bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Inferred Model of the Prefrontal Cortex Activity Unveils Cell Assemblies and Memory Replay
Authors: Tavoni Gaia , Ferrari Ulisse , Battaglia Francesco P. , Cocco Simona , Monasson Rémi
Published: October 2015

Cell assemblies are thought to be the units of information representation in the brain, yet their detection from experimental data is arduous. Here, we propose to infer effective coupling networks and model distributions for the activity of simultaneously recorded neurons in prefrontal cortex, during the performance of a decision-making task, and during preceding and following sleep epochs. Our approach, inspired from statistical physics, allows us to define putative cell assemblies as the groups of co-activated neurons in the models of the three recorded epochs. It reveals the existence of task-related changes of the effective couplings between the sleep epochs. The assemblies which strongly coactivate during the task epoch are found to replay during subsequent sleep, in correspondence to the changes of the inferred network. Across sessions, a variety of different network scenarios is observed, providing insight in cell assembly formation and replay.

Author Summary

Memories are thought to be represented in the brain through groups of coactivating neurons, the so-called cell assemblies. We propose an approach to identify cell assemblies from multi-electrode recordings of neural activityin vivo,and apply it to the prefrontal cortex activity of a behaving rat. Our statistical physics inspired approach consists in inferring effective interactions between the recorded cells, which reproduce the correlations in their spiking activities. The analysis of the effective interaction networks and of the model distributions allows us to identify cell assemblies, which strongly co-activate when the rat is learning, and also during subsequent sleep. Our approach is thus capable of providing detailed insights in cell-assembly formation and replay, crucial for memory consolidation.
The beginning of the end of Chinese Surrogate Manufacture? Cool-Comfort Shoes International Company Limited and its Ace-of-Biz
Authors: Zhuang Lee , Qiu Yi
Published: October 2015

Subject area

Strategic management

Study Level/applicability

Undergraduate/postgraduate modules in strategic management.

Case overview

The case portrays a Chinese surrogate manufacturer – Cool-Comfort Shoes International Co. Ltd. (CCS) – which attempted to build its own brand, Ace-of-Biz (AoB). The surrogate manufacturing business had accumulated the funds needed to develop its AoB brand for sale in the domestic market. The 2007 world financial crisis and subsequent world recession caused exports and, thus, surrogate manufacturing to plummet. CCS was hoping that their loss in export of surrogate products would be more than compensated for by the gain in the domestic sales of AoB. However, despite 10 years of commitment, AoB's sales still had not grown sufficiently to counter the slowdown in exports, and the leaders at CCS were wondering what the future would hold for the company and its AoB brand.

Expected Learning Outcomes

This case study provides students with an ideal context to develop an appreciation of how changes in the domestic and international business environment affect the corporate and business strategies of a small- to medium-sized enterprise and the differences between corporate and business strategies, and to demonstrate their ability to apply a number of strategic management tools and techniques for the critical appraisal of a strategic situation and justify their recommended course of action.

Supplementary Materials

Teaching notes are available for educators only. Please contact your library to gain login details or email support@emeraldinsight.com to request teaching notes.
Universities’ contributions to social innovation: reflections in theory
&
practice
Authors: Benneworth Paul , Cunha Jorge
Published: October 2015

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to resolve a tension in understanding how universities contribute to knowledge-based urban development (KBUD).

Design/methodology/approach

– The paper is a conceptual paper, which analyses the tension as emerging between the university and the wider societal activity. The paper creates a framework for combining insights from both those theoretical frameworks to better understand why universities might choose to contribute to KBUD.

Findings

– The paper argues that it is important to understand the benefits that the universities get from participating in the KBUD. This can be through the unique tacit knowledge that emerges in the social innovation process, but their might also be value for the university in terms of two other variables, material resources and symbolic legitimacy.

Research limitations/implications

– The paper is a literature review and therefore is limited to raising a series of future questions and directions for research in the field, as well as to providing a lens and context for existing work.

Practical implications

– There are clear implications for those seeking to improve universities contributions to KBUD. It is not merely enough for strategic leaders to come together and agree that promoting the university will promote KBUD: it is necessary to modify a range of processes within the university to ensure that a wide range of actors are able to benefit from participating in KBUD activities, and that it facilitates their own teaching and research activities.

Social implications

– For universities to make a substantive contribution to promoting KBUD, policy-makers must ensure that they do not create disincentives through universities’ teaching and research activities.

Originality/value

– This is the first time that a paper has sought to bridge between theories of urban development and social innovation, and universities’ internal institutional and organisational dynamics.
Robotic training for hand movements during manual welding with real-time alarm feedback
Authors: Erden Mustafa Suphi , Billard Aude
Published: October 2015

Purpose

– The purpose of this study is to develop a robotic training system for the hand movements during manual welding. The system provides real-time notice-feedback with sound or light alarms, whenever the welding hand vibrates beyond the nominal level observed with professional welders.

Design/methodology/approach

– The large variations of hand movements are detected by monitoring the deviation of the tool position from a smooth curve estimated in real time by a Kalman filter. An alarm is generated in the form of a flashing light or beep sound whenever the deviations exceed a predetermined threshold. The performance of hand movements is measured in terms of the variations of the position data. Twelve novice and five professional welders took part in the experiments and answered a questionnaire that assessed the usability and work load of the system.

Findings

– Compared to the sound alarms, the light alarms resulted in a larger and statistically significant decrease in the variation of hand movements of the novice welders and brought the level of variation close to that of the professional welders. The alarms did not result in a significant decrease in the variation of hand movements of the professional welders. The responses to the questionnaire indicated that both professional and novice welders found the system useful and they did not experience any significant work load.

Social implications

– The system developed in this study can ease the training of novice welders, by speeding up the learning and reducing the need for human tutors.

Originality/value

– This study is first to provide real-time notice-feedback for training while manual welding, based on a comparison of the performances of novice and professional welders.
Understanding children's reading activities: Reading motivation, skill and child characteristics as predictors
Authors: McGeown Sarah P. , Osborne Cara , Warhurst Amy , Norgate Roger , Duncan Lynne G.
Published: October 2015

This study examined the extent to which a range of child characteristics (sex, age, socioeconomic status, reading skill and intrinsic and extrinsic reading motivation) predicted engagement (i.e., time spent) in different reading activities (fiction books, factual books, school textbooks, comics, magazines and digital texts). In total, 791 children (aged 8–11 years) participated. There was considerable variation in the factors predicting engagement in different reading activities. Although intrinsic reading motivation was a good predictor of recreational book reading, age was a stronger predictor of engagement with digital texts. Furthermore, specific dimensions of motivation predicted engagement in different reading activities; being motivated to read challenging texts predicted recreational book reading, whereas being motivated to achieve good grades predicted schoolbook reading. On the other hand, social reasons predicted engagement with magazines and comics. Implications for education and the relationship between child characteristics and choice of reading activities are discussed.
Determining the necessity for right heart catheterization in pulmonary hypertension associated with connective tissue diseases assessed by echocardiography
Authors: Choi Joon Hyouk , Joo Seung‐Jae , Kim Jinseok
Published: October 2015

Aim

The prognosis of pulmonary hypertension (PH) in systemic sclerosis (SSC) and in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is different. According to the guidelines, right heart catheterization (RHC) is necessary in pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) associated with connective tissue diseases (CTD). However, there is little supporting evidence. Therefore, we attempted to determine the necessity for RHC and the causes of differences in prognosis of PH by comparing SSC to SLE.

Methods

The inclusion criteria were all patients with SSC or SLE with exertional dyspnea. Echocardiography and carotid Doppler ultrasound were performed.

Results

Twenty‐three patients with SSC and 23 with SLE participated in this study. There was no difference in the right ventricular systolic pressure (RVSP) between SSC and SLE (33.0 mmHg, range 25.3–41.7 mmHg vs. 32.4 mmHg, range 27.0–37.7 mmHg; P = 0.835). In multiple linear regression analysis, the ratio of peak tricuspid regurgitant velocity to right ventricular outflow tract time‐velocity integral, which represents pulmonary vascular resistance (PVR), was correlated with RVSP in SSC (r2 = 0.928, β = 0.362, P = 0.003), and the independent predictor of increased RVSP was the ratio of early diastolic transmitral filling velocity to early diastolic septal mitral annular velocity, which represents diastolic dysfunction in SLE (R2 = 0.806, β = 0.803, P = 0.023).

Conclusions

PVR was an important cause of PH in SSC. Left ventricular dysfunction was an important cause of PH in SLE. Thus, these findings demonstrate the necessity for RHC and differences in prognosis of PH in CTD.
Assessment of first‐trimester thymus size and correlation with maternal diseases and fetal outcome
Authors: Borgelt Judith M. A. , Möllers Mareike , Falkenberg Maria K. , Amler Susanne , Klockenbusch Walter , Schmitz Ralf
Published: October 2015

Introduction

We investigated the reliability of fetal thymus measurement during first‐trimester screening, and associated fetal thymus size with crown–rump length, maternal diseases and fetal outcome.

Material and Methods

In a retrospective cohort of 971 normal singleton first‐trimester fetuses, we measured the anterior–posterior diameter of the thymus in a midsagittal plane in 767 fetuses. The intra‐observer and inter‐observer reliabilities were tested by intra‐class correlation coefficient. We correlated thymus size with fetal crown–rump length, and investigated its association with maternal diseases (diabetes mellitus, rheumatic disorders, hypertension and coagulation disorders) and fetal outcome (small for gestational age, preterm birth and umbilical artery pH) using regression analyses.

Results

The intra‐observer and inter‐observer reliabilities of fetal thymus measurement were excellent (intra‐class correlation coefficient 0.926, 95% CI 0.745–0.981 and 0.945, 95% CI 0.886–0.993, respectively). A linear relationship was found between crown–rump length and thymus size (β = 0.023, p = 0.001). Pregnancies affected by maternal diabetes had a decreased fetal thymus size (β = −0.209, p = 0.001), whereas in pregnancies affected by maternal rheumatic disease the thymus size was increased (β = 0.285, p < 0.001). Fetal thymus size was not associated with maternal hypertension or maternal coagulation disorders. There was a positive association between preterm birth and fetal thymus size (p < 0.001).

Conclusion

Measurement of first‐trimester thymus size is reliable. Fetal thymus size has a linear correlation with crown–rump length. Maternal diabetes, rheumatic disease and preterm birth appear to have an association with fetal thymus size.
Estimating DNA Methylation Levels by Joint Modeling of Multiple Methylation Profiles From Microarray Data
Authors: Wang Tao , Chen Mengjie , Zhao Hongyu
Published: October 2015

DNA methylation studies have been revolutionized by the recent development of high throughput array-based platforms. Most of the existing methods analyze microarray methylation data on a probe-by-probe basis, ignoring probe-specific effects and correlations among methylation levels at neighboring genomic locations. These methods can potentially miss functionally relevant findings associated with genomic regions. In this article, we propose a statistical model that allows us to pool information on the same probe across multiple samples to estimate the probe affinity effect, and to borrow strength from the neighboring probe sites to better estimate the methylation values. Using a simulation study, we demonstrate that our method can provide accurate model-based estimates. We further use the proposed method to develop a new procedure for detecting differentially methylated regions, and compare it with a state-of-the-art approach via a data application.
Revisiting Patterns of Tree Species Composition and their Driving Forces in the Atlantic Forests of Southeastern Brazil
Authors: Eisenlohr Pedro V. , de Oliveira‐Filho Ary Teixeira
Published: October 2015

The elucidation of phytogeographic patterns and their drivers in biodiversity hotspots is essential to the study of ecology and the conservation of these areas. In 2000, an important study by Oliveira‐Filho and Fontes led to changes in the paradigms that define our understanding of the Atlantic Forest (Brazil). Here, our aim was to revisit this study using a more comprehensive set of environmental predictors, an updated and much larger tree species dataset and checklist, and more refined data analyses. We performed exploratory and confirmatory analyses, including the modeling of the spatial components with Moran's Eigenvector Maps, using data from 483 sites in southeastern Brazil, which encompass a total of 3546 species and 33 geo‐climatic variables. We observed strong floristic similarities between rain‐ and seasonal forests and a species distribution continuum across the main gradients. The environmental and spatial variables were significantly correlated with floristic patterns, and we demonstrated that the tree flora of the seasonal forests should no longer be considered a simple subset of the rain forest flora. The findings of the original paper were not only confirmed but we also unveiled additional, important phytogeographic patterns. We also reinforced the main conclusion of the paper that the Atlantic Forest concept must encompass all of the forest types east of the dry corridor in South America, a designation of utmost importance for the conservation of this biodiversity hotspot.
Analyzing Trade Liberalization Effects in the Egg Sector Using a Dynamic Gravity Model
Authors: Tamini Lota D. , Doyon Maurice , Simon Rodrigue
Published: October 2015

The objective of the paper is to explore potential changes in trade induced by a liberalization scenario when taking into account persistence in trading partners. Our approach is based on the development of a gravity model that takes into account the dynamics at the extensive margin of trade as well as the persistence effect of the intensity of trade. Our empirical contribution is on the egg sector, where the persistence in trading partners is acute. Our results indicate that the use of static models underestimate imports of table eggs by more than 50% in Canada, when compared with the use of panel dynamic specification. The dynamic specification helps explain why trade liberalizations often increase trade creation between countries that had already been trading partners, while new trading partnerships remain scarce following trade liberalization. Our results also confirm the importance of sunk cost and their negative impact on the probability of export market participation for developing countries. Those results raise questions regarding the benefit of trade liberalization for developing countries, in terms of accessing new market, if they do not benefit from special treatments.
A prospective randomized controlled study of a virtual clinic integrating primary and specialist care for patients with Type 2 diabetes mellitus
Authors: Basudev N. , Crosby‐Nwaobi R. , Thomas S. , Chamley M. , Murrells T. , Forbes A.
Published: October 2015

Aims

To investigate the effectiveness of a diabetes virtual clinic to enhance diabetes in primary care by developing clinical management plans for patients with suboptimal metabolic control and/or case complexity.

Methods

A prospective study with randomized allocation to virtual clinic or usual care. Patients with Type 2 diabetes (n = 208) were recruited from six general practices in South London. The primary outcome for the study was glycaemic control, secondary outcomes included: lipids, blood pressure, weight (kg and BMI) and renal function (eGFR). Data were collected from participants' records at baseline and 12 months. We also considered process measures including therapy optimization.

Results

The 12‐month data show equivalence between the virtual clinic and control groups for glycaemic control with both achieving clinically significant reductions in HbA1c of 8 mmol/mol (0.6 ± 1.7%) and 10 mmol/mol (0.8 ± 1.9%), respectively (P = 0.4). The virtual clinic group showed superiority over the intervention group for blood pressure control with a mean reduction in systolic blood pressure of 6 ± 16 mmHg compared with an increased of 2 ± 18 mmHg in the control group (P = 0.008). There were no significant differences between the groups in terms of cholesterol, weight and renal function. Process measures showed an increased level of therapy adjustment in the virtual clinic group.

Conclusion

The virtual clinic model explored in this study showed a clinically important improvement in glycaemic control. Although this improvement was not superior to that observed in the control participants, this might be attributable to the systemic impact of the virtual clinic on the practice as a whole.
Feeding preferences of Melanoplus femurrubrum grasshoppers on native and exotic grasses: behavioral and molecular approaches
Authors: Avanesyan Alina , Culley Theresa M.
Published: October 2015

Generalist insect herbivores, such as grasshoppers, may either avoid feeding on exotic plants, potentially enabling these plants to become invasive in the introduced range, or insects may incorporate exotic plants into their diet, contributing to the biotic resistance of native communities and potentially preventing plant invasions. Accurate determination of insect diet preferences with regard to native and exotic plants can be challenging, but this information is critical for understanding the interaction between native herbivores and exotic plants, and ultimately the mechanisms underlying plant invasions. To address this, we combined behavioral and molecular approaches to accurately compare food consumption of the polyphagous red‐legged grasshopper, Melanoplus femurrubrum (De Geer) (Orthoptera: Acrididae), on native [Andropogon gerardii Vitman and Bouteloua curtipendula (Michx.) Torr.] and exotic, potentially invasive grasses [Miscanthus sinensis Andersson and Bothriochloa ischaemum (L.) Keng] (all Poaceae). We found that M. femurrubrum grasshoppers demonstrated strong feeding preferences toward exotic grasses in experiments with intact plants under both field and greenhouse conditions, but they showed no preference in experiments with clipped leaves. Additionally, we sampled the gut contents of M. femurrubrum collected in the field and identified the ingested plant species based on DNA sequences for the non‐coding region of the chloroplast trnL (UAA) gene. We found that exotic plants were prevalent in the gut contents of grasshoppers collected at study sites in Ohio and Maryland, USA. These results suggest that the generalist herbivore M. femurrubrum does not avoid feeding on exotic grasses with which they do not share coevolutionary history. In addition, by demonstrating greater food consumption of exotic plants, these grasshoppers potentially provide biotic resistance should these grasses escape cultivation and become invasive in the introduced range.
Does climate directly influence NPP globally?
Authors: Chu Chengjin , Bartlett Megan , Wang Youshi , He Fangliang , Weiner Jacob , Chave Jérôme , Sack Lawren
Published: October 2015

The need for rigorous analyses of climate impacts has never been more crucial. Current textbooks state that climate directly influences ecosystem annual net primary productivity (NPP), emphasizing the urgent need to monitor the impacts of climate change. A recent paper challenged this consensus, arguing, based on an analysis of NPP for 1247 woody plant communities across global climate gradients, that temperature and precipitation have negligible direct effects on NPP and only perhaps have indirect effects by constraining total stand biomass (Mtot) and stand age (a). The authors of that study concluded that the length of the growing season (lgs) might have a minor influence on NPP, an effect they considered not to be directly related to climate. In this article, we describe flaws that affected that study's conclusions and present novel analyses to disentangle the effects of stand variables and climate in determining NPP. We re‐analyzed the same database to partition the direct and indirect effects of climate on NPP, using three approaches: maximum‐likelihood model selection, independent‐effects analysis, and structural equation modeling. These new analyses showed that about half of the global variation in NPP could be explained by Mtot combined with climate variables and supported strong and direct influences of climate independently of Mtot, both for NPP and for net biomass change averaged across the known lifetime of the stands (ABC = average biomass change). We show that lgs is an important climate variable, intrinsically correlated with, and contributing to mean annual temperature and precipitation (Tann and Pann), all important climatic drivers of NPP. Our analyses provide guidance for statistical and mechanistic analyses of climate drivers of ecosystem processes for predictive modeling and provide novel evidence supporting the strong, direct role of climate in determining vegetation productivity at the global scale.
Brief analysis of causes of sensitive skin and advances in evaluation of anti‐allergic activity of cosmetic products
Authors: Fan L. , He C. , Jiang L. , Bi Y. , Dong Y. , Jia Y.
Published: October 2015

This review focuses on the causes of sensitive skin and elaborates on the relationship between skin sensitivity and skin irritations and allergies, which has puzzled cosmetologists. Here, an overview is presented of the research on active ingredients in cosmetic products for sensitive skin (anti‐sensitive ingredients), which is followed by a discussion of their experimental efficacy. Moreover, several evaluation methods for the efficacy of anti‐sensitive ingredients are classified and summarized. Through this review, we aim to provide the cosmetic industry with a better understanding of sensitive skin, which could in turn provide some theoretical guidance to the research on targeted cosmetic products.
How many were there When it Mattered?
Authors: Watson Ray , Yip Paul
Published: October 2015

150 000 people demonstrated in Hong Kong. 10 000 students protested in London against tuition fees. A million people lined the streets for the Royal wedding. Or did they? Do not believe what you are told, say Ray Watson and Paul Yip. Estimating the size of a crowd is a difficult business – even for those who actually want to get it right.
Francis Galton: Measuring the Immeasurable
Authors: Maier Dan
Published: October 2015

How many statisticians can be the subject of an hour-long stand-up comedy routine? Possibly only Galton. Here Dan Maier, writer and performer of the one-man show “The stranger notions of Francis Galton”, explains why he cannot help being fascinated by the man.
Underestimated effects of climate on plant species turnover in the Southwest Australian Floristic Region
Authors: Jones Mirkka M. , Gibson Neil , Yates Colin , Ferrier Simon , Mokany Karel , Williams Kristen J. , Manion Glenn , Svenning Jens‐Christian
Published: October 2015

Aim

Spatial turnover in plant species composition reflects the interplay between species’ environmental requirements and their dispersal dynamics. However, its origins are also historical, arising from speciation, extinction and past range dynamics. Here, we test the effects of current environmental gradients and geographical distance on regional species turnover. Using a new approach, we then interpret residual turnover patterns, unexplained by these factors.

Location

Native vegetation in the wheatbelt of the Southwest Australian Floristic Region (SWAFR).

Methods

We fitted a generalized dissimilarity model of species turnover across 650 floristic inventory plots as a function of current climate, topography, soils and inter‐plot distances. We then decomposed the model errors into independent axes of residual variation, representing unexplained species turnover. We mapped the spatial patterns evident on the main residual axes, and interpreted these using ancillary data on the life form and geographical ranges of associated species, the distributions of some major habitat types, and anomalies between recent and Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) climate.

Results

Soil and climatic variables (especially phosphorus and wet quarter precipitation) made sizeable independent contributions to explaining deviance in species turnover, whereas deviance explained by inter‐plot distances and climate co‐varied strongly. Total explained deviance was 34%. Analyses of residual dissimilarity highlighted unexplained floristic similarity among many southern plots. A secondary residual axis highlighted unexplained variation in a broadly westerly to easterly direction. Consistent trends in the life form and geographical ranges of associated species suggest that these patterns are climate‐related. LGM climatic anomalies were correlated with patterns on the second residual axis.

Main conclusions

Current soil and climatic gradients are important drivers of floristic turnover in the SWAFR. However, residual analyses revealed broad‐scale gradients in floristic composition unexplained by these variables. These appear to reflect imperfect modelling of the effects of current and perhaps historical climate on species turnover.
Habitat shifts shaping the diversity of a biodiversity hotspot through time: insights from the phylogenetic structure of Caesalpinioideae in the Brazilian Cerrado
Authors: Souza‐Neto Advaldo C. , Cianciaruso Marcus V. , Collevatti Rosane G.
Published: October 2015

Aim

We investigated the phylogenetic structure of woody Caesalpinioideae species to address whether in situ diversification or habitat shifts from other biomes explain the species diversity in the Cerrado.

Location

Amazon and Atlantic rain forests, Cerrado and Caatinga in Brazil.

Methods

We obtained occurrence data and generated a phylogenetic hypothesis for all woody Caesalpinioideae species occurring in Brazil. We calculated the net relatedness index (NRI) to measure the phylogenetic structure and performed a nodesig analysis to identify which clades contributed to phylogenetic clustering or overdispersion. We also calculated phylogenetic and taxonomic indices of beta diversity to investigate species turnover between Cerrado habitats and neighbouring biomes.

Results

Species occurring in savannas and forested savannas were more related than expected by chance, i.e. phylogenetic clustering. Clades that were overabundant in savannas and forested savannas, such as Bauhinia, were poorly represented in neighbouring biomes, providing evidence of in situ diversification in some lineages. Savannas shared clades and showed lower phylogenetic than taxonomic dissimilarity from Caatinga, consistent with habitat shifts, mainly in the Cassia and Caesalpinia clades.

Main conclusions

Dry, open habitats (savannas, forested savannas and Caatinga) have lineages that diversified more recently than those in forest habitats. Caesalpinioideae lineages from savannas and Caatinga are closely related, and this dissimilarity was due to both turnover (55.5%) and nestedness (44.5%). Hence, species inhabiting Caatinga and savannas are often resolved as pairs of sister species, indicating habitat shifts (especially in the Cassia and Caesalpinia clades). The higher phylogenetic diversity of species in the Caatinga than in savanna and forested savanna may indicate that lineage shifts may have occurred, mainly from the Caatinga into the savanna habitats. Phylogenetic and taxonomic dissimilarity of savannas with Amazon and Atlantic rain forests was mainly due to the turnover of lineages, with evidence of in situ diversification in some clades, especially Bauhinia.
Value of Cardiac Magnetic Resonance Imaging in Patients With Failed Ablation Procedures for Ventricular Tachycardia
Authors: NJEIM MARIO , YOKOKAWA MIKI , FRANK LUBA , CRAWFORD THOMAS , GOOD ERIC , MORADY FRED , BOGUN FRANK
Published: October 2015

VT and MRI

Background

Ventricular tachycardia (VT) in patients with cardiomyopathy originates in scar tissue. Intramural or epicardial scar may result in ineffective ablation if mapping and ablation are limited to the endocardium. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether preprocedural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is beneficial in patients with failed endocardial VT ablations in determining an appropriate ablation strategy.

Methods and Results

A cardiac MRI was performed in 20 patients with a failed ablation procedure and cardiomyopathy (nonischemic n = 12, ischemic n = 8). A subsequent ablation strategy was determined by a delayed enhanced MRI (DE‐MRI) and an epicardial subxyphoid access was planned only in patients with epicardial or intramural free‐wall scar. MRIs were performed in all patients with or without an implanted cardioverter defibrillator (ICD). The location of scar tissue in the MRI predicted the origin of VT in all patients. In 9/20 patients an epicardial procedure was performed based on the result of the MRI. An endocardial procedure was performed in the remaining 11 patients who had either endocardial or septal scarring and one patient in whom the MRI only showed artifact. Five patients remained inducible postablation and four patients had VT recurrence within a follow‐up period of 17 ± 22 months. All of the latter patients had an intramural scar pattern.

Conclusions

Imaging with DE‐MRI prior to VT ablation in patients with previously failed endocardial ablation procedures is beneficial in identifying an ablation strategy, helps to focus on an area of interest intraprocedurally, and provides valuable outcomes information.
Low‐Level Vagus Nerve Stimulation Attenuates Myocardial Ischemic Reperfusion Injury by Antioxidative Stress and Antiapoptosis Reactions in Canines
Authors: CHEN MINGXIAN , ZHOU XIAOYA , YU LILEI , LIU QIMING , SHENG XIA , WANG ZHUO , WANG SONGYUN , JIANG HONG , ZHOU SHENGHUA
Published: October 2015

Vagus Nerve Stimulation and Myocardial Ischemia‐Reperfusion Injury

Background

Low‐level vagus nerve stimulation (LL‐VNS) has been demonstrated to protect myocardium against acute ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury. However, the underlying mechanism of this protective effect remains unknown.

Objective

This study aimed to test the hypothesis that LL‐VNS exerts cardioprotective effect on acute I/R injury in canines via antioxidative stress and antiapoptosis reactions.

Method

Thirty anesthetized mongrel dogs were randomly divided into three groups: I/R group (N = 12, the left anterior descending coronary artery was occluded for 1 hour following by 1 hour reperfusion), LL‐VNS group (N = 9, I/R plus LL‐VNS), and sham group (N = 9, sham surgery without LL‐VNS). The voltage threshold was set at 80% of the voltage required to slow the sinus rate. Infarct size was assessed with Evans Blue and triphenyltetrazolium chloride. Activity assays, TUNEL staining, and western blotting were performed to determine markers of oxidative stress and apoptosis.

Results

LL‐VNS significantly decreased the incidence of ventricular arrhythmias, increased vagal tone, as confirmed by heart rate viability, and reduced infarct size compared with the I/R group. This improvement was associated with a reduction in myocardial neutrophil infiltration, the inhibition of oxidative stress, and the suppression in cardiomyocyte apoptosis. In contrast, the lack of LL‐VNS in the I/R group induced the opposite effect compared with the sham group.

Conclusion

LL‐VNS exerts protective effects on myocardial I/R injury. Its potential mechanisms involve the suppression of oxidative stress and cellular apoptosis.
Memory re‐differentiation and reduced lymphocyte activation in chronic HCV‐infected patients receiving direct‐acting antivirals
Authors: Burchill M. A. , Golden‐Mason L. , Wind‐Rotolo M. , Rosen H. R.
Published: October 2015

Recently, the treatment of HCV has advanced significantly due to the introduction of direct‐acting antivirals (DAAs). Studies using interferon (IFN)‐containing regimens failed to consistently show restoration of immunologic responses. Therefore, IFN‐free DAA formulations provide a unique opportunity to dissect the immunologic effect of HCV cure. This study investigates the restoration of the immune compartment as a consequence of rapid viral clearance in patients successfully treated with DAAs and in the absence of IFN and ribavirin. Here, we evaluate the immunologic changes that occurred following DAA‐mediated HCV cure. Peripheral blood from nineteen previously treatment‐naïve patients with chronic HCV genotype 1a/1b who received an IFN and ribavirin‐free regimen of daclatasvir, asunaprevir and BMS‐791325 was evaluated. Immune reconstitution occurs in patients in whom HCV was successfully eradicated via DAA therapy. Restoration of the CD4+ T‐cell compartment in the peripheral blood and a re‐differentiation of the T lymphocyte memory compartment resulted in a more effector memory cell population and a reduction in expression in the co‐inhibitory molecule TIGIT in bulk T lymphocytes. Furthermore, we observed a partial reversal of the exhausted phenotype in HCV‐specific CD8+ T cells and a dampening of the activation state in peripheral NK cells. Collectively, our data provide the groundwork for dissecting the effect of DAA therapy on the immune system and identifying novel mechanisms by which chronic HCV infection exerts immunosuppressive effects on T cells through the recently described co‐inhibitory molecule TIGIT.
Winter conditions – not summer temperature – influence establishment of seedlings at white spruce alpine treeline in Eastern Quebec
Authors: Renard Sébastien M. , McIntire Eliot J.B. , Fajardo Alex
Published: October 2015

Aims

While treeline positions are globally correlated to growing season temperatures, seedling establishment, an important process of alpine treeline dynamics, is additionally controlled by regional‐scale factors such as snow cover duration, desiccating winds and biotic interactions. Knowing that alpine treelines have shown contrasting responses to climate change, we determined the relative importance of key abiotic and biotic factors involved in seedling survival and growth.

Location

McGerrigle Mountains, Parc National de la Gaspésie, Appalachian Range, eastern Quebec, Canada.

Methods

In two white spruce (Picea glauca) treeline sites, we used the microclimate in the vicinity of tree islands, densely packed clusters of trees isolated from each other by alpine tundra vegetation, to assess the effects of abiotic variables (sum of degree days [DD], snowpack duration and a wind exposure index) as well as the effects of biotic interactions with neighbouring vegetation on the survival and growth of transplanted white spruce seedlings. For 3 yr, we surveyed seedling survival twice a year to discriminate between winter and summer survival, and measured seedling growth at the end of each growing season. We used Bayesian hierarchical models to estimate the relative effects of covariates on survival and growth.

Results

Survival probability decreased in microsites where winter DD was high, and increased in microsites with longer snowpack duration. In wind‐exposed microsites, seedling survival increased when neighbouring vegetation was present, indicating facilitative mechanisms. Seedling growth was positively affected by the duration of snow cover and tended to increase with higher DD during the previous year. In wind‐sheltered microsites, seedling growth tended to be negatively affected by neighbouring vegetation, indicating competitive mechanisms.

Conclusions

Our study demonstrates that seedling establishment is more sensitive to winter conditions, notably to the length of snow cover (which protects seedlings from frost and desiccation), than to summer temperature. Biotic interactions increased seedling establishment when environmental stresses were higher. We suggest that regional‐scale factors such as winter climate and biotic interactions should be included in modelling exercises to improve future treeline location forecasts.
Dietary fatty acids and risk of hepatocellular carcinoma in the Singapore Chinese health study
Authors: Koh Woon‐Puay , Dan Yock Young , Goh George Boon‐Bee , Jin Aizhen , Wang Renwei , Yuan Jian‐Min
Published: October 2015

Background & Aim

Lipidomic signature of lipid metabolism suggests that omega‐6 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) may play a role in oncogenesis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Hence, we examined the association between dietary fatty acids and risk of HCC.

Methods

We used data from the Singapore Chinese Health Study, a population‐based prospective cohort of 63 257 Chinese men and women aged 45–74 years enrolled between 1993 and 1998. Information on current diet assessed via a validated semi‐quantitative food frequency questionnaire, medical history and lifestyle factors were obtained through in‐person interview, and incidence of HCC recorded through 31 Dec 2010. We also examined the association between dietary fatty acids and HCC risk using a case–control set of 92 cases and 274 controls with available serological biomarkers of chronic infections with hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) nested within this cohort.

Results

Among the dietary fat components examined, which included saturated, monounsaturated, omega‐3 and omega‐6 PUFA, only omega‐6 PUFA intake displayed a dose‐dependent, positive association with HCC risk (p for trend = 0.02). Compared to the lowest quartile, the hazard ratio for the highest quartile intake was 1.49 [(95% confidence interval (CI):1.08–2.07)]. In the nested case–control study, only among individuals negative for serology markers of chronic infection with HBV or HCV, those who consumed above median levels of dietary omega‐6 PUFA had increased HCC risk (odds ratio = 4.36, 95% CI = 1.59–11.94) compared to those with lower intake.

Conclusion

Dietary omega‐6 PUFA may be implicated in the risk of non‐viral hepatitis related HCC.
Endogenous Product Boundary
Authors: Adachi Takanori , Ebina Takeshi , Hanazono Makoto
Published: October 2015

This study analyzes the determinants of product boundary choice as discriminatory pricing. Specifically, we consider a model where a monopolist sells a base product with an add‐on valuable only if it is consumed along with the base product. An important feature of this model is that this additional value is contingent on the valuation of the base product. We show that separation, in which case only the base product is sold, yields a higher profit than integration, where only a bundled package is sold, if and only if the range of the add‐on value exceeds a threshold value and that separation is more likely to become optimal as the degree of positive contingency increases. As for welfare, consumer surplus in case of separation is always lower than that when the seller is constrained to sell the bundled package.
Childhood Bereavement and Type 1 Diabetes: a Danish National Register Study
Authors: Virk Jasveer , Ritz Beate , Li Jiong , Obel Carsten , Olsen Jørn
Published: October 2015

Background

Death of a close family member such as a parent or a sibling can cause prolonged stress and changes in the family structure that may have extensive social and health effects on a young child. The aim of this paper is to examine the rate of type 1 diabetes following bereavement due to death of a first‐degree family member in early life.

Methods

We used data from the Danish Civil Registration System (CRS) to identify singleton births in Denmark born 1 January 1980 through 31 December 2005, n = 1 740 245 and their next of kin. We categorised children as exposed to bereavement if they lost a mother, father or sibling from age 5 years onwards, the remaining children were considered unexposed. Children were followed until first diagnosis of diabetes, death, emigration, or 31 December 2010. We estimated incidence rate ratios (IRRs) from birth using log‐linear Poisson regression models with person‐years as an offset variable. Exposed children were followed up for an average of 9.1 years [standard deviation (SD) 6.7] and unexposed children were followed up for an average of 12.3 years (SD 7.3).

Results

In our sample 94 943 children were exposed to bereavement, and 6110 cases of type 1 diabetes were identified. Bereavement was associated with an increased rate of type 1 diabetes when exposure onset began after 11 years of age (adjusted IRR 1.28, 95% confidence interval 1.08, 1.51).

Conclusion

We found some evidence to indicate an increase in the rate of type 1 diabetes among children exposed to bereavement when exposure occurred after 11 years of age.
Opportunity or Threat: Dissecting Tensions in a Post‐Carbon Rural Transition
Authors: Lennon Mick , Scott Mark
Published: October 2015

The deployment of renewable energy technologies represents a highly visible and contested indicator of rural change in terms of the function and appearance of rural places. In this article, we examine how notions of rurality and place intersect with macro‐level objectives for reducing carbon emissions, and how competing storylines underpin opposing and supporting coalitions in the deployment of wind energy projects. The article explores a series of recent controversial proposals for mega‐wind energy projects in the Irish midlands driven by energy companies seeking to take advantage of an Irish‐UK intergovernmental agreement to export green energy from Ireland to assist the UK in meeting its renewable energy targets. To examine these issues we develop and apply an interpretive approach to policy analysis inspired by the work of Laclau and Mouffe on the role of signifiers, antagonistic narratives and the constitutive outside. We identify how opposing and supporting discourses talk ‘past one another’ by framing narratives through different spatial referents (national versus local) and competing conceptualisation of the rural ‘resource’. This inhibits the potential to imagine alternative post‐carbon rural trajectories.
Onset and progression of de novo donor‐specific anti‐human leukocyte antigen antibodies after BK polyomavirus and preemptive immunosuppression reduction
Authors: Dieplinger G. , Everly M.J. , Briley K.P. , Haisch C.E. , Bolin P. , Maldonado A.Q. , Kendrick W.T. , Kendrick S.A. , Morgan C. , Terasaki P.I. , Rebellato L.M.
Published: October 2015

Background

BK polyomavirus (BKPyV) viremia/nephropathy and reduction in immunosuppression following viremia may increase the risk of alloimmune activation and allograft rejection. This study investigates the impact of BKPyV viremia on de novo donor anti‐human leukocyte antigen (HLA)‐specific antibodies (dnDSA).

Patients and methods

All primary renal transplants at East Carolina University from March 1999 to December 2010, with at least 1 post‐transplant BKPyV viral load testing, were analyzed. Patients were negative for anti‐HLA antibodies to donor antigens (tested via single antigen beads) at transplantation and at first BKPyV testing.

Results

Nineteen of 174 patients (11%) tested positive for BKPyV viremia. Within 24 months of BKPyV viremia detection, 79% of BKPyV‐viremic patients developed dnDSA. Only 20% of BKPyV viremia‐persistent cases, compared to 86% of BKPyV viremia‐resolved cases, developed dnDSA (P = 0.03). Poor allograft survival was evident in BKPyV viremia‐persistent patients (60% failure by 2 years post BKPyV diagnosis) and in BKPyV viremia‐resolved patients with dnDSA (5‐year post BKPyV diagnosis allograft survival of 48%).

Conclusions

Post‐transplant BKPyV viremia and preemptive immunosuppression reduction is associated with high rates of dnDSA. When preemptively treating BKPyV viremia, dnDSA should be monitored to prevent allograft consequences.
Accumulation by urban dispossession: struggles over urban space in Accra, Ghana
Authors: Gillespie Tom
Published: October 2015

This article draws on original empirical research in Accra, Ghana to explore the particular dynamics that contemporary processes of class‐based dispossession assume at the urban scale, posing the concept of ‘accumulation by urban dispossession’. It responds to recent calls to shift the focus of urban theory from North to South and demonstrates how widely used concepts must be interrogated and reworked as they travel from place to place. Accra is home to a large informal proletariat that is excluded from formal wage labour and housing markets and therefore has to create urban commons in order to reproduce itself. Since these commons place limits to capital's ability to valorise the urban fabric, state‐led accumulation by urban dispossession is a strategic response that employs a range of physical‐legal and discursive mechanisms to overcome these limits through the enclosure of the urban commons and the expulsion of the informal poor. This argument problematises Harvey's capital‐centric theory of accumulation by dispossession, which treats enclosure as a fix for capital's inherent crisis tendencies. Furthermore, it demonstrates that primitive accumulation in this context differs from the classic form described by Marx on the grounds that it is based on the expulsion of the dispossessed rather than their incorporation into the capital relation as labour power.