bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
New data about semicircular canal morphology and locomotion in modern hominoids
Authors: Le Maître Anne , Schuetz Philipp , Vignaud Patrick , Brunet Michel
Published: May 2017

The labyrinth has two functional parts: the cochlea for audition and the vestibular system for equilibrioception. In the latter, the semicircular ducts and the otolithic organs are sensitive to rotational and linear accelerations of the head, respectively. The labyrinthine morphology influences perception accuracy, hence the adaptation to a specific locomotor pattern. The aim of this study is to determine the relationship between locomotion and semicircular canal morphology using geometric morphometrics, and to explain these links with existing functional models. The influence of factors other than functional constraints on labyrinthine morphology is discussed. The left bony labyrinth of 65 specimens was extracted virtually. Five extant hominoid species with various locomotion modes were sampled. A set of 13 landmarks was placed on the semicircular canals. After a Procrustes fit, their coordinates were analyzed using a principal component analysis. It was found that labyrinthine morphology is significantly distinct between species. More specifically, the differences involve a posterolateral projection of the lateral semicircular canal and the rotation of this canal relative to the vertical canals. This rotation occurs in the sagittal plane, which is consistent with previous studies based on traditional morphometrics. Among extant hominoids, the shape of the canals potentially discriminates species based on posture. This result could be used to reconstruct the locomotor pattern of fossil hominoids.
Elicitation as a tool to improve the profiles of high-value secondary metabolites and pharmacological properties of Hypericum perforatum
Authors: Shakya Preeti , Marslin Gregory , Siram Karthik , Beerhues Ludger , Franklin Gregory
Published: May 2017

Objectives

In this review, we aim at updating the available information on the improvement of the Hypericum perforatum L. (Hypericaceae) phytochemical profile and pharmacological properties via elicitation.

Key findings

Hypericum perforatum seedlings, shoots, roots, calli and cell suspension cultures were treated with diverse elicitors to induce the formation of secondary metabolites. The extracts of the elicitor-treated plant material containing naphthodianthrones, phloroglucinols, xanthones, flavonoids and other new compounds were quantitatively analysed and tested for their bioactivities. While hypericins were mainly produced in H. perforatum cultures containing dark nodules, namely shoots and seedlings, other classes of compounds such as xanthones, phloroglucinols and flavonoids were formed in all types of cultures. The extracts obtained from elicitor-treated samples generally possessed better bioactivities compared to the extract of control biomass.

Although elicitation is an excellent tool for the production of valuable secondary metabolites in H. perforatum cell and tissue cultures, its exploitation is still in its infancy mainly due to the lack of reproducibility and difficulties in scaling up biomass production.
Microstructure and nanomechanical properties of single stalks from diatom Didymosphenia geminata and their change due to adsorption of selected metal ions
Authors: Zgłobicka Izabela , Chlanda Adrian , Woźniak Michał , Łojkowski Maciej , Szoszkiewicz Robert , Mazurkiewicz‐Pawlicka Marta , Święszkowski Wojciech , Wyroba Elżbieta , Kurzydłowski Krzysztof J.
Published: May 2017

We present topographical and nanomechanical characterization of single Didymosphenia geminata stalk. We compared the samples before and after adsorption of metal ions from freshwater samples. Transmission electron microscopy studies of single stalk cross‐sections have shown three distinct layers and an additional thin extra coat on the external layer (called “EL”). Using scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy (AFM), we found that topography of single stalks after ionic adsorption differed significantly from topography of pristine stalks. AFM nanoindentation studies in ambient conditions yielded elastic moduli of 214 ± 170 MPa for pristine stalks and 294 ± 108 MPa for stalks after ionic adsorption. Statistical tests showed that those results were significantly different. We conducted only preliminary comparisons between ionic adsorption of several stalks in air and in water. While the stalks with ions were on average stiffer than the pristine stalks in air, they became more compliant than the pristine stalks in water. We also heated the stalks and detected EL softening at 50°C ± 15°C. AFM nanoindentation in air on the softened samples yielded elastic moduli of 26 ± 9 MPa for pristine samples and 43 ± 22 MPa for stalks with absorbed metal ions. Substantial decrease of the EL elastic moduli after heating was expected. Significantly different elastic moduli for the samples after ionic adsorption in both cases (i.e., for heated and nonheated samples), as well as behavior of the stalks immersed in water, point to permanent structural EL changes due to ions.
Enhancement of total lipid yield by nitrogen, carbon, and iron supplementation in isolated microalgae
Authors: Sivaramakrishnan Ramachandran , Incharoensakdi Aran
Published: May 2017

The biochemical contents and biodiesel production ability of three microalgal strains grown under different sodium nitrate, sodium carbonate, and ferric ammonium citrate (iron) levels were investigated. The highest biomass and lipid contents were found in Scenedesmus sp., Chlorella sp., and Chlamydomonas sp. when grown in normal BG‐11 containing sodium carbonate concentration at 0.03 g · L−1, and in normal BG‐11 containing iron concentration (IC) at 0.009 or 0.012 g · L−1. Increasing the sodium nitrate level increased the biomass content, but decreased the lipid content in all three microalgae. Among the three microalgae, Scenedesmus sp. showed the highest total lipid yield of 0.69 g · L−1 under the IC of 0.012 g · L−1. Palmitic and oleic acids were the major fatty acids of Scenedesmus sp. and Chlamydomonas sp. lipids. On the other hand, Chlorella sp. lipids were rich in palmitic, oleic, and linolenic acids, and henceforth contributing to poor biodiesel properties below the standard limits. The three isolated strains had a potential for biodiesel production. Nevertheless, Scenedesmus sp. from stone quarry pond water was the most suitable source for biodiesel production with tolerance toward the high concentration of sodium carbonate without the loss of its biodiesel properties.
Validation of SmartPill® wireless motility capsule for gastrointestinal transit time: Intra‐subject variability, software accuracy and comparison with video capsule endoscopy
Authors: Diaz Tartera H. O. , Webb D.‐L. , Al‐Saffar A. Kh. , Halim M. A. , Lindberg G. , Sangfelt P. , Hellström P. M.
Published: May 2017

Background

There is interest in ultimately combining endoscopy and motility assessments. Gastric emptying (GET), small bowel (SBTT), colon (CTT) and whole gut transit (WGTT) times are conveniently obtained by SmartPill® wireless motility capsule (WMC) that records luminal pH, temperature and pressure. Reproducibility within same subjects and accuracy of software derived times (MotiliGI®) were investigated for diagnostic application. GET and SBTT were separately measured using video capsule endoscopy (VCE). The aim of this investigation was to assess same subject reproducibility of WMC, accuracy of software derived transit times and relate to Pillcam® SB (small bowel) VCE motility data.

Methods

Seventy three healthy adults ingested a 260 kcal mixed meal followed by WMC tests. Food intake was permitted after 6 hours. Regional transit data was obtained for GET, SBTT and CTT, the sum yielding WGTT. Nineteen subjects repeated WMC tests 2 or 4 weeks later; a separate 70 underwent VCE while fasted.

Key Results

Visually derived data from WMC yielded GET 3.46±0.27, SBTT 5.15±0.21, CTT 20.76±1.19 and WGTT 29.53±1.28 hours (mean±SEM). Pearson's correlation coefficients (r) against software derived results were: GET 0.78 (P<.0001), SBTT 0.28 (P<.05), CTT 0.96 (P<.0001), WGTT 0.99 (P<.0001). VCE yielded lower GET (0.71±0.08 hours) and SBTT (4.15±0.13 hours).

Conclusions and Inferences

GET, SBTT, CTT and WGTT obtained by WMC are commensurate with literature values, including by other methods. Visually and software derived transit times have strongest correlations for CTT and WGTT. WMC yields longer GET and SBTT than VCE, perhaps due to meal related effects on motility.
Nursing Philosophy 2016, response to Peter Allmark's article, “Aristotle for Nursing”
Authors: Whelton Beverly J. B.
Published: May 2017

Preparing to lecture on Aristotle's contribution to Nursing at the International Philosophy of Nursing Conference August 22, 2016, in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada, I came upon the recently published article by my IPONS colleague, Allmark (2016), “Aristotle for Nursing.” Allmark (2016) provides a comprehensive and understandable overview of Aristotle's philosophical system including the substantial nature of being and the four causes of change. Nurses using Aristotle to support practice and theoretical research will benefit from a careful reading of Allmark to enrich their use of the realist understanding of knowledge of nature (epistemology) and the matter–form causal relationships within natural being (ontology and teleology). Allmark carefully displays the distinction between good health and flourishing; a distinction sometimes hard to grasp. Nurses are concerned with the end of health, but cannot achieve for others, the fullness of living which is flourishing.

We will limit ourselves to expanding three areas that seem important, first, that nursing is much more than a productive science or craft, second, that Aristotle does provide an important note on the persistence of the soul, and, third, while Aristotle does not address the possibility of a personal creative highest being as Allmark says, his references to the divine are worth considering.
Weight‐loss interventions and gut microbiota changes in overweight and obese patients: a systematic review
Authors: Seganfredo F. B. , Blume C. A. , Moehlecke M. , Giongo A. , Casagrande D. S. , Spolidoro J. V. N. , Padoin A. V. , Schaan B. D. , Mottin C. C.
Published: May 2017

Imbalances in the gut microbiota, the bacteria that inhabit the intestines, are central to the pathogenesis of obesity. This systematic review assesses the association between the gut microbiota and weight loss in overweight/obese adults and its potential manipulation as a target for treating obesity. This review identified 43 studies using the keywords ‘overweight’ or ‘obesity’ and ‘microbiota’ and related terms; among these studies, 17 used dietary interventions, 11 used bariatric surgery and 15 used microbiota manipulation. The studies differed in their methodologies as well as their intervention lengths. Restrictive diets decreased the microbiota abundance, correlated with nutrient deficiency rather than weight loss and generally reduced the butyrate producers Firmicutes, Lactobacillus sp. and Bifidobacterium sp. The impact of surgical intervention depended on the given technique and showed a similar effect on butyrate producers, in addition to increasing the presence of the Proteobacteria phylum, which is related to changes in the intestinal absorptive surface, pH and digestion time. Probiotics differed in strain and duration with diverse effects on the microbiota, and they tended to reduce body fat. Prebiotics had a bifidogenic effect and increased butyrate producers, likely due to cross‐feeding interactions, contributing to the gut barrier and improving metabolic outcomes. All of the interventions under consideration had impacts on the gut microbiota, although they did not always correlate with weight loss. These results show that restrictive diets and bariatric surgery reduce microbial abundance and promote changes in microbial composition that could have long‐term detrimental effects on the colon. In contrast, prebiotics might restore a healthy microbiome and reduce body fat.
Risk factors for early cardiovascular mortality in patients with bipolar disorder
Authors: Tsai Shang‐Ying , Lee Chao‐Hsien , Chen Pao‐Huan , Chung Kuo‐Hsuan , Huang Shou‐Hung , Kuo Chian‐Jue , Wu Wen‐Cheng
Published: May 2017

Aim

We attempted to determine risk factors, particularly pathophysiological changes, for early cardiovascular mortality in bipolar disorder (BD).

Methods

A total of 5416 inpatients with bipolar I disorder were retrospectively followed through record linkage for cause of death. A total of 35 patients dying from cardiovascular disease (CVD; ICD 9: 401–443) before the age of 65 years were identified. Two living BD patients and two mentally healthy adults were matched with each deceased patient as control subjects according to age (±2 years), sex, and date (±3 years) of the final/index admission or the date of general health screening. Data were obtained through medical record reviews.

Results

Eighty percent of CVD deaths occurred within 10 years following the index admission. Conditional logistic regression revealed that the variables most strongly associated with CVD mortality were the leukocyte count and heart rate on the first day of the index hospitalization, as the deceased BD patients were compared with the living BD controls. Systolic pressure on the first day of the index hospitalization can be substituted for heart rate as another risk factor for CVD mortality.

Conclusion

It is suggested that systemic inflammation and sympathetic overactivity during the acute phase of BD may be risk factors for early CVD mortality.
Does sleep disturbance affect the amyloid clearance mechanisms in Alzheimer's disease?
Authors: Yulug Burak , Hanoglu Lutfu , Kilic Ertugrul
Published: May 2017

Sleep is an important factor that plays a key role in Alzheimer's disease pathogenesis. However, it is still unclear whether poor‐quality sleep may overlap with sleep disturbances in the underlying dysfunctional mechanisms of amyloid beta (Aβ) clearance metabolism. Here, we aimed to evaluate the current evidence on the role of sleep deprivation in Aβ clearance metabolism. To that end, we discuss possible mechanisms underlying the bidirectional interaction between the sleep deprivation and Aβ clearance pathways.
Skin pH and Transepidermal Water Loss Values in Children with Diaper Dermatitis in Ibadan, Nigeria
Authors: Owa Adewale , Oladokun Regina , Osinusi Kikelomo
Published: May 2017

Background/Objectives

Diaper dermatitis (DD) is one of the most common skin conditions in infants and young children. Among the factors associated with greater frequency of DD are high skin pH and transepidermal water loss (TEWL). This study examined the prevalence of DD in healthy black children in Nigeria and evaluated the association between skin surface pH, TEWL, and DD in this population.

Methods

The study was cross‐sectional in design and involved children younger than 2 years attending eight immunization clinics in Ibadan, Nigeria (N = 424). Children were recruited into the study using multistage sampling. Information collected included sociodemographic data, diapering and feeding practices. Physical examination of the diaper area was performed on each child to determine whether dermatitis was present. TEWL and skin pH were measured on the anterior chest wall and gluteal areas of each child.

Results

A total of 165 (38.9%) children had clinical evidence of DD. The mean skin pH and TEWL values were higher in the gluteal area than the anterior chest wall in all subjects, with or without dermatitis. The mean skin pH and TEWL were significantly higher on the anterior chest wall and in the gluteal area in children with DD.

Conclusion

In Nigerian children with DD, skin pH and TEWL are higher in the diaper area and at an unaffected skin site.
Phacomatosis Pigmentokeratotica: A Mosaic RASopathy with Malignant Potential
Authors: Om Amit , Cathey Sara S. , Gathings Robert M. , Hudspeth Michelle , Lee Jennifer A. , Marzolf Sean , Wine Lee Lara
Published: May 2017

Phacomatosis pigmentokeratotica (PPK) is a rare epidermal nevus syndrome characterized by the co‐occurrence of a nevus sebaceous arranged along the lines of Blaschko with a speckled lentiginous nevus (SLN). We report a novel KRAS mutation in a patient with a large nevus sebaceous and an SLN who subsequently developed a vaginal botryoid rhabdomyosarcoma, an association not previously reported in the literature. This case expands our knowledge of the genetic basis for phacomatosis, in which mutations in HRAS have been previously described, although this report provides evidence that activating mutations in KRAS or HRAS may cause PPK. This report confirms that PPK is a mosaic RASopathy with malignant potential and raises the question of whether screening for other RAS‐associated malignancies should be performed for all children with PPK.
Xanthoma Disseminatum in a Young Patient with Diabetes Insipidus
Authors: Hui Yun , Zhang Cheng‐Zhen , Chen Jun , Kong Qing‐Tao , Chen Huan , Du Xue , Sang Hong
Published: May 2017

Xanthoma disseminatum (XD) is a nonfamilial type of normolipidemic mucocutaneous xanthomatosis that belongs to the group of non–Langerhans cell histiocytoses. More than 100 cases of XD have been reported. In this study we report a case of XD in a 4‐year‐old boy with diabetes insipidus (DI). This boy is one of the youngest patients ever to present with XD combined with DI.
Allergic Contact Dermatitis Due to Methylisothiazolinone in a Young Girl's Laundry Detergent
Authors: Cotton Colleen H. , Duah Cliff G. , Matiz Catalina
Published: May 2017

Methylisothiazolinone (MI) is an emerging and increasing cause of allergic contact dermatitis (ACD) in children. We present the case of a 7‐year‐old girl with an unusual dermatitis suspicious for contact allergy. Patch testing confirmed allergy to MI, found only in the patient's laundry detergent. This case highlights the importance of checking household product ingredients and the role of MI as an increasing cause of ACD in children.
Halolike Phenomenon Around a Café au Lait Spot Superimposed on a Mongolian Spot
Authors: Neri Iria , Lambertini Martina , Tengattini Vera , Rivalta Beatrice , Patrizi Annalisa
Published: May 2017

An 8‐month‐old Caucasian infant with neurofibromatosis type 1 presented with a congenital plexiform neurofibroma and multiple café au lait spots. A pale area surrounded one of the café au lait spots located on the left gluteus in the area of dermal melanocytosis. This halolike phenomenon results from the disappearance of the Mongolian spot around the café au lait spots, revealing normal pigmented skin. This sign has been described rarely in the literature and the pathogenic mechanism is unclear.
A Young Child with Eosinophilia, Rash, and Multisystem Illness: Drug Rash, Eosinophilia, and Systemic Symptoms Syndrome After Receipt of Fluoxetine
Authors: Vignesh Pandiarajan , Kishore Janak , Kumar Ankur , Vinay Keshavamurthy , Dogra Sunil , Sreedharanunni Sreejesh , Prasun Giri Prabhas , Pal Priyankar , Ghosh Apurba
Published: May 2017

Drug rash, eosinophilia, and systemic symptoms (DRESS) syndrome is a severe systemic hypersensitivity reaction that usually occurs within 6 weeks of exposure to the offending drug. Diagnosis is usually straightforward in patients with pyrexia, skin rash, hepatitis, and eosinophilia with a preceding history of exposure to agents often associated with DRESS syndrome, such as aromatic anticonvulsants and sulfa drugs, but diagnosis of DRESS may still be a challenge. We report a 4‐year‐old child with probable DRESS syndrome complicated by multiple hematologic complications that developed 1 month after exposure to fluoxetine, a drug not known to be associated with such severe reactions.
Intraepidermal Type VII Collagen by Immunofluorescence Mapping: A Specific Finding for Bullous Dermolysis of the Newborn
Authors: Heinecke Gillian , Marinkovich M. Peter , Rieger Kerri E.
Published: May 2017

Background

Bullous dermolysis of the newborn (BDN) is a subtype of dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa (DEB) characterized by skin fragility and blister formation at birth that typically resolves within the first year of life. Abnormal intraepidermal retention of type VII collagen (C7) has been reported as a characteristic feature of BDN, but few studies have investigated the specificity of this finding.

Methods

We retrospectively reviewed pathology reports of patients diagnosed with DEB using immunofluorescence mapping from January 2001 to January 2015. For cases describing intraepidermal accumulation of C7, we collected information on patient characteristics, including genetic testing results, clinical outcome, and concurrent electron microscopy findings, where available.

Results

Of the 143 cases of DEB with immunofluorescence mapping, eight patients had intracytoplasmic epidermal retention of C7. Of these eight patients, two were lost to follow‐up, four had complete resolution of bullae, and two had marked improvement with rare residual bullae. Concurrent electron microscopic findings available for three patients were consistent with BDN.

Conclusions

Our review of immunofluorescence mapping findings in patients with DEB found that 5.6% had abnormal intracytoplasmic epidermal retention of C7, a finding previously reported in BDN. All such patients with clinical outcomes available had resolution or marked improvement of bullae, consistent with clinical outcomes expected in BDN.
Case Series Study of the Efficacy of Compounded Antibacterial, Steroid, and Moisturizer in Atopic Dermatitis
Authors: Lakhani Fatima , Lee Kachiu , Lio Peter A.
Published: May 2017

Background/Objectives

Previous studies have demonstrated that the use of a topical antimicrobial combined with a steroid may benefit patients with atopic dermatitis (AD), but modern guidelines discourage the use of antimicrobials in treating this condition. We sought to evaluate the degree of improvement in the severity and extent of AD lesions after using a compounded antibacterial, steroid, and moisturizer (CASM).

Methods

This was a nonblinded retrospective review of patients with AD treated using CASM. Multiple patients in the study had previously failed mid‐ or higher‐potency topical steroids, systemic immunosuppressives, or phototherapy (standard therapy [ST] group). Patients were assessed at baseline and at one follow‐up visit, with an average follow‐up period of 49.5 days. We included all patients with AD in the database who were prescribed CASM and had one subsequent follow‐up appointment. We excluded patients who had newly started a systemic immunosuppressant or phototherapy at the time of beginning CASM.

Results

We included 116 patients in the study. We observed a decrease in mean severity of 1.4 points on a 6‐point scale and an average decrease in body surface area (BSA) affected of 23.2 ± 2.5% overall and a decrease in mean severity of 1.4 points and average decrease in BSA affected of 19.7 ± 2.8% in the ST group.

Conclusion

CASM appears to be effective in the management of AD and may offer additional benefit for patients who have plateaued with standard therapies.
Bumps in the Road: Panniculitis in Children and Adolescents Treated with Vemurafenib
Authors: Finelt Nika , Lulla Rishi R. , Melin‐Aldana Hector , Ruth Jennifer Shuley , Lin Frank Y. , Su Jack M. , Pourciau Crystal Y. , Hunt Raegan D. , Kenner‐Bell Brandi M.
Published: May 2017

Vemurafenib is increasingly being used to treat nonmelanoma tumors that are positive for the BRAF V600E mutation. We report three children who presented with panniculitis induced by vemurafenib while undergoing treatment for central nervous system tumors and review the literature.
Pediatric Pemphigus Herpetiformis: Case Report and Review of the Literature
Authors: Peterman Caitlin M. , Vadeboncoeur Sophie , Schmidt Birgitta A. , Gellis Stephen E.
Published: May 2017

Pemphigus herpetiformis (PH) is a rare autoimmune bullous condition usually seen in adults and likely underrecognized in children. We describe a 2‐year‐old girl who presented with a chronic, generalized, blistering rash consistent with pediatric PH based on histology and immunohistochemistry and review the literature. Prognosis is generally more favorable in children than adults. Prednisone and dapsone should be considered as first‐line agents to induce remission.
The role of circadian clock genes in the photoperiodic timer of the linden bug Pyrrhocoris apterus during the nymphal stage
Authors: Kotwica‐Rolinska Joanna , Pivarciova Lenka , Vaneckova Hanka , Dolezel David
Published: May 2017

Many insects survive seasonal adversities during diapause, a form of programmed developmental and metabolic arrest. Photoperiodically regulated entry into diapause allows multivoltine insect species to optimize the number of generations. The molecular mechanism of the photoperiodic timer is unknown in insects. In the present study, we take advantage of the robust reproductive diapause response in the linden bug Pyrrhocoris apterus and explore the fifth‐instar nymphal stage, which is the most photoperiod‐sensitive stage. The nymphs display daily changes in locomotor activity during short days; this differs from the activity observed during long days. We find evidence of cyclical expression of the circadian clock genes, per and cyc, in nymphal heads; in addition, per expression is also photoperiod‐dependent. The RNA interference‐mediated knockdown of the two circadian clock genes, Clk and cyc, during the nymphal stage results in reproductive arrest in adult females. Furthermore, Clk and cyc knockdown induces the expression of the storage protein hexamerin in the fat body, whereas the expression of vitellogenin diminishes. Taken together, these data support the involvement of circadian clock genes in photoperiodic timer and/or diapause induction.
Oral contraceptive pills: Risky or protective in case of Trichinella spiralis infection?
Authors: Hasby Saad M. A. , Radi D. A. , Hasby E. A.
Published: May 2017

The aim of this study was to investigate how Trichinella spiralis infection can be affected by contraceptive pills in vivo. Methods included six groups of female Wistar rats; healthy, Trichinella infected, receiving combined contraceptive pills (COCPs), receiving progestin only pills (POPs), infected receiving COCPs and infected receiving POPs. Parasite burden was measured; adult worm counts, gravidity, larvae and reproductive capacity index). Histopathological examination, immunohistochemical detection of C‐kit+ mast cells and Foxp3+ T‐reg. cells in intestinal sections, eosinophils muscle infiltration and CPK level were performed. Rats infected and receiving COCPs showed a significant increase in parasitic burden, and infected receiving POPs showed a significant reduction compared to infected only, with a significant increase in nongravid females (Mean total worms=964.40±55.9, 742±52.63, 686±31.68, larvae/g=5030±198.75, 2490±143.18 and 4126±152,91, respectively). Intestinal sections from infected receiving COCPs showed intact mucosa (though the high inflammatory cells infiltrate), and significant increase in C‐kit+ mast cells number and intensity (30.20±4.15 and 60.40±8.29), and Foxp3+ T‐reg. cells (10±1.58). Infected receiving POPs showed a significantly less CPK (5886±574.40) and eosinophilic muscle infiltration (58±13.51). Oestrogen‐containing pills established a favourable intestinal environment for Trichinella by enhancing Foxp+T‐reg. cells and stabilizing C‐kit+mast cells, while POPs gave a potential protection with less gravidity, larval burden and eosinophilic infiltrate.
Scaling Statelessness: Absent, Present, Former, and Liminal States of Somali Experience in South Africa
Authors: Thompson Daniel K.
Published: May 2017

This study analyzes how Somalis in South Africa perceive states and statelessness, and how their assertions of authority based on statelessness come into confrontation with competing antiforeigner claims, producing differentiated spatial domains of opportunity. Claims to the legal condition of statelessness provide putative Somalis—including other eastern African migrants who embed themselves in Somali‐dominated neighborhoods and economic networks—protection as refugees in South Africa. Nevertheless, statelessness takes on multidimensional and competing meanings as South Africans accuse refugees of embodying the chaos attributed to their countries of origin, and as migrants mobilize claims to belonging that describe forms of stateness as differentially present and absent rather than uniformly encompassing. Somali migrants’ experiences in urban South Africa's segregated landscapes highlight ways in which assertions about state presence and absence travel across scaled spatial frames (from nation‐states to migrant neighborhoods and individual bodies), and shape patterns of collective action and opportunity within differentiated spaces. Foregrounding assertions involved in scale‐ and place‐making imaginaries, I argue that statelessness, like the state, may at times function as an assertion that generates spatial domains and structures life opportunities in these domains.
Ayotzinapa and the Criminalization of Racialized Poverty in La Montaña, Guerrero, Mexico1
Authors: Mora Mariana
Published: May 2017

This article situates the dramatic case of the forced disappearance of forty‐three peasant and indigenous students from the teachers college, Ayotzinapa, in the city of Iguala, in Guerrero, on September 26, 2014, in a broader context of state violence in Mexico. What are the forces that operate to classify indigenous and peasant lives as waste, hence rendering permissible such atrocities? The article draws on ethnographic evidence collected over six years in La Montaña, Guerrero, Mexico. It points to the racialized spatial forms of governance that articulate state security punitive measures, to neoliberal antipoverty programs, and to the social imaginaries that represent indigenous regions as inherently backward, violent, and ingrained with cultural deficiencies. Drawing from Ruth Wilson Gilmore's definition of racism, this article argues that the effects of these racialized geographies engender the conditions for the permissibility of state‐sanctioned death.
Inference for Empirical Wasserstein Distances on Finite Spaces
Authors: Sommerfeld Max , Munk Axel
Published: May 2017

The Wasserstein distance is an attractive tool for data analysis but statistical inference is hindered by the lack of distributional limits. To overcome this obstacle, for probability measures supported on finitely many points, we derive the asymptotic distribution of empirical Wasserstein distances as the optimal value of a linear programme with random objective function. This facilitates statistical inference (e.g. confidence intervals for sample-based Wasserstein distances) in large generality. Our proof is based on directional Hadamard differentiability. Failure of the classical bootstrap and alternatives are discussed. The utility of the distributional results is illustrated on two data sets.
To be or not to be? A caregiver's question: the lived experience of a stroke family during the first 18 months poststroke
Authors: Olivier Cheryl L , Phillips Jill , Roy Dianne E
Published: May 2017

Background

Disability following a stroke often requires family, commonly a spouse, to provide care enabling the stroke survivor to return home. Immediate or extended family and friends may help provide direct care or support the primary caregiver. While family members share the common stroke experience, this is lived within the context of separate lives. Research examining the individual nuances, roles and contribution of family and/or friends forming part of collective stroke networks, has largely been overlooked.

Aim

This New Zealand study aimed to explore the lived experience of three stroke family members during the 18 months following a first‐ever stroke.

Method

Hermeneutic phenomenology guided the study. Informed consent was obtained prior to individual interviews conducted 6 weeks, 12 months and 18 months poststroke.

Findings

Three main themes emerged: (i) Being prepared, (ii) Where you stand changes the view and (iii) Relinquishing and reclaiming. Being prepared revealed how these family members anticipated the stroke and drew on personal and professional experience in facing the phenomenon. The second theme showed the influence of expectation and positionality on family members' experiences. Relinquishing and reclaiming identified loss, grief and a quest for equity in the synthesis of competing stroke survivor and caregiver desires.

Conclusions

Familiarity with the caregiving role and experience of unreliable community services led stroke family members to question the primary caregiver's ability to resume caregiving following a family member's stroke. The primary caregiver was physically and emotionally spent, and rest home care for the survivor became the only self‐preserving option. A new caring arrangement was formulated seeking equity for both stroke survivor and caregiver.
Do nurses and other health professionals’ in elderly care have education in family nursing?
Authors: Sunde Olivia Sissil , Øyen Karianne Røssummoen , Ytrehus Siri
Published: May 2017

Background

Family caregivers are an important resource for providing care to elderly living at home. How nurses and other health professionals interact with family caregivers can have both a positive and a negative impact on the family caregivers’ situation. We lack knowledge of Norwegian nurses’ and other health professionals’ participation in educational programmes about family caregivers’ needs and situations.

Aim

The purpose of this study was to investigate whether nurses and other health professionals working in home‐care nursing had participated in educational programmes about family caregivers. Additionally, the study aimed to determine whether participation in educational programmes was associated with awareness of family caregivers’ contributions to elder care.

Methods

This is a quantitative study, and it was conducted as a cross‐sectional study. The participants were required to be educated as nurses, nursing assistants or other health professionals with relevant health education and to be working with the elderly in home‐care nursing settings. Descriptive statistics and trivariate table analysis using the Pearson Chi‐square t‐test were conducted using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS).

Result

A total of 152 nurses and health professionals in home‐care nursing in 23 municipalities have participated (in one county in Norway). The results showed that only half of the respondents had participated in educational programmes about family caregivers’ needs and situations. The study did not provide a clear answer regarding the association between participation in educational programmes and awareness of family caregivers’ contributions.

Conclusions

The results indicate that nurses and other health professionals, to a small extent, have participated in educational programmes about family caregivers. Our findings indicate that participation in educational programmes may be particularly important for health professionals in leadership positions and for health professionals with vocational training.
To be or not to be a valid genus: the systematic position of Ophyra R.‐D. revised (Diptera: Muscidae)
Authors: GRZYWACZ ANDRZEJ , WALLMAN JAMES F. , PIWCZYŃSKI MARCIN
Published: May 2017

Ophyra Robineau‐Desvoidy is one of the better‐studied genera of the family Muscidae (Diptera). The larvae of species of this genus feed on highly decomposed organic matter of various origins, and may reveal predatory behaviour as they mature. These feeding habits, combined with the widespread distribution and close association with human dwellings of some species, give the genus commercial and medico‐legal importance. However, the systematic position of Ophyra has been a matter of debate for many years. Ophyra has been considered by muscid workers to be either a valid genus or a junior synonym of Hydrotaea Robineau‐Desvoidy. A lack of agreement about the systematic position of Ophyra has led to serious errors, particularly in the applied literature. Recent molecular and morphological studies provided contradictory information on the validity of the genus and its subfamilial classification. We revise the systematic position of Ophyra herein by means of molecular phylogenetic reconstruction. Our results are incongruent with opinions on the systematic position of Ophyra based on previously published molecular phylogenies, although they correspond with the concept of the genus based on adult morphology. All analyses of the concatenated dataset revealed Ophyra as monophyletic and placed within a paraphyletic Azeliini. Depending on the phylogenetic approach, Ophyra was placed within either a monophyletic, paraphyletic or polyphyletic Hydrotaea, yet always closely related to a certain group of species. We conclude that Ophyra, as currently defined, should not be considered a valid name, yet a detailed reconstruction of the genus Hydrotaea awaits future studies with greater increases in both taxon sampling and the number of molecular markers.
Sexual Crimes
Authors: Sousa Lisa
Published: May 2017

Chapter 6 studies sexual attitudes and crimes, including adultery and rape, and their prosecution in preconquest and colonial times. Indigenous peoples themselves, not strictly friars, enforced a moral code of sexual behavior by gossiping about local scandals, reporting crimes to indigenous and Spanish magistrates, testifying in criminal trials about alleged transgressions, and in more extreme cases, resorting to violence, often with the help of relatives and friends, to punish misconduct. The chapter considers the ways in which indigenous and Spanish attitudes converged, especially in the importance placed on marriage as an institution that regulates sexuality and the strong condemnation of rape and adultery. Chapter 6 examines the relationship between sexual infidelity and violence in the household and community. Finally this chapter shows how Spanish attitudes regarding virginity and honor influenced, but did not alter entirely, indigenous gender ideology after the sixteenth century.
Household and Community
Authors: Sousa Lisa
Published: May 2017

Chapter 8 investigates relations within the household, focusing on family organization, ritual kinship, and residence patterns. Members of the household, whether blood relatives or not, formed a family, who were united by their collective experiences of working and living together. Marriage and ritual kinship formalized ties between households, while informal arrangements were sustained by mutual support, collaborative labor, and shared resources. The chapter explores the economic, social, moral, spiritual, and political dimensions of the household. Chapter 8 argues that household and community were two interrelated spheres, and that women were often at the center of social, economic, and political interaction. The chapter also examines how ritual kinship created multidimensional webs of relations among households and provided important social networks for women.
Conclusion
Authors: Sousa Lisa
Published: May 2017

The concluding chapter reiterates the book’s major arguments and places the study’s contributions within the context of the existing scholarship on Mesoamerican ethnohistory and women’s history. The chapter considers the evidence for both major changes and continuities in indigenous social and gender relations in rural communities of central Mexico and Oaxaca between 1520 to 1750. The chapter argues that many factors over time contributed to the erosion of native women’s status. Nevertheless, women responded to the many challenges that they faced to defend their interests, as well as those of their households and communities.
Trust or Verification? Accepting Vulnerability in the Making of the INF Treaty
Authors: Wheeler Nicholas J. , Baker Joshua , Considine Laura
Published: May 2017

This chapter uses the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty as a case study to explore the relationship between trust and verification. It argues that the acceptance of verification measures has to be considered an act of trust, since it implies the acceptance of one's vulnerability as a result of an altered perception of the trustworthiness of one's opponent. More specifically, the chapter illustrates how Gorbachev's notion of trustworthiness toward the United States changed through the influence of his inner circle, his understanding of the dynamics of a security dilemma fed by mutual fear and mistrust, his trusting actions toward the development of a common security on an international level, and his personal relationship with Ronald Reagan.
Introduction
Authors: Farquhar Michael
Published: May 2017

This chapter introduces the question of Saudi “religious expansion” — that is, the various processes by which Saudi actors are said to have exerted increasing religious influence beyond the kingdom’s borders in the course of the twentieth century — and it situates the Islamic University of Medina as a key institution in relation to such dynamics. It establishes the contours of the Salafi and Wahhabi traditions, before setting out the historiographical framework employed throughout the remainder of the book. The latter is grounded in a particular conception of a transnational religious economy, comprising flows — both within and across borders — of material capital, spiritual capital, religious migrants and social technologies. The chapter ends with a brief overview of the historical narrative and arguments that run through the book.
National Politics and Global Mission
Authors: Farquhar Michael
Published: May 2017

This chapter traces the genesis and institutional evolution of the Islamic University of Medina from the time of its founding in 1961 and over the decades that followed. It maps the history of this key Wahhabi missionary project onto Cold War geopolitics, maneuvering between the Saudi royals and the Wahhabi establishment, efforts to bolster narratives of dynastic and national legitimacy, and shifts in the international oil economy. In doing so, it emphasizes the extent to which the transactions in material and spiritual capital which would occur on the IUM campus were influenced by Saudi politics and integrated with the kingdom’s own political economy.
Migration and the Forging of a Scholarly Community
Authors: Farquhar Michael
Published: May 2017

This chapter explores the role of large numbers of non-Saudi staff members at the Islamic University of Medina (IUM) from the early 1960s to the 1980s, and considers the part that they played in the remaking of Wahhabi religious authority. It argues that until the mid-twentieth century, the relatively parochial and insular nature of the Wahhabi scholarly milieu meant that Wahhabi scholars lacked the kinds of symbolic resources that would be required to launch such an ambitious missionary project. It then traces the trajectories that brought migrants from across the Middle East, Africa, South Asia and beyond to work at the IUM. It argues that, by bringing diversified reserves of spiritual capital — including qualifications acquired in venerable centers of learning like al-Azhar — these migrants lent legitimacy to the new effort to extend the Wahhabi mission to broad audiences beyond the kingdom’s borders.
Introduction
Authors: Teller Adam
Published: May 2017

The book makes three main interventions. First is the use of Jewish economic history to understand both the development of Jewish society and its relations with the surrounding world. The methodology of New institutional economics, emphasizing the connection between economic and cultural factors, is employed. Second is the study of the Jews’ economic roles in the specific context of magnate estates in eighteenth-century Poland-Lithuania. In this late feudal setting, Jews achieved enormous financial success, which they translated into improved social status and even power. This process is at the heart of the analysis here. Third is the history of the Radziwiłł family and its estates in Lithuania. From a low point at the beginning of the period, the family reached the pinnacle of its power at the end. This rise was based on increased estate incomes, the importance for which of Jewish economic activity is examined here.
Jews as Estate Leaseholders
Authors: Teller Adam
Published: May 2017

The career of the brothers, Szmojło and Gdal Ickowicz, who leased the Radziwiłł holdings from 1740 to 1745, exemplifies the possibilities and risks of estate leasing for Jews. Their success was based on their entrepreneurial skills in using leases to improve their trading activity, and mercantile profits to expand their leaseholds. Their willingness to change the economic status quo by unilaterally increasing customary dues allowed them to improve estate profitability, boosting Hieronim Florian Radziwiłł’s revenues. They thus won his confidence, with Szmojło becoming his personal agent. Their highhandedness made the brothers extremely unpopular. A peasant uprising ensued, during which Radziwiłł supported them. For as long as they could provide him with increased revenues, they flourished. Once they could not, they were at his mercy. When he needed income that Szmojło could not find, Radziwiłł arrested him, confiscated his fortune, and left him to die in prison.
Corruption in Ukraine: Perpetuum Mobile or the Endplay of Post-Soviet Elites?
Authors: Kudelia Serhiy
Published: May 2017

Serhiy Kudelia takes an institutional approach to understanding corruption in Ukraine, arguing that as Ukraine’s institutional model has changed, patterns of corruption have changed along with it. Despite Ukraine’s turbulent post-Soviet evolution, neither the fact of corruption nor the extent of it has changed dramatically. This continuity he attributes to permissive conditions, in terms of weak institutionalization, and to powerful incentives for actors to engage in venality. His analysis is troubling in that it shows that political competition, the goal of democratization, tends to spur corruption on the part of leaders. He offers some suggestions for reform, including through changing the campaign financing laws.
Judicial Reform in Comparative Perspective: Assessing the Prospects for Ukraine
Authors: Beers Daniel J.
Published: May 2017

Daniel Beers looks at the experience of judicial reform across the post-communist cases, and gleans several lessons. Among the most important is that “institutional solutions have important limitations as drivers of the reform process.” Not only do informal practices sometimes negate the effects of institutional reforms, but when they do, the entire concept of judicial reform is undermined by cynicism. Moreover, highly autonomous courts can be as hazardous as dependent ones, because they can become targets of politicians jealous of their authority. Beers finds two important sources of meaningful reform. First, the European Union has played a widely acknowledged role in judicial reform in the post-communist region. More surprisingly, Beers finds a strong positive role for low-level actors—individuals and firms who turn to the courts to resolve disputes and court employees committed to improvement.
Conclusion: The Comparative Politics of Reform and Lessons for Ukraine
Authors: Hale Henry E. , Orttung Robert
Published: May 2017

The concluding chapter by Henry Hale and Robert Orttung identifies several common threads running through the chapters in the volume. Among these are the importance of taking into account that formal institutions will not work the same way they do in Western countries thanks to local informal practices, the difference between deeply embedded obstacles to reform and those that are more contingent, the need to focus on long-term solutions, how realistic various reform proposals are in light of the incentives of political actors who have the power to enact them, and the notion that many of the reforms discussed in the volume can reinforce each other. Ultimately, perhaps the single most important driver for change in Ukraine is the European Union.