bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Book reading styles in dual‐parent and single‐mother families
Authors: Blake Joanna , Macdonald Silvana , Bayrami Lisa , Agosta Vanessa , Milian Andrea
Published: August 2006

Background. Whereas many studies have investigated quantitative aspects of book reading (frequency), few have examined qualitative aspects, especially in very young children and through direct observations of shared reading.

Aim. The purpose of this study was to determine possible differences in book‐reading styles between mothers and fathers and between mothers from single‐ and dual‐parent families. It also related types of parental verbalizations during book reading to children's reported language measures.

Sample. Dual‐parent (29) and single‐parent (24) families were observed in shared book reading with their toddlers (15‐month‐olds) or young preschoolers (27‐month‐olds).

Method. Parent–child dyads were videotaped while book reading. The initiator of each book‐reading episode was coded. Parents' verbalizations were exhaustively coded into 10 categories. Mothers completed the MacArthur Communicative Development Inventory, and the children were given the Bayley scales.

Results. All parents differentiated their verbalizations according to the age rather than the gender of the child, but single mothers imitated female children more than males. Few differences in verbalizations were found between mothers and fathers or between mothers from single‐ and dual‐parent families. Fathers allowed younger children to initiate book‐reading episodes more than mothers. For both age groups of children, combined across families, verbalizations that related the book to the child's experience were correlated with reported language measures. Questions and imitations were related to language measures for the older age group.

Conclusions. The important types of parental verbalizations during shared book reading for children's language acquisition are relating, questions and imitations.
Peer victimization and depression in early–mid adolescence: A longitudinal study
Authors: Sweeting Helen , Young Robert , West Patrick , Der Geoff
Published: August 2006

Background. Despite considerable evidence for psychological distress among children and young people who experience peer victimization, cross‐sectional studies cannot determine the direction of the relationship. Several recent studies have examined associations between victimization and distress. The majority find evidence for both directions but do not arbitrate between them; only one prior study has attempted to do this.

Aims. To use longitudinal data to: (1) test competing hypotheses about the direction of the victimization–depression association; (2) investigate gender differences in the resulting models.

Sample. Data were obtained from a Scottish school‐based cohort (N = 2,586).

Methods. Self‐completion questionnaires included a depression scale and questions on victimization at each age.

Results. Despite shifts in and out of victim status, there was evidence of stability in both victimization and depression. Bivariate analyses showed positive relationships between victimization and depression. Structural equation modelling (SEM) showed that at age 13, this relationship was reciprocal, with a stronger path from victimization to depression than vice versa. However, at age 15, it was almost entirely due to a path from depression to victimization among boys. Models including cross‐lagged paths fitted the data less well than those including simultaneous associations.

Conclusions. Current policy focuses on victimization as a cause of distress; however, professionals should be aware that vulnerable children and young people are likely to be the targets of victimization.
The Approaches to Teaching Inventory: A critique of its development and applicability
Authors: Meyer Jan H. F. , Eley Malcolm G.
Published: August 2006

Background. The Approaches to Teaching Inventory (ATI) is structured as two main scales, reflecting a teacher‐centred information‐transmission approach versus a student‐centred conceptual‐change approach, each subdivided into intention and strategy subscales. Its use in higher education investigations is increasing and, by default, it is assuming an operational definition of variation in ‘approaches to teaching’. However, the ATI's conceptual foundations and procedures of development have not been systematically scrutinized.

Aims. The present paper presents a comprehensive historical review and critique of the ATI's development.

Method. The procedures applied in the ATI's initial development are critically evaluated. Close attention is paid to the source of its foundation item pool, the criteria used in selecting from those foundation items, the adequacy of subject samples used in item trialling and the uses made of resultant trial response data in determining the final form of the inventory. The historical record is examined closely to determine the conceptual and psychometric credibility of the instrument.

Conclusions. There are serious and irreversible concerns with the rigour and methodology adopted in the psychometric development of the ATI. The ATI manifestly does not reflect a functionally useful range of ‘approaches to teaching’, and its application to activities connected with the professionalization (and evaluation) of university teaching is rejected.
The role of learning to read in the development of problem behaviour: A cross‐lagged longitudinal study
Authors: Halonen Anne , Aunola Kaisa , Ahonen Timo , Nurmi Jari‐Erik
Published: August 2006

Background. This study investigates the posited relationship between learning to read, and internalizing and externalizing problem behaviours, during the transition from preschool to primary school.

Methods. A total of 196 (104 boys, 92 girls) children participating in the Jyväskylä Entrance into Primary School (JEPS) study were followed up six times during their transition from preschool to primary school. At each measurement, the children's reading performance was tested. Moreover, their internalizing and externalizing problem behaviour was examined by means of structured interviews.

Results. The results showed that problems in reading acquisition predicted an increase in internalizing problem behaviour during the preschool year and first grade, whereas during the second grade they were associated with an increase in subsequent externalizing problem behaviour. Moreover, from preschool to the beginning of the primary school internalizing problem behaviour predicted subsequent externalizing problem behaviour. Later on during the first and the second primary school years, it was externalizing problem behaviour that predicted an increase in internalizing problem behaviour.

Conclusions. The results of this study suggested that difficulties in learning to read, and internalizing and externalizing problem behaviours are developmentally linked in a cumulative manner.
Comparing groups in a before–after design: When t test and ANCOVA produce different results
Authors: Wright Daniel B.
Published: August 2006

Background. Researchers often test people before and after some treatment and compare these scores with a control group. Sometimes it is not possible to allocate people into conditions randomly, which means the initial scores for the two groups may differ. There are two main approaches: t test on the gain scores and ANCOVA partialling out the initial scores. Lord (1967) showed that these can lead to different conclusions. This is an often‐discussed paradox in psychology and education.

Aims.  The reasons why these approaches can lead to different conclusions, the assumptions that each approach makes and how the approaches relate to group allocation, are discussed

Methods.  Three sets of simulations are reported that investigate the relationships among effect size, group allocation, measurement error and Lord's paradox.

Conclusions.  Recommendations are given that stress careful examination of the research questions, sampling and allocation of participants and graphing the data. ANCOVA is appropriate when allocation is based on the initial scores, t test can be appropriate if allocation is associated non‐causally with the initial scores, but often neither approach provides adequate results.
An assessment of anxiety levels in dyslexic students in higher education
Authors: Carroll Julia M. , Iles Jane E.
Published: August 2006

Background. It has long been hypothesized that children with learning disabilities, including dyslexia, may be highly vulnerable to emotional consequences such as anxiety. However, research has centred on school‐aged children.

Aims. The present study aimed to clarify these findings with dyslexic students in higher education.

Samples. Sixteen students with dyslexia were compared with 16 students with no history of learning difficulties.

Methods. Students were asked to complete a written questionnaire concerning trait anxiety levels. They were then told that they would be given a timed reading test and their state anxiety levels were measured using the State‐Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI; Spielberger, Gorsuch, & Lushene, 1983). Finally, their reading was assessed using the Test of Word Reading Efficiency (TOWRE; Torgesen, Wagner, & Rashotte, 1999).

Results. Dyslexic students showed slower reading speeds than controls. They also had higher levels of state anxiety and elevated levels of academic and social, but not appearance, anxiety.

Conclusions. Dyslexic students in higher education show anxiety levels that are well above what is shown by students without learning difficulties. This anxiety is not limited to academic tasks but extends to many social situations. It is proposed that assessment of emotional well‐being should form part of the assessment of need for dyslexic students entering higher education.
Book Reviews
Authors: Burden R. L.
Published: August 2006

Dyslexia and counselling
Book Reviews
Authors: Smith Leslie
Published: August 2006

Conflict, contradiction, and contrarian elements in moral development and education
Decomposing and connecting object representations in 5‐ to 9‐year‐old children's drawing behaviour
Authors: Picard Delphine , Vinter Annie
Published: August 2006

This study aimed at specifying the content of the representational redescription (RR) process assumed byKarmiloff‐Smith (1992)with respect to the emergence of inter‐representational flexibility in children's drawing behaviour. We hypothesized that the RR process included part‐whole decomposition processes that are essential to the ability to produce cross‐categorical drawings. We presented 5‐ to 9‐year‐old children with either a two‐part (TP) or a several‐part (SP) decomposition task involving a house and a man (experimental conditions) or with no such decomposition task (control condition), prior to a connection task (drawing a man‐house). The results showed that connection performances were better in children who had previously decomposed the objects into two parts than in children assigned to the control group. This positive ‘priming’ effect was attributed to the activation of part‐whole analysis processes that further facilitated the management of complex connections between the objects.
Helping children think: Gaze aversion and teaching
Authors: Phelps Fiona G. , Doherty‐Sneddon Gwyneth , Warnock Hannah
Published: August 2006

Looking away from an interlocutor's face during demanding cognitive activity can help adults answer challenging arithmetic and verbal‐reasoning questions (Glenberg, Schroeder, & Robertson, 1998). However, such ‘gaze aversion’ (GA) is poorly applied by 5‐year‐old school children (Doherty‐Sneddon, Bruce, Bonner, Longbotham, & Doyle, 2002). In Experiment 1 we trained ten 5‐year‐old children to use GA while thinking about answers to questions. This trained group performed significantly better on challenging questions compared with 10 controls given no GA training. In Experiment 2 we found significant and monotonic age‐related increments in spontaneous use of GA across three cohorts of ten 5‐year‐old school children (mean ages: 5;02, 5;06 and 5;08). Teaching and encouraging GA during challenging cognitive activity promises to be invaluable in promoting learning, particularly during early primary years.
Drawing self and others: How do children with autism differ from those with learning difficulties?
Authors: Lee Anthony , Peter Hobson R.
Published: August 2006

When children draw pictures of human beings, they reveal things not only about their general intellectual and artistic abilities, but also about their awareness and conception of themselves and others. What might the human figure drawings of children with autism reveal about their images of self and other – and what might they disclose about social factors that shape the drawings of children who do not have autism? On the basis of an hypothesis about the restricted social awareness of children and adolescents with autism, we predicted that there would be little differentiation between their drawings of themselves and other people. To test this prediction, we investigated a group of children and adolescents with autism and a group with learning difficulties but not autism (N = 14 per group) who were individually matched for both chronological age and verbal mental age. Participants with autism mostly drew human figures that were little distinguished from one another, but introduced clear contrasts among their houses, whereas most of those with learning difficulties drew distinctive human figures as well as houses. These different profiles of performance occurred despite similarities in the numbers and kinds of feature included in the drawings, and the individuality of participants' drawing styles. Although the results were in keeping with our hypothesis that human figure drawings might reflect abnormalities in the way that children with autism mentally represent themselves and others, we conclude by stressing our tentativeness over this interpretation of the findings.
Adolescents' self‐attributed moral emotions following a moral transgression: Relations with delinquency, confidence in moral judgment and age
Authors: Krettenauer Tobias , Eichler Dana
Published: August 2006

The study investigates adolescents' self‐attributed moral emotions following a moral transgression by expanding research with children on the happy‐victimizer phenomenon. In a sample of 200 German adolescents from Grades 7, 9, 11, and 13 (M = 16.18 years, SD = 2.41), participants were confronted with various scenarios describing different moral rule violations and asked to judge the behaviour from a moral point of view. Subsequently, participants' strength of self‐evaluative emotional reactions was assessed as they were asked to imagine that they had committed the moral transgression by themselves. Results indicate that the intensity of self‐attributed moral emotions predicted adolescents' self‐reported delinquent behaviour even when social desirability response bias was controlled. Further, as adolescents' metacognitive understanding of moral beliefs developed, self‐attributed moral emotions and confidence in moral judgment became more closely associated. No general age‐related change in adolescents' self‐attributed moral emotions was found. Overall, the study provides evidence for a coordination process of moral judgment and moral emotion attributions that continues well beyond childhood and that corresponds with the more general notion of the formation of a moral self in adolescence.
This turnip's not for turning: Children's morphological awareness and their use of root morphemes in spelling
Authors: Deacon S. Hélène , Bryant Peter
Published: August 2006

We report on a study designed to examine children's understanding of (1) the connection between root morphemes and the spelling of inflected words and (2) the role of morphological awareness in this understanding. Seven‐ to 9‐year‐old children were given clues (e.g. turn) to the spelling of inflected and control words (e.g. turning and turnip). While the use of the clue was not specific to inflected words, spelling was better of the first segments (e.g. turn) of the inflected than of the control words. This difference suggests that children appreciate the role of root morphemes in spelling of inflected words. Further, it seems that morphological awareness is employed in the spelling of a wide range of words. These results are placed in context of current theories of spelling development.
A developmental investigation of other‐race contact and the own‐race face effect
Authors: Walker Pamela M. , Hewstone Miles
Published: August 2006

Research over the past two decades has demonstrated that individuals are better at recognizing and discriminating faces of their own race versus other races. The own‐race effect has typically been investigated in relation to recognition memory; however, some evidence supports an own‐race effect at the level of perceptual encoding in adults. The current study investigated the developmental basis of the own‐race effect in White primary students (aged 7–11), secondary students (aged 12–15) and university students. Face stimuli were generated by morphing South Asian and White parent faces together along a linear continuum. In a same/different perceptual discrimination task, participants judged whether the face stimuli (morphs and parent faces) were physically identical to or different from the original parent faces. Results revealed a significant race of face effect for each age group, whereby participants were better at discriminating White relative to Asian faces. A significantly larger own‐race effect was observed for the secondary and university students than for primary students. A questionnaire was used to assess other‐race social anxiety and contact; however, this self‐report measure was not found to be related to the observed own‐race effect.
Experience with visual barriers and its effects on subsequent gaze‐following in 12‐ to 13‐month‐olds
Authors: D'Entremont Barbara , Morgan Roslyn
Published: August 2006

Thirty 12‐ to 13‐month‐olds were tested to determine whether they could use the self as an analogy for understanding others' looking. Using a procedure similar to Brooks and Meltzoff (2002), we examined gaze‐following when the adult's view of a target was occluded by a blindfold (blindfold without training). Some infants received experience with the blindfold's sight‐blocking qualities (blindfold with training). The control was a headband condition. Gaze‐following was highest in the headband condition. Gaze‐following in the headband and blindfold without training conditions, but not the blindfold with training conditions, were significantly greater than zero. These results demonstrate that 12‐ to 13‐month‐olds have some understanding of the looking behaviour of others. Only weak support was found for simulation theories of the development of social cognition.
Level 1 perspective‐taking at 24 months of age
Authors: Moll Henrike , Tomasello Michael
Published: August 2006

The current study sought to determine the age at which children first engage in Level 1 visual perspective‐taking, in which they understand that the content of what another person sees in a situation may sometimes differ from what they see. An adult entered the room searching for an object. One candidate object was out in the open, whereas another was visible for the child but behind an occluder from the adult's perspective. When asked to help the adult find the sought‐for object, 24‐month‐old children, but not 18‐month‐old children, handed him the occluded object (whereas in a control condition they showed no preference for the occluded toy). We argue that the performance of the 24‐month‐olds requires Level 1 visual perspective‐taking skills and that this is the youngest age at which these skills have been demonstrated.
A microgenetic investigation of stability and continuity in theory of mind development
Authors: Flynn Emma
Published: August 2006

The processes behind the transition from consistently failing tests of false belief understanding to consistently passing the tests was investigated by tracking changes in children's mental state understanding. Participants were 42 children (aged 3;1 to 4;3). There were two conditions; an experimental condition in which children were tested on a battery of eight theory of mind tests every four weeks for six phases of testing, and a control condition in which children only completed the battery of tests at the first and last testing phases. The profiles of performance showed that an understanding of false beliefs develops gradually and the development is relatively stable. An examination of the types of explanation children give on tests of false belief understanding showed that initially they rely on reality, then they progress through a period of confusion, where they do not provide an explanation, to a final stage in which they are able to explain behaviour by referring to an individual's false belief. Further analyses examined practice effects, construct validity, and the role of verbal ability on the development of mental state understanding.
A longitudinal investigation of the still‐face effect at 6 months and joint attention at 12 months
Authors: Yazbek Aimée , D'Entremont Barbara
Published: August 2006

An understanding of intentionality is thought to underlie developing joint attention. Similarly, early social‐communicative behaviours have been argued to reflect an appreciation of adult intentionality. This study explored the relation between social‐communicative behaviours during the still‐face effect at 6 months and joint attention at 12 months in a longitudinal sample of 42 infants. Three types of joint attention were investigated: coordinated joint attention (infant alternates looks between an adult and objects), initiating joint attention (infant uses communicative gestures to engage or direct adult attention) and attention following (infant follows an adult's line of gaze and pointing towards an object). The still‐face effect was correlated with later attention following, but not coordinated or initiating joint attention. Initiating joint attention was correlated with coordinated joint attention. We propose that the former association reflects a lower‐level detection of adult intentionality rather than a higher‐level interpretation of an agent's intentions towards outside entities. The findings support two bodies of research – one advocating for a distinction between types of joint attentional ability and a second proposing that infants can detect intentional actions without understanding or attributing mental states to objects.
Two subjective factors as moderators between critical incidents and the occurrence of post traumatic stress disorders: Adult attachment and perception of social support
Authors: Declercq Frédéric , Palmans Vicky.
Published: August 2006

This paper presents the result of a research which investigated the influence of the subjective factors ‘adult attachment style’ and ‘perception of social support’ in the occurrence of post traumatic stress disorders (PTSD) in a population of 544 subjects working for a security company and the Belgian Red Cross. The analysis of the results suggests that ‘adult attachment style’ and ‘perception of social support’ moderate between a critical incident and the occurrence of a PTSD. In other words, these independent variables differentiate between individuals who are more, and who are less prone, to suffer from a PTSD after having experienced a critical incident. The results of this research shed light on subjective risk factors related to PTSD. The findings can also suggest guidelines for the treatment of individuals suffering from a PTSD.
Working with parentification: Implications for clients and counselling psychologists
Authors: DiCaccavo Antonietta
Published: August 2006

This paper concerns the concept of parentification, whereby children take on inappropriate parental roles. A brief theoretical overview is presented, showing that parentification has important implications for understanding both clients' and counselling psychologists' experiences. Specific ways of assessing adult clients who were parentified as children are described, focusing on parentification criteria and typical profiles. This is followed by a description of a deparentifying process, including exploring shame‐based experiences, resisting splitting and working with projective identification. These discussions are illustrated by examples from an anonymized case study of a client who was parentified as a child. Finally, the paper includes a discussion of possible dilemmas and difficulties that may arise when parentified clients and parentified counselling psychologists work together. Although previous literature has discussed parentification separately for counselling psychologists and clients, this paper is unique in its discussion of the interaction between the client's and counselling psychologist's experiences of parentification and the corresponding impact on the therapeutic alliance. The paper concludes by emphasising the importance of personal therapy and supportive working environments for the well‐being of counselling psychologists and consequently that of their clients.
Brief psychoeducation for people with personality disorder: A pilot study
Authors: Banerjee Penelope , Duggan Conor , Huband Nick , Watson Neil
Published: August 2006

Background. The Patients' Charter for Mental Health Services (DOH, 1997) states that a patient is entitled to both know and understand his or her diagnosis. Despite this, personality disordered clients are not always well informed about their disorder. Some will not be told their diagnosis because of concern that to do so would damage the therapeutic alliance.

Objective. To test the hypothesis that the therapeutic alliance is not compromised by engaging in a psychoeducation programme that informs about personality disorder.

Design. Pilot study, pre‐post design.

Methods. Eighteen forensic in‐patients and 16 community out‐patients separately participated in a 4‐session individual programme that focused on personality, personality disorder, and their own diagnosis. Understanding of these concepts was explored in a brief structured interview. Therapeutic alliance was assessed pre‐ and post‐intervention using the Agnew relationship measure.

Results. For both samples, participation in the intervention resulted in a positive change in four of the five measured components of the therapeutic alliance. This change was rated more strongly by clients than therapists, and reached statistical significance for bond, partnership, and confidence subscales. Participants demonstrated improved knowledge of their disorder following the intervention, and all but one gave positive feedback.

Conclusion. These findings support the hypothesis and suggest the therapeutic relationship is not impaired when a diagnosis of personality disorder is imparted using this psychoeducation programme.
The negative as potential prognostic marker of outcome in psychotherapy
Authors: Van Staden C. W. (Werdie)
Published: August 2006

From 73 patients, 10 with the best, and 10 with the worst outcomes after psychotherapy were compared statistically for the frequency of ‘not’ and ‘never’ at commencement of psychotherapy, and for change in their frequency after therapy. A highly statistically significantly difference was found at commencement of psychotherapy in that the negative was used more frequently by the worst outcome group (p=.006). No significant differences were found for change in frequency after therapy. Thus, the frequent use of the negative at commencement of psychotherapy seems to predict a poor outcome.
Engaging hard to engage clients: A Q methodological study involving clinical psychologists
Authors: Lister Matthew , Gardner Damian
Published: August 2006

This research uses Q methodology to collate a number of techniques, and to investigate what techniques are used to encourage engagement across a number of clinical psychology specialities. Eleven groups of participants from different clinical specialities were interviewed in order to develop a set of 51 statements reflecting engagement techniques that clinicians felt that they were likely to use with ‘hard to engage’ clients. Seventy‐five participants from a similar range of specialities were then asked to Q sort these statements and provide other demographic information. Forty‐four participants returned completed Q sorts which were factor analysed by a tailored program (PQ Method) to investigate how the statements fall into patterns that reflect ways clinicians approach engagement. Varimax rotation produced five factors, four of which were able to be interpreted by participant information and comments. These accounts were taken back to some of the initial participants for ‘reflexive correction’ (Stainton Rogers, 1995). The four factor patterns are discussed in relation to existing literature and the research questions. These identified factors are: (i) the client focused approach; (ii) the interpersonal professional; (iii) the ‘eclectic’ or systemic approach; (iv) the expert listener. The implications for training, clinical practice and research are discussed.
Common and specific effects of couples treatment for alcoholism: A test of the generic model of psychotherapy
Authors: Harwood T. Mark. , Beutler Larry E. , Castillo Salvador , Karno Mitch
Published: August 2006

The generic model of psychotherapy (Orlinsky & Howard, 1987) eschews the view that inputs, processes or outputs associated with treatment exert linear and independent effects on outcomes. Variables within these three clusters must be viewed both within the context of time and through their interactions with other variables within a class. This study illustrates the use of this model by identifying common (comprising both traditional relationship factors and shared therapy ingredients) and specific factors in cognitive‐behavioural (CB) and family systems (FS) treatments for alcoholic couples and tracking their contributions over two treatment phases – the acute phase, and the follow‐up phase. While four process variables (therapy type, intensity of treatment, common elements and FS‐specific procedures) contributed to outcomes during the active treatment phase, these variables became more interactive during follow‐up. Indeed, high levels of both specific interventions of both treatments were negatively associated with benefit, if common factors were also frequently used during the acute phase. The best effects were obtained when common and specific interventions were counterbalanced, one being frequently used and the other being infrequently used. Implications for future alcohol treatment and recommendations for research on common and specific factors are discussed.
An Accident of History: Why the Decisions of Sports Governing Bodies are Not Amenable to Judicial Review
Authors: Anderson Jack
Published: August 2006

The English courts have held that the boundaries of public law should not extend to include judicial review of the competency of sports bodies. The justification for the continuing treatment of the administrative authority of sports bodies as being domestic in nature is that the required level of governmental involvement and/or linkage to a scheme of statutory regulation cannot be identified. Given the contractual relationship between the parties involved, the English courts have long preferred to decide sporting disputes on a private law basis upon which effective actions for a declaration, an injunction or damages can be based without resort to judicial review. The apparent firmness of the English courts on this point is at odds with a number of other comparable jurisdictions. Moreover, and in line with recent developments in the general area of public law, consideration is given as to whether the decisions of sports bodies might be exposed to judicial review on the basis that it is sufficiently within the ‘public interest’ that they are held accountable in this fashion. This argument is predicated on a court being convinced that certain sports bodies are necessarily governmental in operation because: they have power over a not unsubstantial area of economic activity, they have private power that affects the livelihoods of many individuals, and they receive significant levels of public funding. In conclusion, the practical implications of a finding that sports bodies are hybrid public authorities pursuant to section 6 of the Human Rights Act 1998 are examined.
Occupiers' Liability in England and Canada
Authors: Buckley R.A.
Published: August 2006

This paper compares the legislative developments in England and Canada in the area of occupiers' liability, against the background of recent appellate decisions. The differing approaches adopted in the various statutes are analysed, with particular reference to the position of trespassers. The conclusion is reached that occupiers still enjoy advantages in the law of tort which are not accorded to other defendants.
Alterations in the Composition of the Supramucosal Defense Barrier in Relation to Disease Severity of Ulcerative Colitis
Authors: Longman Rob J. , Poulsom Richard , Corfield Anthony P. , Warren Bryan F. , Wright Nicholas A. , Thomas Michael G.
Published: August 2006

Mucin glycoproteins and trefoil peptides play an important role in protection and repair of the gastrointestinal epithelium. This study investigates alterations in mucin and trefoil peptide gene expression and product localization in ulcerative colitis (UC). Product localization and message expression of mucin MUC1 to 6 and trefoil peptide TFF1 to 3 genes was analyzed in rectosigmoid tissue from a cohort of patients with active UC and compared with that of normal colorectal mucosa. MUC1 expression was upregulated in severe UC at the site of rupture of crypt abscesses. Reduction in MUC2 expression occurred in UC adjacent to ulceration. No alteration in MUC3 or MUC4 gene expression was detectable in UC compared with normal colorectal mucosa. No ectopic expression of MUC5AC, MUC5B, or MUC6 was identified in UC. Ectopic TFF1 expression was identified in tissues eliciting histological features of severe disease. Decreased TFF3 localization was demonstrated in UC tissues, but no TFF2 expression was detected in any colorectal specimens. Subtle alterations in composition of the supramucosal defense barrier exist in UC and vary in relation to clinical severity of disease. There is upregulation in mucin MUC1 at crypt abscesses and neo-expression of TFF1 trefoil peptide in severe disease.
CEACAM1 in Cervical Cancer and Precursor Lesions: Association With Human Papillomavirus Infection
Authors: Albarran-Somoza Benibelks , Franco-Topete Ramon , Delgado-Rizo Vidal , Cerda-Camacho Felipe , Acosta-Jimenez Lourdes , Lopez-Botet Miguel , Daneri-Navarro Adrian
Published: August 2006

Carcinoembryonic antigen-related cell adhesion molecule 1 (CEACAM1) is an adhesion molecule expressed in a wide variety of tissues including epithelial cells, leukocytes, and tumors that may establish both homotypic and heterotypic interactions. The aim of this work was to study the protein expression pattern of CEACAM1 in cervical cancer and precursor lesions in the context of human papillomavirus (HPV) infection. We used immunohistochemistry to analyze CEACAM1 expression in formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded cervical tissues from 15 healthy women, 15 patients with low-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions (SIL), 15 patients with high-grade SIL, and 15 patients with squamous carcinomas. HPV types were identified by PCR. CEACAM1 was either undetectable (13/15) or low (2/15) in normal cervical tissues. By contrast, CEACAM1 expression was increased in high-grade SIL (10 samples staining intermediate/high and 4 samples staining low) as compared with low-grade SIL with undetectable ( n=3) or low ( n= 12) expression. CEACAM1 expression was undetectable or low in cervical carcinoma. Our results suggest that CEACAM1 may be an interesting progression marker in SIL and cervical cancer, in particular due to reported immunoregulatory properties.
Interstitial and Vascular Type V Collagen Morphologic Disorganization in Usual Interstitial Pneumonia
Authors: Parra Edwin Roger , Teodoro Walcy R. , Velosa Ana Paula Pereira , de Oliveira Cristiane Carla , Yoshinari Natalino Hajime , Capelozzi Vera Luiza
Published: August 2006

Recent evidence suggests that type V collagen plays a role in organizing collagen fibrils, thus maintaining fibril size and spatial organization uniform. In this study we sought to characterize the importance of type V collagen morphological disorganization and to study the relationship between type V collagen, active remodeling of the pulmonary vascular/parenchyma (fibroblastic foci), and other collagen types in usual interstitial pneumonia (UIP). We examined type V collagen and several other collagens in 24 open lung biopsies with histological pattern of UIP from patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). We used immunofluorescence, morphometry, and three-dimensional reconstruction to evaluate the amount of collagen V and its interaction with the active remodeling progression in UIP, as well as types I and III collagen fibers. Active remodeling progression was significantly related to type V collagen density ( p<0.05), showing a gradual and direct increase to minimal, moderate, and severe fibrosis degree in UIP and in the three different areas: normal, intervening, and mural-organizing fibrosis in UIP. Parenchymal changes were characterized by morphological disorganization of fibrillar collagen with diverse disarray and thickness when observed by three-dimensional reconstruction. We concluded that in the different temporal stages of UIP, vascular/parenchyma collagen type V is increased, in disarray, and is the most important predictor of survival.
Chromosome-specific DNA Repeat Probes
Authors: Baumgartner Adolf , Weier Jingly Fung , Weier Heinz-Ulrich G.
Published: August 2006

In research as well as in clinical applications, fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) has gained increasing popularity as a highly sensitive technique to study cytogenetic changes. Today, hundreds of commercially available DNA probes serve the basic needs of the biomedical research community. Widespread applications, however, are often limited by the lack of appropriately labeled, specific nucleic acid probes. We describe two approaches for an expeditious preparation of chromosome-specific DNAs and the subsequent probe labeling with reporter molecules of choice. The described techniques allow the preparation of highly specific DNA repeat probes suitable for enumeration of chromosomes in interphase cell nuclei or tissue sections. In addition, there is no need for chromosome enrichment by flow cytometry and sorting or molecular cloning. Our PCR-based method uses either bacterial artificial chromosomes or human genomic DNA as templates with α-satellite-specific primers. Here we demonstrate the production of fluorochrome-labeled DNA repeat probes specific for human chromosomes 17 and 18 in just a few days without the need for highly specialized equipment and without the limitation to only a few fluorochrome labels.
Immunohistochemical Localization of α-Smooth Muscle Actin During Rat Molar Tooth Development
Authors: Hosoya Akihiro , Nakamura Hiroaki , Ninomiya Tadashi , Yoshiba Kunihiko , Yoshiba Nagako , Nakaya Hiroyuki , Wakitani Shigeyuki , Yamada Hirohito , Kasahara Etsuo , Ozawa Hidehiro
Published: August 2006

The dental follicle contains mesenchymal cells that differentiate into osteoblasts, cementoblasts, and fibroblasts. However, the characteristics of these mesenchymal cells are still unknown. α-Smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) is known to localize in stem cells and precursor cells of various tissues. In the present study, to characterize the undifferentiated cells in the dental follicle, immunohistochemical localization of α-SMA was examined during rat molar tooth development. Rat mandibles were collected at embryonic days (E) 15-20 and postnatal days (P) 7-28. Immunohistochemical stainings for α-SMA, periostin, Runt-related transcription factor-2 (Runx2), tissue nonspecific alkaline phosphatase (TNAP), and bone sialoprotein (BSP) were carried out using paraffin-embedded sections. α-SMA localization was hardly detected in the bud and cap stages. At the early bell stage, α-SMA-positive cells were visible in the dental follicle around the cervical loop. At the late bell to early root formation stage (P14), these cells were detected throughout the dental follicle, but they were confined to the apical root area at P28. Double immunostaining for α-SMA and periostin demonstrated that α-SMA-positive cells localized to the outer side of periostin-positive area. Runx2-positive cells were visible in the α-SMA-positive region. TNAP-positive cells in the dental follicle localized nearer to alveolar bone than Runx2-positive cells. BSP was detected in osteoblasts as well as in alveolar bone matrix. These results demonstrate that α-SMA-positive cells localize on the alveolar bone side of the dental follicle and may play a role in alveolar bone formation.
Involvement of Mesangial Cells Expressing α-Smooth Muscle Actin During Restorative Glomerular Remodeling in Thy-1.1 Nephritis
Authors: Ichimura Koichiro , Kurihara Hidetake , Sakai Tatsuo
Published: August 2006

The function of actin cytoskeleton in mesangial cells (MCs) during the recovering process of injured glomeruli is not fully understood. MCs in injured glomeruli express α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA), which is not detected in normal glomeruli. We focused on the localization of α-SMA in MCs of Thy-1. 1 nephritic rat. Expression of α-SMA in the injured glomeruli peaked at day 5 after antibody injection and then declined gradually. At day 5, MCs, where α-SMA was localized at their cytoplasmic processes situated in various positions, occupied the expanded mesangium. MCs expressing α-SMA tended to be located at the peripheral region close to the glomerular basement membrane (GBM) or endothelial cells at day 8. Localization of α-SMA within the peripheral MCs was restricted to the cytoplasmic processes radiating toward the GBM and touching it with their tips at day 8. These α-SMA-containing processes are suitable to transmit the contractile force to GBM and may contribute to normalize the expanded glomerular volume. In addition, an actin-binding protein, drebrin, was localized in all MC processes extending toward various directions throughout the course of nephritis, suggesting that drebrin is involved in the formation of MC processes.
Expression of Membrane-bound Carbonic Anhydrases IV, IX, and XIV in the Mouse Heart
Authors: Scheibe Renate J. , Gros Gerolf , Parkkila Seppo , Waheed Abdul , Grubb Jeffrey H. , Shah Gul N. , Sly William S. , Wetzel Petra
Published: August 2006

Expression of membrane-bound carbonic anhydrases (CAs) of CA IV, CA IX, CA XII, and CA XIV has been investigated in the mouse heart. Western blots using microsomal membranes of wild-type hearts demonstrate a 39-, 43-, and 54-kDa band representing CA IV, CA IX, and CA XIV, respectively, but CA XII could not be detected. Expression of CA IX in the CA IV/CA XIV knockout animals was further confirmed using matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry. Cardiac cells were immunostained using anti-CA/FITC and anti-α-actinin/TRITC, as well as anti-CA/FITC and anti-SERCA2/TRITC. Subcellular CA localization was investigated by confocal laser scanning microscopy. CA localization in the sarcolemmal (SL) membrane was examined by double immunostaining using anti-CA/FITC and anti-MCT-1/TRITC. CAs showed a distinct distribution pattern in the sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) membrane. CA XIV is predominantly localized in the longitudinal SR, whereas CA IX is mainly expressed in the terminal SR/t-tubular region. CA IV is present in both SR regions, whereas CA XII is not found in the SR. In the SL membrane, only CA IV and CA XIV are present. We conclude that CA IV and CA XIV are associated with the SR as well as with the SL membrane, CA IX is located in the terminal SR/t-tubular region, and CA XII is not present in the mouse heart. Therefore, the unique subcellular localization of CA IX and CA XIV in cardiac myocytes suggests different functions of both enzymes in excitation-contraction coupling.
Strength of Sands in Wedge Shear, Triaxial Shear, and Shear Box Tests
Authors: Mirata T , Erzin Y
Published: August 2006

Limited tests had indicated peak drained values of angle of internal friction Φ of gravelly sands measured in the cylindrical wedge shear test (cylwest) to be relatively closer to the Φ expected from plane strain tests than from triaxial tests. Such a difference was not obtained between the results of the prismatic wedge shear test (priswest) and the triaxial test on gravels and crushed rock. In this study, six sands with <3.35 mm particles were tested. It was seen that the main reason for the difference between the Φ values from cylwests and priswests was the difference in the angle δ between the shear plane and the bedding planes. Cylwests, in which δ was nearly the same as in triaxial tests, gave results close to those expected from plane strain tests, and almost identical results to those obtained from shear box tests on specimens so prepared as to make δ the same.
Evaluation of Various Pedo-Transfer Functions for Developing Soil-Water Characteristic Curve of a Silty Soil
Authors: Thakur VKS , Sreedeep S , Singh DN
Published: August 2006

This paper describes development of the soil-water characteristic curve (SWCC) of a silty soil by measuring its matric suction _m, corresponding to different gravimetric water contents w. To achieve this, a field tensiometer and a dew point potentiameter (WP4) were employed. For this soil, the SWCC was determined indirectly using the estimation algorithms known as pedo-transfer functions (PTFs), which are based on volume-mass properties and the grain-size distribution characteristics, and are available in a commercial database SoilVision. In addition to this, experimental results were used for developing the SWCC of the soil, using various fitting functions cited in the literature and available in the database. An attempt has been made in this technical note to demonstrate the usefulness of these three methods for obtaining the SWCC of the silty soil. The study reveals that the PTFs developed previously to estimate SWCCs match very well with the experimental results.
Deicer Salt Scaling Resistance of Concrete Containing Manufactured Sands
Authors: Dilek U , Leming ML
Published: August 2006

Manufactured sands are produced by crushing rock deposits to produce a fine aggregate which is generally more angular and has a rougher surface texture than naturally weathered sand particles. Manufactured sands can also contain significant quantities of rock dust. As natural sand deposits become depleted near some areas of metropolitan growth, the use of manufactured sands as a replacement fine aggregate in concrete is receiving attention.

Designers, specifiers, contractors, and material suppliers need to understand the effects of manufactured sand particle shape characteristics and angularity as well as fines content on concrete water demand and concrete durability, including the effects of interrelationships between manufactured sand characteristics.

As part of a comprehensive research program, manufactured sand properties and their effects on fresh concrete properties, mechanical properties and concrete durability were investigated.

Concrete containing commercially available manufactured sands with a wide range of particle angularities and fines contents were included in the laboratory testing program on deicer salt scaling. Angularity of particles and quantity of fines were found to contribute to salt scaling.