher level of supervision per month: therapists who had higher client contact hours, who had higher rates of personal therapy, an undergraduate degree compared with pre‐tertiary training, and female therapists compared with males. The paper discusses these findings in the context of understanding the development of the counselling/psychotherapy profession, models of counsellor training, and implications for practice and supervision.
Chemical, thermal and pH‐induced equilibrium unfolding studies of Fusarium solani lectin
Authors: Khan Feroz , Ahmad Absar , Khan M. Islam
Published: March 2007

The effect of urea, guanidine thiocyanate, temperature and pH was studied on the conformational stability of Fusarium solani lectin. Equilibrium unfolding with chemical denaturants showed that the lectin was least stable at pH 12 and maximally stable at pH 8.0 near its pI (8.7). Guanidine thiocyanate (the concentration of denaturant at which the protein is half folded, D1/2 = 0.49 M at pH 12) was found to be an eight times stronger denaturant than urea (D1/2 = 3.88 M at pH 12). The unfolding curves obtained with fluorescence and CD measurements showed good agreement indicating a monophasic nature of unfolding and excluded the possibility of formation of any stable intermediate. The effect of pH on the lectin was found to be unusual as at acidic pH, the lectin showed a flexible tertiary structure with pronounced secondary structure, and retained its hemagglutinating activity. On the other hand, the lectin did not show any loss of conformation or activity upto 70°C for 15 min. Moreover, thermal denaturation did not result in the aggregation or precipitation of the protein even at high temperatures. Thermal denaturation was also carried out in the presence of a low concentration of guanidine thiocyanate. Change in the enthalpy of transition (ΔHm) varied linearly with transition temperature (Tm), which indicated that the heat capacity (ΔCp = 3.95 kJ · mol‐1 · K‐1) of the lectin remained constant during the unfolding.
IUBMB Life, 59: 34‐43, 2007
The positively charged residues in the fragment 71 ‐ 77 of complexin is required for its binding to SNARE complex
Authors: Liu Jingguo , Wei Yong , Guo Ting , Xie Xin , Jiang Jiansen , Sui Sen‐fang
Published: March 2007

Complexin is a cytoplasmic protein that plays an important role in the neurotransmitters release triggered by action potential. Previous studies suggested that complexin performs its functions through interaction with the SNARE complex. The crystal structure of complexin/SNARE complex revealed that complexin binds to SNARE core complex in an anti‐parallel conformation with its residues 48 ‐ 70. However, the functions of the flanking sequences are unclear. In this paper, we demonstrate that the fragment 71 ‐ 77 of complexin is indispensable for its binding to the SNARE complex. Moreover, this interaction can be impaired by abolishing the positive charges in the fragment 71 ‐ 77, which suggests that the positive charges in the fragment 71 ‐ 77 are important for the interaction between complexin II and the SNARE complex.
IUBMB Life, 59: 84‐89, 2007
Bile salt hydrolase, the member of Ntn‐hydrolase family: Differential modes of structural and functional transitions during denaturation
Authors: Kumar R. Suresh , Suresh C. G. , Brannigan James A. , Dodson Guy G. , Gaikwad Sushama M.
Published: March 2007

Conformational transitions and functional stability of the bile salt hydrolase (BSH; cholylglycine EC: 3.5.1.24) from Bifidobacterium longum (BlBSH) cloned and expressed in E. coli were studied under thermal, chemical and pH‐mediated denaturation conditions using fluorescence and CD spectroscopy. Thermal and Gdn‐HCl‐mediated denaturation of BlBSH is a multistep process of inactivation and unfolding. The inactivation and unfolding of the enzyme was found to be irreversible. Enzyme activity seems sensitive to even minor conformational changes at the active site. Thermal denaturation as such did not result in any insoluble protein aggregates. However, on treating with 0.25 ‐ 1 M Gdn‐HCl the enzyme showed increasing aggregation at temperatures of 40 ‐ 55°C indicating more complex structural changes taking place in the presence of chemical denaturants. The enzyme secondary structure was still intact at acidic pH (pH 1 ‐ 3). The perturbation in the tertiary structure at the acidic pH was detected through freshly formed solvent exposed hydrophobic patches on the enzyme. These changes could be due to the formation of an acid‐induced molten globule‐like state.
IUBMB Life, 59: 118‐125, 2007
Applying Behavioral Theories to a Social Marketing Campaign
Authors: Fraze Jami L. , Rivera-Trudeau Maria , McElroy Laura
Published: March 2007

In 2003, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention began developing a social marketing campaign, Prevention IS Care, to encourage physicians to routinely screen HIV-infected patients for HIV transmission behaviors and to deliver HIV prevention messages. The planning team selected behavioral theories on the basis of formative research conducted during 2004–2005 and integrated these theories into the social marketing framework. The team decided to use the diffusion of innovation model and social cognitive theory. They selected as their target audience primary care and infectious disease physicians in private practice who deliver care to 50 or more persons living with HIV (PLWH). The social marketing framework, the diffusion of innovation model, and the social cognitive theory facilitated the development of this audience-centered campaign and provided elements that may encourage physicians to adopt the innovation: routine screening of HIV-infected patients for HIV transmission behaviors and delivery of HIV prevention messages during office visits.
Flexible Energy Efficient Density Control on Wireless Sensor Networks
Authors: Shang Yi , Shi Hongchi
Published: March 2007

In dense wireless sensor networks, density control is an important technique for prolonging the network's lifetime while providing sufficient sensing coverage. In this paper, we develop three new density control protocols by considering the tradeoff between energy usage and coverage. The first one, Non-Overlapping Density Control, aims at maximizing coverage while avoiding the overlap of sensing areas of active sensors. For the ideal case, a set of optimality conditions are derived to select sensors such that the sensing space is covered systematically to maximize the usage of each sensor and minimize the coverage gap. Based on theoretical optimality conditions, we develop a distributed protocol that can be efficiently implemented in large sensor networks. Next, we present a protocol called Non-Overlapping Density Control Based on Distances that does not require location information of the nodes. This protocol is more flexible and easier to implement than existing location-based methods. Finally, we present a new range-adjustable protocol called Non-Overlapping Density Control for Adjustable Sensing Ranges. It allows heterogenous sensing ranges for different sensors to save energy consumption. Extensive simulation shows promising results of the new protocols.
An Adaptive Data Dissemination Strategy for Wireless Sensor Networks
Authors: Selvakennedy S. , Sinnappan S.
Published: March 2007

Future large-scale sensor networks may comprise thousands of wirelessly connected sensor nodes that could provide an unimaginable opportunity to interact with physical phenomena in real time. However, the nodes are typically highly resource-constrained. Since the communication task is a significant power consumer, various attempts have been made to introduce energy-awareness at different levels within the communication stack. Clustering is one such attempt to control energy dissipation for sensor data dissemination in a multihop fashion. The Time-Controlled Clustering Algorithm (TCCA) is proposed to realize a network-wide energy reduction. A realistic energy dissipation model is derived probabilistically to quantify the sensor network's energy consumption using the proposed clustering algorithm. A discrete-event simulator is developed to verify the mathematical model and to further investigate TCCA in other scenarios. The simulator is also extended to include the rest of the communication stack to allow a comprehensive evaluation of the proposed algorithm.
Compressing Moving Object Trajectory in Wireless Sensor Networks
Authors: Xu Yingqi , Lee Wang-Chien
Published: March 2007

Some object tracking applications can tolerate delays in data collection and processing. Taking advantage of the delay tolerance, we propose an efficient and accurate algorithm for in-network data compression, called delay-tolerant trajectory compression (DTTC). In DTTC, a cluster-based infrastructure is built within the network. Each cluster head compresses an object's movement trajectory detected within its cluster by a compression function. Rather than transmitting all sensor readings to the sink node, the cluster head communicates only the compression parameters, which not only provide the sink node expressive yet traceable models about the object movements, but also significantly reduce the total amount of data communication required for tracking operations. DTTC supports a broad class of movement trajectories using two proposed techniques, DC-compression and SW-compression, and an efficient trajectory segmentation scheme, which are designed for improving the trajectory compression accuracy at less computation cost. Moreover, we analyze the underlying cluster-based infrastructure and mathematically derive the optimum cluster size, aiming at minimizing the total communication cost of the DTTC algorithm. An extensive simulation has been conducted to compare DTTC with competing prediction-based tracking technique, DPR [ 28 ]. Simulation results show that DTTC exhibits superior performance in terms of accuracy, communication cost and computation cost and soundly outperforms DPR with all types of movement trajectories.
NHS walk‐in centres ‐ A potent catalysist for developing prison healthcare
Authors: Backhouse Michelle
Published: March 2007

The transfer from the Home Office to Department of Health for commissioning healthcare for patients detained in England’s 123 publicly run prisons was thought, by many observers, to be challenging. Completed between 2004 and 2006, the complexity of the prison healthcare transfer was probably underestimated, given the challenges posed for delivering
healthcare within a secure setting by clinical staff working within the prison as well as those working on the outside and coming in ‐ NHS secondary care specialists, self‐employed GPs, dentists, pharmacists and opticians, as well as clinicians employed by private locum agencies and healthcare companies. Other factors were found to hinder the delivery of healthcare services equivalent to patients living outside in the community. These could be: * Prison‐induced (for example, the effects of overcrowding, prison procedures, culture and practices); * Patient‐induced (for example, clinician fear of violence, restricted choice of clinician for patient); * NHS‐induced (for example, low priority because outside the scope of normal NHS target setting or under‐funding).
Use of Computational Modeling to Predict Responses to Upper Airway Surgery in Obstructive Sleep Apnea
Authors: Huang Yaqi , White David P. , Malhotra Atul
Published: March 2007

Objectives. Despite the well‐recognized consequences of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), its treatment remains unsatisfactory. Therapeutic strategies are complicated by often poor adherence in the case of continuous positive airway pressure or the highly variable efficacy in the case of many upper airway surgeries. Computational models of the upper airway using finite element analysis to simulate the effects of various anatomic and physiologic manipulations on pharyngeal mechanics could be helpful in predicting surgical success.

Study Design: Computational and physiologic study.

Methods: Using representative OSA magnetic resonance images and experimentally measured upper airway dilator muscle activities, we developed a working two‐dimensional and a partial three‐dimensional model of the upper airway.

Results: As predicted from experimental measurements, the OSA model airway has a closing pressure of −2 cm H2O. Manipulations such as palatal stiffening, palatal resection, and tongue stiffening all have demonstrable effects on pharyngeal mechanics. We have also developed a partial three‐dimensional OSA model in which we simulate the mechanics of the pharyngeal airway in the mid‐sagittal and parasagittal slices, spanning more than 1 inch in thickness. Using this model, we have observed important effects of tongue and palatal stiffening on anteroposterior collapse of the pharyngeal airway.

Conclusions: Our data suggest that computational modeling is feasible and can be used to generate hypotheses for subsequent clinical trials regarding anatomic manipulations in OSA. We further believe that the goal of individualizing OSA therapy on the basis of underlying mechanisms could be facilitated by computational modeling.
Expressions of Aquaporin‐2, Vasopressin Type 2 Receptor, Transient Receptor Potential Channel Vanilloid (TRPV)1, and TRPV4 in the Human Endolymphatic Sac
Authors: Taguchi Daizo , Takeda Taizo , Kakigi Akinobu , Takumida Masaya , Nishioka Rie , Kitano Hiroya
Published: March 2007

Objective: To localize aquaporin (AQP)2, vasopressin type 2 receptor (V2‐R), and transient receptor potential channel vanilloid subfamily 1, 4 (TRPV1, TRPV4) in the human endolymphatic sac (ES).

Methods: Three samples of human ES were sampled during the removal of vestibular schwannoma by way of the translabyrinthine approach. The samples were immediately fixed in 4% paraformaldehyde and embedded in OCT compound; immunohistochemistry was performed with AQP2, V2‐R, TRPV1, and TRPV4 polyclonal antibodies.

Results: AQP2, V2‐R, TRPV1, and TRPV4 proteins were detected in the epithelial layer of the ES but were not observed in connective tissue around the ES. TRPV1 was also expressed in blood vascular endothelial cells of the connective tissue of ES.

Conclusions: AQP2, V2‐R, and TRPV4 were expressed in the luminal epithelium of human ES. The same characteristic distribution of water and ion channels is seen in the kidney, where a significant amount of fluid is filtrated and resorbed. ES probably plays an active role in the homeostasis of the endolymph.
Key Messages From the National Prospective Tonsillectomy Audit
Authors: Lowe David , van der Meulen Jan , Cromwell David , Lewsey James , Copley Lynn , Browne John , Yung Matthew , Brown Peter
Published: March 2007

Objectives: Investigation of the occurrence of postoperative hemorrhage after tonsillectomy and risk factors for these complications.

Study Design: Prospective National Audit with electronic web‐based data collection from the National Health Service and independent hospitals in England and Northern Ireland.

Methods: Consenting patients undergoing tonsillectomy between July 2003 and September 2004 were included. A central database of patient and surgical variables was developed for analysis of primary and secondary postoperative hemorrhage and development of risk models for tonsillectomy complications.

Results: The Audit received data from 277 hospitals in England and Northern Ireland on 40,514 patients. Analysis was conducted on 33,921 (84%) who gave consent. Over the whole Audit 1,197 (3.5%) postoperative hemorrhages were recorded. One hundred eighty‐eight (0.6%) patients sustained a primary hemorrhage and 1,033 (3%) a secondary hemorrhage (24 had both). Elevated hemorrhage rates were observed in tonsillectomies performed using diathermy for dissection and hemostasis compared with cold steel dissection and ties for hemostasis. National guidance issued midway through the Audit influenced practice and reduced hemorrhage rates. Risk models for postoperative hemorrhage were developed incorporating the effect of the guidance. For hemorrhage, compared with the cold steel group, bipolar diathermy tonsillectomy had an odds ratio of 2.47 (1.81–3.36), P < .0001, and bipolar diathermy scissors tonsillectomy an odds ratio of 3.20 (2.09–4.90), P < .0001. Use of bipolar diathermy for hemostasis only after cold steel dissection carried an intermediate risk, odds ratio 1.57 (1.16–2.13), P = .004.

Conclusions: The results confirm that “hot” tonsillectomy techniques carry a substantially elevated risk of postoperative hemorrhage when diathermy is used as a dissection tool in tonsillectomy.
Optimal Graft Thickness for Different Sizes of Tympanic Membrane Perforation in Cartilage Myringoplasty: A Finite Element Analysis
Authors: Lee Chia‐Fone , Chen Jyh‐Horng , Chou Yuan‐Fang , Hsu Lee‐Ping , Chen Peir‐Rong , Liu Tien‐Chen
Published: March 2007

Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine, using finite element analysis, the optimal graft thickness for cartilage myringoplasty in patients with different sizes of tympanic membrane (TM) perforations.

Study Design: We developed a cartilage plate‐TM‐coupled model using high‐resolution computed tomography and finite element analysis. The geometric models of the perforated TM were generated using Patran and ANSYS software.

Method: Three different sizes of TM perforations (15%, 55%, and 85%, representing small, medium, and large perforations, respectively) were created in the pars tensa. A cartilage plate was used to repair the eardrum perforation, and the new TM‐cartilage coupled complex was loaded into our three‐dimensional biomechanical model for analysis. The frequency‐amplitude responses for different cartilage thicknesses were compared with those for natural TM.

Results: Our results show that, first, in cases with 85% perforation, the frequency‐amplitude responses that were most similar to natural TM at lower frequencies were for graft thicknesses of 0.2 mm and for 0.1 mm at higher frequencies. Second, in cases with 55% posterior perforation of the TM, assessment of the predicted vibration amplitude of different thicknesses of the cartilage plate showed that a cartilage plate of less than 0.2 mm had a frequency response function similar to that of a natural TM in umbo and stapes footplate displacement. Finally, for a central perforation involving 15% of the TM, a cartilage plate of less than 1.0 mm showed a frequency response function similar to that of TM in umbo and stapes‐footplate displacement.

Conclusions: On the basis of our biomechanical analysis, the optimal thickness of a cartilage graft for myringoplasty appears to be 0.1 to 0.2 mm for medium and large TM perforations. For small perforations, a cartilage of less than 1.0 mm is a good compromise between mechanical stability and low acoustic transfer loss.