bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Following in mother’s footsteps? Mother–daughter risks for insulin resistance and cardiovascular disease 15 years after gestational diabetes
Authors: Egeland G. M. , Meltzer S. J.
Published: March 2010

Diabet. Med. 27, 257–265 (2010)

Aims  To determine effects on mothers and daughters of gestational diabetes mellitus/gestational impaired glucose tolerance (GDM/GIGT) on their future metabolic and cardiovascular risks.

Methods  Case mothers who had GDM/GIGT in pregnancy (cases; n = 90) and normoglycaemic control women (n = 99) and their daughters underwent lifestyle assessment and metabolic tests 15‐years post‐partum.

Results  Prevalence of glucose intolerance (GI) in daughters was 1.1%. Maternal prevalence was 44.4% in cases compared to 13.1% in controls, with conversion best predicted by weight gain. Case daughters had higher insulin resistance (IR) and greater waist circumference (WC) (51.2%) relative to control daughters (36.4%, p < 0.05) made worse if case mothers became GI at follow‐up (65%) (relative risk =1.8; 95% confidence interval 1.2–2.9). In multivariable linear regression analyses adjusting for daughters’ birthweight, maternal obesity (> 30.0 kg/m2) at 15years and mothers’ case‐control status were strong predictors of daughters’ WC (p < 0.01; P < 0.01, respectively). For daughters’ body mass index (BMI) percentile and percentage of body fat, maternal obesity was a stronger predictor (p < 0.01; p < 0.001)) than mothers’ case‐control status (p < 0.01; P = 0.09).

Conclusions  GDM/GIGT pregnancies led to increased conversion to GI in mothers, minimal in daughters. Case daughters have increased risk of central adiposity and insulin resistance, whereas maternal obesity strongly predicted daughters’ BMI percentile and per cent of body fat. Controlling hyperglycaemia in pregnancy and family weight management may provide the key to preventing offspring obesity and glucose intolerance post GDM/GIGT.
Socio‐economic and ethnic inequalities in diabetes retinal screening
Authors: Gulliford M. C. , Dodhia H. , Chamley M. , McCormick K. , Mohamed M. , Naithani S. , Sivaprasad S.
Published: March 2010

Diabet. Med. 27, 282–288 (2010)

Objective  We aimed to quantify socio‐economic and ethnic inequalities in diabetes retinal screening.

Methods  Data were analysed for the retinal screening programme for three South London boroughs for the 18‐month period to February 2009. Sight‐threatening diabetic retinopathy (STDR) was defined as the occurrence of diabetic maculopathy, severe non‐proliferative or proliferative diabetic retinopathy. Odds ratios were adjusted for sex, age group, duration and type of diabetes, self‐reported ethnicity and deprivation quintile by participant postal code.

Results  There were 76 351 records obtained but, after excluding duplicate and ineligible records, data were analysed for 59 495 records from 31 484 subjects. There were 7026 (22%) subjects called for appointments who were not screened in the period, with 24 458 (78%) having one or more screening episodes. Non‐attendance for screening was highest in young adults aged 18–34 years (32%) and in those aged 85 years or greater (28%). In the most deprived quintile, non‐attendance was 23% compared with 21% in the least deprived quintile [odds ratio (OR) 1.37, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.16–1.61, P < 0.001]. There were 2819 (11.5%) participants with STDR, including 10.8% in the least deprived quintile and 12.2% in the most deprived quintile (OR 1.10, 95% CI 0.95–1.16, P = 0.196). Compared with white Europeans (9.4%), STDR was higher in Africans (15.2%) and African Caribbeans (14.7%), resulting from a higher frequency of diabetic maculopathy.

Conclusion  Socio‐economic inequality in diabetes retinal screening may be smaller than reported in earlier studies. This study suggested an increased frequency of diabetic maculopathy among participants of African origins.
Cigarette smoking and proteinuria in Taiwanese men with Type 2 diabetes mellitus
Authors: Hsu C. C. , Hwang S. J. , Tai T. Y. , Chen T. , Huang M. C. , Shin S. J. , Wen C. P. , Shih Y. T. , Yang H. J. , Chang C. T. , Chang C. J. , Loh C. H. , Fuh M. T. , Li Y. S. , Chang H.‐Y.
Published: March 2010

Diabet. Med. 27, 295–302 (2010)

Aims  Cigarette smoking is a well‐known risk factor associated with diabetic nephropathy. The objective of this study was to further investigate the dose–response effect of tobacco exposure on proteinuria in males with Type 2 diabetes.

Methods  Five hundred and nine males with Type 2 diabetes were selected from a cohort participating in a glucose control study in Taiwan. Pack‐years of cigarette smoking were calculated to define tobacco exposure. Proteinuria was identified if albumin‐to‐creatinine ratio was ≥ 30 mg/g in at least two of three consecutive urine tests. Logistic regression and trend tests were used to delineate the association between smoking status and proteinuria.

Results  Compared with non‐smokers, those who had smoked 15–30 or more than 30 pack‐years were respectively 2.78 (95% CI 1.34–5.76, P < 0.01) and 3.20 (95% CI 1.74–5.86, P < 0.001) times more likely to develop proteinuria. The dose–response effect of tobacco exposure on the development of proteinuria is highly significant in all subjects (P = 0.001) and in subgroups with relatively short duration of diabetes mellitus (P < 0.001), good blood pressure control (P = 0.001) and those of young age (P = 0.007).

Conclusions  The current study shows a clear dose–response effect of cigarette smoking on development of proteinuria in male Type 2 diabetic patients. These findings reinforce the urgent need to encourage diabetic patients to stop smoking regardless of age, duration of diabetes mellitus or status of blood pressure control.
Ramadan Education and Awareness in Diabetes (READ) programme for Muslims with Type 2 diabetes who fast during Ramadan
Authors: Bravis V. , Hui E. , Salih S. , Mehar S. , Hassanein M. , Devendra D.
Published: March 2010

Diabet. Med. 27, 327–331 (2010)

Background and Aims  During Ramadan, Muslims fast from dawn to dusk for one lunar month. The majority of Muslim diabetic patients are unaware of complications such as hypoglycaemia during fasting. The safety of fasting has not been assessed in the UK Muslim population with diabetes. The aim of this study was to determine the impact of Ramadan‐focused education on weight and hypoglycaemic episodes during Ramadan in a Type 2 diabetic Muslim population taking oral glucose‐lowering agents.

Methods  We retrospectively analysed two groups. Group A attended a structured education programme about physical activity, meal planning, glucose monitoring, hypoglycaemia, dosage and timing of medications. Group B did not. Hypoglycaemia was defined as home blood glucose < 3.5 mmol/l.

Results  There was a mean weight loss of 0.7 kg after Ramadan in group A, compared with a 0.6‐kg mean weight gain in group B (P < 0.001). The weight changes observed were independent of the class of glucose‐lowering agents used. There was a significant decrease in the total number of hypoglycaemic events in group A, from nine to five, compared with an increase in group B from nine to 36 (P < 0.001). The majority were in patients treated with short‐acting sulphonylureas (group A—100%, group B—94%). At 12 months after attending the programme, glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) reduction were sustained in group A.

Conclusions  Ramadan‐focused education in diabetes can empower patients to change their lifestyle during Ramadan. It minimizes the risk of hypoglycaemic events and prevents weight gain during this festive period for Muslims, which potentially benefits metabolic control.
Daytime variability of postprandial glucose tolerance and pancreatic B‐cell function using 12‐h profiles in persons with Type 2 diabetes
Authors: Peter R. , Dunseath G. , Luzio S. D. , Chudleigh R. , Roy Choudhury S. , Owens D. R.
Published: March 2010

Diabet. Med. 27, 266–273 (2010)

Aims  To study the variation in daytime glucose tolerance and pancreatic B‐cell function at different levels of glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) in subjects with Type 2 diabetes (T2DM).

Methods  T2DM subjects (n = 49; 34 men) had 12‐h daytime plasma glucose (PG), insulin (PI), total (PTp) and intact proinsulin (PIp) profiles determined in response to three identical test meals at 4‐h intervals. Subjects were divided into three groups according to HbA1c—group 1: < 7.3% (n = 18); group 2: 7.3–8.0% (n = 17); group 3: > 8.0% (n = 14). Fasting and preprandial (prior to meals 2 and 3) concentrations, total area under the curve (AUC), AUC above fasting (dAUC) and maximum postprandial metabolic concentrations (Cmax) were compared between the three meals and across the groups.

Results  Subjects in group 1 had significantly higher fasting plasma glucose (FPG) compared with preprandial PG concentrations (7.1 ± 0.2 vs. 5.9 ± 0.3 vs. 5.4 ± 0.2; P < 0.01). Subjects in groups 2 and 3 had significantly higher FPG compared with preprandial PG levels prior to meal 3. PG.dAUC was highest in response to meal 1 and lowest following meal 2 (P < 0.05). FPI concentrations were significantly lower compared with preprandial PI concentrations. Subjects in group 1 had significantly higher PI prior to meal 2 compared with meal 3. PI.dAUC was highest in response to meal 1. Subjects in group 1 had lowest PI.dAUC following meal 2. FTp and FIp concentrations were also significantly lower compared with preprandial concentrations. PTp.dAUC and PIp.dAUC was highest in response to meal 1.

Conclusions  There appears to be a shift in diurnal variation in glucose homeostasis and pancreatic B‐cell function. Subjects had decreased glucose tolerance in response to the first and third meal of the day irrespective of glycaemic control. The variability in glucose tolerance was reflected by both quantitative and qualitative dysfunction of the pancreatic B‐cell.
Improvements in glycaemic control and cholesterol concentrations associated with the Quality and Outcomes Framework: a regional 2‐year audit of diabetes care in the UK
Authors: Oluwatowoju I. , Abu E. , Wild S. H. , Byrne C. D.
Published: March 2010

Diabet. Med. 27, 354–359 (2010)

Aims  To determine whether there have been changes in glycaemic control and lipids in a cohort of people with repeated glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) measurements since the implementation of the Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF) for diabetes care.

Methods  Retrospective retrieval of computer‐held biochemical measurements of glycaemic control (HbA1c) and lipid profiles in adults in Hampshire, UK between 2006 and 2008. Routine data on age, sex, HbA1c and plasma lipids were available on an NHS database on 8997 adults with data available for HbA1c in both 2006 and 2008.

Results  In 2006, 39.7% of adults had glycaemic control within the QOF threshold (HbA1c < 7.5%); by 2008, this proportion had risen to 52.1% (P < 0.001). In 2006, 11.8% of subjects had poor glycaemic control (HbA1c > 10.0%); by 2008, this proportion had decreased to 10.1% (P < 0.001). The proportion of subjects achieving HbA1c and cholesterol targets (both HbA1c < 7.5% and total cholesterol ≤ 5.0 mmol/l) was 30.2% in 2006; in 2008, this proportion had increased to 43.7% (P < 0.001). Individuals with poorer glycaemic control (HbA1c > 10.0%) were younger and had higher cholesterol concentrations than people with good (HbA1c < 7.5%) or moderate (HbA1c 7.5–10.0%) glycaemic control (P value for trend, both P < 0.001).

Conclusion  Since the introduction of performance indicators for primary care and the incorporation of pay for performance in 2004, there has been marked improvement in the management of hyperglycaemia and hypercholesterolaemia among people with diabetes with data available in 2006 and 2008. It remains to be seen whether the new HbA1c audit target (HbA1c < 7.0%) introduced in 2009 will result in a further improvement in glycaemic control.
Self‐selection and Earnings of Migrants: Evidence from Rural China
Authors: Wu Zheren
Published: March 2010

Using data from a rural household survey in China, this paper explores the link between employment choice (nonworking, local farm work, local nonfarm work and migratory work) and migrant earnings. We find significant self‐selection in migration. Youths, men, better‐educated individuals and those in good health are more likely to migrate. In terms of unobserved characteristics, we find positive selection in migration to be related to the alternatives of not working and local farm work, and negative selection to be related to local nonfarm work. Controlling for self‐selection, the wage returns to gender (male), education and health are lower than those obtained from OLS, and the returns to experience are higher. More importantly, we find different self‐selection between individuals who have moved as pioneers and migrants from households in which other members have already migrated.
PLANNING FOR DECLINE: ANTICIPATING ON POPULATION DECLINE IN THE NETHERLANDS
Authors: HAARTSEN TIALDA , VENHORST VIKTOR
Published: March 2010

Some regions in The Netherlands have been experiencing population decline in the last decade(s). Although decline figures are much lower than in more traditional areas of decline in Europe, Dutch planners and policy‐makers feel the need to develop several strategies of planning for decline. This paper gives an overview of regional population trends in the Netherlands up to 2040, showing that at the regional level, population growth and decline can occur next to each other in both urban and rural areas. The number of single‐person households is expected to continue growing. However, single households form a varied group, and population trends differ substantially between urban and rural areas. The strategies applied by policy‐makers who focus, so far, on accommodating decline through measures on the housing market are analysed. Next to this, some additional policy alternatives are discussed.
TEMPORARY INTRINSICS AND RELATIVIZATION
Authors: FIOCCO M. ORESTE
Published: March 2010

Some have concluded that the only appropriate response to the problem of temporary intrinsics is the view that familiar, concrete objects persist through time by perduring, that is, by having temporal parts. Many, including myself, believe this view of persistence is false, and so reject this conclusion. However, the most common attempts to resolve the problem and yet defend the view that familiar, concrete objects endure are self‐defeating. This has heretofore gone unnoticed. I consider the most familiar such attempts, based on a strategy called tensing the copula, and present a general argument to demonstrate why this strategy – and any strategy based on relativization– fails. I then show how the considerations raised in this general argument undermine other attempts to resolve the problem while denying perdurance. All these attempts are undermined by an assumption essential to the problem of temporary intrinsics, to wit, that there are many moments of time and all have the same ontological status. As long as this assumption is maintained, the only solution to the problem is that familiar, concrete objects perdure. Thus, in order to defend the view that objects persist through time by enduring, one must adopt a different metaphysics of time (viz., presentism). I conclude that it is neither unreasonable nor impracticable to do so.
DR OLSON'S ANTIDOTE FOR INSTITUTIONAL SCLEROSIS
Authors: Considine John , Butler Robert
Published: March 2010

An important part in the evolution of Mancur Olson's economic thinking was delivered to an Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) symposium in June 1989. The economist who had identified, what he labelled, the disease of institutional sclerosis was now identifying an improved version of the antidote and the circumstances under which the antidote might work. While Olson had previously identified economic understanding as a possible antidote, he acknowledged that he did not know how, and if, it might work. Olson's IEA paper represents the next step. Dr Olson returned to examine the ‘patient’ (Olson's term) that he previously held up as an exemplar case of institutional sclerosis – Great Britain. His examination revealed that it was a particular type of understanding that was important and that it was only likely to work under particular circumstances.
THE SPANISH EXTERNAL SECTOR: A POLICY OF TRADE OPENNESS
Authors: Sáenz Estela
Published: March 2010

This paper describes the process of trade liberalisation experienced by the Spanish economy between 1960 and 2000. The path towards liberalisation involved progressive reductions of quantitative restrictions, which were replaced by border taxes. Over the period external openness grew, although along an irregular path.
The Stochastic Seasonal Behaviour of Natural Gas Prices
Authors: Mirantes Andrés García , Población Javier , Serna Gregorio
Published: March 2010

Previous studies have explored the seasonal behaviour of commodity prices as a deterministic factor. This paper goes further by proposing a general (n+2m)‐factor model for the stochastic behaviour of commodity prices, which nests the deterministic seasonal model by Sorensen (2002). We consider seasonality as a stochastic factor, with n non‐seasonal and m seasonal factors. The non‐seasonal factors are as defined in Schwartz (1997), Schwartz and Smith (2000) and Cortazar and Schwartz (2003). The seasonal factors are trigonometric components generated by stochastic processes. The model has been applied to the Henry Hub natural gas futures contracts listed by NYMEX. We find that models allowing for stochastic seasonality outperform standard models with deterministic seasonality. We obtain similar results with other energy commodities. Moreover, we find that stochastic seasonality implies that the volatility of futures returns follows a seasonal pattern. This result has important implications in terms of option pricing.
Sexually transmitted infections and infectiousness beliefs among people living with HIV/AIDS: implications for HIV treatment as prevention
Authors: Kalichman SC , Eaton L , Cherry C
Published: March 2010

Objectives

Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) significantly impact the health of people living with HIV/AIDS, increasing HIV infectiousness and therefore transmissibility. The current study examined STIs in a community sample of 490 HIV‐positive men and women.

Methods

Assessments were performed using confidential computerized interviews in a community research setting.

Results

Fourteen per cent of the people living with HIV/AIDS in this study had been diagnosed with a new STI in a 6‐month period. Individuals with a new STI had significantly more sexual partners in that time period, including non‐HIV‐positive partners. Participants who had contracted an STI were significantly more likely to have detectable viral loads and were less likely to know their viral load than participants who did not contract an STI. Multivariate analysis showed that believing an undetectable viral load leads to lower infectiousness was associated with contracting a new STI.

Conclusions

Individuals who believed that having an undetectable viral load reduces HIV transmission risks were more likely to be infectious because of STI coinfection. Programmes that aim to use HIV treatment for HIV prevention must address infectiousness beliefs and aggressively control STIs among people living with HIV/AIDS.
Fair Copy: Protecting Access to Scientific Information in Post‐War Britain
Authors: Sherman Brad , Wiseman Leanne
Published: March 2010

This paper extends recent discussions about copyright and the public domain by looking at attempts in post‐war Britain to promote access to scientific information. More specifically, it concentrates on the Royal Society's Fair Copy Declaration (1950) and the related library copying provisions introduced in the Copyright Act 1956, which were designed to protect access to information. While the UK library copying provisions were presented as an expanded version of the Fair Copy Declaration recast in a statutory format, we show that the library copying provisions reflected a specific way of thinking about creation, production and distribution that differed markedly from those that underpinned the Fair Copy Declaration. We also argue that the logic of creation reflected in the library copying provisions shaped copyright law over the course of the twentieth century and beyond.
Skill Formation and Utilisation in the Post‐Soviet Transition: Higher Education Planning in Post‐Soviet Georgia
Authors: Gvaramadze Irakli
Published: March 2010

Changes in the former Soviet system had a dramatic influence on higher education in Georgia. The main objective of the current article is to analyse implications of the post‐Soviet transition for the skill formation and skill utilisation system in Georgia. In particular, the study analyses recent trends in Georgian higher education including privatisation and economic liberalisation. The discussion builds upon theories of transition and relevance of skill formation theories to the post‐Soviet transition. The article argues that increasing competition among public universities and newly emerged private universities has not improved the quality of higher education provision. On the contrary, it has contributed to an imbalance between the labour market's demand for skills and awarded qualifications, a mismatch and irrelevance of skills and high unemployment rates among university graduates. The article demonstrates that economic approaches in the transition context could not explain the complex logic between the skill formation and skill utilisation mechanisms. It further concludes that the discrepancies between the skill formation and skill utilisation systems had a negative impact upon skill modernisation in Georgia.
Hermeneutics and the Doctrine of Scripture: Why They Need Each Other
Authors: WATSON FRANCIS
Published: March 2010

Current attempts to understand Scripture theologically typically appeal either to modern hermeneutics or to more traditional doctrines of Scripture – but not to both together. It is argued here that hermeneutics can help to identify and resolve certain problems bequeathed to posterity by the characteristic sixteenth‐century equation of Scripture with ‘Word of God’. The problems in question relate to the past and present modes of divine speech, the relation of text to community and the fundamental significance of the ‘Word of God’ concept itself.
Development of the State Impostor Phenomenon Scale
Authors: FUJIE RIEKO
Published: March 2010

The purpose of this study was to develop a State Impostor Phenomenon Scale (SIPS). Participants (344 graduate and undergraduate students) were asked to complete the SIPS, the State Self‐Esteem Scale, and the State‐Trait Anxiety Scale in three situations, followed by the Trait Self‐Esteem Scale. Results showed that the SIPS had stable factor structure, and adequate reliability. In addition, the predicted correlational patterns among the scales demonstrated the construct validity of the SIPS. Moreover, the SIPS was responsive to different situations, as evidenced by significant differences between the scores in the three situations.
Developmental changes in the effects of types of self‐corrected elaboration on incidental memory
Authors: TOYOTA HIROSHI
Published: March 2010

The present study investigated the developmental changes in the effects of two types of self‐corrected elaboration, namely generated correction and chosen correction, on incidental memory of words. Second and sixth graders performed an orienting task involving two types of correction followed by an unexpected recall test. They were presented with a target and its sentence, and were asked to correct the target to a congruous word in the generated‐correction condition, or to choose one of the alternative congruous words in the chosen‐correction condition. For second graders, chosen correction led to a better recall than generated correction, whereas for sixth graders the reverse relationship between the two corrections was observed. These results were interpreted as showing the developmental change in the effects of types of self‐corrected elaboration on incidental memory.
Informed Investors and the Internet
Authors: Rubin Amir , Rubin Eran
Published: March 2010

Abstract:  During the last decade the Internet has become an increasingly important source for gathering company related information. We employ Wikipedia editing frequency as an instrument that captures the degree in which the population is engaged with the processing of company‐related information. We find that firms whose information is processed by the population more frequently are associated with lower analysts' forecast errors, smaller analysts' forecast dispersions, and significant changes in bid‐ask spreads on analysts' recommendation days. These results indicate that information processing over the Internet is related to the degree to which investors and analysts are informed about companies.
The Illusion of Equality: Machismo and Cuban Cinema of the Revolution
Authors: BARON GUY
Published: March 2010

This article attempts to show how certain Cuban films both reflect and construct behaviour concerning male–female relations. In so doing, they illustrate how Cuban cinema provided a mainstream cultural forum for controversial and contradictory debates on gender relations. At times, films that attempt to produce images of gender equality, or at least the possibility of this, merely provide the illusion of equality while maintaining the status quo of patriarchy. That is, the images they present of male–female relations appear on the surface to represent an increasing desire to achieve absolute equality between men and women. However, close analysis of these films, using various tools of feminist and feminist film theory, reveals a continuation of certain patriarchal tendencies that the films themselves are attempting to criticise. The films to be discussed are: De cierta manera (Sara Gómez, 1974–1978), Retrato de Teresa (Pastor Vega, 1979) and Hasta cierto punto (Tomás Gutiérrez Alea, 1983).
Can the State Create Campesinos? A Comparative Analysis of the Venezuelan and Cuban Repeasantization Programmes
Authors: PAGE TIFFANY LINTON
Published: March 2010

I examine Venezuela's repeasantization programme Vuelta al Campo, which was part of a larger effort to pursue a redistributive path to development. Through exploring this case and contrasting it with Cuba's repeasantization programme in the 1990s, I draw conclusions that extend our understanding of what makes such a state‐led development programme work. The state in Venezuela played an indispensable role by providing many forms of necessary support for launching such an ambitious project – e.g. financial resources and legal title to the land – but failed to truly increase participation in decision‐making. Increased participation by those affected by the Vuelta al Campo programme could have prevented or minimized some of the problems that arose. Moreover, the programme had the unintended consequence of demobilizing participants who had previously been politically engaged. This demobilization undermined the larger national social project – building ‘21st‐century socialism’.
Productive Restructuring and ‘Standardization’ in Mexican Horticulture: Consequences for Labour
Authors: CARTON DE GRAMMONT HUBERT , LARA FLORES SARA MARÍA
Published: March 2010

In this paper we discuss how the establishment of strict quality and food safety norms for horticulture to satisfy the current consumer demands has forced enterprises to invest in modifying their productive processes. In the light of the unavoidable trend in favour of consumers, we analyze the precarious situation of farm workers, a situation that is not in tune with the concept of decent work promoted by the International Labour Organization or with the Social Accountability Standard promoted by the United Nations. We conclude that the enterprises have achieved major progress in productive restructuring to comply with quality standards, but at the expense of their workers' salaries and living and working conditions. This contradiction between the well‐being of the consumer and the misery of the worker is a fundamental characteristic explaining the current success of globalized agro‐food systems.
Ambiguous incorporations: microfinance and global governmentality
Authors: AITKEN ROB
Published: March 2010

In the spring of 2007 an event dramatically reshaped conversations relating to microfinance. This event was the Initial Public Offering (IPO) of Mexico's largest microfinance organization, Compartamos. The IPO, as this article suggests, is indicative or a broader trend through which microfinance is increasingly becoming financialized, increasingly becoming governable as a financial object. This is important at one level because it crystallizes some of the key issues at stake as microfinance becomes increasingly more reliant on global capital markets. At another level, however, the Compatarmos case is significant because of the conceptual issues it raises in relation to global finance. The main argument I put forward in this article is that the Compatarmos case – and the process of financialization it represents – is important because it allows us to glimpse global finance, and the question of global financial governance, as a decentred process in formation. Drawing on a Foucauldian notion of governmentality, I argue that the Compatarmos case orbits around two processes; processes of incorporation and differentiation. In this context, the Compartamos case implies the importance of analyses that can make global finance visible as a diverse and mundane object that is never settled in any final kind of way.
ICT and geographies of British Arab and Arab American activism
Authors: NAGEL CAROLINE , STAEHELI LYNN
Published: March 2010

Current literature on migrant transnationalism highlights the role of new information and communication technologies (ICT) in facilitating lives that are situated simultaneously ‘here’ and ‘there’. Yet discussions of transnationalism and ICT obscure many complexities because of the tendency to focus on migrants' connections with ‘homeland’. In this article, we consider more broadly the spatiality of migrant activism and the different ways that ICT enters into it. Drawing on interviews conducted with Arab American and British Arab activists, we ask where is migrant activism geographically situated? How might their use of ICT factor into, or not factor into, activists' activities? In considering our respondents' diverse forms of activism, the multitude of aims and geographical orientations underpinning their activism, and their highly variable use of ICT, this article provides a variegated understanding of migrants' political subjectivities that avoids privileging any single geographical scale or location.
From doves to hawks: A spatial analysis of voting in the Monetary Policy Committee of the Bank of England
Authors: HIX SIMON , HØYLAND BJØRN , VIVYAN NICK
Published: March 2010

This article examines the making of monetary policy in the United Kingdom between 1997 and 2008 by analysing voting behaviour in the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC). It provides a new set of measures for the monetary policy preferences of individual MPC members by estimating a Bayesian item response model. The article demonstrates the usefulness of these measures by comparing the ideal points of outgoing MPC members with their successors and by looking at changes over time in the median ideal point on the MPC. The analysis indicates that the British Government has been able to move the position of the median voter on the MPC through its appointments to the Committee. This highlights the importance of central bank appointments for monetary policy.
Shikonin reduces oedema induced by phorbol ester by interfering with IκBα degradation thus inhibiting translocation of NF‐κB to the nucleus
Authors: Andújar I , Recio MC , Bacelli T , Giner RM , Ríos JL
Published: March 2010

Background and purpose:  In the present paper we studied the effect of shikonin on ear oedema induced by 12‐O‐tetradecanoylphorbol‐13‐acetate (TPA), and determined the mechanisms through which shikonin might exert its topical anti‐inflammatory action.

Experimental approach:  Acute ear oedema was induced in mice by topical application of TPA. The in vitro assays used macrophages RAW 264.7 cells stimulated with lipopolysaccharide. Cyclooxygenase‐2, inducible nitric oxide synthase, protein kinase Cα, extracellular signal‐regulated protein kinase (ERK), phosphorylated ERK (pERK), c‐Jun N‐terminal kinase (JNK), pJNK, p38, p‐p38, p65, p‐p65, inhibitor protein of nuclear factor‐κB (NF‐κB) (IκBα) and pIκBα were measured by Western blotting, activation and binding of NF‐κB to DNA was detected by reporter gene and electrophoretic mobility shift assay, respectively, and NF‐κB p65 localization was detected by immunocytochemistry.

Key results:  Shikonin reduced the oedema (inhibitory dose 50 = 1.0 mg per ear), the expression of cyclooxygenase‐2 (70%) and of inducible nitric oxide synthase (100%) in vivo. It significantly decreased TPA‐induced translocation of protein kinase Cα, the phosphorylation and activation of ERK, the nuclear translocation of NF‐κB and the TPA‐induced NF‐κB‐DNA‐binding activity in mouse skin. Moreover, in RAW 264.7 cells, shikonin significantly inhibited the binding of NF‐κB to DNA in a dose‐dependent manner and the nuclear translocation of p65.

Conclusions and implications:  Shikonin exerted its topical anti‐inflammatory action by interfering with the degradation of IκBα, thus inhibiting the activation of NF‐κB.
Isoflurane protects cardiomyocytes and mitochondria by immediate and cytosol‐independent action at reperfusion
Authors: Pravdic D , Mio Y , Sedlic F , Pratt PF , Warltier DC , Bosnjak ZJ , Bienengraeber M
Published: March 2010

Background and purpose:  The volatile anaesthetic isoflurane protects the heart from ischaemia and reperfusion (I/R) injury when applied at the onset of reperfusion [anaesthetic postconditioning (APoC)]. However, the mechanism of APoC‐mediated protection is unknown. In this study, we examined the effect of APoC on mitochondrial bioenergetics, mitochondrial matrix pH (pHm) and cytosolic pH (pHi), and intracellular Ca2+.

Experimental approach:  Cardiac mitochondria from Wistar rats were isolated after in vivo I/R with or without APoC (1.4%‐vol isoflurane, 1 minimum alveolar concentration), and mitochondrial permeability transition pore (mPTP) opening, mitochondrial membrane potential (ΔΨm), and oxygen consumption were assessed. In isolated cardiomyocytes and isolated mitochondria I/R injury was produced in vitro, with or without APoC (0.5 mM isoflurane). Intracellular Ca2+, pHm, pHi and ΔΨm were monitored with SNARF‐1, TMRE and fluo‐4, respectively. Myocyte survival was assessed when APoC was induced at pH 7.4 and 7.8. In isolated mitochondria oxygen consumption and ATP synthesis were measured.

Key results:  In vivo APoC protected against mPTP opening, slowed mitochondrial respiration and depolarized mitochondria. APoC decreased the number of hypercontracted cardiomyocytes at pH 7.4, but not at pH 7.8. APoC attenuated intracellular Ca2+ accumulation, maintained lower pHm, and preserved ΔΨm during reoxygenation. Isoflurane did not affect the regulation of cytosolic pH. In mitochondria, APoC preserved ATP production rate and respiration.

Conclusions and implications:  At reperfusion, APoC inhibited mitochondrial respiration, depolarized mitochondria and acidified pHm. These events may lead to inhibition of mPTP opening and, consequently, to preserved ΔΨm and ATP synthesis. This reduces intracellular Ca2+ overload and cell death.

This article is commented on by Moncada, pp. 217–219 of this issue. To view this commentary visit http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1476‐5381.2010.00706.x and to view related papers in this issue by Puerta et al. and Kurz et al. visit http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1476‐5381.2010.00663.x and http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1476‐5381.2010.00656.x
Mitochondria as pharmacological targets
Authors: Moncada S
Published: March 2010

In the last decade, mitochondria have provided a vast area of research for the pharmacologist, with a wealth of potential targets for drug action. Correct target identification and subsequent pharmacological manipulation might greatly help in the prevention and/or treatment of a number of the most prevalent diseases of our time including cancer, neurodegenerative disease and myocardial infarction. This is a commentary to accompany the publication of three papers in this issue of the BJP by Kurz et al., Pravdic et al. and Puerta et al. on different aspects of pharmacology involving mitochondria.

This article is a commentary on Pravdic et al., pp. 220–232, Puerta et al., pp. 233–245 and Kurz et al. pp. 246–257 of this issue. To view these papers visit http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1476‐5381.2010.00698.xhttp://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1476‐5381.2010.00663.x and http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1476‐5381.2010.00656.x
Atomoxetine acts as an NMDA receptor blocker in clinically relevant concentrations
Authors: Ludolph Andrea G , Udvardi Patrick T , Schaz Ulrike , Henes Carolin , Adolph Oliver , Weigt Henry U , Fegert Joerg M , Boeckers Tobias M , Föhr Karl J
Published: March 2010

Background and purpose: There is increasing evidence that not only the monoaminergic but also the glutamatergic system is involved in the pathophysiology of attention‐deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Hyperactivity of glutamate metabolism might be causally related to a hypoactive state in the dopaminergic system. Atomoxetine, a selective noradrenaline reuptake inhibitor, is the first non‐stimulant approved for the treatment of this disorder. Here we have evaluated the effects of atomoxetine on glutamate receptorsin vitro.

Experimental approach: The whole‐cell configuration of the patch‐clamp technique was used to analyse the effect of atomoxetine onN‐methyl‐d‐aspartate (NMDA) receptors in cultured rodent cortical and hippocampal neurons as well as on NMDA receptors heterologously expressed in human TsA cells.

Key results: Atomoxetine blocked NMDA‐induced membrane currents. Half‐maximal inhibition emerged at about 3 µM which is in the range of clinically relevant concentrations found in plasma of patients treated with this drug. The inhibition was voltage‐dependent, indicating an open‐channel blocking mechanism. Furthermore, the inhibitory potency of atomoxetine did not vary when measured on NMDA receptors from different brain regions or with different subunit compositions.

Conclusions and implications: The effective NMDA receptor antagonism by atomoxetine at low micromolar concentrations may be relevant to its clinical effects in the treatment of ADHD. Our data provide further evidence that altered glutamatergic transmission might play a role in ADHD pathophysiology.
Cannabinoid‐1 receptor activation induces reactive oxygen species‐dependent and ‐independent mitogen‐activated protein kinase activation and cell death in human coronary artery endothelial cells
Authors: Rajesh Mohanraj , Mukhopadhyay Partha , Haskó György , Liaudet Lucas , Mackie Ken , Pacher Pál
Published: March 2010

Background and purpose: Impaired endothelial activity and/or cell death play a critical role in the development of vascular dysfunction associated with congestive heart failure, diabetic complications, hypertension, coronary artery disease and atherosclerosis. Increasing evidence suggests that cannabinoid 1 (CB1) receptor inhibition is beneficial in atherosclerosis and cardiovascular inflammation both in experimental models, as well as in humans. Here, we investigated the effects of CB1receptor activation with the endocannabinoid anandamide (AEA) or synthetic agonist HU210 on cell death and interrelated signal transduction pathways in human primary coronary artery endothelial cells (HCAECs).

Experimental approach: Cell death, CB1receptor expression, reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation and activation of signal transduction pathways in HCAECs were determined by flow cytometry and molecular biology tools.

Key results: In HCAECs expressing CB1receptors (demonstrated by Western immunoblot and flow cytometry) AEA (5–15 µM) or HU210 (30–1000 nM) triggered concentration‐ and time‐dependent activation of p38 and c‐Jun NH2‐terminal protein kinase (JNK)–mitogen‐activated protein kinases (MAPKs), cell death and ROS generation. The AEA‐ or HU210‐induced cell death and MAPK activation were attenuated by CB1antagonists [SR141716 (rimonabant) and AM281], inhibitors of p38 and JNK–MAPKs or the antioxidantN‐acetylcysteine.N‐acetylcysteine alone prevented AEA‐ or HU210‐induced ROS generation, but only partially attenuated MAPK activation and cell death. In contrast, in combination with CB1antagonists,N‐acetylcysteine completely prevented these effects.

Conclusions and implications: CB1receptor activation in endothelial cells may amplify the ROS–MAPK activation–cell death pathway in pathological conditions when the endocannabinoid synthetic or metabolic pathways are dysregulated by excessive inflammation and/or oxidative/nitrosative stress, thereby contributing to the development of endothelial dysfunction and pathophysiology of multiple cardiovascular diseases.

This article is part of a themed issue on Cannabinoids. To view the editorial for this themed issue visithttp://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1476‐5381.2010.00831.x
Trochleodynia and Migraine
Authors: Evans Randolph W. , Pareja Juan A.
Published: March 2010

(Headache 2010;50:481‐484)
14th International Headache Congress: Clinical Highlights
Authors: Schwedt Todd J. , Silberstein Stephen D.
Published: March 2010

The 14th International Headache Congress was held in Philadelphia in September 2009. During the Congress, many important basic, translational, and patient‐oriented research studies were presented. In this and an accompanying manuscript, the work that has been deemed to be among the most innovative and significant is summarized. This manuscript discusses the best clinical research, while the accompanying manuscript summarizes the top basic science research. Here, we provide background and summarize Congress presentations on novel agents for migraine treatment, botulinum toxin therapy for chronic migraine, new methods for administration of headache medications, and nerve stimulation for the treatment of medically refractory headaches.
Human Variation in Alcohol Response Is Influenced by Variation in Neuronal Signaling Genes
Authors: Joslyn Geoff , Ravindranathan Ajay , Brush Gerry , Schuckit Marc , White Raymond L.
Published: March 2010

Background: Alcohol use disorders (AUD) exhibit the properties shared by common conditions and diseases classified as genetically complex. The etiology of AUDs is heterogeneous involving mostly unknown interactions of environmental and heritable factors. A person’s level of response (LR) to alcohol is inversely correlated with a family history and the development of AUDs. As an AUD endophenotype, alcohol LR is hypothesized to be less genetically complex and closer to the primary etiology of AUDs.

Methods: A genome wide association study (GWAS) was performed on subjects characterized for alcohol LR phenotypes. Gene Set Enrichment Analysis (GSEA) of the GWAS data was performed to determine whether, as a group, genes that participate in a common biological function (a gene set) demonstrate greater genetic association than would be randomly expected.

Results: The GSEA analysis implicated variation in neuronal signaling genes, especially glutamate signaling, as being involved in alcohol LR variability in the human population.

Conclusions: These data, coupled with cell and animal model data implicating neuronal signaling in alcohol response, support the conclusion that neuronal signaling is mechanistically involved in alcohol’s cellular and behavioral effects. Further, these data suggest that genetic variation in these signaling pathways contribute to human variation in alcohol response. Finally, this concordance of the cell, animal, and human findings supports neuronal signaling, particularly glutamate signaling, as a prime target for translational studies to understand and eventually modulate alcohol’s effects.
Genome‐Wide Association Study of Alcohol Dependence Implicates a Region on Chromosome 11
Authors: Edenberg Howard J. , Koller Daniel L. , Xuei Xiaoling , Wetherill Leah , McClintick Jeanette N. , Almasy Laura , Bierut Laura J. , Bucholz Kathleen K. , Goate Alison , Aliev Fazil , Dick Danielle , Hesselbrock Victor , Hinrichs Anthony , Kramer John , Kuperman Sam , Nurnberger John I. , Rice John P. , Schuckit Marc A. , Taylor Robert , Todd Webb B. , Tischfield Jay A. , Porjesz Bernice , Foroud Tatiana
Published: March 2010

Background:  Alcohol dependence is a complex disease, and although linkage and candidate gene studies have identified several genes associated with the risk for alcoholism, these explain only a portion of the risk.

Methods:  We carried out a genome‐wide association study (GWAS) on a case–control sample drawn from the families in the Collaborative Study on the Genetics of Alcoholism. The cases all met diagnostic criteria for alcohol dependence according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders–Fourth Edition; controls all consumed alcohol but were not dependent on alcohol or illicit drugs. To prioritize among the strongest candidates, we genotyped most of the top 199 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) (p ≤ 2.1 × 10−4) in a sample of alcohol‐dependent families and performed pedigree‐based association analysis. We also examined whether the genes harboring the top SNPs were expressed in human brain or were differentially expressed in the presence of ethanol in lymphoblastoid cells.

Results:  Although no single SNP met genome‐wide criteria for significance, there were several clusters of SNPs that provided mutual support. Combining evidence from the case–control study, the follow‐up in families, and gene expression provided strongest support for the association of a cluster of genes on chromosome 11 (SLC22A18, PHLDA2, NAP1L4, SNORA54, CARS, and OSBPL5) with alcohol dependence. Several SNPs nominated as candidates in earlier GWAS studies replicated in ours, including CPE, DNASE2B, SLC10A2, ARL6IP5, ID4, GATA4, SYNE1, and ADCY3.

Conclusions:  We have identified several promising associations that warrant further examination in independent samples.