bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The Value of Combining CYP2C19*2 Polymorphism with Classic Risk Factors in Prediction of Clinical Prognosis in Acute Coronary Syndrome Patients
Authors: Yan Shao-di , Chen Mao , Li Qiao , Liu Xiao-jing , Peng Yong , Chai Hua , Xu Yuan-ning , Wei Jia-fu , Huang De-jia
Published: July 2011

Objectives: To assess the impact of different CYP2C19*2 polymorphisms on clinical outcomes and the effects of CYP2C19*2 polymorphism on predicting clinical outcomes in association with classic risk factors in patients with acute coronary syndromes (ACS). Methods: Between July 2008 and September 2009, 497 consecutive patients with ACS who were admitted to the West China Hospital of Sichuan University were enrolled and underwent CYP2C19*2 determination. The clinical outcomes were the composite of cardiovascular death, nonfatal myocardial infarction and nonfatal stroke. Results: Baseline characteristics were balanced between noncarrier, heterozygous and homozygous groups of the CYP2C19*2 variant. The clinical endpoint occurred more frequently in the homozygous group (HR 4.86, CI 1.62–14.56, p = 0.005). After multivariable analysis, the CYP2C19*2 genetic variant was an independent predictor of cardiovascular events (HR 5.96, CI 1.77–20.03, p = 0.0039) as well as GRACE score and Killip class. The combination of CYP2C19*2 with GRACE score and Killip class increases the potential to predict adverse outcomes. Conclusions: Homozygosity (A/A) for CYP2C19*2 mutant is an independent determinant of prognosis in patients with ACS. The combination of CYP2C19*2 polymorphism with classic risk factors may be a useful tool to predict the risk of cardiovascular events.
Retrospective Analysis of Adjuvant Intraperitoneal Chemotherapy Effect Prognosis of Resectable Gastric Cancer
Authors: Shi Chunmei , Yang Baoyu , Chen Qiang , Yang Jianwei , Fan Nanfeng
Published: July 2011

Objective: This study evaluated the efficacy and safety of adjuvant intraperitoneal perfusion chemotherapy (IPC) in resectable gastric cancer through retrospective analysis. Methods: Three hundred and sixty T2–4bN0–3M0 resectable gastric cancer patients were included in this study. One hundred and eighty-four patients used systemic chemotherapy combined with IPC (IP+ group) and 176 systemic chemotherapy only (IP– group). Results: With a median of 49.9 months of follow-up, the 5-year overall survival in IP+ patients was significantly better than in IP– patients (60.4 vs. 42.9%; p = 0.001), and the average progression-free survival in IP+ patients was significantly longer than in IP– patients (60.5 vs. 46.2 months; p = 0.001). Relapse rates of peritoneal carcinomatosis, celiac lymph node and hepatic metastasis in the IP+ patients were significantly lower than in the IP– patients. Patients with curative resection, a histological type other than mucinous adenocarcinoma and signet ring cell carcinoma, low and undifferentiated tumor grade, lymph node metastasis, and T3 and T4a benefited from adjuvant IPC. The toxicities were the same except for more patients with leukopenia in the IP+ group (p = 0.001). The number of cycles of IPC and the time of IPC start after surgery had an impact on overall and disease-free survival. Conclusion: Adjuvant IPC for resectable gastric cancer gave encouraging results and large multicenter prospective randomized controlled studies are warranted.
Phase II Feasibility Study of Adjuvant S-1 plus Docetaxel for Stage III Gastric Cancer Patients after Curative D2 Gastrectomy
Authors: Tamura Shigeyuki , Fujitani Kazumasa , Kimura Yutaka , Tsuji Takeshi , Matsuyama Jin , Iijima Shohei , Imamura Hiroshi , Inoue Kentaro , Kobayashi Kenji , Kurokawa Yukinori , Furukawa Hiroshi ,   the Osaka Gastrointestinal Cancer Chemotherapy Study Group
Published: July 2011

Objective: The aim of this prospective study was to evaluate the feasibility and safety of adjuvant S-1 plus docetaxel in patients with stage III gastric cancer. Methods: We enrolled 53 patients with pathological stage III gastric cancer who underwent D2 gastrectomy. They received oral S-1 (80 mg/m2/day) administration for 2 consecutive weeks and intravenous docetaxel (40 mg/m2) on day 1, repeated every 3 weeks (1 cycle). The treatment was started within 45 days after surgery and repeated for 4 cycles, followed by S-1 monotherapy (4 weeks on, 2 weeks off) until 1 year after surgery. The feasibility of the 4 cycles of chemotherapy, followed by S-1 administration, was evaluated. Results: A total of 42 patients (79.2%, 95% CI 65.9–82.9) tolerated the planned 4 cycles of treatment with S-1 and docetaxel, and 34 patients (64.2%, 95% CI 49.8–76.9) completed subsequent S-1 monotherapy for 1 year. Grade 4 neutropenia was observed in 28% and grade 3 febrile neutropenia in 9% of the patients, while grade 3 nonhematological toxicities were relatively low. Conclusions: Adjuvant S-1 plus docetaxel therapy is feasible and has only moderate toxicity in stage III gastric cancer patients. We believe that this regimen will be a candidate for future phase III trials seeking the optimal adjuvant chemotherapy for stage III gastric cancer patients.
5-Fluorouracil/Leucovorin Combined with Irinotecan and Oxaliplatin (FOLFIRINOX) as Second-Line Chemotherapy in Patients with Metastatic Pancreatic Adenocarcinoma
Authors: Assaf Elias , Verlinde-Carvalho Muriel , Delbaldo Catherine , Grenier Julien , Sellam Zineb , Pouessel Damien , Bouaita Linda , Baumgaertner Isabelle , Sobhani Iradj , Tayar Claude , Paul Muriel , Culine Stéphane
Published: July 2011

Background: To evaluate the efficacy and toxicity of irinotecan and oxaliplatin plus 5-fluorouracil (FU) and leucovorin (FOLFIRINOX) as second-line therapy in metastatic pancreatic adenocarcinoma (MPA). Patients and Methods: We retrospectively analyzed the medical records of 27 patients with MPA treated with FOLFIRINOX as second-line therapy between January 2003 and November 2009 in our hospital. The recommended schedule was oxaliplatin 85 mg/m2 on day 1 + irinotecan 180 mg/m2 on day 1 + leucovorin 400 mg/m2 on day 1 followed by FU 400 mg/m2 as a bolus on day 1 and 2,400 mg/m2 as 46-hour continuous infusion biweekly. Results: The median age of the 27 patients (13 males and 14 females) was 63 years (45–83). All patients had progressive disease after first-line chemotherapy by gemcitabine. A total of 167 cycles were administered, with a median number of 6 cycles (1–29) per patient. One toxic death occurred (sepsis). Tolerance of treatment was acceptable, and the relative dose density delivered per patient was 92.8% for oxaliplatin, 89.1% for irinotecan and 96.4% for FU. Grade 3–4 neutropenia occurred in 55.6% of the patients, including 1 febrile neutropenia. The other toxicities were manageable. Regarding efficacy, 22 of the 27 patients were evaluable (WHO and RECIST criteria). Five patients had partial responses and 12 stable disease, resulting in an overall disease control rate of 63%. Median time to progression was 5.4 months (0.7–25.48), and median event-free survival was 3 months (0.5–24.9). Median overall survival was 8.5 months (0–26). A clinical benefit was reported for 55% of the patients. Conclusions: These results confirmed the good safety profile and the efficacy of the FOLFIRINOX regimen as second-line treatment of MPA.
Multicenter Phase I/II Study of Docetaxel, Cisplatin and Fluorouracil Combination Chemotherapy in Patients with Advanced or Recurrent Squamous Cell Carcinoma of the Esophagus
Authors: Yamasaki Makoto , Miyata Hiroshi , Tanaka Koji , Shiraishi Osamu , Motoori Masaaki , Peng Y.F. , Yasuda Takushi , Yano Masahiko , Shiozaki Hitoshi , Mori Masaki , Doki Yuichiro
Published: July 2011

Objective: Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is refractory to current therapeutic regimens and more effective therapies are imperative. To this end, we conducted a multicenter phase I/II trial of docetaxel, cisplatin, and fluorouracil (DCF) combination chemotherapy for ESCC. Methods: The study subjects were 46 patients with advanced or recurrent ESCC. Treatment included docetaxel at 60, 70, and 75 mg/m2, cisplatin at 70 mg/m2 on day 1, and daily fluorouracil at 700 mg/m2 on days 1 through 5. The recommended dose of docetaxel was determined in phase I, while the response rate (RR) and progression-free survival rates were analyzed in phase II. Results: The recommended dose was determined to be 70 mg/m2 in phase I. In phase II, the RR was 72.5%. Interim analysis showed median and 1-year progression-free survival of 14 months and 55.6%, respectively. Grade 3/4 toxicities of leukopenia and neutropenia occurred in 72.5 and 90% of patients, respectively. No treatment-related death was recorded. Surgical resection was subsequently performed in 20 patients after chemotherapy, and curative resection was achieved in 19. Conclusion: DCF was tolerable and effective for advanced and recurrent ESCC. Such findings might encourage a change in the treatment strategy for ESCC.
Settling Accounts with Liberalism: On the Work of Domenico Losurdo
Authors: Azzarà Stefano G.
Published: July 2011

Liberalism is currently the hegemonic world-view, capable of dictating its terms even to the very movements that antagonise it. But does the history of liberalism really coincide with that of modern democracy? In two of his recent works, Liberalism: A Counter-History and The Language of Empire, Domenico Losurdo demonstrates that this is not the case. At its origin, liberalism was not a universalistic defence of the individual’s freedom. On the contrary, it represented a demand for wresting complete self-government of civil society from the monarch. However, given that each society is traversed by deep differences and bitter conflicts, the emancipation from absolute power turned into the possibility for the strongest individuals and social forces to exercise an unprecedented absolute power over subaltern classes and ‘inferior races’. It was only after the confrontation and clash with the demands of radicalism and socialism and two world-wars that liberal thought was forced to make peace with the principles of democracy. However, contemporary liberalism seems to have forgotten its own most-recent achievements and to have returned to its eighteenth-century form: will modern democracy survive this involution?
Walter Benjamin’s Archive: Images, Texts, Signs Walter Benjamin Benjamin Handbuch. Leben-Werk-Wirkung
Authors: Löwy Michael
Published: July 2011

We are used to classifying different thinkers according to their general orientation: progressive or conservative, revolutionary or nostalgic of the past, materialist or idealist. Walter Benjamin does not fit into these categories. He is a revolutionary critic of the ideologies of progress, a materialist theologian, and his nostalgia for the past is at the service of his Marxist dreams for the future. It is therefore not surprising that so many different and conflicting readings of his work have developed since his death, some trying to bring him back into the usual frames of thinking, others trying to recruit him for the newest philosophical fads, and many simply damning him as ridden with contradictions and therefore an intellectual failure. But there are also some happy exceptions: those who try to take into account the irreducible singularity of his intellectual and political endeavours. These three books, quite different in object and method ‐ a collection of documents from his archives, a biography, and a ‘Benjamin Handbook’ ‐ belong to these exceptions.
Capital as Power: A Study of Order and Creorder
Authors: Hansen Bue Rübner
Published: July 2011

Nitzan and Bichler’s Capital as Power suggests that conventional theories of capitalism, Marxist and liberal alike, are unable to answer the question: what is capital? They argue that the basic units of Marxist economics, abstract labour and value, are unobservable and immeasurable, and hence ‘non-existent’ and ‘fictitious’. Against Marxists, they argue that capital is not an ‘economic’ entity, but a symbolic quantification of power.This review contends that what Nitzan and Bichler present as a critique of Marxism as such pivots on an incomprehension of dialectical thinking, and thus misses the mark. Furthermore, this absence in their readings of Marx is strictly correlative to the limits of their own theory-building. Capital as Power simply inverts the vulgar economism it finds in Marxist theories, presenting us with a theory in which capital is financial rather than productive, and symbolic rather than material. In doing so, it reproduces the one-sidedness it criticises, while discarding the possibility of analysing capitalism dialectically as a totality consisting of contradictory, but mutually presupposing, moments.
Internationalisation of Law: Historical and Cultural Aspects
Authors: Lev Amnon
Published: July 2011

The article provides a historical overview of the stages in the internationalisation of Danish law and the implication of regional and global legal settings in this process.
The End of Virtue? Denmark and the Internationalisation of Human Rights
Authors: Ersen Jonas Christoff , Madsen Mikael Rask
Published: July 2011

The article analyses the interface of Denmark and internationalisation of human rights with the goal of examining the transformation of the place and perception of international law in Scandinavia over the last decades. More precisely, the article contrasts two fundamentally different moments of the interface of international human rights and Denmark: first a period of external engagement in which Denmark – and the other Scandinavian countries – developed their position as virtuous defenders of international law and human rights and, secondly, the eventual national implications of international human rights law. This approach allows us to more generally analyse the interrelationship between the internationalisation of human rights and its eventual effect on Danish legal and political practices. We generally argue that the original politics of virtue in the area of international law and particularly international human rights law declined when international human rights started having national implications, that is, it no longer was simply a good of export. We, moreover, argue that the realistic approach developed in the national context now is having significant spill-over effects on Denmark's international policies in the area.
The CISG in Denmark and Danish Courts
Authors: Lookofsky Joseph
Published: July 2011

In this article the author explores key aspects of Denmark's reception and implementation of the 1980 United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sales of Goods (CISG). Placing the treaty within its larger private law context, the author explains the complexity and confusion created by Denmark's refusal to ratify Part II of the Convention that regulates sales contract formation. The author then proceeds to investigate Denmark's obligation to have regard to the international character of the Convention and the need to promote uniformity in its application, underlying the problematical relationship between these international obligations and the Danish judicial tradition of formulating premises so brief that they shed little light on the decision's underlying rationale (ratio decidendi). Following analysis and critique of three Danish CISG court judgments which help illustrate these propositions, the author proposes corrective steps designed to further a more international (and less parochial) approach to the CISG.
Can Religion Contribute to Development? The Road from ‘Truth’ to ‘Trust’
Authors: Ruben Ruerd
Published: July 2011

Religion has played a rather ambivalent role in the study of development. This can partly be attributed to the common emphasis on its role for providing insurance and risk reduction. Current challenges for enhancing poverty alleviation in settings of civic conflict increasingly ask attention for social mediation and new identity building. Religion can then become a key driver for supporting bridging and linking networks. This requires, however, that epistemological attention shifts from the study of ‘truth’ to the understanding of ‘trust’.
Religion, Development and Insecurity: Looking for Root Causes in An Ambiguous Relationship
Authors: Kanyandago Peter
Published: July 2011

The general attitude and appreciation in regard to religion and development, and matters related to God is a positive one. It is also true that religion in its different forms has contributed towards human development. However, it is also true that religion has either directly promoted violence or has indirectly given rise to it. The article sets out to explain what could be the root causes of this situation by using a theoretical approach based on Fukuyama. It is argued that the dominant religious and developmental systems which are products of the current Western worldview generally do not give value to what is different from them. This is applied to the violence found in The Movement of the Restoration of the Ten Commandments of God which had its base at Kanungu in Uganda. Negation of cultural and religious can be seen as one of the root causes of some violence and insecurity in the world without forgetting that each society has its own form of violence. The article suggests that if religion and development are to promote security they must respect and promote differences and diversity in cultures and nature.
Religion, Development and Security: A Mission Studies Perspective
Authors: Wijsen Frans
Published: July 2011

This contribution explores the historical relation between mission studies and development studies, and the contributions of mission studies to development studies. The author argues that mission studies contributes to the debate on religion and development in two ways, by the conceptual clarification of the notions religion and development, and by adding a dialogical methodology that studies the relation between religion and development from within and from below.
Cherokee Independent Press Act of 2000
Authors: Tallent Rebecca J. , Dingman Rubell S.
Published: July 2011

Prior to the 1997 constitutional crisis of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma, journalists working for the tribe’s Cherokee Phoenix and Indian Advocate, then called the Cherokee Advocate, did not have any press freedoms similar to the First Amendment. However, the 2-year crisis led to a revision of the tribe’s constitution, out of which sprang the first Independent Press Act for a Native American nation. Although about 65 tribes in the United States have provisions for a free press in their constitutions, many are prohibited from acting on this provision due to tribal politics or other issues. The Cherokee Independent Press Act of 2000 for the first time guarantees journalists working for the Cherokee Phoenix newspaper the same rights and privileges that their non-Native journalist counterparts have who work under the freedoms granted by the First Amendment. This study examines the conditions that led to both the crisis and the new Act, summarizes the history of federal law restricting Native media, and explains the impact of the Cherokee law on Native American journalism. It also briefly looks at reaction to the law by other Native American tribal leaders and journalists who might be considering similar measures.
Introduction: Complicating race: Articulating race across multiple social dimensions
Authors: Samy Alim H. , Reyes Angela
Published: July 2011

This introduction to the special issue, ‘Complicating Race: Articulating Race Across Multiple Social Dimensions’, situates the collection of articles with respect to the wider body of sociolinguistic and linguistic anthropological work on race in US contexts. The articles not only explode the myth of the ‘postracial’, but also seek to recast the relationship between language and race by demonstrating how race is inextricably bound with multiple, intersecting social dimensions and power relations.
Reading race beyond black and white
Authors: Chun Elaine
Published: July 2011

This article examines the practice of reading race, or the explicit labeling of people or practices with race terms. Through the close analysis of interactional moments, I examine how speakers of different ethnicities and genders across a Texas high school community strategically drew on this sociocultural practice for ideological commentary. First, I argue that readings of race often depended on an ideology of racial authenticity according to which students were expected to engage in racial performances that corresponded with their perceived racial identity. Second, I suggest that reading race was a strategy of gender and class commentary that measured speakers in relation to stereotypes of privileged white hyperfemininity and working-class black hypermasculinity. The analysis underscores the importance of attending to how racialized language is a negotiated process, how this process intersects with local ideologies of race, gender, class, and authenticity, and how reading race often achieves more than racial classification alone.
Manufacturing citizenship: Metapragmatic framings of language competencies in media images of mixed race men in South Korea
Authors: Lo Adrienne , Kim Jenna
Published: July 2011

This article examines how discourses of linguistic (in)competency regiment productions of citizenship in the South Korean popular media. Through an analysis of newspaper articles and television programs, we investigate how depictions of language competency become key resources for locating individuals within genealogies of kinship and chronotopic figures of personhood. In some cases, the speech of these celebrities associates them with imaginings of their backwards, low-class Korean kin, the Japanese colonial period, and American military presence, while in other cases, their language is associated with the 21st-century ideal of the modern, elite, globetrotting neoliberal subject. This analysis demonstrates how competence is read in relation to changing notions of citizenship in the new ‘multicultural’ Korea as these men are differentially positioned between multiple raced, classed, and gendered imaginings of Whiteness and Koreanness. More generally, we argue that understandings of linguistic competence are social productions, rather than reflections of language ability.
La voz gringa: Latino stylization of linguistic (in)authenticity as social critique
Authors: Mason Carris Lauren
Published: July 2011

Through discourse analysis of a transcribed conversation in a southern California Mexican restaurant, I identify a discursive practice in which Latina/os mock a white woman’s pronunciation of Spanish. Specifically, I examine how participants call attention to linguistic features associated with whiteness in her pronunciation of puto, a pejorative Spanish slang term used to refer to gay men, similar to the use of ‘faggot’ in American English. By using Valley-Girl-esque phonology (Eckert, 2000; Fought, 2006; Goodwin and Alim, 2010), higher pitch, and politeness formulas, participants draw on linguistic correlates intricately tied to ideologies of whiteness. I call this practice la voz gringa, and show how its use simultaneously calls into question multiple social identities, disrupts the dominant sociolinguistic ordering of white Mainstream English with respect to Latina/o language, and challenges racial/ethnic power dynamics between whites and Latina/os.
Lifestyle Factors Associated With Blood Pressure Control Among Those Taking Antihypertensive Medication
Authors: Ham Ok Kyung , Yang Sook Ja
Published: July 2011

The purpose of this study was to explore the relations between lifestyle factors and blood pressure (BP) control among patients with hypertension who were regularly taking antihypertensive medication as prescribed. From the 2005 Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey data, the 690 individuals diagnosed with hypertension who were regularly taking antihypertensive medication were identified. Slightly more than half of the patients (54.3%) had their BP under control. Younger patients, those having one or more comorbidities and those performing physical activity at least 4 days a week were more likely to have their BP under control, while overweight patients, heavy alcohol drinkers, and those with mild to very severe stress had lower rates of BP control. The study results suggested that to reduce uncontrolled BP, public health efforts should target old and overweight patients and those with unhealthy lifestyles including heavy alcohol drinking, stress, and lack of physical activity.
Short-Term Results of a Community-Based Program on Promoting Healthy Lifestyle for Prevention and Control of Chronic Diseases in a Developing Country Setting
Authors: Kelishadi Roya , Sarrafzadegan Nizal , Sadri Gholam Hossein , Pashmi Rezvan , Mohammadifard Noushin , Tavasoli Ali Akbar , Amani Ahmad , Rabiei Katayoun , Khosravi Alireza , Bahonar Ahmad
Published: July 2011

The objective of the study is to investigate the effect of a comprehensive community trial on behavioral modification after 2 years of intervention. The interventions of this 6-year, comprehensive community-based study target the whole population, of nearly 2 180 000, living in 2 cities in Iran and are compared with another Iranian city considered as reference. Educational, environmental, and legislative interventions are being conducted at the population level. From the baseline to the second year of evaluation of this study, the consumption of hydrogenated fat decreased significantly in the intervention community, but it remained nearly constant in the reference area. Meanwhile, the consumption of liquid oil increased in the intervention community, whereas it decreased in the reference area. The prevalence of current smoking and attempt to smoke decreased, respectively, in men and youths living in the intervention area but increased or remained constant in the reference area; however, no favorable change was seen for smoking among women. Leisure time physical activity increased in women and declined in men of both communities; the slopes of these changes were greater in the intervention area. Although the consumption of salty/fat snacks slightly decreased in the school students of the intervention area, it had a sharp increase in the reference area. This program succeeded in improving some aspects of lifestyle in its different target groups. The authors suggest that the synergy of activities intensified the dose of interventions and led to this improvement.
Gender Differences in Age, Period, and Birth-Cohort Effects on the Suicide Mortality Rate in Japan, 1985-2006
Authors: Odagiri Youichi , Uchida Hiroyuki , Nakano Miyoko
Published: July 2011

Because suicide is increasingly becoming a public health threat in Japan, it is necessary to identify high-risk groups to develop effective preventive measures. The suicide mortality trends from 1985 to 2006 for Japanese aged between 15 and 79 years were analyzed by a Bayesian age–period–cohort analysis to evaluate the independent effects of age, period, and birth cohort. Age-specific effect showed an overall increase with age in both genders, but a distinct increase was noted only among men aged between 50 and 64 years. The period effect exhibited a sudden rise in 1998; this effect was more apparent in men than in women. The cohort-specific effect increased in male birth cohorts born after 1926 and in female birth cohorts born after 1956. In conclusion, a gender difference was detected in the effects of age, period, and cohort on suicide risk among Japanese.
Knowledge, Attitude, and Prevalence of Overweight and Obesity Among Civil Servants in Nepal
Authors: Simkhada Prakash , Poobalan Amudha , Simkhada Padam P. , Amalraj Raja , Aucott Lorna
Published: July 2011

Obesity threatens developing countries as urbanization increases, with civil servants being particularly vulnerable. The authors assess overweight/obesity prevalence among Nepalese civil servants along with their knowledge and attitudes. A cross-sectional questionnaire survey conducted among 341 participants (97.4% response rate) also recorded height and weight. Participants were 40 ± 6.6 years, mostly males, married, and from a single ethnic group. Overweight/obesity prevalence was 33.4%. Knowledge of obesity was good. However, some attitudes toward obese people were negative, despite half of the participants believing obesity to indicate prosperity. Logistic regression indicated marriage and/or having a better job increased the overweight/obese risk by nearly 8 and 9 times, respectively. Heavier people were more likely to disagree with attitudes that obese people were “lazier” and “untidy.” Obesity prevalence among Nepalese civil servants is already higher than the general population level. Health education and interventions are needed to translate knowledge into attitude and behavior changes in order to prevent this becoming an epidemic.
Smoking Behavior Among 84 315 Open-University Students in Thailand
Authors: Pachanee Cha-aim , Lim Lynette , Bain Christopher , Wibulpolprasert Suwit , Seubsman Sam-ang , Sleigh Adrian
Published: July 2011

The aim of this study was to estimate the prevalence of smoking among students in an open university in Thailand and to describe smoking patterns in relation to the personal and social characteristics of the sample. A self-administered questionnaire survey was conducted in 2005 with 87 134 open-university students in Thailand; the respondents aged 15 to 60 years (N = 84 315) are the participants in this study. We found a substantial difference in smoking prevalence by sex, with a much higher proportion of smoking male (20.9%) than female (1.0%) students in all sociodemographic categories. Smoking decreased among men with a higher level of education or income; in contrast, among women, higher incomes were associated with more smoking. Most of the smokers started smoking in high school. The findings provide evidence that future policy making should aim to reduce smoking among the younger population in Thailand, and in particular, they point to the need to preserve low smoking rates among women.
Prevalence of Mental Health Problems in Adolescent Schoolchildren in Galle District, Sri Lanka
Authors: Agampodi Thilini Chanchala , Agampodi Suneth Buddhika , Fonseka Pushpa
Published: July 2011

The present study was conducted to assess the prevalence and associations of mental health problems (MHPs) among adolescent schoolchildren in Sri Lanka 8 months after the tsunami disaster. A descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out in the Galle Municipality area, Sri Lanka. The study instrument consisted of a self-administered questionnaire and the validated Sinhalese version of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire. The prevalence of MHPs in the study population was 32.2% (confidence interval [CI] = 28.44% to 35.96%). Direct experience of the tidal wave (odds ratio [OR] = 2.93, P = .013), perception of being affected by tsunami (OR = 1.79, P = .0014), and impact of rumors (OR = 1.85, P < .001) were significantly associated with MHPs. Not having a close friend (OR = 1.79, P = .04), being criticized by teachers (OR = 1.66, P = .008), and adolescents being not satisfied with their academic achievements (OR = 2.42, P = .02) were also significantly associated with MHPs. Even 8 months after the tsunami, MHPs among adolescent schoolchildren in the affected areas are still very high.
Active Transport and Heat
Authors: Tait Peter W.
Published: July 2011

Increasing heat may impede peoples’ ability to be active outdoors thus limiting active transport options. Co-benefits from mitigation of and adaptation to global warming should not be assumed but need to be actively designed into strategies.
Biography and Discipline: Key Players in Simulation/Gaming
Authors: Kikkawa Toshiko , Crookall David
Published: July 2011

This issue of S&G is devoted to people—to the gamers who have made and are making the exciting discipline of simulation gaming possible. All disciplines that hope for a bright future must record their origins and development. This is particularity the case for a field as fuzzy and interdisciplinary as simulation/gaming. The symposium dedicated to Harold Guetzkow traces the early days of simulation/gaming and pays homage to one of the discipline’s founding fathers and a highly respected and influential scholar. The autobiographies by prominent gamers recount developments first-hand. They too have played roles as founding fathers; the discipline owes much to their pioneering work. Their accounts make for exciting reading and provide wonderful insights into the development of the discipline as well as point ways forward for future developments.
Deletion of genes encoding PU.1 and Spi-B in B cells impairs differentiation and induces pre-B cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia
Authors: Sokalski Kristen M. , Li Stephen K. H. , Welch Ian , Cadieux-Pitre Heather-Anne T. , Gruca Marek R. , DeKoter Rodney P.
Published: July 2011

The E26 transformation-specific (Ets) transcription factor PU.1 is required to generate lymphoid progenitor cells from hematopoietic stem cells, but it is not required to generate B cells from committed B-cell lineage progenitors. We hypothesized that PU.1 function in B-cell differentiation is complemented by the related Ets transcription factor Spi-B. To test this hypothesis, mice were generated lacking both PU.1 and Spi-B in the B-cell lineage. Unlike mice lacking PU.1 or Spi-B, mice deficient in both PU.1 and Spi-B in the B-cell lineage had reduced frequencies of B cells as well as impaired B-cell differentiation. Strikingly, all PU.1 and Spi-B–deficient mice developed pre-B cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia before 30 weeks of age. Pre-B cells accumulated in the thymus resulting in massive thymic enlargement and dyspnea. These findings demonstrate that PU.1 and Spi-B are essential transcriptional regulators of B-cell differentiation as well as novel tumor suppressors in the B-cell lineage.
An Efficient Three-component Tandem Reaction Leading to Pentacyclic Isoindole-fused Benzo[b,e][1,4]diazepines in Water
Authors: Wang Shu-Liang , Cheng Chuang , Wu Fei-Yue , Li Jing , Jiang Bo , Tu Shu-Jiang
Published: July 2011

An efficient methodology for the synthesis of highly functionalized pentacyclic isoindole-fused benzo[b,e][1,4]diazepine derivatives from readily available common reactants in water has been developed. The tandem reaction resulted in efficient assembly of two new rings and four σ bonds including three C–N bonds in a one-pot operation.
Shape-controlled Synthesis of LiMnPO4 via a Hydrothermal Route and Its Electrochemical Behavior in Lithium Ion Batteries
Authors: Li Ting , Mei Tao , Zhu Yongchun , Gong Huaxu , Huang Tao , Qian Yitai
Published: July 2011

LiMnPO4 nanosquares with the edge size of 800–1000 nm and the thickness of 50–250 nm were hydrothermally prepared using 1.0 g of Na4P2O7·10H2O. Subsequently, the LiMnPO4 nanosquares were annealed with ascorbic acid (Vc) at 600 °C to prepare the LiMnPO4/C nanocomposites. The electrochemical performances of LiMnPO4 and LiMnPO4/C at 0.1 C demonstrated first run discharge capacities at 81.6 and 125.5 mA h g−1, respectively. In addition, spindles, bows, and cubes composed of LiMnPO4 nanosquares have also been prepared.
Organocatalytic Asymmetric Synthesis of N,N-Bis(dihydrofuranyl)hydroxyamines: A Cascade Reaction Involving Friedel–Crafts Alkylation, Internal Redox Reaction, and Umpolung
Authors: Sohtome Yoshihiro , Yamaguchi Takahisa , Shin Bongki , Nagasawa Kazuo
Published: July 2011

Stereoselective syntheses of N,N-bis(dihydrofuranyl)hydroxyamines from phenols and nitroolefins have been accomplished by means of cycle-specific catalysis with guanidine/bisthiourea organocatalyst and achiral base. Circumstantial evidence supports the idea that a nitroso intermediate participates in the dimerization, which involves internal redox reaction/umpolung.
The use of compression stockings for venous disorders in Brazil
Authors: Cataldo J L , de Godoy J M Pereira , de Barros N
Published: July 2011

Objective

The aim of this study was to analyse the medical indication and the use of elastic compression stockings, and to assess patient adherence to treatment in different regions of Brazil.

Method

The prescription and clinical indication of elastic stockings were evaluated in a prospective, descriptive, cross-sectional, multicentre study for a population of private patients. In 2009, 3414 patients from 123 treatment centres in southern, south-eastern and north-eastern Brazil were evaluated using a questionnaire. The following variables were analysed: sociodemographic (gender, age, occupation and education), lifestyle (physical activity and time spent standing); classification of venous disease (CEAP [clinical, aetiological, anatomical and pathophysiological] classification – clinical criteria), indications for prescription, consumer behaviour (strength, acquisition and use of stockings) and criteria of satisfaction (improvement, duration of use, adherence). The effects of compression therapy were assessed at a follow-up visit approximately 30 days after starting treatment with the following items being assessed: complaints about pain, discomfort, burning sensation and oedema of the leg while using elastic stockings. Multivariate analysis was used to compare data with an alpha error of 5% ( P value < 0.05) being considered acceptable.

Results

The average age increased with the severity of chronic venous insufficiency; the main indications used by physicians were leg pain and discomfort; 89.3% of patients bought stockings and thus started treatment with more than 90% of these reporting improvements in symptoms.

Conclusion

Elastic stockings are available to the Brazilian population, look acceptable at the time of purchase and provide good results; however, some limitations regarding their use need to be addressed.
A Comparison of Point of Zero Charge Measurement Methodology
Authors: Cristiano Elena , Hu Yung-Jin , Sigfried Matthew , Kaplan Daniel , Nitsche Heino
Published: July 2011

Contaminant-transport modeling requires information about the charge of subsurface particle surfaces. Because values are commonly reused many times in a single simulation, small errors can be magnified greatly. Goethite (α-FeOOH) and pyrolusite (β-MnO2) are ubiquitous mineral phases that are especially contaminant reactive. The objective of the present study was to measure and compare the point of zero charge (PZC) using different methods. The pyrolusite PZC was measured with three methods: mass titration (MT) (PZC = 5.9±0.1), powder addition (PA) (PZC = 5.98±0.08), and isoelectric point, IEP (PZC = 4.4±0.1). The IEP measurement was in agreement with literature values. However, MT and PA resulted in a statistically larger PZC than the IEP measurement. The surface area of pyrolusite, 2.2 m2g−1, was too small to permit PZC determination by the potentiometric titration (PT) method. Goethite PZC values were measured using MT (7.5±0.1), PT (7.46±0.09), and PA (7.20±0.08). The present work presents the first reported instance where MT and PA have been applied to measure the point of zero charge of either pyrolusite or goethite. The results illustrate the importance of using multiple, complementary techniques to measure PZC values accurately.
Surface Area and Porosity of Nanotubes Obtained from Kaolin Minerals of Different Structural Order
Authors: Matusik Jakub , Wisła-Walsh Ewa , Gaweł Adam , Bielańska Elżbieta , Bahranowski Krzysztof
Published: July 2011

Mesoporous materials with pore diameters in the range 2–50 nm forming tubular or fibrous structures are of great interest due to their unique properties. Because they are commonly used as sorbents and catalyst carriers, knowledge of their surface area and porosity is critical. A modified intercalation/deintercalation method was used to increase the efficiency of nanotube formation from kaolin-group minerals which differ in terms of their degree of structural order. Unlike previous experiments, in the procedure adopted in the present study, methanol was used instead of 1,3-butanediol for grafting reactions and octadecylamine intercalation was also performed. The samples were examined using X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The specific surface area and porosity of previously described and newly formed materials were investigated by N2 adsorption/desorption. Compared to results described earlier, the percent yield of nanotubes obtained in the present study was significantly greater only in the case of ‘Maria III’ kaolinite, which has high structural order. This increase was obtained mainly by the grafting reaction with methanol. Highly ordered stacking of kaolinite-methanol intercalates was noticed and, thus, the amine intercalation was more efficient. In particular, the use of long-chain octadecylamine significantly increased the nanotube yield. The grafting reaction with methanol procedure yielded fewer nanotubes, however, when applied to poorly ordered samples (‘Jaroszów’ kaolinite and ‘Dunino’ halloysite). In the case of the ‘Maria III’ kaolinite, the diameter of the rolled layers observed by TEM was ~30 nm and corresponded to average diameters of newly formed pores (DmN) determined using N2 adsorption/desorption, confirming that nanotubes contributed to an increase in surface area and total pore volume. In the case of ‘Jaroszów’ kaolinite and ‘Dunino’ halloysite mainly macropores (DmN > 100 nm) and mesopores (20 nm > DmN > 40 nm) were formed. The pores were attributed to interparticle and interaggregate spaces in the stacks of platy particles and to the small relative number of nanotubes.
Acidic Dissolution of Magnetite: Experimental Study on the Effects of Acid Concentration and Temperature
Authors: Salmimies Riina , Mannila Marju , Kallas Juha , Häkkinen Antti
Published: July 2011

Magnetite (Fe3O4) is a key economically valuable component in iron ore and is extracted by dissolution processes, but among the Fe (oxyhydr)oxides its solubility behavior is one of the least understood. The objective of this study was to improve understanding of magnetite dissolution mechanisms leading to thermodynamic equilibrium by comparing the dissolution of two solid samples, one synthetic and one industrial, using oxalic, sulfuric, and nitric acids at varying concentrations and temperatures. Of the three solid-liquid systems investigated, only the system consisting of magnetite and oxalic acid reached an equilibrium state within the duration of an individual experiment (6 h). In this system, increasing the acid concentration resulted in a significant increase in the equilibrium concentration of dissolved Fe. When dissolving synthetic and industrial magnetite, increasing the temperature not only increased the rate of reaction but also affected the concentration of dissolved Fe. Significant effects were observed when increasing the temperature from 15 to 35°C, but only slight differences were seen on further increases in temperature. Observations regarding the equilibrium state of the sulfuric and nitric acid systems could not be made because equilibrium was not reached. The most important individual observation regarding the equilibrium state of the nitric- and sulfuric-acid systems seems to be that in future studies a much longer reaction time is necessary, due to slow kinetics of the dissolution mechanism. A proton-based mechanism has been hypothesized as the one governing the dissolution of magnetite by these two acids, but only the dissolution of the industrial sample yielded results that were similar for these two acids and consistent with that hypothesis.
Smectite Formation in Submarine Hydrothermal Sediments: Samples from the HMS Challenger Expedition (1872–1876)
Authors: Cuadros Javier , Dekov Vesselin M. , Arroyo Xabier , Nieto Fernando
Published: July 2011

Clay processes, mineral reactions, and element budgets in oceans continue to be important topics for scientific investigation, particularly with respect to understanding better the roles of chemistry, formation mechanism, and input from hydrothermal fluids, seawater, and non-hydrothermal mineral phases.To that end, the present study was undertaken.Thre e samples of submarine metalliferous sediments of hydrothermal origin were studied to investigate the formation of smectite, usually Fe-rich, which takes place in such environments.The samples are from the historical collection returned by the British HMS Challenger expedition (1872–1876) and kept at the Natural History Museum in London.The samples were collected from the vicinity of the Pacific–Antarctic Ridge and the Chile Ridge.The samples were analyzed by means of X-ray diffraction (XRD), chemical analysis, scanning electron microscopyenergy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDX), infrared (IR), and transmission electron microscopyanalytical electron microscopy (TEM-AEM).After removal of biogenic calcite the samples appeared to consist mainly of two low-crystallinity phases mixed intimately: Fe/Mn (oxyhydr)oxides and a Si-Al-Mg- Fe phase of similar chemical characteristics to smectite and with variable proportions of the above elements, as indicated by XRD, IR, and SEM-EDX.In particular, analysis by XRD revealed the presence of highly disordered δ-MnO2.The TEM-AEM analysis showed that Fe/MnOOH particles have Fe/Mn ratios in the range 25–0.2 and textures changing from granular to veil-like as the proportion ofMn increased. The smectite-like material has the morphology and chemistry of smectite, as well as 10–15 Å lattice fringes. Selected area electron diffraction (SAED) patterns indicated a very poorly crystalline material: in some cases distances between diffraction rings corresponded to d values of smectite.The smectite composition indicated a main Fe-rich dioctahedral component with a substantialMg-rich trioctahedral component (total octahedral occupancy between 2.02 and 2.51 atoms per O10[OH]2). The (proto-) smectite is interpreted to have formed within the metalliferous sediment, as a slow reaction between Fe/MnOOH, seawater (providing Mg), detrital silicates from the continent (providing Si and Al), and X-ray amorphous silica of hydrothermal origin that adsorbed on Fe/MnOOH phases and deposited with them.This material is possibly in the process of maturation into well crystallized smectite.
Quantification of 1α,25-Dihydroxy Vitamin D by Immunoextraction and Liquid Chromatography–Tandem Mass Spectrometry
Authors: Strathmann Frederick G , Laha Thomas J , Hoofnagle Andrew N
Published: July 2011

BACKGROUND

1α,25-dihydroxy vitamin D [1,25(OH)2D] is the active metabolite of vitamin D. Antibody-based detection methods lack specificity, but when combined with isotope dilution/ultra-performance liquid chromatography (UPLC)–tandem mass spectrometry, immunoextraction provides an attractive method for 1,25(OH)2D. We developed a method for simultaneous quantification of 1,25(OH)2D2 and 1,25(OH)2D3 with a 4.6-min instrument cycle time. Results are available 36 h after sample preparation begins.

METHODS

Sample preparation consisted of protein precipitation, immunoextraction with solid-phase anti-1,25(OH)2D antibody, and derivatization with 4-phenyl-1,2,4-triazoline-3,5-dione. Analytes were resolved using reversed-phase UPLC and quantified using positive ion electrospray ionization–tandem mass spectrometry. We used hexadeuterated 1,25(OH)2D3 and 1,25(OH)2D2 as internal standards and performed method comparisons against the DiaSorin RIA and an LC-MS/MS method available at a reference laboratory.

RESULTS

1,25(OH)2D3 intraassay and interassay imprecision was 5.6% and 8.0% (120 pmol/L) and 8.7% and 13% (48 pmol/L). Limits of detection and quantification were 1.5 pmol/L and 3.0 pmol/L, respectively. 1,25(OH)2D2 intraassay and interassay imprecision was 8.7% and 11% (186 pmol/L) and 11% and 13% (58 pmol/L). Limits of detection and quantification were both 1.5 pmol/L. Comparison with RIA had a proportional bias of 0.75, constant bias of −4.1, and Pearson correlation (r2) of 0.31. Comparison with a reference LC-MS/MS assay had a proportional bias of 0.89, constant bias of 3.7, and r2 of 0.88.

CONCLUSIONS

Protein precipitation with antibody-based extraction is effective for sample preparation before LC-MS/MS analysis of derivatized 1,25(OH)2D. This method appears to have improved specificity over a clinically used RIA with low imprecision and limits of detection.