bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Comparison and evaluation of the reliability of indexes of adherence to the Mediterranean diet
Authors: Milà-Villarroel Raimon , Bach-Faig Anna , Puig Josep , Puchal Anna , Farran Andreu , Serra-Majem Lluis , Carrasco Josep Lluis
Published: December 2011

Objective

To compare and evaluate the reliability of several indexes of adherence to the Mediterranean diet.

Design

The ten indexes included in the analysis were: Mediterranean Diet Score (MDS), Mediterranean Score (MS), Dietary Score (DS), Mediterranean-Dietary Quality Index (Med-DQI), Mediterranean Dietary Pattern adherence index (MDP), Mediterranean Adequacy Index (MAI), Mediterranean Style Dietary Pattern Score (MSDPS), Mediterranean food pattern PREDIMED Study (MeDiet-PREDIMED), relative Mediterranean diet (rMED) and Cardioprotective Mediterranean diet index. Factor analysis using the correlations between indexes was applied. The correlation with factors and the reliability coefficient were calculated.

Setting

A total of 324 healthy undergraduates at the University of Barcelona, Spain, were surveyed.

Results

The highest correlations were observed between MDP adherence index and MAI (0·82); MAI and MSDPS (0·80); and MDS and rMED (0·77). Factor analysis showed a hidden common factor that explained over 70 % of the variability (71·03 %). This factor is understood as ‘adherence to the Mediterranean diet’. The indexes that showed the highest correlation with this factor were Med-DQI (0·85), MDS (0·84), rMED (0·80) and MAI (0·80). These indexes showed acceptable performance in measuring the adherence to the Mediterranean diet. The components that correlated strongly with this factor were monounsaturated-to-saturated fatty acid ratio (MS ratio), fruit and vegetables. Furthermore, a second common factor was found explaining 18 % of the variability. This second factor is highly positive related to dairy products and lean meat, and negative related to MS ratio.

Conclusions

The indexes showed satisfactory performance in assessing adherence to the Mediterranean diet. However, in order to improve the reliability and concordance between the indexes, further studies are required to select the components, the number of components, and the scoring criteria of the indexes to improve their internal consistency.
Parental nutrition knowledge and attitudes as predictors of 5–6-year-old children's healthy food knowledge
Authors: Zarnowiecki Dorota , Sinn Natalie , Petkov John , Dollman James
Published: December 2011

Objective

Young children's knowledge about healthy food may influence the formation of their eating behaviours, and parents have a major influence on the development of children's knowledge in the early years.

Design

We investigated the extent to which parental nutrition knowledge and attitudes around food predicted young children's knowledge of healthy foods, controlling for other influences such as socio-economic status (SES) and parent education levels in a cross-sectional research design. Children were given a healthy food knowledge activity and parents completed questionnaires.

Setting

Twenty primary schools in Adelaide, Australia, stratified by SES.

Subjects

We recruited 192 children aged 5–6 years and their parents.

Results

Structural equation modelling showed that parent nutrition knowledge predicted children's nutrition knowledge (r= 0·30,P< 0·001) independently of attitudes, SES and education level.

Conclusions

Nutrition education for parents, targeted at low-SES areas at higher risk for obesity, may contribute to the development of healthy food knowledge in young children.
Developmental regulation of group I metabotropic glutamate receptors in the premature brain and their protective role in a rodent model of periventricular leukomalacia
Authors: Jantzie Lauren L. , Talos Delia M. , Selip Debra B. , An Li , Jackson Michele C. , Folkerth Rebecca D. , Deng Wenbin , Jensen Frances E.
Published: December 2011

Cerebral white matter injury in premature infants, known as periventricular leukomalacia (PVL), is common after hypoxia–ischemia (HI). While ionotropic glutamate receptors (iGluRs) can mediate immature white matter injury, we have previously shown that excitotoxic injury to premyelinating oligodendrocytes (preOLs)in vitrocan be attenuated by group I metabotropic glutamate receptor (mGluR) agonists. Thus, we evaluated mGluR expression in developing white matter in rat and human brain, and tested the protective efficacy of a central nervous system (CNS)-penetrating mGluR agonist on injury to developing oligodendrocytes (OLs)in vivo. Group I mGluRs (mGluR1 and mGluR5) were strongly expressed on OLs in neonatal rodent cerebral white matter throughout normal development, with highest expression early in development on preOLs. Specifically at P6, mGluR1 and mGLuR5 were most highly expressed on GalC-positive OLs compared to neurons, axons, astrocytes and microglia. Systemic administration of (1S,3R) 1-aminocyclopentane-trans-1,3,-dicarboxylic acid (ACPD) significantly attenuated the loss of myelin basic protein in the white matter following HI in P6 rats. Assessment of postmortem human tissue showed both mGluR1 and mGluR5 localized on immature OLs in white matter throughout development, with mGluR5 highest in the preterm period. These data indicate group I mGluRs are highly expressed on OLs during the peak period of vulnerability to HI and modulation of mGluRs is protective in a rodent model of PVL. Group I mGluRs may represent important therapeutic targets for protection from HI-mediated white matter injury.
Regulation of microglia by ionotropic glutamatergic and GABAergic neurotransmission
Authors: Wong Wai T. , Wang Minhua , Li Wei
Published: December 2011

Recent studies have indicated that constitutive functions of microglia in the healthy adult central nervous system (CNS) involve immune surveillance, synapse maintenance and trophic support. These functions have been related to the ramified structure of ‘resting’ microglia and the prominent motility in their processes that provide extensive coverage of the entire extracellular milleu. In this review, we examine how external signals, and in particular, ionotropic neurotransmission, regulate features of microglial morphology and process motility. Current findings indicate that microglial physiology in the healthy CNS is constitutively and reciprocally regulated by endogenous ionotropic glutamatergic and GABAergic neurotransmission. These influences do not act directly on microglial cells but indirectly via the activity-dependent release of ATP, likely through a mechanism involving pannexin channels. Microglia in the ‘resting’ state are not only dynamically active, but also constantly engaged in ongoing communication with neuronal and macroglial components of the CNS in a functionally relevant way.
The Court Chronicle of the Kings of Manipur
Authors: Arambarn Parratt Saroj Nalini
Published: December 2011

The Cheitharon Kumpapa is the court chronicle of the kings of the state of Manipur, a small, formerly independent state situated on the north-eastern border of India with Myanmar. The Cheitharon Kumpapa records events from the founding of the ruling dynasty in 33 CE until the abolition of the monarchy and subsequent merger of the state with India in 1949. The document is probably the oldest chronicle of the region, written on handmade Meetei (Manipuri) paper made from bark of trees, in locally made ink, with a quill or a bamboo pen. All in all it comprises more than a thousand leaves.
Indigenous Knowledge of Farming in North Malabar
Authors: Sreekumar K. M. , Thamban C. , Govindan M.
Published: December 2011

It is now widely recognised that agriculture can benefit when indigenous technical knowledge of farmers or ITK is reclaimed and integrated with modern farming practices. ITK is derived from local culture, traditions and long-term human interaction with the environment. It needs both documentation and conscious promotion for a more sustainability oriented perspective in agriculture. The book aims to document ITK in agriculture by detailing rituals and practices followed in the cultivation of the main crops in the North Malabar region of Kerala.
Psychotherapeutische und medikamentöse Behandlung der kindlichen Zwangsstörung
Authors: Vloet Timo D. , Simons Michael , Herpertz-Dahlmann Beate
Published: December 2011

Zur Behandlung der kindlichen Zwangsstörung werden kognitiv-verhaltenstherapeutische (KVT) und medikamentöse Interventionen eingesetzt. Insbesondere kombiniert sind diese Behandlungen gut wirksam, dennoch zeigen sich ca. 40 % der Behandelten auch nach der Therapie noch symptomatisch. Die am besten evaluierte Methode der KVT ist die Exposition mit Reaktionsverhinderung, die auf dem Prinzip der Habituation beruht. Neuere kognitive und metakognitive Techniken fokussieren auf die Modifikation von Erwartungen und haben vielleicht das Potential, die Wirksamkeit der Behandlung zu verbessern. Selektive Serotonin-Wiederaufnahme-Hemmer (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, SSRIs) stellen die Medikamente der ersten Wahl zur Behandlung der kindlichen Zwangsstörung dar. Wenn die Patienten bei ausreichend langer Gabe nicht auf die Medikation ansprechen, sollte ein Therapieversuch mit einem alternativen SSRI oder mit Clomipramin durchgeführt werden. Bei einem erneuten Scheitern der Behandlung kann eine Augmentation mit einer Kombination zweier SSRIs bzw. einem SSRI und Clomipramin oder einem SSRI und einem (atypischen) Neuroleptikum erfolgen. Nach einer erfolgreichen Behandlung sollte das Ausschleichen der Medikation sehr langsam erfolgen. Erste Studien zum Einsatz neuer Substanzen wie dem Glutamatantagonisten Riluzol liegen für das Kindes- und Jugendalter vor.
Intellektuelle Fähigkeiten bei Jugendlichen mit früherer ADHS-Diagnose
Authors: Schürmann Stephanie , Breuer Dieter , Wolff Metternich-Kaizman Tanja , Döpfner Manfred
Published: December 2011

Fragestellung: Die vorliegende Analyse im Rahmen einer Nachuntersuchung von 16–22jährigen Jugendlichen und jungen Erwachsenen, die als Kinder aufgrund einer Aufmerksamkeitsdefizit-/Hyperaktivitätsstörung multimodal behandelt worden waren, untersucht den Zusammenhang zwischen aktueller Intelligenzleistung und der aktuellen ADHS-Symptomatik, komorbider Symptomatik und bisher durchgeführter medikamentöser Therapie. Es soll der Frage nachgegangen werden, ob bei einer Längsschnittstudie die aktuelle ADHS-Symptomatik oder auch komorbide Symptomatik der ehemaligen Patienten negativ mit der aktuell gezeigten Intelligenzleistung korreliert und ob sich Unterschiede durch die Behandlung von früherer Medikation mit Methylphenidat ergeben. Methodik: In der 8.5-Jahres Katamnese wurden die aktuelle Intelligenzleistung bei 61 Jugendlichen mittels des K-TIM und Verhaltensauffälligkeiten im Urteil der Eltern und der ehemaligen Patienten anhand von standardisierten Fragebogen und eines halbstrukturierten Interviews erhoben. Die Berechnungen erfolgten über t-Tests sowie Produkt-Moment-Korrelationen und multiple Regressionsanalysen. Ergebnisse: Es zeigten sich keine wesentlichen Zusammenhänge zwischen medikamentöser Therapie in der Vorgeschichte und aktueller Intelligenzleistung. Es konnten auch keine Zusammenhänge zwischen Intelligenzleistung und aktueller ADHS- und komorbider Symptomatik im Selbst- und Fremdurteil mittels Fragebogen festgestellt werden. Allerdings zeigte sich, dass die Jugendlichen mit schwächeren Intelligenzleistungen im Leistungsverhalten in der Testsituation auffälliger beurteilt wurden. Zudem konnte ein Zusammenhang mit der klinischen Gesamtbeurteilung des expansiven Verhaltens in der Familie und der Schule und der Intelligenz nachgewiesen werden. Schlussfolgerungen: Bei Jugendlichen und jungen Erwachsenen, bei denen als Kinder eine ADHS diagnostiziert wurde, zeigen sich nur geringe Zusammenhänge zwischen der aktuellen Restsymptomatik und der aktuellen Intelligenzleistung.
Perception of Autonomy and Connectedness Prior to the Onset of Anorexia Nervosa and Bulimia Nervosa
Authors: Huemer Julia , Haidvogl Maria , Mattejat Fritz , Wagner Gudrun , Nobis Gerald , Fernandez-Aranda Fernando , Collier David A. , Treasure Janet L. , Karwautz Andreas F. K.
Published: December 2011

Objective: This study examines retrospective correlates of nonshared family environment prior to onset of disease, by means of multiple familial informants, among anorexia and bulimia nervosa patients. Methods: A total of 332 participants was included (anorexia nervosa, restrictive type (AN-R): n = 41 plus families); bulimic patients (anorexia nervosa, binge-purging type; bulimia nervosa: n = 59 plus families). The EATAET Lifetime Diagnostic Interview was used to establish the diagnosis; the Subjective Family Image Test was used to derive emotional connectedness (EC) and individual autonomy (IA). Results: Bulimic and AN-R patients perceived significantly lower EC prior to onset of disease compared to their healthy sisters. Bulimic patients perceived significantly lower EC prior to onset of disease compared to AN-R patients and compared to their mothers and fathers. A low family sum – sister pairs sum comparison – of EC had a significant influence on the risk of developing bulimia nervosa. Contrary to expectations, AN-R patients did not perceive significantly lower levels of IA compared to their sisters, prior to onset of disease. Findings of low IA in currently ill AN-R patients may represent a disease consequence, not a risk factor. Conclusions: Developmental child psychiatrists should direct their attention to disturbances of EC, which may be present prior to the onset of the disease.
Does the flow of information in a landscape have direction?
Authors: Voller Vaughan R. , Ganti Vamsi , Paola Chris , Foufoula‐Georgiou Efi
Published: December 2011

There is an emerging viewpoint that the sediment flux at a given point on the landscape may be influenced by landscape properties in a region extending away from the point of interest. Using a general sediment transport model that incorporates this non‐local nature via fractional derivatives, we find a strong asymmetry in the direction in which the non‐locality affects a given point: For erosional landscapes, physically plausible elevation profiles are obtained only when the spatial influence is restricted to the region upstream of the point of interest. By contrast, in depositional landscapes, the non‐local model is guaranteed to produce physically plausible topographic profiles only when the spatial influence is restricted to the region downstream of the point of interest. These results suggest that information flows downstream in an erosional landscape and upstream in depositional landscapes.
Thirty years of elevation change on Antarctic Peninsula ice shelves from multimission satellite radar altimetry
Authors: Fricker Helen Amanda , Padman Laurie
Published: December 2011

We use data acquired between 1978 and 2008 by four satellite radar altimeter missions (Seasat, ERS‐1, ERS‐2 and Envisat) to determine multidecadal elevation change rates (dhi/dt) for six major Antarctic Peninsula (AP) ice shelves. In areas covered by the Seasat orbit (to 72.16°S), regional‐averaged 30‐year trends were negative (surface lowering), with rates between −0.03 and −0.16 m a−1. Surface lowering preceded the start of near‐continuous radar altimeter operations that began with ERS‐1 in 1992. The average rate of lowering for the first 14 years of the period was typically smaller than the 30‐year average; the exception was the southern Wilkins Ice Shelf, which experienced negligible lowering between 2000 and 2008, when a series of large calving events began. Analyses of the continuous ERS/Envisat time series (to 81.5°) for 1992–2008 reveal a period of strong negative dhi/dt on most ice shelves between 1992 and 1995. Based on prior studies of regional atmospheric and oceanic conditions, we hypothesize that the observed elevation changes on Larsen C Ice Shelf are driven primarily by firn compaction while the western AP ice shelves are responding to changes in both surface mass balance and basal melt rates. Our time series also show that large changes in dhi/dt can occur on interannual time scales, reinforcing the importance of long time series altimetry to separate long‐term trends associated with climate change from interannual to interdecadal natural variability.
Fetch‐limited growth of wind waves
Authors: Stiassnie Michael
Published: December 2011

The wave growth mechanisms proposed by Miles (1957) and Phillips (1957) more than 50 years ago, in combination with the concept of the “limiting spectrum,” are used to obtain mathematical solutions to the problem of fetch‐limited wavefields. Explicit expressions for (1) the spectra, (2) the significant wave height, and (3) the peak frequency in terms of the wind shear velocity and the fetch are given.
Grain‐size segregation and levee formation in geophysical mass flows
Authors: Johnson C. G. , Kokelaar B. P. , Iverson R. M. , Logan M. , LaHusen R. G. , Gray J. M. N. T.
Published: December 2011

Data from large‐scale debris‐flow experiments are combined with modeling of particle‐size segregation to explain the formation of lateral levees enriched in coarse grains. The experimental flows consisted of 10 m3 of water‐saturated sand and gravel, which traveled ∼80 m down a steeply inclined flume before forming an elongated leveed deposit 10 m long on a nearly horizontal runout surface. We measured the surface velocity field and observed the sequence of deposition by seeding tracers onto the flow surface and tracking them in video footage. Levees formed by progressive downslope accretion approximately 3.5 m behind the flow front, which advanced steadily at ∼2 m s−1 during most of the runout. Segregation was measured by placing ∼600 coarse tracer pebbles on the bed, which, when entrained into the flow, segregated upwards at ∼6–7.5 cm s−1. When excavated from the deposit these were distributed in a horseshoe‐shaped pattern that became increasingly elevated closer to the deposit termination. Although there was clear evidence for inverse grading during the flow, transect sampling revealed that the resulting leveed deposit was strongly graded laterally, with only weak vertical grading. We construct an empirical, three‐dimensional velocity field resembling the experimental observations, and use this with a particle‐size segregation model to predict the segregation and transport of material through the flow. We infer that coarse material segregates to the flow surface and is transported to the flow front by shear. Within the flow head, coarse material is overridden, then recirculates in spiral trajectories due to size‐segregation, before being advected to the flow edges and deposited to form coarse‐particle‐enriched levees.
Assessing the validity of station location assumptions made in the calculation of the Geomagnetic Disturbance Index, Dst
Authors: Gannon J. L.
Published: December 2011

In this paper, the effects of the assumptions made in the calculation of the Dst index with regard to longitude sampling, hemisphere bias, and latitude correction are explored. The insights gained from this study will allow operational users to better understand the local implications of the Dst index and will lead to future index formulations that are more physically motivated. We recompute the index using 12 longitudinally spaced low‐latitude stations, including the traditional 4 (in Honolulu, Kakioka, San Juan, and Hermanus), and compare it to the standard United States Geological Survey definitive Dst. We look at the hemisphere balance by comparing stations at equal geomagnetic latitudes in the Northern and Southern hemispheres. We further separate the 12‐station time series into two hemispheric indices and find that there are measurable differences in the traditional Dst formulation due to the undersampling of the Southern Hemisphere in comparison with the Northern Hemisphere. To analyze the effect of latitude correction, we plot latitudinal variation in a disturbance observed during the year 2005 using two separate longitudinal observatory chains. We separate these by activity level and find that while the traditional cosine form fits the latitudinal distributions well for low levels of activity, at higher levels of disturbance the cosine form does not fit the observed variation. This suggests that the traditional latitude scaling is insufficient during active times. The effect of the Northern Hemisphere bias and the inadequate latitude scaling is such that the standard correction underestimates the true disturbance by 10–30 nT for storms of main phase magnitude deviation greater than 150 nT in the traditional Dst index.
Temporal trends in groundwater levels from Saskatchewan, Canada
Authors: Rayne Sierra , Forest Kaya
Published: December 2011

Groundwater resources play a key role in supplying water for domestic, industrial, agricultural, and ecological functions on the Canadian prairies. The current study investigates potential temporal trends in groundwater levels for the Canadian province of Saskatchewan over the past several decades. Overall, the large majority of areally distributed stations throughout Saskatchewan with increasing groundwater level time trends suggests that this hydrogeological resource is growing in quantity and is not under current threat from depletion.
A hydrometric analysis of the Moose Jaw River near Burdick (05JE006): Temporal trends and frequency analyses for mean, minimum, and maximum flows
Authors: Rayne Sierra , Forest Kaya
Published: December 2011

A hydrometric analysis over the available historical record (1973-2010) was conducted for the Moose Jaw River station near Burdick in south-central Saskatchewan, Canada. Frequency analyses on mean monthly, average annual, monthly minimum/maximum, and annual minimum flows generally yielded poor fits, and problems with negative flow predictions for mid- to long-term return periods regardless of distribution type. The annual maximum streamflow time series is reasonably well-described by linear and log Pearson Type III distributions, although both distribution types underestimate extreme maximum flows. Mann-Kendall linear time series analysis on mean monthly and annual streamflows reveals no trend in annual water yields, nor in mean monthly flows between March and October. There is ambiguity as to whether statistically significant negative time trends in overwinter period mean monthly flows and monthly minimum/maximum flows for the hydrometric station are real or whether they represent a change in measurement technique/calibration during the mid-/late-1980s.
RCD1–DREB2A interaction in leaf senescence and stress responses in Arabidopsis thaliana
Authors: Vainonen Julia P. , Jaspers Pinja , Wrzaczek Michael , Lamminmäki Airi , Reddy Ramesha A. , Vaahtera Lauri , Brosché Mikael , Kangasjärvi Jaakko
Published: December 2011

Transcriptional regulation of gene expression is one major determinant of developmental control and stress adaptation in virtually all living organisms. In recent years numerous transcription factors controlling various aspects of plant life have been identified. The activity of transcription factors needs to be regulated to prevent unspecific, prolonged or inappropriate responses. The transcription factor DREB2A (DEHYDRATION-RESPONSIVE ELEMENT BINDING 2A) has been identified as one of the main regulators of drought and heat responses, and it is regulated through protein stability. In the present paper we describe evidence that the interaction with RCD1 (RADICAL-INDUCED CELL DEATH 1) contributes to the control of DREB2A under a range of conditions. The interaction is mediated by a novel protein motif in DREB2A and a splice variant of DREB2A which lacks the interaction domain accumulates during heat stress and senescence. In addition RCD1 is rapidly degraded during heat stress, thus our results suggest that removal of RCD1 protein or the loss of the interaction domain in DREB2A appears to be required for proper DREB2A function under stress conditions.
Sonic hedgehog enhances the proliferation and osteogenic differentiation of bone marrow‐derived mesenchymal stem cells
Authors: Cai Jia‐Qin , Huang Yi‐Zhou , Chen Xiao‐He , Xie Hong‐Lei , Zhu Hong‐Ming , Tang Li , Yang Zhi‐Ming , Huang Yong‐Can , Deng Li
Published: December 2011

MSCs (mesenchymal stem cells) may be promising seed cells for tissue regeneration because of their self‐renewal and multi‐differentiation potential. Shh (sonic hedgehog) is involved in the skeletal formation during embryo development and skeletal regeneration. However, how Shh regulates the biological characteristics of BM‐MSCs (bone marrow‐derived MSCs) is poorly understood. We have investigated the effect of rShh‐N (recombinant N‐terminal Shh) on the proliferation and osteogenic differentiation of rBM‐MSCs (rat BM‐MSCs) in vitro. rBM‐MSCs were treated with rShh‐N at concentrations up to 200 ng/ml. Proliferation and colony‐forming ability of rBM‐MSCs were increased in a dose‐dependent manner. rShh‐N increased the ratio of cells in S and G2/M phase, as well as the number of Ki‐67+ cells. In addition, ALP (alkaline phosphatase) activity and matrix mineralization were enhanced by 200 ng/ml rShh‐N. Real‐time PCR showed that rShh‐N (200 ng/ml) up‐regulated the expression of genes encoding Cbfa‐1 (core‐binding factor α1), osteocalcin, ALP and collagen type I in rBM‐MSCs. This information reveals some potential of rShh‐N in the therapeutics of bone‐related diseases.
Why I Like the Free Water Protocol
Authors: Langmore Susan E.
Published: December 2011

In this opinion piece, I present my major reasons for advocating for the free water protocol (FWP). Although there is a lack of strong direct evidence in support of the FWP, there are multiple bits of indirect evidence supporting it: patients do not like thick liquids and avoid them; thick liquids are more harmful to the lungs than are thin liquids; feeding tubes are associated with high rates of pneumonia; and thin liquids, especially water, are relatively benign to the lungs. We need solid evidence in the form of a randomized clinical trial, but, in the meantime, decisions regarding allowing free water to patients who aspirate this consistency should be made on a case-by-case basis.
Debates in Dysphagia Management: How Do You Use Evidence-Based Practice in Your Dysphagia Patient Care?
Authors: Logemann Jeri A.
Published: December 2011

Evidence-based practice requires astute clinicians to blend our best clinical judgment with the best available external evidence and the patient's own values and expectations. Sometimes, we value one more than another during clinical decision-making, though it is never wise to do so, and sometimes other factors that we are unaware of produce unanticipated clinical outcomes. Sometimes, we feel very strongly about one clinical method or another, and hopefully that belief is founded in evidence. Some beliefs, however, are not founded in evidence. The sound use of evidence is the best way to navigate the debates within our field of practice.
Between Food and Flesh: How Animals are Made to Matter (and Not Matter) within Food Consumption Practices
Authors: Evans Adrian B , Miele Mara
Published: December 2011

Contemporary European consumers find themselves at an interesting point in history with regards to their relationships with animals. On the one hand there has been a growth in the acknowledgement of animal sentience, yet on the other hand, largely unabated, we continue to farm, kill, and eat animals for food. In this paper we contend that these ambiguities are played out within everyday embodied practices of preparing, eating, and shopping for food. We begin our account by outlining a novel performative approach to food consumption practices, which we have termed ‘foodsensing’, and we contend that every act of sensing food is always already an act of making sense of food. This approach allows us to examine the complex interplay between material and symbolic dimensions of food consumption practices. Throughout the paper we draw on this notion of foodsensing, in conjunction with empirical material taken from forty-eight focus group discussions conducted across seven European countries, to shed new light on the ways in which farm animals are made to matter (and not matter) within food consumption practices.
Surface State Trapping and Mobility Revealed by Junction Electrochemistry of Nano-Cr2O3
Authors: Cummings Charles Y. , Attard Gary A. , Mitchels John M. , Marken Frank
Published: December 2011

Hydrous chromium oxide nanoparticles (~15 nm diameter) are assembled from a colloidal solution onto tin-doped indium oxide (ITO) substrates by layer-by-layer electrostatic deposition with aqueous carboxymethyl-cellulose sodium salt binder. Calcination produces purely inorganic mesoporous films (average thickness increase per layer of 1 nm) of chromia Cr2O3. When immersed in aqueous carbonate buffer at pH 10 and investigated by cyclic voltammetry, a chemically reversible oxidation is observed because of a conductive layer at the chromia surface (formed during initial potential cycling). This is attributed to a surface CrIII/IV process. At more positive potentials higher oxidation states are accessible before film dissolution. The effects of film thickness and pH on voltammetric responses are studied. X-Ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) evidence for higher chromium oxidation states is obtained. ITO junction experiments are employed to reveal surface conduction by CrIII/IV and CrIV/V ‘mobile surface states’ and an estimate is obtained for the apparent CrIII/IV charge surface diffusion coefficient Dapp = 10–13 m2 s–1. The junction experiment distinguishes mobile surface redox sites from energetically distinct deeper-sitting ‘trapped states’.
Spatial and temporal drivers of wildfire occurrence in the context of rural development in northern Wisconsin, USA
Authors: Miranda Brian R. , Sturtevant Brian R. , Stewart Susan I. , Hammer Roger B.
Published: December 2011

Most drivers underlying wildfire are dynamic, but at different spatial and temporal scales. We quantified temporal and spatial trends in wildfire patterns over two spatial extents in northern Wisconsin to identify drivers and their change through time. We used spatial point pattern analysis to quantify the spatial pattern of wildfire occurrences, and linear regression to quantify the influence of drought and temporal trends in annual number and mean size of wildfires. Analyses confirmed drought as an important driver of both occurrences and fire size. When both drought and time were incorporated in linear regression models, the number of wildfires showed a declining trend across the full study area, despite housing density increasing in magnitude and spatial extent. Fires caused by campfires and debris-burning did not show any temporal trends. Comparison of spatial models representing biophysical, anthropogenic and combined factors demonstrated human influences on wildfire occurrences, especially human activity, infrastructure and property values. We also identified a non-linear relationship between housing density and wildfire occurrence. Large wildfire occurrence was predicted by similar variables to all occurrences, except the direction of influence changed. Understanding these spatial and temporal drivers of wildfire occurrence has implications for land-use planning, wildfire suppression strategies and ecological goals.
Computing global structural balance in large-scale signed social networks
Authors: Facchetti Giuseppe , Iacono Giovanni , Altafini Claudio
Published: December 2011

Structural balance theory affirms that signed social networks (i.e., graphs whose signed edges represent friendly/hostile interactions among individuals) tend to be organized so as to avoid conflictual situations, corresponding to cycles of negative parity. Using an algorithm for ground-state calculation in large-scale Ising spin glasses, in this paper we compute the global level of balance of very large online social networks and verify that currently available networks are indeed extremely balanced. This property is explainable in terms of the high degree of skewness of the sign distributions on the nodes of the graph. In particular, individuals linked by a large majority of negative edges create mostly “apparent disorder,” rather than true “frustration.”
Microglia activation triggers astrocyte-mediated modulation of excitatory neurotransmission
Authors: Pascual Olivier , Ben Achour Sarrah , Rostaing Philippe , Triller Antoine , Bessis Alain
Published: December 2011

Fine control of neuronal activity is crucial to rapidly adjust to subtle changes of the environment. This fine tuning was thought to be purely neuronal until the discovery that astrocytes are active players of synaptic transmission. In the adult hippocampus, microglia are the other major glial cell type. Microglia are highly dynamic and closely associated with neurons and astrocytes. They react rapidly to modifications of their environment and are able to release molecules known to control neuronal function and synaptic transmission. Therefore, microglia display functional features of synaptic partners, but their involvement in the regulation of synaptic transmission has not yet been addressed. We have used a combination of pharmacological approaches with electrophysiological analysis on acute hippocampal slices and ATP assays in purified cell cultures to show that activation of microglia induces a rapid increase of spontaneous excitatory postsynaptic currents. We found that this modulation is mediated by binding of ATP to P2Y1R located on astrocytes and is independent of TNFα or NOS2. Our data indicate that, on activation, microglia cells rapidly release small amounts of ATP, and astrocytes, in turn, amplified this release. Finally, P2Y1 stimulation of astrocytes increased excitatory postsynaptic current frequency through a metabotropic glutamate receptor 5-dependent mechanism. These results indicate that microglia are genuine regulators of neurotransmission and place microglia as upstream partners of astrocytes. Because pathological activation of microglia and alteration of neurotransmission are two early symptoms of most brain diseases, our work also provides a basis for understanding synaptic dysfunction in neuronal diseases.
Propiconazole Sensitivity in Populations of Geotrichum candidum, the Cause of Sour Rot of Peach and Nectarine, in California
Authors: Yaghmour Mohammad A. , Bostock Richard M. , Adaskaveg James E. , Michailides Themis J.
Published: December 2011

The sour rot pathogen of peach (Prunus persica var. persica) and nectarine (P. persica var. nectarina) fruit, Geotrichum candidum, can cause significant postharvest losses in California fruit production. Harvested peach and nectarine fruit, treated with fungicide at the packinghouse but culled after inspection because of disease and defects, were collected for further assessment and pathogen isolation. The incidence of fruit with sour rot was 3.4 ± 1.0 to 26.1 ± 2.3%. Culled fruit that had been treated with postharvest fungicides from five different orchards had a significantly higher incidence of sour rot when compared with nontreated fruit. Since August 2006, propiconazole has been used as a postharvest treatment to protect peach and nectarine fruit against sour rot. The mean effective concentration that inhibits 50% of mycelial growth (EC50) value of 57 isolates of G. candidum to propiconazole collected before and during 2006 was 0.072 μg/ml. However, 61 isolates from propiconazole-treated, diseased fruit collected from 2007 to 2009 had a mean EC50 value for mycelial growth of 0.378 μg/ml, a fivefold shift in mean sensitivity. Propiconazole applied as either a protective or curative treatment significantly reduced disease severity and decay development in fruit inoculated with a propiconazole-sensitive isolate. The fungicide was significantly less effective when applied as a preventive or a curative application to fruit that were inoculated with a less-sensitive isolate of G. candidum. Under laboratory conditions, isolates of the pathogen less sensitive to propiconazole were stable over multiple transfers on fungicide-free medium. The potential for the development of G. candidum populations with reduced sensitivity to propiconazole and the increased risk of crop loss due to the practice of returning culled fruit to production orchards are discussed.
Long‐term Outcomes of Isolated Liver Transplantation for Short Bowel Syndrome and Intestinal Failure–associated Liver Disease
Authors: Taha A.M.I. , Sharif K. , Johnson T. , Clarke S. , Murphy M.S. , Gupte G.L.
Published: December 2011

Background and Aim:

A select group of children with short bowel syndrome (SBS) and intestinal failure–associated liver disease (IFALD) fulfill the criteria for isolated liver transplantation (iLTx). Long‐term results in this group of patients have not been reported.

Methods:

A retrospective study of the medical records of 8 survivors of 14 children who underwent iLTx for SBS and IFALD from 1998 to 2005, managed by a multidisciplinary intestinal rehabilitation team at our institution.

Results:

Median follow‐up is 107.5 months (range 89–153 months). Five of 8 children were weaned from parenteral nutrition (PN) to enteral nutrition (EN) in a median of 10 months after iLTx (range 3–32 months). Three of 5 children were subsequently weaned from EN to full oral feeding in 13, 24, and 53 months after stopping PN, whereas the remaining 2 are still receiving EN 118 and 74 months after stopping PN. These 5 children maintain their weight median z scores with a median increase of 1.59 (range 1.24–1.79) compared with the pretransplant z score, whereas the height z scores show fluctuations through the years with a median change of 0.12 (range −0.29 to 0.36). The other 3 of 8 children developed progressive intestinal failure; 2 underwent isolated small bowel transplantation 112 and 84 months after iLTx and the third is receiving PN.

Conclusions:

Children with SBS and IFALD who have the potential for adaptation in the residual bowel can undergo iLTx, but it is a treatment option to be exercised with extreme caution. These children need close follow‐up with an experienced multidisciplinary team to monitor nutritional outcomes and may need consideration for transplant or nontransplant surgery in the long term.
Cytokine Profiles in Peripheral Blood of Children and Adults With Crohn Disease
Authors: Pak Seung , Holland Nina , Garnett Elizabeth A. , Mileti Elizabeth , Mahadevan Uma , Beckert Rachel , Kanwar Bittoo , Heyman Melvin B.
Published: December 2011

Background:

Increasing evidence suggests that cytokine dysregulation in T‐helper 1 and T‐helper 2 (TH1/TH2) subsets contributes to the pathogenesis of Crohn disease (CD). The present pilot study examines the hypothesis that cytokine profiles differ between pediatric and adult patients with CD.

Methods:

Production of TH1 cytokines interferon‐gamma (IFN‐γ) and tumor necrosis factor‐alpha (TNF‐α) and of TH2 cytokines interleukin‐4 (IL‐4) and IL‐6 was analyzed in peripheral blood of patients with CD and healthy controls (n = 20) using flow cytometry after in vitro stimulation.

Results:

In both pediatric and adult subjects, frequencies of TNF‐α CD4+ T cells were higher in patients with CD than in controls (P = 0.009 and P = 0.047, respectively). Percentages of cells expressing IL‐4 were slightly increased (P = 0.036), whereas those for IFN‐γ were decreased (P = 0.009) in pediatric patients with CD compared with controls. As expected, the overall production of TH1 cytokines was higher in adults compared with pediatric subjects. When memory CD4+CD45RO+ T cells were considered, lower IFN‐γ expression was observed in pediatric subjects with CD compared with controls (P = 0.009), matching the trend seen in the general CD4+ T cell population. The percentage of CD4+CD45RO+ T cells was increased in adult patients with CD compared with pediatric patients with CD (P = 0.016).

Conclusions:

The present study describes a peripheral blood TH1/TH2 cytokine imbalance in CD and suggests different immunological mechanisms in children and adults for disease pathogenesis.
Bornean orangutans on the brink of protein bankruptcy
Authors: Vogel Erin R. , Knott Cheryl D. , Crowley Brooke E. , Blakely Melissa D. , Larsen Michael D. , Dominy Nathaniel J.
Published: December 2011

Protein is a limiting resource that is essential to the growth, maintenance and reproduction of tropical frugivores, yet few studies have examined how wild animals maintain protein balance. During chronic periods of fruit scarcity, Bornean orangutans (
Pongo pygmaeus
) often catabolize their own fat reserves despite unusually low metabolic requirements. Such energy deficits suggest a marginal existence, and raise the possibility that orangutans also endure periods of negative protein balance. To test this hypothesis, we conducted the first study of protein cycling in a wild primate. Our five year analysis of urinary metabolites revealed evidence of protein recycling when fruit was scarce. During these periods, orangutans consumed more leaves and bark, proteinaceous but tough foods that yielded a mean daily intake of 1.4 g protein kg
−1
metabolic mass. Such an amount is inadequate for humans and one-tenth the intake of mountain gorillas, but sufficient to avert, perhaps narrowly, a severe protein deficit. Our findings highlight the functional and adaptive value of traits that maximize protein assimilation during periods of ecological exigency.
Directional scattering from the glossy flower of
Ranunculus
: how the buttercup lights up your chin
Authors: Vignolini Silvia , Thomas Meredith M. , Kolle Mathias , Wenzel Tobias , Rowland Alice , Rudall Paula J. , Baumberg Jeremy J. , Glover Beverley J. , Steiner Ullrich
Published: December 2011

The bright and glossy appearance of the flowers of
Ranunculus repens
was investigated spectroscopically and the optical results were correlated with the layered anatomy of the petal. The highly directional reflected light arises from the partially transparent, pigment-bearing epidermal layer, while a more diffused yellow colour is the result of scattering from the lower starch layer. This directionality of the light reflections causes the unusually intense gloss of the buttercup flower and the strong yellow reflection evident when holding the flower under the chin.
Bounding the plastic strength of polycrystalline solids by linear-comparison homogenization methods
Authors: Idiart Martín I.
Published: December 2011

The elastoplastic response of polycrystalline metals and minerals above their brittle–ductile transition temperature is idealized here as rigid–perfectly plastic. Bounds on the overall plastic strength of polycrystalline solids with prescribed microstructural statistics and single-crystal plastic strength are computed by means of a linear-comparison homogenization method recently developed by Idiart & Ponte Castañeda (Idiart & Ponte Castañeda 2007
Proc. R. Soc. A
463
, 907–924 (
doi:10.1098/rspa.2006.1797
)). Hashin–Shtrikman and self-consistent results are reported for cubic and hexagonal polycrystals with varying degrees of crystal anisotropy. Improvements over earlier linear-comparison bounds are found to be modest for high-symmetry materials but become appreciable for low-symmetry materials. The largest improvement is observed in self-consistent results for low-symmetry hexagonal polycrystals, exceeding 15 per cent in some cases. In addition to providing the sharpest bounds available to date, these results serve to evaluate the performance of the aforementioned linear-comparison method in the context of realistic material systems.
Morphological and kinematic basis of the hummingbird flight stroke: scaling of flight muscle transmission ratio
Authors: Hedrick Tyson L. , Tobalske Bret W. , Ros Ivo G. , Warrick Douglas R. , Biewener Andrew A.
Published: December 2011

Hummingbirds (Trochilidae) are widely known for their insect-like flight strokes characterized by high wing beat frequency, small muscle strains and a highly supinated wing orientation during upstroke that allows for lift production in both halves of the stroke cycle. Here, we show that hummingbirds achieve these functional traits within the limits imposed by a vertebrate endoskeleton and muscle physiology by accentuating a wing inversion mechanism found in other birds and using long-axis rotational movement of the humerus. In hummingbirds, long-axis rotation of the humerus creates additional wing translational movement, supplementing that produced by the humeral elevation and depression movements of a typical avian flight stroke. This adaptation increases the wing-to-muscle-transmission ratio, and is emblematic of a widespread scaling trend among flying animals whereby wing-to-muscle-transmission ratio varies inversely with mass, allowing animals of vastly different sizes to accommodate aerodynamic, biomechanical and physiological constraints on muscle-powered flapping flight.
It’s all in your head: the role of quantity estimation in sperm competition
Authors: Shifferman Eran M.
Published: December 2011

The study of animal cognition has provided valuable data throughout the years, yet its reliance on laboratory work leaves some open questions. The main question is whether animals employ cognition in daily decision-making. The following discussion uses sperm competition (SC) as a test case for demonstrating the effect of cognition on routine choices, in this case, sexual selection. Cognition is manifested here by males' ability to represent the number of rivals competing with them. I claim that response to SC is driven by quantity estimation and the ability to assess competition magnitude cognitively. Hence, cognition can determine males' response to SC, and consequentially it can be selected within this context. This supports the argument that cognition constitutes an integral part of an individual's toolbox in solving real-life problems, and shows that physical and behavioural phenomena can expose cognition to selection and facilitate its evolution.
The costs of evolving resistance in heterogeneous parasite environments
Authors: Koskella Britt , Lin Derek M. , Buckling Angus , Thompson John N.
Published: December 2011

The evolution of host resistance to parasites, shaped by associated fitness costs, is crucial for epidemiology and maintenance of genetic diversity. Selection imposed by multiple parasites could be a particularly strong constraint, as hosts either accumulate costs of multiple specific resistances or evolve a more costly general resistance mechanism. We used experimental evolution to test how parasite heterogeneity influences the evolution of host resistance. We show that bacterial host populations evolved specific resistance to local bacteriophage parasites, regardless of whether they were in single or multiple-phage environments, and that hosts evolving with multiple phages were no more resistant to novel phages than those evolving with single phages. However, hosts from multiple-phage environments paid a higher cost, in terms of population growth in the absence of phage, for their evolved specific resistances than those from single-phage environments. Given that in nature host populations face selection pressures from multiple parasite strains and species, our results suggest that costs may be even more critical in shaping the evolution of resistance than previously thought. Furthermore, our results highlight that a better understanding of resistance costs under combined control strategies could lead to a more ‘evolution-resistant’ treatment of disease.