bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Vitreopapillary and vitreomacular traction in proliferative Eales’ disease
Authors: Saxena Sandeep , Jain Astha , Akduman Levent
Published: October 2012

Vitreoretinal interface alterations leading to vitreopapillary and vitreomacular traction in a 29-year case of proliferative Eales’ disease is described for the first time. On fundus examination, an ellipsoid area of vitreomacular traction was noted temporal to the optic disc. A triangular-shaped infolding of the retina was observed superior to the fovea. Epiretinal membrane was seen temporal to the disc involving the macula. Imaging by spectral domain optical coherence tomography in the papillomacular bundle region revealed retinoschisis at the level of the outer nuclear layer and confirmed the presence of retinal infolding and epiretinal membrane in the macular area. Three-dimensional imaging documented vitreoretinal interface alterations exquisitely.
A suspected malignancy in osteolytic bone tumour of the thumb
Authors: Mattiassich Georg , Ensat Florian , Hager Martina , Wechselberger Gottfried
Published: October 2012

A 75-year-old male patient was referred to our institution owing to a painful and gradually developing lesion of the thumb with suspicious malignancy. The patient was suffering from a swollen, red, tender left thumb for 3 months. An old scar at the finger pulp could be traced from an old minor trauma. The x-ray revealed an osteolytic lesion in the terminal phalanx of the non-dominant hand that raised concerns of malignancy. Additional investigations such as ultrasound, CT-scan and MRI have been performed to get better insight to the lesion. After performing a biopsy, no malignant cells were found. Owing to the local destroying effect of the lesion and the clinical signs of the patient, the lesion was excised in total. The histopathological evaluation confirmed the tumour as a rare intraosseous epidermoid cyst. A bone graft after resection was not needed. The postoperative follow-up of the patient was uneventful.
Remote spinal epidural haematoma after spinal anaesthesia presenting with a ‘spinal lucid interval’
Authors: Madhugiri Venkatesh S , Singh Manish , Sasidharan Gopalakrishnan M , Kumar V R Roopesh
Published: October 2012

An obstetric patient who had no significant risk factors developed a spinal epidural haematoma remote from the site of needle puncture (for administration of spinal anaesthesia). The clinical deficits were manifest after recovery from the motor blockade had started a phenomenon that we have termed as a ‘spinal lucid interval’. The patient developed flaccid paraplegia with a sharp sensory level and urinary retention. The patient underwent emergency laminectomy and evacuation of the haematoma. She gradually recovered near normal power and was ambulant independently and had normal sphincter function at follow-up.
Isolation ofLeclercia adecarboxylatafrom a wound infection after exposure to hurricane-related floodwater
Authors: Tam Vernissia , Nayak Seema
Published: October 2012

A man in his early 80s presented to our emergency department with painless redness and swelling in his right leg. One week prior, he cleaned up floodwater in his basement after Hurricane Irene passed the Mid-Atlantic region of the USA in August 2011. Physical examination included large purple bullae and raised concern for necrotising fasciitis. Wound culture revealed a polymicrobial infection includingLeclercia adecarboxylata.
Utilisation of a thoracic oncology database to capture radiological and pathological images for evaluation of response to chemotherapy in patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma
Authors: Carey George B , Kazantsev Stephanie , Surati Mosmi , Rolle Cleo E , Kanteti Archana , Sadiq Ahad , Bahroos Neil , Raumann Brigitte , Madduri Ravi , Dave Paul , Starkey Adam , Hensing Thomas , Husain Aliya N , Vokes Everett E , Vigneswaran Wickii , Armato Samuel G , Kindler Hedy L , Salgia Ravi
Published: October 2012

Objective

An area of need in cancer informatics is the ability to store images in a comprehensive database as part of translational cancer research. To meet this need, we have implemented a novel tandem database infrastructure that facilitates image storage and utilisation.

Background

We had previously implemented the Thoracic Oncology Program Database Project (TOPDP) database for our translational cancer research needs. While useful for many research endeavours, it is unable to store images, hence our need to implement an imaging database which could communicate easily with the TOPDP database.

Methods

The Thoracic Oncology Research Program (TORP) imaging database was designed using the Research Electronic Data Capture (REDCap) platform, which was developed by Vanderbilt University. To demonstrate proof of principle and evaluate utility, we performed a retrospective investigation into tumour response for malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) patients treated at the University of Chicago Medical Center with either of two analogous chemotherapy regimens and consented to at least one of two UCMC IRB protocols, 9571 and 13473A.

Results

A cohort of 22 MPM patients was identified using clinical data in the TOPDP database. After measurements were acquired, two representative CT images and 0–35 histological images per patient were successfully stored in the TORP database, along with clinical and demographic data.

Discussion

We implemented the TORP imaging database to be used in conjunction with our comprehensive TOPDP database. While it requires an additional effort to use two databases, our database infrastructure facilitates more comprehensive translational research.

Conclusions

The investigation described herein demonstrates the successful implementation of this novel tandem imaging database infrastructure, as well as the potential utility of investigations enabled by it. The data model presented here can be utilised as the basis for further development of other larger, more streamlined databases in the future.
Suppression of LPS-induced inflammatory responses by inflexanin B in BV2 microglial cells
Authors: Lim Ji-Youn , Sul Donggeun , Hwang Bang Yeon , Hwang Kwang Woo , Yoo Ki-Yeol , Park So-Young
Published: October 2012

Microglia are a type of resident macrophage that functions as an inflammation modulator in the central nervous system. Over-activation of microglia by a range of stimuli disrupts the physiological homeostasis of the brain, and induces inflammatory response and degenerative processes, such as those implicated in neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease. Therefore, we investigated the possible anti-inflammatory mechanisms of inflexanin B in murine microglial BV2 cells. Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) activated BV2 cells and induced the production of pro-inflammatory mediators such as nitric oxide (NO), prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), and cytokines (interleukins-1β and -6, and tumour necrosis factor α). The LPS-induced production of pro-inflammatory mediators was associated with the enhancement of nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-κB) nuclear translocation and the activation of mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) including ERK1/2 and JNK. Conversely, pretreatment of cells with inflexanin B (10 and 20 μg/mL) significantly reduced the production of pro-inflammatory mediators. This was accompanied with the reduced nuclear translocation of NF-κB and reduced activation of MAPKs. These results suggest that inflexanin B attenuated the LPS-induced inflammatory process by inhibiting the activation of NF-κB and MAPKs.
ENTROPY BALANCE EQUATION OF SPACE–TIME THERMODYNAMICS IN f(R) GRAVITY
Authors: YOKOKURA YUKI
Published: October 2012

We study space–time thermodynamics for nonequilibrium processes. We first generalize the formulation of space–time thermodynamics by using an observer outside the horizon. Then we construct the entropy balance equation of space–time thermodynamics for nonequilibrium processes in f(R) gravity. The coefficients of the expansion and shear terms are equal to the viscosities of the black hole membrane paradigm, and a new entropy production term appears.
METRIC GRAPH RECONSTRUCTION FROM NOISY DATA
Authors: AANJANEYA MRIDUL , CHAZAL FREDERIC , CHEN DANIEL , GLISSE MARC , GUIBAS LEONIDAS , MOROZOV DMITRIY
Published: October 2012

Many real-world data sets can be viewed of as noisy samples of special types of metric spaces called metric graphs.19 Building on the notions of correspondence and Gromov-Hausdorff distance in metric geometry, we describe a model for such data sets as an approximation of an underlying metric graph. We present a novel algorithm that takes as an input such a data set, and outputs a metric graph that is homeomorphic to the underlying metric graph and has bounded distortion of distances. We also implement the algorithm, and evaluate its performance on a variety of real world data sets.
THREE PROBLEMS ABOUT DYNAMIC CONVEX HULLS
Authors: CHAN TIMOTHY M.
Published: October 2012

We present three results related to dynamic convex hulls:

• A fully dynamic data structure for maintaining a set of n points in the plane so that we can find the edges of the convex hull intersecting a query line, with expected query and amortized update time O( log 1+εn) for an arbitrarily small constant ε > 0. This improves the previous bound of O( log 3/2n).

• A fully dynamic data structure for maintaining a set of n points in the plane to support halfplane range reporting queries in O( log n+k) time with O( polylog n) expected amortized update time. A similar result holds for 3-dimensional orthogonal range reporting. For 3-dimensional halfspace range reporting, the query time increases to O( log 2n/ log log n + k).

• A semi-online dynamic data structure for maintaining a set of n line segments in the plane, so that we can decide whether a query line segment lies completely above the lower envelope, with query time O( log n) and amortized update time O(nε). As a corollary, we can solve the following problem in O(n1+ε) time: given a triangulated terrain in 3-d of size n, identify all faces that are partially visible from a fixed viewpoint.
ON THE DETERMINATION OF REFRACTIVE INDEX AND THICKNESS OF THIN DIELECTRIC FILMS FROM MEASUREMENT OF TRANSMITTANCE
Authors: SHAH Z. H. , AHMAD I. , TAHIR Q. A. , KHAWAJA E. E.
Published: October 2012

Refractive index and thickness of a transparent film (ZnS) on a transparent substrate (BK-7 glass) have been determined from measurement of normal incidence transmittance, using different methods. Some of the methods considered here are most widely used, as is apparent from the literature. The outcome of this study could help a researcher in selecting an appropriate method for such an application. The values of the refractive indices determined by different methods were found to be close to each other (within 0.5%). However, large (up to 4.4%) differences existed in the values of the thickness determined by different methods.
THE ALGORITHM OF FINDING ALL PARADOXICAL PAIRS IN A LINEAR TRANSPORTATION PROBLEM
Authors: BASU MANJUSRI , ACHARYA DEBIPRASAD , DAS ATANU
Published: October 2012

In this paper, we discuss paradox in a linear Transportation Problem. Thereby, we establish a sufficient condition for the existence of paradox in a linear transportation problem. Next we find out all the Paradoxical pairs as well as paradoxical range of flow. We also illustrate a numerical example in support of the theory.
FACC: A Novel Finite Automaton Based on Cloud Computing for the Multiple Longest Common Subsequences Search
Authors: Li Yanni , Wang Yuping , Bao Liang
Published: October 2012

Searching for the multiple longest common subsequences (MLCS) has significant applications in the areas of bioinformatics, information processing, and data mining, and so forth, Although a few parallel MLCS algorithms have been proposed, the efficiency and effectiveness of the algorithms are not satisfactory with the increasing complexity and size of biologic data. To overcome the shortcomings of the existing MLCS algorithms, and considering that MapReduce parallel framework of cloud computing being a promising technology for cost‐effective high performance parallel computing, a novel finite automaton (FA) based on cloud computing called FACC is proposed under MapReduce parallel framework, so as to exploit a more efficient and effective general parallel MLCS algorithm. FACC adopts the ideas of matched pairs and finite automaton by preprocessing sequences, constructing successor tables, and common subsequences finite automaton to search for MLCS. Simulation experiments on a set of benchmarks from both real DNA and amino acid sequences have been conducted and the results show that the proposed FACC algorithm outperforms the current leading parallel MLCS algorithm FAST‐MLCS.
Some Results on Equivalence Groups
Authors: Ndogmo J. C.
Published: October 2012

The comparison of two common types of equivalence groups of differential equations is discussed, and it is shown that one type can be identified with a subgroup of the other type, and a case where the two groups are isomorphic is exhibited. A result on the determination of the finite transformations of the infinitesimal generator of the larger group, which is useful for the determination of the invariant functions of the differential equation, is also given. In addition, the Levidecomposition of the Lie algebra associated with the larger group is found; the Levi factor of which is shown to be equal, up to a constant factor, to the Lie algebra associated with the smaller group.
Coupled Fixed Point Results in Complete Partial Metric Spaces
Authors: Alaeidizaji H. , Parvaneh V.
Published: October 2012

We establish some coupled fixed point theorems for a mapping satisfying some contraction conditions in complete partial metric spaces. Our consequences extend the results of H. Aydi (2011).
Verteporfin Photodynamic Therapy Combined with Intravitreal Ranibizumab for Polypoidal Choroidal Vasculopathy Controversy Concerning Long-Term Followup
Authors: Fernández Maribel , Gil María , Gomez-Ulla Francisco , Charlón Pablo
Published: October 2012

Purpose. To show the long-term results of intravitreal ranibizumab combined with photodynamic therapy (PDT) for the treatment of polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy (PCV).Methods. We analyzed the progress of two patients for 36 and 58 months, respectively. We only used PDT for the treatment in the area of the active PCV or “hot spot” evident on the indocyanine green angiography (ICGA). The spot size was chosen so as to cover only the active neovascular lesion. We combined intravitreal ranibizumab with PDT when PCV remained active without visible polyps in ICGA or without a response to PDT.Conclusion. Administration, as required, of verteporfin photodynamic therapy combined with intravitreal ranibizumab is an effective treatment for symptomatic polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy. These data need to be confirmed in large, prospective, and controlled clinical trials which are randomized and carried out over a long period.
Forecasting the Influence of Climate Change on Agroecosystem Services: Potential Impacts on Honey Yields in a Small-Island Developing State
Authors: Delgado Diana L. , Pérez María Eglée , Galindo-Cardona Alberto , Giray Tugrul , Restrepo Carla
Published: October 2012

Global change poses numerous challenges to developing nations and small-island developing states (SIDSs). Among these are the effects of climate change on honeybees’ provisioning services including honey production. Here we ask two questions. First, what is the relationship between honey yield and climate in a tropical environment? Second, how does yield vary spatially under current climate and future scenarios of climate change? Focusing on the island of Puerto Rico, we developed an ensemble of bioclimatic models that were used in a geographical information system to identify suitable areas for honey production under current and future scenarios of climate change. A comparison between contemporary (1998–2005) and historical (1910–1974) honey yield data revealed a reduction in average yield, including variability, over time, with current yields averaging 5.3 L/colony. Three bioclimatic variables were retained by at least three models: temperature seasonality and mean temperature of the wettest quarter were negatively correlated with honey yields whereas precipitation of the wettest month was positively correlated. The four models varied in terms of their predictions but showed that both honey yields and areas suitable for honey production will decrease under scenarios of climate change. These results illustrate the possible impacts of climate change on honey and ultimately honeybees.
TGF-β Signaling in Onset and Progression of Hepatocellular Carcinoma
Authors: Meindl-Beinker Nadja M. , Matsuzaki Koichi , Dooley Steven
Published: October 2012

Transforming growth factor (TGF)-β is a central regulator in chronic liver disease, contributing to all stages of disease progression from initial liver injury through inflammation and fibrosis to cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. Liver damage-induced levels of active TGF-β enhance hepatocyte destruction and mediate hepatic stellate cell and fibroblast activation resulting in a wound-healing response, including myofibroblast generation and extracellular matrix deposition. Further evidence points to a decisive role of cytostatic and apoptotic functions mediated on hepatocytes, which is critical for the control of liver mass, with loss of TGF-β activities resulting in hyperproliferative disorders and cancer. This concept is based on studies that describe a bipartite role of TGF-β with tumor suppressor functions at early stages of liver damage and regeneration, whereas during cancer progression TGF-β may turn from a tumor suppressor into a tumor promoter that exacerbates invasive and metastatic behavior. We have delineated this molecular switch of the pathway from cytostatic to tumor promoting in further detail and identify activation of survival signaling pathways in hepatocytes as a most critical requirement. Targeting the TGF-β signaling pathway has been explored to inhibit liver disease progression. While interfering with TGF-β signaling in various short-term animal models has demonstrated promising results, liver disease progression in humans is a process of decades with different phases in which TGF-β or its targeting may have both beneficial and adverse outcomes. We emphasize that, in order to achieve therapeutic effects, targeting TGF-β signaling in the right cell type at the right time is required.
Improved Identification and Antihypertension Pharmacotherapy in Cardiorenal Metabolic Syndrome: Focus on Racial/Ethnic Minorities, Olmesartan Medoxomil, and Combination Therapy
Authors: Ferdinand Keith C.
Published: October 2012

Cardiorenal metabolic syndrome (CRS) is a global health care concern in view of aging in certain populations, increased obesity, changing lifestyles, and its close association with type 2 diabetes mellitus and cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. Determining the appropriate criteria for CRS has been somewhat controversial, and efforts to fully describe and define the syndrome are still ongoing. Nonetheless, improving knowledge of the syndrome among health care professionals will help to identify patients who may require pharmacological and therapeutic lifestyle intervention, particularly with regards to addressing high-normal blood pressure and hypertension. This article reviews current clinical guidelines with a focus on the identification, especially in racial/ethnic minorities, treatment, and associated cardiovascular morbidity and mortality of high blood pressure and hypertension in patients with CRS. Efficacy and outcomes studies that provide insight into the selection of an initial antihypertensive regimen in this population will be discussed. Finally, a brief review of the benefits of olmesartan medoxomil and combination therapy and patient factors in the management of hypertension with CRS will be addressed.
Circulation
Editors' Picks
Authors:   The Editors
Published: October 2012

The following articles are being highlighted as part of
Circulation's
Topic Review series. This series will summarize the most important manuscripts, as selected by the editors, published in
Circulation
and the
Circulation
subspecialty journals. The studies included in this article represent the most read manuscripts published on the topic of pediatric cardiology within the two years.
Fenofibrate Improves Vascular Endothelial Function by Reducing Oxidative Stress While Increasing Endothelial Nitric Oxide Synthase in Healthy Normolipidemic Older Adults
Authors: Walker Ashley E. , Kaplon Rachelle E. , Lucking Sara Marian S. , Russell-Nowlan Molly J. , Eckel Robert H. , Seals Douglas R.
Published: October 2012

Vascular endothelial dysfunction develops with aging, as indicated by impaired endothelium-dependent dilation, and is related to increased cardiovascular disease risk. We hypothesized that short-term treatment with fenofibrate, a lipid-lowering agent with potential pleiotropic effects, would improve endothelium-dependent dilation in middle-aged and older normolipidemic adults by reducing oxidative stress. Brachial artery flow-mediated dilation, a measure of endothelium-dependent dilation, was assessed in 22 healthy adults aged 50 to 77 years before and after 7 days of fenofibrate (145 mg/d; n=12) or placebo (n=10). Brachial flow-mediated dilation was unchanged with placebo, but improved after 2 and 7 days of fenofibrate (5.1±0.7 versus 2 days: 6.0±0.7 and 7 days: 6.4±0.6%δ; both
P
<0.005). The improvements in flow-mediated dilation after 7 days remained significant (
P
<0.05) after accounting for modest changes in plasma total and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol. Endothelium-independent dilation was not affected by fenofibrate or placebo (
P
>0.05). Intravenous infusion of the antioxidant vitamin C improved brachial flow-mediated dilation at baseline in both groups and during placebo treatment (
P
<0.05), but not after 2 and 7 days of fenofibrate (
P
>0.05). Fenofibrate treatment also reduced plasma-oxidized low-density lipoprotein, a systemic marker of oxidative stress, compared with placebo (
P
<0.05). In vascular endothelial cells sampled from peripheral veins of the subjects, endothelial nitric oxide synthase protein expression was unchanged with placebo and after 2 days of fenofibrate, but was increased after 7 days of fenofibrate (0.54±0.03 versus 2 days: 0.52±0.04 and 7 days: 0.76±0.11 intensity/human umbilical vein endothelial cell control;
P
<0.05, 7 days). Short-term treatment with fenofibrate improves vascular endothelial function in healthy normolipidemic middle-aged and older adults by reducing oxidative stress and induces an increase in endothelial nitric oxide synthase.
Impacts of Shallow Convection on MJO Simulation: A Moist Static Energy and Moisture Budget Analysis
Authors: Cai Qiongqiong , Zhang Guang J. , Zhou Tianjun
Published: October 2012

The role of shallow convection in Madden–Julian oscillation (MJO) simulation is examined in terms of the moist static energy (MSE) and moisture budgets. Two experiments are carried out using the NCAR Community Atmosphere Model, version 3.0 (CAM3.0): a “CTL” run and an “NSC” run that is the same as the CTL except with shallow convection disabled below 700 hPa between 20°S and 20°N. Although the major features in the mean state of outgoing longwave radiation, 850-hPa winds, and vertical structure of specific humidity are reasonably reproduced in both simulations, moisture and clouds are more confined to the planetary boundary layer in the NSC run. While the CTL run gives a better simulation of the MJO life cycle when compared with the reanalysis data, the NSC shows a substantially weaker MJO signal. Both the reanalysis data and simulations show a recharge–discharge mechanism in the MSE evolution that is dominated by the moisture anomalies. However, in the NSC the development of MSE and moisture anomalies is weaker and confined to a shallow layer at the developing phases, which may prevent further development of deep convection. By conducting the budget analysis on both the MSE and moisture, it is found that the major biases in the NSC run are largely attributed to the vertical and horizontal advection. Without shallow convection, the lack of gradual deepening of upward motion during the developing stage of MJO prevents the lower troposphere above the boundary layer from being preconditioned for deep convection.
Emigration Policies and Nation-building in Interwar Yugoslavia
Authors: Brunnbauer Ulf
Published: October 2012

This article analyses the connection between emigration policies and nationalism in interwar Yugoslavia (1918–1941). It argues that Yugoslav policymakers used emigration as a means of nation-building. On the one hand, the Yugoslav state pursued long-distance nation-building by aiming to create a ‘Yugoslav diaspora’ out of the hundreds of thousands of overseas emigrants of South Slavic extraction who had left territories that in 1918 became part of Yugoslavia. On the other hand, the state pursued an ethnically differentiated exit policy. To this end, the emigration of minorities was supported, particularly in the case of non-Slavic Muslims, while the emigration of so-called ‘national’ elements was restricted. In order to assess the efficacy of these policies, the article also looks at the legal and institutional framework within which migration policies were carried out. It concludes that, while the policies’ effects did not correspond with policymakers’ intentions, emigration policy nevertheless provides an original perspective on nation-building in interwar Yugoslavia.
The Poetry of Discontent: Jérôme Bonaparte and his Alleged Exploitation of the Kingdom of Westphalia
Authors: Berryman Todd Blake
Published: October 2012

The kingdom of Westphalia was an entirely artificial creation borne out of the territorial consolidations that accompanied Napoleon’s victories over the major powers of Central Europe. Intended to be an experimental kingdom where the revolutionary values of liberty and especially equality could be transplanted onto German soil, the kingdom was to be ruled by the French emperor’s youngest brother, Jérôme. During the kingdom’s short existence, from 1807 until 1813, many of Jérôme’s policies, especially with regard to taxation and conscription, were unpopular, and his own personal reputation for a luxurious and licentious lifestyle became fodder for German liberationists. As Napoleon’s power fell into jeopardy following his disastrous Russian Campaign of 1812, war poets throughout Central Europe seized the opportunity and began publishing seditious lyrics about their French conquerors. Within the unique context afforded by the kingdom of Westphalia, where a Bonaparte ruled directly, war poets wove together a creative, multi-pronged narrative of exploitation, wherein the king’s heavy taxes were characterized as funding a widespread conscription system, which robbed Westphalia of its young men, in the absence of which Westphalia’s young women were left vulnerable to the French king’s insatiable sexual passions.
On Condition of Contrition: French Reactions to American Films on the Vietnam War, 1978–1987
Authors: Cowans Jon
Published: October 2012

As the French have assessed American military actions over the past three decades, they have done so within a framework of memories about the Vietnam War. This article considers French memories of that war by examining reactions to American films on Vietnam released in France from 1978 to 1987, from Coming Home and The Deer Hunter to Rambo II and Platoon. Drawing upon reviews from 30 French newspapers and magazines as well as box-office figures and quotes from viewers, it identifies and analyzes patterns in French reactions. It observes a far larger current of French support for America’s war than normally acknowledged, while also noting disagreements among opponents of the war over whether the films expressed sufficient regret and evidence of lessons learned. Although still reluctant to debate their own colonial wars in those years, the French addressed the topic indirectly in discussing Hollywood’s retrospective view of the Vietnam War.
Bi-unicondylar knee replacement laxity with changes to simulated soft tissue constraints
Authors: Roach Brendan L , Matheny Jonathan B , Spinelli Michele , Rusly Roy J , Affatato Saverio , DesJardins John D
Published: October 2012

Unicondylar knee replacement systems have been shown to perform comparably to total knee replacements, while being much less surgically invasive. Proper ligament balancing, as well as knee laxity, has been shown to play an important role in optimizing kinematic behavior of these implant systems and improving long-term survival of the implant. This study investigates the effect of different simulated ligament laxity conditions of the anterior cruciate ligament and the posterior cruciate ligament on the resulting anteroposterior and mediolateral contact kinematics for medial and lateral pairs of UKR implants with flat and symmetric ultrahigh-molecular-weight polyethylene inserts during force-controlled ISO-14243-1 knee testing simulation. A novel method of capturing the tibiofemoral lowest point contact path was used to calculate the shear plane lowest point contact path kinematics in both the anteroposterior and the mediolateral directions. The results illustrated that multiple clinically relevant soft tissue configurations produce statistically different measured knee kinematics in unicondylar knee replacement systems than is seen in accepted “standard” knee simulator protocols with 95% confidence interval. The observed kinematic differences in anteroposterior and mediolateral movement from what was observed using standard wear testing protocols could aid in the development of unicondylar knee replacement design enhancements that are resistant to varying soft tissue deficiencies.
It is time for a more integrated bio-psycho-social approach to ADHD
Authors: Richards Louise Marie-Elaine
Published: October 2012

The role of psychosocial factors in perpetuating and predisposing towards the development of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms has been neglected within the field of child mental health. Clinicians, when told that a child had a diagnosis of ADHD, have been found to underestimate the presence of psychosocial factors, and are less likely to ask about the possibility of neglect or abuse. This article details the considerable research showing links between ADHD symptoms and parental mental illness, child maltreatment, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), attachment disorders and other environmental factors. Recent neuro-biological findings showing the impact on brain development of early abuse and attachment concerns are cited. The implications of these findings both for clinicians, and at policy level, are discussed, and the reasons underlying the need for a more integrated Bio-Psycho-Social approach to ADHD are outlined.
Trigger factors in migraine patients
Authors: Mollaoğlu Mukadder
Published: October 2012

The objective of this study was to examine potential trigger factors in migraine patients. A total of 126 migraine patients were interviewed about possible trigger factors for migraine. The most common trigger factors were emotional stress (79%), sleep disturbance (64%) and dietary factors (44%). Sleep and stress were significant trigger factors in patients with migraine with aura, whereas environmental factors were important trigger factors in patients with migraine without aura. Stress, sleep and environmental factors were important trigger factors in women and differed significantly from men. Trigger factors are frequent in migraine patients, and avoidance of such factors may result in a better control of the disorder.
Shame and self-acceptance in continued flux: Qualitative study of the embodied experience of significant weight loss and removal of resultant excess skin by plastic surgery
Authors: Smith Fran , Farrants Jacqui R
Published: October 2012

This study explored the embodied experience of body change using a qualitative design. Eight previous plastic surgery patients of a London hospital took part in in-depth, semi-structured interviews 1 year post a plastic surgery procedure to remove excess skin around their abdomen, resulting from weight loss. Participant interviews were analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. Two sub-themes titled ‘Shame of the hidden body’ and ‘Lack of acceptance; the future focused body’ are presented in this article. Findings are considered in relation to theories of ‘Body Shame’ and in the current cultural context.
Museums and cultural memory in an age of networks
Authors: Tan Leon
Published: October 2012

Techno-social developments over the last two decades have given rise to a multitude of translocal networks, making possible an unprecedented ‘globalization’ of cultural memory practices across geopolitically diverse populations. Yet the work of philosophical conceptualization and critical analysis of networked museological practices still remains to be taken up satisfactorily, what with a pervasive tendency to conflate networks with decentralized/non-hierarchical organizations on the one hand, and the absence of a robust ontology, and a rigorous account of historical agents and their memory-making activities in prevailing theories of networks on the other. This article recruits DeLanda’s ‘assemblage theory’ and Deleuze’s Bergsonism to explain how cultural memory-making assemblages work across the internet’s many social networks. It also portrays the affordances of networks for museological practices, delineating a space of possibilities for cultural memory-making by way of contemporary examples.
Doping, the Inspection Game, and Bayesian Enforcement
Authors: Kirstein Roland
Published: October 2012

“Bayesian enforcement” assumes that doping tests are imperfect. Moreover, the enforcer is interested in fostering compliant behavior and making correct decisions. Three types of perfect Bayesian equilibria exist, which differ in their punishment styles: “tyrannic,” “draconian,” and “lenient.” The equilibrium probability of compliant behavior is highest in the lenient equilibrium; therefore, the legal framework of the enforcement should aim at unselecting the draconian and tyrannic equilibria. Total deterrence is impossible as long as the signal is imperfect. An increase in punishment would not increase the probability of compliant behavior.
An objective approach to evaluating an internet-delivered genetics education resource developed for nurses: using Google Analytics™ to monitor global visitor engagement
Authors: Kirk Maggie , Morgan Rhian , Tonkin Emma , McDonald Kevin , Skirton Heather
Published: October 2012

The rapid increase in gene-disease discoveries offers real promise of clinical applications for people and families affected by genetic conditions but for which health professionals are not prepared because of lack of training. The availability of clinically relevant education resources is critical to enabling nurses to develop the appropriate genetics-genomics knowledge and skills to provide optimum care for individuals and families.

The Internet is a core resource to support teaching and learning in nurse education. Evaluating such resources is important to maximise the education experience, particularly for subjects traditionally perceived by nurses as being difficult. Telling Stories, Understanding Real Life Genetics is a web-based educational resource. It uses real accounts from individuals and professionals to promote understanding of the impact of genetics-genomics on the lives of people and their families. Google Analytics™ Web analytics service provides time series data for analysing web usage to optimise website effectiveness. We present data of visitor activity and behaviour from 123 countries over three years from 2009–2011 and consider how the application of the web analytics informs approaches to enhancing visibility of the website, provides an indicator of engagement with genetics-genomics both nationally and globally, and informs future expansion of the site as a global resource for health professional education.

Telling Stories is an accessible, broad-reaching resource that is of global relevance for health professionals, attracting over 33,500 visitors between 2009–2011, with steadily increasing numbers of returning visitors. The United Kingdom, United States, Canada and the Netherlands are the largest site users. Returning visitors spend significantly more time on site and view more pages than new visitors. Most referring sites are education establishments. More needs to be done now to enhance the site’s accessibility for people of other languages and cultures.
Developing a patient-led cancer care website, ‘CanCare': what do end users want?
Authors: Sheeran Lisa , Milne Donna , Holmes Matthew , Tidhar Gil , Aranda Sanchia
Published: October 2012

The role of the internet, and in particular e-health, in chronic illness is a burgeoning phenomenon but its use to date in cancer care is somewhat limited. In this study an iterative consultative process was undertaken with the aim to develop a cancer care website that was patient-led, facilitated cancer self-management and had the potential to improve communication between patients, family and friends and health care professionals. The process involved multiple demonstrations of an already established base platform (SeeCare©) to potential end users (patients, family members and friends and health professionals) to identify required functions of a cancer care specific platform. An exhaustive list of specifications was prioritised and operationalised resulting in a web platform for people affected by cancer that was ready for testing in the clinical setting: CanCare.
Coral: an integrated suite of visualizations for comparing clusterings
Authors: Filippova Darya , Gadani Aashish , Kingsford Carl
Published: October 2012

Background

Clustering has become a standard analysis for many types of biological data (e.g interaction networks, gene expression, metagenomic abundance). In practice, it is possible to obtain a large number of contradictory clusterings by varying which clustering algorithm is used, which data attributes are considered, how algorithmic parameters are set, and which near-optimal clusterings are chosen. It is a difficult task to sift though such a large collection of varied clusterings to determine which clustering features are affected by parameter settings or are artifacts of particular algorithms and which represent meaningful patterns. Knowing which items are often clustered together helps to improve our understanding of the underlying data and to increase our confidence about generated modules.

Results

We present Coral, an application for interactive exploration of large ensembles of clusterings. Coral makes all-to-all clustering comparison easy, supports exploration of individual clusterings, allows tracking modules across clusterings, and supports identification of core and peripheral items in modules. We discuss how each visual component in Coral tackles a specific question related to clustering comparison and provide examples of their use. We also show how Coral could be used to visually and quantitatively compare clusterings with a ground truth clustering.

Conclusion

As a case study, we compare clusterings of a recently published protein interaction network ofArabidopsis thaliana. We use several popular algorithms to generate the network’s clusterings. We find that the clusterings vary significantly and that few proteins are consistently co-clustered in all clusterings. This is evidence that several clusterings should typically be considered when evaluating modules of genes, proteins, or sequences, and Coral can be used to perform a comprehensive analysis of these clustering ensembles.
Prevalence of single nucleotide polymorphism among 27 diverse alfalfa genotypes as assessed by transcriptome sequencing
Authors: Li Xuehui , Acharya Ananta , Farmer Andrew D , Crow John A , Bharti Arvind K , Kramer Robin S , Wei Yanling , Han Yuanhong , Gou Jiqing , May Gregory D , Monteros Maria J , Brummer E Charles
Published: October 2012

Background

Alfalfa, a perennial, outcrossing species, is a widely planted forage legume producing highly nutritious biomass. Currently, improvement of cultivated alfalfa mainly relies on recurrent phenotypic selection. Marker assisted breeding strategies can enhance alfalfa improvement efforts, particularly if many genome-wide markers are available. Transcriptome sequencing enables efficient high-throughput discovery of single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers for a complex polyploid species.

Result

The transcriptomes of 27 alfalfa genotypes, including elite breeding genotypes, parents of mapping populations, and unimproved wild genotypes, were sequenced using an Illumina Genome Analyzer IIx.De novoassembly of quality-filtered 72-bp reads generated 25,183 contigs with a total length of 26.8 Mbp and an average length of 1,065 bp, with an average read depth of 55.9-fold for each genotype. Overall, 21,954 (87.2%) of the 25,183 contigs represented 14,878 unique protein accessions. Gene ontology (GO) analysis suggested that a broad diversity of genes was represented in the resulting sequences. The realignment of individual reads to the contigs enabled the detection of 872,384 SNPs and 31,760 InDels. High resolution melting (HRM) analysis was used to validate 91% of 192 putative SNPs identified by sequencing. Both allelic variants at about 95% of SNP sites identified among five wild, unimproved genotypes are still present in cultivated alfalfa, and all four US breeding programs also contain a high proportion of these SNPs. Thus, little evidence exists among this dataset for loss of significant DNA sequence diversity from either domestication or breeding of alfalfa. Structure analysis indicated that individuals from the subspeciesfalcata, the diploid subspeciescaerulea, and the tetraploid subspeciessativa(cultivated tetraploid alfalfa) were clearly separated.

Conclusion

We used transcriptome sequencing to discover large numbers of SNPs segregating in elite breeding populations of alfalfa. Little loss of SNP diversity was evident between unimproved and elite alfalfa germplasm. The EST and SNP markers generated from this study are publicly available at the Legume Information System (http://medsa.comparative-legumes.org/) and can contribute to future alfalfa research and breeding applications.
An inventory of Canadian pregnancy and birth cohort studies: research in progress
Authors: Joly Marie-Pier , Boivin Michel , Junker Anne , Bocking Alan , Kramer Michael S , Atkinson Stephanie A
Published: October 2012

Background

A web-based inventory was developed as a voluntary registry of Canadian pregnancy and birth cohort studies, with the objective to foster collaboration and sharing of research tools among cohort study groups as a means to enrich research in maternal and child health across Canada.

Description

Information on existing birth cohort studies conducted in Canada exclusively or as part of broader international initiatives was accessed by searching the literature in PubMed and PsychInfo databases. Additional studies were identified by enquiring about the research activities of researchers at Canadian universities or working in affiliated hospitals or research centres or institutes. Of the fifty-eight birth cohort studies initially identified, forty-six were incorporated into the inventory if they were of a retrospective and/or prospective longitudinal design and with a minimum of two phases of data collection, with the first period having occurred before, during, or shortly after pregnancy and had an initial study sample size of a minimum of 200 participants.

Information collected from each study was organized into four main categories: basic information, data source and period of collection, exposures, and outcome measures and was coded and entered into an Excel spreadsheet. The information incorporated into the Excel spreadsheet was double checked, completed when necessary, and verified for completeness and accuracy by contacting the principal investigator or research coordinator. All data collected were then uploaded onto the website of the Institute of Human Development Child and Youth Health of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research. Subsequently, the database was updated and developed as an online searchable inventory on the website of the Maternal, Infant, Child and Youth Research Network.

Conclusions

This inventory is unique, as it represents detailed information assembled for the first time on a large number of Canadian birth cohort studies. Such information provides a valuable resource for investigators in the planning stages of cohort studies and identifying current research gaps.
“Expectant Parents”: Study protocol of a longitudinal study concerning prenatal (risk) factors and postnatal infant development, parenting, and parent-infant relationships
Authors: Maas A Janneke BM , Vreeswijk Charlotte MJM , de Cock Evi SA , Rijk Catharina HAM , van Bakel Hedwig JA
Published: October 2012

Background

While the importance of the infant-parent relationship from the child’s perspective is acknowledged worldwide, there is still a lack of knowledge about predictors and long-term benefits or consequences of the quality of parent-infant relationships from the parent’s perspective. The purpose of this prospective study is to investigate the quality of parent-infant relationships from parents’ perspectives, both in the prenatal and postpartum period. This study therefore focuses on prenatal (risk) factors that may influence the quality of pre- and postnatal bonding, the transition to parenthood, and bonding as a process within families with young children. In contrast to most research concerning pregnancy and infant development, not only the roles and experiences of mothers during pregnancy and the first two years of infants’ lives are studied, but also those of fathers.

Methods/design

The present study is a prospective longitudinal cohort study, in which pregnant women (N = 466) and their partners (N = 319) are followed from 15 weeks gestation until their child is 24 months old. During pregnancy, midwives register the presence of prenatal risk factors and provide obstetric information after the child’s birth. Parental characteristics are investigated using self-report questionnaires at 15, 26, and 36 weeks gestational age and at 4, 6, 12, and 24 months postpartum. At 26 weeks of pregnancy and at 6 months postpartum, parents are interviewed concerning their representations of the (unborn) child. At 6 months postpartum, the mother-child interaction is observed in several situations within the home setting. When children are 4, 6, 12, and 24 months old, parents also completed questionnaires concerning the child’s (social-emotional) development and the parent-child relationship. Additionally, at 12 months information about the child’s physical development and well-being during the first year of life is retrieved from National Health Care Centres.

Discussion

The results of this study may contribute to early identification of families at risk for adverse parent-infant relationships, infant development, or parenting. Thereby this study will be relevant for the development of policy, practice, and theory concerning infant mental health.