bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
GSK‐3β Interacts with Dopamine D1 Receptor to Regulate Receptor Function: Implication for Prefrontal Cortical D1 Receptor Dysfunction in Schizophrenia
Authors: Wang Jing‐Ru , Sun Pei‐Hua , Ren Zhao‐Xiang , Meltzer Herbert Y. , Zhen Xue‐Chu
Published: December 2016

Introduction

Impaired dopamine D1 receptor (D1R) function in prefrontal cortex (PFC) is believed to contribute to the PFC hypofunction that has been hypothesized to be associated with negative symptoms and cognitive deficits in schizophrenia. It is therefore critical to understand the mechanisms for modulation of D1R function.

Aims

To investigate the physical interaction and functional modulation between D1R and GSK‐3β.

Results

D1R and GSK‐3β physically interact in cultured cells and native brain tissues. This direct interaction was found to occur at the S(417)PALS(421) motif in the C‐terminus of D1R. Inhibition of GSK‐3β impaired D1R activation along with a decrease in D1R‐GSK‐3β interaction. GSK‐3β inhibition reduced agonist‐stimulated D1R desensitization and endocytosis, the latter associated with the reduction of membrane translocation of β‐arrestin‐2. Similarly, inhibition of GSK‐3β in rat PFC also resulted in impaired D1R activation and association with GSK‐3β. Moreover, in a NMDA antagonist animal model of schizophrenia, we detected a decrease in prefrontal GSK‐3β activity and D1R‐GSK‐3β association and decreased D1R activation in the PFC.

Conclusions

The present work identified GSK‐3β as a new interacting protein for D1R functional regulation and revealed a novel mechanism for GSK‐3β‐regulated D1R function which may underlie D1R dysfunction in schizophrenia.
Acute effects of water immersion on heart rate variability in participants with heart disease
Authors: Dionne Andrée , Leone Mario , Goulet Serge , Andrich David E. , Pérusse Louis , Comtois Alain‐Steve
Published: December 2016

Background

Water immersion and aquatic exercise can be an important therapeutic tool in patients suffering from heart disease (HD). However, the effects of water immersion on heart rate variability (HRV) in HD participants remain unknown.

Methods

Twenty‐eight volunteers in sinus rhythm within the same age range took part in this study: 18 HD and ten healthy controls (HC). Heart rhythm was collected with a heart rate monitor (sampling rate 1000 Hz) for periods of 10 min at rest in the supine position on land, standing on land (STL) and standing in water (STW) to the xiphoid process.

Results

Heart disease participants had the same response as HC participants to the three experimental conditions (no significant between‐group differences in all HRV variables). STW (immersion) caused in both groups to increase HRV when compared to supine and STL.

Conclusion

Heart disease participants demonstrate similar beneficial adaptations as HC participants to the effects of immersion, reinforcing the concept that immersion can be a valuable aquatic cardiac rehabilitation tool to acutely increase HRV. Approaches that improve HRV in both healthy and cardiac patients may have a positive impact on the reduction of morbidity and mortality.
Curating in the Open: A Case for Iteratively and Openly Publishing Curatorial Research on the Web
Authors: Owens Trevor
Published: December 2016

Through a case study of using social media tools to open up part of the curatorial research process for an online exhibit on the history of astronomy at the Library of Congress, I offer some initial ideas about how an open approach to sharing curatorial research could significantly expand the impact and reach of such work. Drawing on three distinct emerging conceptions and frameworks for the idea of “open” (open notebook science, linked open data, and open innovation) I suggest how this case study can be used to guide work with existing simple and inexpensive tools and how it could also inform the development of future tools, services and exhibit development methods. This work builds on an ongoing discussion of open data in libraries, archives, and museums. To date, most of that dialog is about object records and not about the stories and narratives cultural heritage institutions tell about them. I suggest ways to make the production of cultural heritage data, as well as the final outputs, part of an open and transparent process.
Flexible Interventions to Increase Family Engagement at Natural History Museum Dioramas
Authors: Knutson Karen , Lyon Mandela , Crowley Kevin , Giarratani Lauren
Published: December 2016

A research/practice collaboration designed, implemented, and tested strategies to facilitate family engagement with natural history dioramas. Across a series of design studies, 295 family groups with at least one adult and one child aged 4–18 were observed at a wildlife diorama of deer in their natural habitat. Each mini‐study tested a different intervention intended to encourage families to engage more deeply with the diorama. Compared to a baseline condition where families used the original diorama with no intervention, findings suggested that all interventions supported increased engagement, but that some interventions were more successful at engaging younger children, increasing conversations about biodiversity and ecosystems issues, or in developing science skills such as observation and classification. We make recommendations for supporting family learning at dioramas and also reflect upon how our research/practice partnership was vital to the work.
Pain hurts 2: changes over time in children and young people with cerebral palsy
Authors: Jahnsen Reidun
Published: December 2016

This commentary is on the original article by Christensen et al. on pages 374–379 of this issue.
Is There a Need for Transcendental Arguments in Discourse Ethics?
Authors: Johnston James Scott
Published: December 2016

In this essay, James Scott Johnston examines Jürgen Habermas's transcendental justification of his discourse theory of morality. According to Johnston, the application of Habermas's theory to educational issues often assumes that this justification is a cogent one. However, if the theory is to provide reasoned and appropriate guidance for educators, the justification of discourse ethics requires closer examination. Johnston argues that Habermas's so‐called “weak” transcendental approach is in fact unsustainable because it fails to reconcile two conflicting schools of philosophical thought: Kant's transcendental idealism and George Herbert Mead's social pragmatism. Johnston concludes that a more plausible justification of the discourse ethical project can be achieved by rejecting Habermas's Kantianism and appealing solely to Mead's social pragmatic conception of rationality.
Reflections on the “Counter” in Educational Counterpublics
Authors: Suissa Judith
Published: December 2016

In this essay, Judith Suissa draws on the tradition of radical and alternative education, and on some philosophical literature on democratic politics and the role of the political imagination, in order to suggest some ways of thinking about what constitutes an educational counterpublic that are different from those suggested in recent work by philosophers of education. Building on arguments by Nancy Fraser and others about the vital role of counterpublics in the political life of democracies, Suissa suggests that creating educational spaces where the formation, development, imagining, and nurturing of such counterpublics can occur is an important aspect of this role.
UGT1A1 (TA)n genotype is not the major risk factor of cholelithiasis in sickle cell disease children
Authors: Joly Philippe , Renoux Céline , Lacan Philippe , Bertrand Yves , Cannas Giovanna , Garnier Nathalie , Cuzzubbo Daniella , Kebaïli Kamila , Renard Cécile , Gauthier Alexandra , Pialoux Vincent , Martin Cyril , Romana Marc , Connes Philippe
Published: December 2016

Objectives

Because of the increased hemolytic rate, a significant proportion of patients with sickle cell disease (SCD) are prone to develop cholelithiasis. The present study investigated the role of several genetic factors (UGT1A1 promoter (TA)n repeat polymorphism, alpha‐globin status), hematological parameters, clinical severity, and hydroxyurea (HU) therapy on the occurrence of cholelithiasis in SCD.

Methods

One hundred and fifty‐eight children (2–18 yr old) regularly followed at the University Hospital of Lyon (France) were included. A multivariate Cox model was used to test the associations between cholelithiasis and the different parameters analyzed.

Results

We confirmed that alpha‐thalassemia and low basal reticulocyte (RET) count were independent protective factors for cholelithiasis while 7/7, 8/8 and 7/8 UGT1A1 (TA)n genotypes were independent predisposing factors for this complication. We also showed for the first time that HU treatment decreased the risk for cholelithiasis while frequent vaso‐occlusive crises and acute chest syndrome events increased that risk.

Conclusions

Our findings demonstrate that UGT1A1 (TA)n polymorphism is not the only factor triggering gallstone formation in SCD. Cholelithiasis is also modulated by RET count, the number of deleted alpha‐genes, HU therapy and the frequency of vaso‐occlusive events.
Stimulus‐specific adaptation to visual but not auditory motion direction in the barn owl's optic tectum
Authors: Wasmuht Dante F. , Pena Jose L. , Gutfreund Yoram
Published: December 2016

Whether the auditory and visual systems use a similar coding strategy to represent motion direction is an open question. We investigated this question in the barn owl's optic tectum (OT) testing stimulus‐specific adaptation (SSA) to the direction of motion. SSA, the reduction of the response to a repetitive stimulus that does not generalize to other stimuli, has been well established in OT neurons. SSA suggests a separate representation of the adapted stimulus in upstream pathways. So far, only SSA to static stimuli has been studied in the OT. Here, we examined adaptation to moving auditory and visual stimuli. SSA to motion direction was examined using repeated presentations of moving stimuli, occasionally switching motion to the opposite direction. Acoustic motion was either mimicked by varying binaural spatial cues or implemented in free field using a speaker array. While OT neurons displayed SSA to motion direction in visual space, neither stimulation paradigms elicited significant SSA to auditory motion direction. These findings show a qualitative difference in how auditory and visual motion is processed in the OT and support the existence of dedicated circuitry for representing motion direction in the early stages of visual but not the auditory system.
Circadian regulation of mouse suprachiasmatic nuclei neuronal states shapes responses to orexin
Authors: Belle Mino D. C. , Piggins Hugh D.
Published: December 2016

Our knowledge of how circadian and homeostatic brain circuits interact to temporally organize physiology and behavior is limited. Progress has been made with the determination that lateral hypothalamic orexin (OXA) neurons control arousal and appetitive states, while suprachiasmatic nuclei (SCN) neurons function as the master circadian clock. During the day, SCN neurons exhibit heterogeneity in spontaneous resting membrane potential (RMP), with some neurons becoming severely depolarized (hyperexcited) and ceasing to fire action potentials (APs), while other neurons rest at moderate RMP and fire APs. Intriguingly, the day phase is when the SCN clock is most readily influenced by arousal, but it is unclear if and how heterogeneity in the excitability state of SCN neurons shapes their response to arousal signals, such as OXA. In whole‐cell recordings we show that during the day OXA recruits GABA‐GABAA receptor signaling to suppress the RMP of hyperexcited silent as well as moderately hyperpolarized AP‐firing SCN neurons. In the AP‐firing neurons, OXA hyperpolarized and silenced these SCN cells, while in the hyperexcited silent neurons OXA suppressed the RMP of these cells and evoked either AP‐firing, depolarized low‐amplitude membrane oscillations, or continued silence at a reduced RMP. These results demonstrate how the resting state of SCN neurons determines their response to OXA, and illustrate that the inhibitory action of this neurochemical correlate of arousal can trigger paradoxical AP firing.
Innovation‐Related Diversification and Firm Value
Authors: Rong Zhao , Xiao Sheng
Published: December 2016

We examine a novel determinant of corporate diversification and its valuation effect: corporate innovations. We find consistent evidence that corporate innovations increase the extent of diversification. To establish causality, we estimate the firm fixed effects, 2SLS and GMM models. The 2SLS model uses the US state‐level R&D tax credits as an instrumental variable for corporate innovations. We also find that a firm is more likely to diversify into an industry where it has more applicable innovations. Further, such innovation‐related diversification is associated with significantly higher firm value. Our results are robust to various measures of corporate innovations.
Lake bacterioplankton dynamics over diurnal timescales
Authors: Grubisic Lorena M. , Bertilsson Stefan , Eiler Alexander , Heinrich Friederike , Brutemark Andreas , Alonso‐Sáez Laura , Andersson Anders F. , Gantner Stephan , Riemann Lasse , Beier Sara
Published: December 2016

Planktonic bacterial community dynamics over short timescales can be of great importance for food webs and ecosystem functioning but are rarely described when microbial community and composition are assessed. To study the significance of such dynamics we sampled the surface water at the deepest point of a mesotrophic lake (Lake Erken, Sweden) every third hour over two days.

By combining 454 pyrosequencing of 16S rRNA genes with bromodeoxyuridine immunocapturing of DNA, replicating populations were identified and compared to the community retrieved from total DNA samples. This comparison revealed a significant difference between the actively replicating and total community.

The high‐frequency diurnal sampling was compared to a year‐long survey conducted in the same lake in order to compare the diurnal and seasonal variation in bacterioplankton community composition. At the diurnal‐scale, the variation was significantly higher in the replicating than in the total community. However, variation in both active and total diurnal community was significantly lower than the variation in the seasonal total community.

Our analysis revealed pronounced short‐term dynamics of individual bacterial populations uncoupled from the diurnal light cycle. For example, the proliferating fraction of the most abundant bacterial tribe (LD12) followed a cyclic pattern that covaried with viral abundance. This implies that environmental factors other than light may act as important drivers of microbial community composition, at least in mesotrophic Lake Erken.
Acid rain recovery may help to mitigate the impacts of climate change on thermally sensitive fish in lakes across eastern North America
Authors: Warren Dana R. , Kraft Clifford. E. , Josephson Daniel C. , Driscoll Charles T.
Published: December 2016

From the 1970s to 1990s, more stringent air quality regulations were implemented across North America and Europe to reduce chemical emissions that contribute to acid rain. Surface water pH slowly increased during the following decades, but biological recovery lagged behind chemical recovery. Fortunately, this situation is changing. In the past few years, northeastern US fish populations have begun to recover in lakes that were historically incapable of sustaining wild fish due to acidic conditions. As lake ecosystems across the eastern United States recover from acid deposition, the stress to the most susceptible populations of native coldwater fish appears to be shifting from acidification effects to thermal impacts associated with changing climate. Extreme summer temperature events – which are expected to occur with increasing frequency in the coming century – can stress and ultimately kill native coldwater fish in lakes where thermal stratification is absent or highly limited. Based on data from northeastern North America, we argue that recovery from acid deposition has the potential to improve the resilience of coldwater fish populations in some lakes to impacts of climate change. This will occur as the amount of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) in the water increases with increasing lake pH. Increased DOC will reduce water clarity and lead to shallower and more persistent lake thermoclines that can provide larger areas of coldwater thermal refuge habitat. Recovery from acidification will not eliminate the threat of climate change to coldwater fish, but secondary effects of acid recovery may improve the resistance of coldwater fish populations in lakes to the effects of elevated summer temperatures in historically acidified ecosystems. This analysis highlights the importance of considering the legacy of past ecosystem impacts and how recovery or persistence of those effects may interact with climate change impacts on biota in the coming decades.
A new approach to optimal discretization of plant functional types in a process‐based ecosystem model with forest management: a case study for temperate conifers
Authors: Peaucelle Marc , Bellassen Valentin , Ciais Philippe , Peñuelas Josep , Viovy Nicolas
Published: December 2016

Aim

Dynamic global vegetation models (DGVMs) use a discretization of forest vegetation based on plant functional types (PFTs). The physiological and ecological parameters used to model a given PFT are usually fixed, being defined from point‐based observations, while model applications are often grid‐based. This rigid approach causes spatial biases in the results of DGVM‐simulated productivity and biomass‐related variables. We aim to overcome this limitation with a new approach that uses a hierarchical classification of forest PFT parameters from traits retrieved from the literature and from the TRY global database of plant traits. This approach is applied to temperate conifers in the ORCHIDEE‐FM DGVM, which has previously been shown to produce systematic biases in the simulation of biomass and biomass increments.

Location

Temperate coniferous forests in France.

Methods

The five major coniferous species in France, Abies alba, Picea abies, Pinus pinaster, Pinus sylvestris and Pseudotsuga menziesii, were grouped objectively into PFTs within the ORCHIDEE‐FM DGVM using a hierarchical classification based on 12 key attributes related to photosynthesis, phenology and allometric relationships.

Results

We show that the single PFT covering all temperate coniferous forests used by default in ORCHIDEE‐FM could be replaced by two representative subcategories defined by grouping species‐level data without necessarily having to adopt a set of parameters for each species. The definition of new temperate conifer PFTs with this approach allows us to reduce the spatial heterogeneity by 40% on average in model–measurement misfit for stand volume, growth and stand density at the regional scale.

Main conclusions

The proposed approach to improve the representation of PFTs in DGVMs, while keeping the number of different PFTs manageable, is promising for application to regions where a single PFT can correspond to a number of different species.
NATURE AND THE IRRUPTIVE VIOLENCE OF HISTORY
Authors: BOURG JULIAN
Published: December 2016

Historical thinking has long defined itself in part through opposition to the natural, in spite of periodic critical efforts to bridge the gap. Deeper in Western traditions of historical reflection are traces of modes of thought through which the distance between human history and nature writ large tends to collapse. Two thinkers not often placed in dialogue—Michel Foucault and Walter Benjamin—both unearthed aspects of this subterranean current. Foucault's The Order of Things maps different moments of Benjamin's trajectory: Renaissance resemblance and the metaphysics of language, classical taxonomy and the baroque “mourning‐play,” and modern history and commodity culture in the nineteenth century. Violence appears periodically as the irruptive and disruptive force that conditions the natural‐historical and thus an anthropocentric history that derives from it: from post‐Edenic Babel to geological cataclysm and corporeal transience to the Marquis de Sade, Karl Marx, capitalism, and total war. Without in any way succumbing to naturalism, that inverse of subject‐centered instrumental reasoning, both Foucault and Benjamin considered the import of the natural‐historical for the eventual articulation of contemporary historical thinking and in doing so contributed to the regeneration of natural history as a mode of thought.
MONSTERS AND PATIENTS: AN ARCHAEOLOGY OF MEDICINE, ISLAM, AND MODERNITY
Authors: RAGAB AHMED
Published: December 2016

Foucault's analysis of the history of evolutionary thought in Les Mots et les choses introduces monsters as incomplete beings that form important steps on the evolutionary ladder toward the terminal species. Monsters represent attempts by nature to achieve the perfection of the terminal species and are, therefore, significant for naturalists in constructing the details of the natural continuum. Despite their incompleteness, monsters underwrite the natural continuum and evidence the grounding of this continuum in reality. To a great extent, the continuum of nature, proposed by Foucault, resembles a continuum of civilization through which the history of the world and the history of colonization were often seen. The non‐European emerged as the monster that showcased the deeper history of the more‐perfect European. In the same way that monsters were written into natural history as intermediary and incomplete beings, losing in the process their uniqueness as independent species, the colonized were written into the (new) World History as objects of colonization, modernization, and development and as the living fossils of a bygone European past. This new history was not only created for European consumption but was also an important part of European‐style education in the colony shaping colonial and postcolonial identities and perceptions of self and other.

This article uses Foucauldian monsters to understand the making of historical narratives about the precolonial past in nineteenth‐century Egypt, where one of the earliest European‐style medical schools in Africa and Asia was built in the early nineteenth century. In this school and surrounding emerging educational system, narratives about science, modernity, and religion produced new histories that came to form colonial subjects. Finally, the article asks about a postcolonial/postmonstrous epistemology, what it might look like and whether and how it can emerge from the postcolonial condition.
Penal Reform and Probation in Europe: Positive Change of Direction, ‘Nudges to the Rudder’, or ‘Steady as She Goes’?
Authors: GEIRAN VIVIAN
Published: December 2016

Penal policy can be influenced by a range of factors, including fear of crime, punitive priorities, and perceived future threats to public safety. Nevertheless, there have been some reductions in numbers in prison globally, echoed in reducing numbers on probation supervision in Europe, in recent times. Such trends raise the question of whether there is a discernible movement towards penal reform, and if so, what influences such movement. The possible influence of supranational bodies, changes in communications media, greater attention to former service users, and generally improved stakeholder engagement, are considered. In particular, the influence of probation practice and its values on the wider criminal justice system and penal policy are explored. The author concludes that offender rehabilitation may have come through a challenging period to become again a central (yet fragile) pillar of penal policy, evidencing in turn the ‘green shoots’ of further potential positive change.
Endodontic treatment‐related antibiotic prescribing patterns of South African oral health professionals
Authors: Lalloo R. , Solanki G. , Ramphoma K. , Myburgh N. G.
Published: December 2016

Aim

To assess the antibiotic prescribing patterns of South African dentists for patients undergoing endodontic treatment.

Methodology

This study used data from 2013 health insurance claims submitted by South African oral health professionals to determine the antibiotic prescribing patterns related to endodontic treatment. A logistic regression model was used to test the fully adjusted statistical significance of the association between the exploratory variables (gender, age group, event type, abscess treatment, chronic health) and the dependent variable (antibiotic prescription). Odds ratios with 95% confidence intervals (CI) are reported, and a 95% CI excluding 1 was considered statistically significant.

Results

Almost 10% of endodontic treatments were prescribed an antibiotic. There were no significant differences in prescribing patterns by gender, age and chronic health status. Prescriptions were more common at the preparatory stage (9.4%) of root canal treatment compared to the therapy (4.7%) and canal filling (2%) stages. Patients who received apical surgery (OR = 2.28; 95% CI 1.38–3.76) and treatment of an abscess (OR = 2.57; 95% 1.82–3.63) had a significantly increased odds of being prescribed an antibiotic. Almost three‐quarters of prescriptions were for narrow spectrum antibiotics.

Conclusion

The frequency of antibiotic prescribing by South African dental practitioners for patients undergoing endodontic treatment is relatively low and predominantly involved narrow spectrum antibiotics. It, however, remains important that antibiotics are only prescribed when clinically essential, such as when there are obvious systemic effects. These include fever above 37 degrees, malaise, lymphadenopathy, trismus, increase swelling, cellulitis, osteomyelitis and persistent infection. The wider dissemination and adherence to clear evidence‐based prescribing guidelines for antibiotics in this clinical area are important.
Influence of Cone‐Beam Computed Tomography filters on diagnosis of simulated endodontic complications
Authors: Verner F. S. , D'Addazio P. S. , Campos C. N. , Devito K. L. , Almeida S. M. , Junqueira R. B.
Published: December 2016

Aim

To evaluate the influence of cone‐beam computed tomography (CBCT) filters on diagnosis of simulated endodontic complications.

Methodology

Sixteen human teeth, in three mandibles, were submitted to the following simulated endodontic complications: (G1) fractured file, (G2) perforations in the canal walls, (G3) deviated cast post, and (G4) external root resorption. The mandibles were submitted to CBCT examination (I‐Cat® Next Generation). Five oral radiologists evaluated the images independently with and without XoranCat® software filters. Accuracy, sensitivity and specificity were determined. ROC curves were calculated for each group with the filters, and the areas under the curves were compared using anova (one‐way) test. McNemar test was applied for pair‐wise agreement between all images versus the gold standard and original images versus images with filters (P < 0.05).

Results

G1 was the most difficult endodontic complication to diagnosis, followed by G2, G4 and G3. There were no differences between areas under the ROC curves for the filters in all groups; however, Sharpen Super Mild filter had the best results for G1 (0.47), Angio Sharpen Low 3 × 3 for G2 (0.93), Angio Sharpen Low 3 × 3, S9, Shadow and Sharpen for G3 (1.00) and Sharpen 3 × 3 for G4 (1.00). The McNemar test revealed significant differences between all filters with the gold standard (P = 0.00 for all filters) and the originals images (P = 0.00 for all filters) only in G1 group. There were no differences in the other groups.

Conclusions

The filters did not improve the diagnosis of the simulated endodontic complications evaluated. Their diagnosis remains a major challenge in clinical practice.
Synthesis of forsterite by periclase and silica gel chlorination
Authors: Orosco Pablo , Barbosa Lucía , del Carmen Ruiz María
Published: December 2016

In this work, forsterite was synthesized by thermal treatment in chlorine of a periclase and silica gel mixture. Calcination assays were carried out in Cl2/N2 and air atmospheres. The effects of temperature and reaction time on the reaction of synthesis were studied. The techniques used to characterize reagents and products were thermogravimetry (TG), differential thermal analysis (DTA), X‐ray diffraction (XRD), and X‐ray fluorescence (XRF). The experimental results showed that pure forsterite was obtained in Cl2/N2 atmosphere at 700°C for 60 minutes, while in air forsterite and enstatite were partially produced at 800°C for 60 minutes.
Confirmation and next‐generation sequencing of allele HLA‐B*35:279 found in a family of a leukaemia patient with Western Asia origin
Authors: Grünebach F. , Huster A.‐L. , Vogel W. , Klein R.
Published: December 2016

The confirmation of novel allele HLA‐B*35:279 in a family of a leukaemia patient with Western Asia origin is reported. Moreover, next‐generation sequencing (NGS) resulted in whole‐gene sequence data and revealed the inheritance of HLA‐B*35:279 on the paternal haplotype.
Documentation of consent for blood transfusion
Authors: Hennessy C. , Borosak M. , Bielby L. , Stevenson L. J. , Glazebrook B.
Published: December 2016

In 2012, 110 hospitals reported on consent policy against national guidelines, with 105 (95%) including a statement on blood transfusion. Of the 103 hospitals (1788 transfusion episodes) that participated in the consent practice component, 89 specified the method of consent used; 46 (52%) had a specific transfusion consent form and achieved compliance of 90% compared to 43–69% for most other methods. The consent audit shows that a specific blood consent form achieved a high rate of medical record documentation compliance.
Goodpasture disease as a consequence of melioidosis
Authors: Mackintosh D. , Mantha M. , Oliver K.
Published: December 2016

We describe a case of anti‐glomerular basement membrane (GBM) antibody‐mediated disease in association with concomitant Burkholderia pseudomallei (melioidosis) bacteraemia. The temporal profile of the illness and initial absence of circulating anti‐GBM antibodies, in light of the subsequent definitive histological diagnosis of anti‐GBM disease, makes this case interesting and unusual. Additionally, there have been no prior case reports suggesting melioidosis as a cause of biopsy‐proven glomerulonephritis
Adaptation in families of children with Down syndrome in East Asian countries: an integrative review
Authors: Choi Hyunkyung , Van Riper Marcia
Published: December 2016

Aim

The purpose of this integrative literature review was to understand the experiences of East Asian families of children with Down syndrome and identify factors affecting their adaptation in the Resiliency Model of Family Stress, Adjustment and Adaptation.

Background

Socio‐cultural factors influence how well families adapt following the birth of a child with Down syndrome. Existing literature in this area has focused primarily on families from Western cultures. This is problematic because nurses care for families from all over the world. Therefore, the focus of this review is on families of children with Down syndrome living in East Asia, where Confucianism is dominant.

Design

Integrative literature review.

Data sources

Online databases (i.e. PubMed, CINAHL and PsycINFO) and a public search engine (i.e. Google Scholar) were used along with manual searches of reference lists and major journals. Studies were limited to original publications written in English and published between 1990‐2014.

Review methods

Two authors independently performed integrative review processes proposed by Whittemore and Knafl and a quality assessment using the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool.

Results

Like families in Western cultures, some East Asian families of children with Down syndrome adapted well and even thrived while others struggled. Various socio‐cultural factors, including some associated with Confucianism, played a role in how individuals, dyads and families adapted.

Conclusion

An understanding of socio‐cultural influences can help nurses implement culturally sensitive family‐centred interventions with families of children with Down syndrome. It may also facilitate policy changes concerning resources for these families.
‘Dropped from the system’: the experiences and challenges of long‐term breast cancer survivors
Authors: Matthews Hannah , Semper Heather
Published: December 2016

Aims

The aim of this study was to explore breast cancer patients’ experiences during survivorship. Particular attention is given to the role of specialist breast care nurses in supporting women throughout this phase.

Background

There is a relative lack of research involving long‐term breast cancer survivors. Yet, many survivors experience substantial psychosocial and iatrogenic harms created by diagnosis, symptoms of disease and treatment. A more comprehensive understanding may assist in supporting the needs of breast cancer survivors.

Design

An exploratory qualitative approach was used to collect data on breast cancer survivors’ experiences during 2013.

Methods

Semi‐structured interview data were collected from seven British women aged 38–80 years exploring the support received during survivorship. Data were analysed using Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis.

Findings

Breast cancer survivors perceived a systemic absence in support from oncology teams and rapid deterioration of support from personal support networks. Despite this, survivors were able to find benefits from the cancer experience. This allowed for adjustment and enabled patients to assume a new identity as a breast cancer survivor. We recommend specialist breast care nurses would be suitably placed to provide extended support allowing for a salient transition from treatment to survivorship.

Conclusion

This study yields insights into breast cancer survivorship and specifically the role of specialist breast care nurses. Given the growing cohort of breast cancer survivors and the increased importance on promoting and supporting optimal psychosocial adjustment, we advise the cost‐effectiveness of providing continuing nursing support and the mode of administration requires further research.
Spatial, temporal and latitudinal components of historical fire regimes in mixed conifer forests, California
Authors: Krasnow Kevin D. , Fry Danny L. , Stephens Scott L.
Published: December 2016

Aim

This study seeks to document and compare historical temporal and spatial components of fire regimes in two watersheds in mixed conifer forests of the western slope of the Sierra Nevada, California, USA.

Location

Watersheds in the southern Sierra Nevada (Sugar Pine, 2358 ha) and north‐central Sierra Nevada (Last Chance, 3021 ha), California, USA are compared.

Methods

Temporal (frequency, return interval, season) and spatial (extent, fire rotation, spatial mean fire interval) fire regime metrics were reconstructed from fire scar samples. Superposed epoch analysis (SEA) was used to examine relationships between fire occurrence and the Palmer drought severity index (PDSI) at each site. Thin plate splines were introduced as a tool for interpolating historical fire extent from dendroecological data. Point fire return intervals were compared between sites to better understand possible influences of historical Native American burning practices.

Results

Differences emerged between sites in temporal and spatial fire regime metrics. The northern site had longer fire return intervals, more synchronized fire years, fewer point intervals < 4 years, longer fire rotation period and longer spatial mean fire interval. The northern site showed a significant reduction in PDSI values during fire years, whereas this climate–fire relationship in the southern site was likely decoupled by frequent Native American burning. Thin plate spline interpolation effectively reduced discontinuities at sample points compared to inverse distance weighting methods.

Main conclusions

Differences in both temporal and spatial fire regime metrics between sites were likely due to interplay in latitudinal influence on climate as well as differential Native American burning practices. Reconstruction of historical fire areas via geographical interpolation of fire scar data holds great promise for spatially explicit fire frequency reconstruction. The use of thin plate spline interpolation methods has the potential to reduce the impact of ‘false negatives’ in dendroecological data from frequent‐fire forests.
Public health and precision medicine share a goal
Authors: Vaithinathan Asokan G. , Asokan Vanitha
Published: December 2016

The advances made in genomics and molecular tools aid public health programs in the investigation of outbreaks and control of diseases by taking advantage of the precision medicine. Precision medicine means “segregating the individuals into subpopulations who vary in their disease susceptibility and response to a precise treatment” and not merely designing of drugs or creation of medical devices. By 2017, the United Kingdom 100,000 Genomes Project is expected to sequence 100,000 genomes from 70,000 patients. Similarly, the Precision Medicine Initiative of the United States plans to increase population‐based genome sequencing and link it with clinical data. A national cohort of around 1 million people is to be established in the long term, to investigate the genetic and environmental determinants of health and disease, and further integrated to their electronic health records that are optional. Precision public health can be seen as administering the right intervention to the needy population at an appropriate time. Precision medicine originates from a wet‐lab while evidence‐based medicine is nurtured in a clinic. Linking the quintessential basic science research and clinical practice is necessary. In addition, new technologies to employ and analyze data in an integrated and dynamic way are essential for public health and precision medicine. The transition from evidence‐based approach in public health to genomic approach to individuals with a paradigm shift of a “reactive” medicine to a more “proactive” and personalized health care may sound exceptional. However, a population perspective is needed for the precision medicine to succeed.
Expected utility versus expected regret theory versions of decision curve analysis do generate different results when treatment effects are taken into account
Authors: Hozo Iztok , Tsalatsanis Athanasios , Djulbegovic Benjamin
Published: December 2016

Rationale, aims, and objectives

Decision curve analysis (DCA) is a widely used method for evaluating diagnostic tests and predictive models. It was developed based on expected utility theory (EUT) and has been reformulated using expected regret theory (ERG). Under certain circumstances, these 2 formulations yield different results. Here we describe these situations and explain the variation.

Methods

We compare the derivations of the EUT‐ and ERG‐based formulations of DCA for a typical medical decision problem: “treat none,” “treat all,” or “use model” to guide treatment. We illustrate the differences between the 2 formulations when applied to the following clinical question: at which probability of death we should refer a terminally ill patient to hospice?

Results

Both DCA formulations yielded identical but mirrored results when treatment effects are ignored; they generated significantly different results otherwise. Treatment effect has a significant effect on the results derived by EUT DCA and less so on ERG DCA. The elicitation of specific values for disutilities affected the results even more significantly in the context of EUT DCA, whereas no such elicitation was required within the ERG framework.

Conclusion

EUT and ERG DCA generate different results when treatment effects are taken into account. The magnitude of the difference depends on the effect of treatment and the disutilities associated with disease and treatment effects. This is important to realize as the current practice guidelines are uniformly based on EUT; the same recommendations can significantly differ if they are derived based on ERG framework.
Plasma osmolality and oxygen consumption of perch Perca fluviatilis in response to different salinities and temperatures
Authors: Christensen E. A. F. , Svendsen M. B. S. , Steffensen J. F.
Published: December 2016

The present study determined the blood plasma osmolality and oxygen consumption of the perch Perca fluviatilis at different salinities (0, 10 and 15) and temperatures (5, 10 and 20° C). Blood plasma osmolality increased with salinity at all temperatures. Standard metabolic rate (SMR) increased with salinity at 10 and 20° C. Maximum metabolic rate (MMR) and aerobic scope was lowest at salinity of 15 at 5° C, yet at 20° C, they were lowest at a salinity of 0. A cost of osmoregulation (SMR at a salinity of 0 and 15 compared with SMR at a salinity of 10) could only be detected at a salinity of 15 at 20° C, where it was 28%. The results show that P. fluviatilis have capacity to osmoregulate in hyper‐osmotic environments. This contradicts previous studies and indicates intraspecific variability in osmoregulatory capabilities among P. fluviatilis populations or habitat origins. An apparent cost of osmoregulation (28%) at a salinity of 15 at 20° C indicates that the cost of osmoregulation in P. fluviatilis increases with temperature under hyperosmotic conditions and a power analysis showed that the cost of osmoregulation could be lower than 12·5% under other environmental conditions. The effect of salinity on MMR is possibly due to a reduction in gill permeability, initiated to reduce osmotic stress. An interaction between salinity and temperature on aerobic scope shows that high salinity habitats are energetically beneficial during warm periods (summer), whereas low salinity habitats are energetically beneficial during cold periods (winter). It is suggested, therefore, that the seasonal migrations of P. fluviatilis between brackish and fresh water is to select an environment that is optimal for metabolism and aerobic scope.
Search and analysis of genes involved in antibiotic resistance in Chilean strains of Piscirickettsia salmonis
Authors: Cartes C , Isla A , Lagos F , Castro D , Muñoz M , Yañez A , Haussmann D , Figueroa J
Published: December 2016

Piscirickettsia salmonis is the pathogen causing Piscirickettsiosis. For treatment, the industry mainly uses oxytetracycline and florfenicol, so it is essential to understand the degree of susceptibility of this pathogen to these drugs. But this is still unknown for a large number of P. salmonis strains, as are the molecular mechanisms responsible for greater or lesser susceptibility. However, genes that confer resistance to these antimicrobials have been reported and characterized for this and other bacterial species, among which are membrane proteins that take out the drug. Our results identified differences in the degree of susceptibility to both antibiotics among different Chilean isolated of these bacteria. We analysed 10 available genomes in our laboratory and identified ~140 genes likely to be involved in antibiotic resistance. We analysed six specific genes, which suggests that some of them would eventually be relevant in conferring resistance to both antibiotics, as they encode for specific transporter proteins, which increase the number of transcripts when grown in media with these antibiotics. Our results were corroborated with EtBr permeability analysis, which revealed that the LF‐89 strain accumulates this compound and has a reduced capacity to expulse it compared with the field strains.
Afternoon Napping and Cognition in Chinese Older Adults: Findings from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study Baseline Assessment
Authors: Li Junxin , Cacchione Pamela Z. , Hodgson Nancy , Riegel Barbara , Keenan Brendan T. , Scharf Mathew T. , Richards Kathy C. , Gooneratne Nalaka S.
Published: December 2016

Objectives

To examine the cross‐sectional associations between self‐reported postlunch napping and structured cognitive assessments in Chinese older adults.

Design

Cross‐sectional cohort study.

Setting

China.

Participants

Individuals aged 65 and older from the baseline national wave of the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS) (N = 2,974).

Measurements

Interview‐based cognitive assessments of orientation and attention, episodic memory, visuospatial abilities, and a combined global cognition score incorporating these assessments. Other self‐reported or interview‐based assessments included postlunch napping duration, nighttime sleep duration, demographic characteristics, health habits, comorbidities, functional status and social activities. According to reported napping duration, older adults were categorized as non‐nappers (0 minutes), short nappers (<30 minutes), moderate nappers (30–90 minutes), and extended nappers (>90 minutes).

Results

Postlunch napping was reporting in 57.7% of participants for a mean of 63 minutes. Cognitive function was significantly associated with napping (P < .001). Between‐group comparisons showed that moderate nappers had better overall cognition than nonnappers (P < .001) or extended nappers (P = .01). Nonnappers also had significantly poorer cognition than short nappers (P = .03). In multiple regression analysis, moderate napping was significantly associated with better cognition than non‐ (P = .004), short (P = .04), and extended napping (P = .002), after controlling for demographic characteristics, body mass index, depression, instrumental activities of daily living, social activities, and nighttime sleep duration.

Conclusion

A cross‐sectional association was found between moderate postlunch napping and better cognition in Chinese older adults. The cross‐sectional design and self‐reported measures of sleep limited the findings. Longitudinal studies with objective napping measures are needed to further test this hypothesis.
Implant maintenance for the prevention of biological complications: Are you ready for the next challenge?
Authors: Goh Edwin X. J. , Lim Lum Peng
Published: December 2016

With increasing knowledge of wound biology and material sciences, the provision of dental implants as a treatment modality has become increasingly predictable and more commonly used to replace missing teeth. However, without appropriate follow up, peri‐implant diseases could develop and affect the long‐term success of implants. Currently, there is not enough focus on the prevention of peri‐implant diseases, as compared to the definition of the disease, its prevalence, and treatment. In the present study, we aim to summarize various factors influencing the successful maintenance of dental implants and highlight current gaps in knowledge. Factors influencing the successful maintenance of dental implants can be divided into three categories: implant‐, dentist‐, and patient‐related factors. Patients with dental implants are often more dentally aware, and this offers an advantage. Compared to gingiva, peri‐implant mucosa responds at a different pace to the bacterial challenge. Dental practitioners should be aware of how treatment protocols affect long‐term success, and be vigilant in detecting peri‐implant diseases at an early stage. Compared to periodontal maintenance, less longitudinal studies on implant maintenance are available, and therefore, there is a tendency to rely heavily on information extrapolated from the periodontal literature. More studies on the significance of implant maintenance care are required.
Fiscal Adjustment and Inflation Targeting in Less Developed Countries
Authors: BUFFIE EDWARD F. , ATOLIA MANOJ
Published: December 2016

Inflation targeting may not be viable in less developed countries (LDCs) where policymakers rely too heavily on cuts in infrastructure investment to balance the budget. Using a mix of analytical and numerical methods, we demonstrate that the equilibrium ceases to be saddle point stable under active policy when infrastructure cuts account for 30–70% of fiscal adjustment and the return on infrastructure exceeds a comparatively low threshold value. The result is robust to the form of the Taylor rule, the degree of real wage flexibility, the initial level of debt, the choice of a balanced‐budget or debt‐targeting rule, and theq‐elasticity of private investment spending.