bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The structure of flower visitor networks in relation to pollination across an agricultural to urban gradient
Authors: Theodorou Panagiotis , Albig Karoline , Radzevičiūtė Rita , Settele Josef , Schweiger Oliver , Murray Tomás E. , Paxton Robert J.
Published: November 2016

Pollination is a major ecosystem service in which insects, particularly bees, play an important role for the reproduction of most angiosperms. Currently, this service is considered under threat due to reported bee declines. Moderately urbanised areas could be important for pollinators and pollination; however, compared to agricultural and natural systems, they are poorly studied.

Here, we investigated the relative effects of local habitat quality and anthropogenic land use across an agricultural to urban gradient for local plant and flying insect communities. We quantified local flower visitor networks and related network architecture to these local and landscape factors using structural equation modelling. Flower visitor network architecture is often assumed to act as a surrogate for the ecosystem service of pollination. To test this idea, we related network metrics to pollination of four experimental, insect pollinator‐dependent plant species.

Overall, local land use markedly influenced plant and flying insect communities. Flower richness and bee richness were higher in urban compared to agricultural areas. Flower visitor network metrics (e.g. linkage density) increased with the proportion of urban area surrounding a site. Also, relative to agricultural areas, urban flower visitors were more generalised and foraged from a higher number of plant species, likely a consequence of higher urban flowering plant richness. However, urban bees also visited a lower proportion of the available flowering plants (higher specialisation). Surprisingly, linkage density, network specialisation and flower visitor generality were not related to pollination of our four experimental plants per se. Rather, it was the proportion of urban cover, flying insect abundance and bee richness that were positively related to pollination.

Our findings show strong effects of local land use on plant and flying insect communities and flower visitor interaction networks. We observed increased overall visitation rates and pollination services to our experimental plants in urban compared to agricultural areas, despite increased urban flower visitor generality. Indeed, flower visitor network metrics were a poor proxy of provision of the ecosystem service of pollination. Nevertheless, our results point to potential facilitating effects of diverse urban floral and bee communities for pollination.

A lay summary is available for this article.
Are products sold in university vending machines nutritionally poor? A food environment audit
Authors: Grech Amanda , Hebden Lana , Roy Rajshri , Allman‐Farinelli Margaret
Published: November 2016

Aim

(i) To audit the nutritional composition, promotion and cost of products available from vending machines available to young adults; and (ii) to examine the relationship between product availability and sales.

Methods

A cross‐sectional analysis of snacks and beverages available and purchased at a large urban university was conducted between March and September 2014. Sales were electronically tracked for nine months.

Results

A total of 61 vending machines were identified; 95% (n = 864) of the available snacks and 49% of beverages (n = 455) were less‐healthy items. The mean (SD) nutrient value of snacks sold was: energy 1173 kJ (437.5), saturated fat 5.36 g (3.6), sodium 251 mg (219), fibre 1.56 g (1.29) and energy density 20.16 kJ/g (2.34) per portion vended. There was a strong correlation between the availability of food and beverages and purchases (R2
= 0.98, P < 0.001).

Conclusions

Vending machines market and sell less‐healthy food and beverages to university students. Efforts to improve the nutritional quality are indicated and afford an opportunity to improve the diet quality of young adults, a group at risk of obesity.
K‐Ar Dating of Fault Gouges from the Red River Fault Zone of Vietnam
Authors: BUI Hoang Bac , NGO Xuan Thanh , SONG Yungoo , ITAYA Tetsumaru , YAGI Koshi , KHUONG The Hung , NGUYEN Tien Dung
Published: November 2016

Constraining the timing of fault zone formation is fundamentally important in terms of geotectonics to understand structural evolution and brittle fault processes. This paper presents the first authigenic illite K‐Ar age data from fault gouge samples collected from the Red River Shear Zone at Lao Cai province, Vietnam. The fault gouge samples were separated into three grain‐size fractions (<0.1 µm, 0.1–0.4 µm and 0.4–1.0 µm). The results show that the K‐Ar age values decrease from coarser to finer grain fractions (24.1 to 19.2 Ma), suggesting enrichment in finer fraction of more‐recently grown authigenic illites. The timing of the fault movement are the lower intercept ages at 0% detrital illite (19.2 ± 0.92 Ma and 19.4 ± 0.49 Ma). In combination with previous geochronological data, this result indicates that the metamorphism of the Day Nui Con Voi (DNCV) metamorphic complex took place before ca. 26.8 Ma. At about 26.8 Ma‐25 Ma, the fault strongly acted to cause the rapid exhumation of the rocks along the Red River‐Ailoa Shan Fault Zone (RR‐ASFZ). During brittle deformation, the DNCV slowly uplifted, implying weak movement of the fault. This brittle deformation might have lasted for ca. 5 Ma.
A Fluid Inclusion Study of Vein‐type Copper Mineralization in the East Wulasigou Pb–Zn–Cu Deposit, Altay, Northwestern China
Authors: BIAN Chunjing , XU Jiuhua , CHEN Deping , ZHANG Hui , CHENG Xihui
Published: November 2016

The Wulasigou Cu–Pb–Zn deposit, located 15km northwest of Altay city in Xinjiang, is one of many Cu–Pb–Zn polymetallic deposits in the Devonian Kelan volcanic‐sedimentary basin in southern Altaids. Two mineralizing periods can be distinguished: the marine volcanic sedimentary Pb‐Zn mineralization period, and the metamorphic hydrothermal Cu mineralization period, which is further divided into an early bedded foliated quartz vein stage (Q1) and a late sulfide‐quartz vein stage (Q2) crosscutting the foliation. Four types of fluid inclusions were recognized in the Q1 and Q2 quartz from the east orebodies of the Wulasigou deposit: H2O–CO2 inclusions, carbonic fluid inclusions, aqueous fluid inclusions, and daughter mineral‐bearing fluid inclusions. Microthermometric studies show that solid CO2 melting temperatures (Tm,co2) of H2O–CO2 inclusions in Q1 are from −62.3°C to −58.5°C, clathrate melting temperatures (Tm,clath) are from 0.5°C to 7.5°C, partial homogenization temperatures (Th,co2) vary from 3.3°C to 25.9°C (to liquid), and the total homogenization temperatures (Th,tot) vary from 285°C to 378°C, with the salinities being 4.9%‐15.1% NaCl eqv. and the CO2‐phase densities being 0.50–0.86 g/cm3. H2O–CO2 inclusions in Q2 have Tm,c02 from −61.9°C to −56.9°C, Tm,clath from 1.3°C to 9.5°C, Th,co2 from 3.4°C to 28.7°C (to liquid), and Th,tot from 242°C to 388°C, with the salinities being 1.0%‐15.5% NaCl eqv. and the CO2‐phase densities being 0.48–0.89 g/cm3. The minimum trapping pressures of fluid inclusions in Q1 and Q2 are estimated to be 260–360 MPa and 180–370 MPa, respectively. The δ34S values of pyrite from the volcanic sedimentary period vary from 2.3‰ to 2.8‰ (CDT), and those from the sulfide‐quartz veins fall in a narrow range of −1.9‰ to 2.6‰ (CDT). The δD values of fluid inclusions in Q2 range from −121.0‰ to −100.8‰ (SMOW), and the δ18OH2O values calculated from δ18O of quartz range from −0.2‰ to 8.3‰ (SMOW). The δD‐δ18OH2O data are close to the magmatic and metamorphic fields. The fluid inclusion and stable isotope data documented in this study indicate that the vein‐type copper mineralization in the Wulasigou Pb–Zn–Cu deposit took place in an orogenic‐metamorphic enviroment.
Geology and Isotope Geochemistry of the Yinchanggou‐Qiluogou Pb‐Zn Deposit, Sichuan Province, Southwest China
Authors: LI Bo , ZHOU Jiaxi , LI Yingshu , CHEN Aibing , WANG Ruixue
Published: November 2016

The Yinchanggou‐Qiluogou Pb‐Zn deposit, located in the western Yangtze Block, southwest China, is hosted by the Upper Sinian Dengying Formation dolostone. Ore bodies occur in the Qiluogou anticline and the NS‐ and NNW‐trending faults. Sulfide ores mainly consist of sphalerite, pyrite, galena and calcite, with subordinate dolomite and quartz. Seventeen ore bodies have been discovered to date and they have a combined 1.0 million tons of sulfide ores with average grades of 2.27wt% Zn and 6.89wt% Pb. The δDH2O‐SMOW and δ18OH2O‐SMOW values of fluid inclusions in quartz and calcite samples range from −68.9‰ to −48.7‰ and 7.3‰ to 15.9‰, respectively, suggesting that H2O in the hydrothermal fluids sourced from metamorphic water. Calcite samples have δ13CPDB values ranging from −6.2‰ to −4.1‰ and δ18OSMOW values ranging from 15.1‰ to 17.4‰, indicating C and O in the hydrothermal fluids likely derived from a mixed source of metamorphic fluids and the host carbonates. The δ34SCDT values of sulfide minerals range from 5.5‰ to 20.3‰, suggesting that thermal chemical reduction of sulfate minerals in evaporates were the most probable source of S in the hydrothermal fluids. The 206Pb/204Pb, 207Pb/204Pb and 208Pb/204Pb ratios of sulfide minerals fall in the range of 18.11 to 18.40, 15.66 to 15.76 and 38.25 to 38.88, respectively. The Pb isotopic data of the studied deposit plot near the upper crust Pb evolution curve and overlap with the age‐corrected Proterozoic basement rocks and the Upper Sinian Dengying Formation hosting dolostone. This indicates that the Pb originated from a mixed source of the basement metamorphic rocks and the ore‐hosting carbonate rocks. The ore geology and C‐H‐O‐S‐Pb isotopic data suggest that the Yinchanggou‐Qiluogou deposit is an unusual carbonate‐hosted, strata‐bound and epigenetic deposit that derived ore‐forming materials from a mixed source of the underlying Porterozoic basements and the Sinian hosting carbonates.
The Coarse‐Grained Lacustrine Slope Apron Deposits in the Moliqing Area, Yitong Basin, Northeast China
Authors: LI Cunlei , CHEN Panpan , LIU Jianmei , Hongtao Fu , ZHANG Jinliang , XIE Jun
Published: November 2016

Overlapping gravity accumulation bodies were formed on the northwestern steep slope of the Shuangyang Formation in the Moliqing fault depression of northeast China. This study analyzed in detail the spatial distribution of the lithofacies and lithofacies associations of these accumulation bodies based on more than 600 m of core sections, and summarized 12 major types of lithofacies and three types of lithofacies associations: (1) the proximal zone consists of gravelly debris flows dominated by alluvial channel conglomerates; (2) the middle zone is dominated by various gravity flow deposits and traction flow deposits; and (3) the distal zone is dominated by mudstones with intercalations of sandy debris and turbidites. Combining with the grain size cumulative probability curves analysis, we determined the transformation of debris flows to sandy debris flows and to turbidity currents in the slope zone of the basin margin, and further proposed a lacustrine slope apron model that is characterized by (1) an inconstant multiple source (line source), (2) an alternation of gravity flow deposits and traction flow deposits dominated by periodical changes in a source flood flow system, and (3) the transformation of sandy debris flow deposits into distal turbidity current deposits. This sedimentary model may be applicable to other fault depressions for predicting reservoir distribution.
The Adequacy of the Q Methodology for Clinical Validation of Nursing Diagnoses Related to Subjective Foci
Authors: Miguel Susana , Caldeira Sílvia , Vieira Margarida
Published: November 2016

OBJECTIVE

This article describes the adequacy of the Q methodology as a new option for the validation of nursing diagnoses related to subjective foci.

METHODS

Discussion paper about the characteristics of the Q methodology.

FINDINGS

This method has been used in nursing research particularly related to subjective concepts and includes both a quantitative and qualitative dimension.

CONCLUSIONS

The Q methodology seems to be an adequate and innovative method for the clinical validation of nursing diagnoses.

IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE

The validation of nursing diagnoses related to subjective foci using the Q methodology could improve the level of evidence and provide nurses with clinical indicators for clinical reasoning and for the planning of effective interventions.

OBJETIVO

Descrever a adequação da metodologia Q como uma nova opção para a validação clínica de diagnósticos de enfermagem relacionados com focos subjetivos.

MÉTODOS

Artigo de discussão sobre as características da metodologia Q.

RESULTADOS

Este método tem sido utilizado na pesquisa em enfermagem relacionada com conceitos subjetivos e inclui em simultâneo uma vertente qualitativa e quantitativa.

CONCLUSÕES

A metodologia Q parece ser uma opção metodológica adequada para a validação clínica de diagnósticos de enfermagem.

IMPLICAÇÕES PARA A PRÁTICA

A utilização da metodologia Q na validação clínica de diagnósticos de enfermagem relacionados com focos subjetivos pode melhorar o nível e evidência e facilitar o raciocínio clínico dos enfermeiros, ao providenciar indicadores clínicos também necessários ao desenvolvimento de intervenções efetivas.
Minimizing Attrition for Multisite Emergency Care Research
Authors: Nicks Bret A. , Shah Manish N. , Adler David H. , Bastani Aveh , Baugh Christopher W. , Caterino Jeffrey M. , Clark Carol L. , Diercks Deborah B. , Hollander Judd E. , Malveau Susan E. , Nishijima Daniel K. , Stiffler Kirk A. , Storrow Alan B. , Wilber Scott T. , Yagapen Annick N. , Sun Benjamin C.
Published: November 2016

Loss to follow‐up of enrolled patients (a.k.a. attrition) is a major threat to study validity and power. Minimizing attrition can be challenging even under ideal research conditions, including the presence of adequate funding, experienced study personnel, and a refined research infrastructure. Emergency care research is shifting toward enrollment through multisite networks, but there have been limited descriptions of approaches to minimize attrition for these multicenter emergency care studies. This concept paper describes a stepwise approach to minimize attrition, using a case example of a multisite emergency department prospective cohort of over 3,000 patients that has achieved a 30‐day direct phone follow‐up attrition rate of <3%. The seven areas of approach to minimize attrition in this study focused on patient selection, baseline contact data collection, patient incentives, patient tracking, central phone banks, local enrollment site assistance, and continuous performance monitoring. Appropriate study design, including consideration of these methods to reduce attrition, will be time well spent and may improve study validity.
Faculty Mentoring Practices in Academic Emergency Medicine
Authors: Welch Julie , Sawtelle Stacy , Cheng David , Perkins Tony , Ownbey Misha , MacNeill Emily , Hockberger Robert , Rusyniak Daniel
Published: November 2016

Background

Mentoring is considered a fundamental component of career success and satisfaction in academic medicine. However, there is no national standard for faculty mentoring in academic emergency medicine (EM) and a paucity of literature on the subject.

Objectives

The objective was to conduct a descriptive study of faculty mentoring programs and practices in academic departments of EM.

Methods

An electronic survey instrument was sent to 135 department chairs of EM in the United States. The survey queried faculty demographics, mentoring practices, structure, training, expectations, and outcome measures. Chi‐square and Wilcoxon rank‐sum tests were used to compare metrics of mentoring effectiveness (i.e., number of publications and National Institutes of Health [NIH] funding) across mentoring variables of interest.

Results

Thirty‐nine of 135 departments completed the survey, with a heterogeneous mix of faculty classifications. While only 43.6% of departments had formal mentoring programs, many augmented faculty mentoring with project or skills‐based mentoring (66.7%), peer mentoring (53.8%), and mentoring committees (18%). Although the majority of departments expected faculty to participate in mentoring relationships, only half offered some form of mentoring training. The mean number of faculty publications per department per year was 52.8, and 11 departments fell within the top 35 NIH‐funded EM departments. There was an association between higher levels of perceived mentoring success and both higher NIH funding (p = 0.022) and higher departmental publications rates (p = 0.022). In addition, higher NIH funding was associated with mentoring relationships that were assigned (80%), self‐identified (20%), or mixed (22%; p = 0.026).

Conclusions

Our findings help to characterize the variability of faculty mentoring in EM, identify opportunities for improvement, and underscore the need to learn from other successful mentoring programs. This study can serve as a basis to share mentoring practices and stimulate conversation around strategies to improve faculty mentoring in EM.
Addressing engagement, anger and aggression through the Rock Water Program: Rural adolescent males’ perceptions
Authors: Edwards Paul , van de Mortel Thea , Stevens John
Published: November 2016

Objective

The Rock and Water Program (RWP) has been implemented in some Australian schools as a means of addressing school disengagement, anger and aggression, which are significant determinants of mental illness. However, much of the evidence supporting the RWP is anecdotal. This project explored rural adolescent males’ perceptions of the RWP.

Design

Questionnaires were used to gather data about the students prior to their commencement in the RWP. Focus group interviews were conducted with students at weeks 5 and 9 of the 9‐week program. Data were analysed using thematic analysis.

Setting and Participants

The RWP was facilitated in four schools in rural NSW over three terms for a total of 12 program deliveries. One hundred and eighty‐seven rural adolescent males participated in the focus groups. The participants were identified by their school as disengaged in schoolwork and either perpetrators and/or victims of anger and aggression.

Main Outcome

Participants liked the ‘learning by doing’ action‐oriented approach, and reported learning strategies that could reduce aggression in the school and wider community.

Results

The focus groups provided insight into why these adolescent boys engaged with this program when generally engagement in school, overall, was reported as poor. Suggestions for program improvement included more or longer sessions, and the inclusion of girls.

Conclusion

This study found that the RWP engaged rurally based boys, who spoke positively about the action‐oriented program. Future research could examine if this translates into reduced incidents of anger and violence at school and improved school engagement and overall physical and mental health.
Chemokine receptors in allergic diseases
Authors: Castan L. , Magnan A. , Bouchaud G.
Published: November 2016

Under homeostatic conditions, as well as in various diseases, leukocyte migration is a crucial issue for the immune system that is mainly organized through the activation of bone marrow‐derived cells in various tissues. Immune cell trafficking is orchestrated by a family of small proteins called chemokines. Leukocytes express cell‐surface receptors that bind to chemokines and trigger transendothelial migration. Most allergic diseases, such as asthma, rhinitis, food allergies, and atopic dermatitis, are generally classified by the tissue rather than the type of inflammation, making the chemokine/chemokine receptor system a key point of the immune response. Moreover, because small antagonists can easily block such receptors, various molecules have been developed to suppress the recruitment of immune cells during allergic reactions, representing potential new drugs for allergies. We review the chemokines and chemokine receptors that are important in asthma, food allergies, and atopic dermatitis and their respectively developed antagonists.
Papaverine‐sensitive phosphodiesterase activity is measured in bovine spermatozoa
Authors: Bergeron A. , Hébert A. , Guillemette C. , Laroche A. , Poulin M.‐P. , Aragon J. P. , Leclerc P. , Sullivan R. , Blondin P. , Vigneault C. , Richard F. J.
Published: November 2016

Cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) plays a crucial role as a signaling molecule for capacitation, motility, and acrosome reaction in mammalian spermatozoa. It is well‐known that cAMP degradation by phosphodiesterase (PDE) enzyme has a major impact on sperm functions. This study was undertaken to characterize cAMP‐PDE activity in bovine spermatozoa. Total cAMP‐PDE activity in cauda epididymal and ejaculated spermatozoa was 543.2 ± 49.5 and 1252.6 ± 86.5 fmoles/min/106 spermatozoa, respectively. Using different family‐specific PDE inhibitors, we showed that in cauda epididymal and ejaculated spermatozoa, the major cAMP‐PDE activity was papaverine‐sensitive (44.5% and 57.5%, respectively, at 400 nm, papaverine is a specific inhibitor of the PDE10 family). These data are supporting the functional presence of PDE10 in bovine spermatozoa and were further confirmed by western blot to be PDE10A. Using immunocytochemistry, we showed immunoreactive signal for PDE10A present on the post‐acrosomal region of the head and on the flagella of ejaculated spermatozoa. Using papaverine, we showed that it promotes tyrosine phosphorylation of sperm proteins, phosphorylation of Erk1 and Erk2, and Ca2+ release from Ca2+ store. These results suggest that PDE10 is functionally present in bovine spermatozoa and is affecting different molecular events involved in capacitation, most probably by cAMP local regulation.
Teachers' goal orientations: Effects on classroom goal structures and emotions
Authors: Wang Hui , Hall Nathan C. , Goetz Thomas , Frenzel Anne C.
Published: November 2016

Background

Prior research has shown teachers’ goal orientations to influence classroom goal structures (Retelsdorf et al., 2010, Learning and Instruction, 20, 30) and to also impact their emotions (Schutz et al., 2007, Emotion in education, Academic Press, Amsterdam, the Netherlands). However, empirical research evaluating possible causal ordering and mediation effects involving these variables in teachers is presently lacking.

Aim

The present 6‐month longitudinal study investigated the relations between varied motivational, behavioural, and emotional variables in practising teachers. More specifically, this study examined the reciprocal, longitudinal relations between teachers’ achievement goals, classroom goal structures, and teaching‐related emotions, as well as cumulative mediational models in which observed causal relations were evaluated.

Samples

Participants were 495 practising teachers from Canada (86% female, M = 42 years).

Methods

Teachers completed a web‐based questionnaire at two time points assessing their instructional goals, perceived classroom goal structures, achievement emotions, and demographic items.

Results

Results from cross‐lagged analyses and structural equation modelling showed teachers’ achievement goals to predict their perceived classroom goal structures that, in turn, predicted their teaching‐related emotions.

Conclusions

The present results inform both Butler's (2012, Journal of Educational Psychology, 104, 726) theory on teachers’ achievement goals and Frenzel's (2014, International handbook of emotions in education, Routledge, New York, NY) model of teachers’ emotions in showing teachers’ instructional goals to both directly predict their teaching‐related emotions, as well as indirectly through the mediating effects of classroom goal structures.
‘I'm worried about getting water in the holes in my head’: A phenomenological psychology case study of the experience of undergoing deep brain stimulation surgery for Parkinson's disease
Authors: Eatough Virginia , Shaw Karen
Published: November 2016

Objectives

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is a form of biotechnological surgery which has had considerable success for the motor improvement of Parkinson's disease and related disorders. Paradoxically, this observed motor improvement is not matched with improved psychosocial adjustment. This study contributes to a small but growing body of research aiming to understand this paradox. We conclude by discussing these aspects from a phenomenological and health psychology understanding of decision‐making, human affectivity, and embodiment.

Design

A hermeneutic phenomenological case study.

Methods

Semi‐structured interviews with one woman with Parkinson's disease were carried out paying particular attention to (1) how the decision to have the procedure was made and (2) the affective experience in the time periods immediately prior to the procedure, shortly after and 1 month later.

Results

The thematic structure derived from the hermeneutic phenomenological analysis comprises the following experiential aspects: Making the decision: ‘I was feeling rather at a dead end with my Parkinson's’; Shifting emotions and feelings: ‘Terrified, excited, disappointed, overjoyed’; Embodied meaning: ‘This extraordinary procedure where they were going to drill holes in my head’.

Conclusions

This research has elucidated the complexity of decision‐making, the emotional landscape, and specific bodily nature of the experience of DBS. It has suggested implications for practice informed by both existential‐phenomenological theory and health psychology.

Statement of contribution

What is already known on this subject?

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is a newly developed form of biotechnological surgery and research indicates a mismatch between motor success and psychosocial adjustment.

Most studies focuses on life post‐DBS and there is relatively little research on how people make the decision to have the procedure, what their experience is of undergoing it including its emotional aspects.

What does this study add?

This study demonstrates that making decisions with respect to health and illness is complex and best understood as a form of embodied cognition.

Findings indicate that the experience of undergoing DBS surgery is one of multiple emotions, especially fear and feelings of ‘unhomelikeness’.

This study highlights the relevance of a lifeworld, people‐centered and humanizing approach to helping health care professionals support people through an illness/treatment trajectory.
Endogenous lysophosphatidic acid (LPA1) receptor agonists demonstrate ligand bias between calcium and ERK signalling pathways in human lung fibroblasts
Authors: Sattikar Afrah , Dowling Mark R , Rosethorne Elizabeth M
Published: November 2016

Background and Purpose

Human lung fibroblasts (HLF) express high levels of the LPA1 receptor, a GPCR that responds to the endogenous lipid mediator, lysophosphatidic acid (LPA). Several molecular species or analogues of LPA exist and have been detected in biological fluids such as serum and plasma. The most widely expressed of the LPA receptor family is the LPA1 receptor, which predominantly couples to Gq/11, Gi/o and G12/13 proteins. This promiscuity of coupling raises the possibility that some of the LPA analogues may bias the LPA1 receptor towards one signalling pathway over another.

Experimental Approach

Here, we have explored the signalling profiles of a range of LPA analogues in HLF that endogenously express the LPA1 receptor. HLF were treated with LPA analogues and receptor activation monitored via calcium mobilization and ERK phosphorylation.

Key Results

These analyses demonstrated that the 16:0, 17:0, 18:2 and C18:1 LPA analogues appear to exhibit ligand bias between ERK phosphorylation and calcium mobilization when compared with 18:1 LPA, one of the most abundant forms of LPA that has been found in human plasma.

Conclusion and Implications

The importance of LPA as a key signalling molecule is shown by its widespread occurrence in biological fluids and its association with disease conditions such as fibrosis and cancer. These findings have important, as yet unexplored, implications for the (patho‐) physiological signalling of the LPA1 receptor, as it may be influenced not only by the concentration of endogenous ligand but the isoform as well.
Monitoring of complement activation biomarkers and eculizumab in complement-mediated renal disorders
Authors: Wehling C , Amon O , Bommer M , Hoppe B , Kentouche K , Schalk G , Weimer R , Wiesener M , Hohenstein B , Tönshoff B , Büscher R , Fehrenbach H , Gök Ö-N , Kirschfink M
Published: November 2016

Various complement-mediated renal disorders are treated currently with the complement inhibitor eculizumab. By blocking the cleavage of C5, this monoclonal antibody prevents cell damage caused by complement-mediated inflammation. We included 23 patients with atypical haemolytic uraemic syndrome (aHUS, n = 12), C3 glomerulopathies (C3G, n = 9) and acute antibody-mediated renal graft rejection (AMR, n = 2), treated with eculizumab in 12 hospitals in Germany. We explored the course of complement activation biomarkers and the benefit of therapeutic drug monitoring of eculizumab. Complement activation was assessed by analysing the haemolytic complement function of the classical (CH50) and the alternative pathway (APH50), C3 and the activation products C3d, C5a and sC5b-9 prior to, 3 and 6 months after eculizumab treatment. Eculizumab concentrations were determined by a newly established specific enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Serum eculizumab concentrations up to 1082 μg/ml point to drug accumulation, especially in paediatric patients. Loss of the therapeutic antibody via urine with concentrations up to 56 μg/ml correlated with proteinuria. In aHUS patients, effective complement inhibition was demonstrated by significant reductions of CH50, APH50, C3d and sC5b-9 levels, whereas C5a levels were only reduced significantly after 6 months' treatment. C3G patients presented increased C3d and consistently low C3 levels, reflecting ongoing complement activation and consumption at the C3 level, despite eculizumab treatment. A comprehensive complement analysis together with drug monitoring is required to distinguish mode of complement activation and efficacy of eculizumab treatment in distinct renal disorders. Accumulation of the anti-C5 antibody points to the need for a patient-orientated tailored therapy.
Undernourishment in utero and hepatic steatosis in later life: A potential issue in Japanese people
Authors: Itoh Hiroaki , Muramatsu‐Kato Keiko , Ferdous Urmi J. , Kohmura‐Kobayashi Yukiko , Kanayama Naohiro
Published: November 2016

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a hepatic manifestation of metabolic syndrome. The prevalence of NAFLD in Japan has nearly doubled in the last 10–15 years. Increasing evidence supports undernourishment in utero being causatively connected with the risk of NAFLD in later life. Low body mass index (BMI) has been common among Japanese women of childbearing age for several decades due to their strong desire to be thin. It is plausible that insufficient maternal energy intake by pregnant Japanese women may underlie the rapid increase in the prevalence of NAFLD in Japan. In order to clarify the mechanisms by which undernourishment in utero primes adult hepatic steatosis, we developed a mouse model of fetal undernourishment with a hepatic fat deposit‐prone phenotype on an obesogenic high fat diet in later life. We found that endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress response parameters were activated concomitantly with the deterioration of hepatic steatosis and also that the alleviation of ER stress with the chemical chaperone, tauroursodeoxycholic acid (TUDCA), significantly improved hepatic steatosis. Therefore, undernourishment in utero may program the future integration of ER stress in the liver on an obesogenic diet in later life and also induce the deterioration of hepatic steatosis. These results also provide an insight into interventions for the potential high‐risk population of NAFLD, such as those born small or exposed to maternal undernourishment during the fetal period, with the alleviation of ER stress by dietary supplements and/or specific food including chaperones.
Reasoning With Causal Cycles
Authors: Rehder Bob
Published: November 2016

This article assesses how people reason with categories whose features are related in causal cycles. Whereas models based on causal graphical models (CGMs) have enjoyed success modeling category‐based judgments as well as a number of other cognitive phenomena,CGMs are only able to represent causal structures that are acyclic. A number of new formalisms that allow cycles are introduced and evaluated.Dynamic Bayesian networks(DBNs) represent cycles by unfolding them over time.Chain graphsaugmentCGMs by allowing the presence of undirected links that model feedback relations between variables.Unfolded chain graphsare chain graphs that unfold over time. An existing model of causal cycles (alpha centrality) is also evaluated. Four experiments in which subjects reason about categories with cyclically related features provided evidence againstDBNs and alpha centrality and for the two types of chain graphs. Chain graphs—a mechanism for representing the equilibrium distribution of a dynamic system—may thus be good candidates for modeling how people reason causally with complex systems. Applications of chain graphs to areas of cognition other than category‐based judgments are discussed.
Correlation between histopathologic features and likelihood of identifying superficial dermatophytosis with periodic acid Schiff‐diastase staining: a cohort study
Authors: Wang Michael Z. , Guo Ruifeng , Lehman Julia S.
Published: November 2016

Background

Periodic acid Schiff‐diastase (PAS‐D) staining is used routinely in dermatopathology. Conventionally, parakeratosis or intracorneal neutrophils justify use of PAS‐D stain to identify dermatophytosis. We aimed to investigate the histopathological features of superficial dermatophytosis.

Methods

Skin biopsies with PAS‐D stain were retrospectively reviewed by a blinded dermatopathologist. Histopathologic findings in cases with dermatophytosis were compared with those without.

Results

We studied 110 cases, of which 63 were PAS‐D positive for dermatophytes. Dermatophytes were identified on hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) staining in 49 (77.8%) of the PAS‐D‐positive cases. Diffuse compact orthokeratosis (79.37%, p < 0.001) and focal parakeratosis (65.08%, p = 0.03) were significantly more frequent in dermatophytosis. Intracorneal neutrophils and spongiosis were not significant findings. Fungal elements were frequently observed within compact orthokeratosis (62.0%) and parakeratosis (31.8%) but rarely within intracorneal pustules (12.7%). In some dermatophyte cases, intracorneal neutrophils (47.6%) or parakeratosis (17.5%) were absent.

Conclusions

Compact orthokeratosis or focal parakeratosis justifies PAS‐D staining, whereas the absence of intracorneal neutrophils or parakeratosis is insufficient to exclude dermatophytosis. Results indicate that having a low threshold to perform PAS‐D stain is justified. PAS‐D stain may be deferred until H&E slides have been evaluated.
LIQUIDITY RISK AND TIME‐VARYING CORRELATION BETWEEN EQUITY AND CURRENCY RETURNS
Authors: Jung Kuk Mo
Published: November 2016

Using the data of 20 major Organization for Economic Co‐operation and Development countries over time, this article documents new evidence on real equity and real currency prices: higher real returns in the home equity market relative to its foreign counterparts are generally associated with real home currency depreciation at monthly frequency, but this negative correlation breaks down or even reverses during times of relatively higher aggregate economic uncertainty or volatility. This article also argues that a long‐run risks‐type model with time‐varying liquidity risk in stock markets can provide one plausible explanation for the time‐varying correlation structure. (JEL E43, F31, G12, G15)
Dads Tuning In to Kids: Preliminary Evaluation of a Fathers' Parenting Program
Authors: Wilson Katherine R. , Havighurst Sophie S. , Kehoe Christiane , Harley Ann E.
Published: November 2016

We investigated outcomes of Dads Tuning In to Kids, a new seven‐session group program targeting paternal emotion‐socialization practices, which are related to children's social and emotional functioning. In a randomized control trial with 162 fathers of children between 3 and 6 years of age, intervention fathers (n = 87) and waitlist control fathers (n = 75) completed questionnaires at baseline (pre‐program) and 10 weeks later (post‐program). Compared to control fathers, intervention fathers statistically increased in empathy, encouragement of emotion expression, and parenting efficacy, and decreased in emotion‐dismissing beliefs, dismissive reactions to children's negative emotions, and hostile parenting responses. They also reported improved child behavior. These findings offer preliminary support for this program for fathers.
Restructuring of basal ganglia circuitry and associated behaviors triggered by low striatal D2 receptor expression: implications for substance use disorders
Authors: Dobbs L. K. , Lemos J. C. , Alvarez V. A.
Published: November 2016

Dopamine D2 receptors (D2Rs) consistently emerge as a critical substrate for the etiology of some major psychiatric disorders. Indeed, a central theory of substance use disorders (SUDs) postulates that a reduction in D2R levels in the striatum is a determining factor that confers vulnerability to abuse substances. A large number of clinical and preclinical studies strongly support this link between SUDs and D2Rs; however, identifying the mechanism by which low D2Rs facilitate SUDs has been hindered by the complexity of circuit connectivity, the heterogeneity of D2R expression and the multifaceted constellation of phenotypes observed in SUD patient. Animal models are well‐suited for understanding the mechanisms because they allow access to the circuitry and the genetic tools that enable a dissection of the D2R heterogeneity. This review discusses recent findings on the functional role of D2Rs and highlights the distinctive contributions of D2Rs expressed on specific neuronal subpopulations to the behavioral responses to stimulant drugs. A circuit‐wide restructuring of local and long‐range inhibitory connectivity within the basal ganglia is observed in response to manipulation of striatal D2R levels and is accompanied by multiple alterations in dopamine‐dependent behaviors. Collectively, these new findings provide compelling evidence for a critical role of striatal D2Rs in shaping basal ganglia connectivity; even among neurons that do not express D2Rs. These findings from animal models have deep clinical implications for SUD patients with low levels D2R availability where a similar restructuring of basal ganglia circuitry is expected to take place.
Analytical evaluation of the ADAMS™ A1c HA 8180 thalassemia mode high‐pressure liquid chromatography analyser for the measurement of HbA2 and HbF
Authors: Urrechaga E.
Published: November 2016

Background

ADAMS™ A1cHA‐8180T is a HPLC system; within 3.5 min, it quantifies HbF, HbA2, and HbA0 and flags abnormal peaks.

We evaluate its analytical performance for routine estimation of HbA2 and HbF, and critical tests were performed for identifying β‐thalassemia carriers.

Methods

Trueness imprecision, carry over, linearity, and effect of anemia were evaluated according to ICLH, ICLS, or manufacture's guidelines.

Comparison (ADAMS™ A1c HA‐8160T) was performed by running 400 samples from healthy subjects, 30 alpha and 80 beta carriers (range: 1.9–5.7 %).

Results

Trueness – HbA2 2.7 %, bias 0.81 %; HbA2 5.8 %, bias 0.38 %. HbA2 4.0% is not affected by Hb in the range 221–40 g/L. Carry over was negligible. Within run: normal control – CV 1.5 %, high control – CV 0.9 %.Within laboratory: normal control – total CV% 1.59%; high control – 0.92 %. Linearity – y = 1.034x − 0.17, R2 = 0.998 (range: 2.8–4.8%).Method comparison – y = 0.93x + 0.22, R2 = 0.997. HbF imprecision CVs between 0.66 and 1.24% and trueness between 0 and 2.8%. Linearity – y = 1.088x − 0.27, R2 = 0.999 (0.1–5.7%).

Conclusions

ADAMS™ A1c HA‐8180T provides a rapid and reliable separation of HbA2. The measurement is accurate and reproducible, which is needed because of the slight difference between normal and pathological values. The gap in HbA2 values between normal subjects and β‐thalassemia carriers makes this an appropriate method for rapid screening for carriers.
Legal and Extralegal Origins of Sentencing Disparities: Evidence from Russia's Criminal Courts
Authors: Volkov Vadim
Published: November 2016

This article conducts the first analysis of sentencing disparities related to social characteristics of offenders in Russia. It uses a data set of sentencing decisions consisting of over 5 million observations representing the entire population of defendants between 2009 and 2013. The analysis focuses on all felony cases processed by federal district courts (2,905,608 individuals) and estimates sentencing disparities (decisions to imprison and sentence length) related to general social status characteristics of offenders as well as to finer occupational differences. The Russian Criminal Code prescribes that judges should account for the personality of the defendant and his or her family condition, but does not specify how this should be done in practice. Controlling for major legal characteristics of offense and offender, as well as for judge‐level variation, the analysis shows sentencing disparities connected with gender, unemployment, citizenship, local residence, marital status, and occupational status of defendants. Disparities are explained with reference to different origins. Thus, a more severe punishment of law enforcement employees for premeditated crimes corresponds to the legal rule; a harsher treatment of the unemployed and a more lenient sentencing of married defendants are interpreted with reference to legitimate concerns about repeated offending. Extralegal bias is manifested in the more severe punishment of private entrepreneurs and softer punishment of college students. Sentencing disparities are also estimated at different values of sentence length.
The Effect of Tort Reform on Medical Malpractice Insurance Market Trends
Authors: Born Patricia H. , Karl J. Bradley
Published: November 2016

In this article, we examine the extent to which the timing of reforms to the tort liability system coincides with changes in medical malpractice insurance market conditions. Our research is motivated by the fact that, while policy discussions and academic research pertaining to the merits of tort reform often center on ex post effects, it is unclear whether reforms to the tort liability system are responsible for softening conditions in a medical malpractice insurance market that was previously deteriorating. Our analysis of tort reforms in the mid‐2000s finds little evidence that state‐level medical malpractice insurance losses incurred, premiums earned, or incurred loss ratios were increasing in the years immediately prior to the enactment of various tort reforms, making it difficult to attribute the observed softening of the medical malpractice insurance market that occurred in the mid to late 2000s to the enactment of tort reforms. Our conclusion is that, while tort reforms are effective policy tools for lowering levels of medical malpractice insurance losses incurred and improving insurer profitability, there is little evidence to suggest that reforms are an effective method for softening a medical malpractice insurance marketplace that is otherwise steadily deteriorating.
Gamma‐glutamyl transpeptidase‐to‐platelet ratio is an independent predictor of hepatitis B virus‐related liver cancer
Authors: Park Yong Eun , Kim Beom Kyung , Park Jun Yong , Kim Do Young , Ahn Sang Hoon , Han Kwang‐Hyub , Han Sojung , Jeon Mi Young , Heo Ja Yoon , Song Kijun , Kim Seung Up
Published: November 2016

Background and Aim

Gamma‐glutamyl transpeptidase‐to‐platelet ratio (GPR) can evaluate the degree of liver fibrosis. We investigated whether GPR can predict the development of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients.

Methods

We retrospectively evaluated 1109 CHB patients that were enrolled between 2006 and 2012, and all patients had available data for the assessment of GPR at enrollment. Three risk groups were defined according to tertile stratification: GPR < 0.05, low‐risk (n = 370 [33.4%]); GPR 0.05–0.24, intermediate‐risk (n = 370 [33.4%]); and GPR > 0.24, high‐risk (n = 369 [33.2%]). The predictive accuracy of GPR, fibrosis‐4 (FIB‐4), and aspartate transaminase‐to‐platelet ratio index (APRI) in predicting HCC development was tested.

Results

The median age of the study population (746 men and 363 women) was 50 years. During the follow‐up period (median, 32 months; interquartile range, 19–57 months), 69 (6.2%) patients developed HCC. Together with age, male gender, diabetes mellitus, antiviral therapy, serum albumin, and alpha‐fetoprotein, the relative risk of HCC development significantly increased from low‐risk to high‐risk GPR groups (hazard ratio [HR], up to 29.5; adjusted HR, up to 10.6; all P < 0.05). In addition, FIB‐4 was calculated to be a significantly high relative risk of HCC development (HR, up to 20.1; adjusted HR, up to 7.3; all P < 0.05), whereas APRI was not (P = 0.168). The cumulative incidence of HCC development was significantly different among three risk groups (P < 0.001, log‐rank test).

Conclusions

This study suggests that GPR can be used as a noninvasive marker to assess the risk of HCC development in CHB patients.
An Occupational Therapy Fall Reduction Home Visit Program for Community‐Dwelling Older Adults in Hong Kong After an Emergency Department Visit for a Fall
Authors: Chu Mary Man‐Lai , Fong Kenneth Nai‐Kuen , Lit Albert Chau‐Hung , Rainer Timothy Hudson , Cheng Stella Wai‐Chee , Au Frederick Lap‐Yan , Fung Henry Kwok‐Kwong , Wong Chit‐Ming , Tong Hon‐Kuan
Published: November 2016

Objectives

To investigate the effects of an occupational therapy fall reduction home visit program for older adults admitted to the emergency department (ED) for a fall and discharged directly home.

Design

Single‐blind, multicenter, randomized, controlled trial.

Settings

EDs in three acute care hospitals in Hong Kong.

Participants

Individuals aged 65 and older who had fallen (N = 311).

Interventions

After screening for eligibility, 204 consenting individuals were randomly assigned to an intervention group (IG) and received a single home visit from an occupational therapist (OT) within 2 weeks after discharge from the hospital or a control group (CG) and received a well‐wishing visit from a research assistant not trained in fall prevention.

Measurements

Both groups were followed for 12 months through telephone calls made every 2 weeks by blinded assessors with a focus on the frequency of falls. Another blinded assessor followed up on their status with telephone calls 4, 8, and 12 months after ED discharge. Prospective fall records on hospital admissions were retrieved from electronic databases; 198 individuals were followed for 1 year on an intention‐to‐treat basis.

Results

The percentage of fallers over 1 year was 13.7% in the IG (n = 95) and 20.4% in the CG (n = 103). There were significant differences in the number of fallers (P = .03) and the number of falls (P = .02) between the two groups over 6 months. Significant differences were found in survival analysis for first fall at 6 months (log‐rank test 5.052, P = .02) but not 9 or 12 months.

Conclusion

One OT visit after a fall was more effective than a well‐wishing visit at reducing future falls at 6 months. A booster OT visit at 6 months is suggested.