bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Shadow of Doubt, Winter Enduring Foliage, and Desire
Authors: Sbrocchi Sharon L.
Published: October 2014

This paper embraces a creative approach to writing—a practitioner’s experience of creative pedagogy-in-the making at the intersection of affect and memory. Creativity is understood as energy, a force, soul and spirit, where memory is part of the affective dimension of the continuity of a life and how this is experienced in the author’s practice of experimenting with a creative pedagogy-in-the-making. Inner world and the outer world collide as she meanders through the effects and affects of prevailing ideology, sediments of philosophical assumptions yet to be unpacked, and the struggle to express something that cannot be captured in language easily.
Opening Gates and Windows
Authors: Bilbrough Paola
Published: October 2014

In this essay I discuss the ethical and aesthetic issues involved in making a short auto/biographical documentary, Separation, about an improvised parenting relationship I had with a young Sudanese-Australian man. I contextualize my discussion through reference to representations of Sudanese-Australians in the media, and the tendency towards reductive allegorical representations. I propose that a poetic approach offers a possible way forward in representing aspects of life stories involving shared privacies and/or sensitive cultural material. This suggests important scholarly consideration of an ethics that is specific to visual representation or video/film methods. Such a consideration is applicable both to contexts in which the central concern is an art product or event, and in which the primary concern is research.
Physicians’ Stories
Authors: Foster Elissa
Published: October 2014

This article reflects on a project in which the author guided several physicians as they wrote their first autoethnographic research articles, which were then presented at the International Congress of Qualitative Inquiry in 2011. Revisiting three of the physicians’ stories, the article articulates the significance of having physicians—scientists by training—engage autoethnography as an emotional, literary, poetic, and embodied practice. The author discusses the limitations of the “bridge” metaphor to capture the full impact of this project and other autoethnographic efforts and argues instead for the “rhizome” as more descriptive of the multiple, messy, boundary-crossing connections that are generated through autoethnographic writing and performance.
From Here to There
Authors: Boylorn Robin M.
Published: October 2014

In this reflexive auto/ethnography, the author challenges the lessons she learned about difference growing up in a small community. Seeing Johnson's quare theory as an opportunity to reimagine problematic conditioning, she reflects on moments of clarity related to sexuality, race, class, and gender difference and theorizes the possibilities of quare auto/ethnography as an opportunity to critique and engage difference. She uses auto/ethnography to introduce the possibilities of bridging (backward) in an effort to make sense and make meaning from difficult, painful, and complicated experiences.
Ghosts, Vampires, Zombies, and Us
Authors: Herrmann Andrew F.
Published: October 2014

In this exploration, I examine how autoethnographers create connections and community through the metaphor of the undead in their various forms. Autoethnography allows us to write and speak about our anxieties, our impolite private issues, and what frightens us at home and at work, including aging, guilt, mortality, shame, and lost love. Through autoethnography, we connect the seen and the invisible, the known and the unknown, the understood and the unexplained, mystery and science. It provides us the opportunity to reenchant the world. Most importantly, autoethnographic writing provides us the opportunity to recognize that our fears are not ours alone but are a basis upon which we can all connect.
Writing a Bridge to Possibility
Authors: Poulos Christopher N.
Published: October 2014

In this autoethnography, I write my way through the many losses my family and friends have experienced in recent months. In this writing, I find myself hoping that a bridge can be written—a bridge to hope, a bridge to a new tomorrow, a bridge to possibility.
North Versus South
Authors: Sanders Scott R.
Published: October 2014

This research examines the factors that account for variance in provincial poverty reduction rates between 2002 and 2008 in Vietnam. In particular, this paper uses spatial regression modeling to show that foreign direct investment (FDI) and the capitalist legacies of southern Vietnam significantly affected provincial poverty reduction during this time period. These findings suggest that although Vietnam as a whole has benefited from post-Đổi Mới economic reform and FDI, the historical capitalist legacies of the former Republic of Vietnam played a strong role in aiding provinces in the south in attracting FDI and subsequently reducing provincial poverty.
Presacral Myelolipoma
Authors: Gagliardo Cesare , Falanga Giorgia , Sutera Raffaello , Latona Giuseppe , Lo Casto Antonio , Midiri Massimo , Lagalla Roberto
Published: October 2014

Many reports have described adrenal myelolipomas but there have been only a few reports of extra-adrenal myelolipomas. We describe a 74-year-old woman who came to our observation for MRI of the lumbar spine for typical lumbar back pain. In addition to signs of mild scoliosis and spondylo disc arthrosis, MR imaging revealed a presacral mass showing a heterogeneously high signal in all pulse sequences and almost completely suppressed on inversion recovery sequences for fat tissue. CT imaging confirmed the fatty nature of the lesion and no signs of bone involvement. These findings were most consistent with a diagnosis of a rare presacral myelolipoma as confirmed at histopathologic analysis. This work reports a case of one of the rarest presacral masses, emphasizing the role of imaging in the differential diagnosis of other presacral masses.
One year remission of type 1 diabetes mellitus in a patient treated with sitagliptin
Authors: Lima-Martínez Marcos M , Guerra-Alcalá Ernesto , Contreras Miguel , Nastasi José , Noble Janelle A , Polychronakos Constantin
Published: October 2014

Type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) is a chronic disease characterized by the autoimmune destruction of pancreatic β-cells. This paper describes the case of a 19-year-old male patient who presented with glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD) antibody positive and diabetic ketoacidosis, which mandated intensive insulin treatment. Once the ketoacidosis was controlled, an oral dose of 100 mg of sitagliptin was administered once a day. Ketoacidosis was managed by insulin and insulin daily requirement began to dwindle after one month, until its complete withdrawal at 8 weeks, when partial remission was reached. The patient has now remained on sitagliptin treatment alone for a year, without requiring insulin. The benefit observed with this medication is possibly associated with its immunological effects. Inhibition of dipeptidyl peptidase 4 in animal models deregulates the Th1 immune response, increases secretion of Th2 cytokines, activates CD4+CD25+FoxP3+ regulatory T-cells, and prevents IL17 production.

Learning points

The use of insulin-dose-adjusted HbA1c constitutes the best way to define partial remission in T1DM patients.

The use of sitagliptin in T1DM patients could help to decrease daily requirement of insulin by delaying β-cell loss and improving endogenous insulin production.

The determination of antibodies against insulin, islet cells, and GAD permits differentiation of T1DM patients from those with atypical or ketosis-prone diabetes.
EXTENSIVE EXPERTISE IN ENDOCRINOLOGY: Adrenal crisis
Authors: Allolio Bruno
Published: October 2014

Adrenal crisis is a life-threatening emergency contributing to the excess mortality of patients with adrenal insufficiency. Studies in patients on chronic replacement therapy for adrenal insufficiency have revealed an incidence of 5–10 adrenal crises/100 patient years and suggested a mortality rate from adrenal crisis of 0.5/100 patient years. Patients with adrenal crisis typically present with profoundly impaired well-being, hypotension, nausea and vomiting, and fever responding well to parenteral hydrocortisone administration. Infections are the major precipitating causes of adrenal crisis. Lack of increased cortisol concentrations during infection enhances pro-inflammatory cytokine release and sensitivity to the toxic effects of these cytokines (e.g. tumour necrosis factor alpha). Furthermore, pro-inflammatory cytokines may impair glucocorticoid receptor function aggravating glucocorticoid deficiency. Treatment of adrenal crisis is simple and highly effective consisting of i.v. hydrocortisone (initial bolus of 100 mg followed by 200 mg over 24 h as continuous infusion) and 0.9% saline (1000 ml within the first hour). Prevention of adrenal crisis requires appropriate hydrocortisone dose adjustments to stressful medical procedures (e.g. major surgery) and other stressful events (e.g. infection). Patient education is a key for such dose adjustments but current education concepts are not sufficiently effective. Thus, improved education strategies are needed. Every patient should carry an emergency card and should be provided with an emergency kit for parenteral hydrocortisone self-administration. A hydrocortisone pen would hold a great potential to lower the current barriers to hydrocortisone self-injection. Improved patient education and measures to facilitate parenteral hydrocortisone self-administration in impending crisis are expected to significantly reduce morbidity and mortality from adrenal crisis.
RNase L contributes to experimentally induced type 1 diabetes onset in mice
Authors: Zeng Chun , Yi Xin , Zipris Danny , Liu Hongli , Zhang Lin , Zheng Qiaoyun , Malathi Krishnamurthy , Jin Ge , Zhou Aimin
Published: October 2014

The cause of type 1 diabetes continues to be a focus of investigation. Studies have revealed that interferon α (IFNα) in pancreatic islets after viral infection or treatment with double-stranded RNA (dsRNA), a mimic of viral infection, is associated with the onset of type 1 diabetes. However, how IFNα contributes to the onset of type 1 diabetes is obscure. In this study, we found that 2-5A-dependent RNase L (RNase L), an IFNα-inducible enzyme that functions in the antiviral and antiproliferative activities of IFN, played an important role in dsRNA-induced onset of type 1 diabetes. Using RNase L-deficient, rat insulin promoter-B7.1 transgenic mice, which are more vulnerable to harmful environmental factors such as viral infection, we demonstrated that deficiency of RNase L in mice resulted in a significant delay of diabetes onset induced by polyinosinic:polycytidylic acid (poly I:C), a type of synthetic dsRNA, and streptozotocin, a drug which can artificially induce type 1-like diabetes in experimental animals. Immunohistochemical staining results indicated that the population of infiltrated CD8+T cells was remarkably reduced in the islets of RNase L-deficient mice, indicating that RNase L may contribute to type 1 diabetes onset through regulating immune responses. Furthermore, RNase L was responsible for the expression of certain proinflammatory genes in the pancreas under induced conditions. Our findings provide new insights into the molecular mechanism underlying β-cell destruction and may indicate novel therapeutic strategies for treatment and prevention of the disease based on the selective regulation and inhibition of RNase L.
School-Based Health Centers as Patient-Centered Medical Homes
Authors: O’Leary Sean T. , Lee Michelle , Federico Steve , Barnard Juliana , Lockhart Steven , Albright Karen , Shmueli Doron , Allison Mandy A. , Kempe Allison
Published: October 2014

OBJECTIVE:

School-based health centers (SBHCs) have been suggested as possible patient-centered medical homes. Our objectives were to determine, in a low-income, urban population, adolescents’ reasons for visiting SBHCs and the value parents place on SBHC services, and adolescents’ and parents’ assessment of how well SBHCs fulfill criteria for a medical home as defined by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

METHODS:

A cross-sectional, mailed survey of a random sample of 495 adolescent SBHC users and 497 parents of SBHC users from 10 SBHCs in Denver, CO from May to October 2012. Eligible adolescents were registered in an SBHC with ≥1 visit during the 2011 to 2012 school year.

RESULTS:

Response rates were 40% (198/495) among adolescents and 36% (181/497) among parents. The top 3 reasons for visits were for illness (78%), vaccines (69%), and sexual health education (63%). Factors reported as very important by >75% of parents in the decision to enroll their adolescent in an SBHC included clinic offering sick or injury visits, sports physicals, and vaccinations. More than 70% of adolescents gave favorable responses (always or usually, excellent or good) to questions about American Academy of Pediatrics medical home criteria (accessibility, continuity, comprehensiveness, family-centeredness, coordination, and compassion). Most parents (83%) reported that they could always or usually trust the SBHC provider to take good care of their child; 82% were satisfied with provider-to-provider communication.

CONCLUSIONS:

In a low-income urban population, SBHCs met criteria of a medical home from adolescents’ and parents’ perspectives. Policymakers and communities should recognize that SBHCs play an important role in the medical community, especially for underserved adolescents.
Adherence to Guidelines for Glucose Assessment in Starting Second-Generation Antipsychotics
Authors: Raebel Marsha A. , Penfold Robert , McMahon Ann W. , Reichman Marsha , Shetterly Susan , Goodrich Glenn , Andrade Susan , Correll Christoph U. , Gerhard Tobias
Published: October 2014

OBJECTIVES:

In 2003, the US Food and Drug Administration issued warnings about hyperglycemia and diabetes with second-generation antipsychotics (SGAs); guidelines have recommended metabolic screening since 2004. However, little is known of contemporary practices of glucose screening among youth initiating SGAs. Our objective was to evaluate baseline glucose assessment among youth in the Mini-Sentinel Distributed Database starting an SGA.

METHODS:

The cohort included youth ages 2 through 18 newly initiating SGAs January 1, 2006, through December 31, 2011, across 10 sites. Baseline glucose was defined as fasting/random glucose or hemoglobin A1c (GLU) measurement occurring relative to first SGA dispensing. Differences in GLU assessment were evaluated with χ2 tests and logistic regression.

RESULTS:

The cohort included 16 304 youth; 60% boys; mean age 12.8 years. Risperidone was most commonly started (43%). Eleven percent (n = 1858) had GLU assessed between 90 days before and 3 days after first dispensing. Assessment varied across SGAs (olanzapine highest), sites (integrated health care systems higher), ages (16–18 highest), years (2007 highest), and gender (female higher; all P < .001). GLU assessment among those starting olanzapine was more likely than among those starting quetiapine (odds ratio [OR]: 1.72 [95% confidence interval (CI): 1.37–2.18]), aripiprazole (OR: 1.49 [95% CI: 1.18–1.87]), or risperidone (OR: 1.61 [95% CI: 1.28–2.03]).

CONCLUSIONS:

Few children and adolescents starting SGA have baseline glucose assessed. This is concerning because those at high diabetes risk may not be identified. Further, lack of screening impedes determining the contribution of SGAs to hyperglycemia development.
Longitudinal Association Between Teen Sexting and Sexual Behavior
Authors: Temple Jeff R. , Choi HyeJeong
Published: October 2014

BACKGROUND:

This study examines the temporal sequencing of sexting and sexual intercourse and the role of active sexting (sending a nude picture) in mediating the relationship between passive sexting (asking or being asked for a nude picture) and sexual behaviors.

METHODS:

Data are from Wave 2 (spring 2011) and Wave 3 (spring 2012) of an ongoing 6-year longitudinal study of high school students in southeast Texas. Participants included 964 ethnically diverse adolescents with a mean age of 16.09 years (56% female; 31% African American, 29% Caucasian, 28% Hispanic, 12% other). Retention rate for 1-year follow-up was 93%. Participants self-reported history of sexual activity (intercourse, risky sex) and sexting (sent, asked, been asked). Using path analysis, we examined whether teen sexting at baseline predicted sexual behavior at 1-year follow-up and whether active sexting mediated the relationship between passive sexting and sexual behavior.

RESULTS:

The odds of being sexually active at Wave 3 were 1.32 times larger for youth who sent a sext at Wave 2, relative to counterparts. However, sexting was not temporally associated with risky sexual behaviors. Consistent with our hypothesis, active sexting at Wave 2 mediated the relationship between asking or being asked for a sext and having sex over the next year.

CONCLUSIONS:

This study extends cross-sectional literature and supports the notion that sexting fits within the context of adolescent sexual development and may be a viable indicator of adolescent sexual activity.
The Patient-Rated Wrist and Hand Evaluation: A systematic review of its validity and reliability
Authors: Taylor Julie , Kersten Paula
Published: October 2014

The Patient-Rated Wrist and Hand Evaluation is a region specific, patient reported outcome measure that aims to evaluate pain and disability of the wrist and hand. This review appraised the evidence for the validity and reliability of the Patient-Rated Wrist and Hand Evaluation as a measure of therapeutic outcomes in musculoskeletal conditions affecting the wrist and hand. Relevant studies were identified by a search of the literature and evaluated according to the Consensus standards for the selection of health status measurement instruments checklist. Five studies met the inclusion criteria for review. Four studies utilised Classical Test Theory and were in support of the reliability and validity of the Patient-Rated Wrist and Hand Evaluation. However, all of these studies were of fair to poor methodological quality. A fifth study, which utilised Rasch analysis, was of good methodological quality and supported the validity and reliability of the Patient-Rated Wrist and Hand Evaluation as a three subscale instrument. In conclusion, there is some good evidence for the validity and reliability of the Patient-Rated Wrist and Hand Evaluation. Further work needs to be done to enable clinicians to rescore the tool into three subscales and to examine its cultural validity.
Learning needs analysis comparing novice and expert opinion, to develop a simulation-based intensive care unit training programme
Authors: Seller Daniel R. , O'Brien Robert , Brock Kim
Published: October 2014

A learning needs analysis was performed using an online survey to establish the most appropriate curriculum for a simulation-based intensive care training programme for junior physiotherapists. Perceptions were compared between an intensive care-naïve ‘novice’ group of rotational physiotherapists from a single tertiary teaching hospital in Melbourne, Australia, and an ‘expert’ group of senior intensive care physiotherapists from across Australia. The learning needs analysis survey involved two questions. Question one required participants to rank assessment topics for perceived training importance from 1 (greatest) to 6 (least). Question two required participants to select which treatment topics from a list (total 15) they felt important for further training. 14/15 (93%) of the novice group, and 15/16 (94%) of the expert group completed the surveys. The highest ranked assessment topics for both groups were assessing intubated, ventilated patients and assessment of haemodynamically unstable patients. The highest rated treatment topics for both groups were lung  hyperinflation, and rehabilitation. Based on these results and practical considerations, the subsequently developed simulation-based intensive care training programme comprised four modules: general assessment of an intensive care unit patient, assessment of haemodynamically unstable patients, positioning, and lung hyperinflation.
Physiotherapy management of knee and hip osteoarthritis: A survey of patient and medical practitioners’ expectations, experiences and perceptions of effectiveness of treatment
Authors: Reid Duncan A. , Potts Geoffrey , Burnett Mark , Konings Ben
Published: October 2014

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a common cause of hip and knee pain. Current research advocates physiotherapy as an effective form of treatment to help manage OA. The aim of the study was to investigate the self-reported behaviour, experiences, expectations, and perceptions of general practitioners (GPs), orthopaedic surgeons, and patients with regard to physiotherapy referral and management of individuals with OA of the hip and knee. A survey questionnaire was designed to gather this information. A total of 98/320 (30% response rate) participants with hip or knee OA responded. Twenty four GPs from a pool of 52 (46%), and 20/76 orthopaedic surgeons (26%) responded. Fifty-one percent of participants with OA had received physiotherapy with the majority being referred by their GP or surgeon. Common interventions applied by physiotherapists appeared to be in keeping with best practice evidence. The 49% of participants who did not receive physiotherapy were not given an indication of the benefits of treatment from physiotherapists. Those participants with OA of the hip and knee who had good access to physiotherapy services, were receiving treatment in keeping with current best practice. GPs do regularly refer patients to physiotherapy but less so orthopaedic surgeons. Further improvements in referral patterns may be possible by increasing awareness of the benefits of exercise and physiotherapy management for OA.
Mobilidade do fomesafen em solos brasileiros
Authors: Silva G.R. , D'Antonino L. , Faustino L.A. , Silva A.A. , Ferreira F.A. , Teixeira C.C. , Costa A.I.G.
Published: October 2014

A fim de prever o potencial de lixiviação e degradação de um herbicida, bem como a eficiência no controle das plantas daninhas, é essencial conhecer os processos de retenção dessa molécula no solo. Neste trabalho, avaliou-se a lixiviação do fomesafen em quatro solos: Cambissolo, Latossolo Vermelho-Amarelo com pH corrigido e original, Argissolo Vermelho-Amarelo e Organossolo. Para isso, foram utilizados bioensaios, empregando-se o híbrido de sorgo BRS655 como planta indicadora da presença do fomesafen. Os solos foram acondicionados em colunas de PVC de 10 cm de diâmetro por 50 cm de comprimento, marcadas e seccionadas a cada 5 cm de distância. Aplicou-se o herbicida fomesafen no topo das colunas, na dose de 500 g ha-1 do fomesafen. Após 12 horas procedeu-se à simulação de chuva, com aplicação de uma lâmina de água de 80 mm. Realizaram-se avaliações de intoxicação das plantas e colheita da parte aérea, para determinação da matéria seca aos 21 dias após a semeadura do sorgo em cada coluna. A ordem decrescente de lixiviação foi: Cambissolo > Latossolo Vermelho-Amarelo, pH corrigido > Latossolo Vermelho-Amarelo, pH original > Argissolo Vermelho-Amarelo > Organossolo. Os fatores que mais afetaram a lixiviação, em ordem decrescente de importância, foram o teor de matéria orgânica, a textura e o pH do solo.
Sustainability in civil engineering education: why, what, when, where and how
Authors: Fenner Richard A. , Cruickshank Heather J. , Ainger Charles
Published: October 2014

Drawing on 12 years of experience in leading engineering programmes for sustainability in a UK university, the authors take a wide view of the broad range of skills young civil engineers need to deliver more effectively the projects they are involved in. These include dealing with complexity, uncertainty, environmental limits, change, people, trade-offs, other disciplines and whole-life costs. In short, the paper asks: What education does the next generation of civil engineers need to act sustainability in what Schon has been memorably called ‘the swamp’ of professional practice? The paper examines the fundamental principles all engineers should be guided by, the optimum points to discuss such issues in engineers' educational formation, how sustainability in the curricula can be linked to civil engineering practice and specific examples of teaching strategies and pedagogies that the authors have found to be effective. A brief review of UK and international best practice in demonstrating the progress that has already been made towards these goals is also presented.
Using metal plates for measurement of cement dust emission
Authors: Henni-Chebra Khadidja , Bougara Abdlekader , Khatib Jamal M.
Published: October 2014

The manufacturing process of clinker makes the cement industry a great consumer of energy, in addition to causing air pollution such as emitting fine particles into the atmosphere and associated health problems. The objective of this work is to determine the level of dust particulate matters generated from one cement factory in the city of Chlef located in the north of Algeria. An experimental investigation on the dustfall is carried out using metal plates according to French standards on seven sampling sites. The results indicate that there exist very high levels of dust ranging from 5–20 g/m2 per day, which exceed the acceptable threshold level in some stations, whereas the dust level is very low in some others. It is proposed that the thresholds defined by the French and British standards cater mainly for sites known for their wet and rainy climate and not for those in a hot and dry climate. In general, the amount of dustfall in all sets decreases as the precipitation increases during the exposure period. The results of this study highlight the influence of the hot and dry climatic conditions on cement dust emission.
Opportunities and challenges of environmental geotechnics in China
Authors: Li Yu-Chao , Chen Yun-Min , Zhan Tony L.-T.
Published: October 2014

Environmental problems in waste management and soil contamination are serious in China. The Chinese government has paid great attention to these problems, and environmental geotechnics has become a new and promising direction for both research and industry. The opportunities and challenges of environmental geotechnics in China are presented from two aspects, that is, solid waste management and soil contamination control/remediation. New methods and technologies are required for the design and management of Chinese sanitary landfills, which contain high food waste content municipal solid wastes and commonly have high leachate mounds. The market of contaminated site remediation is developing rapidly in China as a result of growing reuse of brownfields left by relocation of old and polluting industries. The valuable experience and mature technologies of the developed countries in contaminated land remediation are helpful to promote technological advancement in China.
Alternating current method to determine chloride diffusion coefficient of hardened paste and concrete
Authors: Xiao Lianzhen , Wei Xiaosheng , Wang Shengnian
Published: October 2014

A slice sample is cut and saturated with 10% concentration sodium chloride solution. The saturated slice sample and 10% concentration sodium chloride solution are then connected in a continuous ring mould as a secondary coil in a non-contact electrical resistivity apparatus. The chloride diffusion coefficient DCl of hardened paste and concrete is calculated from the measured electrical resistivity of the slice sample based on the Nernst–Einstein equation. There is a bilinear relationship between the chloride diffusion coefficient and the reciprocal of time logarithm for different hydration periods of the samples. The slope is higher before 72 h than after 72 h. Parameter KD is obtained to describe connectivity for migration of ions. There is a good linear correlation of the chloride diffusion coefficient between concrete with an aggregate volume fraction 65% and paste with the same water–cement ratio, showing that the chloride diffusion coefficient of a concrete is a function of the chloride diffusion coefficient of a paste with the same water–cement ratio and the paste matrix volume fraction (1 − Va) inside the concrete.
Effect of chemical treatment of MSWI bottom ash for its use in concrete
Authors: Kim Jinyoung , Nam Boo Hyun , Al Muhit Baig A. , Tasneem Kazi M. , An Jinwoo
Published: October 2014

In this paper, municipal solid waste incineration (MSWI) bottom ash was characterised before and after chemical treatment and the effect of ash addition on the performance of concrete as a partial replacement of fine aggregate was evaluated. The chemical treatment aimed to eliminate the side effect of MSWI ash – the creation of a network of bubbles – which can eventually lead to a significant reduction of the overall performance of concrete. Petrographic examinations, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction, were carried out to chemically characterise the MSWI bottom ash. The mechanical performance of the ash-combined concrete was evaluated by measuring its compressive strength. Analysis of the measured data demonstrates that the chemical treatment successfully transformed metallic aluminium in the ash into a stable form and hence expansion of the concrete due to hydrogen gas evolution was no longer detected in the concrete containing treated ash. Consequently, compared with specimens with untreated ash, concrete specimens with treated bottom ash showed improved performance.
Arms race between leaf rollers and parasitoids: diversification of plant‐manipulation behavior and its consequences
Authors: Kobayashi Chisato , Matsuo Kazunori , Watanabe Kyohei , Nagata Nobuaki , Suzuki-Ohno Yukari , Kawata Masakado , Kato Makoto
Published: October 2014

Understanding the determinants of community structure remains a challenging ecological task; the plant–host insect–parasitoid community is a particularly important community because of its overwhelming biomass in terrestrial ecosystems. Some ecological and phylogenetic factors are determinants of community structure; however, the relative importance of these factors remains to be entirely elucidated because we cannot separately analyze individual factors. Here, we compared parasitoid communities among 23 weevil species. We demonstrated that the parasitoid community structures were significantly influenced by types of maternal plant manipulation and larval feeding, but not by the phylogeny of the host plant or weevil, which has diverse feeding niches even within closely related species, through maternal plant manipulation for immature weevils (e.g., shoot/petiole/seed borers, leaf miners, and leaf roll feeders). Weevil phylogenetic data indicate that although plant‐cutting behavior may have evolved as an adaptation to plant chemical defenses, some manipulation behaviors, such as cutting off plants with eggs or open and closed leaf roll construction, may be an innovative adaptation against parasitoids. However, we expect that an evolutionary arms race would exist between weevils with specific manipulations (e.g., constructing wrapped leaf rolls) and their specific parasitoids.
Herbivory drives zonation of stress‐tolerant marsh plants
Authors: He Qiang , Altieri Andrew H. , Cui Baoshan
Published: October 2014

Ecological studies of plant distributions along environmental gradients, such as plant zonation in salt marshes, have primarily focused on abiotic stress and plant interactions (competition and facilitation). A decades‐old paradigm is that the stressful and benign boundaries of salt marsh plants are determined by abiotic stress and competition, respectively. Although consumers have long been recognized as mediating algal and sessile animal zonation in the rocky intertidal, their role in generating plant zonation in salt marshes remains largely unexplored. We examined the zonation of two annual succulents, Salicornia europaea and Suaeda salsa, along an elevation gradient in a northern Chinese salt marsh, with and without manipulating the common herbivorous crab Helice tientsinensis. Salicornia occupies waterlogged, low‐salinity habitats, whereas Suaeda dominates non‐waterlogged, hypersaline habitats at higher elevations. We first conducted a pot experiment crossing salinity, waterlogging, and competition, followed by a field experiment with removal of competitors, and found that neither waterlogging nor salinity stress explained the absence of either species from the other's zone, while Suaeda competitively excluded Salicornia from the upper non‐waterlogged zone. We then conducted field and lab herbivory experiments, which showed that Helice preferentially grazed Suaeda at waterlogged low elevations and that Helice grazing on Suaeda increased with waterlogging. These results reveal that while competition plays a role in the zonation by excluding Salicornia from the upper Suaeda zone, crab grazing limits the success of Suaeda in the lower Salicornia zone. These findings challenge the idea that plant interactions and abiotic stress are sufficient to explain marsh zonation in all cases, and highlight an overlooked role of consumers, a role potentially general across diverse intertidal ecosystems. Future models of plant distributions should consider how consumer pressure interacts with plant interactions and abiotic stress across environmental gradients.
A new approach to instruction-idioms detection in a retargetable decompiler
Authors: Křoustek Jakub , Pokorný Fridolín , Kolář Dusan
Published: October 2014

Retargetable executable-code decompilation is a one of the most complicated
reverse-engineering tasks. Among others, it involves de-optimization of
compiler-optimized code. One type of such an optimization is usage of
so-called instruction idioms. These idioms are used to produce faster or
even smaller executable files. On the other hand, decompilation of
instruction idioms without any advanced analysis produces almost unreadable
high-level language code that may confuse the user of the decompiler. In
this paper, we revisit and extend the previous approach of
instruction-idioms detection used in a retargetable decompiler developed
within the Lissom project. The previous approach was based on detection of
instruction idioms in a very-early phase of decompilation (a front-end part)
and it was inaccurate for architectures with a complex instruction set (e.g.
Intel x86). The novel approach is based on delaying detection of idioms and
reconstruction of code to the later phase (a middleend part). For this
purpose, we use the LLVM optimizer and we implement this analysis as a new
pass in this tool. According to experimental results, this new approach
significantly outperforms the previous approach as well as the other
commercial solutions.
Inter-organizational design fit in inter-organizational knowledge management
Authors: Aleksic-Miric Ana
Published: October 2014

The purpose of this paper is to analyze existing knowledge on how
organizations learn using multilevel comparison perspective of intra- and
inter-organizational learning and to offer deeper understanding of the role
that organizational design properties have in inter-organizational learning.
Using Argote and Ophir (2005) findings on similarity vs complementarity fit
developed for intra-organizational learning as an anchor, we analyze the role
similarity vs complementarity fit of organizational configuration and
coordination properties in inter-organizational settings. Our intention is to
explicitly express the role of interorganizational design fit in
inter-organizational knowledge management. Framework developed here
systematizes and explains how strategic objectives of network creation
(exploration or exploitation) should be aligned with learning mechanisms
(learning by doing or learning by listening/observing) and organizational
design properties. From the point of organization theory, this paper advances
knowledge about the influence organizational design as intra-organizational
property has on knowledge transfer between organizations and
inter-organizational learning. Our framework helps managers understand how
inter-organizational design fit can influence inter-organizational learning
within the network. With regard to policy making, knowledge networks are
becoming increasingly important as a mechanism of industrial development
support, economic growth, increase of employment and poverty reduction and
this paper points to mechanisms of inter-organizational design that can be
used in managing these networks.
Intranasal Insulin Suppresses Endogenous Glucose Production in Humans Compared With Placebo in the Presence of Similar Venous Insulin Concentrations
Authors: Dash Satya , Xiao Changting , Morgantini Cecilia , Koulajian Khajag , Lewis Gary F.
Published: October 2014

Intranasal insulin (INI) has been shown to modulate food intake and food-related activity in the central nervous system in humans. Because INI increases insulin concentration in the cerebrospinal fluid, these effects have been postulated to be mediated via insulin action in the brain, although peripheral effects of insulin cannot be excluded. INI has been shown to lower plasma glucose in some studies, but whether it regulates endogenous glucose production (EGP) is not known. To assess the role of INI in the regulation of EGP, eight healthy men were studied in a single-blind, crossover study with two randomized visits (one with 40 IU INI and the other with intranasal placebo [INP] administration) 4 weeks apart. EGP was assessed under conditions of an arterial pancreatic clamp, with a primed, constant infusion of deuterated glucose and infusion of 20% dextrose as required to maintain euglycemia. Between 180 and 360 min after administration, INI significantly suppressed EGP by 35.6% compared with INP, despite similar venous insulin concentrations. In conclusion, INI lowers EGP in humans compared with INP, despite similar venous insulin concentrations. INI may therefore be of value in treating excess liver glucose production in diabetes.
The Influence of New European Union Driver’s License Legislation on Reporting of Severe Hypoglycemia by Patients With Type 1 Diabetes
Authors: Pedersen-Bjergaard Ulrik , Færch Louise , Allingbjerg Marie-Louise , Agesen Rikke , Thorsteinsson Birger
Published: October 2014

OBJECTIVE

We test the hypotheses that the implementation in Denmark of new, stricter European Union (EU) legislation on driver’s licensing, with the purpose to improve traffic safety in January 2012, has reduced the self-reported rate of severe hypoglycemia in a routine clinical setting and that anonymous reporting results in higher event rates.

RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS

A cohort of 309 patients with type 1 diabetes was recruited in the outpatient clinic at Nordsjællands University Hospital Hillerød, Denmark. Yearly numbers of severe hypoglycemic events defined by need for treatment assistance from another person were retrieved from medical records in the years 2010 to 2012 and retrospectively reported in an anonymous questionnaire. Data from medical records in 2012 were compared with those from 2010 and 2011 and with data from the questionnaire.

RESULTS

Reported rates of severe hypoglycemia in the medical records were reduced by 55% in 2012 compared with the prior years (P = 0.034). The proportion of subjects reporting recurrent episodes was grossly reduced from 5.6 to 1.5% (P = 0.014). Compared with anonymous reporting in the questionnaire, the rate of severe hypoglycemia in 2012 was 70% lower (P < 0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

Reporting of severe hypoglycemia by patients with type 1 diabetes is significantly reduced following implementation of EU driver’s licensing legislation that implies withdrawal of driver’s licensing in case of recurrent episodes within 1 year. The resulting burden of concealed severe hypoglycemia may impair the safety of affected patients and unintentionally paradoxically reduce the general traffic safety.
The Assessment of the Autonomic Response to Acute Stress Using Electrodermal Activity
Authors: M. Mestanlk , Z. Vlsnovcova , I. Tonhajzerova
Published: October 2014

The response of autonomic nervous system to mental stress is currently studied as a key role factor in the pathophysiology of stress related diseases. Altered autonomic regulation can result in increased morbidity, potentially affecting (directly or indirectly) any of the organs. Cardiovascular system (CVS) is one of the most sensitive systems to the effect of autonomic outputs. The predictive value of the laboratory stress tests was proved in several studies with CVS pathology. In this study we aimed to assess the autonomic reactivity to different mental stressors (cognitive and emotional) in healthy subjects using electrodermal activity (EDA) as a sensitive psychophysiological marker of sympathetic activity. We found significantly increased EDA in response to all the mental tasks with decrease of the values during recovery periods. However, EDA did not return to the baseline values during recovery periods, potentially indicating the sympathetic arousal during complete stress profile protocol. We suggest EDA presents a well applicable marker of the sympathetic activation, offering a different information about central regulation processes regarding the sympathetic activity compared to cardiac autonomic indices.
Coincidence of Malignancy and Congenital Thrombophilia as the Cause of Deep Venous Thrombosis - Case Report and Review of the Literature
Authors: L. Stanclakova , J. Stasko , Z. Jedlnakova , J. Sokol , I. Plamenova , L. Lisa , M. Fedor , P. Kublsz
Published: October 2014

Introduction: Deep venous thrombosis (DVT, phlebothrombosis) is a very important clinical problem with its resultant fatal pulmonary embolism (PE) as one of the possible consequences. Factor V Leiden (FV Leiden) is a genetic disorder characterized by a poor anticoagulant response to activated protein C (APC) and an increased risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE). Homozygous carriers of the FV Leiden mutation are estimated to have an 80-fold increased lifetime relative risk of VTE. Most homozygous carriers present with VTE before 40 years of age, but some can live thrombosis-free until the sixth or seventh decade of life or even remain asymptomatic for life. Case-controlled studies of patients with cancer revealed a four-fold increase in thromboembolic occurrence in acute leukaemia, with the risk of thrombosis persisting even after remission of the disease.

Case Report: The authors present a case report of the 61-year-old patient with leukaemic transformation of myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) to acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) and development of DVT of the left leg (LL) as the first clinical manifestation of homozygous FV Leiden carrier. Due to his diagnosis it was not possible to indicate surgical treatment of DVT. After initial treatment with subcutaneous low molecular weight heparin (LMWH) and continuous intravenous application of unfractionated heparin (UFH) the deficiency of antithrombin III (AT III) potentiating the persistence of his hypercoagulable state developed. Treatment with the new oral anticoagulant - rivaroxaban, vasoprotective and antithrombotic drugs in the combination with mechanical methods of VTE prophylaxis led to a reduction in edema of left thigh and calf by 3.5 cm and 4 cm, respectively. Son of the patient experienced DVT at the age of 27 years, too.

Conclusion: In this report, we describe a case of the patient with DVT during the leukaemic transformation of MDS to AML as a relatively late first clinical manifestation of homozygous FV Leiden mutation. At the same time the article deals with the clinical aspects of discussed thrombophilia in the relatives of the patient, as well as with the etiopathogenesis, pharmacologic treatment options and possible complications of DVT (PE, pulmonary hypertension and post-thrombotic syndrome).
Value Function and Optimal Control of Differential Inclusions
Authors: Donchev Tzanko , Nosheen Ammara
Published: October 2014

Optimal control system described by differential inclusion with continuous and one sided Perron right-hand side in a finite dimensional space is studied in the paper. We prove that the value function is the unique solution of a proximal Hamilton-Jacobi inequalities.
Water Quality and Crop Contamination in Peri-Urban Agriculture
Authors: Oshunsanya Suarau Odutola , Adeniran Tolafe Olayinka
Published: October 2014

The quality of untreated water used by dry season vegetable growers determines the safety of the vegetables produced for human consumption. Traditionally, small scale vegetable farmers site their farms along banks of streams which gradually dry up during the dry season resulting in isolated pockets of ponds at different intervals along the path of the streams which are used by farmers to irrigate. A field experiment was initiated at Ibadan to ascertain the quality of irrigation water used to produce vegetables along Ona-stream during the dry season. Five isolated ponds and one locally dug well were sampled and analysed to ascertain the heavy metals status. Results of soil analysis from five farms (A - E) sited very close to the stream revealed high concentrations of heavy metals ranging from 0.96 to 2.34 mg kg-1 for Pb, 0.72 to 2.16 mg kg-1 for Cr and 0.30 to 0.92 mg kg-1 for Co while farmland F sited about 90m away from the stream was free of Pb, Cr and Co contaminants. Locally dug well F water was free of Cr, Co and Pb while isolated ponds had Cr, Co and Pb in the range of 0.01 to 0.23 mg kg-1 which is beyond safe consumption thresholds. There were strong correlations between heavy metals in water and vegetable for Cr (0.992**), Cd (0.599**), Ni (0.614*) and Pb (0.552**) indicating that the hygienic status of dry season vegetables is largely determined by the quality of irrigation water. In addition, all vegetables irrigated with untreated isolated ponds contained Cd, Pb and Ni concentrations above maximum permissible standard which could pose risk to human health. Therefore, farmers should be enlightened on the need to use hygienic water for irrigation. Construction of shallow wells on the farms instead of using contaminated stream water directly could be a better option for healthy and sustainable agriculture.
First Laboratory Confirmation of Salmonid Alphavirus Type 2 (SAV2) Infection in Poland
Authors: Borzym Ewa , Maj-Paluch Joanna , Stachnik Magdalena , Matras Marek , Reichert Michał
Published: October 2014

The aim of the study was to identify the genotype of Polish isolates of salmonid alphaviruses (SAV) and to find the origin of the virus. Samples for virus isolation included the kidneys, spleen, and liver pooled from 10 fish. A typical cytopathic effect was observed after inoculation of samples on cell lines. Total RNA was extracted from cell culture supernatant and submitted to RT-PCR with primers amplifying two informative regions of the genome: a conserved region in the E2 gene and a variable region in the nsP3 gene. The sequences revealed that the strain from Poland belonged to subtype SAV 2, indicating a very strong genetic identity with isolates from Italy and France.
Haemotropic Mycoplasma Infection Revealed by Real-Time PCR in Specific Pathogen-Free Rats
Authors: Sashida Hinako , Harasawa Ryô , Ichijo Toshihiro , Satoh Hiroshi , Furuhama Kazuhisa
Published: October 2014

The presence of Mycoplasma haemomuris (haemoplasma) in blood samples collected from specific pathogen-free (SPF) laboratory rats bred in Japan was reported. Its presence was examined in Fischer 344, Sprague-Dawley (SD), and Wistar rat strains of both sexes by real-time PCR. All strains were positive for M. haemomuris infection. The 16S rRNA gene of M. haemomuris strain detected in the animals was amplified using end-point PCR. Only the entire nucleotide sequence of 16S rRNA gene of a mycoplasma strain detected in SD rats was determined and compared to those of other haemoplasmas. Our investigations suggest a wide M. haemomuris infection among the SPF rats purchased from commercial breeders in Japan.