bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
c-Jun N-Terminal Kinase Inhibition Induces Mitochondrial Oxidative Stress and Decreases Survival in Human Neural Stem Progenitors
Authors: Sharma Neha , Moore Lisamarie , Chidambaram Shravanthi , Colangelo Nicholas W. , de Toledo Sonia M. , Azzam Edouard I.
Published: October 2018

Neural stem cells are attracting enormous attention in regenerative medicine due to their ability to self-renew and differentiate into the cell lineages that constitute the central nervous system. However, little is known about the mechanism underlying the regulation of their redox environment, which is essential for homeostatic cellular functions. The redox-modulated c-Jun N-terminal kinases (JNK) are a molecular switch in stress signal transduction and are involved in numerous brain functions. Using a selective but broad-spectrum inhibitor of JNK 1/2/3, we investigated the role of JNK in regulating the levels of reactive oxygen species in mitochondria, mitochondrial membrane potential, viability, proliferation and lineage alterations in human H9-derived neural stem/progenitor cells (NSPs). Relative to diluent control, incubation of the NSPs for 24 h with SP600125, an anthrapyrazolone inhibitor of JNK, resulted in increased abundance of mitochondrial superoxide radicals (p < 0.05), concomitant with decreases in mitochondrial membrane potential (p < 0.001), while maintaining a consistent and stable mitochondrial mass. Whereas H9-derived NSPs collectively express Nestin, a marker for neural stem cells, a panel of cell surface markers analyzed by flow cytometry revealed that they are a heterogeneous population that sustains this diversity after JNK inhibition. In addition, the levels of nuclear forkhead homeobox type O3a (FoxO3a), a regulator of redox homeostasis, decreased, which was associated with a decrease in overall cell viability as measured by Annexin V staining (p < 0.001), and supported by an increased level of cleaved Poly-ADP-ribose polymerase and decreased survivin expression. However, staining with the proliferation marker, Ki67, revealed the presence of a significant percentage of proliferating cells in the treated population. Together, the results support a role for JNK in the redox-homeostasis and fate of NSPs. Identifying regulators of the cellular redox environment will enhance our understanding of the mechanisms that modulate neural stem cell functions and optimize therapeutic applications targeting JNK.
Anti-Centromere Antibody Positivity in a Patient with Generalized Morphea
Authors: Miyagawa Fumi , Nakajima Anna , Akai Yasuhiro , Asada Hideo
Published: October 2018

We report the case of a 45-year-old female with generalized morphea (GM), who exhibited positivity for the anti-centromere antibody (Ab). She frequently developed multiple sclerotic skin lesions, whose histological findings were compatible with morphea. She demonstrated favorable responses to topical and oral steroids. Cases of GM associated with systemic sclerosis (SSc)-specific Abs (anti-Scl-70 Ab, anti-centromere Ab, and anti-RNA polymerase III Ab) have rarely been reported. The previously reported GM cases involving anti-SSc-specific Abs exhibited some skin manifestations of SSc, such as nailfold capillary changes. However, our case did not show any signs of SSc or limited cutaneous SSc. More cases are needed to clarify whether GM with SSc-specific Abs leads to SSc.
The Effects of IL10 and NK Cells on the Susceptibility to Mouse Cytomegalovirus in BALB/c Mice despite the Compensation of IFNγ
Authors: Lu Yuanyuan , Liu Xinglou , Huang Yuan  , Liao Yi , Xi Ting , Zhang Yanan , Shu Sainan , Fang Feng
Published: October 2018

Objective: The aim of this study was to determine which factors lead to the susceptibility to mouse cytomegalovirus (MCMV) in the spleens of BALB/c mice. Methods: BALB/c and C57BL/6 mice were randomly divided into a control group and an infection group and sacrificed on day 0, 1, 3, 7, 14, and 28 postinfection. The cytotoxicity of NK cells was determined by evaluating lactate dehydrogenase contents. Flow cytometry was used to analyze activated NK cells, IFNγ+ NK cells, and total NK cells in the spleen. The pathological changes of spleens in each group were analyzed by HE staining. The expression of IL10, IL18, IFNγ, Thpok, and IFNβ of spleens was determined by quantitative reverse transcriptase PCR. The viral loads of MCMV in spleens and salivary glands were also detected. Results: We found that spleen NK cells and IL10 in C57BL/6 mice possessed more powerful immunity to MCMV than BALB/c mice. In BALB/c mice, combined effects of the cytotoxicity of NK cells and IFNγ in spleens still ended up with deficient control of infection. Conclusion: The functional shortage of NK cells and inappropriate expression of IL10 result in the susceptibility to MCMV in BALB/c mice.
Beam Walking to Assess Dynamic Balance in Health and Disease: A Protocol for the “BEAM” Multicenter Observational Study
Authors: Hortobágyi Tibor , Uematsu Azusa , Sanders Lianne , Kliegl Reinhold , Tollár József , Moraes Renato , Granacher Urs
Published: October 2018

Background: Dynamic balance keeps the vertical projection of the center of mass within the base of support while walking. Dynamic balance tests are used to predict the risks of falls and eventual falls. The psychometric properties of most dynamic balance tests are unsatisfactory and do not comprise an actual loss of balance while walking. Objectives: Using beam walking distance as a measure of dynamic balance, the BEAM consortium will determine the psychometric properties, lifespan and patient reference values, the relationship with selected “dynamic balance tests,” and the accuracy of beam walking distance to predict falls. Methods: This cross-sectional observational study will examine healthy adults in 7 decades (n = 432) at 4 centers. Center 5 will examine patients (n = 100) diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis, stroke, and balance disorders. In test 1, all participants will be measured for demographics, medical history, muscle strength, gait, static balance, dynamic balance using beam walking under single (beam walking only) and dual task conditions (beam walking while concurrently performing an arithmetic task), and several cognitive functions. Patients and healthy participants age 50 years or older will be additionally measured for fear of falling, history of falls, miniBESTest, functional reach on a force platform, timed up and go, and reactive balance. All participants age 50 years or older will be recalled to report fear of falling and fall history 6 and 12 months after test 1. In test 2, seven to ten days after test 1, healthy young adults and age 50 years or older (n = 40) will be retested for reliability of beam walking performance. Conclusion: We expect to find that beam walking performance vis-à-vis the traditionally used balance outcomes predicts more accurately fall risks and falls. Clinical Trial Registration Number: NCT03532984.
The Validity of the Norwegian Version of the Cognitive Function Instrument
Authors: Michelet Mona , Engedal Knut , Selbæk Geir , Lund Anne , Bjørkløf Guro Hanevold , Horndalsveen Peter Otto , Bergh Sverre
Published: October 2018

Background/Aims: A timely diagnosis of dementia is important, and the Cognitive Function Instrument (CFI) is a newly developed instrument to screen for cognitive decline. The aim of this study was to evaluate the validity and internal consistency of the Norwegian version of the CFI. Methods: We included 265 participants with dementia, mild cognitive impairment (MCI), subjective cognitive impairment (SCI), and a reference group without subjective or assessed cognitive decline. The participants and their relatives answered the self- and proxy-rated versions of the CFI. Results: The Norwegian CFI had power to discriminate between people with dementia and with MCI, SCI, and the reference group. The proxy version had better power than the self-rated version in our participants (area under the curve [AUC] proxy-rated varying from 0.79 to 0.99, AUC self-rated varying from 0.56 to 0.85). Conclusion: The Norwegian CFI was found to be a useful, valid, and robust instrument.
The Number of Items on Each Stroop Test Card Is Unrelated to Its Sensitivity
Authors: Chen Keliang , Huang Lin , Lin Biying , Zhou Yan , Zhao Qianhua , Guo Qihao
Published: October 2018

Objects: Different variations of the Stroop Color-Word Test (SCWT) exist and the tests differ in the number of items on each test card. The optimal number of items per card of the SCWT is unclear. Methods: A comprehensive neuropsychological battery including the SCWT was administered to 237 cognitively normal controls (NC), 221 patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and 160 patients with Alzheimer’s disease (AD). We compared the accuracy for different items of card C (SCWT-C10accuracy, SCWT-C24accuracy, and SCWT-C50accuracy) in distinguishing patients with MCI and AD from NC. Results: The correct responses for different items of card C were ranked in the order: NC > MCI > AD group and mild AD > moderate AD, except for SCWT-C24accuracy. The validity of SCWT-C24accuracy was similar to that of SCWT-C50accuracy for discriminating MCI and AD from NC, as well as different levels of AD. Conclusion: We concluded that the number of items on the accuracy of the response was unrelated to its sensitivity to deficits and we preferred the 24-item version in daily clinical use.
The Interconnected Histories of Endocrinology and Eligibility in Women’s Sport
Authors: Rogol Alan D. , Pieper Lindsay Parks
Published: October 2018

This report illustrates the links between history, sport, endocrinology, and genetics to show the ways in which historical context is key to understanding the current conversations and controversies about who may compete in the female category in elite sport. The International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) introduced hyperandrogenemia regulations for women’s competitions in 2011, followed by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for the 2012 Olympics. The policies concern female athletes who naturally produce higher-than-average levels of testosterone and want to compete in the women’s category. Hyperandrogenemia guidelines are the current effort in a long series of attempts to determine women’s eligibility scientifically. Scientific endeavors to control who may participate as a woman illustrate the impossibility of neatly classifying competitors by sex and discriminate against women with differences of sex development (also called intersex by some).
Mechanism for the Decision of Ovarian Surface Epithelial Stem Cells to Undergo Neo-Oogenesis or Ovarian Tumorigenesis
Authors: Xu Jiao , Zheng Tuochen , Hong Wenli , Ye Haifeng , Hu Chuan , Zheng Yuehui
Published: October 2018

The ovary is surrounded by a whitish layer of mesodermally derived ovarian surface epithelium (OSE) that lines the intraembryonic celom and comprises simple squamous to cuboidal to low pseudostratified columnar epithelial cells. Its integrity is maintained by simple desmosomes, incomplete tight junctions, several integrins and cadherins. Recent research has found that ovarian stem cells (OSCs) exist within the OSE and may be responsible for both neo-oogenesis and ovarian cancer during adult life. The factors determining whether OSCs undergo neo-oogenesis or ovarian cancer are of great interest to researchers and clinicians. Accumulating evidence suggests the mechanism for the decision of ovarian surface epithelial stem cells to undergo either neo-oogenesis or ovarian cancer transformation may comprise both internal and external factors. Here, we review recent progress on how the internal factors, including genes, signaling pathways and lncRNA: OSE stem cells mediate the development and progression of ovarian cancer through various genes such as p53, KRAS, BRAF, and PTEN, and mutations in PIK3CA, and through various signaling pathways, including TGF-B pathway, Wnt signaling pathway, Notch signaling pathway, NF-kB signal transducer and transcriptional activator 3 (STAT3) pathway and Hedghog (HH) pathway. A series of expressions of IncRNA have changed in epithelial ovarian cancer tissues and cell lines compared to normal ovarian tissues and cell lines. As well as external factors, including incessant ovulation, gonadotropin and chronicinflammation: Frequent ovulation, without long-term dormancy, increases the risk of illness, because repeated rupture and repair at the ovulation site provides an opportunity for the accumulation of genetic aberrations; FSH affects all aspects of ovarian cancer metastasis, such as inhibition of apoptosis, through Induction of increased expression of VEGFA (VEGF) to support tumor growth, promote vascular growth, and possibly alter certain oncogenic pathways, thereby promoting proliferation and invasive phenotypic inflammation contributes to tumorigenesis, which help determine whether OSCs undergo neo-oogenesis or ovarian tumorigenesis. Understanding this issue is critical for developing novel strategies for premature ovarian failure and ovarian cancer prevention and therapy.
Homocysteine Aggravates Intestinal Epithelial Barrier Dysfunction in Rats with Experimental Uremia
Authors: Liang Shanshan , Liu Sixiu , Liu Hua , He Xin , Sun Lingshuang , Chen Lei , Wei Meng , Gao Fanfan , Jiang Hongli
Published: October 2018

Background/Aims: Previous studies have shown that homocysteine (Hcy) is an important intestinal-derived uremic toxin. However, whether Hcy is involved in the epithelial barrier dysfunction observed in uremia remains unclear. This study aimed to investigate the effect of Hcy on intestinal permeability and intestinal barrier structure and function in adenine-induced uremic rats. Methods: Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into five groups: normal control (group NC), Hcy (group H), uremia (group U), uremia + Hcy (group UH), and uremia + Hcy + VSL#3 (group UHV). Experimental uremia was induced by intragastric adenine administration, and Hcy was injected subcutaneously. The animal models were assessed for renal function and pathological tissue staining. The pathological changes of intestinal tissue were observed by hematoxylin and eosin staining and electron microscopy. The serum and intestinal tissue levels of Hcy, interleukin (IL)-6, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, superoxide dismutase (SOD), and malondialdehyde (MDA) as well as serum endotoxin and intestinal permeability were assessed. The levels of the tight junction proteins claudin-1, occludin, and zonula occludens-1 (ZO-1) were assessed by western blotting. Results: Blood analyses and renal pathology indicated that experimental uremia was induced successfully. Pathological damage to intestinal structure was most obvious in group UH. Serum and tissue Hcy, serum endotoxin, and intestinal permeability were significantly elevated in group UH. The protein levels of claudin-1, occludin, and ZO-1 were decreased to various degrees in group UH compared with groups NC, H, and U. The serum and tissue levels of IL-6, TNF-α, and MDA were significantly increased, while SOD activity was markedly decreased. Supplementation with the probiotic VSL#3 improved these parameters to various degrees and up-regulated the abundance of tight junction proteins, which indicated a role for Hcy in the increase of intestinal permeability and destruction of the epithelial barrier in uremia. Conclusion: Hcy aggravates the increase of intestinal permeability and destruction of the epithelial barrier by stimulating inflammatory and oxidative damage. Probiotic administration can ameliorate this damage by reducing the levels of Hcy-induced inflammation and oxidation.
Histological indicators of cutaneous lesions caused by electrocution, flame burn and impact abrasion
Authors: Sangita Chaurasia , Garima Goel , Jayanthi Yadav , Arneet Arora , Neelkamal Kapoor
Published: October 2018

Cutaneous electrocution marks are the key indicator that aid forensic pathologists in establishing electrocution as the cause of death, especially when crime scene and internal autopsy findings do not provide significant information. The gross findings of electrocution mark are often confused with impact abrasion and the burns produced by high voltage flash are often indistinguishable with flame burns. The present study aims to identify cutaneous light microscopic histological indicators, which are peculiar to electrocution marks, burns and impact abrasions. Cutaneous tissue samples from injury sites and healthy areas were collected from 45 autopsy cases and examined under light microscope. The histological changes observed were intra-epidermal separation of cells, sub-epidermal separation, coagulative necrosis in the epidermis and dermis, epidermal and dermal cell nuclear elongation and streaming, pyknotic tightly packed epidermal nuclei, dark staining of epidermal nuclei, homogenization of dermal collagen, and vascular dilatation, congestion, hemorrhage and thrombosis. The study revealed that certain histological changes are helpful in differentiating electrocution mark from other types of injuries, which present themselves in various types morphologically and thus facilitate correct diagnosis during autopsy. Pyknotic and tightly packed epidermal nuclei was found characteristic of electrocution mark produced by high voltage current.
Book review: Suresh Chandra Ghosh, Essays on Modern India
Authors: Saha Suhrita
Published: October 2018

Suresh Chandra Ghosh, Essays on Modern India. Hyderabad: Orient BlackSwan, 2017, 128 pp., ₹350 (paperback). ISBN: 978-93-86392-09-1.
Book review: Sujit Kumar Chattopadhyay, Gender Socialization and the Making of Gender in the Indian Context
Authors: Das Sarmistha
Published: October 2018

Sujit Kumar Chattopadhyay, Gender Socialization and the Making of Gender in the Indian Context. New Delhi: SAGE Publications, 2018, 273 pp., ₹895 (hardback), ISBN: 978-93-866-0256-5.
Book review: Vidya Rajiv Yeravdekar and Gauri Tiwari, Internationalization of Higher Education in India
Authors: Kumar Naresh
Published: October 2018

Vidya Rajiv Yeravdekar and Gauri Tiwari, Internationalization of Higher Education in India. New Delhi: SAGE Publications, 2017, xliii + 285 pp., ₹895 (hardbound). ISBN: 978-93-860-4216-3.
Post-concussion syndrome and pre-existing mood disorder: A case report
Authors: Tucker Price S , DeCastro Alexei O , Brock Clive D
Published: October 2018

Sport-related concussions in youth and adolescent athletes most commonly resolve within one week without residual symptoms, with athletes resuming full participation following return to play guidelines. A small percentage of athletes have persistent symptoms that cause significant morbidity, some of whom are ultimately diagnosed with post-concussion syndrome. In these athletes, symptoms in the emotional domain can be more prolonged than other domains, with athletes reporting anxiety and depression months to years following injury. A prior personal or family history of pre-existing mood disorder or attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder increases the risk of a prolonged duration of symptoms. In this case series, we discuss two cases of post-concussion syndrome in adolescent athletes with a past personal or family history of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, anxiety, and depression treated by a combination of cognitive behavioral therapy and medication with ongoing persistent symptoms. There is increased need for mental health screening in all athletes to identify individuals at risk for post-concussion syndrome. Early identification of at-risk individuals allows the interdisciplinary care team to discuss expectations for the athlete and family regarding duration of symptoms.
Subsidiary upgrading and regional innovation policies: The case of Valeo lighting Systems Spain and the Andalusian Plastic Innovation Centre
Authors: Quesada-Vázquez José , Rodríguez-Cohard Juan Carlos
Published: October 2018

This article explores the impact of regional innovation policies in the upgrading of multinational subsidiaries. To this end, it analyses the design and implementation of a cluster organization, the Andalusian Plastic Innovation Technology Centre, created in 2005 by the Regional Government to support the technological development of firms located in an Foreign Direct Investment (FDI)-generated agglomeration. Nowadays, ANDALTEC has ‘de facto’ turned into the research and development department of Valeo lighting Spain, playing a key role in the upgrading of the subsidiary and acting as a barrier to avoid relocation. Through this narrative, we shall witness how subsidiary managers, as policy entrepreneurs, enrolled and mobilized local actors to promote into the political agenda the creation of the innovation centre. The case illustrates that cluster policies are far more complex than portrayed in conventional accounts based on the heroic policy maker. They are designed and implemented in extremely uncertain and complex multi-actor and multi-level environments easing the way to customization or capture by special interests.
The anti-Blackness of global capital
Authors: Bledsoe Adam , Wright Willie Jamaal
Published: October 2018

This paper seeks to offer a new perspective on the interrelated questions of globalized capitalism and anti-Blackness. We engage with current geographical work on the question of Blackness, highlighting the ways in which prevailing forms of global capital accumulation—which take shape in numerous spatial and political practices around the world—coincide with acts of anti-Blackness. In recognizing the connections between capitalism and anti-Black violence, however, we choose not to frame anti-Blackness as an effect of capitalist relations. Rather, we insist that anti-Blackness remains a necessary precondition for the perpetuation of capitalism, as the perpetual expansion of capitalist practices requires “empty” spaces open for appropriation—a condition made possible through the modern assumption of Black a-spatiality. Drawing on theoretical discussions of both global capital and anti-Blackness, empirical examples of shifting global spatial-racial regimes, and the discursive and material practices of Black Lives Matter, the Movement for Black Lives, and the Afro-Brazilian community Ilha de Maré, this paper attempts to forge new geographical conversations regarding current capitalist practices and the matter of Black lives.
Fluoxetine exposure in adolescent and adult female mice decreases cocaine and sucrose preference later in life
Authors: Flores-Ramirez Francisco J , Garcia-Carachure Israel , Sanchez David O , Gonzalez Celene , Castillo Samuel A , Arenivar Miguel A , Themann Anapaula , Lira Omar , Rodriguez Minerva , Preciado-Piña Joshua , Iñiguez Sergio D
Published: October 2018

Background:

Preclinical evidence from male subjects indicates that exposure to psychotropic medications, during early development, results in long-lasting altered responses to reward-related stimuli. However, it is not known if exposure to the antidepressant fluoxetine, in female subjects specifically, changes sensitivity to natural and drug rewards, later in life.

Aims:

The aim of this work was to investigate if exposure to fluoxetine mediates enduring changes in sensitivity to the rewarding properties of cocaine and sucrose, using female mice as a model system.

Methods:

We exposed C57BL/6 female mice to fluoxetine (250 mg/L in their drinking water) for 15 consecutive days, either during adolescence (postnatal day 35–49) or adulthood (postnatal day 70–84). Twenty-one days later, mice were examined on their behavioral reactivity to cocaine (0, 2.5, 5, 7.5 mg/kg) using the conditioned place preference paradigm, or assessed on the two-bottle sucrose (1%) test.

Results:

We found that regardless of age of antidepressant exposure, female mice pre-exposed to fluoxetine displayed reliable conditioning to the cocaine-paired compartment. However, when compared to respective age-matched controls, antidepressant pre-exposure decreased the magnitude of conditioning at the 5 and 7.5 mg/kg cocaine doses. Furthermore, fluoxetine pre-exposure reduced sucrose preference without altering total liquid intake.

Conclusions:

The data suggest that pre-exposure to fluoxetine, during adolescence or adulthood, results in a prolonged decrease in sensitivity to the rewarding properties of both natural and drug rewards in female C57BL/6 mice.
Chronic methylphenidate treatment during adolescence has long-term effects on monoaminergic function
Authors: Di Miceli Mathieu , Omoloye Adesina , Gronier Benjamin
Published: October 2018

Background:

Psychostimulants like methylphenidate or D-amphetamine are often prescribed for attention deficit and hyperactivity disorders in children. Whether such drugs can be administered into a developing brain without consequences in adulthood is still an open question.

Methods:

Here, using in vivo extracellular electrophysiology in anesthetised preparations, combined with behavioural assays, we have examined the long-term consequences in adulthood of a chronic methylphenidate oral administration (5 mg/kg/day, 15 days) in early adolescent (post-natal day 28) and late adolescent (post-natal day 42) rats, by evaluating body weight change, sucrose preference (indicator of anhedonia), locomotor sensitivity to D-amphetamine and electrical activities of ventral tegmental area dopamine and dorsal raphe nucleus serotonin neurons.

Results:

Chronic methylphenidate treatment during early or late adolescence did not induce weight deficiencies and anhedonia-like behaviours at adulthood. However, it increased bursting activities of dorsal raphe nucleus serotonin neurons. Furthermore, chronic methylphenidate treatment during early but not during late adolescence enhanced D-amphetamine-induced rearing activity, as well as ventral tegmental area dopamine cell excitability (firing, burst and population activity), associated with a partial desensitisation of dopamine D2 auto-receptors.

Conclusions:

We have demonstrated here that early, but not late, adolescent exposure to oral methylphenidate may induce long-lasting effects on monoamine neurotransmission. The possible clinical implication of these data will be discussed.
Dynamic contrast-enhanced computed tomography in the treatment evaluation of patients with colorectal liver metastases treated with ablation: a feasibility study
Authors: Andersen Iben R , Thorup Kennet , Jepsen Betina N , Mortensen Frank V , Nielsen Dennis T , Rasmussen Finn
Published: October 2018

Background

A major concern following ablation treatment is the risk of insufficient heating leaving vital tumor tissue at the treatment site, leading to recurrent disease and reduced survival. Dynamic contrast-enhanced computed tomography (DCE-CT) has the potential to evaluate the treatment site in an objective and standardized manner and provide a marker of recurrent disease.

Purpose

To evaluate the feasibility of measuring changes in the dynamic parameters of the treatment site following ablation of colorectal liver metastases, assessed by DCE-CT using a novel evaluation method, applying a circumferential semi-automated attenuation-restricted volume of interest (VOI).

Material and Methods

Forty-three treatment sites following ablation in 39 patients with colorectal liver metastases were evaluated using DCE-CT. A total of 159 DCE-CT scans were analyzed using the circumferential semi-automatized VOI.

Results

We found no significant differences in the dynamic parameters over time between a group of patients with recurrent disease and a group without. No consistent associations between time to recurrence and the dynamic histogram parameters were identified.

Conclusion

In this exploratory feasibility study, we were not able to differentiate between the two groups (recurrence/no recurrence) using the dynamic parameters derived from the standardized circumferential VOI. In time, the method may have potential to evaluate the treatment site following ablation in an objective and standardized manner. Currently, the method needs further refinement before clinical implementation.
Interactive relationships between industrial, urban, agricultural, information, and green development
Authors: Li Wei , Xi Yongqin , Lu Jiayang , Wu Feimei , Wu Pengfei
Published: October 2018

Achieving the green development, industrial development, urban development, agricultural development, and information development (five developments) has become a current modernization strategy in China. To promote the five developments from an integrative perspective, this study first analyzed the interactive relationships between the five developments, then a panel vector autoregression model and impulse response functions were applied to evaluate the dynamic impacts between the five developments. The empirical results show that (1) The delivery times of the impacts between each development were approximately one year and all the impacts decreased over time. Many impacts disappeared after the fourth year, whereas the impact of urban development on itself were longer lasting; (2) For each development, its current level is a dominant factor for the future development.  Meanwhile, the promoting impacts from other developments were also essential, where their strength and trend were different; (3) There were certain conflicts between the five developments, especially for the relationships between the green development and other developments.
“It's the bride's day”: The paradox of women's emancipation
Authors: Froschauer Ursula , Durrheim Kevin
Published: October 2018

The white wedding is a traditional ritual, governed by heteronormative conventions, which (re)produces stereotypical and patriarchal gender norms. In this study 10 white, South African, middle-class, heterosexual, newlywed couples were interviewed about their wedding ceremonies. The interviews were analysed using Parker's (2005) framework for discourse analytic reading. This helped us analyse two related discourses, the “fairy-tale” and “bride's day” discourse that allowed couples to justify gender unequal practices. The findings suggest that wedding discourses encourage (1) the objectification of women and their treatment in a benevolently sexist manner, (2) the unequal distribution of wedding labour between the bride and groom and, ultimately, (3) the perpetuation of women's subordination in heterosexual relationships. Participating in the rituals of the white wedding maintains taken-for-granted heteronormative discourses that undermine gender equality and, ultimately, women's emancipation.
‘And Sarah Heard It in the Tent Door’ (Genesis 18, 10): Uncovering Sarah’s Covenant
Authors: Lederman Daniely Dvora
Published: October 2018

The hypothesis of this article is that Sarah was the equal of Abraham in establishing the faith of the Hebrew nation, and therefore, she was also a party to a constitutive covenant that was most likely concealed and omitted from the canonical version of the Bible. First, this article introduces research claims regarding Sarah’s central role as a formative leading matriarch. The article then goes on to examine the significance of the tradition of the covenant with Abraham in terms of cultural symbolism. And finally, the article tries to identify this symbolic significance in the Hebrew scriptures in a feminine context, assuming that ritual or ceremonial expressions may be associated with Sarah’s covenant as a founding matriarch in Israel’s religion and heritage.
Paul Beeson (1908–2006), Distinguished Physician
Authors: Hirschmann JV
Published: October 2018

Paul Bruce Beeson (1908–2006) was a preeminent academic physician in both the United States and Great Britain. He attended medical school at McGill University in Canada and then trained at the University of Pennsylvania and Harvard University. During his career, he was Chairman of the Departments of Medicine at Emory University and at Yale University and then became Nuffield Professor at Oxford University. He ended his career at the Veterans Administration in Seattle as a Distinguished Physician. He was a skilled administrator and an excellent and admired clinician. He was also a productive scientist, who discovered interleukin-1, studied the pathogenesis of urinary tract infections and endocarditis, and delineated the causes of prolonged fever of unknown origin.
The Profession of Social Work and the Legacy of Kübler-Ross
Authors: Clark Elizabeth J. , Kaufer Stuart D.
Published: October 2018

Social work is a practice-based profession. As such, it is important to understand our roots and the basis for our interventions, to assess continuing validity, and to determine if the assumptions and methodologies we use still fit. This article focuses on the tenets put forth by psychiatrist Elisabeth Kübler-Ross 50 years ago and describes how the profession of social work extended and expanded her pioneering work to define a robust area of social work practice in palliative and end-of-life care.
Advances in the mechanics of undamageable materials: General three-dimensional formulation
Authors: Voyiadjis George Z , Kattan Peter I
Published: October 2018

The theory of undamageable materials is extended to general states of deformation and damage. Undamageable materials are hypothetical materials that do not undergo any damage processes under the action of forces within the framework of continuum damage mechanics. In these types of materials, the damage variable remains zero throughout the deformation process. The authors developed previously the theory of undamageable materials for the one-dimensional case using scalars. In this work, the general three-dimensional formulation is presented using tensors. In this regard, a system of nonlinear partial differential equations governing the mechanics of undamageable materials is obtained. An attempt is made to solve the governing system using one single simplifying assumption. It is hope that the theoretical formulation presented in this work will open the way for future development of these types of new materials in practical applications.
Alzheimer Disease: Perspectives from Epidemiology and Genetics
Authors: Haines Jonathan L.
Published: October 2018

Alzheimer disease (AD) is a huge and growing societal problem with upwards of 35% of the population over the age of 80 developing the disease. AD results in a loss of memory, the ability to make reasoned and sound decisions, and ultimately the inability to take care of oneself. AD has an impact not only on the sufferer, but their caretakers and loved ones, who must take on a costly and time-consuming burden of care. AD is found in virtually all racial and ethnic groups. Genetic influences on AD are substantial, and there has been a 30 year history of both success and failure. Mutations for rare early onset forms of the disease have been identified, but this information has not yet led to an effective treatment. Multiple common genetic variations have also been identified, and have led to new insights into the potential role of microglia cells in addition to neuronal cells in the brain. Despite intensive efforts, a significant portion of the genetic etiology of AD remains unknown and must be identified.
Perspective from Clinical Research: Ethical Issues in Alzheimer's Disease Research
Authors: Mintzer Jacobo
Published: October 2018

This paper attempts to bring to the attention of the readers a concept that broadens ethical considerations for Alzheimer's disease research. We propose we move away from the ethical paradigm that focuses on avoidance of coercion for participation in studies as well as privacy and safety to a more inclusive paradigm that will not only include the principles outlined above but will also guarantee access to new treatments for individuals that participate in research and other members of society. Specifically, if the research being performed results in a new treatment for Alzheimer's disease, would the individuals participating in the research and other members of their community have access to and benefit from these treatments, given the availability of financial and other resources in the society that will allow for the implementation of these treatments. This paper will propose a model that will facilitate the achievement of these broader ethical considerations.
Integrating Citizenship, Embodiment, and Relationality: Towards a Reconceptualization of Dance and Dementia in Long-Term Care
Authors: Kontos Pia , Grigorovich Alisa
Published: October 2018

Dance, as aesthetic self-expression, is a unique arts-based program that combines the physical benefits of exercise with psychosocial therapeutic benefits. While dance has also been shown to support empowerment, meaningful self-expression, and pleasurable experience, it is rarely adopted to support these aspects of engagement in the context of dementia care. The instrumental reduction of dance to its application as a therapeutic tool can be traced to the contemporary movement towards cognitive science with an emphasis on embodied cognition. This has effectively elided a consideration of how the body itself, separate and apart from cognition, could be a source of intelligibility, inventiveness, and creativity. We argue for the need to broaden the therapeutic model of dance to more fully support embodied and creative self-expression by persons living with dementia. To achieve this, we explore how a relational model of citizenship that recognizes corporeality and relationality as fundamental to human existence brings a new and critical dimension to understanding the importance of dance in the context of dementia. Drawing on this model, we articulate a new kind of ethic characterized by a pre-reflective intercorporeal sensibility that requires the mobilization of public structures and practices to cultivate a relational environment for individuals living with dementia that supports human flourishing.
Normative Concerns with High-Risk Pools
Authors: Cynamon Jeremy Kingston
Published: October 2018

Despite a significant amount of literature debating the efficiency of high-risk pools in health insurance, dramatically less has been written about their normative implications. The present article takes the route less traveled by setting aside the question of efficiency to argue that the use of high-risk pools creates some serious normative concerns. The article explores these concerns by dividing them on two fronts. First, as regards the social-recognitional status of those who are forced into the high-risk pool. Second, as regards a general concern of distributive justice, namely fairness in access to resources. The author argues that regardless of the veracity of arguments which laud the efficiency of high-risk pools, their use in health insurance is unjust because of the herein explained implications for social recognition and distributive justice.
Kinshipwrecking: John Smith’s adoption and the Pocahontas myth in settler ontologies
Authors: Bryant Rachel
Published: October 2018

John Smith’s Generall Historie of Virginia, New-England, and the Summer Isles (1624) canonized a settler colonial narrative activity that I call kinshipwrecking—a conventional mode of storytelling that destroys and moves to supplant traditional Indigenous kinship structures and obligations. Smith’s archetypal refusal of Indigenous kinship is arguably the most important element of his text, and yet it has been treated as an afterthought in most previous scholarship. His Historie depicts the process of colonization as a war between English patriarchal governance and Indigenous kinship systems—the latter of which are portrayed as power structures that must be infiltrated (through alliance or adoption) and exploited by the English and destroyed/transformed from within. The colony Smith wrote about is today remembered as the first permanent English settlement on Turtle Island, and Settlers in what some now call Canada and the USA continue to live their lives within the legacy of Smith’s archetypal and systematic rejection of Indigenous kinship. Using Mattaponi oral history as a counter narrative that both challenges and contextualizes Smith’s in/famous tale, this article considers the Settler mythology of Pocahontas and Wahunsenaca (Powhatan) through the lens of Indigenous customary or traditional adoption practices.
The EU social pillar
Authors: Schoukens Paul , Barrio Alberto , Montebovi Saskia
Published: October 2018

With atypical work gaining popularity, platform work seems to combine all the elements which, by deviating significantly from the standard employment relationship, challenge social security systems. After an overview of the features of the standard employment relationship and the different ways in which non-standard forms of work diverge from them, the article focuses on the nature of platform work. It then analyses how platform work is regulated in five European social security systems (i.e. Germany, France, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Belgium), and how this regulation may fare when analysed under the lens of the recent European Commission’s proposal for a Council Recommendation on access to social protection for workers and the self-employed. The article concludes by highlighting the need for further adaptation of social security systems to the specific features of platform work, and by noting the risks of a regulatory approach towards this new form of work being dominated by the exclusion of low-paid work from the scope of labour-related social insurance schemes.
Minimum income protection and EU coordination
Authors: Wang Jinxian , van Vliet Olaf , Goudswaard Kees
Published: October 2018

A number of studies suggest that the Europeanisation process is having a profound impact on national labour market policies. Nevertheless, rather little research has been devoted to the development of social assistance schemes across countries and over time. Relying on two new indicators, benefit levels and replacement rates, we examined the relationship between the Lisbon Strategy and changes in national social assistance benefits. We found no robust results for the first years of the Lisbon Strategy. However, after its re-launch in 2005, there was a positive association between the Lisbon Strategy and social assistance benefit levels. In addition to the Lisbon Strategy, domestic political, institutional and several economic factors were significantly associated with social assistance benefits.
Media Depictions of “Unacceptable” Workplace Violence Toward Nurses
Authors: Hoyle Louise P. , Smith Emma , Mahoney Catherine , Kyle Richard G.
Published: October 2018

Violence and aggression toward nurses are global concerns. Despite repeated research on causal factors and widespread zero tolerance campaigns, rates of violence and aggression have not declined. Violence and aggression toward nurses can negatively affect their health and ultimately patient care. Media reporting of violence and aggression toward nurses might shape people’s perceptions of the profession, perhaps impeding nurse recruitment and retention efforts in the face of global nursing shortages. The purpose of this study was to determine how print media in Scotland depicted reports of violence and aggression toward nurses. We used qualitative thematic analysis of newspaper articles and online news reporting of incidents of violence and aggression toward nurses between June 1, 2006 and May 31, 2016. Searches of Nexis and British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) News Online databases returned 92 relevant newspaper articles. Standards for reporting qualitative research informed presentation of results. Key themes included blame (of perpetrator or senior management), helplessness (of nurses specifically or victimization), culture (social or organizational), and prevention and reduction measures. We concluded that media coverage of violence and aggression was overwhelmingly negative and reductionist. Normalization of violence and aggression was an accepted and acceptable part of the nursing role. We conclude with recommendations for policy and call for nurse leaders to challenge this culture of acceptability, especially to support recruitment and retention of nursing staff.
The Effect of PAI-1 Gene Variants and PAI-1 Plasma Levels on Development of Thrombophilia in Patients With Klinefelter Syndrome
Authors: Erkal Burcin , Kalayci Yigin Aysel , Palanduz Sukru , Dasdemir Selcuk , Seven Mehmet
Published: October 2018

Klinefelter syndrome (KS) is a common sex chromosome-related abnormality seen among men. KS negatively affects spermatogenesis and testosterone production. It increases the risk of thrombosis but its molecular mechanism has not been well described yet. Elevated PAI-1 is a risk factor for thrombosis. The rs1799889 polymorphism located in the promoter region of the PAI-1 gene was detected in patients with deep venous thrombosis. In this study, the PAI-1 gene variant and its plasma levels in KS patients were examined. Forty-one KS patients (47, XXY) and 50 age-matched healthy controls participated. DNA was isolated from peripheral blood and a real-time PCR method was used to detect known SNPs in the PAI-1 gene. In addition, PAI-1 plasma levels were measured by using ELISA method. There was no significant difference between PAI-1 gene polymorphisms of KS patients and controls ( p > .05). The significant difference was observed in PAI-1 plasma levels between two groups (high PAI-1 plasma level in KS patients compared to controls). The patients’ group mean was 55.13 and control group mean in PAI-1 level was 29.89 ng/ml ( p = .020). Clinical features related to thromboembolism especially varicose veins were detected in KS patients frequently ( p = .04). These results suggest that thromboembolism related to clinical features is seen more frequently in cases with KS, but it may not be dependent only on the PAI-1 gene polymorphism structure.
Self-Reported Likelihood of Seeking Social Worker Help Among Older Men in Israel
Authors: Kagan Maya , Itzick Michal , Even-Zohar Ahuva , Zychlinski Ester
Published: October 2018

The current study assessed the association between demographic factors (age, relationship status, and education), psychosocial factors (self-rated health and self-reported loneliness), and factors related to attitudes and behaviors associated with seeking help (prior experience with social workers, attitudes towards social workers, and the stigma attached to seeking help from social workers, and the self-reported likelihood of seeking social workers’ help among older men in Israel. The data were collected through structured questionnaires, administered to a sample of 256 older men. The findings indicated several avoidance factors which might discourage older men from seeking social worker help. Older men who are more educated, experience less loneliness, report lower self-rated health, have no prior experience with social workers, have less positive attitudes towards social workers and higher stigma attached to seeking social workers’ help, are less likely to seek social workers’ help. The research conclusion is that it is important to develop tools and interventions aimed at helping older men deal with such avoidance factors affecting their tendency to refrain from seeking social worker help, as well as to develop practices adapted to their unique needs.