bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Delayed Discovery or Willful Forgetting? The Reception of Polish Classical Modernism in America
Authors: Mansbach Steven
Published: August 2012

Polish modern art was collected by leading figures within America's cultural vanguard. Most prized the art's stylistic innovation; they were likely unaware of the ideological charge that animated modernism's makers. By the end of the 1930s, numerous exhibitions of Polish art had been mounted in the United States; however, few concentrated on strikingly innovative works, preferring instead traditional themes, genres, and styles. Nonetheless, Poland's modernist efforts garnered popular success at the New York World's Fair of 1939. The modern art from other central and eastern European nations was actively promoted by its makers, who had immigrated to the United States. Poland's modern art did not benefit from a similar presence, its modernists having mostly elected to remain in their native land. The paucity of Polish artists in 1930s America compromised their chance to exercise an influential role just as the United States was consolidating an international canon of modern art.
Avant-Garde Anachronisms: Prague's Group of Fine Artists and Viennese Art Theory
Authors: Hume Naomi
Published: August 2012

The Czech Group of Fine Artists published their journal,Umělecký měsíčník(Art Monthly, 1911-1914) to justify their abstraction and their interest in French cubism in response to criticism that denigrated their work as incomprehensible and foreign. In this article, Naomi Hume argues that the Group's strategy was fundamentally at odds with how avantgardes have been understood to operate in scholarship on modernism. Rather than asserting a break with the past, the Group applied new Viennese art historical approaches—particularly those of Alois Riegl, Max Dvořák, and Vincenc Kramář—to draw parallels between their work and prior art objects that departed from mimesis. They equated their radical style with what Riegl called anachronisms in art's development, moments when an independent will to form emerges from the mainstream. By bringing French cubist ideas into dialogue with the inherent spirituality of their own national tradition, the Group saw themselves as reinvigorating Czech art.
The Shattered Self of Komsomol Civil War Memoirs
Authors: Guillory Sean
Published: August 2012

The Russian civil war was a fratricidal climax of seven years of war and revolution that fractured Russian society. Its traumatic effects on postrevolutionary life are beyond measure. In this article Sean Guillory examines memoirs of Komsomol civil war veterans to illuminate the ways the war shaped their sense of self. Guillory argues that veterans' memoirs reveal a shattering of the self where their efforts to narrate their experience as agents of war was overshadowed by their transformation on the batdefield into instinctual beings, imprisoned by emotions, senses, nerves, and muscles. Guillory engages the scholarship on the Soviet self and subjectivity by calling attention to the ways trauma produces a “darker side” of the self, and in particular, how the body serves as a long-term depository for experiences of loss, disorientation, and deprivation.
Socialist Senses: Film and the Creation of Soviet Subjectivity
Authors: Widdis Emma
Published: August 2012

In this article, Emma Widdis suggests that a sensory history is a crucial counterpart to the recent emotional turn in Russian and Slavic scholarship on Russian and Slavic history and culture. In particular, the Soviet revolutionary project was a unique attempt to create new models of human experience to correspond to the new political order—an attempt to shapesensoryexperience itself. Widdis suggests that the still-young medium of cinema was a privileged site for the investigation of new models of sensory perception, for the working out of the problematic relationship between the body, the mind, and the world that had such ideological potency in early Soviet Russia. Linking close readings of little-known films from this period to a broader analysis of the discursive field within which they operated, Widdis suggests that, in the period of transition between 1928 and 1932, intensified sensory (and particularly tactile) experience emerged as a new and revolutionary mode of being in the world.
Deer in Headlights: Incompetence and Weak Authoritarianism after the Cold War
Authors: Way Lucan A.
Published: August 2012

Based on a detailed analysis of Belarusian politics and the rise of Aliaksandar Lukashenka in the early 1990s, this article explores the sources, character, and impact of authoritarian incompetence and skill on regime outcomes after the Cold War. One type of incompetence—deer in headlights—emerges out of the disorientation and persistence of older regime practices in the face of rapid political change. This type of incompetence was one important but largely unrecognized source of political contestation in the former Soviet Union and other parts of the developing world in the early 1990s. Rapid change in the international environment that accompanied the collapse of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War created novel demands that existing autocrats often did not know how to deal with—even when they had the structural resources to survive. The result was greater contestation and more incumbent turnover than would have existed otherwise.
On My Mind: Computational Fluency at What Price?
Authors: Keiser Jane
Published: August 2012

The specific call in the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics involving computational fluency in fourth through sixth grades using “standard algorithms” is explored. The author's experience and current research suggest that this mandate is a step in the wrong direction.
Quick Reads: Slow-Cooker Questions in a Microwave World
Authors: Beigie Darin
Published: August 2012

Although technology places a premium on quick and efficient ways to answer questions, the author discusses extended-time, or “slow-cooker,” questions, as illustrated by a task on the Triangle Inequality theorem.
What's on Your Plate? Thinking Proportionally
Authors: Bush Sarah B. , Karp Karen S. , Popelka Liz , Bennett Victoria Miller
Published: August 2012

The dietary guidelines illustrated on the USDA's Choose My Plate diagram can also provide healthy portions of data analysis, health education, and cultural responsiveness.
Coming Full Circle
Authors: Roberts Sally K. , Borum Viveka O.
Published: August 2012

Teacher candidates develop processes and proficiencies articulated in the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics by investigating connections between and among geometry concepts.
Mathematical Explorations: The Electoral College
Authors: Markworth Kimberly A. , Willox Lara M.
Published: August 2012

A mathematical analysis of the electoral college is coupled with activity sheets.
Trenchless Pipe Repair Taming Capital Improvement Challenges
Authors: Talend Don
Published: August 2012

The deterioration of U.S. water distribution infrastructure is reaching a critical stage. Upgrades must be conducted rapidly to avoid catastrophic public health and financial risks. This article discusses how trenchless pipe repair techniques can be part of an infrastructure rehabilitation solution.
Industry Survey Builds on 10 Attributes of Effective Utility Management
Authors: Hasit Yakir , Yeager Fair , Matichich Mike
Published: August 2012

The Water Research Foundation report, Performance Benchmarking for Effectively Managed Water Utilities, addresses qualitative metrics by using “process” or “performance” benchmarking, with each process focusing on a utility's capability regarding the practice areas identified in each of the 10 attributes of effective utility management (EUM) identified in Effective Utility Management: A Primer for Water and Wastewater Utilities, compiled by industry organizations and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA). Key metrics and practice areas for achieving the 10 attributes were identified through literature review, water/wastewater utility participation, and development of a performance benchmarking framework and tool for each attribute. In addition, the framework, methodology, assessment, and tool for EUM benchmarking will be pilot tested with water and wastewater utilities. Participating utilities will be able to use benchmarking to track their progress, as well as benchmark themselves against leading practices to develop improvement plans.
RO Membrane Pusher Makes Quick Work of Fouled Membranes
Authors: Duff Travis , Oestreicher Kevin L.
Published: August 2012

Replacing fouled reverse osmosis (RO) elements into the pressure vessels can be a labor‐intensive, sometimes dangerous, procedure. The operators of the City of Winkler, Manitoba, Canada, water treatment facility designed the Winkler RO Membrane Pusher, which reduced the time required by three operators to remove the membranes from about one hour of physical exertion to approximately 10‐15 undemanding minutes per vessel.
Hydraulic Unit Drives Hydrant Seat Removal
Authors: Meyers Dennis
Published: August 2012

The Cedar Rapids (Iowa) Water Division distribution team experienced a recurring problem when trying to rebuild breakaway‐style fire hydrants dating from the 1960s and 1980s. In many cases, when crews needed to remove the hydrant valve seat, the seat would be corroded and seized up. Crew members modified the high‐flow auger hex drive unit attachment for the division's compact track loader, which can deliver 3,700 ft‐lb of torque to an auger attachment bit. The auger bit was changed into a quick coupler by cutting off the top 12 in. of the bit and welding the section to the top of a fire hydrant valve seat removal tool.
A Hybrid Hydrogel Biomaterial by Nanogel Engineering: Bottom‐Up Design with Nanogel and Liposome Building Blocks to Develop a Multidrug Delivery System
Authors: Sekine Yurina , Moritani Yuki , Ikeda‐Fukazawa Tomoko , Sasaki Yoshihiro , Akiyoshi Kazunari
Published: August 2012

New hybrid poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) hydrogels crosslinked with both nanogels and nanogel‐coated liposome complexes are obtained by Michael addition of the acryloyl group of a cholesterol‐bearing pullulan (CHP) nanogel to the thiol group of pentaerythritol tetra(mercaptoethyl) polyoxyethylene. The nanogel‐coated liposome complex is stably retained after gelation and the complexes are well dispersed in the hybrid gel. Microrheological measurements show that the strength and gelation time of the hybrid hydrogel can be controlled by changing the liposome:nanogel ratio. The hydrogel is gradually degraded by hydrolysis under physiological conditions. In this process, the nanogel is released first, followed by the nanogel‐coated liposomes. Hybrid hydrogels that can incorporate various molecules into the nanogel and liposomes, and release them in a two‐step controllable manner, represent a new functional scaffold capable of delivering multiple drugs, proteins or DNA.
Scar‐Free Wound Healing and Regeneration Following Tail Loss in the Leopard Gecko, Eublepharis macularius
Authors: Delorme Stephanie Lynn , Lungu Ilinca Mihaela , Vickaryous Matthew Kenneth
Published: August 2012

Many lizards are able to undergo scar‐free wound healing and regeneration following loss of the tail. In most instances, lizard tail loss is facilitated by autotomy, an evolved mechanism that permits the tail to be self‐detached at pre‐existing fracture planes. However, it has also been reported that the tail can regenerate following surgical amputation outside the fracture plane. In this study, we used the leopard gecko, Eublepharis macularius, to investigate and compare wound healing and regeneration following autotomy at a fracture plane and amputation outside the fracture plane. Both forms of tail loss undergo a nearly identical sequence of events leading to scar‐free wound healing and regeneration. Early wound healing is characterized by transient myofibroblasts and the formation of a highly proliferative wound epithelium immunoreactive for the wound keratin marker WE6. The new tail forms from what is commonly referred to as a blastema, a mass of proliferating mesenchymal‐like cells. Blastema cells express the protease matrix metalloproteinase‐9. Apoptosis (demonstrated by activated caspase 3 immunostaining) is largely restricted to isolated cells of the original and regenerating tail tissues, although cell death also occurs within dermal structures at the original‐regenerated tissue interface and among clusters of newly formed myocytes. Furthermore, the autotomized tail is unique in demonstrating apoptosis among cells adjacent to the fracture planes. Unlike mammals, transforming growth factor‐β3 is not involved in wound healing. We demonstrate that scar‐free wound healing and regeneration are intrinsic properties of the tail, unrelated to the location or mode of tail detachment. Anat Rec, 2012. © 2012 Wiley‐Periodicals, Inc.
A Histological Comparison of the Original and Regenerated Tail in the Green Anole, Anolis carolinensis
Authors: Fisher Rebecca E. , Geiger Lauren A. , Stroik Laura K. , Hutchins Elizabeth D. , George Rajani M. , Denardo Dale F. , Kusumi Kenro , Rawls J. Alan , Wilson‐Rawls Jeanne
Published: August 2012

This study provides a histological comparison of the mature regenerated and original tail of the lizard Anolis carolinensis. These data will provide a framework for future studies of this emerging model organism whose genome was recently published. This study demonstrated that the cartilage skeleton of the regenerated tail enclosed a spinal cord with an ependymal core, but there was no evidence that dorsal root ganglia or peripheral nerves are regenerated. The cartilage tube contained foramina that allowed the vasculature to cross, but was otherwise a rigid structure. The original tail has muscle groups arranged in quadrants in a regular pattern that attach to the vertebral column. The regenerated tail has irregular muscle bundles of variable number that form unusual attachments to each other and to the cartilage tube. Furthermore, the data show that there was increased connective tissue within the muscle bundles. Implications for functionality of the regenerated tail and for future biomechanical studies are discussed. Anat Rec, 2012. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Diminished cartilage‐lubricating ability of human osteoarthritic synovial fluid deficient in proteoglycan 4: Restoration through proteoglycan 4 supplementation
Authors: Ludwig Taryn E. , McAllister Jenelle R. , Lun Victor , Wiley J. Preston , Schmidt Tannin A.
Published: August 2012

Objective

The purposes of this study were 1) to quantify the proteoglycan 4 (PRG4) and hyaluronan (HA) content in synovial fluid (SF) from normal donors and from patients with chronic osteoarthritis (OA) and 2) to assess the cartilage boundary–lubricating ability of PRG4‐deficient OA SF as compared to that of normal SF, with and without supplementation with PRG4 and/or HA.

Methods

OA SF was aspirated from the knee joints of patients with symptomatic chronic knee OA prior to therapeutic injection. PRG4 concentrations were measured using a custom sandwich enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), and HA concentrations were measured using a commercially available ELISA. The molecular weight distribution of HA was measured by agarose gel electrophoresis. The cartilage boundary–lubricating ability of PRG4‐deficient OA SF, PRG4‐deficient OA SF supplemented with PRG4 and/or HA, and normal SF was assessed using a cartilage‐on‐cartilage friction test. Two friction coefficients (μ) were calculated: static (μstatic, Neq) and kinetic (<μkinetic, Neq>) (where Neq represents equilibrium axial load and angle brackets indicate that the value is an average).

Results

The mean ± SEM PRG4 concentration in normal SF was 287.1 ± 31.8 μg/ml. OA SF samples deficient in PRG4 (146.5 ± 28.2 μg/ml) as compared to normal were identified and selected for lubrication testing. The HA concentration in PRG4‐deficient OA SF (mean ± SEM 0.73 ± 0.08 mg/ml) was not significantly different from that in normal SF (0.54 ± 0.09 mg/ml). In PRG4‐deficient OA SF, the molecular weight distribution of HA was shifted toward the lower range. The cartilage boundary–lubricating ability of PRG4‐deficient OA SF was significantly diminished as compared to normal (mean ± SEM <μkinetic, Neq> = 0.043 ± 0.008 versus 0.025 ± 0.002; P < 0.05) and was restored when supplemented with PRG4 (<μkinetic, Neq> = 0.023 ± 0.003; P < 0.05).

Conclusion

These results indicate that some OA SF may have decreased PRG4 levels and diminished cartilage boundary–lubricating ability as compared to normal SF and that PRG4 supplementation can restore normal cartilage boundary lubrication function to these OA SF.
The role of interleukin‐1β in arthritic pain: Main involvement in thermal, but not mechanical, hyperalgesia in rat antigen‐induced arthritis
Authors: Ebbinghaus Matthias , Uhlig Benjamin , Richter Frank , von Banchet Gisela Segond , Gajda Mieczyslaw , Bräuer Rolf , Schaible Hans‐Georg
Published: August 2012

Objective

Interleukin‐1β (IL‐1β) is considered a pronociceptive cytokine, but its role in the generation of arthritic pain is unknown. The aim of this study was to investigate the role of IL‐1β in arthritic pain and to explore the antinociceptive potential of the IL‐1 receptor type I (IL‐1RI) antagonist anakinra.

Methods

Antigen‐induced arthritis (AIA) was induced in rats. Expression of IL‐1RI in the dorsal root ganglia (DRGs) was determined, and the effects of anakinra on inflammation, pain‐related behavior, and receptor expression were assessed. In cultured DRG neurons, the effect of IL‐1β on the expression of the transient receptor potential vanilloid 1 (TRPV‐1) ion channel was examined. Recordings of action potentials from joint nociceptors were made after intraarticular injection of IL‐1β into the rat knee joints.

Results

AIA generated pronounced and persistent mechanical and thermal hyperalgesia, and IL‐1RI expression in the lumbar DRGs was significantly up‐regulated. Treatment with anakinra did not significantly reduce the severity of arthritis or mechanical hyperalgesia, but did result in a pronounced reduction in thermal hyperalgesia. In cultured DRG neurons, IL‐1β up‐regulated the expression of TRPV‐1, a major transduction molecule involved in thermal hyperalgesia. During AIA, anakinra treatment down‐regulated the expression of TRPV‐1, consistent with the pronounced reduction in thermal hyperalgesia. IL‐1β increased the mechanosensitivity of C‐fibers of the joint, but reduced the mechanosensitivity of Aδ‐fibers, thus having opposite effects on these mechanonociceptive nerve fibers.

Conclusion

In the context of arthritic knee pain, IL‐1β and IL‐1 receptors appear to be involved in thermal, rather than mechanical, hyperalgesia. Therefore, neutralization of IL‐1β may be mainly antinociceptive in disease states characterized by thermal hyperalgesia, but not in disease states mainly characterized by mechanical hyperalgesia.
Brief Report: Adrenal autoimmunity in primary Sjögren's syndrome
Authors: Mavragani Clio P. , Schini Marian , Gravani Fotini , Kaltsas Gregorios , Moutsopoulos Haralampos M.
Published: August 2012

Objective

To evaluate the prevalence of antibodies to 21‐hydroxylase (anti‐21[OH]), a marker of autoimmune adrenal disease, in a cohort of patients with primary Sjögren's syndrome (SS) and to investigate whether the presence of anti‐21(OH) correlates with clinical, serologic, and salivary gland features of the disease.

Methods

Sera from 63 consecutive patients with primary SS, 32 patients with autoimmune thyroid disease (AITD), and 20 healthy controls were obtained and anti‐21(OH) levels were determined by radioimmunoassay. Clinical, serologic, and histopathologic features were recorded, and a short Synacthen test was used to assess adrenal function reserve. Seven available minor salivary gland (MSG) tissue specimens from patients in the primary SS cohort were also assessed for interferon‐α (IFNα), BAFF, and interleukin‐21 (IL‐21) cytokine transcripts, which are all implicated in B cell activation.

Results

Anti‐21(OH) positivity was detected in 17.5% and 28.1% of primary SS and AITD patients, respectively, and in none of the healthy controls. While no evidence of adrenal insufficiency was detected in any of the patients studied, a blunted rate of increase in cortisol levels was observed in patients with detectable serum autoantibodies against 21(OH), compared to their anti‐21(OH)–negative counterparts. A strong correlation between the serum titer of anti‐21(OH) antibodies and expression of IFNα, BAFF, and IL‐21 messenger RNA in MSG tissues was also detected.

Conclusion

Adrenal autoimmunity occurs in almost 20% of patients with primary SS in association with markers of B cell activation. Although the presence of adrenal autoantibodies was not associated with adrenal insufficiency in the present study, there was a blunted adrenal response, suggesting the need for further followup and monitoring of adrenal function in patients with primary SS who are positive for the autoantibodies.
The biophysical mechanisms of altered hyaluronan concentration in synovial fluid after anterior cruciate ligament transection
Authors: McCarty William J. , Cheng Justin C. , Hansen Bradley C. , Yamaguchi Tomonori , Firestein Gary S. , Masuda Koichi , Sah Robert L.
Published: August 2012

Objective

The residence time of hyaluronan (HA) in knee joint synovial fluid (SF) was investigated using a rabbit anterior cruciate ligament transection (ACLT) model. The aims of this study were to assess, at 7 and 28 days after surgery, the 1) HA concentration and molecular mass (Mr) distribution in the SF, 2) endogenous replenishment of HA after saline washout, 3) HA residence times in the SF, and 4) synovium and subsynovium cellularity of the knee joints of rabbits subjected to ACLT, compared to sham‐operated and nonoperated control joints.

Methods

Adult NZW rabbits underwent ACLT or sham surgery on one hind limb, while each contralateral limb was the nonoperated control. On day 7 or 28 after surgery, the joints were aspirated for SF, lavaged with saline, and injected with saline or polydisperse HA, and samples were obtained for analysis at set time points up to 8 hours after injection. Joint fluid samples were analyzed for the concentration andMrdistribution of HA to calculate the HA residence time constant.

Results

Analysis of HA concentrations andMrdistributions showed 1) loss of high‐MrHA in the SF on day 7 and a shift toward a lower‐Mrdistribution on day 28, 2) endogenous replenishment of high‐MrHA after washout, and 3)Mr‐dependent loss of HA from the knee joints after ACLT, particularly on day 7 postsurgery. The HA residence time decreased with decreasing HAMr(residence time ∼27 hours with anMrload of 7,000–2,500 kd, to ∼7 hours with anMrload of 250–50 kd). HA residence time also decreased (by ∼70%) in the knee joints on day 7 after ACLT. The subsynovium of the joints subjected to ACLT displayed increased cellularity and neovascularization on days 7 and 28 postsurgery.

Conclusion

The residence time of HA in the SF is transiently decreased after ACLT, suggesting that a biophysical transport mechanism is responsible for the altered composition of the SF after joint injury or during inflammation.
Endothelial nitric oxide synthase inhibits the development of autoimmune‐mediated vasculitis in mice
Authors: Schoeb Trenton R. , Jarmi Tambi , Hicks M. John , Henke Scott , Zarjou Abolfazl , Suzuki Hitoshi , Kramer Philip , Novak Jan , Agarwal Anupam , Bullard Daniel C.
Published: August 2012

Objective

Many different genes or mediators have been implicated in promoting the development of vasculitis, although little is known regarding the mechanisms that normally act to suppress lesion formation. Endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) has been shown to inhibit vascular inflammation in many different model systems, but its roles in the pathogenesis of vasculitis have not been elucidated. This study was undertaken to determine the functions of eNOS in the initiation and progression of vasculitic lesion formation.

Methods

MRL/MpJ‐Faslpr mice lacking the gene for eNOS (Nos3−/−) were generated and comprehensively evaluated and compared to controls with regard to the development of autoimmune disease, including vasculitic lesion formation and glomerulonephritis.

Results

Nos3−/− MRL/MpJ‐Faslpr mice exhibited accelerated onset and increased incidence of renal vasculitis compared to Nos3+/+ controls. In contrast, no significant differences in severity of glomerulonephritis were observed between groups. Vasculitis was also observed in other organs of eNOS‐deficient mice, including in the lungs of several of these animals. Ultrastructural analyses of renal lesions revealed the presence of electron‐dense deposits in affected arteries, and IgG, IgA, and C3 deposition was observed in some vessels in the kidneys of Nos3−/− mice. In addition, Nos3−/− MRL/MpJ‐Faslp mice showed increased levels of circulating IgG–IgA immune complexes at 20 weeks of age, compared to Nos3+/+ MRL/MpJ‐Faslpr and Nos3−/− C57BL/6 mice.

Conclusion

These findings strongly indicate that eNOS serves as a negative regulator of vasculitis in MRL/MpJ‐Faslpr mice and further suggest that NO produced by this enzyme may be critical for inhibiting lesion formation and vascular damage in human vasculitic diseases.
Cortisol‐mediated adhesion of synovial fibroblasts is dependent on the degradation of anandamide and activation of the endocannabinoid system
Authors: Lowin Torsten , Zhu Wentao , Dettmer‐Wilde Katja , Straub Rainer H.
Published: August 2012

Objective

In rheumatoid arthritis (RA) synovial fluid, levels of the endocannabinoids anandamide (AEA) and 2‐arachidonylglycerol are elevated. Since synovial fibroblasts (SFs) possess all of the enzymes necessary for endocannabinoid synthesis, it is likely that these cells contribute significantly to elevated endocannabinoid levels. While glucocorticoids initiate endocannabinoid synthesis in neurons, this study was undertaken to test whether cortisol also regulates endocannabinoid levels in mesenchymal cells such as SFs, and whether this interferes with integrin‐mediated adhesion.

Methods

Adhesion was determined in 1‐minute intervals over 60 minutes using an xCELLigence system. Slopes from individual treatment groups were averaged and compared to the control. Fatty acid amide hydrolase (FAAH) and cyclooxygenase 2 (COX‐2) were detected by immunocytochemistry, and AEA was detected by mass spectrometry.

Results

Cortisol increased the adhesion of RASFs and osteoarthritis SFs with a maximum of 200% at both 10−7M and 10−8M. When cortisol was administered together with either cannabinoid receptor 1 (CB1) antagonist (rimonabant; 100 nM), CB2 antagonist (JTE907; 100 nM), transient receptor potential vanilloid channel 1 (TRPV‐1) antagonist (capsazepine; 1 μM), FAAH inhibitor, or COX‐2 inhibitor, adhesion was reduced below the level in controls. Concomitant inhibition of FAAH and COX‐2 reversed these effects. Mass spectrometry revealed the presence of AEA in SFs.

Conclusion

Our findings indicate that glucocorticoid‐induced adhesion is dependent on CB1/CB2/TRPV‐1 activation. Since AEA is produced in SFs, this endocannabinoid is the most likely candidate to mediate these effects. Since AEA levels are regulated by COX‐2 and FAAH, inhibition of both enzymes along with low‐dose glucocorticoids may provide a therapeutic option to maximally boost the endocannabinoid system in RA, with possible beneficial effects.
Collagen antibody–induced arthritis evokes persistent pain with spinal glial involvement and transient prostaglandin dependency
Authors: Bas Duygu B. , Su Jie , Sandor Katalin , Agalave Nilesh M. , Lundberg Johanna , Codeluppi Simone , Baharpoor Azar , Nandakumar Kutty S. , Holmdahl Rikard , Svensson Camilla I.
Published: August 2012

Objective

Pain is one of the most debilitating symptoms reported by rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients. While the collagen antibody–induced arthritis (CAIA) model is used for studying the effector phase of RA pathologic progression, it has not been evaluated as a model for studies of pain. Thus, this study was undertaken to examine pain‐like behavior induced by anticollagen antibodies and to assess the effect of currently prescribed analgesics for RA. In addition, the involvement of spinal glia in antibody‐induced pain was explored.

Methods

CAIA was induced in mice by intravenous injection of a collagen antibody cocktail, followed by intraperitoneal injection of lipopolysaccharide. Disease severity was assessed by visual and histologic examination. Pain‐like behavior and the antinociceptive effect of diclofenac, buprenorphine, gabapentin, pentoxifylline, and JNK‐interacting protein 1 were examined in mechanical stimulation experiments. Spinal astrocyte and microglia reactivity were investigated by real‐time polymerase chain reaction and immunohistochemistry.

Results

Following the induction of CAIA, mice developed transient joint inflammation. In contrast, pain‐like behavior was observed prior to, and outlasted, the visual signs of arthritis. Whereas gabapentin and buprenorphine attenuated mechanical hypersensitivity during both the inflammatory and postinflammatory phases of arthritis, diclofenac was antinociceptive only during the inflammatory phase. Spinal astrocytes and microglia displayed time‐dependent signs of activation, and inhibition of glial activity reversed CAIA‐induced mechanical hypersensitivity.

Conclusion

CAIA represents a multifaceted model for studies exploring the mechanisms of pain induced by inflammation in the articular joint. Our findings of a time‐dependent prostaglandin and spinal glial contribution to antibody‐induced pain highlight the importance of using appropriate disease models to assess joint‐related pain.
Entity disambiguation using semantic networks
Authors: Román Jorge H. , Hulin Kevin J. , Collins Linn M. , Powell James E.
Published: August 2012

A major stumbling block preventing machines from understanding text is the problem of entity disambiguation. While humans find it easy to determine that a person named in one story is the same person referenced in a second story, machines rely heavily on crude heuristics such as string matching and stemming to make guesses as to whether nouns are coreferent. A key advantage that humans have over machines is the ability to mentally make connections between ideas and, based on these connections, reason how likely two entities are to be the same. Mirroring this natural thought process, we have created a prototype framework for disambiguating entities that is based on connectedness. In this article, we demonstrate it in the practical application of disambiguating authors across a large set of bibliographic records. By representing knowledge from the records as edges in a graph between a subject and an object, we believe that the problem of disambiguating entities reduces to the problem of discovering the most strongly connected nodes in a graph. The knowledge from the records comes in many different forms, such as names of people, date of publication, and themes extracted from the text of the abstract. These different types of knowledge are fused to create the graph required for disambiguation. Furthermore, the resulting graph and framework can be used for more complex operations.
Children With Autism Show Reduced Somatosensory Response: An MEG Study
Authors: Marco Elysa J. , Khatibi Kasra , Hill Susanna S. , Siegel Bryna , Arroyo Monica S. , Dowling Anne F. , Neuhaus John M. , Sherr Elliott H. , Hinkley Leighton N. B. , Nagarajan Srikantan S.
Published: August 2012

The neural underpinnings of sensory processing differences in autism remain poorly understood. This prospective magnetoencephalography (MEG) study investigates whether children with autism show atypical cortical activity in the primary somatosensory cortex (S1) in comparison with matched controls. Tactile stimuli were clearly detectable, and painless taps were applied to the distal phalanx of the second (D2) and third (D3) fingers of the right and left hands. Three tactile paradigms were administered: an oddball paradigm (standard taps to D3 at an interstimulus interval (ISI) of 0.33 and deviant taps to D2 with ISI ranging from 1.32 s to 1.64 s); a slow‐rate paradigm (D2) with an ISI matching the deviant taps in the oddball paradigm; and a fast‐rate paradigm (D2) with an ISI matching the standard taps in the oddball. Study subjects were boys (age 7–11 years) with and without autism disorder. Sensory behavior was quantified using the Sensory Profile questionnaire. Boys with autism exhibited smaller amplitude left hemisphere S1 response to slow and deviant stimuli during the right‐hand paradigms. In post‐hoc analysis, tactile behavior directly correlated with the amplitude of cortical response. Consequently, the children were re‐categorized by degree of parent‐report tactile sensitivity. This regrouping created a more robust distinction between the groups with amplitude diminution in the left and right hemispheres and latency prolongation in the right hemisphere in the deviant and slow‐rate paradigms for the affected children. This study suggests that children with autism have early differences in somatosensory processing, which likely influence later stages of cortical activity from integration to motor response. Autism Res 2012, 5: 340–351. © 2012 International Society for Autism Research, Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Neural tube defects and maternal intake of micronutrients related to one‐carbon metabolism or antioxidant activity
Authors: Chandler Angela L. , Hobbs Charlotte A. , Mosley Bridget S. , Berry Robert J. , Canfield Mark A. , Qi Yan Ping , Siega‐Riz Anna Maria , Shaw Gary M. ,   National Birth Defects Prevention Study
Published: August 2012

BACKGROUND

Maternal nutritional status has been evaluated to clarify its role in development of neural tube defects (NTDs). Maternal folate intake during pregnancy has been closely evaluated for its association with NTDs. The study objective was to examine associations between NTDs and other dietary periconceptional micronutrient intake, particularly nutrients involved in one‐carbon metabolism or antioxidant activity.

METHODS

Using data from the National Birth Defects Prevention Study, 1997–2005, logistic regression models were used to estimate the relative risk of NTDs based on maternal micronutrient intake.

RESULTS

Results were stratified according to folic acid supplement use, race/ethnicity, and maternal body mass index. Analyses included 954 cases (300 with anencephaly, 654 with spina bifida) and 6268 controls. Higher intakes of folate, thiamin, betaine, iron, and vitamin A were associated with decreased risk of anencephaly among some ethnic and clinical groups. In some groups, higher intakes of thiamin, riboflavin, vitamin B6, vitamin C, vitamin E, niacin, and retinol were associated with decreased risk of spina bifida.

CONCLUSION

In addition to folic acid, other micronutrients, including thiamin, betaine, riboflavin, vitamin B6, vitamin C, vitamin E, niacin, iron, retinol, and vitamin A, may decrease the risk of NTD occurrence. Birth Defects Research (Part A) 2012. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Engagement of students with lectures in biochemistry and pharmacology
Authors: Davis Elizabeth Ann , Hodgson Yvonne , Macaulay Janet Olwyn
Published: August 2012

Academic staff at universities have become concerned about the decrease in student attendance at lectures and the implication of this on student achievement and learning. Few studies have measured actual lecture attendance in a coherent or comprehensive way. The aim of this study was to measure actual lecture attendance of students over two year levels enrolled in two separate science disciplines, biochemistry and pharmacology. The study further sought to determine the factors that influence lecture attendance. Attendance at lectures in four units of study was monitored over a 12‐week semester. Attendance at lectures decreased over the semester and was lower at early morning lectures (8 A.M.; 9 A.M.). A questionnaire surveying students about their preparation for lectures, their compensation for missed lectures and the factors influencing their nonattendance was administered at the end of the semester. Students reported that the major factors influencing their attendance at lectures related to timetable issues and the quality of lecturing. If students missed lectures, the majority read the lecture notes and listened to the online recordings. The availability of online recordings of lectures was not a major influence on attendance at lectures. In three of the four units studied there was no correlation between self‐reported lecture attendance and exam performance. The results of the study indicate that universities should dedicate more resources to timetabling and to supporting staff to improve the quality of their lectures.
Systematic Review of Fathers' Involvement in Programmes for the Primary Prevention of Child Maltreatment
Authors: Smith Tyler K. , Duggan Anne , Bair‐Merritt Megan H. , Cox Georgette
Published: August 2012

Both mothers and fathers perpetrate child maltreatment, but it is uncertain the extent to which child maltreatment prevention programmes include fathers. The objectives of this systematic review were to determine: (1) how many empirically studied primary prevention programmes for child maltreatment have included fathers; (2) among studies including fathers, what percentage of participants were fathers; and (3) whether programmes were effective in reducing paternal risk factors for child maltreatment. Three online databases were searched. Eligible articles were English language, original research studies describing an intervention for the primary prevention of child maltreatment for children ≤ five years. Included studies had to include at least one father. After screening for eligibility using titles and abstracts, the full text of 158 articles was abstracted. Seventeen studies, describing 15 individual and one multi‐site programme, met eligibility criteria. The majority of the studies identified by the systematic review were from the USA. Thirteen programmes had < 30 per cent paternal participation; one did not clearly delineate the number of fathers. In the final two programmes, ≥ 50 per cent of the participants were fathers. Programme effectiveness in reducing paternal risk factors is uncertain because only the two studies with ≥ 50 per cent fathers reported father‐specific results. Few fathers participated in empirically studied child maltreatment primary prevention programmes. Research is needed to determine how to actively engage fathers. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

‘Three online databases were searched’

‘Research is needed to determine how to actively engage fathers’

Key Practitioner Messages

Few empirically studied primary prevention programmes for child maltreatment include fathers.

Reviewed primary prevention programmes for child maltreatment commonly addressed parenting strategies and techniques.

Future programmes for the primary prevention of child maltreatment should determine how to effectively recruit and actively engage fathers' participation, provide programme content relevant to fathers, and conduct interventions at times and locations convenient to fathers.
Working with Fathers around Domestic Violence: Contemporary Debates
Authors: Featherstone Brid , Fraser Claire
Published: August 2012

This article discusses the issues that emerged from a small consultation exercise with academics and practitioners in the field of domestic violence on their perceptions of practice interventions with fathers who were domestically violent. The exercise suggests that there has been a growth in such interventions especially in the UK over the last decade as a result of the recognition of domestic violence as a child protection issue. There are tensions, however, and these mapped onto tensions between interventions located in working with perpetrators and more recent interventions that have a focus on fathers. More importantly, tensions about what kinds of practice interventions were most desirable were linked to wider debates within practice about the merits of set programmes versus more individualised responses. Respondents expressed concern about the lack of evidence on effectiveness on programmes. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Key Practitioner Messages

Interventions directed at fathers that seek to tackle their violence towards their partners have grown in the last decade.

There are tensions in philosophy that are related to the history of work with men as perpetrators and more recent developments constructing them as fathers.

Tensions are also related to differing views on the desirability and efficacy of set programmes versus individualised, flexible approaches incorporating a range of delivery methods and formats.

‘A small consultation exercise with academics and practitioners in the field of domestic violence’

‘Tensions in philosophy that are related to the history of work with men as perpetrators’
Coffee cup color and evaluation of a beverage's “warmth quality”
Authors: Guéguen Nicolas , Jacob Céline
Published: August 2012

Glass color may influence the evaluation of food and beverages as has been reported in a previous study where participants rated a cold beverage presented in a blue glass to be more thirst‐quenching than the same beverage poured into a green, yellow, or red glass. Our experiment sought to test whether container color also can affect the perceived temperature of a warm beverage. One hundred and twenty undergraduates were given warm coffee served in cups of different colors (blue, green, yellow, and red) and were asked to indicate which beverage was the warmest. Statistically significant differences among colors were found. The red cup was evaluated as containing the warmest beverage (38.3%), followed by the yellow (28.3%), the green (20.0%), and the blue (13.3%) cups. Conventional associations between warm versus cool colors are used to explain these results. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Col Res Appl, 39, 79–81, 2014
Dopant induced morphologies of ZnS nanoparticles
Authors: Dixit N. , Anasane N. , Chavda M. , Bodas D. , Soni H. P.
Published: August 2012

We have reported the synthesis of cubic (zinc blende) phase ZnS: Ni2+ nanoparticles using a simple wet‐chemical method. Synthesized ZnS: Ni2+ nanoparticles had been characterized by X‐ray diffraction (XRD) and Energy Dispersive X‐ray (EDX) analysis. Surface morphologies were studied using Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectra of selected samples were also carried out to confirm the presence of capping agent on the surface of the material. We have demonstrated that various morphologies like spherical, tetrapods, sheet and long‐armed multipods are emerged by simple chemical route without any vigorous reaction parameters and changing the concentration of dopant ions only. The probable mechanism for such morphologies has also been suggested.
NetEye: a user‐centered wireless sensor network testbed for high‐fidelity, robust experimentation
Authors: Ju Xi , Zhang Hongwei , Sakamuri Divya
Published: August 2012

Experimentation infrastructures for wireless sensor networks (WSNs) have been widely adopted over the past decade for high‐fidelity validation and rapid prototyping of applications and for discovering and modeling phenomena that have led to improvements in analysis and simulation capabilities. Nonetheless, the community is still looking for more heterogeneous WSN testbeds for purposes such as federation, experiment regression analysis, and improved testbed availability. In addition, most existing WSN testbeds lack robustness and predictability in the presence of failures, and they do not provide user‐friendly support for scientific experimentation (e.g., quick repetition of experiments). We develop the NetEye testbed as a high‐fidelity, robust WSN experimentation infrastructure that provides the ease of scientific experimentation. Consisting of 130 TelosB motes with IEEE 802.15.4 radios and 15 Linux laptops with IEEE 802.11a/b/g radios, NetEye provides a WSN deployment that enables high‐fidelity experimentation with single‐hop as well as multihop WSN networking, and the lab‐scale deployment mimics network properties of building‐scale and outdoor WSN deployments. Building upon the authors’ experience in developing and using WSN testbeds in the past years, NetEye also has enhanced features that enables easy, robust scientific experimentation. In particular, NetEye provides users with a simple, powerful web portal, which streamlines users’ experience in the whole lifecycle of scientific experimentation (e.g., experiment scheduling, status monitoring, and data exfiltration). NetEye employs a stable, fault‐tolerant state machine to improve the robustness of the testbed in the presence of failures. NetEye also develops a health monitoring service NetEye Doctor that monitors hardware and software status; the real‐time health monitoring information about the testbed is seamlessly integrated with the lifecycle of experiment scheduling, experiment status monitoring, and experiment data analysis for both robust experimentation and for informed experiment analysis. To address the log‐data congestion problem in long‐running, large scale experiments, NetEye employs a TDMA (Time Division Multiple Access) mechanism to ensure reliability in exfiltrating experiment data to users. To facilitate quick, repetitive scientific experimentation, NetEye also speeds up the mote programming cycle through fast job status transition and multi‐thread‐based mote programming. NetEye has been successfully running for over 3.5 years, and it has been integrated with the federated WSN experimental infrastructure KanseiGenie. NetEye is widely used by researchers from USA and Asia, and more than 10 experiments are executed through NetEye per day on average. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Development of a Sulglycotide‐Loaded Oral Gel with Good Stability and Improved Gastric Ulcer Inhibition
Authors: Cho Kwan Hyung , Park Young‐Joon , Choi Han‐Gon
Published: August 2012

Strategy, Management and Health Policy

Preclinical Research

To develop a novel sulglycotide‐loaded oral gel with good stability and gastric ulcer inhibitory activity, the effect of pH and buffer capacity on the stability of sulglycotide in aqueous solution was investigated. Sulglycotide‐loaded gels were prepared with various mucoadhesive polymers, and their stability and gastric ulcer inhibitory activity in rats were evaluated. Sulglycotide was very unstable in acidic conditions of not more than pH 4.0. Buffer capacity affected the degradation of the drug by a small amount in the alkaline solutions. Among the sulglycotide‐loaded gels tested, those with carbopol gave excellent stability. The sulglycotide‐loaded gel with phosphate buffered solution (50 mM KH2PO4, pH 7.2) and carbopol improved gastric ulcer inhibition in comparison with the sample without carbopol. In particular, this sulglycotide‐loaded gel gave the drug content of 95%, with no changes in either viscosity or pH when maintained at 60°C for 4 weeks, inhibiting gastric ulcer formation by approximately of 70%. Thus, it has potential as an oral gel with good stability and excellent gastric ulcer inhibition.