bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Community Perception towards Mental Illness among Residents of Gimbi Town, Western Ethiopia
Authors: Benti Misael , Ebrahim Jemal , Awoke Tadesse , Yohannis Zegeye , Bedaso Asres
Published: October 2016

Background. Despite the increased burden of mental health problem, little is known about knowledge and perception of the public towards mental health problems in Ethiopia. Methods. Community based cross-sectional study was conducted among selected 845 Gimbi town residents from May 28 to June 28, 2014. Results. Out of the total study participants, 304 (37.3%) were found to have poor perception (a score below mean five semantic differential scales for positive questions and above mean for negative questions) of mental illness. Being above 28 years of age (AOR = 0.48 CI (0.23, 0.78)), private workers (AOR = 0.41 CI (0.19, 0.87)), and lack of mental health information were found to be associated with poor perception of mental illness (AOR = 0.133 CI (0.09, 0.20)). Absence of family history of mental illness was also found to be associated with poor perception of mental illness (AOR = 0.37 CI (0.21, 0.66)). Conclusions. Significant proportions of the community in Gimbi town were found to have poor perception of mental illness. Poor perception is common among old aged, less educated, private workers, those unable to access mental health information, and those with no family history of mental illness. Mental health education on possible causes, treatment options, and possible outcome of treatment to the community is required.
An Experimental Study on Botulinum Toxin Type A for the Treatment of Excessive Secretion after Submandibular Gland Transplantation in Rabbits
Authors: Xie Shang , Xu Hui , Lin Bo , Wang Kan , Shan Xiao-Feng , Cai Zhi-Gang
Published: October 2016

Objectives. To investigate whether botulinum toxin type A (BTXA) could control excessive secretion after submandibular gland (SMG) transplantation in rabbits and its possible mechanisms.Methods. A new SMG transplantation model was established in rabbit. 30 successfully constructed models were randomly assigned to five groups including control group and four experimental groups. Secretion outputs were used to analyze the effect of BTXA injection on excessive secretion. Hematoxylin and eosin (HE) staining, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Western blot, and immunofluorescence were performed to analyze its possible mechanisms.Results. After BTXA injection, a significant decrease of excessive secretion after SMG transplantation was found in 2 and 4 weeks groups, but no significant effect on 12 and 24 weeks groups. HE and TEM results showed that BTXA led to morphological and ultrastructural changes of acinar cells of transplanted SMG. Western blot results suggested that BTXA decreased the aquaporin-5 (AQP5) protein expression after BTXA injection for 2 and 4 weeks. Immunofluorescence results showed that AQP5 protein was mainly expressed in the cytoplasm after BTXA injection for 2 and 4 weeks, which might indicate that BTXA promoted AQP5 expression from the cell membrane to cytoplasm.Conclusion. BTXA could effectively control excessive secretion after SMG transplantation in rabbits.
Microwave-Assisted Tissue Preparation for Rapid Fixation, Decalcification, Antigen Retrieval, Cryosectioning, and Immunostaining
Authors: Katoh Kazuo
Published: October 2016

Microwave irradiation of tissue during fixation and subsequent histochemical staining procedures significantly reduces the time required for incubation in fixation and staining solutions. Minimizing the incubation time in fixative reduces disruption of tissue morphology, and reducing the incubation time in staining solution or antibody solution decreases nonspecific labeling. Reduction of incubation time in staining solution also decreases the level of background noise. Microwave-assisted tissue preparation is applicable for tissue fixation, decalcification of bone tissues, treatment of adipose tissues, antigen retrieval, and other special staining of tissues. Microwave-assisted tissue fixation and staining are useful tools for histological analyses. This review describes the protocols using microwave irradiation for several essential procedures in histochemical studies, and these techniques are applicable to other protocols for tissue fixation and immunostaining in the field of cell biology.
Proteome Analysis of Date Palm (Phoenix dactyliferaL.) under Severe Drought and Salt Stress
Authors: El Rabey Haddad A. , Al-Malki Abdulrahman L. , Abulnaja Khalid O.
Published: October 2016

Date palm cultivars differently tolerate salinity and drought stress. This study was carried out to study the response of date palm to severe salinity and drought based on leaf proteome analysis. Eighteen-month-old date palm plants were subjected to severe salt (48 g/L NaCl) and drought (82.5 g/L PEG or no irrigation) conditions for one month. Using a protein 2D electrophoresis method, 55 protein spots were analyzed using mass spectrometry. ATP synthase CF1 alpha chains were significantly upregulated under all three stress conditions. Changes in the abundance of RubisCO activase and one of the RubisCO fragments were significant in the same spots only for salt stress and drought stress with no irrigation, and oxygen-evolving enhancer protein 2 was changed in different spots. Transketolase was significantly changed only in drought stress with PEG. The expression of salt and drought stress genes of the chosen protein spots was either overexpressed or downexpressed as revealed by the high or low protein abundance, respectively. In addition, all drought tolerance genes due to no irrigation were downregulated. In conclusion, the proteome analysis of date palm under salinity and drought conditions indicated that both salinity and drought tolerance genes were differentially expressed resulting in high or low protein abundance of the chosen protein spots as a result of exposure to drought and salinity stress condition.
Pharmacological Relaxation of the Ureter When Using Ureteral Access Sheaths during Ureterorenoscopy: A Randomized Feasibility Study in a Porcine Model
Authors: Lildal Søren Kissow , Andreassen Kim Hovgaard , Christiansen Frederikke Eichner , Jung Helene , Pedersen Malene Roland , Osther Palle Jörn Sloth
Published: October 2016

Objective. High intraluminal pressure during ureterorenoscopy (URS) increases risk of infectious and haemorrhagic complications. Intrarenal pressure may be reduced by the use of ureteral access sheaths (UASs), which on the other hand may cause ureteral damage. We have previously shown that the β-agonist isoproterenol (ISO), when administered topically in the irrigation fluid, is able to inhibit ureteral muscle tone and lower intrarenal pressure during URS. The aim of this study was to examine the effect of ISO on the success rate of UAS insertion in a porcine model. Materials and Methods. 22 pigs in which a UAS could not initially be placed were randomized to endoluminal irrigation with either ISO (0.1 μg/mL) or saline before a new insertion trial. Subsequently, it was registered whether the UAS could be passed without resistance. During extraction of the sheath, any ureteral lesions were characterized ureteroscopically using the PULS classification system. Surgeons were blinded to randomization. Results. In the ISO group, the observed effect of irrigation was 63% successful UAS insertions, compared to 27% in the saline group. No serious lesions (<PULS grade 2) were observed in the ISO group. Conclusions. Endoluminal irrigation with ISO may facilitate UAS insertion and potentially decrease UAS related ureteral lesions.
Comprehensive Comparison of the Performance of Autogenous Brachial-Basilic Transposition Arteriovenous Fistula and Prosthetic Forearm Loop Arteriovenous Graft in a Multiethnic Asian Hemodialysis Population
Authors: Chue Koy Min , Thant Kyi Zin , Luo Hai Dong , Soh Yu Hang Rodney , Ho Pei
Published: October 2016

Aim.For patients who have exhausted cephalic vein arteriovenous fistula (AVF) options, controversy exists on whether brachial-basilic AVF with transposition (BBTAVF) or a forearm arteriovenous graft (AVG) should be the next vascular access of choice. This study compared the outcomes of these two modalities.Methods.A retrospective study of 122 Asian multiethnic patients who underwent either a BBTAVF (81) or an AVG (41). Maturation time and intervention rates were analyzed. Functional primary, secondary, and overall patency rates were evaluated.Results.The maturation time for BBTAVFs was significantly longer than AVGs. There was also a longer deliberation time before surgeons abandon a failing BBTAVF compared to an AVG. Both functional primary and secondary patency rates were significantly higher in the BBTAVF group at 1-year follow-up: 73.2% versus 34.1% (p<0.001) and 71.8% versus 54.3% (p=0.022), respectively. AVGs also required more interventions to maintain patency. When maturation rates were considered, the overall patency of AVGs was initially superior in the first 25 weeks after creation and then became inferior afterwards.Conclusion.BBTAVFs had superior primary and functional patency and required less salvage interventions. The forearm AVG might have a role in patients who require early vascular access due to complications from central venous catheters or with limited life expectancy.
The Biodistribution and Immune Suppressive Effects of Breast Cancer–Derived Exosomes
Authors: Wen Shu Wen , Sceneay Jaclyn , Lima Luize Goncalves , Wong Christina S.F. , Becker Melanie , Krumeich Sophie , Lobb Richard J. , Castillo Vanessa , Wong Ke Ni , Ellis Sarah , Parker Belinda S. , Möller Andreas
Published: October 2016

Small membranous secretions from tumor cells, termed exosomes, contribute significantly to intercellular communication and subsequent reprogramming of the tumor microenvironment. Here, we use optical imaging to determine that exogenously administered fluorescently labeled exosomes derived from highly metastatic murine breast cancer cells distributed predominantly to the lung of syngeneic mice, a frequent site of breast cancer metastasis. At the sites of accumulation, exosomes were taken up by CD45+ bone marrow–derived cells. Subsequent long-term conditioning of naïve mice with exosomes from highly metastatic breast cancer cells revealed the accumulation of myeloid-derived suppressor cells in the lung and liver. This favorable immune suppressive microenvironment was capable of promoting metastatic colonization in the lung and liver, an effect not observed from exosomes derived from nonmetastatic cells and liposome control vesicles. Furthermore, we determined that breast cancer exosomes directly suppressed T-cell proliferation and inhibited NK cell cytotoxicity, and hence likely suppressed the anticancer immune response in premetastatic organs. Together, our findings provide novel insight into the tissue-specific outcomes of breast cancer–derived exosome accumulation and their contribution to immune suppression and promotion of metastases. Cancer Res; 76(23); 6816–27. ©2016 AACR.
A Hyaluronidase-Responsive Nanoparticle-Based Drug Delivery System for Targeting Colon Cancer Cells
Authors: Zhang Mingzhen , Xu Changlong , Wen Liuqing , Han Moon Kwon , Xiao Bo , Zhou Jun , Zhang Yuchen , Zhang Zhan , Viennois Emilie , Merlin Didier
Published: October 2016

The ability of nanoparticles to target tumors and to enable site-specific drug release provides a unique system for the delivery of effective therapy with reduced toxic side effects. In this study, we used mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSN) to fabricate a targeted drug delivery system that is responsive to hyaluronidase (HAase). Following engraftment of desthiobiotin onto the surface of MSN, a streptavidin complex was generated, which was functionalized with biotin-modified hyaluronic acid (HA) to enable controlled drug release at cancer cells expressing HAase. Various technologies were used to confirm the successful fabrication of this MSN-based nanocarrier system for targeted drug delivery. In vitro analyses showed that the release of doxorubicin hydrochloride (Dox) was accelerated significantly in the presence of biotin or HAase and accelerated further in the presence of biotin and HAase. Uptake by cancer cells was mediated efficiently by CD44 receptor–mediated endocytosis and the MSN exhibited good biocompatibility in vitro and in vivo. MSN-HA/Dox nanoparticles induced apoptosis in cancer cells more efficiently than free doxorubicin and inhibited tumor growth with minimal systemic toxicity in vivo. Collectively, our findings offered a preclinical proof of concept for a novel targeted drug delivery carrier system for cancer therapy. Cancer Res; 76(24); 7208–18. ©2016 AACR.
Screening Men at Increased Risk for Prostate Cancer Diagnosis: Model Estimates of Benefits and Harms
Authors: Gulati Roman , Cheng Heather H. , Lange Paul H. , Nelson Peter S. , Etzioni Ruth
Published: October 2016

Background: Guidelines for PSA screening in subgroups with increased risk of prostate cancer diagnosis due to race or genotype are underdeveloped. Our goal was to investigate types of increased prostate cancer risk and implications for targeted screening.

Methods: We investigated computer simulation of subgroups with average and hypothetical increased risk(s) of onset of latent disease, progression, and/or cancer-specific death. For each subgroup, we predicted lifetime probabilities of overdiagnosis and life saved under more and less intensive PSA screening strategies. An application estimated risks of onset among BRCA1/2 mutation carriers in the Identification of Men with a genetic predisposition to ProstAte Cancer: Targeted screening in BRCA1/2 mutation carriers and controls (IMPACT) study using maximum likelihood.

Results: Our simulations implied PSA screening can save more lives among subgroups with increased risk than with average risk, but more intensive screening did not always improve harm–benefit trade-offs. IMPACT data were consistent with increased risks of onset among BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation carriers [HR = 1.05; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.63–1.59 and HR = 1.81; 95% CI, 1.14–2.78, respectively]. Our analysis suggests screening BRCA2 mutation carriers earlier and more frequently than the average-risk population, but a lower PSA threshold for biopsy is unlikely to improve outcomes.

Conclusions: Effective screening in men with increased prostate cancer risk depends on the manner in which the risk is increased. More intensive screening is not always optimal.

Impact: Guidelines for screening men at increased prostate cancer risk should consider the mechanism inducing the increased risk. Although the benefit of screening may be greater in men with increased risks, more intensive screening is not always appropriate. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev; 26(2); 222–7. ©2016 AACR.
Molecular Pathways: Maintaining MAPK Inhibitor Sensitivity by Targeting Nonmutational Tolerance
Authors: Smith Michael P. , Wellbrock Claudia
Published: October 2016

Targeting hyperactive MAPK signaling has proven to be an effective treatment for a variety of different cancers. Responses to the BRAF inhibitors vemurafenib and dabrafenib and the MEK inhibitors trametinib and cobimetinib are, however, transient, and complete remission is rarely observed; rather, outgrowth of resistant clones within progressed tumors appears inevitable. These resistant tumors display great heterogeneity, which poses a major challenge to any salvage therapy. Recent focus has, therefore, been on the early dynamics of inhibitor response during tumor regression. During this time, cells can persist in an adapted tolerant state, which results in a phase of nonmutational drug tolerance. In this article, we discuss how inhibition of the MAPK pathway leads to an adaptive rewiring that evolves from the relief of immediate negative feedback loops to short-term gene expression changes and adaptation of intracellular signaling. Tolerance can also be mediated by external signaling from the tumor microenvironment, which itself adapts upon treatment and the selection for cells with an innate drug-tolerant phenotype. In preclinical models, combination treatment with receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) inhibitors (lapatinib and dasatinib), histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitors (vorinostat and entinostat), or drugs targeting cancer-specific mechanisms (nelfinavir in melanoma) can overcome this early tolerance. A better understanding of how nonmutational tolerance is created and supported may hold the key to better combinational strategies that maintain drug sensitivity. Clin Cancer Res; 22(24); 5966–70. ©2016 AACR.
Long-term Follow-up of Treatment with Ibrutinib and Rituximab in Patients with High-Risk Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia
Authors: Jain Preetesh , Keating Michael J. , Wierda William G. , Sivina Mariela , Thompson Philip A. , Ferrajoli Alessandra , Estrov Zeev , Kantarjian Hagop , O'Brien Susan , Burger Jan A.
Published: October 2016

Background: Ibrutinib is an active therapy with an acceptable safety profile for patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), including high-risk patients with del17p or with TP53 mutations. Ibrutinib is broadly indicated for the treatment of patients with CLL and specifically including those with 17p deletion. The optimal use of ibrutinib in combination with other agents remains controversial.

Experimental Design: We report the long-term outcome [median follow-up of 47 months (range, 36–51 months)] of 40 patients with high-risk CLL, treated on the first ibrutinib combination trial with rituximab (IR). The majority of patients (36/40) were previously treated.

Results: Median age was 65 years, and 21 patients (52%) had 17p deletion. Median duration on treatment was 41 months (range, 2–51 months), and median number of treatment cycles was 42 (range, 2–49). Overall response rate was 95%, and 9 patients (23%) attained a complete remission. Twenty-one patients discontinued treatment, 10 due to disease progression, 9 for other causes, and 2 due to stem cell transplantation; the remaining 19 patients continue on ibrutinib. Median progression-free survival for all patients was 45 months, which was significantly shorter in the subgroup of patients with del17p (n = 21, 32.3 months, P = 0.02). Fourteen patients (35%) died, five from progressive disease, five from infections, and four from other causes. Median overall survival has not been reached.

Conclusions: IR combination therapy leads to durable remissions in high-risk CLL; the possible benefit from the addition of rituximab is currently explored in a randomized trial. Clin Cancer Res; 23(9); 2154–8. ©2016 AACR.
N-Arachidonoyl Dopamine Inhibits NRAS Neoplastic Transformation by Suppressing Its Plasma Membrane Translocation
Authors: Wu Min , Huang Jinyan , Zhang Jianming , Benes Cyril , Jiao Bo , Ren Ruibao
Published: October 2016

RAS oncogenic mutations are common in human cancers, but RAS proteins have been difficult to target. We sought to identify pharmacological agents to block RAS oncogenic signaling by a distinct mechanism. Because the biological activity of RAS proteins relies upon lipid modifications and RAS regulates lipid metabolisms in cancer cells, we screened a bioactive lipid library using a RAS-specific cell viability assay. We report the discovery of a new class of inhibitors for RAS transformation. Compounds in the class represented by endocannabinoid N-arachidonoyl dopamine (NADA) can induce cell oncosis, independent of its ability to engage cannabinoid receptors. Further analyses show that NADA is more active in inhibiting the NRAS transformation and signaling than that of KRAS4B. Mechanistically, NADA blocks the plasma membrane translocation of NRAS, but not that of KRAS4B. In addition, NADA inhibits plasma membrane translocation and neoplastic transformation of oncogenic KRAS4A. Interestingly, NADA also redistributes the cytoplasmic NRAS to the Golgi apparatus in a palmitoylation-dependent manner. The results indicate that NADA inhibits NRAS and KRAS4A plasma membrane translocation by targeting a novel molecular process. The new findings would help to develop novel targeted therapies for a broad range of human cancers. Mol Cancer Ther; 16(1); 57–67. ©2016 AACR.
Emergence of the Noncoding Cancer Genome: A Target of Genetic and Epigenetic Alterations
Authors: Zhou Stanley , Treloar Aislinn E. , Lupien Mathieu
Published: October 2016

The emergence of whole-genome annotation approaches is paving the way for the comprehensive annotation of the human genome across diverse cell and tissue types exposed to various environmental conditions. This has already unmasked the positions of thousands of functional cis-regulatory elements integral to transcriptional regulation, such as enhancers, promoters, and anchors of chromatin interactions that populate the noncoding genome. Recent studies have shown that cis-regulatory elements are commonly the targets of genetic and epigenetic alterations associated with aberrant gene expression in cancer. Here, we review these findings to showcase the contribution of the noncoding genome and its alteration in the development and progression of cancer. We also highlight the opportunities to translate the biological characterization of genetic and epigenetic alterations in the noncoding cancer genome into novel approaches to treat or monitor disease.

Significance: The majority of genetic and epigenetic alterations accumulate in the noncoding genome throughout oncogenesis. Discriminating driver from passenger events is a challenge that holds great promise to improve our understanding of the etiology of different cancer types. Advancing our understanding of the noncoding cancer genome may thus identify new therapeutic opportunities and accelerate our capacity to find improved biomarkers to monitor various stages of cancer development. Cancer Discov; 6(11); 1215–29. ©2016 AACR.
Increased Heme Oxygenase-1 and Nuclear Factor Erythroid 2-Related Factor-2 in the Placenta Have a Cooperative Action on Preeclampsia
Authors: Li Jing , Zhou Jun , Ye Yuanhua , Liu Qunying , Wang Xiaojin , Zhang Ning , Wang Xietong
Published: October 2016

Background: Previous studies have shown that oxidative stress is an important factor in preeclampsia (PE). Heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) and nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor-2 (Nrf2) are protective proteins that are involved in combating oxidative stress in the body. Nrf2 is also an essential upstream transcription factor regulating HO-1. This study was aimed at exploring the physiological roles of HO-1 and Nrf2 in PE. Methods: Serum and placenta were collected from 30 patients who presented with severe PE and 30 healthy pregnant females. HO-1 and Nrf2 levels in placenta were measured. Following stimulation of the HTR-8/SVneo cell line with tert-butylhydroquinone (tBHQ), an Nrf2 activator, nuclear Nrf2 protein and HO-1 mRNA levels were determined. Results: Compared with the healthy pregnancy group, HO-1 protein and mRNA levels were increased in placental samples obtained from the severe PE group (p < 0.01, p < 0.05). Similar increases were also observed for Nrf2 protein levels (p < 0.01). Nuclear Nrf2 protein and HO-1 mRNA levels were both increased in the HTR-8/SVneo cell line following stimulation with tBHQ (p < 0.05). Conclusion: Patients with severe PE may be protected against oxidative injury following an elevation in HO-1 and Nrf2 levels. Nrf2 is likely to have a synergistic effect on HO-1 in PE.
The risk of venous thromboembolism in patients with cirrhosis
Authors: Ambrosino Pasquale , Tarantino Luciano , Di Minno Giovanni , Paternoster Mariano , Graziano Vincenzo , Petitto Maurizio , Nasto Aurelio , Di Minno Matteo Nicola
Published: October 2016

Some studies suggest that patients with cirrhosis have an increased risk of deep venous thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism (PE). Unfortunately, available data on this association are contrasting. It was the objective of this study to perform a systematic review and meta-analysis of literature to evaluate the risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE) associated with cirrhosis. Studies reporting on VTE risk associated with cirrhosis were systematically searched in the PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus and EMBASE databases. Eleven studies (15 data-sets) showed a significantly increased VTE risk in 695,012 cirrhotic patients as compared with 1,494,660 non-cirrhotic controls (OR: 1.703; 95 %CI: 1.333, 2.175; P<0.0001). These results were confirmed when specifically considering the risk of DVT (7 studies, OR: 2.038; 95 %CI: 1.817, 2.285; P<0.0001) and the risk of PE (5 studies, OR: 1.655; 95 %CI: 1.042, 2.630; p=0.033). The increased VTE risk associated with cirrhosis was consistently confirmed when analysing nine studies reporting adjusted risk estimates (OR: 1.493; 95 %CI: 1.266, 1.762; p<0.0001), and after excluding studies specifically enrolling populations exposed to transient risk factors for VTE (OR: 1.689; 95 %CI: 1.321, 2.160; p<0.0001). Meta-regression models suggested that male gender may significantly impact on the risk of VTE associated with cirrhosis. Results of our meta-analysis suggest that cirrhotic subjects may exhibit an increased risk of VTE. This should be considered to plan specific prevention strategies in this clinical setting.

Supplementary Material to this article is available online at www.thrombosis-online.com.
Heart Failure, Left Ventricular Remodeling, and Circulating Nitric Oxide Metabolites
Authors: Chirinos Julio A. , Akers Scott R. , Trieu Lien , Ischiropoulos Harry , Doulias Paschalis‐Thomas , Tariq Ali , Vasim Izzah , Koppula Maheswara R. , Syed Amer Ahmed , Soto‐Calderon Haideliza , Townsend Raymond R. , Cappola Thomas P. , Margulies Kenneth B. , Zamani Payman
Published: October 2016

Background

Stable plasma nitric oxide (
NO
) metabolites (

NO
M

), composed predominantly of nitrate and nitrite, are attractive biomarkers of
NO
bioavailability.

NO
M

levels integrate the influence of
NO
‐synthase‐derived
NO
production/metabolism, dietary intake of inorganic nitrate/nitrite, and clearance of

NO
M

. Furthermore, nitrate and nitrite, the most abundant

NO
M

, can be reduced to
NO
via the nitrate‐nitrite‐
NO
pathway.

Methods and Results

We compared serum

NO
M

among subjects without heart failure (n=126), subjects with heart failure and preserved ejection fraction (
HF
p
EF
; n=43), and subjects with heart failure and reduced ejection fraction (
HF
r
EF
; n=32).
LV
mass and extracellular volume fraction were measured with cardiac
MRI
. Plasma

NO
M

levels were measured after reduction to
NO
via reaction with vanadium (
III
)/hydrochloric acid. Subjects with
HF
p
EF
demonstrated significantly lower unadjusted levels of

NO
M

(8.0 μmol/L; 95%
CI
6.2–10.4 μmol/L;
ANOVA
P
=0.013) than subjects without
HF
(12.0 μmol/L; 95%
CI
10.4–13.9 μmol/L) or those with
HF
r
EF
(13.5 μmol/L; 95%
CI
9.7–18.9 μmol/L). There were no significant differences in

NO
M

between subjects with
HF
r
EF
and subjects without
HF
. In a multivariable model that adjusted for age, sex, race, diabetes mellitus, body mass index, current smoking, systolic blood pressure, and glomerular filtration rate,
HF
p
EF
remained a predictor of lower

NO
M

(β=−0.43;
P
=0.013).

NO
M

did not correlate with
LV
mass, or
LV
diffuse fibrosis.

Conclusions

HF
p
EF
, but not
HF
r
EF
, is associated with reduced plasma

NO
M

, suggesting greater endothelial dysfunction, enhanced clearance, or deficient dietary ingestion of inorganic nitrate. Our findings may underlie the salutary effects of inorganic nitrate supplementation demonstrated in recent clinical trials in
HF
p
EF
.
On the Mathematical Consequences of Binning Spike Trains
Authors: Cessac Bruno , Le Ny Arnaud , Löcherbach Eva
Published: October 2016

We initiate a mathematical analysis of hidden effects induced by binning spike trains of neurons. Assuming that the original spike train has been generated by a discrete Markov process, we show that binning generates a stochastic process that is no longer Markov but is instead a variable-length Markov chain (VLMC) with unbounded memory. We also show that the law of the binned raster is a Gibbs measure in the DLR (Dobrushin-Lanford-Ruelle) sense coined in mathematical statistical mechanics. This allows the derivation of several important consequences on statistical properties of binned spike trains. In particular, we introduce the DLR framework as a natural setting to mathematically formalize anticipation, that is, to tell “how good” our nervous system is at making predictions. In a probabilistic sense, this corresponds to condition a process by its future, and we discuss how binning may affect our conclusions on this ability. We finally comment on the possible consequences of binning in the detection of spurious phase transitions or in the detection of incorrect evidence of criticality.
Phytoseiid mites of the genus Euseius (Acari: Phytoseiidae) from Sub-Saharan Africa
Authors: DE MORAES G. J. , UECKERMANN E. A. , OLIVEIRA A. R. , YANINEK J. S.
Published: October 2016

Forty five species of phytoseiid mites of the genus Euseius collected in Sub-Saharan Africa are reported. Eight of these species are new to science, namely: Euseius neodossei n. sp., E. neolokele n. sp., E. neomagucii n. sp., E. nigeriaensis n. sp., E. reticulatus n. sp., E . ugandaensis n. sp., E. zairensis n. sp. and E. zambiaensis n. sp. All mentioned species are re-described based mostly on specimens collected in this study, and a key is provided to separate their females.
Aphidius linosiphonis sp. n. (Hymenoptera; Braconidae; Aphidiinae), a new member of the aphid parasitoid guild associated with Galium
Authors: TOMANOVIC ZELJKO , STARÝ PETR
Published: October 2016

Examination of Aphidius matricariae Haliday specimens from Yugoslavia yielded the presence of a new species reared from Linosiphon sp. on Galium silvaticum. Aphidius linosiphonis sp. n. is described and is differentiated from its relatives based on differences in morphology. This species also was found in collections from the Czech Republic and the Slovak Republic.
An Ensemble Kalman Filter for Numerical Weather Prediction Based on Variational Data Assimilation: VarEnKF
Authors: Buehner Mark , McTaggart-Cowan Ron , Heilliette Sylvain
Published: October 2016

Several NWP centers currently employ a variational data assimilation approach for initializing deterministic forecasts and a separate ensemble Kalman filter (EnKF) system both for initializing ensemble forecasts and for providing ensemble background error covariances for the deterministic system. This study describes a new approach for performing the data assimilation step within a perturbed-observation EnKF. In this approach, called VarEnKF, the analysis increment is computed with a variational data assimilation approach both for the ensemble mean and for all of the ensemble perturbations. To obtain a computationally efficient algorithm, a much simpler configuration is used for the ensemble perturbations, whereas the configuration used for the ensemble mean is similar to that used for the deterministic system. Numerous practical benefits may be realized by using a variational approach for both deterministic and ensemble prediction, including improved efficiency for the development and maintenance of the computer code. Also, the use of essentially the same data assimilation algorithm would likely reduce the amount of numerical experimentation required when making system changes, since their impacts in the two systems would be very similar. The variational approach enables the use of hybrid background error covariances and may also allow the assimilation of a larger volume of observations. Preliminary tests with the Canadian global 256-member system produced significantly improved ensemble forecasts with VarEnKF as compared with the current EnKF and at a comparable computational cost. These improvements resulted entirely from changes to the ensemble mean analysis increment calculation. Moreover, because each ensemble perturbation is updated independently, VarEnKF scales perfectly up to a very large number of processors.
Assessing Mental Models of Emergencies Through Two Knowledge Elicitation Tasks
Authors: Whitmer Daphne E. , Sims Valerie K. , Torres Michael E.
Published: October 2016

Objective:

The goals of this study were to assess the risk identification aspect of mental models using standard elicitation methods and how university campus alerts were related to these mental models.

Background:

People fail to follow protective action recommendations in emergency warnings. Past research has yet to examine cognitive processes that influence emergency decision-making.

Method:

Study 1 examined 2 years of emergency alerts distributed by a large southeastern university. In Study 2, participants listed emergencies in a thought-listing task. Study 3 measured participants’ time to decide if a situation was an emergency.

Results:

The university distributed the most alerts about an armed person, theft, and fire. In Study 2, participants most frequently listed fire, car accident, heart attack, and theft. In Study 3, participants quickly decided a bomb, murder, fire, tornado, and rape were emergencies. They most slowly decided that a suspicious package and identify theft were emergencies.

Conclusion:

Recent interaction with warnings was only somewhat related to participants’ mental models of emergencies. Risk identification precedes decision-making and applying protective actions. Examining these characteristics of people’s mental representations of emergencies is fundamental to further understand why some emergency warnings go ignored.

Application:

Someone must believe a situation is serious to categorize it as an emergency before taking the protective action recommendations in an emergency warning. Present-day research must continue to examine the problem of people ignoring warning communication, as there are important cognitive factors that have not yet been explored until the present research.
Homelessness, Unsheltered Status, and Risk Factors for Mortality
Authors: Montgomery Ann Elizabeth , Szymkowiak Dorota , Marcus Jessica , Howard Paul , Culhane Dennis P.
Published: October 2016

Objectives:

People who live in unsheltered situations, such as the streets, often have poorer health, less access to health care, and an increased risk of premature mortality as compared with their sheltered counterparts. The objectives of this study were to (1) compare the characteristics of people experiencing homelessness who were sleeping primarily in unsheltered situations with those who were accessing homeless shelters and other sheltered situations, (2) identify correlates of unsheltered status, and (3) assess the relationship between unsheltered status and increased risk of mortality.

Methods:

Using primary data collected as part of the 100    000 Homes Campaign—a national effort to help communities find homes for vulnerable and chronically homeless Americans—we estimated 2 generalized linear mixed models to understand the correlates of unsheltered status and risk factors for mortality. Independent variables included demographic characteristics; history of homelessness, incarceration, foster care, and treatment for mental illness or substance use; sources of income; and past and present medical conditions. The study sample comprised 25489 people experiencing homelessness who responded to an assessment of their housing and health as part of the 100    000 Homes Campaign from 2008 to 2014.

Results:

In the full model, the following characteristics were associated with unsheltered status: being a veteran (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] = 1.10); having 5 years), incarceration (aOR = 1.32), or substance use (aOR = 1.10 for ever abusing drugs or alcohol, aOR = 1.13 for ever using intravenous drugs, aOR = 1.98 for drinking alcohol every day for past month). Being unsheltered (aOR = 1.12), being female (aOR = 1.22), or receiving entitlements (aOR = 1.63) increased respondents’ odds of having risk factors for mortality.

Conclusions:

These findings highlight the need to assertively reach out to vulnerable populations and provide interventions to assist them during their transition—for example, as they exit incarceration or age out of foster care. Such a response could prevent unsheltered homelessness and thereby address increased mortality risk. Connecting people with resources to increase their access to employment, benefits, and other sources of income is especially important.
A Scan of CDC-Authored Articles on Legal Epidemiology, 2011-2015
Authors: Martini Leila , Presley David , Klieger Sarah , Burris Scott
Published: October 2016

Objective:

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) conducts research on legal epidemiology, the scientific study of law as a factor in the cause, distribution, and prevention of disease. This study describes a scan of articles written by CDC staff members to characterize the frequency and key features of legal epidemiology articles and their distribution across CDC departments and divisions.

Methods:

CDC librarians searched an internal repository for journal articles by CDC staff published from January 1, 2011, to May 31, 2015. Researchers reviewed and coded the abstracts to produce data on key features of the articles.

Results:

Researchers identified 158 CDC-authored legal epidemiology articles published in 83 journals, most frequently in Preventing Chronic Disease (14 publications), Journal of Public Health Management Practice (10 publications), and Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (9 publications). Most articles concerned the use and impact of law as a deliberate tool of intervention. Thirteen articles addressed the legal infrastructure of public health, and 3 assessed the incidental or unintended effects of nonhealth laws. CDC-authored articles encompassed policy making, implementation, and impact. Literature reviews and studies mapping laws across multiple jurisdictions constituted one-quarter of all publications. Studies addressed laws at the international, national, state, local, and organizational levels.

Conclusion:

Results of the scan can be used to identify opportunities for the agency to better support research, professional development, networking, publication, and tracking of publication in this emerging field.
An efficient Model Predictive Control-based motion cueing algorithm for the driving simulator
Authors: Fang Zhou , Kemeny Andras
Published: October 2016

Recently, a new technique using a MPC (Model Predictive Control)-based motion cueing algorithm has been successfully applied in driving simulation. However, the feasibility and the stability condition of MPC, a crucial criterion for high-performance simulators, has barely been addressed except in our previous works and in Dagdelen et al. (Model-based predictive motion cueing strategy for vehicle driving simulators. Contr Eng Pract 2009; 17: 995–1003). In this paper, it is shown that based on an implicit MPC algorithm using qpOASES, the authors’ proposed feasibility and stability condition not only guarantees the feasibility and stability of the MPC-based motion cueing algorithm, but also controls washout motion, taking into account the driver’s perception threshold, thus resulting in a more robust and flexible motion cueing algorithm and a better motion feeling than that for the conventional motion cueing algorithms.
Manager–Employee Gender Congruence and the Bureaucratic Accountability of Public Service Employees
Authors: Pedersen Mogens Jin , Nielsen Vibeke Lehmann
Published: October 2016

Much theory suggests that manager–employee gender congruence (that manager and employee share the same gender) may influence employee accountability. This article empirically tests this notion by examining how manager–employee gender congruence among public service employees relates to two key aspects of bureaucratic accountability: (a) organizational goal alignment and (b) compliance with organizational rules and regulations. Using school fixed effects on teacher survey data and administrative school data, we find that male teachers with male principals are less aligned with their school’s goals and less compliant with its rules and regulations than are male teachers with female principals.
Understanding Translation Work: The evolving interpretation of a trade union idea
Authors: Cassell Catherine , Lee Bill
Published: October 2016

This paper uses data from a longitudinal, seven-year, cross-national study to explore the translation of a trade union idea. The aim of the paper is to examine and explicate the nature of the translation work undertaken to translate a trade union idea in a multi-organizational setting. In examining how the idea of the learning representative initiative was translated into the New Zealand context we draw upon a narrative analysis to reveal the complexities of the dynamic and ongoing translation of the idea and identify the nature of the translation work required. As such we contribute to the literature on the translation of ideas firstly by explicating the concept of real-time translation work in a novel empirical context, and secondly theoretically, by drawing attention to the distinctive characteristics of trade union translation work. In doing so we argue that translation work in this distinctive socio-political context requires ongoing vigilance and proprietorship of the idea by trade union actors and that such proprietorship is crucial in other cases where translators are coming from subordinate positions.
That’s What Friends Are For: Hospitality and affective bonds fostering collective empowerment in an intentional community
Authors: Farias Carine
Published: October 2016

Processes of collective empowerment are essentially concerned with the production of social and emotional configurations fostering a mutual awareness that social change is both desirable and feasible. Using an ethnographic study of an intentional community of activists, this paper analyses how friendship practices produce enduring forms of empowerment based on democratic praxis. The analysis shows that nurturing affective bonds of friendship facilitates the prefiguration of alternative ways of life through the experience of living together. This is supported by the cultivation of hexis as a political frame, which reassesses the centrality of human beings’ otherness and fosters complex equality within relationships.
Predicting Use of Nurse Care Coordination by Older Adults With Chronic Conditions
Authors: Vanderboom Catherine E. , Holland Diane E. , Mandrekar Jay , Lohse Christine M. , Witwer Stephanie G. , Hunt Vicki L.
Published: October 2016

To be effective, nurse care coordination must be targeted at individuals who will use the service. The purpose of this study was to identify variables that predicted use of care coordination by primary care patients. Data on the potential predictor variables were obtained from patient interviews, the electronic health record, and an administrative database of 178 adults eligible for care coordination. Use of care coordination was obtained from an administrative database. A multivariable logistic regression model was developed using a bootstrap sampling approach. Variables predicting use of care coordination were dependence in both activities of daily living (ADL) and instrumental activities of daily living (IADL; odds ratio [OR] = 5.30, p = .002), independent for ADL but dependent for IADL (OR = 2.68, p = .01), and number of prescription medications (OR = 1.12, p = .002). Consideration of these variables may improve identification of patients to target for care coordination.
Community cohesion, communitarianism and neoliberalism
Authors: Cowden Stephen , Singh Gurnam
Published: October 2016

Policy discourse around ‘community cohesion’ has displaced liberal multiculturalist and anti-racist approaches with a much narrower focus on the promotion of ‘British values’ and, for minority communities, through a ‘faith’ agenda. We argue that these developments derive from the predominance of the doctrine of communitarianism within the contemporary policy terrain, influencing both New Labour and the Conservatives. The convergence of this with neoliberal social and economic imperatives has created a discourse of ‘conditional citizenship’ for Muslim communities particularly. There is a major policy contradiction where faith based approaches are promoted on one hand, but, in the context of transnational Islamist terror, lead to whole Muslim communities being pathologised as ‘insufficiently British’ on the other. We discuss the ‘Trojan Horse schools’ affair in Birmingham in 2014 as an example of this. We conclude in calling for an urgent refocussing of the debate toward secular approaches in policy, alongside looking at the specific economic and social conditions that we argue are the root cause of breakdowns in community cohesion.
A critical analysis of the new politics of fuel poverty in England
Authors: Middlemiss Lucie
Published: October 2016

A household is fuel poor when it is unable to afford the level of energy services required to allow its members to live a decent life. From 2010 to 2015, the UK government transformed the politics of fuel poverty, with a new definition (‘Low income, high costs’ or LIHC), indicators and targets. Using a subjectivity framework to analyse the government documentation around LIHC, I find that: a distinction between poverty and fuel poverty is reinforced by the new politics, resulting in energy efficiency measures being prioritised as the appropriate solution. The austerity maxim of ‘helping those most in need’ is threaded through this new politics, belying an acceptance that not all fuel poverty can be alleviated. Further, LIHC underplays the role of changing energy costs, which now have no impact on the headline indicator. I argue that this new politics is symbolic, and unlikely to have positive impacts for most fuel poor households.
Racial Feralization: Targeting Race in the Age of ‘Planetary Urbanization’
Authors: Valayden Diren
Published: October 2016

In this article, I propose the concept of racial feralization to explain the links between planetary urbanization, risk societies and race. The threat of racial feralization – as an apocalyptic eschatology of regression and the unraveling of the species – has always animated and conditioned the emergence of the discourse of ‘Man’ as well as the concept of race. The history of racism, that is, is also a history of responses to possible catastrophic consequences of progress and modernization. A major shift has occurred in the last 25 years or so. Racial feralization is not simply treated as a consequence or product of human activity, but has now entered the realm of power as a way to problematize heterogeneous populations defined by their relation to global risks and urban agglomerations. Ferality thus emerges as a principle of legitimation for the deployment of racial power in new and more vicious forms.
Employment protection legislation and SME performance
Authors: Van Landuyt Yannick , Dewaelheyns Nico , Van Hulle Cynthia
Published: October 2016

This article examines the effect of employment protection legislation (EPL) on small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) performance. Rather than relying on country-specific proxies for EPL, as is common in the literature, we compute firm-specific measures of a firm’s exposure to EPL by using a panel dataset of 13,112 Belgian SMEs for the period between 2000 and 2009. The empirical results show that firms perform better when faced with lower hiring and firing costs through the use of more blue-collar labour contracts. The evidence showing improved performance by firms that attempt to achieve greater flexibility by hiring more temporary workers is limited.