bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
TREATMENT DELAYS FOR PATIENTS EXITING AN AORTIC ANEURYSM SURVEILLANCE PROGRAMME
Authors: Oram Byron J. , Buckenham Timothy M. , Roake Justin A. , Lewis David R.
Published: February 2008

Background:  We have previously reported abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA)‐related mortality in patients who have completed surveillance. This study investigates the journey time of patients who exited the AAA surveillance programme at Christchurch Hospital and underwent elective repair to determine the factors contributing to the interval between completing surveillance and undergoing surgical repair.

Methods:  A retrospective review of patient notes was carried out for 25 patients who underwent elective repair of their AAA after exiting the surveillance programme between November 2000 and September 2005.

Results:  The median time interval between exiting the programme and undergoing repair for patients fit for repair was 6 months. During this waiting period, there were two aneurysm‐related deaths. Analysis of the patient journeys showed that those with significant comorbidity, that is, patients who required additional investigation by other clinicians (n = 7), had a median time to repair of 35 weeks. This was substantially increased compared with a median time of 22.5 weeks to repair for the rest (n = 18).

Conclusion:  At our institution the median time for completion of surveillance to repair was 6 months. An AAA with a diameter of 55 mm has an expected risk of rupture of 5%, with mortality approaching 90%. In our series, mortality was 4.9% (two patients died while awaiting repair), consistent with expected figures. Factors contributing to this delay of 6 months to repair were identified. Modifications to this journey are suggested to improve the time interval and therefore hopefully reduce the aneurysm‐related mortality in this group.
TENSILE STRENGTH OF SURGICAL KNOTS IN ABDOMINAL WOUND CLOSURE*
Authors: Fong Eva D. M. , Bartlett Adam S. R. , Malak Sharif , Anderson Iain A.
Published: February 2008

Abdominal wound dehiscence is a surgical catastrophe that can be attributed to patients or technical factors. The technical properties of the monofilament sutures and knots that are commonly used in abdominal closure are poorly understood. The aim of this study was to compare the tensile strength of monofilament sutures tied with conventional knots. To do this, the knot‐holding capacity of four types of knots (square, surgeons', Aberdeen and loop) were tested using three types of gauge 1 monofilament suture, namely nylon, polyglyconate and polydioxanone, using a tensiometer. We found that the knot‐holding capacity of the loop knot was between twofold and threefold greater than all the other knots examined. In comparing suture types, polyglyconate had the highest knot‐holding capacity for all the knots that were examined and there was no difference in the tensile strength of nylon and polyglyconate tied in a square, surgeons' or Aberdeen knot (P < 0.05). In conclusion, our findings suggest that closure of an abdominal wound would be best commenced with a loop knot, using gauge 1 polyglyconate and finished with either an Aberdeen square or surgeons' knot would be appropriate.
LATERAL SUPRAMALLEOLAR FLAP IN RECONSTRUCTION OF PRESSURE ULCERS IN PATIENTS WITH SPINAL CORD INJURY
Authors: Sham Eric , Choi Wai‐Ting , Flood Stephen J.
Published: February 2008

Pressure ulcers are a major source of morbidity in patients with spinal cord injury. Soft tissue reconstruction of pressure ulcers around the lateral malleolar region continues to be a challenge. Numerous techniques have been described in the published reports, each with their own limitations. We review our clinical experience with the lateral supramalleolar flap for reconstruction of difficult lateral malleolar pressure ulcers in patients with spinal cord injury. This study is a retrospective review of all patients who underwent this procedure between 1991 and 2005. This fasciocutaneous flap is raised on a peroneal artery perforator as its pedicle, without compromising the three vessels supplying the foot. A split‐skin graft is placed on the secondary defect. The patient remains in bed for 4–6 weeks before mobilization is allowed. Eight flaps on seven patients were carried out over the study period. Patients’ age ranged from 37 to 67 years (mean 56.6 years). Three patients had procedures carried out on the right and three had on the left. One patient had bilateral procedures. All flaps survived, and there were no recurrences of the pressure areas. One patient had a small area of wound breakdown at the edge of the flap, requiring debridement and split‐skin graft. Another patient developed a seroma under the split‐skin graft over the secondary defect, which resolved with dressings. The lateral supramalleolar flap is a simple, safe and durable flap for lateral malleolar pressure ulcer reconstruction in patients with spinal cord injury.
ANALYSING CLINICAL STUDIES: PRINCIPLES, PRACTICE AND PITFALLS OF KAPLAN–MEIER PLOTS
Authors: Ludbrook John , Royse Alistair G.
Published: February 2008

The problem:  The conventional method for estimating survival over time following an episode of disease or treatment is the Kaplan–Meier (K‐M) technique, which results in a step‐down survival plot, with upper and lower bounds of 1.0 and 0, respectively. The mirror image of this plot represents the cumulative incidence of an adverse event, such as death, with lower and upper bounds of 0 and 1.0, respectively. However, if there are two competing events that can occur during follow up, such as death or relapse, the K‐M technique gives a false picture of the cumulative incidence of either one of these events. This occurs because patients who have died cannot subsequently relapse.

The solution:  When there are two competing events, another technique must be used, which is known, variously, as cumulative incidence analysis, or ‘actual’ (as opposed to actuarial) incidence analysis. An example is given in which there are two competing adverse events following haemopoietic stem cell transplantation for a haematological malignancy: (i) relapse or (ii) transplant‐related death. Our analysis of the example shows that the cumulative probability of relapse is progressively inflated if the traditional K‐M product‐limit method is used rather than actual cumulative incidence analysis. We show how K‐M and actual cumulative survival or incidence analyses can be executed by a handheld calculator for small datasets or by formulae within a computer spreadsheet for large datasets.

Conclusions:  Surgical investigators should not use the K‐M technique to predict cumulative survival or risk if there are two competing adverse events. They should use, instead, the technique of actual cumulative survival or incidence analysis.
Forest microsite effects on community composition of ectomycorrhizal fungi on seedlings of Picea abies and Betula pendula
Authors: Tedersoo Leho , Suvi Triin , Jairus Teele , Kõljalg Urmas
Published: February 2008

Niche differentiation in soil horizons, host species and natural nutrient gradients contribute to the high diversity of ectomycorrhizal fungi in boreal forests. This study aims at documenting the diversity and community composition of ectomycorrhizal fungi of Norway spruce (Picea abies) and silver birch (Betula pendula) seedlings in five most abundant microsites in three Estonian old‐growth forests. Undisturbed forest floor, windthrow mounds and pits harboured more species than brown‐ and white‐rotted wood. Several species of ectomycorrhizal fungi were differentially represented on either hosts, microsites and sites. Generally, the most frequent species in dead wood were also common in forest floor soil. Ordination analyses suggested that decay type determined the composition of EcM fungal community in dead wood. Root connections with in‐growing mature tree roots from below affected the occurrence of certain fungal species on seedling roots systems in dead wood. This study demonstrates that ectomycorrhizal fungi differentially establish in certain forest microsites that is attributable to their dispersal and competitive abilities. Elevated microsites, especially decayed wood, act as seed beds for both ectomycorrhizal forest trees and fungi, thus affecting the succession of boreal forest ecosystems.
Shifts in the relative abundance of ammonia‐oxidizing bacteria and archaea across physicochemical gradients in a subterranean estuary
Authors: Santoro Alyson E. , Francis Christopher A. , De Sieyes Nicholas R. , Boehm Alexandria B.
Published: February 2008

Submarine groundwater discharge to coastal waters can be a significant source of both contaminants and biologically limiting nutrients. Nitrogen cycling across steep gradients in salinity, oxygen and dissolved inorganic nitrogen in sandy ‘subterranean estuaries’ controls both the amount and form of nitrogen discharged to the coastal ocean. We determined the effect of these gradients on betaproteobacterial ammonia‐oxidizing bacteria (β‐AOB) and ammonia‐oxidizing archaea (AOA) in a subterranean estuary using the functional gene encoding ammonia monooxygenase subunit A (amoA). The abundance of β‐AOB was dramatically lower in the freshwater stations compared with saline stations, while AOA abundance remained nearly constant across the study site. This differing response to salinity altered the ratio of β‐AOB to AOA such that bacterial amoA was 30 times more abundant than crenarchaeal amoA at the oxic marine station, but nearly 10 times less abundant at the low‐oxygen fresh and brackish stations. As the location of the brackish mixing zone within the aquifer shifted from landward in winter to oceanward in summer, the location of the transition from a β‐AOB‐dominated to an AOA‐dominated community also shifted, demonstrating the intimate link between microbial communities and coastal hydrology. Analysis of ammonia‐oxidizing enrichment cultures at a range of salinities revealed that AOA persisted solely in the freshwater enrichments where they actively express amoA. Diversity (as measured by total richness) of crenarchaeal amoA was high at all stations and time points, in sharp contrast to betaproteobacterial amoA for which only two sequence types were found. These results offer new insights into the ecology of AOA and β‐AOB by elucidating conditions that may favour the numerical dominance of β‐AOB over AOA in coastal sediments.
Metagenomic retrieval of a ribosomal DNA repeat array from an uncultured marine alveolate
Authors: Massana Ramon , Karniol Baruch , Pommier Thomas , Bodaker Idan , Béjà Oded
Published: February 2008

The aim of this study was to explore the use of large‐scale sequencing to better describe the genome content of naturally occurring, uncultured protists. We constructed a metagenomic fosmid library from a picoplanktonic assemblage (0.2–3 μm size cells) collected at the Blanes Bay Microbial Observatory (Western Mediterranean). Seven clones contained a small‐subunit ribosomal RNA gene (SSU rDNA) affiliating with prasinophytes and uncultured alveolates. One clone (FBB25; 35 kb in size) was completely sequenced and found to be a tandem repeat array (5.5 times) of the rDNA operon, including three rRNA genes (SSU, large‐subunit and 5.8S rDNAs) and three spacer regions (internal transcribed spacers 1, 2 and intergenic spacer). The SSU rDNA of FBB25 affiliated with the marine alveolates group I, cluster 1, and was almost identical to sequences retrieved only in marine surveys from a wide geographic and ecological range. Phylogenetic trees using the different rRNA genes showed FBB25 as an independent branch among the main alveolate groups, but their closest affiliation varied between the SSU tree (dinoflagellates) and the large‐subunit and 5.8S trees (perkinsids). The spacer regions of FBB25 were particularly short when compared with other eukaryotes, indicating a possible genome streamlining in this picoeukaryote. Finally, not a single polymorphism was found in the rDNA repeat array, suggesting that the high SSU rDNA variability typically found in molecular surveys derives from organismal and not intragenomic diversity. This first report on the rDNA genomic structure of an uncultured marine alveolate improves their phylogenetic position and helps interpreting data generated during picoeukaryotic molecular surveys.
Biphasic insulin aspart 30 treatment improves glycaemic control in patients with type 2 diabetes in a clinical practice setting: experience from the PRESENT study
Authors: Khutsoane D. , Sharma S. K. , Almustafa M. , Jang H. C. , Azar S. T. , Danciulescu R. , Shestakova M. , Ayad N. M. A. , Guler S. , Bech O. M. ,   PRESENT Study Group
Published: February 2008

Aim:  The Physicians’ Routine Evaluation of Safety and Efficacy of NovoMix® 30 Therapy (PRESENT) study aims to assess the safety and efficacy of biphasic insulin aspart 30 (BIAsp 30) in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus in routine clinical practice.

Methods:  This was a 6‐month, prospective, multinational, multiethnic observational study involving 21 977 patients from 13 countries (India, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Qatar, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, South Korea, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates). The patients were transferred to BIAsp 30 with or without oral antidiabetic drugs (OADs) from prior treatment with OAD (n = 8583), insulin (n = 5942), OAD + insulin (n = 4673) or diet (i.e. treatment naive) (n = 1707). One thousand and seventy‐two patients had incomplete or no information on previous treatment.

Results:  At 3 and 6 months, significant reductions from baseline were observed in the mean haemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) (−1.33 and −1.81%), fasting plasma glucose (−3.02 and −3.74 mmol/l) and postprandial plasma glucose (−4.76 and −5.82 mmol/l) (p < 0.001). A significantly greater proportion of patients achieved target HbA1c of less than 7% at 3 months (15.3%) and 6 months (27.7%) compared with baseline (4.8%) (p < 0.001). Overall, the mean HbA1c at 6 months was lowered in patients regardless of prior treatment: −2.15% (OAD), −1.45% (insulin), −1.47% (OAD + insulin) and −2.35% (treatment naive). In the overall cohort, the rate of total hypoglycaemia was reduced from 5.4 events per patient‐year at baseline to 2.2 events per patient‐year at study end (p < 0.001). Among prior treatment subgroups, the rates of total hypoglycaemia were reduced from 2.5 to 2.1 events per patient‐year in the OAD group, from 9.6 to 2.2 events per patient‐year in the insulin group and from 7.6 to 2.5 events per patient‐year in the OAD + insulin group but were increased from 1.0 to 1.8 events per patient‐year in the treatment‐naive group (p < 0.001). There were 444 adverse drug reactions (ADRs), including 13 serious ADRs: lipodystrophy (three events), symptoms of generalized hypersensitivity (two events), acute painful neuropathy (one event), worsening of diabetic retinopathy (one event), oedema (one event) and unspecified ADRs (five events).

Conclusion:  The use of BIAsp 30 monotherapy or in combination with OADs in clinical practice was effective and safe in patients with poorly controlled type 2 diabetes mellitus.
From Research to Policy and Back
Authors: Huston Aletha C.
Published: February 2008

Although science policy and social policy have distinct cultures, there are overlapping influences on both. Science policy decisions across the spectrum of basic and applied research are influenced by perceived social utility and the potential for solving current social problems. With the advent of evidence‐based policy requirements, social policymakers increasingly use scientific information, although it constitutes only 1 factor in a mix of ideology, interests, and institutional constraints. The spread of early childhood intervention programs in the United States and elsewhere is one example in which strong, cumulative evidence has contributed to a policy consensus. Developmental scientists can contribute to better science policy and better social policy by strengthening the scientific quality of their evidence and communicating research‐based knowledge more effectively.
Linkages Between Children’s and Their Friends’ Social and Physical Aggression: Evidence for a Gene–Environment Interaction?
Authors: Brendgen Mara , Boivin Michel , Vitaro Frank , Bukowski William M. , Dionne Ginette , Tremblay Richard E. , Pérusse Daniel
Published: February 2008

Based on a sample of 406 seven‐year‐old twins, this study examined whether exposure to friends’ social or physical aggression, respectively, moderates the effect of heritability on children’s own social and physical aggression. Univariate analyses showed that children’s own social and physical aggression were significantly explained by genetic factors, whereas friends’ social and physical aggression represented “true” environmental factors that were unrelated to children’s genetic dispositions. Multivariate analyses further suggested a possible gene–environment interaction in the link between friends’ and children’s physical aggression but not in the link between friends’ and children’s social aggression. Instead, friends’ social aggression was directly related to children’s social aggression, in addition to genetic effects on this behavior. Theoretical and practical implications of these results are discussed.
Mother–Child and Father–Child Mutually Responsive Orientation in the First 2 Years and Children’s Outcomes at Preschool Age: Mechanisms of Influence
Authors: Kochanska Grazyna , Aksan Nazan , Prisco Theresa R. , Adams Erin E.
Published: February 2008

Mechanisms accounting for the effects of mutually responsive orientation (MRO) at 7, 15, and 25 months in 102 mother–child and father–child dyads on child internalization and self‐regulation at 52 months were examined. Two mediators at 38 months were tested: parental power assertion and child self‐representation. For mother–child relationships, the causal pathway involving power assertion was supported for both outcomes. Diminished power assertion fully mediated beneficial effect of mother–child MRO on internalization and partially mediated its effect on self‐regulation. For father–child relationships, MRO predicted self‐regulation, but the mediational paths were unsupported. Paternal power assertion correlated negatively with both outcomes but was not a mediator. Although MRO with both parents correlated with child self‐representation, and it correlated with self‐regulation, this mediational path was unsupported.
Parental Socialization, Vagal Regulation, and Preschoolers’ Anxious Difficulties: Direct Mothers and Moderated Fathers
Authors: Hastings Paul D. , Sullivan Caroline , McShane Kelly E. , Coplan Robert J. , Utendale William T. , Vyncke Johanna D.
Published: February 2008

Parental supportiveness and protective overcontrol and preschoolers’ parasympathetic regulation were examined as predictors of temperamental inhibition, social wariness, and internalizing problems. Lower baseline vagal tone and weaker vagal suppression were expected to mark poorer dispositional self‐regulatory capacity, leaving children more susceptible to the influence of parental socialization. Less supportive mothers had preschoolers with more internalizing problems. One interaction between baseline vagal tone and maternal protective overcontrol, predicting social wariness, conformed to the moderation hypothesis. Conversely, vagal suppression moderated several links between paternal socialization and children’s anxious difficulties in the expected pattern. There were more links between mothers’ self‐reported parenting and child outcomes than were noted for direct observations of maternal behavior, whereas the opposite tended to be true for fathers.
Korean Preschoolers’ Advanced Inhibitory Control and Its Relation to Other Executive Skills and Mental State Understanding
Authors: Oh Seungmi , Lewis Charlie
Published: February 2008

This study assessed executive function and mental state understanding in Korean preschoolers. In Experiment 1, forty 3.5‐ and 4‐year‐old Koreans showed ceiling performance on inhibition and switching measures, although their performance on working memory and false belief was comparable to that of Western children. Experiment 2 revealed a similar advantage in a sample of seventy‐six 3‐ and 4‐year‐old Koreans compared with sixty‐four age‐matched British children. Korean children younger than 3.5 years of age showed ceiling effects on some inhibition measures despite more stringent protocols and the link between executive function and mental state understanding was not as strong as in the British sample. The results raise key questions about the nature and development of the executive system and its relation to social understanding.
Sensory Processing Disorder in a Primate Model: Evidence From a Longitudinal Study of Prenatal Alcohol and Prenatal Stress Effects
Authors: Schneider Mary L. , Moore Colleen F. , Gajewski Lisa L. , Larson Julie A. , Roberts Andrew D. , Converse Alexander K. , DeJesus Onofre T.
Published: February 2008

Disrupted sensory processing, characterized by over‐ or underresponsiveness to environmental stimuli, has been reported in children with a variety of developmental disabilities. This study examined the effects of prenatal stress and moderate‐level prenatal alcohol exposure on tactile sensitivity and its relationship to striatal dopamine system function in thirty‐eight 5‐ to 7‐year‐old rhesus monkeys. The monkeys were from four experimental conditions: (a) prenatal alcohol exposed, (b) prenatal stress, (c) prenatal alcohol exposed + prenatal stress, and (d) sucrose controls. Increased D2 receptor binding in the striatum, evaluated using positron emission tomography neuroimaging, was related to increased withdrawal (aversion) responses to repetitive tactile stimuli and reduced habituation across trials. Moreover, prenatal stress significantly increased overall withdrawal responses to repetitive tactile stimulation compared to no prenatal stress.
Looking Back to the Future: Māori and Pakeha Mother–Child Birth Stories
Authors: Reese Elaine , Hayne Harlene , MacDonald Shelley
Published: February 2008

Māori adults have earlier first memories than adults in any culture studied to date. To test the role of early memory socialization in this advantage, Māori (n= 15) and New Zealand European (or Pakeha, n= 17) mothers told birth stories and stories of shared past events to their children (3–4 or 7–8 years). Compared to Pakeha mothers, Māori mothers elaborated more in the birth stories, relative to their elaborations in stories about shared past events, and included more references to relational time and internal states in their birth stories. These data provide the first empirical evidence that Māori children experience a richer narrative environment than Pakeha children for significant events in their past.
Further Development in Social Reasoning Revealed in Discourse Irony Understanding
Authors: Filippova Eva , Astington Janet Wilde
Published: February 2008

This study describes the development of social reasoning in school‐age children. An irony task is used to assess 5‐, 7‐, and 9‐year‐olds’ (N= 72) and adults’ (N= 24) recursive understanding of others’ minds. Guttman scale analysis demonstrates that in order to understand a speaker’s communicative intention, a child needs to recognize the speaker’s belief, the detection of which depends on the ability to identify the discrepancy between the intended and the expressed meaning. Only children who understand these aspects of mind are able to reflect on the speaker’s attitude. Theory of mind and language ability make unique contributions to children’s interpretation of irony over and above the impact of age and memory, but attunement to expressive prosody does not.
Peer Group Contexts of Girls’ and Boys’ Academic Experiences
Authors: Crosnoe Robert , Riegle‐Crumb Catherine , Field Sam , Frank Kenneth , Muller Chandra
Published: February 2008

Girls have caught up with boys in math course taking in high school but reasons for taking math still differ by gender. This study, therefore, investigated gender differences in the linkage between peer relations and math course taking by applying multilevel modeling to a nationally representative data set that includes peer networks and school transcripts (N= 6,457 American 9th to 11th graders, aged 13–19). For all adolescents, math course taking was associated with the achievement of their close friends and, to a lesser extent, their coursemates. These associations tended to be stronger toward the end of high school and weaker among adolescents with a prior record of failure in school. Each of these patterns was somewhat more consistent among girls.
Content or Connectedness? Mother–Child Talk and Early Social Understanding
Authors: Ensor Rosie , Hughes Claire
Published: February 2008

Despite much research into individual differences in social understanding among preschoolers, little is known about corresponding individual differences within younger children. Likewise, although studies of preschoolers highlight the importance of mental‐state references, other aspects of talk have received less attention. The current study involved 120 families with 2‐year‐olds; video‐based transcripts of observations of family interaction were coded for quantity, connectedness, and content of mothers’ and children’s talk. At 2, 3, and 4 years of age, children completed social understanding and verbal ability tests. Mothers’ connected turns and mental‐state reference within connected turns showed independent associations with children’s social understanding (as did children’s mental‐state references, both overall and within connected turns). Connected conversations provide a fertile context for children’s developing social understanding.
A Scale‐space Approach for Detecting Non‐stationarities in Time Series
Authors: OLSEN LENA R. , SØRBYE SIGRUNN H. , GODTLIEBSEN FRED
Published: February 2008

Abstract.  The presented method called Significant Non‐stationarities, represents an exploratory tool for identifying significant changes in the mean, the variance, and the first‐lag autocorrelation coefficient of a time series. The changes are detected on different time scales. The statistical inference for each scale is based on accurate approximation of the probability distribution, using test statistics being ratios of quadratic forms. No assumptions concerning the autocovariance function of the time series are made as the dependence structure is estimated non‐parametrically. The results of the analyses are summarized in significance maps showing at which time points and on which time scales significant changes in the parameters occur. The performance of the given method is thoroughly studied by simulations in terms of observed significance level and power. Several examples, including a real temperature data set, are studied. The examples illustrate that it is important to carry out the analysis on several time horizons.
PUBLIC LIBRARIES AND SOCIAL CAPITAL IN THREE NEW YORK CITY NEIGHBOURHOODS
Authors: GONG HONGMIAN , JAPZON ANDREA C. , CHEN CYNTHIA
Published: February 2008

This study uses the social capital concept to explain geographical variation in public library use. Applying Putnam's social capital theory, we examine how social capital in three New York City neighbourhoods affects usage of local branch libraries. A survey was conducted to understand differences in public library use and social capital in the neighbourhoods. Diversity and segregation indices were included as additional measures of social capital. The study found that neighbourhoods with higher levels of social capital, especially bridging social capital, tend to have higher public library use.
DETERMINATION OF LOCATION‐SPECIFIC FACTORS AT THE INTRA‐METROPOLITAN LEVEL: ISTANBUL CASE
Authors: BERKOZ LALE , TURK SEVKIYE SENCE
Published: February 2008

In the context of economic globalisation, there has been considerable academic interest in understanding the choice of location of foreign direct investment (FDI) firms. Generally, studies on the location of FDI firms focus on national and regional levels. There are only a limited number of studies at the intra‐urban level, especially for developing countries. This paper investigates where the industrial and service FDI firms are distributed within Istanbul, and how location‐specific factors affect their decisions. This study is based on a sample of 100 companies surveyed in Istanbul at the end of 2002. The locational determinants of FDI firms in Istanbul have been analysed using factor analysis and logistic regression techniques. It was found that location‐specific advantages influence the location of service and industrial FDI firms (between the central and suburban districts) in the Istanbul metropolitan area. The service and industrial FDI firms in Istanbul also chose different locations.
ANALYSING THE SUCCESS OF OPEN SPACE PRESERVATION IN THE NETHERLANDS: THE MIDDEN‐DELFLAND CASE
Authors: VAN RIJ EVELIEN , DEKKERS JASPER , KOOMEN ERIC
Published: February 2008

Open space preservation is an important aim of spatial planning. In the Netherlands, the recreational, ecological and historic values of open spaces between cities, the buffer zones, are recognised and thus receive ample attention from policy‐makers. This paper focuses on Midden‐Delfland, an open area in the metropolitan western part of the country. A specific combination of policy instruments and government regulation has made the preservation of open space in this area very successful even compared to other buffer zones. A quantitative analysis of the land‐use changes and a more qualitative review of the applied policy instruments are presented here in an attempt to explain this success. The analysis can help planners in finding ways to effectively protect contested open areas.
SALES TECHNOLOGY AND PRICE LEADERSHIP*
Authors: DATTA DEBABRATA , ROY JAIDEEP
Published: February 2008

Two firms sell a homogeneous product to two buyers who differ significantly in their valuation of the good and are allowed to charge (possibly) multiple two‐part tariffs. Firms decide upon optimal prices and the choice of sales technologies which help acquire revenues from nonlinear prices. There is a subgame‐perfect equilibrium where firms choose different sales technologies and the firm with an advanced sales technology emerges to be a price leader, charging a two‐part tariff and selling only to the low‐valuation buyers. Consequently, the firm with the less advanced sales technology follows, charges only a fixed fee and serves the high‐valuation buyers and always earns strictly higher profits than its leader. Social surplus may deteriorate with competition.
Horstmann, Siep, and German Idealism
Authors: Pippin Robert B.
Published: February 2008

Die Grenzen der Vernunft. Eine Untersuchung zu Zielen und Motiven des Deutschen Idealismus. By Rolf‐Peter Horstmann. Frankfurt a.M.: Anton Hain, 1991, 321 pp. ISBN 3–445‐08568‐4

Praktische Philosophie im Deutschen Idealismus. By Ludwig Siep. Frankfurt a.M.: Suhrkamp, 1992, 348 pp. ISBN 3–518‐28635‐8 pb
An Auction Model of Canadian Temporary Immigration for the 21st Century
Authors: DeVoretz Don
Published: February 2008

Temporary Canadian immigration has grown beyond traditional programs for students, caregivers and agricultural workers to include trade‐related temporary visas under NAFTA and the GATS. Current Canadian debates envision supplanting Canada's permanent immigration programme with a temporary visa programme to remove skill shortages. Several questions emerge under these temporary schemes including who should choose the number of temporary immigrants and under what employment conditions. This paper offers an alternative policy to the current government‐determined quota on temporary visas to answer these two questions. Under the proposed scheme offered in this paper, a Canadian worker can place a job voucher up for auction on the Internet. If the Canadian worker finds an acceptable offer for his one‐year (or less) voucher, then the temporary immigrant is permitted to seek a job in Canada. Thus, under this auction scheme Canadian workers are compensated for the presence of temporary immigrants, and the actual number of temporary immigrants admitted depends on the total number of Canadian workers who sell their vouchers, not on a government fat.
Ultrastructural findings in progressive macular hypomelanosis indicate decreased melanin production
Authors: Relyveld GN , Dingemans KP , Menke HE , Bos JD , Westerhof W
Published: February 2008

Background  The pathogenesis of progressive macular hypomelanosis (PMH) is unknown. Recently, Westerhof et al. (Arch Dermatol 2004; 140: 210–214) hypothesized that Propionibacterium acnes produces a depigmenting factor that interferes with melanogenesis in the skin, resulting in hypopigmented spots. The purpose of the study is to gain an insight into the pathogenesis of PMH.

Materials and methods  We took a biopsy of 2‐mm diameter from normal and lesional skin in eight PMH patients. Using electron microscopy, we compared melanization of melanosomes, melanosome transfer and amount of epidermal melanin in normal and lesional skin.

Result  Compared to non‐lesional skin, we observed a decrease of epidermal melanin and less melanized melanosomes in lesional skin of all patients. When comparing normal and lesional skin of patients with skin type V and VI, we observed a difference in melanosome size and maturation and a switch of transferred melanosomes from single stage IV transferred melanosomes to aggregated stage I, II and III transferred melanosomes, as seen in healthy skin of skin type I to IV.

Conclusion  Hypopigmentation in PMH seems to be the result of an altered melanogenesis based on a decrease in melanin formation and a change in the distribution of melanosomes. In lesional skin of PMH patients with skin type V and VI less melanized, aggregated melanosomes in stead of single, mature melanosomes are transferred from melanocytes to keratinocytes. This results in a decrease of epidermal melanin. Further investigations are needed to determine the precise role of Propionibacterium acnes in this alteration of melanogenesis.
Late‐onset Behçet's disease does not correlate with indolent clinical course: report of seven Taiwanese patients
Authors: Tsai J , Chen G‐S , Lu Y‐W , Wu C‐S , Lan C‐C E.
Published: February 2008

Background  Behçet's disease (BD) is a recurrent multisystem disease of uncertain aetiology. The young adults are most often affected, usually during the third decade. Late occurrence of the disease is considered uncommon and less frequently investigated.

Objective  The aim of this study was to examine the clinical features of BD patients with disease onset at a later age and compare them with the usual age of onset group.

Methods  Retrospective review of clinical charts of BD patients was conducted. Patients with age of onset at or after 40 years of age were identified. The clinical profiles and medications required to control the disease activity were documented. Comparisons of clinical features and the medications used were made between patients with disease onset before and after 40 years of age.

Results  Seven late‐onset BD patients were identified. Among them, five patients required the use of systemic immunosuppressant in addition to colchicine and corticosteroid for adequate disease control. There is no significant difference in clinical profiles between patients with disease onset before and after 40 years of age, but the incidence of uveitis, an indicator of unfavourable prognosis, was surprisingly high. More specifically, it was noted in four of seven patients identified.

Conclusion  Our findings indicate that the clinical course of BD is not indolent in the patients with late‐onset BD. More importantly, physicians should be aware that BD can occur in older patients, and close attention regarding their disease activities is warranted as their clinical courses may not be as benign as previously believed.
Doomed to die? Predicting extinction risk in the true hawks Accipitridae
Authors: Krüger O. , Radford A. N.
Published: February 2008

One of the most important tasks in conservation biology is identifying species at risk from extinction and establishing the most likely factors influencing this risk. Here, we consider an ecologically well‐defined, monophyletic group of organisms, the true hawks of the family Accipitridae, which are not only among the most studied, but also contain some of the rarest bird species in the world. We investigate which intrinsic and extrinsic factors, covering morphology, life history and ecology, covary with International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources threat status, as well as global population size and geographic range size. By decomposing threat status into population size and range size, we test whether any factors are generally important: we found that species with less habitat specialization, a larger clutch size and more plumage polymorphism were associated with lower extinction risk and larger population and range sizes. Species with special habitat requirements might be less capable of dealing with habitat transformation and fragmentation, while species with small clutch sizes might not be able to reverse population declines. Plumage polymorphism might indicate the size of the species' gene pool and could be a good marker of extinction risk. The analyses also emphasized that no single factor is likely to be sufficient when predicting the threat of extinction.
Conservation implications of prey responses to wild dogs Lycaon pictus during the denning season on wildlife ranches
Authors: Romañach S. S. , Lindsey P. A.
Published: February 2008

The spread of game ranching in southern Africa provides opportunities for the reestablishment of populations of endangered wild dogs extirpated by livestock ranchers. However, this potential has not been realized, partly because of negative rancher perceptions. Some ranchers believe that wild dogs impart costs by killing wildlife that could be utilized consumptively. Others complain that wild dogs make ungulates ‘skittish’ and cause local reductions in prey densities while denning. We compared the skittishness and density of prey species inside and outside the denning home ranges of nine wild dog packs in Zimbabwe. Wild dogs had no impact on prey skittishness, but prey species did occur at lower densities inside denning home ranges. In some scenarios, and particularly on fenced game ranches, wild dogs could cause prey population declines during denning. On small game ranches, the use of fences as a tool by wild dogs during hunting can increase the proportion of large prey species in their diet by up to 11 times, and thus increase the minimum area required to support that diet. In addition, game fencing is typically permeable to wild dogs but not their prey, preventing the recovery of prey populations through the natural influx of prey animals into the denning area following departure of the dogs. Wild dogs could thus impose significant financial costs to game ranchers hosting denning packs. Our findings emphasize the importance of promoting the formation of conservancies, where neighbouring landowners remove boundary fences to create larger contiguous wildlife areas.
Evaluation of the NK2 Homeobox 1 Gene (NKX2‐1) as a Hirschsprung's Disease Locus  THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN RETRACTED
Authors: Garcia‐Barceló M.‐M. , Lau D. K. , Ngan E. S. , Leon T. Y. , Liu T. , So M. , Miao X. , Lui V. C. , Wong K. K. , Ganster R. W. , Cass D. T. , Croaker G. D. H. , Tam P. K.
Published: February 2008

Hirschsprung's disease (HSCR, colonic aganglionosis) is an oligogenic entity that usually requires mutations in RET and other interacting loci. Decreased levels of RET expression may lead to the manifestation of HSCR. We previously showed that RET transcription was decreased due to alteration of the NKX2–1 binding site by two HSCR‐associated RET promoter single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). This prompted us to investigate whether DNA alterations in NKX2‐1 could play a role in HSCR by affecting the RET‐regulatory properties of the NKX2–1 protein. Our initial study on 86 Chinese HSCR patients revealed a Gly322Ser amino acid substitution in the NKX2–1 protein. In this study, we have examined 102 additional Chinese and 70 Caucasian patients and 194 Chinese and 60 Caucasian unselected, unrelated, subjects as controls. The relevance of the DNA changes detected in NKX2‐1 by direct sequencing were evaluated using bioinformatics, reporter and binding‐assays, mouse neurosphere culture, immunohistochemistry and immunofluorescence techniques. Met3Leu and Pro48Pro were identified in 2 Caucasian and 1 Chinese patients respectively. In vitro analysis showed that Met3Leu reduced the activity of the RET promoter by 100% in the presence of the wild‐type or HSCR‐associated RET promoter SNP alleles. The apparent binding affinity of the NKX2–1 mutated protein was not decreased. The Met3Leu mutation may affect the interaction of NKX2–1 with its protein partners. The absence of NKX2‐1 expression in mouse but not in human gut suggests that the role of NKX2–1 in gut development differs between the two species. NKX2‐1 mutations could contribute to HSCR by affecting RET expression through defective interactions with other transcription factors.
Association of Polymorphic Sites in the OCA2 Gene with Eye Colour Using the Tree Scanning Method
Authors: Branicki W. , Brudnik U. , Kupiec T. , Wolańska‐Nowak P. , Szczerbińska A. , Wojas‐Pelc A.
Published: February 2008

A number of genes are considered to affect normal variation in human pigmentation. Recent studies have indicated that OCA2 is the crucial gene involved in the high variation of iris colour present among populations of European descent. In this study, eleven polymorphisms of the OCA2 gene were examined in search of their association with different pigment traits. The evolutionary tree scanning method indicated that the strongest phenotypic eye colour variation is associated with the branch defined by nonsynonymous change rs1800407, which refers to amino acid causing change Arg419Gln located in exon 13. Single SNP analysis indicated that allele 419Gln is associated with green/hazel iris colour (p < 0.001). According to tree scanning analysis, the proportion of eye colour variation explained by this nucleotide position is merely 4%. Thus, additional variation present in the OCA2 gene and perhaps some other pigment related genes must be taken into account in order to explain the high phenotypic variation in iris colour.
Selection of features within and without objects: Effects of gestalt appearance and object‐based instruction on behavior and event‐related brain potentials
Authors: Verleger Rolf , Groen Margriet , Heide Wolfgang , Sobieralska Kinga , Jaśkowski Piotr
Published: February 2008

We studied how physical and instructed embedding of features in gestalts affects perceptual selection. Four ovals on the horizontal midline were either unconnected or pairwise connected by circles, forming ears of left and right heads (gestalts). Relevant to responding was the position of one colored oval, either within its pair or relative to fixation (“object‐based” or “fixation‐based” instruction). Responses were faster under fixation‐ than object‐based instruction, less so with gestalts. Previously reported increases of N1 when evoked by features within objects were replicated for fixation‐based instruction only. There was no effect of instruction on N2pc. However P1 increased under the adequate instruction, object‐based for gestalts, fixation‐based for unconnected items, which presumably indicated how foci of attention were set by expecting specific stimuli under instructions that specified how to bind these stimuli to objects.
Changes of performance monitoring with learning in older and younger adults
Authors: Pietschmann Maria , Simon Katja , Endrass Tanja , Kathmann Norbert
Published: February 2008

This study examined age differences in performance monitoring during learning of a stimulus–response association task. At the beginning of the learning process, amplitudes of the response‐locked error‐related negativity (ERN or Ne) and correct response‐related negativity (CRN) did not differ in both age groups. With advanced learning the response ERN/Ne increased and the CRN decreased in younger adults, but did not dissociate in older adults. Feedback ERN amplitudes decreased with learning in both age groups and were reduced in older relative to younger adults. Results indicate that performance monitoring became error specific with advanced learning in younger adults, but not in older adults. This might be due to weak representations of stimulus‐response mappings in older adults as they learned worse. The decrease of the feedback ERN with learning and aging might suggest a decline of attention paid to negative feedback.
Modernizing times: UK hearing‐impaired consumers at the policy crossroads
Authors: Ross Liz
Published: February 2008

Although there is now a long‐standing belief in the UK that free consumer choice improves market efficiency, the supply of some consumer products and services remained controlled by the state. In the interests of consumers, it regards as vulnerable to misdirection and malpractice or unlikely to have the technical expertise to make informed decisions. Historically, the supply of hearings aids has been restricted to the National Health Service and specific licensed practitioners in the independent sector. Recent changes to both product and service provision have brought about a radical alteration to this situation, and to the framework of control. This case study of a changing healthcare system demonstrates more generally the difficulties experienced by people trying to improve or maintain auditory functions for speech communication. Access to appropriate technological solutions may be precluded by cost, distribution arrangements or lack of knowledge. Overarching these difficulties, regional health policy variations within the UK mean that consumer experiences vary according to where they live. Consumer influence over the direction and scope of changes to the hearing aid market is limited despite the rhetoric of choice. This article examines the emerging ‘liberalized’ market and its contradictions.
Consumer values, the theory of planned behaviour and online grocery shopping
Authors: Hansen Torben
Published: February 2008

Taking a hierarchical value‐attitude‐behaviour approach, this study empirically tests relations of consumer personal values, attitude, social norm, perceived behavioural control (PBC) and willingness to buy groceries online. The study distinguishes three groups of consumers: consumers who have not yet bought anything on the Internet; consumers who have bought something on the Internet – but not groceries; and consumers who have bought something on the Internet – including groceries. Data were collected from an online survey of Swedish consumers (n = 1058) using self‐administered questionnaires. The findings suggest that consumers may link personal values to attitude towards online grocery buying – but also that this relation may be moderated by whether the consumer previously has carried out an online purchase or an online grocery purchase.