bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Reproducibility of echocardiographic left ventricular measurements.
Authors: Wallerson D C , Devereux R B
Published: September 2013

Serial echocardiograms with acceptable reproducibility of measurements may be produced by careful performance and interpretation of the studies. The following recommendations have been shown to enhance reproducibility. Strict adherence to quality control is necessary to generate echocardiograms of the highest technical quality. Sonographers should be aware of the definition of a technically adequate study--including correct beam or plane angulation and continuous visualization of interfaces--and seek this ideal in every study. Participation by the sonographer in performance of measurements enhances recognition of the requirements for accurate quantitative echocardiography. Regular machine calibration is a prerequisite to accurate quantitative echocardiography. Considerable effort must be made to standardize the position of each acoustic window and angulation from which the patient is imaged--with deviation from these norms being recorded for future reference. If at all possible, measurements should be taken at end expiration. If that is not possible, measurement of several consecutive beats will limit the impact of respiratory variation. A uniform convention of measurement should be adopted. The best candidates for M-mode measurements are the American Society of Echocardiography recommendations for general measurement and the Penn convention for calculation of M-mode left ventricular mass. Further data is needed to determine which approaches to two-dimensional measurements best combine accuracy and reproducibility. Interpretation of echocardiograms may be made most reproducible by measuring pertinent parameters from multiple beats and using the mean as the result and by having at least two readers interpret each echocardiogram, possibly with two separate readings by each reader.
Echocardiographic assessment of left ventricular diastolic performance in hypertensive subjects. Correlation with changes in left ventricular mass.
Authors: Smith V E , White W B , Karimeddini M K
Published: September 2013

Left ventricular hypertrophy resulting from hypertension is accompanied by significant morbidity and mortality and in advanced stages may be irreversible. Hence, early detection of cardiac changes in hypertensive patients remains an important diagnostic goal. When the hypertrophy is mild or moderate, parameters of left ventricular diastolic function and measurements of left atrial size may facilitate the distinction between normal variation and pathologic increases in left ventricular mass. We measured left ventricular isovolumic relaxation time (IVRT, the time from aortic valve closure to mitral valve opening) and left atrial dimensions and correlated them to left ventricular mass index measured by M-mode echocardiography and rapid left ventricular filling by radionuclide ventriculography. In 20 subjects with untreated mild essential hypertension, IVRT was prolonged compared to a normotensive age-matched control group (91 +/- 23 vs 65 +/- 13 msec, p less than 0.0001). Left atrial dimension index was increased in patients compared to controls (1.9 +/- 0.4 vs 1.4 +/- 0.5 cm/m2, p less than 0.001), and this increase was related to prolonged IVRT (r = 0.46, p less than 0.001). Abnormal IVRT correlated with both increased left ventricular mass and decreased rapid ventricular filling in the hypertensive subjects. Thus, prolonged IVRT and borderline left atrial dimension may help identify subtle pathologic left ventricular mass increases in hypertensive subjects.
Doppler echocardiographic assessment of left ventricular systolic and diastolic function in mild hypertension.
Authors: Gardin J M , Drayer J I , Weber M , Rohan M K , Knoll M , Shu V W , Garcia R , Brewer D , Henry W L
Published: September 2013

Abnormalities in left ventricular (LV) wall thickness and mass have been demonstrated in patients with mild hypertension utilizing M-mode echocardiography. In addition, studies using radionuclide angiography have demonstrated abnormalities in early diastolic LV filling in asymptomatic hypertensive patients with normal ejection fraction and cardiac output. Recently, Doppler recordings of flow velocity in the ascending aorta and through the mitral valve have been shown to provide useful information about LV function. To determine whether flow abnormalities could be detected in patients with mild hypertension, we recorded Doppler aortic and mitral valve flow velocities in 21 men with mild hypertension. Casual systolic blood pressure was 147 +/- 18 mm Hg (mean +/- SD) and diastolic blood pressure was 96 +/- 9 mm Hg. LV mass (310 +/- 75 g) was elevated (i.e., above the 95% normal prediction interval) in 8 of 19 patients who underwent M-mode echocardiography; LV ejection fraction was normal in all patients (mean, 80%). As in previous studies in normal subjects, we found in these hypertensive patients an inverse correlation between age and both aortic peak flow velocity (r = -0.51, p less than 0.05) and transmitral early diastolic peak flow velocity (r = -0.44, p less than 0.05) and a positive relationship between age and mitral valve late diastolic peak flow velocity (r = 0.73, p less than 0.001).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Recommendations concerning use of echocardiography in hypertension and general population research.
Authors: Devereux R B , Liebson P R , Horan M J
Published: September 2013

Use of echocardiography to quantify left ventricular structure and function requires standardization of recording conditions and techniques, accurate machine calibration, and definition of requirements for measurable images. Measurement of left ventricular muscle mass should use M-mode, two-dimensional, or three-dimensional echocardiographic methods that have been anatomically validated to maximize accuracy and comparability of results among studies. Body size and sex influence ventricular muscle mass sufficiently to be taken into account for clinical and research purposes, while age and physical activity are of less certain importance. Echocardiographic studies have clarified the prevalence of left ventricular hypertrophy in hypertensive patients and the effect of blood pressure during normal activity on left ventricular muscle mass, and they have provided data suggesting that left ventricular hypertrophy is a major cardiac risk factor in hypertensive and general populations. Further research is needed to obtain definitive results in these areas, to track the hitherto elusive transition from functionally compensated cardiac hypertrophy to congestive heart failure, and to determine the degree and selectivity of beneficial cardiac effects of antihypertensive treatment. Three-dimensional echocardiographic reconstruction and Doppler measurement of intracardiac blood flow and systemic hemodynamics are likely to extend the usefulness of echocardiography for hypertension and general population research.
Inhibition of nuclear polyploidy by propranolol in aortic smooth muscle cells of hypertensive rats.
Authors: Leitschuh M , Chobanian A V
Published: September 2013

The ability of propranolol to inhibit the development of polyploidy in aortic vascular smooth muscle cells associated with hypertension was studied in deoxycorticosterone (DOC)-salt treated rats. Six-week treatment with DOC-salt resulted in significant increases in systolic blood pressure, heart weight, and aortic weight in treated animals compared to increases in uninephrectomized controls. Additionally, the percentage of tetraploid nuclei in aortic smooth muscle cells increased to 17.0 +/- 0.2% in DOC-salt treated rats versus 7.8 +/- 0.3% in normotensive controls. Administration of propranolol (500 mg/L in drinking water) did not inhibit the development of hypertension for up to 4 weeks or the associated increase in cardiac or aortic weight in DOC-salt-treated rats, but did prevent the increase in polyploidy of aortic smooth muscle cell nuclei (8.9 +/- 0.9% in propranolol-treated rats compared to 7.8 +/- 0.3% in normotensive controls). These results indicate that propranolol inhibits the development of hypertension-induced polyploidy in aortic smooth muscle cells of DOC-salt-treated rats and that factors other than blood pressure may be important in this change.
Dissociation of sympathetic nerve activity in arm and leg muscle during mental stress.
Authors: Anderson E A , Wallin B G , Mark A L
Published: September 2013

Mental stress, which increases blood pressure and heart rate, increases forearm blood flow but does not change calf blood flow. The purpose of this study was to determine if mental stress increases muscle sympathetic nerve activity in the leg and causes a dissociation of muscle sympathetic nerve activity in the arm and the leg. We recorded heart rate, blood pressure, and efferent sympathetic nerve activity during mental stress (4 minutes of mental arithmetic) in 13 healthy men. Microelectrodes were inserted percutaneously into a fascicle of the peroneal nerve (leg) and radial nerve (arm) to measure sympathetic discharge to muscle. In Study 1, leg muscle sympathetic nerve activity was recorded in seven subjects. Mental stress significantly increased heart rate and blood pressure. Despite the increased blood pressure (which would be expected reflexly to inhibit sympathetic nerve activity), leg muscle sympathetic nerve activity (in total integrated activity, bursts per 100 heart beats or bursts per minute) increased significantly during stress. Further, whereas heart rate and blood pressure returned to normal during recovery, leg muscle sympathetic nerve activity remained elevated during recovery. In Study 2, simultaneous recordings were made of arm and leg muscle sympathetic nerve activity in six subjects. Mental stress increased heart rate and arterial pressure. Leg muscle sympathetic nerve activity again increased significantly during stress and remained elevated during recovery. In contrast, arm muscle sympathetic nerve activity did not change during stress. However, arm muscle sympathetic nerve activity increased significantly during recovery after stress. These studies indicate that a sympathoexcitatory influence of mental stress overrides or inhibits baroreceptor control of leg sympathetic nerve activity and stress causes a dissociation of arm and leg muscle sympathetic nerve activity with increased outflow to the leg but not to the arm. These observations may contribute to differences in blood flow to arm and leg during mental stress.
Synthesis and characterization of arylamine derivatives of rauwolscine as molecular probes for alpha 2-adrenergic receptors.
Authors: Lanier S M , Graham R M , Hess H J , Grodski A , Repaske M G , Nunnari J M , Limbird L E , Homcy C J
Published: September 2013

The selective alpha 2-adrenergic receptor antagonist rauwolscine was structurally modified to yield a series of arylamine carboxamide derivatives, which were investigated as potential molecular probes for the localization and structural characterization of alpha 2-adrenergic receptors. The arylamine carboxamides differ in the number of carbon atoms separating the reactive phenyl moiety from the fused ring structure of the parent compound, rauwolscine carboxylate. Competitive inhibition studies with [3H]rauwolscine in rat kidney membranes indicate that the affinity for the carboxamide derivatives is inversely related to the length of the carbon spacer arm with rauwolscine 4-aminophenyl carboxamide (zero carbon spacer arm; rau-AMPC) exhibiting the highest affinity (Kd = 2.3 +/- 0.2 nM). Radioiodination of rau-AMPC yields a ligand, 125I-rau-AMPC, which binds to rat kidney alpha 2-adrenergic receptors with high affinity, as determined by both kinetic analysis (Kd = k2/k1 = 0.016 min-1/2.1 X 10(7) M-1 min-1 = 0.76 nM) and equilibrium binding studies (Kd = 0.78 +/- 0.16 nM). 125I-rau-AMPC was quantitatively converted to the photolabile arylazide derivative 17 alpha-hydroxy-20 alpha-yohimban-16 beta-(N-4-azido-3-[125I]iodophenyl) carboxamide (125I-rau-AZPC). In a partially purified receptor preparation from porcine brain, this compound photolabels a major (Mr = 62,000) peptide. The labeling of this peptide is inhibited by adrenergic agonists and antagonists with a rank order of potency consistent with an alpha 2-adrenergic receptor binding site. Both 125I-rau-AMPC and the photolabile arylazide derivative, 125I-rau-AZPC, should prove useful as molecular probes for the structural and biochemical characterization of alpha 2-adrenergic receptors.
Contribution of bradykinin to maintenance of normal blood pressure.
Authors: Gavras H , Benetos A , Gavras I
Published: September 2013

The purpose of these experiments was to investigate whether the vasodilator tissue hormone bradykinin contributes to the maintenance of normal blood pressure. A newly synthesized peptide competitive antagonist of bradykinin, the compound Arg-Pro-Hyp-Gly-Phe-Ser-DPhe-Phe-Arg-trifluoracetic acid (B3852), capable of inhibiting the depressor effect of exogenous bradykinin by over 50%, was infused into 10 normotensive rats at a rate of 500 micrograms/0.1 ml/min. Blood pressure rose immediately, from a baseline of 104 +/- 5 to 131 +/- 7 mm Hg at the end of a 5-minute infusion, and returned to baseline within 2 to 3 minutes after discontinuation of the infusion. When similar doses were administered by continuous infusion to previously nephrectomized rats (n = 5) or as an acute bolus to adrenalectomized rats (n = 5), blood pressure rose from 111 +/- 3 to 125 +/- 5 mm Hg and from 112 +/- 4 to 128 +/- 5 mm Hg, respectively. The data suggest that a vasodepressor action of endogenous bradykinin contributes to maintenance of normal peripheral vascular tone, and that this action is not mediated through adrenal catecholamines or renomedullary prostaglandins.
Endothelium-derived relaxing factor in cultured cells.
Authors: Loeb A L , Johns R A , Milner P , Peach M J
Published: September 2013

Many vasoactive agents stimulate release of an endothelium-derived relaxing factor (EDRF). EDRF stimulates cyclic guanosine 3',5'-monophosphate (cGMP) accumulation and relaxation of vascular smooth muscle in a manner similar to that produced by sodium nitroprusside. Endothelium and vascular smooth muscle were isolated from porcine, bovine, and rat thoracic aorta. The capacity of sodium nitroprusside to stimulate cGMP accumulation in cultured bovine, porcine, and rat vascular smooth muscle was found to increase with time in culture to a maximum of 12 to 14 days after plating. In addition, bovine and porcine vascular smooth muscle, but not rat vascular smooth muscle, lost the sodium nitroprusside-stimulated cGMP response after the fifth passage. Cultured endothelial cells did not respond to endothelium-dependent vasodilators or sodium nitroprusside with increased cGMP levels. Vascular smooth muscle cells responded only to sodium nitroprusside. Mixed cultures of porcine and bovine endothelium and vascular smooth muscle and bovine endothelium and rat vascular smooth muscle responded to endothelium-dependent vasodilators with increased cGMP levels. Short-term (4 hours) coculture experiments using bovine endothelium grown on microcarriers to assess the need for long-term contact between the two cell types produced similar results. Release of EDRF from bovine endothelium was studied by loading endothelium-covered microcarrier beads into a column superfused with physiological buffer. Treatment of the column with bradykinin, the calcium ionophore A23187, melittin, and arachidonate released EDRF from the column as measured by cGMP changes in denuded aortic rings and vascular smooth muscle cells and by relaxation of rings when bathed in column effluent. The time course of cGMP changes and relaxation were similar and could be reversed by hydroquinone.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Antihypertensive treatment normalizes decreased endothelium-dependent relaxations in rats with salt-induced hypertension.
Authors: Lüscher T F , Vanhoutte P M , Raij L
Published: September 2013

Endothelium-dependent responses are impaired in various models of hypertension. The effects of antihypertensive treatment on endothelium-dependent relaxations were studied in Dahl salt-sensitive (DS) and Dahl salt-resistant rats (DR) on a high or low sodium diet. The rats were given either a diet containing 8% NaCl or 0.1% NaCl for 8 weeks or a diet containing 8% NaCl and a combination of reserpine, hydrochlorothiazide, and hydralazine for 8 or 2 weeks. DS on the 8% NaCl diet developed hypertension, while the other rats did not. Antihypertensive therapy for 8 or 2 weeks prevented or reversed hypertension in DS and lowered blood pressure in DR on the 8% NaCl diet. Aortic rings with and without endothelium were suspended in organ chambers for isometric tension recording. In all groups, acetylcholine, adenosine 5'-diphosphate, and thrombin caused endothelium-dependent relaxations. The relaxations in response to all agonists were significantly decreased in DS on 8% NaCl compared to relaxations in the other rats. Antihypertensive treatment for 8 or 2 weeks prevented or reversed the decreased endothelium-dependent relaxations in response to all agonists tested, but not those to the endothelium-independent agonist, sodium nitroprusside. These results suggest that antihypertensive treatment normalizes endothelium-dependent relaxations. This effect of antihypertensive treatment might be important for the prevention of cardiovascular complications in patients with hypertension.
Role of alpha 1- and alpha 2-adrenergic receptors in the human hypertensive kidney.
Authors: de Leeuw P W , van Es P N , de Bos R , Birkenhäger W H
Published: September 2013

Since it is not known for certain which alpha-adrenergic receptors mediate renal vasoconstriction in human essential hypertension, we infused either doxazosin (n = 7) or yohimbine (n = 7) into the renal arteries of hypertensive subjects immediately prior to diagnostic angiography. Both agents caused an increment in renal blood flow as assessed with the xenon-washout technique. Doxazosin increased renal flow from 342 +/- 36 to 360 +/- 55 ml/min per 100 g (0.05 less than p less than 0.10). Yohimbine enhanced flow from 380 +/- 41 to 485 +/- 63 ml/min per 100 g (p less than 0.01). The effect of yohimbine was significantly greater than that of doxazosin. In a control group (n = 7) receiving only saline, no changes in renal blood flow occurred. Doxazosin enhanced renin secretion in the kidney by 10 +/- 4% over levels in controls (0.05 less than p less than 0.10), whereas yohimbine increased renin release by 80 +/- 23% (p less than 0.01). The latter increase was apparently not due to alterations in flow alone, since the arteriovenous gradient for renin also widened. We conclude that in resting conditions, neurogenic vascular tone in the kidney depends mainly upon activation of alpha 2-adrenergic receptors. Moreover, these receptors exert a tonic inhibitory influence on renin release.
Subpressor infusions of angiotensin II alter glomerular binding, prostaglandin E2, and cyclic AMP production.
Authors: Douglas J G
Published: September 2013

Angiotensin II (ANG II) has been postulated to have pathogenetic role in diminished glomerular function in a number of animal models of acute renal failure. The present studies were designed to test the hypothesis that modest elevations in circulating ANG II potentiate the ability of ANG II to reduce glomerular capillary surface area through an effect on ANG II binding to glomerular mesangial cells and/or influences on other modulators of function. Rat glomeruli isolated by a sieving technique were employed in vitro in an ANG II radioreceptor assay. Subpressor infusion of ANG II for 36 hours in rats increases the affinity and number of ANG II binding sites of isolated glomeruli. The ability of ANG II to influence function was tested by assessing its effect on glomerular surface area in vitro by image-analysis microscopy, a method of measuring mesangial cell contractility. The sensitivity and magnitude of ANG II-induced decrements in glomerular surface area were increased. ANG II infusion diminished glomerular prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) production, increased basal cyclic adenosine 3',5'-monophosphate (cAMP) production, and enhanced ANG II-induced decrements in cAMP production. In control glomeruli, only pharmacological concentrations of ANG II inhibited cAMP, but after ANG II infusion, physiological concentrations of ANG II were capable of inhibiting cAMP by as much as 57% (below basal values). In conclusion, continuous infusion of subpressor concentrations of ANG II in rats enhances the contractile response of the glomerular mesangial cell through effects on the cell's surface receptor for ANG II and on prostaglandin and cAMP production. These actions may be important mediators of the effects of ANG II on glomerular function associated with a number of experimental models of kidney disease.
Direct augmentation by cyclosporin A of the vascular contractile response to nerve stimulation.
Authors: Golub M S , Berger M E
Published: September 2013

Cyclosporin A administration is associated with an increased incidence of hypertension. To evaluate the direct effects of the drug on the contractile responses of vascular tissue to adrenergic stimuli, rat caudal artery ring segments were studied before and after the addition of cyclosporin A or its ethanol vehicle in vitro. In a dose-related manner, cyclosporin A augmented the contractile response to transmural nerve stimulation, with a highly significant (p less than 0.001 relative to that produced by the vehicle) lowering of the stimulation rate, a 50% of maximum contractile response (ED50) that elicited. The difference between pretreatment and treatment maximal responses to transmural nerve stimulation was also significantly greater (p less than 0.01) in the cyclosporin A-treated preparations than in those receiving the vehicle. In similar experiments, the responses to exogenous norepinephrine were not significantly affected. The effect of cyclosporin A on transmural nerve stimulation was demonstrated at several extracellular calcium concentrations. The results suggest that cyclosporin A enhances nerve stimulation responses by a presynaptic mechanism.
Homoarginine Levels Are Regulated by
l
-Arginine:Glycine Amidinotransferase and Affect Stroke Outcome
Authors: Choe Chi-un , Atzler Dorothee , Wild Philipp S. , Carter Angela M. , Böger Rainer H. , Ojeda Francisco , Simova Olga , Stockebrand Malte , Lackner Karl , Nabuurs Christine , Marescau Bart , Streichert Thomas , Müller Christian , Lüneburg Nicole , De Deyn Peter P. , Benndorf Ralf A. , Baldus Stephan , Gerloff Christian , Blankenberg Stefan , Heerschap Arend , Grant Peter J. , Magnus Tim , Zeller Tanja , Isbrandt Dirk , Schwedhelm Edzard
Published: September 2013

Background—

Endogenous arginine homologues, including homoarginine, have been identified as novel biomarkers for cardiovascular disease and outcomes. Our studies of human cohorts and a confirmatory murine model associated the arginine homologue homoarginine and its metabolism with stroke pathology and outcome.

Methods and Results—

Increasing homoarginine levels were independently associated with a reduction in all-cause mortality in patients with ischemic stroke (7.4 years of follow-up; hazard ratio for 1-SD homoarginine, 0.79 [95% confidence interval, 0.64–0.96];
P
=0.019; n=389). Homoarginine was also independently associated with the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale+age score and 30-day mortality after ischemic stroke (
P
<0.05; n=137). A genome-wide association study revealed that plasma homoarginine was strongly associated with single nucleotide polymorphisms in the
l
-arginine:glycine amidinotransferase (
AGAT
) gene (
P
<2.1×10
−8
; n=2806), and increased AGAT expression in a cell model was associated with increased homoarginine. Next, we used 2 genetic murine models to investigate the link between plasma homoarginine and outcome after experimental ischemic stroke: (1) an AGAT deletion (AGAT
−/−
) and (2) a guanidinoacetate
N
-methyltransferase deletion (GAMT
−/−
) causing AGAT upregulation. As suggested by the genome-wide association study, homoarginine was absent in AGAT
−/−
mice and increased in GAMT
−/−
mice. Cerebral damage and neurological deficits in experimental stroke were increased in AGAT
−/−
mice and attenuated by homoarginine supplementation, whereas infarct size in GAMT
−/−
mice was decreased compared with controls.

Conclusions—

Low homoarginine appears to be related to poor outcome after ischemic stroke. Further validation in future trials may lead to therapeutic adjustments of homoarginine metabolism that alleviate stroke and other vascular disorders.
Contribution and Risks of Left Ventricular Endomyocardial Biopsy in Patients With Cardiomyopathies
Authors: Chimenti Cristina , Frustaci Andrea
Published: September 2013

Background—

Use of left ventricular (LV) endomyocardial biopsy (EMB) to investigate cardiomyopathies is currently discouraged because it is considered riskier than and as contributive as right ventricular (RV) biopsy. The aim of our study is to report our experience with this option and to discuss its advantages and disadvantages.

Methods and Results—

In our center from 1983 to 2010, 4221 patients underwent diagnostic EMB. In particular, 2396 (56.8%) underwent biventricular EMB, 1153 (27.3%) underwent selective LVEMB, and 672 (15.9%) underwent selective RVEMB. The rate of complications and histological findings were retrospectively analyzed. The periprocedural major complication rate (perforation with or without cardiac tamponade, embolization) was 0.33% for LVEMB and 0.45% for RVEMB, with a significant decrease in the rate of major complications with time (from 1.6% and 1.9% in 1983–1988 to 0% and 0.3% in 2007–2013, respectively;
P
<0.001 for both), denoting a steep learning curve. No patients died. When the structural and functional abnormalities affected exclusively the LV, the diagnostic yield of LVEMB was 97.8% compared with 53% for RVEMB. Conversely, when the echocardiographic presence of increased wall thickness, local or global ventricular dilation, or dysfunction also involved the RV, the diagnosis was reached in 98.1% of LVEMBs and 96.5% of RVEMBs. This discrepancy was particularly evident for myocarditis, whereas in infiltrative and storage diseases, the histological abnormalities were always detectable in both ventricles.

Conclusions—

LVEMB is a safe procedure with very low transient complications, comparable to RVEMB. It appears diagnostically more contributive than RVEMB in patients with cardiomyopathies and clinically preserved RV.
Postcolonialisme et prise en charge institutionnelle des jeunes belgo-congolais en situation de rupture sociale (Anvers, Bruxelles)
Authors: Manço Ural , Robert Mireille-Tsheusi , Kalonji Billy
Published: September 2013

Résumé

Se basant sur une observation participante et le témoignage professionnel de deux travailleurs sociaux congolais, l’article souligne, à Anvers et à Bruxelles, les rapports entre autorités locales et associations belgo-congolaises qui rappellent l’ordre colonial. Cette réminiscence peut fournir une explication aux dysfonctionnements qui apparaissent lors de la prise en charge des jeunes belgo-congolais. Les besoins socioculturels des Belgo-Congolais ne sont pas rencontrés et leurs associations ne sont pas assez reconnues ni financées. La contribution étudie également la question identitaire de ces jeunes en proposant deux hypothèses qui pourraient fournir une base explicative au phénomène des « bandes urbaines », concernant la déstructuration de la famille migrante congolaise et l’effet socio-psychologique des séquelles coloniales. Cette approche tend à rendre caduque la réduction (souvent opérée par les pouvoirs publics) des réalités sociales des jeunes Belgo-Congolais à celles des jeunes Belges issus des immigrations marocaine et turque.
Postcolonial Stakes of Congolese (DRC) Political Space: 50 Years after Independence1
Authors: Demart Sarah , Bodeux Leïla
Published: September 2013

Abstract

This joint contribution interrogates the postcolonial relations that are at play in the Congolese political sphere in Belgium, the former colonial metropolis. Two lines of argument are developed. First, the politicisation of the postcolonial relations, which pre-dates the Congolese immigration to Belgium, is viewed from a historical perspective. Second, the highly competitive political pluralism, as observed since the early 2000s, is examined. After having restored historically the constitution and the reconstruction of this political sphere, wherein new technologies deepen the transnational movements, the authors will examine the tensions that arise from the unifying dynamics of the politically engaged Diaspora, on the one hand, and its intrinsic logics of division and fragmentation, on the other. The postcolonial issues that are at stake are to be seen on different levels: transnational, local, within the Diaspora, and between the Congolese minority and the Belgian majority. Their interconnectedness further reveals the postcolonial character of this political sphere.
Géographies religieuses et migrations postcoloniales: déclinaisons kimbanguistes, pentecôtistes, et olangistes en Belgique
Authors: Demart Sarah , Meiers Bénédicte , Mélice Anne
Published: September 2013

Resumé

L’Église kimbanguiste (EJCSK), les Églises de réveil, le Ministère du Combat Spirituel du couple Olangi, sont trois mouvements religieux d’origine congolaise affirmant un christianisme africain affranchi des assignations coloniales et néocoloniales. Bien que ces mouvements soient irréductibles les uns aux autres sur le plan historique, ils sont tous travaillés par la thématique du combat spirituel. Sur la base de recherches menées au sein de ces mondes religieux plurilocalisés, les auteurs examinent la redistribution temporelle et spatiale des territoires sorciers. Après avoir rappelé les métamorphoses de la sorcellerie dans la société congolaise depuis les années 1990, les pratiques et les discours relatifs à la sorcellerie sont examinés pour chacun des mouvements. Les recompositions religieuses qu’engage la migration en Europe sont ensuite mises en perspective en posant la question de savoir dans quelle mesure ces pratiques et discours en situation migratoire activent le référent postcolonial. Si le projet migratoire est avant tout un projet de réalisation de soi et d’affranchissement pour les adeptes du combat spirituel, il est en même temps associé à une entreprise de rédemption d’une Europe jugée en perdition, et même, selon les kimbanguistes, en proie à la sorcellerie. Ce fond commun supporte toutefois aussi des divergences. Tandis que la migration est associée à une reformulation des discours sur la famille pour les olangistes et à une forte transformation des discours et des pratiques de délivrance au sein des Églises de réveil, le déplacement en Europe correspond au contraire pour la diaspora kimbanguiste, à une confrontation accrue avec un territoire considéré comme éminemment sorcier.
Gardneria and Spigelia (Loganiaceae), two genera new to the Flora of Peninsular Malaysia
Authors: JULIUS AVELINAH , KAMIN IMIN , KIEW RUTH , UTTERIDGE TIMOTHY M.A.
Published: September 2013

The genera Gardneria and Spigelia with the discovery of G. ovata from Fraser’s Hill, Pahang, and the tropical American weed, S. anthelmia from Selangor, respectively, are new records for the Flora of Peninsular Malaysia. A full description and taxonomic notes for G. ovata and S. anthelmia in Peninsular Malaysia are presented, and the conservation status is provided for the former species. In addition, the two species are illustrated with colour photographs. An updated generic key for the Flora is provided following the APG III concept of the Loganiaceae.
Two new species of Indigofera (Leguminosae—Papilionoideae) from Thailand
Authors: Matttapha Sawai , CHANTARANOTHAI PRANOM
Published: September 2013

Two new species of Indigofera, I. smitinandii and I. udonthaniensis from Thailand are described and illustrated.
Four new species of coral gobies (Teleostei: Gobiidae: Gobiodon), with comments on their relationships within the genus
Authors: HERLER JUERGEN , BOGORODSKY SERGEY V. , SUZUKI TOSHIYUKI
Published: September 2013

Four new species of the coral-associated gobiid genus Gobiodon were discovered in the Red Sea. Although several of these species are common not only in the Red Sea but also in the Indian and western Pacific Ocean, they have not been described before. Detailed descriptions of the four species are based on morphological and molecular genetic (mitochondrial 12s and 16s rRNA) investigations. The new species, like most species of the genus, lack scales and have species-specific life colouration. Gobiodon bilineatus sp. nov. is the closest relative to G. quinquestrigatus (Valenciennes) and of G. sp. D (Munday et al.), and has five distinct, blue lines on the head as juveniles and subadults, which disappear in adults, and which are often uniformly orange-red with two distinct, vertical blue lines through each eye. Gobiodon irregularis sp. nov. has been confused with the former new species in the past, and is closely related to G. oculolineatus Wu, but is unmistakable in live colouration. Juveniles are characterised by a transparent body, red bars on the head with bluish to greyish interspaces, and irregular red lines and dots on the nape and dorsally on the body. Adults are usually uniformly brown or green-brown, with only remnants of the bars through the eye and below the orbit. Gobiodon ater sp. nov. is a small, entirely black species and can be easily confused with other black species, although it is genetically clearly distinct from G. ceramensis Bleeker and its black relatives. Gobiodon fuscoruber sp. nov. is likely to be the closest relative of G. ater sp. nov., but is uniformly reddish-brown or brown, has bright median fin margins (at least in the Red Sea), and  grows considerably larger than G. ater. It has been genetically determined that G. fuscoruber sp. nov. is identical with an Indian Ocean/western Pacific species that has been called G. unicolor Castelnau by several authors. However, examination of the holotype of G. unicolor, including the original description, revealed that the type species and original description are clearly different from the species frequently called G. unicolor. The holotype resembles G. histrio (Valenciennes) and the name G. unicolor must therefore be considered a junior synonym of G. histrio. As a consequence, a new name for this species is provided.
Taxonomic history and invasion biology of two Phyllonorycter leaf miners (Lepidoptera: Gracillariidae) with links to taxonomic and molecular datasets
Authors: DE PRINS JURATE , DE PRINS WILLY , DE CONINCK ELIANE , KAWAHARA AKITO Y. , MILTON MEGAN A. , HEBERT PAUL D.N.
Published: September 2013

This paper deals with two European species, Phyllonorycter mespilella (Hübner, 1805) and P. trifasciella (Haworth, 1828), that have colonized the subtropical Canary Islands. The Rosaceae leaf miner, P. mespilella, is recorded for the first time from Lanzarote and La Palma, while the Caprifoliaceae leaf miner, P. trifasciella, is recorded from Tenerife. We present the diagnoses of these species based on morphology, a preliminary DNA barcode (COI) library of congeneric and confamilial species, and discuss the taxonomic position of the colonizers within the blancardella and trifasciella species groups. The recent intensification of anthropogenic disturbance likely accounts for their range expansion, an event that may impact the relict flora present on the Canary Islands.
Nifedipine Induces Periostin Expression in Gingival Fibroblasts through TGF-beta
Authors: Kim S.S. , Jackson-Boeters L. , Darling M.R. , Rieder M.J. , Hamilton D.W.
Published: September 2013

Gingival enlargement is a fibrotic condition that can arise from systemic administration of the dihydropyridine calcium channel blocker nifedipine. Periostin, a transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-β)-inducible matricellular protein, has been associated with fibrosis in numerous tissues, but its expression has never been examined in nifedipine-influenced gingival enlargement (NIGE). The objective of this study was to assess if periostin up-regulation is associated with NIGE and whether nifedipine induces periostin expression in gingival fibroblasts. In NIGE tissue (n = 6), periostin is overexpressed in the gingival connective tissue compared with healthy control tissue (n = 6). The transcription factor p-SMAD2/3, which is associated with canonical TGF-β signaling, localizes to the nuclei in both HGFs and oral epithelial cells in NIGE tissues, but not in control healthy tissue. In vitro culture of HGFs with 30 and 100 ng/mL of nifedipine significantly increased periostin mRNA and protein levels, which correlated with increased levels of active TGF-β and increased phosphorylation and nuclear localization of SMAD3. Blocking of canonical TGF-β signaling through inhibition of the TGF-β receptor I with SB431542 significantly reduced nifedipine-induced SMAD3 phosphorylation and periostin expression. Our results demonstrate that nifedipine up-regulates periostin in HGFs in a TGF-β−dependent manner.
Small firms and health and safety harmonisation: Potential regulatory effects of a dominant narrative
Authors: Barrett Rowena , Mayson Susan , Bahn Susanne
Published: September 2013

Small firms are popularly viewed as resistant to complying with regulation. Harmonisation of Australia’s state-based work health and safety regimes is a significant regulatory change. In this article, we consider the likely responses of small firms to work health and safety harmonisation and argue that a range of choices are open to small firm owner-managers. These choices are shaped by individuals’ world views and are influenced by elements in the firms’ context. A significant element is the public narrative of work health and safety harmonisation, which can be understood by using discourse and sense-making concepts. Our analysis of small firm owner-manager choices takes into account small firms’ embeddedness in their regulatory context and the influence on organisational decision-making of the narrative of work health and safety harmonisation. The dominant narrative is arguably silent on the benefits of the work health and safety regulatory change and therefore the response of small firms is likely to be avoidance or minimalism. Non-compliance could be the result due to poor awareness of opportunities arising from this regulatory change.
Investigation of Ways to Handle Sampling Weights for Multilevel Model Analyses
Authors: Cai Tianji
Published: September 2013

When analysts estimate a multilevel model using survey data, they often use weighted procedures using multilevel sampling weights to correct the effect of unequal probabilities of selection. This study addresses the impacts of including sampling weights and the consequences of ignoring them by assessing the performance of four approaches: the multilevel pseudo–maximum likelihood (MPML), the probability-weighted iterative generalized least squares (PWIGLS), the naive (ignoring sampling weights), and the sample distribution methods for a linear random-intercept model under a two-stage clustering sampling design. When inclusion probabilities are correlated with the values of outcome variable conditioning on the model covariates, the sampling design becomes informative. The results show that whether a sampling design is informative and at which stage of the sampling design it is informative have substantial impacts on the estimation. The results also show that the level of variation of sampling weights is correlated with the bias of estimates. A higher level of variation of sampling weights is associated with a higher level of bias when a sampling design is informative; however, under a noninformative design, the level of variation of sampling weights may not necessarily associate with biased results. Ignoring an informative sampling design at the first stage will result in biased estimates on the intercept and variance of random effect, whereas ignoring an informative sampling design at the second stage will lead to slightly underestimated fixed effects and residual variance, in addition to the biased estimates on the intercept and variance of random effect. Including the sampling weights as the hybrid methods (MPML and PWIGLS) may still produce biased estimates on the intercept and variance of random effect and slightly underestimated fixed effects and residual variance. The sample distribution method may give unbiased estimates, but it depends on the correct specification of the sampling process.
Estimating the Association between Latent Class Membership and External Variables Using Bias-adjusted Three-step Approaches
Authors: Bakk Zsuzsa , Tekle Fetene B. , Vermunt Jeroen K.
Published: September 2013

Latent class analysis is a clustering method that is nowadays widely used in social science research. Researchers applying latent class analysis will typically not only construct a typology based on a set of observed variables but also investigate how the encountered clusters are related to other, external variables. Although it is possible to incorporate such external variables into the latent class model itself, researchers usually prefer using a three-step approach. This is the approach wherein after establishing the latent class model for clustering (step 1), one obtains predictions for the class membership scores (step 2) and subsequently uses these predicted scores to assess the relationship between class membership and other variables (step 3). Bolck, Croon, and Hagenaars (2004) showed that this approach leads to severely downward-biased estimates of the strength of the relationships studied in step 3. These authors and later also Vermunt (2010) developed methods to correct for this bias. In the current study, we extended these correction methods to situations where class membership is not predicted but used as an explanatory variable in the third step, a situation widely encountered in social science applications. A simulation study tested the performance of the proposed correction methods, and their practical use was illustrated with real data examples. The results showed that also when the latent class variable is used as a predictor of external variables, the uncorrected three-step approach leads to severely biased estimates. The proposed correction methods perform well under conditions encountered in practice.
Modeling Household Decisions Using Longitudinal Data from Household Panel Surveys, with Applications to Residential Mobility
Authors: Steele Fiona , Clarke Paul , Washbrook Elizabeth
Published: September 2013

Many events occurring to married or cohabiting individuals are the result of decisions made jointly by both partners. However, studies of life-course events usually take an individual or head-of-household perspective and so do not explicitly reflect the joint nature of these decisions. Household panel studies and population registers are a rich resource for the study of household events, but analyzing such data presents major analytical challenges. Models should ideally allow for the influence of both partners in a couple’s decision making and be flexible enough to handle the facts that individuals can change their partners and have periods when they are not in coresidential unions. In this article, the authors propose two types of multilevel random-effects models to address some of these issues: a “multiple-membership” model in which the outcome depends on a weighted combination of the random effects for each decision maker and a random-coefficients model that allows different random effects for individuals when they are single and partnered. All methods are discussed in terms of a binary household outcome before describing more general discrete-choice models for nominal outcomes. The proposed methods are compared with previously used approaches in a simulation study and illustrated in analyses of residential mobility using data from the British Household Panel Survey.
Detailed Wage Decompositions
Authors: Kim ChangHwan
Published: September 2013

Yun (2005) suggested an averaging method to resolve the identification problem in detailed decompositions. Since then, detailed decomposition techniques have been widely discussed. This paper shows that the averaging method may not answer the identification problem. The method is built on unrealistic distributional constraints on a set of dummy variables and is sensitive to both the number of groups and the method of grouping. As an alternative, a weighted averaging method is suggested that is in line with Haisken-DeNew and Schmidt’s (1997) two-step renormalization. This method gives a distinct meaning to the intercept term and makes detailed decomposition feasible using a reasonable assumption. However, this paper underscores that there are multiple solutions to the identification problem, and that other detailed decomposition methods may be acceptable depending on theoretical or practical considerations.
New Regression Models with Egocentric Social Network Data
Authors: Yamaguchi Kazuo
Published: September 2013

This paper introduces some regression models for a categorical dependent variable with data from egocentric social networks as covariates to analyze the determinants of the outcome for the subject and the determinants of the extent of agreement in the outcome between the subject and the people socially connected to the subject. The merits of the models introduced in this paper are their wide applicability to surveys that collect data on egocentric social networks and their ability to identify the determinants of agreement between subjects’ and their friends’ attitudinal or behavioral outcomes, controlling for the tendency to agree because of homophily in the choice of friends. An illustrative application from the Japanese General Social Survey data shows that several substantively distinct characteristics of egocentric networks affect subjects’ political party preferences and the extent of agreement between the political party preferences of subjects and their significant others.
The Development of Achievement Goals Throughout College
Authors: Corker Katherine S. , Donnellan M. Brent , Bowles Ryan P.
Published: September 2013

Emerging adulthood, defined for many by the college years, is an active period of personality development; less is known about goal change during these years. We investigated stability and change in the 2 × 2 model of achievement goals over 4 years ( N = 527). We evaluated rank-order stability and mean-level change, and tested goal coupling hypotheses—the idea that early changes in goals predict later change in other goals—using multivariate latent difference score models. Achievement goals showed moderate rank-order stability over 4 years. Three of four goals demonstrated small normative declines, excepting performance approach goals. A change in mastery approach goals was associated with levels of the other three goals; these goals jointly acted to slow the decline of mastery goals. Trajectories for the other three goals were largely independent. Results suggest that goals are relatively stable individual differences during the college years.