bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Effect of Intravenous Oxycodone Versus Sufentanil on the Incidence of Postoperative Nausea and Vomiting in Patients Undergoing Gynecological Laparoscopic Surgery
Authors: Tao Bingdong , Liu Kun , Wang Dandan , Ding Mengmeng , Zhao Ping
Published: March 2019

More than 30% of patients who undergo surgery will experience postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) if no prophylactic treatments are used. Although numerous studies have been performed to investigate the factors related to PONV, the effect of perioperative intravenous oxycodone on the incidence of PONV has not been well investigated. In this study, gynecological patients (grade I‐II, aged 18‐65 years, scheduled to undergo elective gynecological laparoscopic surgery under general anesthesia) were randomized to the oxycodone group or the sufentanil group. In the oxycodone group, patients received intravenous oxycodone for the induction and maintenance of anesthesia, as well as postoperative analgesia, while sufentanil was used in the sufentanil group. The primary outcome variable was the incidence of PONV. As secondary outcomes, time to first PONV, the rating of the most severe PONV, postoperative pain scores at different time points, hemodynamics, and side effects were evaluated. We found that, compared with sufentanil, oxycodone decreased the incidence of PONV by 13.5% (P = .041). The time to first vomiting was longer in the oxycodone group than in the sufentanil group. Postoperative pain scores at different time points and hemodynamics were comparable between the oxycodone and sufentanil groups. We concluded that the incidence of PONV in gynecological patients who underwent laparoscopic surgery was lower when using intravenous oxycodone for anesthesia induction, anesthesia maintenance, and postoperative analgesia than when using intravenous sufentanil. However, oxycodone and sufentanil provided the same stable hemodynamics during surgery and satisfactory postoperative analgesia.
Muscle fat quantification using magnetic resonance imaging: case–control study of Charcot–Marie–Tooth disease patients and volunteers
Authors: Kim Hyun Su , Yoon Young Cheol , Choi Byung‐Ok , Jin Wook , Cha Jang Gyu
Published: March 2019

Background

This study aimed to evaluate the potential value of 3D multiple gradient echo Dixon‐based magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) sequence as a tool for thigh intramuscular fat quantification in Charcot–Marie–Tooth disease (CMT) patients.

Methods

A prospective comparison study comprising 18 CMT patients and 18 age/sex‐matched volunteers was performed. MRI including 3D multiple gradient echo Dixon‐based imaging was performed for each subject. Region of interest analyses were performed at the upper and lower third of both thighs. The two‐sample t‐test or Wilcoxon rank sum test was used for intergroup comparison of the mean muscle fat fraction. Intraclass correlation coefficients were used to evaluate the interobserver agreement and test–retest reproducibility. Semiquantitive analysis using the Goutallier classification (Grades 0–4) was performed on T1‐weighted images in upper thigh muscles. For Goutallier Grade 0 muscles, comparison of the mean intramuscular fat fraction between volunteers and CMT patients was performed.

Results

The interobserver agreements were excellent for all measurements (intraclass correlation coefficients > 0.8). Mean muscle fat fractions were significantly higher in all the measured muscles of CMT patients (P < 0.05) except in the adductor magnus in the upper thigh (P = 0.109). Goutallier Grade 0 muscles of the CMT patients showed a significantly higher mean fat fraction compared with that of the volunteers (P < 0.05).

Conclusions

3D multiple gradient echo Dixon‐based MRI is a reproducible and sensitive technique which can reveal a significant difference in the fat fraction of thigh muscle, including comparison between Goutallier Grade 0 muscles, between CMT patients and volunteers.
Supporting the creation of shared value
Authors: Mendy John
Published: March 2019

The negative externalities that are due to companies limiting themselves to objectives such as “maximisation of profits” and “commoditization” can be mitigated with supporting the creation of shared value. A method is formulated which helps to implement Porter and Kramer's Shared Value model. The results suggest that individuals developed ways to increase their ability to act expertly—that is resiliently in the face of the challenges. It is argued that the proposed method is similar to but also substantially different from the scientific method (used to acquire knowledge rather than gain expertise as the new method is designed to do). The formulation of the method helps to identify how it is insufficient to realize the aims of creating shared value and suggests a way to do so.
Temporal bone carcinoma: Treatment patterns and survival
Authors: Seligman Kristen L. , Sun Daniel Q. , Ten Eyck Patrick P. , Schularick Nathan M. , Hansen Marlan R.
Published: March 2019

Objectives/Hypothesis

Carcinomas of the temporal bone are rare, and appropriate treatment, staging, and survival data are limited. This study evaluates clinical characteristics and survival rates for patients with temporal bone carcinoma treated with resection at a single tertiary‐care institution, with a focus on the outcomes of patients with locally advanced disease including skull base and/or dural invasion.

Study Design

Retrospective chart review.

Methods

Demographic, tumor‐specific, and survival data were collected for patients with primary carcinomas of the external auditory canal with involvement of the temporal bone from 2003 to 2015. All patients were staged according to the modified Pittsburgh system. Kaplan‐Meier and logistic regression analysis were used to calculate factor‐specific survival outcomes.

Results

Sixty‐seven patients met inclusion criteria; 85% were male. There were 43 squamous cell carcinomas (64%) and 24 basal cell carcinomas (BCCs) (36%). Tumor stage was 24 (36%) T2, 12 (18%) T3, and 31 (46%) T4 tumors; 53% had recurrent disease. Surgical management included 49 lateral temporal bone resections and 18 subtotal temporal bone resections. Kaplan‐Meier analyses revealed more favorable 5‐year survival rates associated with BCC histology (P = .01), lateral temporal bone resection compared to subtotal temporal bone resection (P < .01), lack of immunocompromise (P = .04), and absence of perineural/lymphovascular invasion (P = .01). Multivariate regression analysis did not yield statistically significant results.

Conclusions

Factors predictive of more favorable survival include lack of immunocompromise, BCC histology, absence of perineural/lymphovascular invasion, and disease extent amenable to lateral temporal bone resection. Dural invasion is not an absolute contraindication to surgery, with a subset of patients surviving >5 years.

Level of Evidence

3 Laryngoscope, 130:E11–E20, 2020
Energy conservation and super convergence analysis of the EC‐S‐FDTD schemes for Maxwell equations with periodic boundaries
Authors: Gao Liping , Cao Minmin , Shi Rengang , Guo Hui
Published: March 2019

This paper is concerned with new energy analysis of the two dimensional Maxwell's equations and the symmetric energy‐conserved splitting finite difference time domain (EC‐S‐FDTD) method with the periodic boundary (PB) condition. New energy identities of the Maxwell's equations in terms of H1 and H2 norms are proposed and interpreted by considering the physical meanings of the H1 and H2 semi‐norms in the identities. It is found from these new identities that the first and second curls of the electromagnetic fields are conserved in terms their magnitudes. By the energy methods, the numerical energy identities of the symmetric EC‐S‐FDTD method are derived and shown to converge to the continuous energy identities of the Maxwell's equations. This proves that the symmetric EC‐S‐FDTD scheme is unconditionally stable and energy conserved in the discrete H1 and H2 norms. Also by the energy methods, it is proved that the symmetric EC‐S‐FDTD method with PB condition is of second order (super) convergence in the discrete H1 and H2 norms. Numerical experiments are carried out and confirm the analysis on energy conservation, stability and super convergence.
An evaluation of the impact of missing deaths on overall survival analyses of advanced non–small cell lung cancer patients conducted in an electronic health records database
Authors: Carrigan Gillis , Whipple Samuel , Taylor Michael D. , Torres Aracelis Z. , Gossai Anala , Arnieri Brandon , Tucker Melisa , Hofmeister Philip P. , Lambert Peter , Griffith Sandra D. , Capra William B.
Published: March 2019

Purpose

The aim of this study was to assess the impact of missing death data on survival analyses conducted in an oncology EHR‐derived database.

Methods

The study was conducted using the Flatiron Health oncology database and the National Death Index (NDI) as a gold standard. Three analytic frameworks were evaluated in advanced non‐small cell lung cancer (aNSCLC) patients: median overall survival [mOS]), relative risk estimates conducted within the EHR‐derived database, and “external control arm” analyses comparing an experimental group augmented with mortality data from the gold standard to a control group from the EHR‐derived database only. The hazard ratios (HRs) obtained within the EHR‐derived database (91% sensitivity) and the external control arm analyses, were compared with results when both groups were augmented with mortality data from the gold standard. The above analyses were repeated using simulated lower mortality sensitivities to understand the impact of more extreme levels of missing deaths.

Results

Bias in mOS ranged from modest (0.6–0.9 mos.) in the EHR‐derived cohort with (91% sensitivity) to substantial when lower sensitivities were generated through simulation (3.3–9.7 mos.). Overall, small differences were observed in the HRs for the EHR‐derived cohort across comparative analyses when compared with HRs obtained using the gold standard data source. When only one treatment arm was subject to estimation bias, the bias was slightly more pronounced, but increased substantially when lower sensitivities were simulated.

Conclusions

The impact on survival analysis is minimal with high mortality sensitivity with only modest impact associated within external control arm applications.
Pfilates and Hypopressives for the Treatment of Urinary Incontinence After Radical Prostatectomy: Results of a Feasibility Randomized Controlled Trial
Authors: Au Darren , Matthew Andrew G. , Alibhai Shabbir M.H. , Jones Jennifer M. , Fleshner Neil E. , Finelli Antonio , Elterman Dean , Singal Rajiv K. , Jamnicky Leah , Faghani Nelly , Hilton William J. , Auger Leslie E. , Ritvo Paul , Trachtenberg John , Santa Mina Daniel
Published: March 2019

Background

Urinary incontinence (UI) is an important side effect of radical prostatectomy (RP). Coactivation of surrounding muscles via novel techniques for pelvic floor rehabilitation known as Pfilates and Hypopressives has not been compared to pelvic floor muscle exercises (PFMXs) for UI.

Objective

To assess the feasibility and efficacy of isolated PFMXs with and without the addition of Pfilates and Hypopressives on UI recovery following RP.

Design

Randomized controlled trial.

Setting

Participants were recruited from a community and tertiary cancer center in Toronto, Canada.

Participants

A total of 226 patients undergoing RP were assessed for eligibility. One hundred twenty‐two patients were eligible and 50 consented to participate; 37 participants completed the trial.

Methods

Participants were randomized to either isolated PFMX (control) or PFMX plus Pfilates and Hypopressives (advanced pelvic floor exercises; APFX) groups. PFMX participants (n = 25) received instructions for isolated pelvic floor contractions starting with 30 contractions per day during weeks 1 to 2 up to 180 per day for weeks 7 to 26. The APFX group (n = 25) received a comparable volume of exercises.

Main Outcome Measurements

Feasibility was assessed by rates of recruitment, adverse events, and study‐arm compliance. Information about UI and quality of life was collected 1 week before surgery and at 2, 6, 12, and 26 weeks after surgery.

Results

The recruitment rate was 41%, adherence to the PFMXs and APFXs was >70%, and there were no reported adverse events. Between‐group differences were observed in the frequency of self‐reported 24‐hour urinary leakage (rate ratio 0.45, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.2‐0.98) and during waking hours (rate ratio 0.43, 95% CI 0.20‐0.91) at 26 weeks after surgery favoring APFX.

Conclusions

Pfilates and Hypopressives are feasible in men undergoing RP, and preliminary data suggest a potential benefit in aiding recovery of urinary control. Larger studies with longer follow‐up are warranted.

Level of Evidence

II.
Methyl methacrylate as solvent for the thermal decomposition of the cyclic molecule pinacolone diperoxide: Toward the polymerization process
Authors: Delgado‐Rodríguez Karla , Enríquez‐Medrano Francisco J. , Espinoza‐Martínez Adriana Berenice , Barreto Gastón P. , Merino Gabriel , Morales Graciela
Published: March 2019

The decomposition rate constant (kd) of pinacolone diperoxide (PDP, 3,6‐diterbutyl‐3,6‐dimethyl‐1,2,4,5‐tetraoxacyclohexane) in methyl methacrylate (MMA) is determined by the kinetic study of its thermal decomposition at temperatures from 110 °C to 140 °C. The calculatedkdvalues for PDP are higher than the corresponding values previously determined and reported for diethyl ketone triperoxide (DEKTP, 3,3,6,6,9,9‐hexaethyl‐1,2,4,5,7,8‐hexaoxacyclononane), for example, at 140 °C thekdfor PDP is 75.4 × 10−5s−1, while for DEKTP, it is 50.6 × 10−5s−1. The difference in thekdbetween 130 °C and 140 °C indicates that the decomposition mechanism, sequential and/or concerted, is a function of temperature. The conformations of both initiators justify the higherkdfor PDP in MMA than DEKTP, where one single conformer is found for PDP, whereas 212 conformers are found for DEKTP. Bulk polymerization of MMA using PDP as the initiator reveals also the presence of an induction period, such as in DEKTP case. This work provides mechanistic insights into the interactions among the bifunctional cyclic peroxide PDP and the MMA monomer and their influence on the polymerization kinetics. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem.2019,57, 997–1007
Efficacy of black seed (Nigella sativa L.) on kidney stone dissolution: A randomized, double‐blind, placebo‐controlled, clinical trial
Authors: Ardakani Movaghati Mohammad Reza , Yousefi Mahdi , Saghebi Seyed Ahmad , Sadeghi Vazin Mahmoud , Iraji Aida , Mosavat Seyed Hamdollah
Published: March 2019

Preclinical studies have shown beneficial effects of black seed (Nigella sativa L.) in the prevention and treatment of renal stones. Hence, we designed a study to evaluate the renal‐stone‐dissolving efficacy of black seed. Sixty patients with renal stones were randomly enrolled in two arms of a randomized, triple‐blind, placebo‐controlled, clinical trial. The patients were treated by black seed capsules (500 mg) or placebo two times per day for 10 weeks. Patients were assessed in terms of size of renal stones by using sonography before and after intervention. In the black seed group, 44.4% of patients excreted their stones completely, and the size of the stones remained unchanged and decreased in 3.7% and 51.8% of patients, respectively. In contrast, in the placebo group, 15.3% of the patients excreted their stones completely, 11.5% had reduction in stone size, 15.3% had increase in stone size, and 57.6% had no change in their stone size. The difference in the mean size of renal stones after the study was significant between the two groups (p < 0.05). N. sativa L., as compared with placebo, is demonstrated to have significant positive effects on disappearance or reduction of size of kidney stones.
Dihydroartemisinin, an antimalarial drug, induces absent in melanoma 2 inflammasome activation and autophagy in human hepatocellular carcinoma HepG2215 cells
Authors: Shi Xinli , Wang Li , Ren Laifeng , Li Jianchun , Li Shenghao , Cui Qingzhuo , Li Sheng
Published: March 2019

As an effective antimalarial drug, Dihydroartemisinin (DHA) is readily isolated from the traditional Chinese medicine of Artemisia annua. DHA is not only an autophagy promoter but also a substance with strong antitumor efficiency. The relationship between autophagy and inflammasomes has been suggested in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, there are few reports describing relationships between inflammasomes and autophagy in HCC therapy. The present study demonstrated that DHA suppressed cell proliferation in HepG2215 cells in a dose‐ and time‐dependent manner. The inhibitory activity is mediated by autophagy, in which reactive oxygen species (ROS) production induced nuclear and mitochondrial DNA damage. Then, DHA were first shown to promote AIM2/caspase‐1 inflammasome. Compared with the DHA group, the autophagy inhibitor 3‐MA significantly inhibited the expressions of activated Caspase‐1, a pyroptotic marker proteins. Meanwhile, repression of mTOR by rapamycin promoted autophagy and AIM2/caspase‐1 activation. The caspase‐1 inhibitor Z‐YVAD‐FMK also notably blocked autophagy cell death characterized by the downexpression of Beclin‐1 and LC3‐II. Additionally, the study demonstrated that DHA suppressed pseudopodium formation and cell mobility. Therefore, we first reveal a novel mechanism that DHA promotes AIM2/caspase‐1 inflammasome, which contributes to autophagy in HepG2215 cells. Moreover, nuclear and mitochondrial DNA damage was also involved in this process via ROS production.
The coupling of deep convection with the resolved flow via the divergence of mass flux in the IFS
Authors: Malardel Sylvie , Bechtold Peter
Published: March 2019

The resolution of the European Centre for Medium‐range Weather Forecast (ECMWF) integrated forecast system (IFS) is expected to reach 5 km in the coming decade. Assumptions in the parametrization of deep convection, such as that all of the compensating environmental flow occurs in the grid column, i.e. the convective and environmental mass fluxes cancel each other in term of mass transport, have to be challenged. In this paper, we further develop the original concept of separating the convective updraught from the subsiding branch of the overturning convective circulation and apply it to the global hydrostatic equations of the IFS. In practice, this constitutes a revised convection–dynamics coupling where the mass flux subsidence of the dynamical variables is not computed locally by the convection scheme, but instead is recomputed from the revised continuity equation and is effective through the semi‐Lagrangian advection of the dynamical core. Therefore horizontal divergence/convergence is also generated in the dynamics at the top/bottom of the convective columns, thus adding to the representation of deep convection a three‐dimensional character which is not present in traditional schemes. The proposed physics–dynamics coupling is intended to be applicable to any mass flux convection scheme and within any regional or global model. We first demonstrate the accuracy of the revised physics–dynamics coupling in terms of global temperature and moisture budgets. The potential impact of the coupling on the convective organization is demonstrated for an idealized squall line case at high horizontal resolution using the small planet testbed. Model reforecasts at 9 km and 5 km resolution confirm the viability of the method in terms of forecast skill and model climate. However, the model impacts are limited as the main factor that still determines the convective stabilization and organization is the current conceptual model of subgrid mass flux which, actually, remains unchanged.
Location charts based on ranked set sampling for normal and non‐normal processes
Authors: Abbasi Saddam Akber
Published: March 2019

Control charts, based on ranked set sampling schemes, had been proposed recently for efficient monitoring of process location. All the proposals in the literature are based on the ideal assumption of normally distributed quality characteristics. No study as of yet investigated the performance of location charts based on ranked set sampling for non‐normal processes. In this study, we investigated the location
chart based on simple random sampling (SRS) and three well‐known rank‐based schemes ie, ranked set sampling (RSS), median ranked set sampling (MRSS), and extreme ranked set sampling (ERSS), considering normal and a variety of non‐normal parent distributions. Both heavy‐tailed symmetric and skewed cases have been considered in this study. The performance of the charts is evaluated using average run length (ARL), extra quadratic loss (EQL), and relative ARL (RARL) measures. A real life example is also presented that details the monitoring of pH levels in water for an experiment conducted to study the reproduction of Mysids. The study will help quality practitioners to choose the
chart based on an efficient sampling scheme for normal and non‐normal processes.
Power approximations for failure‐time regression models
Authors: Johnson Thomas H. , Medlin Rebecca M. , Freeman Laura
Published: March 2019

Reliability experiments determine which factors drive product reliability. Often, the reliability or lifetime data collected in these experiments tend to follow distinctly non‐normal distributions and typically include censored observations. The experimental design should accommodate the skewed nature of the response and allow for censored observations, which occur when products do not fail within the allotted test time. To account for these design and analysis considerations, Monte‐Carlo simulations are frequently used to evaluate experimental design properties. Simulation provides accurate power calculations as a function of sample size, allowing researchers to determine adequate sample sizes at each level of the treatment. However, simulation may be inefficient for comparing multiple experiments of various sizes. We present a closed‐form approach for calculating power, based on the noncentral chi‐squared approximation to the distribution of the likelihood ratio statistic for large samples. The solution can be used to rapidly compare multiple designs and accommodate trade‐space analyses between power, effect size, model formulation, sample size, censoring rates, and design type. To demonstrate the efficiency of our approach, we provide a comparison to estimates from simulation.
Sampled‐data output feedback stabilization for a class of switched stochastic nonlinear systems
Authors: Mao Jun , Xiang Zhengrong , Zhai Guisheng
Published: March 2019

This paper investigates a global sampled‐data output feedback stabilization problem for a class of switched stochastic nonlinear systems whose output and system mode are available only at the sampling instants. An observer is designed to estimate the unmeasurable state and thus a sampled‐data controller is constructed with the sampled estimated state. As a distinctive feature, a merging virtual switching signal is introduced to describe the asynchronous switching generated by detecting the system mode via a sampler. By choosing an appropriate piecewise Lyapunov function, it is proved that the proposed sampled‐data controller with allowable sampling period can stabilize the considered switched stochastic nonlinear systems under an average dwell‐time condition. Finally, two simulation results are presented to illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed method.
Discover how to relate, navigate effective partnerships with general counsel
Authors: McCarthy Claudine
Published: March 2019

JACKSONVILLE, FLA. — Although student affairs professionals should have a collegial partnership with their institution's general counsel, sometimes challenges can arise due to differing perspectives, misunderstood roles, and stressful professional practice. That's why Christy Anthony, director of student rights and responsibilities at The George Washington University; and Laurie Bishop, Esq., acting general counsel at the Berklee College of Music and partner at Hirsch Roberts Weinstein LLP, shared models and strategies for developing the ideal partnership at the Association for Student Conduct Administration's annual conference.
Manage faculty expectations for expelling disruptive students
Authors: McCarthy Claudine
Published: March 2019

JACKSONVILLE, FLA. — Media coverage of mass shootings and students with severe mental health issues can lead faculty members to overreact and expect student conduct administrators to expel students involved in disruptive behavior in the classroom.
Energy transition dynamics: Does participatory modelling contribute to alignment among differing future world views?
Authors: Bakken Bent Erik
Published: March 2019

A large international classification, assurance, and advisory services company provides for an energy microcosm where two opposing energy camps project initiated were assumed to be present. This research applies a case study design to analyse the contribution of participatory modelling to align differing views of energy futures. The modelling process as an intervention in a pretest and posttest setting is outlined. The hypothesis that the organization contained differing world views among respectively renewable and Oil & Gas professionals was however only marginally supported. Similarly, a survey showed no effect of the modelling intervention. We discuss the role of modelling at societal and organizational levels and indicate that even if the modelling effort includes dozens of participants and frequent workshops, if the model effort is minor and marginal to the transformational issue, one cannot expect participatory modelling to contribute strongly to alignment to a new direction. We also argue that there might be limits to positive findings of impacts of participatory modelling efforts if the issues are of high complexity. Finally, we find that the potential self‐confirming bias of participatory modelling accounts argues for expanding measuring effects to encompass also those organizational members outside the core participants teams.
Design, optimization, and study of a rare‐earth permanent‐magnet generator with new consequent‐pole rotor for extended‐range electric vehicle
Authors: Shi Liwei , Guo Yingzhi , Xiao Dong , Han Zhen , Zhou Xiaoyu
Published: March 2019

To solve the problems of high cost and high waveform deviation factor of the electromotive force (EMF) of the rare earth permanent magnet (REPM) generator for extended‐range electric vehicle (EREV), a consequent‐pole REPM generator is proposed. Based on the model of the conventional 18‐slot/12‐pole REPM generator for the range extender, three models are proposed, and the optimized model of REPM generator is obtained by optimizing the rotor structure. Finite element software is used for simulation analysis. The results show that the amplitude of the fundamental wave of EMF of the optimized REPM generator model accounts for 93.7% of that of the conventional model, the waveform deviation factor of EMF accounts for 35.8% of that of the conventional model, and the amount of REPM materials accounts for merely 55.2% of that of the conventional model. Finally, the rationality of the design of the consequent‐pole REPM generator for the range extender is verified by experiments. © 2019 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Water control mechanism of byakkokaninjinto and its active components via aquaporins
Authors: Ikarashi Nobutomo , Aburada Takashi , Kon Risako , Sugiyama Kiyoshi
Published: March 2019

Objective

Byakkokaninjinto (BKN) is clinically used for conditions associated with thirst, polyuria, or cutaneous pruritus. Recently, it has also been used for improving thirst and polyuria observed in diabetes as well as pruritus associated with excessively dry skin. The aim of this study was to investigate aquaporins (AQP) in order to obtain scientific evidence regarding the mechanisms of BKN's effect.

Results

Treatment with BKN in a diabetic model of KKAy mice did not affect blood glucose but reduced both water intake and urine volume. Although the AQP5 level in the salivary glands remained unchanged, the AQP2 level in the kidneys increased significantly. This suggests that BKN causes an increase in AQP2 expression in the kidney, thereby suppressing polyuria as well as the associated thirst caused by diabetes. BKN was also shown to increase the expression of AQP3 in skin, which may suppress skin dryness and improve pruritus. In addition, Gypsum fibrosum (GF), the principal component of BKN, did not affect kidney AQP2 expression but increased skin AQP3 expression. The active ingredient of GF, CaSO4, was also shown to increase AQP3 expression via protein kinase C activation and to enhance phosphorylation of cAMP response element‐binding protein by increasing the Ca2+ concentration in skin.

Conclusion

Although there are many herbal medicines that are effective for correcting abnormal water metabolism, little is known regarding the mechanism of this activity. This study highlights the scientific basis of the effect of herbal medicines in improving water metabolism, with AQP as the primary targets.
Qualitative properties of positive singular solutions to nonlinear elliptic systems with critical exponent
Authors: Santos Almir Silva , Caju Rayssa , do Ó João Marcos
Published: March 2019

We studied the asymptotic behavior of local solutions for strongly coupled critical elliptic systems near an isolated singularity. For the dimension less than or equal to five we prove that any singular solution is asymptotic to a rotationally symmetric Fowler type solution. This result generalizes the celebrated work due to Caffarelli, Gidas and Spruck [1] who studied asymptotic proprieties to the classic Yamabe equation. In addition, we generalize similar results by Marques [12] for inhomogeneous context, that is, when the metric is not necessarily conformally flat.
Re-articulating Genealogy: Hegel on Kinship, Race and Reproduction
Authors: Lettow Susanne
Published: March 2019

In the decades around 1800, genealogical imaginaries, or the social, political, economic and cultural meanings of descent and kinship, underwent far-reaching change. Hegel was deeply concerned with these transformations in various respects and in different parts of his philosophy. By engaging with the issues of kinship and family, with the disputes over racial diversity as well as with the scientific debates about life, reproduction and the meaning of sexual difference, Hegel contributed to a philosophical re-articulation of genealogical relations, or to the shaping of a new vocabulary through which the political, social, cultural and epistemic transformations of the period were rendered intelligible in distinctive ways. Although Hegel did not draw explicit connections between his reflections on kinship, race and reproduction, my aim is to explore the semantic interrelations among his reflections on these issues.
The Republican legacy of Italy’s Fascist ossuaries of the First World War
Authors: Malone Hannah
Published: March 2019

The military ossuaries (sacrari militari) that were built to house the remains of fallen soldiers of the First World War offer a striking example of how Italy has dealt with the legacy of Fascism. Located along former frontlines in north-eastern Italy, the ossuaries occupy an ambiguous position in Italian heritage as both national monuments and the remnants of a difficult past. Whereas originally they functioned as instruments of Fascist propaganda, they have been reinvented as monuments of Republican Italy. Thus, while challenging the notion of Fascist remains as ‘difficult heritage’, this article suggests that the ossuaries might be seen as palimpsests that have been overlaid with different and ever-changing memories. To this end, the article traces the afterlives of ossuaries from 1945 to the present in search of evidence of evolving attitudes towards the Fascist period. It also examines a recent resurgence of public interest in the ossuaries in conjunction with the centenary of the First World War.
Human resilience and resettlement among the Islands of Four Mountains, Aleutians, Alaska
Authors: Hatfield Virginia L. , Nicolaysen Kirsten , West Dixie L. , Krylovich Olga A. , Bruner Kale M. , Savinetsky Arkady B. , Vasyukov Dmitry D. , MacInnes Breanyn T. , Khasanov Bulat F. , Persico Lyman , Okuno Mitsuru
Published: March 2019

Combined archaeological, ecological, and geologic research on Chuginadak and Carlisle Islands in the Islands of Four Mountains (IFM) probed questions about the sustainability of human settlements over the past 4000 years in the face of geologic, ecological, and social hazards. We use a human ecodynamics approach to frame the investigation and present original archaeological evidence from this poorly known region of the remote Aleutian Islands. Several village sites occupied during the last four millennia are clustered in locations that were not damaged by earthquake-induced tsunamis; however, new geologic evidence indicates that at least one volcanic eruption forced humans to abandon one or more prehistoric village sites. Combined archaeological, ecological, and geologic analyses demonstrate resilient Unangax̂ occupations of the IFM through long-term climate change as well as earthquakes, tsunamis, and volcanic eruptions with occasional community vulnerability to volcanic eruptions.
A new set of basaltic tephras from Southeast Alaska represent key stratigraphic markers for the late Pleistocene
Authors: Wilcox Paul S. , Addison Jason , Fowell Sarah J. , Baichtal James F. , Severin Ken , Mann Daniel H.
Published: March 2019

Three new tephras have been identified in Southeast Alaska. An 8-cm-thick black basaltic tephra with nine discrete normally graded beds is present in cores from a lake on Baker Island. The estimated age of the tephra is 13,492 ± 237 cal yr BP. Although similar in age to the MEd tephra from the adjacent Mt. Edgecumbe volcanic field, this tephra is geochemically distinct. Black basaltic tephras recovered from two additional sites in Southeast Alaska, Heceta Island and the Gulf of Esquibel, are also geochemically distinct from the MEd tephra. The age of the tephra from Heceta Island is 14,609 ± 343 cal yr BP. Whereas the tephras recovered from Baker Island/Heceta Island/Gulf of Esquibel are geochemically distinct from each other, similarities in the ages of these tephras and the MEd tephra suggest a shared eruptive trigger, possibly crustal unloading caused by retreat of the Cordilleran Ice Sheet. The submerged Addington volcanic field on the continental shelf, which may have been subaerially exposed during the late Pleistocene, is a possible source for the Southeast Alaska tephras.
WOMEN INVESTORS AND THE VIRGINIA COMPANY IN THE EARLY SEVENTEENTH CENTURY
Authors: EWEN MISHA
Published: March 2019

This article explores the role of women investors in the Virginia Company during the early seventeenth century, arguing that women determined the success of English overseas expansion by ‘adventuring’ not just their person, but their purse. Trading companies relied on the capital of women, and yet in seminal work on Virginia Company investors women have received no attention at all. This is a significant oversight, as studying the women who invested in trading companies illuminates broader issues regarding the role of women in the early English empire. This article explores why and how two women from merchant backgrounds, Rebecca Romney (d. 1644) and Katherine Hueriblock (d. 1639), managed diverse, global investment portfolios in the period before the Financial Revolution. Through company records, wills, letters, court depositions, and a surviving church memorial tablet, it reconstructs Romney's and Hueriblock's interconnected interests in ‘New World’ ventures, including in Newfoundland, the North-West Passage Company, Virginia colony, and sugar trade. Studying women investors reveals how trade and colonization shaped economic activity and investment practices in the domestic sphere and also elucidates how women, in their role as investors, helped give birth to an English empire.
A paradise for parasites? Seven new haemogregarine species infecting lizards from the Canary Islands
Authors: Tomé Beatriz , Pereira Ana , Harris D. James , Carretero Miguel A. , Perera Ana
Published: March 2019

Oceanic islands are hotspots of biodiversity due to their high levels of endemism, with the Canary Islands being a notable example. A previous molecular study on the biogeography and host associations of haemogregarines (Apicomplexa: Adeleorina) infecting lizards from this archipelago detected seven parasite haplogroups. These haplogroups exhibited high host-specificity and geographical structure, suggesting that they might correspond to distinct biological identities. In this study, along with sequencing a longer fragment of the 18S rRNA, we further explore the distinctiveness of these parasites by analysing their morphology, effects on host erythrocytes and parasitaemia levels. These lines of evidence together with their genetics, host associations, frequency of occurrence and geographical distribution support them as different biological entities. As such, we describe seven new species: Karyolysus canariensis sp. nov., Karyolysus galloti sp. nov., Karyolysus stehlini sp. nov., Karyolysus gomerensis sp. nov., Karyolysus atlanticus sp. nov., Karyolysus tinerfensis sp. nov. and Karyolysus makariogeckonis sp. nov. These new taxa are further examples of endemic diversity in the Canarian archipelago. They also contribute to clarify the taxonomy within the Apicomplexa, a phylum estimated to have one of the lowest percentages of described species.
Infection byTrypanosoma cruziin the central nervous system in non-human mammals: a systematic review
Authors: Villalba-Alemán Evaristo , Sarandy Mariáurea Matias , Morais-Santos Mônica , Novaes Rômulo Dias , Gonçalves Reggiani Vilela
Published: March 2019

Currently, the types and distribution of the lesions induced in the central nervous system (CNS) byTrypanosoma cruziremain unclear as the available evidence is based on fragmented data. Therefore, we developed a systematic review to analyse the main characteristics of the CNS lesions in non-human hosts infected. From a structured search on the PubMed/Medline and Scopus platforms, 32 studies were retrieved, subjected to data extraction and methodological bias analysis. Our results show that the most frequent alterations in the CNS are the presence of different forms ofT. cruziand intense lymphocytes infiltrates. The encephalon is the main target ofT. cruzi, and inflammatory changes in the CNS are more frequent and severe in the acute phase of infection. The parasite's genotype and phenotype are associated with the tropism and severity of the CNS lesions. The methodological limitations found in the studies were divergences in inoculation pathways, under-reporting of animal age and weight, sample calculation strategies and histopathological characterization. Since the changes were dependent on the pathogenicity and virulence of theT. cruzistrains, the genotype and phenotype characterization of the parasite are extremely relevant to predict changes in the CNS and the neurological manifestations associated with Chagas’ disease.
Do young adolescents with first-episode psychosis or ADHD show sensorimotor gating deficits?
Authors: Rydkjaer Jacob , Jepsen Jens Richardt Moellegaard , Pagsberg Anne Katrine , Fagerlund Birgitte , Glenthoej Birte Yding , Oranje Bob
Published: March 2019

Background

Early identification is important for patients with early-onset schizophrenia (SZ). Assessment of (candidate) endophenotypic markers for SZ, such as prepulse inhibition of the startle reflex (PPI), may help distinguish between the early-onset SZ and other psychiatric disorders. We explored whether PPI deficits usually seen in adult-onset SZ are present in young adolescents with either early-onset psychosis or attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

Methods

Twenty-five adolescents with first-episode, non-affective psychosis (FEP), 28 adolescents with ADHD and 43 healthy controls (HC), aged 12–17 years, were assessed with an auditory PPI paradigm.

Results

No significant group differences were found in PPI. However, when the FEP group was divided into those already diagnosed with SZ (n= 13) and those without (N-SZ) (n= 12), and all four groups (SZ, N-SZ, ADHD and HC) were compared on percentage PPI in the 85/60 trials, significantly less PPI was found in patients with SZ than in the HC as well as the ADHD group. No significant group differences were found in explorative analyses on the other trial types. Additionally, startle magnitude was significantly higher in SZ than in N-SZ patients.

Conclusion

Young adolescents with SZ showed sensorimotor gating deficits similar to those usually found in adults with SZ and had larger startle magnitude than patients with other types of non-affective early-onset psychosis. No sensorimotor gating deficits were found in adolescents with ADHD. Our findings support the theory that deficient PPI is endophenotypic for SZ.
WORLD TRADE, 1800-1938: A NEW SYNTHESIS
Authors: Federico Giovanni , Tena-Junguito Antonio
Published: March 2019

This paper outlines the development of world trade from 1800 to 1938. It relies on a newly compiled database, which, unlike previous works (e.g. Lewis 1981), reports series of imports and exports at current and constant prices and at current and constant (1913) borders for almost all existing polities. In the first sections, we outline the estimation methodology and assess the reliability of the series (now available athttp://www.uc3m.es/tradehist_db). World trade grew very fast throughout the «long» 19thcentury, but growth rates were higher before 1870. We measure the effects of war and the Great Depression on total trade and trade by continent and polity. Within this general upward trend, the performance of polities differed by geographical location, level of development, political status and factor endowment. Finally, we estimate trends in the share of primary products, which declined until World War One, with an acceleration in the second half of the 19thcentury.
Human rights in territorial peace agreements
Authors: Caspersen Nina
Published: March 2019

Justice and peace are commonly seen as mutually reinforcing, and key international peacebuilding documents stress the importance of human rights. Is this apparent normative shift reflected in post-Cold War peace agreements? The existing literature is divided on this issue but has crucially treated both conflicts and peace agreements as aggregate categories. This article argues that the conflict type and the agreement's ‘core deal’ impact on the inclusion, or exclusion, of human rights provisions. Based on new coding of the 29 comprehensive agreements signed between 1990 and 2010, it compares agreements signed in territorial and non-territorial conflicts, and agreements with and without territorial autonomy. Qualitative Comparative Analysis is used to examine the different combinations of conditions that led to the inclusion of human rights. The analysis finds that agreements signed in territorial conflicts are significantly less likely to include effective human rights provisions, especially if the settlement includes territorial autonomy. Moreover, such provisions tend to be the result of high levels of international involvement, and the consequent lack of local commitment, or outright resistance, undermines their implementation. These findings point to important trade-offs between group rights and individual rights, and qualifies the notion of a liberal peace.
‘Technically wrong leh’
Authors: Botha Werner
Published: March 2019

There has been much discussion on the use of particles (also referred to as ‘discourse particles’ or ‘pragmatic particles’) as a key feature of Singapore English. Wong (2004) has pointed out that particles are essential in the Singapore speech community, and in order to pass as a functional member of the speech community a speaker needs to have a proficient knowledge of the meanings and functions of particles in spoken (and increasingly in texted) discourse. There is no doubt that the use of particles in Singapore Colloquial English is prevalent in the language use of speakers in Singapore, as attested by the numerous studies conducted on the topic since the 1970s (including Tongue, 1974; Richards & Tay, 1981; Kwan–Terry, 1978; Platt & Weber, 1980; Platt, Weber & Ho, 1983; Platt & Ho, 1989; Gupta, 1992; Wong, 2004, 2005; Wee, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2010; Liemgruber, 2016; Botha, 2018). Despite the fact that particles have been studied extensively, very few studies have investigated which particular particles can be considered prototypical in Singapore English in general, as well as more specifically in the vernacular speech of Singaporeans. Not only that, there appears still to be a lot we do not know about the functions and uses of many of these particles, specifically in the vernacular speech of Singaporeans.
XRD study of the Permian fossil bone tissue
Authors: Ryanskaya A. D. , Kiseleva D. V. , Shilovsky O. P. , Shagalov E. S.
Published: March 2019

This paper is devoted to the X-ray diffraction study of bone fragments of Permian parareptile Deltavjatia vjatkensis obtained from the Kotelnich vertebrate fossil site, one of the richest of the Permian period, which is characterized by the excellent preservation of fossil remains because of their burial in a silty anaerobic environment similar to modern bogs. The bone is well-preserved and consists of fluorapatite, calcite, quartz, and dolomite. The refined apatite unit-cell parameters of a and b-axis (9.3526 ± 0.0001 and 9.3587 ± 0.0001) Å and c-axis (6.8930 ± 0.0001 and 6.8968 ± 0.0001) Å correspond to F-apatite. Crystallinity index determined as the full width at half maximum of the 002 reflection in degrees 2θ is 0.266–0.250, which is typical for Mesozoic vertebrate bones. Apatite crystallite size (length 70.3–74.9 nm, width 30.7–30.3 nm) in fossil pareiasaur bone is larger than in subfossil and recent mammal bone and is in a good agreement with the values for seismosaurus bone. Both crystallite size and aspect ratio (2.3–2.5) are independent of the fossil pareiasaur bone length.
Creating the Cosmos, Reifying Power: A Zooarchaeological Investigation of Corporal Animal Forms in the Copan Valley
Authors: Sugiyama Nawa , Fash William L. , France Christine A.M.
Published: March 2019

Throughout Mesoamerica, corporal animal forms (a term encompassing living animals, animal-derived by-products and artifacts made from animal bodies) have long played essential roles in state-level ritualized activities. This paper focuses on three zooarchaeological assemblages from the Classic Period Maya kingdom of Copan, Honduras (ad426–822), to describe how corporal animal forms were implemented to mediate power, express social identities and encapsulate contemporary socio-political circumstances. Two of these fundamental assemblages relate to world-creation myths associated with the Starry Deer-Crocodile, a mythological entity prominent in both contexts which was materialized into the ritual arena through a formalized process of commingling and translating animal body elements. The third context was deposited some three centuries later during the reign of Yax Pasaj, the last ruler of the Copan dynasty. This assemblage, extravagant with powerful felids conjuring the authority of the royal dynasty, reflects a period of acute socio-political struggle faced by the Copan dynasty. Detailed zooarchaeological analysis of corporal animal forms at Copan facilitates a more comprehensive reconstruction of some of the socio-political power negotiations in play.