bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
An Egg-shaped Mace-head
Authors: Curwen Eliot
Published: January 2012

Perforated implements made of stone remarkable for its beauty or rareness are reasonably regarded as mace-heads. Many such show no sign of having been used as tools for ordinary purposes, but even where such signs are present, the use of these objects as batons of command is not thereby precluded; in some cases they may have been used as hammers at a later date.

The object of this note is a beautiful specimen of an egg-shaped mace-head, or hammer head, found in the neighbourhood of Friston (Sussex) by the late Major Maitland, and presented to the Sussex Archaeological Society by his son. It is made of rich, deep reddish-brown jasper, or similar silicified rock, with white veins of quartz. In length it is 2·6 in. (66 mm.), in greatest width 2 in. (50 mm.), and in greatest thickness 1·75 in. (45 mm.); its weight is 6 9/16 oz. (Av.). The perforation was worked from both sides and is nearly cylindrical, being 0·8 in. (20 mm.) in diameter on each surface, but 0·66 in. (17 mm.) through nearly all its length; it is not perfectly true, the walls being slightly concave longitudinally towards the thicker end of the implement and convex towards the narrower; this surface is very smooth and polished. That the implement was shaped by hand, and is not an adapted water-worn pebble, is shown by the presence here and there of facets of tooling which have been smoothed down and largely obliterated by subsequent grinding; there is no deliberate polishing of the surface. Whatever the purpose for which it was originally made, whether as a sign of authority or as a tool, the flattened and battered base of the implement shows it to have been freely used as a hammer at some period.
Flint Implements of Upper Palaeolithic types from Glacial Deposits in Norfolk
Authors: Moir J. Reid , Burchell J. P. T.
Published: January 2012

In the following paper a preliminary account is given of some archaeological research which is being carried out, under a grant from the Percy Sladen MemorialFund, in the Hunstanton district of north-west Norfolk.
Seven Sacraments Compositions in English Medieval Art
Authors: Rushforth G. McN.
Published: January 2012

Émile Mâle says that medieval Christian art in its last period had lost touch with the great tradition of symbolism which had been so important in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, and still largely dominated the art of the fourteenth. But there was one great symbolical idea which survived, and that was the harmony of the Old and New Testaments; and so we find among the most popular subjects of fifteenth-century Church art the concordance of the Apostles and Prophets in the Creed, and the series of parallels between the life of Jesus and episodes of Old Testament history, which were summed up and digested in the Biblia Pauperum and the Speculum Humanae Salvationis. The reason for the popularity of these subjects was, no doubt, their didactic value, and though Mâle does not develop this side of the subject, we may say that one, though not the only, characteristic of the religious art of the fifteenth century was that, instead of being symbolical, it became didactic. We find in this period a whole series of subjects which reduced the articles of Christian faith and practice to pictorial form, and seem to have been intended to illustrate the medieval catechism by which the teaching of the Church was imparted.
Twin Food-vessels preserved at Aqualate Hall, Staffordshire
Authors: Chitty Lily F.
Published: January 2012

Among the heirlooms of the Boughey family at Aqualate Hall, Forton, Staffordshire (close to the eastern boundary of Shropshire), are two small bowls, originally joined as one vessel, which have been inventoried as ‘Roman Pottery’. Mrs. John Morris, who has recently inherited the property, remembers them from her childhood, and was always given to understand that they were found in draining the swamps that lie to the north of Aqualate Mere and west of Thistleyfield Coppice, in the time of her grandfather, Sir Thomas Boughey, Bart., some seventy years ago, when trenches full of bones, armour, and (reputed) Roman pottery were discovered. Most of the finds were kept in an outhouse, but the two pots were preserved in a cabinet in the Hall, together with a big dagger, the blade much corroded; Mrs. Morris thought it was of iron with a brass or bronze handle; unfortunately, it has now vanished and all the other objects are lost with the exception of the twin bowls. These Mrs. Morris most kindly allowed me to study and sketch in June 1928.
Excavations at Atchana-Alalakh, 1939
Authors: Woolley Leonard
Published: January 2012

Owing to the war I was unable to prepare for publication an account of the 1939 excavations at Atchana on which I had read a paper to the Society; the report was begun but never finished. Since then there have been fresh excavations (in the spring of 1946), but as the new work was on a comparatively small scale and was planned as a complement to the 1939 season, even covering in part the same area, it is far better to treat of the results of the two seasons together. I propose therefore in this report to describe the private houses and the Palace of Yarim-Lim, of which the former were entirely and the latter was mainly excavated in 1939, and to reserve for a subsequent report the description of the Temple site discovered in 1939 but thoroughly excavated in 1946, and of the stratigraphical results obtained mostly in the latter season.
Ancient Wood and Bone Work from the Altai
Authors: Zakhárov A. A.
Published: January 2012

Amongst objects from Professor M. P. Pogodin's Collection now in the State Historical Museum and formerly in the Rumyantsev Museum, Moscow, are some interesting pieces of wood and bone. The exact place of their discovery is unknown, but they all come from the Altai region and are Scytho-Siberian in style.
Roman Temple at Worth, Kent
Authors: Klein W. G.
Published: January 2012

In Castle Field at Worth—the old name of which is Word— at a distance of two miles south from Sandwich, is a Roman site which is described by William Boys in his well-known History of Sandwich It is situated in a field on the east side of the Sandwich-Deal road (fig. 1). Boys, at the end of the eighteenth century, apparently uncovered the walls of a building at surfacelevel. Since that date, there is no mention of any further disturbance other than that of the plough. Boys states that he found some pottery, but he gives no particulars of it. He suggests that a watch-tower or lighthouse was built here in Roman times, but excavations, undertaken in 1925, clearly demonstrate that the walls represent the remains of a Roman temple, and further that this shrine was erected on an earlier settlement.
Alstoe Mount, Burley, Rutland
Authors: Dunning G. C.
Published: January 2012

Alstoe Mount is a fine example of a motte and bailey castle, situated 1 mile north-east of Burley village and 3 miles north-east of Oakham; it is on the east side of the road from Burley to Cottesmore, and immediately north-west of Alstoe House (fig. 1). The mount is on the level summit of the long ridge running northwards into Lincolnshire, at a height of 490 ft. O.D., and is about 150 ft. above the vale of Catmose. Towards the south the high ground terminates in a spur running to Burley, and possibly the mount was placed to safeguard the passage of traffic from this direction, near the point where it branched, either south-east to Stamford or northwards to Lincoln.
Stake-Circles in Turf Barrows: a record of excavation in Glamorgan, 1939–40
Authors: Fox Cyril
Published: January 2012

The three Barrows described in this paper are in the northern part of Llantwit Major parish in the Vale of Glamorgan. Being nameless, they are defined by (a) the nearest farmstead, and (b) the height of their crests above O.D. The work of excavation was begun on 5th December 1939 and finished on 25th February 1940. It was thus carried out during the severest winter weather of modern times. Alternations of frost and thaw played havoc with sections and floors, and prolonged delays ate into the time available. Thus in many respects the effects were irremediable, and the record suffers.
Roman Roads near Durobrivae (Castor, Northants)
Authors: Margary Ivan D.
Published: January 2012

During the summer of 1931 a set of air photographs was taken by Aerofilms, Ltd., under my instructions, covering the Roman walled town of Durobrivae and its surroundings, in the hope that marks in the crops might disclose the street system within the walls, as this had been very clearly visible from the air in the previous year. This expectation was not fully realized, although certain marks in the walled area appear to show some portions of the side streets which no doubt branched from Ermine Street in its straight course through the town, but very clear indications were given by the photographs of other Roman roads which connected with Ermine Street and with each other to the north and east of Durobrivae.
A Seventeenth-Century Monogram
Authors: Hobson G. D.
Published: January 2012

In the Antiquaries Journal for July 1934 (p. 292) the late Mr. P. A. S. Phillips remarked that some of the plate in the Chapel Royal, St. James's, is engraved ‘with the cipher L. D. under a royal coronet between palm leaves’. He assigned the cipher to James, duke of York, afterwards King James II, adding that all the plate engraved with it must have been given by James, not by Charles II, and that any pieces presented by him as sovereign ‘must have still borne the same cipher’. An editorial footnote comments that ‘there are reasons for supposing that this monogram stands for Lennox and Darnley, and was used by Charles, sixth duke of Lennox, 1639–72’.
An Aeneolithic Occupation Site at Playden, near Rye
Authors: Cheney H. J.
Published: January 2012

The site is in the parish of Playden, near Rye, Sussex, about 300 yards south-east of Mockbeggar House, and covers the top of a detached knoll which projects from the watershed between the Tillingham valley and the levels of Romney Marsh. The knoll is about 150 ft. above sea-level. No fewer than five springs rise within a short distance of the site (fig. 1).

The subsoil belongs to one of the geological formations of the Wealden series, viz., the Hastings Beds, represented at Mockbeggar by the Wadhurst Clay which contains extensive patches of sand and, in particular, pockets of a very fine white sand. One of these pockets is quite close to the site. It is of special interest that while the soil of the spur is mostly sand there is one protruding patch of hard yellow clay, and it is precisely on this patch that the prehistoric people formed their settlement.

Under the Wadhurst Clay, which here is only a few feet in thickness, there is over a hundred feet or so of sandstone forming the Ashdown Sands, well exposed at Point Hill in the parish.
Daggers attributed to Colonel Blood
Authors: ffoulkes Charles
Published: January 2012

The two daggers here illustrated (pl. xxvii) are of interest both on account of their traditional attribution, but more especially for their technical value as examples of a type which has persisted for over two hundred years. The popular name for this type is Kidney Dagger, Ballock Knife, Dague à Rognons, of course derived from the two excrescences which take the place of a cross-guard on the hilt.

The type, first appearing in the fourteenth century, became stabilized at the end of the fifteenth century, and seems to have been peculiarly English. The outstanding examples in public or private collections are the following:—

The earliest representation is on the brass of Sir William de Aldeburgh at Aldeburgh about 1360, and we find it later on the Arundel effigy of John Fitz-Alan, 1434.
Transmembrane domain Nrg1 mutant mice show altered susceptibility to the neurobehavioural actions of repeated THC exposure in adolescence
Authors: Long Leonora E. , Chesworth Rose , Huang Xu-Feng , McGregor Iain S. , Arnold Jonathon C. , Karl Tim
Published: January 2012

Heavy cannabis abuse increases the risk of developing schizophrenia. Adolescents appear particularly vulnerable to the development of psychosis-like symptoms after cannabis use. To test whether the schizophrenia candidate gene neuregulin 1 (NRG1) modulates the effects of cannabinoids in adolescence, we tested male adolescent heterozygous transmembrane domain Nrg1 mutant (Nrg1 TM HET) mice and wild type-like littermates (WT) for their neurobehavioural response to repeated Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC, 10 mg/kg i.p. for 21 d starting on post-natal day 31). During treatment and 48 h after treatment withdrawal, we assessed several behavioural parameters relevant to schizophrenia. After behavioural testing we measured autoradiographic CB1, 5-HT2A and NMDA receptor binding. The hyperlocomotor phenotype typical of Nrg1 mutants emerged after drug withdrawal and was more pronounced in vehicle than THC-treated Nrg1 TM HET mice. All mice were equally sensitive to THC-induced suppression of locomotion. However, mutant mice appeared protected against inhibiting effects of repeated THC on investigative social behaviours. Neither THC nor Nrg1 genotype altered prepulse inhibition. Repeated adolescent THC promoted differential effects on CB1 and 5-HT2A receptor binding in the substantia nigra and insular cortex respectively, decreasing binding in WT while increasing it in Nrg1 TM HET mice. THC also selectively affected 5-HT2A receptor binding in several other regions in WT mice, whereas NMDA receptor binding was only affected in mutant mice. Overall, Nrg1 mutation does not appear to increase the induction of psychotomimetic symptoms by repeated adolescent THC exposure but may attenuate some of its actions on social behaviour and schizophrenia-relevant neurotransmitter receptor profiles.
Evidence for life in the isotopic analysis of surface sulphates in the Haughton impact structure, and potential application on Mars
Authors: Parnell John , Boyce Adrian J. , Osinski Gordon R. , Izawa Matthew R.M. , Banerjee Neil , Flemming Roberta , Lee Pascal
Published: January 2012

The analysis of sulphur isotopic compositions in three sets of surface sulphate samples from the soil zone in the Haughton impact structure shows that they are distinct. They include surface gypsum crusts remobilized from the pre-impact gypsum bedrock (mean δ34S +31‰), efflorescent copiapite and fibroferrite associated with hydrothermal marcasite (mean δ34S −37‰), and gypsum-iron oxide crusts representing weathering of pyritic crater-fill sediments (mean δ34S +7‰). Their different compositions reflect different histories of sulphur cycling. Two of the three sulphates have isotopically light (low δ34S) compositions compared with the gypsum bedrock (mean δ34S +31‰), reflecting derivation by weathering of sulphides (three sets of pyrite/marcasite samples with mean δ34S of −41, −20 and −8‰), which had in turn been precipitated by microbial sulphate reduction. Thus, even in the absence of the parent sulphides due to surface oxidation, evidence of life would be preserved. This indicates that on Mars, where surface oxidation may rule out sampling of sulphides during robotic exploration, but where sulphates are widespread, sulphur isotope analysis is a valuable tool that could be sensitive to any near-surface microbial activity. Other causes of sulphur isotopic fractionation on the surface of Mars are feasible, but any anomalous fractionation would indicate the desirability of further analysis.
High‐resolution paleomagnetic records from Laguna Potrok Aike (Patagonia, Argentina) for the last 16,000 years
Authors: Gogorza Claudia S. G. , Irurzun María A. , Sinito Ana M. , Lisé‐Pronovost Agathe , St‐Onge Guillaume , Haberzettl Torsten , Ohlendorf Christian , Kastner Stephanie , Zolitschka Bernd
Published: January 2012

Holocene and Late‐glacial records documenting variations in direction and intensity of the geomagnetic field during the last 16,000 cal. BP are presented for Southern Patagonia. This continuous high‐resolution terrestrial record from Laguna Potrok Aike (51°58′S, 70°23′W) was recovered within the SALSA (South Argentinean Lake Sediment Archives and modeling) project. Mineral magnetic measurements indicate that pseudo single‐domain magnetite is the major carrier of the remanence allowing the reliable determination of stable natural remanent magnetization inclinations and declinations from alternating field demagnetization and principal component analysis. Paleomagnetic secular variation records reveal most of the familiar features of declination and inclination that have previously been reported in other records from South Argentina but conspicuous centennial‐scale differences are also observed. The results illustrate the potential of paleosecular variations records for dating sedimentary sequences in southern South America.
Modeling heterogeneous deviatoric stress field around the hypocentral area of the 2005 Fukuoka earthquake (M7.0) by spatially distributed moment tensors
Authors: Matsumoto Satoshi , Uehira Kenji , Matsushima Takeshi , Shimizu Hiroshi
Published: January 2012

Recent studies on the stress field in a seismogenic zone revealed a heterogeneous feature around a fault. To model the stress field around a fault zone, we have developed an inversion method that can be applied to focal mechanism data on microearthquakes and slip data on faults. The modeling scheme takes an objective approach without an a priori model such as the existence of faults or a magma source. The stress variation resulting from inelastic deformation in a medium (e.g., fault slip and magma intrusion) can be expressed as equivalent body forces in the medium. Thus, we attempted to model the stress field through the estimation of parameters of the regional stress and spatially distributed moment sources. The method was applied to the focal mechanism data of the aftershocks of the 2005 Fukuoka earthquake (M7.0) in Japan. The direction obtained for the minimum regional principal stress (i.e., NNW‐SSE) was as expected from the general tendency of the focal mechanisms. The results revealed that the stress field was distorted by the fault slip in the middle segment of the earthquake fault. The slip detected at the deep part of the fault is located away from the coseismic slip area, suggesting a possibility of either preseismic or postseismic slip around the initiation point of the main shock rupture. In contrast, the stress accumulation rises at the folding point of the aftershock alignment, and the stress relaxation area is found at the deeper edge where the largest aftershock occurred and strong heterogeneous medium exists.
Field and satellite observations of the formation and distribution of Arctic atmospheric bromine above a rejuvenated sea ice cover
Authors: Nghiem Son V. , Rigor Ignatius G. , Richter Andreas , Burrows John P. , Shepson Paul B. , Bottenheim Jan , Barber David G. , Steffen Alexandra , Latonas Jeff , Wang Feiyue , Stern Gary , Clemente‐Colón Pablo , Martin Seelye , Hall Dorothy K. , Kaleschke Lars , Tackett Philip , Neumann Gregory , Asplin Matthew G.
Published: January 2012

Recent drastic reduction of the older perennial sea ice in the Arctic Ocean has resulted in a vast expansion of younger and saltier seasonal sea ice. This increase in the salinity of the overall ice cover could impact tropospheric chemical processes. Springtime perennial ice extent in 2008 and 2009 broke the half‐century record minimum in 2007 by about one million km2. In both years seasonal ice was dominant across the Beaufort Sea extending to the Amundsen Gulf, where significant field and satellite observations of sea ice, temperature, and atmospheric chemicals have been made. Measurements at the site of the Canadian Coast Guard Ship Amundsen ice breaker in the Amundsen Gulf showed events of increased bromine monoxide (BrO), coupled with decreases of ozone (O3) and gaseous elemental mercury (GEM), during cold periods in March 2008. The timing of the main event of BrO, O3, and GEM changes was found to be consistent with BrO observed by satellites over an extensive area around the site. Furthermore, satellite sensors detected a doubling of atmospheric BrO in a vortex associated with a spiral rising air pattern. In spring 2009, excessive and widespread bromine explosions occurred in the same region while the regional air temperature was low and the extent of perennial ice was significantly reduced compared to the case in 2008. Using satellite observations together with a Rising‐Air‐Parcel model, we discover a topographic control on BrO distribution such that the Alaskan North Slope and the Canadian Shield region were exposed to elevated BrO, whereas the surrounding mountains isolated the Alaskan interior from bromine intrusion.
Projections of future water resources and their uncertainty in a glacierized catchment in the Swiss Alps and the subsequent effects on hydropower production during the 21st century
Authors: Finger David , Heinrich Georg , Gobiet Andreas , Bauder Andreas
Published: January 2012

Hydropower accounts for about 20% of the worldwide electrical power production. In mountainous regions this ratio is significantly higher. In this study we present how future projected climatic forcing, as described in regional climate models (RCMs), will affect water resources and subsequently hydropower production in downstream hydropower plants in a glacierized alpine valley (Vispa valley, Switzerland, 778 km2). In order to estimate future runoff generation and hydropower production, we used error‐corrected and downscaled climate scenarios from regional climate models (RCMs) as well as glacier retreat projections from a dynamic glacier model and coupled them to a physically based hydrological model. Furthermore, we implemented all relevant hydropower operational rules in the hydrological model to estimate future hydropower production based on the runoff projections. The uncertainty of each modeling component (climate projections, glacier retreat, and hydrological projection) and the resulting propagation of uncertainty to the projected future water availability for energy production were assessed using an analysis of variance. While the uncertainty of the projections is considerable, the consistent trends observed in all projections indicate significant changes to the current situation. The model results indicate that future melt‐ and rainfall‐runoff will increase during spring but decline during summer. The study concludes by outlining the most relevant expected changes for hydropower operations.
Sivapalan receives 2011 Robert E. Horton Medal: Citation
Authors: Dunne Thomas
Published: January 2012

Murugesu Sivapalan was awarded the 2011 Robert E. Horton Medal at the AGU Fall Meeting Honors Ceremony, held on 7 December 2011 in San Francisco, Calif. The medal is for “outstanding contributions to hydrology.”
Sivapalan receives 2011 Robert E. Horton Medal: Response
Authors: Sivapalan Murugesu
Published: January 2012

Murugesu Sivapalan was awarded the 2011 Robert E. Horton Medal at the AGU Fall Meeting Honors Ceremony, held on 7 December 2011 in San Francisco, Calif. The medal is for “outstanding contributions to hydrology.”
Dick receives 2011 Harry H. Hess Medal: Citation
Authors: Niu Yaoling
Published: January 2012

Henry J. B. Dick was awarded the 2011 Harry H. Hess Medal at the AGU Fall Meeting Honors Ceremony, held on 7 December 2011 in San Francisco, Calif. The medal is for “outstanding achievements in research on the constitution and evolution of Earth and other planets.”
Toon receives 2011 Roger Revelle Medal: Response
Authors: Toon Owen Brian
Published: January 2012

Owen Brian Toon was awarded the 2011 Roger Revelle Medal at the AGU Fall Meeting Honors Ceremony, held on 7 December 2011 in San Francisco, Calif. The medal is for “outstanding contributions in atmospheric sciences, atmosphere‐ocean coupling, atmosphere‐land coupling, biogeochemical cycles, climate, or related aspects of the Earth system.”
Ecology of the red fox (Vulpes vulpes) in an agricultural landscape. 1. Den-site selection
Authors: Carter Andrew , Luck Gary W. , Wilson Ben P.
Published: January 2012

Foxes concentrate their activities around den sites during the breeding period and regularly visit dens at other times of the year, meaning den location is an important consideration in efforts to control foxes and protect native prey species. We investigated factors that influence den-site selection by foxes to improve information on potential interactions with prey species, and assess the usefulness of targeting den sites for fox control. We measured 76 earthen and non-earthen fox dens on farmland in south-eastern Australia and compared these with paired random sites in relation to vegetation/land-use type, soil clay content, and proximity to landscape features (tree, water, fence and road). Most dens were earthen and primarily located in open farmland, whereas non-earthen dens were mostly found in roadsides. The proportion of non-earthen dens located by landholders (7.8% of 51 dens) was substantially lower than the proportion of non-earthen dens identified with radio-tracking (77.8% of 18 dens). The average clay content at earthen dens was significantly lower than that at non-earthen dens (t′ = –5.192, P < 0.001) and random sites (t′ = –5.196, P < 0.001). Soil texture was a key factor influencing fox den location, and this information should greatly improve fox control in agricultural landscapes for the benefit of native and non-native prey.
Structure of ice crystallized from supercooled water
Authors: Malkin Tamsin L. , Murray Benjamin J. , Brukhno Andrey V. , Anwar Jamshed , Salzmann Christoph G.
Published: January 2012

The freezing of water to ice is fundamentally important to fields as diverse as cloud formation to cryopreservation. At ambient conditions, ice is considered to exist in two crystalline forms: stable hexagonal ice and metastable cubic ice. Using X-ray diffraction data and Monte Carlo simulations, we show that ice that crystallizes homogeneously from supercooled water is neither of these phases. The resulting ice is disordered in one dimension and therefore possesses neither cubic nor hexagonal symmetry and is instead composed of randomly stacked layers of cubic and hexagonal sequences. We refer to this ice as stacking-disordered ice I. Stacking disorder and stacking faults have been reported earlier for metastable ice I, but only for ice crystallizing in mesopores and in samples recrystallized from high-pressure ice phases rather than in water droplets. Review of the literature reveals that almost all ice that has been identified as cubic ice in previous diffraction studies and generated in a variety of ways was most likely stacking-disordered ice I with varying degrees of stacking disorder. These findings highlight the need to reevaluate the physical and thermodynamic properties of this metastable ice as a function of the nature and extent of stacking disorder using well-characterized samples.
In search of poetic discourse of classical Chinese poetry
Authors: Fang Alex C. , Li Wan-yin , Cao Jing
Published: January 2012

We address the issue of poetic discourse in classical Chinese poetry and propose the use of imageries as characteristic anchors that stylistically differentiate poetic schools as well as individual poets. We describe an experiment that is aimed at the use of ontological knowledge to identify patterns of imagery use as stylistic features of classical Chinese poetry for authorship attribution of classical Chinese poems. This work is motivated by the understanding that the creative language use by different poets can be characterised through their creative use of imageries which can be captured through ontological annotation. A corpus of lyric songs written by Liu Yong and Su Shi in the Song Dynasty is used, which is word segmented and ontologically annotated. State-of-the-art techniques in automatic text classification are adopted and machine learning methods applied to evaluate the performance of the imagery-based features. Empirical results show that word tokens alone can be used to achieve an accuracy of 87% in the task of authorship attribution between Liu Yong and Su Shi. More interestingly, ontological knowledge is shown to produce significant performance gains when combined with word tokens. This observation is reinforced by the fact that most of the feature sets with ontological annotation outperform the use of bare word tokens as features. Our empirical evidence strongly suggests that the use of imageries is a powerful indicator of poetic discourse that is characteristic of the two poets concerned in the study.
A novel function for Cyclin A2: Control of cell invasion via RhoA signaling
Authors: Arsic Nikola , Bendris Nawal , Peter Marion , Begon-Pescia Christina , Rebouissou Cosette , Gadéa Gilles , Bouquier Nathalie , Bibeau Frédéric , Lemmers Bénédicte , Blanchard Jean Marie
Published: January 2012

Cyclin A2 plays a key role in cell cycle regulation. It is essential in embryonic cells and in the hematopoietic lineage yet dispensable in fibroblasts. In this paper, we demonstrate that Cyclin A2–depleted cells display a cortical distribution of actin filaments and increased migration. These defects are rescued by restoration of wild-type Cyclin A2, which directly interacts with RhoA, or by a Cyclin A2 mutant unable to associate with Cdk. In vitro, Cyclin A2 potentiates the exchange activity of a RhoA-specific guanine nucleotide exchange factor. Consistent with this, Cyclin A2 depletion enhances migration of fibroblasts and invasiveness of transformed cells via down-regulation of RhoA activity. Moreover, Cyclin A2 expression is lower in metastases relative to primary colon adenocarcinoma in matched human tumors. All together, these data show that Cyclin A2 negatively controls cell motility by promoting RhoA activation, thus demonstrating a novel Cyclin A2 function in cytoskeletal rearrangements and cell migration.
Axon degeneration: Molecular mechanisms of a self-destruction pathway
Authors: Wang Jack T. , Medress Zachary A. , Barres Ben A.
Published: January 2012

Axon degeneration is a characteristic event in many neurodegenerative conditions including stroke, glaucoma, and motor neuropathies. However, the molecular pathways that regulate this process remain unclear. Axon loss in chronic neurodegenerative diseases share many morphological features with those in acute injuries, and expression of the Wallerian degeneration slow (WldS) transgene delays nerve degeneration in both events, indicating a common mechanism of axonal self-destruction in traumatic injuries and degenerative diseases. A proposed model of axon degeneration is that nerve insults lead to impaired delivery or expression of a local axonal survival factor, which results in increased intra-axonal calcium levels and calcium-dependent cytoskeletal breakdown.
Deliberate release of zoonotic agents
Authors: Palmer Stephen
Published: January 2012

Since 9/11 2001, international attention has once again focused on the risks to human and animal health from the deliberate release of infectious or toxic chemical agents. In theory any agent could be used by terrorists and disaffected people, but the most serious risk for infectious agents are mainly zoonotic (Franz et al. 1997). Three modes of exposure may be anticipated, inhalation of powder or spray or dust from explosives, direct contact or inoculation from an explosion, and ingestion. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) list 19 bioterrorism agents or groups of agents of which 14 are zoonotic. In Category A are 6 agents which can be easily disseminated or transmitted from person to person, that result in high mortality rates and have the potential for major public health impact, which might cause public panic and social disruption and which require special action from public health preparedness. Of these 6, four are zoonoses — Anthrax, Plague, Tularaemia and Viral Haemorrhagic Fevers. In Category B, are 12 groups of agents, which are moderately easy to disseminate and cause moderate morbidity. Of these 12 groups, 8 contain zoonoses: Brucellosis, Food Safety threats (e.g. Salmonella, E.coli 0157, Campylobacter), Meliodiosis, Psittacoccosis, Q Fever, Typhus, Viral encephalitis, Water safety threats (e.g. Cryptosporidium).
Health impact assessment and burden of zoonotic diseases
Authors: Budke Christine M. , Carabin Hélène , Torgerson Paul R.
Published: January 2012

Numerous zoonotic diseases cause morbidity, mortality and productivity losses in both humans and animal populations. Recent studies suggest that these diseases can produce large societal impacts in endemic areas. Estimates of monetary impact and disease burden provide essential, evidence-based data for conducting cost-benefit and cost-utility analyses that can contribute to securing political will and financial and technical resources. To evaluate burden, monetary and non-monetary impacts of zoonoses on human health, agriculture and society should be comprehensively considered. This chapter reviews the framework used to assess the health impact and burden of zoonoses and the data needed to estimate the extent of the problem for societies. Case studies are presented to illustrate the use of burden of disease assessment for the zoonotic diseases cystic echinococcosis, Taenia solium cysticercosis, brucellosis and rabies.
Chlamydiosis
Authors: Sillis Margaret , Longbottom David
Published: January 2012

Chlamydial pathogens cause a wide-range of infections and disease, known as chlamydioses, in humans, other mammals and birds. The causative organisms are Gram-negative obligate intracellular bacteria that undergo a unique biphasic developmental cycle involving the infectious elementary body and the metabolically-active, non-infectious reticulate body. At least two species, Chlamydophila psittaci and Chlamydophila abortus, are recognized as causes of zoonotic infections in humans worldwide, mainly affecting persons exposed to infected psittacine and other birds, especially ducks, turkeys, and pigeons, and less commonly to animals, particularly sheep. Outbreaks occur amongst aviary workers, poultry processing workers, and veterinarians. Infection is transmitted through inhalation of infected aerosols contaminated by avian droppings, nasal discharges, or products of ovine gestation or abortion. Person to person transmission is rare. Control strategies have met with variable success depending on the degree of compliance or enforcement of legislation. In the United Kingdom control is secondary, resulting from protection of national poultry flocks by preventing the importation of Newcastle disease virus using quarantine measures. Improved standards of husbandry, transport conditions, and chemoprophylaxis are useful for controlling reactivation of latent avian chlamydial infection. Vaccination has had limited effect in controlling ovine infection. Improved education of persons in occupational risk groups and the requirement for notification may encourage a more energetic approach to its control.
Other bacterial diseasesAnaplasmosis, ehrlichiosis and neorickettsiosis
Authors: Birtles Richard
Published: January 2012

In 2001, taxonomic reorganization of the bacterial genera Anaplasma, Ehrlichia, Cowdria and Neorickettsia resulted in the transfer of numerous species between these taxa, and the renaming of the transferred species to reflect their new taxonomic position (Dumler et al. 2001). Among the members of these genera, there are four species of established zoonotic importance, which are therefore the subject of this chapter. Two of these species were affected by the changes outlined above.

Although these four species possess markedly different ecologies, they share the fundamental biological character of being obligate intracellular bacteria that reside within vacuoles of eukaryotic cells. This lifestyle underlies their fastidious nature in the laboratory and hence our limited knowledge of their biology and pathogenicity. Nonetheless, despite this shortfall, all four are associated with diseases of established or emerging importance: E. chaffeensis provokes human monocytic ehrlichiosis (HME), E. ewingii causes human ewingii ehrlichiosis (HEE), A. phagocytophilum causes human granulocytic anaplasmosis (HGA), N. sennetsu is the agent of sennetsu neorickettsiosis.

The first three pathogens are transmitted by hard (ixodid) ticks and are encountered across the temperate zones of the northern hemisphere (and maybe beyond), although the vast majority of human infections caused by them are currently reported in the USA. There, HME and HGA are second only to Lyme disease (caused by Borrelia burgdorferi) in terms of public health significance. Furthermore, given that there is evidence of increasing population sizes and changing distributions for ixodid species (Scharlemann et al. 2008), it is not unreasonable to predict that the infections they transmit will present an increased medical burden in the future. N. sennetsu remains an enigmatic pathogen; case reports remain scarce, but serological surveys suggest high levels of exposure. The widespread consumption of raw fish across east Asia presents specific infection risks to this region, and an increased awareness that sennetsu neorickettsiosis is among the infections that can be acquired from this source is required before its public health importance can be accurately assessed.
Leptospirosis
Authors: Smith Robert M. , Zochowski Wendy J.
Published: January 2012

Leptospirosis is one of the most widespread and important zoonotic pathogens and is of global medical and veterinary importance. Clinical disease ranges from mild self-limiting influenza – like illness to fulminating repeats-several failure.

It is caused by bacterial spirochaetes of the genus Leptospira, family Leptospiraceae. Pathogenic Leptospira interrogans strains, of which there are over 230 serovars in 24 serogroups, are morphologically identical in that they are thin, helical highly motile Gram-negative bacteria, hooked at one or both ends.

Natural hosts of pathogenic strains, generally referred to as serovars, may cause infection in man and include wild animals (rodents), livestock (cattle and pigs) and pets (dogs). Most, if not all mammals may become long-term carriers (maintenance hosts). Leptospires become located in the renal tubules and excreted in the urine of infected reservoir animals, humans becoming infected through broken skin, mucous membranes and the conjunctivae.

Leptospirosis is most commonly found in tropical or sub-tropical countries in both urban and rural settings. It causes major economic losses, to the highly intensive cattle and pig industries in developed countries, primarily through their effects on reproduction. It is still an important occupational disease risk for people working in agriculture or those living in unsanitary conditions. It is increasingly recognised as a recreational and travel-associated disease.
Glanders
Authors: Peacock Sharon J. , Dance David A. B.
Published: January 2012

Glanders is a serious zoonotic disease that primarily affects equids (horses, mules and donkeys). A disease eradication programme based on case detection and destruction of infected domestic animals has been highly successful and the number of reported glanders cases in animals worldwide is now very low. Human glanders is extremely rare and associated with occupations associated with extensive contact with equids. Glanders is caused by Burkholderia mallei, a Gram-negative, non-motile, facultative intracellular organism that is an obligate parasite of equids with no other known natural reservoir. B. mallei is transmitted by direct contact with infected animals, or indirectly via communal food and water sources that have become contaminated by an infected animal. The clinical presentation in equids can be acute or chronic and has been categorized into nasal, pulmonary and cutaneous forms. Diagnosis is based on culturing B. mallei from lesions or exudates and skin or serological testing. Infected animals are usually euthanized. Optimal antimicrobial therapy for human glanders is unknown, and current advice is to adopt antimicrobial treatment guidelines for human melioidosis. There is no vaccine available for either humans or other animals. B. mallei is considered a potential biological weapon and is a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention category B select agent.
Arenaviruses
Authors: Howard Colin R.
Published: January 2012

There are few groups of viral zoonoses that have attracted such widespread publicity as the arenaviruses, particularly during the 1960’s and 1970’s when Lassa emerged as a major cause of haemorrhagic disease in West Africa. More than any other zoonoses, members of the family are used extensively for the study of virus-host relationships. Thus the study of this unique group of enveloped, single-stranded RNA viruses has been pursued for two quite separate reasons. First, lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus (LCM) has been used as a model of persistent virus infections for over half a century; its study has contributed, and continues to contribute, a number of cardinal concepts to our present understanding of immunology. LCM virus remains the prototype of the Arenaviridae and is a common infection of laboratory mice, rats and hamsters. Once thought rare in humans there is now increasing evidence of LCM virus being implicated in renal disease and as a complication in organ transplantation. Second, certain arenaviruses cause severe haemorrhagic diseases in man, notably Lassa fever in Africa, Argentine and Bolivian haemorrhagic fevers in South America, Guaranito infection in Venezuela and Chaparé virus in Bolivia. The latter is a prime example for the need of ever-continuing vigilance for the emergence of new viral diseases; over the past few years several new arenaviruses have been reported as implicated with severe human disease and indeed the number of new arenaviruses discovered since the last edition of this book have increased the size of this virus family significantly.

In common with LCM, the natural reservoir of these infections is a limited number of rodent species (Howard, 1986). Although the initial isolates from South America were at first erroneously designated as newly defined arboviruses, there is no evidence to implicate arthropod transmission for any arenavirus. However, similar methods of isolation and the necessity of trapping small animals have meant that the majority of arenaviruses have been isolated by workers in the arbovirus field. A good example of this is Guaranito virus that emerged during investigation of a dengue virus outbreak in Venezuela (Salas et al. 1991).

There is an interesting spectrum of pathological processes among these viruses. All the evidence so far available suggests that the morbidity of Lassa fever and South American haemorrhagic fevers due to arenavirus infection results from the direct cytopathic action of these agents. This is in sharp contrast to the immunopathological basis of ‘classic’ lymphocytic choriomeningitis disease seen in adult mice infected with LCM virus and the use of this system for elucidating the phenomenon of H2-restriction of the host cytotoxic T cell response (Zinkernagel and Doherty 1979). Despite the utility of this experimental model for dissecting the nature of the immune response to virus infection and the growing interest in arenaviruses of rodents, there remains much to be done to elucidate the pathogenesis of these infections in humans.
Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS)
Authors: Evans Merion , Bell Diana J.
Published: January 2012

Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) has been described by the World Health Organization (WHO) as the first serious and readily transmissible disease to emerge in the 21st century (WHO 2003a). The epidemic first appeared in southern China in late 2002 and was finally contained in July 2003 after spreading to 29 countries worldwide and infecting over 8,000 people with 774 reported deaths. The last known cases occurred in April 2004 after a laboratory acquired infection in China. The global response to the SARS epidemic, co-ordinated by WHO, led to the rapid identification of the causal agent, the development of diagnostic tests for the virus, the initiation of treatment protocols, estimation of key epidemiological factors affecting spread and the implementation of a range of public health interventions (WHO 2003a; Anderson et al. 2005).

The cause of SARS has been conclusively identified as a previously unknown coronavirus (Peiris et al. 2003a; Ksiazek et al. 2003; Drosten et al. 2003). Early reports suggested a wild animal reservoir for the virus and attention focused on the wildlife trade in southern China (Xu et al. 2004). Numerous animal reservoirs of the SARS coronavirus have since been identified (Shi and Hu 2007). Masked palm civets (Paguma larvata) have been most consistently identified as the intermediate host responsible for passing the virus to humans (Guan et al. 2003; Song et al. 2005; Wang et al. 2005), while the definitive hosts may be the horseshoe bat species (genus Rhinolophus) (Wang et al. 2006 ).
Angiostrongylus cantonensis and Human angiostrongylosis
Authors: Wang Qiao-Ping , Lun Zhao-Rong
Published: January 2012

Angiostrongylus cantonensis was first discovered in rats in Guangzhou (Canton), China in 1935 (Chen 1935). A. cantonensis is a zoonotic pathogen, which causes human angiostrongylosis with the main clinical manifestation of eosinophilic meningitis. The first case of human angiostrongylosis was reported in Taiwan in 1945. Subsequently several outbreaks of this disease occurred in Pacific Islands (Rosen et al. 1961; Kliks and Palumbo 1992). In the past decade, a number of outbreaks of human angiostrongylosis have emerged in some endemic regions, especially in China (Wang et al. 2008). Additionally, increasing numbers of travellers are diagnosed with eosinophilic meningitis caused by A. cantonensis after returning from endemic regions (Lo et al. 2001; Slom et al. 2002; Bartschi et al. 2004; Podwall et al. 2004; Kumar et al. 2005; Leone et al. 2007; Ali et al. 2008). The parasite continues to threaten human beings, especially people living in the Pacific Islands and Asia. So far, at least 2,825 cases have been recorded; of them, 1,337 were reported in Thailand, 769 in China (Hong Kong and Taiwan), 256 in Tahiti, 116 in the USA (Hawaii and Samoa) and 114 cases in Cuba (Wang et al. 2008).
Toxocarosis
Authors: Lloyd Sheelagh , Morgan Eric R.
Published: January 2012

Toxocara canis and the syndromes of visceral and ocular larva migrans (VLM, OLM), covert toxocarosis, and neurological toxocarosis are described. Other potential agents, particularly Toxocara cati and Baylisascaris procyonis , are described. The transmission dynamics of toxocarosis to humans have never been fully elucidated, but the potential roles of pet and stray dogs, foxes, cats, and the influence of their population densities, and age demographies, are discussed in relation to contamination of the environment with eggs. Routes of infection with eggs by geophagia, poor hygiene outdoors and with dogs, and fly-borne contamination of food, and meat-borne ingestion of larvae are described. The development of prolonged in vitro culture and analyses of T. canis larval excretions/secretions (TES) and surface antigens helped explain the importance of the rapid production and shedding of TES in the prolonged course of infection and pathogenesis of disease. TES also have greatly improved serodiagnosis. However, we still have insufficient understanding of differences in the aetiology of the larvae or differences in immune responses among individuals to account for development of VLM, covert toxocarosis, or OLM in different individuals. Our understanding of the immunopathological response of the host to TES has emphasized the need for anti-inflammatory therapy in treatment; unfortunately, less information is available on the true efficacy of the anthelmintics available. The complexity of the T. canis life cycle in dogs is described and therapeutic regimens to prevent excretion of eggs by pet dogs are given. This, plus adequate control or exclusion of stray or wild canids from a property could prevent most cases of VLM. Control of infection from free-ranging stray dogs, cats and foxes, will be difficult and more data are needed to clarify the importance of these and of fly-borne and meat-borne transfer of infection to humans for control.