bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Modelling National or Regional Grain Supply and Food Balance in China
Authors: Shen Jianfa
Published: January 2006

In this paper, explicit grain production and demand models were used to analyze changes in national and regional grain production in China over the period 1990–97 and the future grain supply and demand up to the year 2087. A decomposition approach was developed on the basis of the grain production model to estimate the impacts of various input factors on grain production in China. National grain production, demand, and import in the future were modelled. This modelling framework allows projections of the future food situation of China on the basis of various scenarios. The results are fairly transparent and can be traced to the conditions of input factors and the level of consumption.
Methodological Issues in Cross-Border Analyses of European Small-Area Data: A Case Study
Authors: Cook Sally , Poole Michael A , Moore Adrian J , Pringle Dennis G
Published: January 2006

The growing trends for political and economic integration within the European Union signal a need for improved cohesion of national data sets to allow for comparative cross-national research on socioeconomic topics. Difficulties in achieving comparability of variables and spatial bases can apply whether analysis is undertaken at the most macro level (that of entire nations) or at more micro spatial scales. In this paper we will discuss the methodological problems which can arise from comparative cross-border analysis by using small-area census data within Ireland (North and South) as illustration. As this analysis demonstrates, limited overlap between the specific variables in national data sets, different national contexts for socioeconomic indicators, and variations between data sets in the size of spatial units can all cause analytical problems at this spatial scale. In particular, scale mixing can potentially result in very misleading interpretations. Possible solutions to these problems are discussed, and policy recommendations are made in relation to microscale spatial data sets at the national, as well as at the pan-European, level.
Spatial Variability in Fertility in Menoufia, Egypt, Assessed through the Application of Remote-Sensing and GIS Technologies
Authors: Weeks John R , Gadalla M Saad , Rashed Tarek , Stanforth James , Hill Allan G
Published: January 2006

Fertility in rural areas such as the Governorate of Menoufia in Egypt may be influenced both by spatial factors (including the diffusion of innovations) and by essentially nonspatial factors (such as the availability of education for women and the percentage of adult women who are currently married). The nonspatial variables are available directly from censuses but the spatial component requires an accurate location of the villages to which the census data refer and then appropriate decomposition of the data into spatial and nonspatial components. We use IRS satellite imagery to classify the built area in a rural governorate in Egypt and then assign village-level census data to the centroids of those polygons and incorporate the data into a GIS. We then employ measures of global and local spatial statistics to conclude that in 1976 the combination of female illiteracy, proportion married, and spatial clustering accounted for 39% of the variation in fertility in Menoufia. In 1986 those same factors explained 51% of the variation in fertility. In 1976 about one third and in 1986 about half of the explained variability was due to the spatial component (‘diffusion’) and the other half due to a combination of demographic characteristics. Furthermore, between 1976 and 1986 there was a clear north-to-south drift of fertility, with lower fertility being clustered in the north and higher fertility clustered in the south.
The Politics of Communication between Planning Officers and Politicians: The Exercise of Power through Discourse
Authors: Tait Malcolm , Campbell Heather
Published: January 2006

The relationship between local government officers and elected members is central to the decisionmaking processes associated with planning, as with many other areas of public policymaking. Legal responsibilities and issues of accountability and legitimacy lie at the heart of the relationship between officers and members, with interaction mediated and constituted through ritualised communicative encounters such as committee meetings and associated reports, and less formally through ad hoc contacts. Given the importance of this relationship it is striking that there has been relatively little research into the influences on officers and members within everyday planning practice. In this paper we will explore the extent to which a consideration of the language used in planning practice can inform our understanding of the relationship between planners and politicians. Thinking within the planning field about the role of language as a mechanism for reflecting and constituting power has been dominated by the work of Jürgen Habermas and Michel Foucault. However, despite the increasing attention focused on the importance of language and communication, work within the planning community has tended to concentrate on normative issues of how planning ought to operate in society rather than situating these theories within the ‘real’ world of practice. The objectives behind the case study research evaluated in this paper are therefore twofold. First, to explore the role of language and discourse in reflecting and constituting relations of power in a planning authority on the south coast of England and, second, to explore the value of Foucault's and Habermas's ideas as tools of research in planning. On the basis of this study we conclude that there are some important theoretical and methodological difficulties in connecting the ideas of Habermas and Foucault to the world of everyday planning practice.
Locating the Altruistic Voter: Context, Egocentric Voting, and Support for the Conservative Party at the 1997 General Election in England and Wales
Authors: Johnston Ron , Dorling Danny , Tunstall Helena , Rossiter David , MacAllister Iain , Pattie Charles
Published: January 2006

Egocentric economic voting models are widely used in studies of voting behaviour in Great Britain: they suggest that people whose standard of living has risen recently as a perceived consequence of government policies are more likely to vote for the government's return to office than are those who blame government policies for a decline in their living standards. But many people whose living standards have increased vote against the government. Analyses reported here, using specially constructed bespoke neighbourhoods around the homes of respondents to the 1997 British Election Study, show that the latter group mainly live in areas of high local unemployment. This suggests a pattern of altruistic voting, of people who are prospering personally, but whose neighbours are not, voting against the incumbent government—a pattern confirmed by statistical analyses of both egocentric and sociotropic voting.
A Spatial Garbage-Can Model
Authors: Lai Shih-Kung
Published: January 2006

In this simulation, based on a spatial garbage-can model, I treat the urban dynamic system as a set of random-walk elements interacting with each other in time. Five elements are considered: decisionmakers, choice opportunities, problems, solutions, and locations. Decisionmakers, problems, and solutions meet in an unpredictable way, are thrown into garbage cans as choice opportunities in certain locations, and something happens. In contrast to most traditional spatial simulation techniques, in which space is global and static, I consider in this simulation locations of facilities as dynamically floating on the stream of opportunities, interacting with other elements. The simulation results imply that the relationship between problems and choice opportunities dominates the outcome of the evolution, whereas the effects of the spatial structure as well as the structures of decision and solution are insignificant. The model may provide useful insights into how urban dynamics evolve.
Stagnation in Housing Production: Another Success in the Dutch ‘Planner's Paradise’?
Authors: Altes Willem K Korthals
Published: January 2006

There are a number of different criteria for measuring the success of plans in planning. In the planning literature there is a debate about the criterion of conformance (that is, whether spatial development is according to plan) as opposed to performance (that is, whether the plan has shown the way to better decisionmaking), which is, in fact, different from performance measurement. In this paper both criteria are applied to measure the success of Dutch national concentration policies in the “Fourth Memorandum on Spatial Planning—Plus”. The author shows that the urban containment policies conform well to the plan but perform badly in terms of improving current decisionmaking on the stagnation of housing production in the Netherlands. Moreover, the present stagnation of housing production is planned stagnation. With this result, the author shows that conformance and performance are independent criteria for measuring planning success, and that plans (as set out in the “Fourth Memorandum on Spatial Planning—Plus”) with high conformance may still perform badly on the performance criterion.
Changes in ACC and conjugated ACC levels following controlled atmosphere storage of nectarine
Authors: Uthairatanakij A. , Penchaiya P. , McGlasson B. , Holford P.
Published: January 2006

Low temperature disorders of nectarines are thought to be expressions of chilling injury. Chilling injury is a form of stress usually associated with increased synthesis of ethylene and its immediate precursor, aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC). However, other mechanisms for the development of chilling injury have been proposed. To help determine the nature of the processes leading to chilling injury in nectarines (Prunus persica) and how the gaseous composition of the storage atmosphere effects the development of low temperature disorders, levels of ACC and conjugated ACC were measured in fruit of the cv. Arctic Snow. These compounds were measured in fruit ripened at 20°C immediately after harvest, in fruit on removal from cold storage and in fruit ripened at 20°C following cold storage. During storage, fruit were kept at 0°C in the 4 following atmospheres: air; air + 15% CO2; air + 15 µL/L ethylene; and air + 15% CO2 + 15 µL/L ethylene. Concentrations of ACC remained low in all treatments and no significant changes in ACC levels due to added ethylene or CO2 were observed. Concentrations of conjugated ACC were about 10-times that of ACC and again were not influenced by the composition of the storage atmosphere. No significant changes in either ACC or conjugated ACC were observed until after flesh bleeding, the major symptoms of low temperature disorder expressed in these fruit, had begun to appear. It was concluded that disorders in nectarines stored at low temperatures are not a stress response involving a disruption of ethylene metabolism but may be associated with differential changes in the metabolism of enzymes associated with normal ripening.
SOL-1 is an auxiliary subunit that modulates the gating of GLR-1 glutamate receptors inCaenorhabditis elegans
Authors: Zheng Yi , Brockie Penelope J. , Mellem Jerry E. , Madsen David M. , Walker Craig S. , Francis Michael M. , Maricq Andres V.
Published: January 2006

Most rapid excitatory synaptic signaling in the brain is mediated by postsynaptic ionotropic glutamate receptors (iGluRs) that are gated open by the neurotransmitter glutamate. InCaenorhabditis elegans,sol-1encodes a CUB-domain transmembrane protein that is required for currents that are mediated by the GLR-1 iGluR. Mutations insol-1do not affect GLR-1 expression, localization, membrane insertion, or stabilization at synapses, suggesting that SOL-1 is required for iGluR function. Here, we provide evidence that SOL-1 is an auxiliary subunit that modulates the gating of GLR-1 receptors. We show that mutant variants of GLR-1 with altered gating partially restore glutamate-gated current and GLR-1-dependent behaviors insol-1mutants. Domain analysis of SOL-1 indicates that extracellular CUB domain 3 is required for function and that a secreted variant partially restores glutamate-gated currents and behavior. Also, we show that endogenous glutamatergic synaptic currents are absent insol-1mutants. Our data suggest that GLR-1 iGluRs are not simply stand-alone molecules and require the SOL-1 auxiliary protein to promote the open state of the receptor. Our analysis presents the possibility that glutamatergic signaling in other organisms may be similarly modified by SOL-1-like transmembrane proteins.
Hybrid assemblies of ATP-sensitive K
+
channels determine their muscle-type-dependent biophysical and pharmacological properties
Authors: Tricarico Domenico , Mele Antonietta , Lundquist Andrew L. , Desai Reshma R. , George Alfred L. , Camerino Diana Conte
Published: January 2006

ATP-sensitive K
+
channels (K
ATP
) are an octameric complex of inwardly rectifying K
+
channels (Kir6.1 and Kir6.2) and sulfonylurea receptors (SUR1 and SUR2A/B), which are involved in several diseases. The tissue-selective expression of the subunits leads to different channels; however, the composition and role of the functional channel in native muscle fibers is not known. In this article, the properties of K
ATP
channels of fast-twitch and slow-twitch muscles were compared by combining patch-clamp experiments with measurements of gene expression. We found that the density of K
ATP
currents/area was muscle-type specific, being higher in fast-twitch muscles compared with the slow-twitch muscle. The density of K
ATP
currents/area was correlated with the level of Kir6.2 expression. SUR2A was the most abundant subunit expressed in all muscles, whereas the vascular SUR2B subunit was expressed but at lower levels. A significant expression of the pancreatic SUR1 was also found in fast-twitch muscles. Pharmacological experiments showed that the channel response to the SUR1 agonist diazoxide, SUR2A/B agonist cromakalim, SUR1 antagonist tolbutamide, and the SUR1/SUR2A/B-antagonist glibenclamide matched the SURs expression pattern. Muscle-specific K
ATP
subunit compositions contribute to the physiological performance of different muscle fiber types and determine the pharmacological actions of drugs modulating K
ATP
activity in muscle diseases.
The Tof1p–Csm3p protein complex counteracts the Rrm3p helicase to control replication termination of
Saccharomyces cerevisiae
Authors: Mohanty Bidyut K. , Bairwa Narendra K. , Bastia Deepak
Published: January 2006

Termination of replication forks at the natural termini of the rDNA of
Saccharomyces cerevisiae
is controlled in a sequence-specific and polar mode by the interaction of the Fob1p replication terminator protein with the tandem Ter sites located in the nontranscribed spacers. Here we show, by both 2D gel analyses and chromatin immunoprecipitations (ChIP), that there exists a second level of global control mediated by the intra-S-phase checkpoint protein complex of Tof1p and Csm3p that protect stalled forks at Ter sites against the activity of the Rrm3p helicase (“sweepase”). The sweepase tends to release arrested forks presumably by the transient displacement of the Ter-bound Fob1p. Consistent with this mechanism, very few replication forks were arrested at the natural replication termini in the absence of the two checkpoint proteins. In the absence of the Rrm3p helicase, there was a slight enhancement of fork arrest at the Ter sites. Simultaneous deletions of the
TOF1
(or
CSM3
), and the
RRM3
genes restored fork arrest by removing both the fork-releasing and fork-protection activities. Other genes such as
MRC1
,
WSS1
, and
PSY2
that are also involved in the
MRC1
checkpoint pathway were not involved in this global control. This observation suggests that Tof1p–Csm3p function differently from
MRC1
and the other above-mentioned genes. This mechanism is not restricted to the natural Ter sites but was also observed at fork arrest caused by the meeting of a replication fork with transcription approaching from the opposite direction.
Wnt3a gradient converts radial to bilateral feather symmetry via topological arrangement of epithelia
Authors: Yue Zhicao , Jiang Ting-Xin , Widelitz Randall Bruce , Chuong Cheng-Ming
Published: January 2006

The evolution of bilaterally symmetric feathers is a fundamental process leading toward flight. One major unsolved mystery is how the feathers of a single bird can form radially symmetric downy feathers and bilaterally symmetric flight feathers. In developing downy feather follicles, barb ridges are organized parallel to the long axis of the feather follicle. In developing flight-feather follicles, the barb ridges are organized helically toward the anterior region, leading to the fusion and creation of a rachis. Here we discover an anterior–posterior molecular gradient of wingless int (Wnt3)a in flight but not downy feathers. Global inhibition of the Wnt gradient transforms bilaterally symmetric feathers into radially symmetric feathers. Production of an ectopic local Wnt3a gradient reoriented barb ridges toward the source and created an ectopic rachis. We further show that the orientation of the Wnt3a gradient is dictated by the dermal papilla (DP). Swapping DPs between wing covert and breast downy feathers demonstrates that both feather symmetry and molecular gradients are in accord with the origin of the DP. Thus the fates of feather epidermal cells are not predetermined through some molecular codes but can be modulated. Together, our data suggest feathers are shaped by a DP→ Wnt gradient→helical barb ridge organization→creation of rachis→bilateral symmetry sequence. We speculate diverse feather forms can be achieved by adjusting the orientation and slope of molecular gradients, which then shape the topological arrangements of feather epithelia, thus linking molecular activities to organ forms and novel functions.
Heterogeneity in a room-temperature ionic liquid: Persistent local environments and the red-edge effect
Authors: Hu Zhonghan , Margulis Claudio J.
Published: January 2006

In this work, we investigate the slow dynamics of 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate, a very popular room-temperature ionic solvent. Our study predicts the existence of heterogeneity in the liquid and shows that this heterogeneity is the underlying microscopic cause for the recently reported “red-edge effect” (REE) observed in the study of fluorescence of the organic probe 2-amino-7-nitrofluorene. This theoretical work explains in microscopic terms the relation between REE and dynamic heterogeneity in a room-temperature ionic liquid (IL). The REE is typical of micellar or colloidal systems, which are characterized by microscopic environments that are structurally very different. In contrast, in the case of this room-temperature IL, the REE occurs because of the long period during which molecules are trapped in quasistatic local solvent cages. This trapping time, which is longer than the lifetime of the excited-state probe, together with the inability of the surroundings to adiabatically relax, induces a set of site-specific spectroscopic responses. Subensembles of fluorescent molecules associated with particular local environments absorb and emit at different frequencies. We describe in detail the absorption wavelength-dependent emission spectra of 2-amino-7-nitrofluorene and show that this dependence on λ
ex
is characteristic of the IL and, as is to be expected, is absent in the case of a normal solvent such as methanol.
The products of a single maize sesquiterpene synthase form a volatile defense signal that attracts natural enemies of maize herbivores
Authors: Schnee Christiane , Köllner Tobias G. , Held Matthias , Turlings Ted C. J. , Gershenzon Jonathan , Degenhardt Jörg
Published: January 2006

Plants can defend themselves against herbivores by attracting natural enemies of the herbivores. The cues for attraction are often complex mixtures of herbivore-induced plant volatiles, making it difficult to demonstrate the role of specific compounds. After herbivory by lepidopteran larvae, maize releases a mixture of volatiles that is highly attractive to females of various parasitic wasp species. We identified the terpene synthase TPS10 that forms (
E
)-β-farnesene, (
E
)-α-bergamotene, and other herbivory-induced sesquiterpene hydrocarbons from the substrate farnesyl diphosphate. The corresponding gene is expressed in response to herbivore attack and is regulated at the transcript level. Overexpression of
tps10
in
Arabidopsis thaliana
resulted in plants emitting high quantities of TPS10 sesquiterpene products identical to those released by maize. Using these transgenic
Arabidopsis
plants as odor sources in olfactometer assays showed that females of the parasitoid
Cotesia marginiventris
learn to exploit the TPS10 sesquiterpenes to locate their lepidopteran hosts after prior exposure to these volatiles in association with hosts. This dissection of the herbivore-induced volatile blend demonstrates that a single gene such as
tps10
can be sufficient to mediate the indirect defense of maize against herbivore attack.
Serotonergic neuron diversity: Identification of raphe neurons with discharges time-locked to the hippocampal theta rhythm
Authors: Kocsis Bernat , Varga Viktor , Dahan Lionel , Sik Attila
Published: January 2006

The serotonergic system plays a key role in the regulation of brain states, and many of the known features of serotonergic neurons appear to match this function. Midbrain raphe nuclei provide a diffuse projection to all regions of the forebrain, and raphe neurons exhibit a slow metronome-like activity that sets the ambient levels of serotonin across the sleep–wake cycle. Serotonergic cells have also been implicated, however, in a variety of more specific functions that can hardly be related to their low-rate monotonous patterns of discharges. The amazing variety of serotonergic receptors and their type-specific distribution on cortical neurons also raise the possibility of a more intimate coordination between the activity of serotonergic neurons and their target cortical circuits. Here we report an unexpected diversity in the behavior of immunohistochemically identified serotonergic neurons. Two outstanding subpopulations were identified by using thein vivojuxtacellular recording and labeling technique. The first subpopulation of serotonergic cells exhibited the classic clock-like activity with no apparent short timescale interaction with the hippocampal electroencephalogram. The other subpopulation discharged action potentials that were phase-locked to the hippocampal theta rhythm, the oscillatory pattern associated with acquisition of information and memory formation. These results indicate that the ascending serotonergic system comprises cells involved in complex information processing beyond the regulation of state transitions. The heterogeneity of serotonergic neuron behavior can also help to explain the complexity of symptoms associated with serotonergic dysfunction.
Morphological homeostasis in cortical dendrites
Authors: Samsonovich Alexei V. , Ascoli Giorgio A.
Published: January 2006

Neurons have significant potential for the homeostatic regulation of a broad range of functional features, from gene expression to synaptic excitability. In this article, we show that dendritic morphology may also be under intrinsic homeostatic control. We present the results from a statistical analysis of a large collection of digitally reconstructed neurons, demonstrating that fluctuations in dendritic size in one given portion of a neuron are systematically counterbalanced by the remaining dendrites in the same cell. As a result, the total dendritic measure (e.g., number of branches, length, and surface area) of each neuron in a given morphological class is, on average, significantly less random than would be expected if trees (and their parts) were regulated independently during development. This observation is general across scales that range from gross basal/apical subdivisions to individual branches and bifurcations, and its statistical significance is robust among various brain regions, cell types, and experimental conditions. Given the pivotal dendritic role in signal integration, synaptic plasticity, and network connectivity, these findings add a dimension to the functional characterization of neuronal homeostasis.
Somitic origin of limb muscle satellite and side population cells
Authors: Schienda Jaclyn , Engleka Kurt A. , Jun Susan , Hansen Mark S. , Epstein Jonathan A. , Tabin Clifford J. , Kunkel Louis M. , Kardon Gabrielle
Published: January 2006

Repair of mature skeletal muscle is mediated by adult muscle progenitors. Satellite cells have long been recognized as playing a major role in muscle repair, whereas side population (SP) cells have more recently been identified as contributing to this process. The developmental source of these two progenitor populations has been considerably debated. We explicitly tested and quantified the contribution of embryonic somitic cells to these progenitor populations. Chick somitic cells were labeled by using replication-defective retroviruses or quail/chick chimeras, and mouse cells were labeled by crossing somite-specific, Pax3-derived Cre driver lines with a Cre-dependent reporter line. We show that the majority of, if not all, limb muscle satellite cells arise from cells expressing Pax3 specifically in the hypaxial somite and their migratory derivatives. We also find that a significant number of, but not all, limb muscle SP cells are derived from the hypaxial somite. Notably, the heterogeneity in the developmental origin of SP cells is reflected in their functional heterogeneity; somitically derived SP cells are intrinsically more myogenic than nonsomitically derived ones. Thus, we show that the somites, which supply embryonic and fetal myoblasts, are also an important source of highly myogenic adult muscle progenitors.
Early maize (
Zea mays
L.) cultivation in Mexico: Dating sedimentary pollen records and its implications
Authors: Sluyter Andrew , Dominguez Gabriela
Published: January 2006

A sedimentary pollen sequence from the coastal plain of Veracruz, Mexico, demonstrates maize cultivation by 5,000 years ago, refining understanding of the geography of early maize cultivation. Methodological issues related to bioturbation involved in dating that record combine with its similarity to a pollen sequence from the coastal plain of Tabasco, Mexico, to suggest that the inception of maize cultivation in that record occurred as much as 1,000–2,000 years more recently than the previously accepted 7,000 years ago. Our analysis thereby has substantive, theoretical, and methodological implications for understanding the complex process of maize domestication. Substantively, it demonstrates that the earliest securely dated evidence of maize comes from macrofossils excavated near Oaxaca and Tehuacán, Mexico, and not from the coastal plain along the southern Gulf of Mexico. Theoretically, that evidence best supports the hypothesis that people in the Southern Highlands domesticated this important crop plant. Methodologically, sedimentary pollen and other microfossil sequences can make valuable contributions to reconstructing the geography of early maize cultivation, but we must acknowledge the limits to precision that bioturbation in coastal lagoons imposes on the dating of such records.
Fatty acid composition of skeletal muscle and adipose tissue in Spanish infants and children
Authors: Sanjurjo Pablo , AldámizEchevarría Luis , Prado Carmen , Azcona Isabel , Elorz Javier , Prieto José A. , Ruiz José I. , Rodríguez-Soriano Juan
Published: January 2006

There is a relationship between the fatty acid profile in skeletal muscle phospholipids and peripheral resistance to insulin in adults, but similar data have not been reported in infancy and childhood. The objective of this study was to investigate the fatty acid composition of skeletal muscle and adipose tissue across the paediatric age range. The fatty acid profile of skeletal muscle phospholipids and adipose tissue triacylglycerols was analysed in ninety-three healthy Spanish infants and children distributed into four groups: group 1 (0 to <2 years,n10); group 2 (2 to <5 years,n41); group 3 (5 to <10 years,n24); group 4 (10 to 15 years,n18). In skeletal muscle phospholipids, oleic acid (18: 1n-9cis) content decreased significantly whereas that of linoleic (18: 2n-6) acid increased significantly with age (Pfor trend <0·01). In adipose tissue, the contents of triacylglycerol and linoleic acid increased significantly across the paediatric age range (Pfor trend <0·01), whereas dihomo-γ-linolenic (20: 3n-6) and arachidonic (20: 4n-6) showed significant differences between groups. The variations in fatty acid composition observed with age indicated an imbalance in dietaryn-3/n-6 long-chain PUFA.
Postprandial serum folic acid response to multiple doses of folic acid in fortified bread
Authors: Sweeney Mary R. , McPartlin Joseph , Weir Donald G. , Daly Leslie , Scott John M.
Published: January 2006

The benefit of the introduction of mandatory folic acid fortification of all flour products in the USA in 1998 has been amply demonstrated in a reduction of neural tube defect births. Doubt has been cast on the actual level of fortification and recent calculations have shown that the level of folic acid fortification is likely to have been over twice the amount mandated. The implication of this is that a greater proportion of the population are likely to have consumed folic acid at >1mg/d, the Food and Drug Administration safe upper level of intake. Using the criteria of appearance of synthetic folic acid in serum, the objective of this pilot study was to investigate the consequences of consumption of baked bread preparations containing 1mg folic acid. Four healthy adult volunteers undertook each dosing schedule 2 weeks apart. This consisted of a single dose of 1000μg, two doses of 500μg, three doses of 333μg, five doses of 200μg and, finally, ten doses of 100μg. Serum was collected pre- and postprandially and analysed for synthetic folic acid by a combined HPLC–microbiological assay for folic acid. Folic acid appeared in all subjects at all test doses, with the effect more pronounced as the standard dose was administered in smaller amounts over the test period. Approaches to optimise folic acid intake in target populations as part of a universal fortification strategy should take into consideration the potential hazard of over-exposure in groups consuming high amounts of flour-based products.
Nod1 acts as an intracellular receptor to stimulate chemokine production and neutrophil recruitment in vivo
Authors: Masumoto Junya , Yang Kangkang , Varambally Sooryanarayana , Hasegawa Mizuho , Tomlins Scott A. , Qiu Su , Fujimoto Yukari , Kawasaki Akiko , Foster Simon J. , Horie Yasuo , Mak Tak W. , Núñez Gabriel , Chinnaiyan Arul M. , Fukase Koichi , Inohara Naohiro
Published: January 2006

Nod1 is a member of family of intracellular proteins that mediate host recognition of bacterial peptidoglycan. To characterize immune responses mediated by Nod1, synthetic ligand compounds possessing enhanced ability to stimulate Nod1 were developed to study the function of Nod1. Stimulation of epithelial cells with Nod1 stimulatory molecules induced chemokines and other proinflammatory molecules that are important for innate immune responses and recruitment of acute inflammatory cells. Administration of Nod1 ligands into mice induced chemokines and recruitment of acute inflammatory cells, an activity that was abolished in Nod1-null mice. Microarray analysis revealed that Nod1 stimulation induces a restricted number of genes in intestinal epithelial cells compared with that induced by tumor necrosis factor (TNF) α. Nod1 stimulation did not induce TNFα, interleukin 12, and interferon γ, suggesting that the primary role of Nod1 is to induce the recruitment of immune cells. These results indicate that Nod1 functions as a pathogen recognition molecule to induce expression of molecules involved in the early stages of the innate immune response.
AID-dependent histone acetylation is detected in immunoglobulin S regions
Authors: Wang Lili , Whang Naree , Wuerffel Robert , Kenter Amy L.
Published: January 2006

Class switch recombination (CSR) is regulated by the expression of activation-induced deaminase (AID) and germline transcripts (GLTs). AID-dependent double-strand breaks (DSBs) are introduced into switch (S) regions and stimulate CSR. Although histone acetylation (Ac) has been well documented in transcription regulation, its role in DNA damage repair remains largely unexplored. The 1B4.B6 B cell line and normal splenic B cells were activated to undergo CSR and analyzed for histone Ac by chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP). A detailed study of the Iγ3-Sγ3-Cγ3 locus demonstrated that acetylated histones are focused to the Iγ3 exon and the Sγ3 region but not to the intergenic areas. Histone H3 Ac is strongly correlated with GLT expression at four S regions, whereas H4 Ac was better associated with B cell activation and AID expression. To more directly examine the relationship between H4 Ac and AID, LPS-activated AID KO and WT B cells were analyzed and express comparable levels of GLTs. In AID-deficient B cells, both histones H3 and H4 are reduced where H4 is more severely affected as compared with WT cells. Our findings raise the intriguing possibility that histone H4 Ac at S regions is a marker for chromatin modifications associated with DSB repair during CSR.
Uptake of Leishmania major by dendritic cells is mediated by Fcγ receptors and facilitates acquisition of protective immunity
Authors: Woelbing Florian , Kostka Susanna Lopez , Moelle Katharina , Belkaid Yasmine , Sunderkoetter Cord , Verbeek Sjef , Waisman Ari , Nigg Axel P. , Knop Juergen , Udey Mark C. , von Stebut Esther
Published: January 2006

Uptake of Leishmania major by dendritic cells (DCs) results in activation and interleukin (IL)-12 release. Infected DCs efficiently stimulate CD4− and CD8− T cells and vaccinate against leishmaniasis. In contrast, complement receptor 3–dependent phagocytosis of L. major by macrophages (MΦ) leads exclusively to MHC class II–restricted antigen presentation to primed, but not naive, T cells, and no IL-12 production. Herein, we demonstrate that uptake of L. major by DCs required parasite-reactive immunoglobulin (Ig)G and involved FcγRI and FcγRIII. In vivo, DC infiltration of L. major–infected skin lesions coincided with the appearance of antibodies in sera. Skin of infected B cell–deficient mice and Fcγ−/− mice contained fewer parasite-infected DCs in vivo. Infected B cell–deficient mice as well as Fcγ−/− mice (all on the C57BL/6 background) showed similarly increased disease susceptibility as assessed by lesion volumes and parasite burdens. The B cell–deficient mice displayed impaired T cell priming and dramatically reduced IFN-γ production, and these deficits were normalized by infection with IgG-opsonized parasites. These data demonstrate that DC and MΦ use different receptors to recognize and ingest L. major with different outcomes, and indicate that B cell–derived, parasite-reactive IgG and DC FcγRI and FcγRIII are essential for optimal development of protective immunity.
Genetic association studies: Design, analysis and interpretation
Authors: Lewis Cathryn M.
Published: January 2006

This paper provides a review of the design and analysis of genetic association studies. In case control studies, the different contingency tables and their relationships to the underlying genetic model are defined. Population stratification is discussed, with suggested methods to identify and correct for the effect. The transmission disequilibrium test is provided as an alternative family-based test, which is robust to population stratification. The relative benefits of each analysis are summarised.
TAMAL: an integrated approach to choosing SNPs for genetic studies of human complex traits
Authors: Hemminger Bradley M. , Saelim Billy , Sullivan Patrick F.
Published: January 2006

Summary: Investigators conducting studies of the molecular genetics of complex traits in humans often need rationally to select a set of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) from the hundreds or thousands available for a candidate gene. Accomplishing this requires integration of genomic data from distributed databases and is both time-consuming and error-prone. We developed the TAMAL (Technology And Money Are Limiting) web site to help identify promising SNPs for further investigation. For a given list of genes, TAMAL identifies SNPs that meet user-specified criteria (e.g. haplotype tagging SNPs or SNP predicted to lead to amino acid changes) from current versions of online resources (i.e. HapMap, Perlegen, Affymetrix, dbSNP and the UCSC genome browser).

Availability: TAMAL is a platform independent web-based application available free of charge at

Contact: pfsulliv@med.unc.edu

Supplementary information:
An interactive power analysis tool for microarray hypothesis testing and generation
Authors: Seo Jinwook , Gordish-Dressman Heather , Hoffman Eric P.
Published: January 2006

Motivation: Human clinical projects typically require a priori statistical power analyses. Towards this end, we sought to build a flexible and interactive power analysis tool for microarray studies integrated into our public domain HCE 3.5 software package. We then sought to determine if probe set algorithms or organism type strongly influenced power analysis results.

Results: The HCE 3.5 power analysis tool was designed to import any pre-existing Affymetrix microarray project, and interactively test the effects of user-defined definitions of α (significance), β (1 − power), sample size and effect size. The tool generates a filter for all probe sets or more focused ontology-based subsets, with or without noise filters that can be used to limit analyses of a future project to appropriately powered probe sets. We studied projects from three organisms (Arabidopsis, rat, human), and three probe set algorithms (MAS5.0, RMA, dChip PM/MM). We found large differences in power results based on probe set algorithm selection and noise filters. RMA provided high sensitivity for low numbers of arrays, but this came at a cost of high false positive results (24% false positive in the human project studied). Our data suggest that a priori power calculations are important for both experimental design in hypothesis testing and hypothesis generation, as well as for the selection of optimized data analysis parameters.

Availability: The Hierarchical Clustering Explorer 3.5 with the interactive power analysis functions is available at or .

Contact:  jseo@cnmcresearch.org
Panta rhei (QAlign2): an open graphical environment for sequence analysis
Authors: Sammeth Michael , Griebel Thasso , Tille Felix , Stoye Jens
Published: January 2006

Motivation: The first version of the graphical multiple sequence alignment environment QAlign was published in 2003. Heavy response from the molecular-biological user community clearly demonstrated the need for such a platform.

Results:  Panta rhei extends QAlign by several features. Major redesigns on the user interface, for instance, allow users to flexibily compose views for multiple projects. The new sequence viewer handles datasets with arbitrarily many and arbitrarily large sequences that may still be edited by guided block moving. More distance-based algorithms are available to interactively reconstruct phylogenetic trees which can now also be zoomed and navigated graphicaly.

Availability: Executables and the JAVA source code are available under the Apache license at

Contact:  qalign@cebitec.uni-bielefeld.de
International Human Rights: Neglect of Perspectives From African Institutions
Authors: Murray Rachel
Published: January 2006

International human rights law advocates tolerance, inclusivity and the promotion of equality among peoples, nations and individuals across the world. It seems disappointing, therefore, that these standards do not always apply to the discipline of international human rights law itself. Instead there seems to be a hierarchy in the international human rights system. Others have written about such an approach in relation to different types of rights,1reflecting political power struggles.2This paper will consider whether African institutions are ‘third generation’ organs and perceived as of less value than others. It will argue that international human rights law has focused primarily on European and Western sources and neglected those from other jurisdictions. It has failed, therefore, to use African institutions, for instance, to provide examples of good practice, relying on them only as examples of what not to do. As Okafor and Agbakwa state, there is evidence of a one-way traffic, with Western scholars giving the impression that they feel they have little to learn from African institutions and their experiences:
I.Referring an indictment from the ICTY and ICTR to another court—Rule 11bisand the consequences for the law of extradition
Authors: Bohlander Michael
Published: January 2006

In the wake of their so-called ‘completion strategies’,1both the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) and for Rwanda (ICTR), creations of the UN Security Council under Chapter VII of the UN Charter, have for some time grappled with the question of how to unclog their congested dockets and dispose of those accused which are generally viewed as ‘small fry’. The fact that many of the accused have had to spend very long, some say excessively long, times in the custody of the Tribunals prior to and during trials, led the Tribunals to devise a mechanism for the transfer of cases to national jurisdictions, preferably those of the national States of the defendants, which were mostly identical to the post-conflict countries. The mechanism was an amendment of Rule 11bisof their Rules of Procedure and Evidence (RPE) which allowed the Tribunals to refer cases to the national courts under certain circumstances. It is helpful to trace the history of the Rule. For the sake of simplicity, only the ICTY2will be looked at here, as there are no real differences in substance with regard to the ICTR as far as the latest version of the Rule3is concerned.
Multiplicity of periodic solutions in bistable equations
Authors: Berkolaiko Gregory , Grinfeld Michael
Published: January 2006

We study the number of periodic solutions in two first-order non-autonomous differential equations, both of which have been used to describe, among other things, the mean magnetization of an Ising magnet in a time-varying external magnetic field. When the amplitude of the external field is increased, the set of periodic solutions undergoes a bifurcation in both equations. We prove that despite superficial similarities between the equations, the character of the bifurcation can be very different. This results in a different number of coexisting stable periodic solutions in the vicinity of the bifurcation. As a consequence, in one of the models, the Suzuki–Kubo equation, one can effect a discontinuous change in magnetization by adiabatically varying the amplitude of the magnetic field.
The evolution of parasite manipulation of host dispersal
Authors: Lion Sébastien , van Baalen Minus , Wilson William G
Published: January 2006

We investigate the evolution of manipulation of host dispersal behaviour by parasites using spatially explicit individual-based simulations. We find that when dispersal is local, parasites always gain from increasing their hosts' dispersal rate, although the evolutionary outcome is determined by the costs-to-benefits ratio. However, when dispersal can be non-local, we show that parasites investing in an intermediate dispersal distance of their hosts are favoured even when the manipulation is not costly, due to the intrinsic spatial dynamics of the host–parasite interaction. Our analysis highlights the crucial importance of ecological spatial dynamics in evolutionary processes and reveals the theoretical possibility that parasites could manipulate their hosts' dispersal.
Spatial navigation in complex and radial mazes in APP23 animals and neurotrophin signaling as a biological marker of early impairment
Authors: Hellweg Rainer , Lohmann Peter , Huber Roman , Kühl Alexander , Riepe Matthias W.
Published: January 2006

Impairment of hippocampal function precedes frontal and parietal cortex impairment in human Alzheimer's disease (AD). Neurotrophins are critical for behavioral performance and neuronal survival in AD. We used complex and radial mazes to assess spatial orientation and learning in wild-type and B6-Tg(ThylAPP)23Sdz (APP23) animals, a transgenic mouse model of AD. We also assessed brain content of nerve growth factor (NGF), brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), and neurotrophin-3 (NT-3). Performance was alike in wild-type and APP23 animals in the radial maze. In contrast, performance in the complex maze was better in wild-type than APP23 animals. Contrary to the wild-type, hippocampal BDNF levels decreased on training in APP23 animals. Hippocampal and frontal cortex NGF levels in APP23 animals correlated with the time to solve the complex maze, but correlated inversely with escape time in wild-type animals. NT-3 levels were alike in wild-type and APP23 animals and were unchanged even after training. Both types of mazes depend on hippocampal integrity to some extent. However, according to the cognitive mapping theory of spatial learning, the complex maze because of the increased complexity of the environment most likely depends more strongly on preserved hippocampal function than the radial maze in the working memory configuration applied here. Greater impairment in complex maze performance than in radial maze performance thus resembles the predominant affliction of the loss of hippocampal function in human AD. NGF and BDNF levels on maze learning are different in wild-type and transgenic animals, indicating that biological markers of AD may be altered on challenge even though equilibrium levels are alike.
The “prawn-in-the-tube” procedure in the cuttlefish: Habituation or passive avoidance learning?
Authors: Agin Véronique , Chichery Raymond , Dickel Ludovic , Chichery Marie-Paule
Published: January 2006

This study examines whether or not habituation contributes to the
regulation of the inhibition of predatory behavior observed during the
“prawn-in-the-tube” training procedure. When presented with prawns
that are visible behind glass but untouchable, cuttlefish promptly learn to
inhibit their capture attempts. The first three experiments demonstrated that
the acquired response in the course of training cannot be dishabituated. The
fourth experiment demonstrated that the repeated application of a brief visual
prawn stimulus, one that is terminated before the cuttlefish can strike,
decreases attack latencies. Taken together, the results of this study
establish that habituation does not play a significant role in this learning
task. In fact, the present findings strengthen the results of previous studies
suggesting that passive avoidance learning contributes to the regulation of
the inhibition of predatory behavior.