bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Comparative analyses of actinobacterial genomic fragments from Lake Kinneret
Authors: Philosof Alon , Sabehi Gazalah , Béjà Oded
Published: August 2009

The high genomic G+C group of Actinobacteria possesses a variety of physiological and metabolic properties, and exhibits diverse lifestyles and ecological distribution. In recent years, Actinobacteria have been found to frequently dominate samples obtained from freshwater samples. Furthermore, phylogenetic analyses have shown that 16S rRNA genes from uncultured actinobacterial freshwater samples cluster in four distinct lineages. While these lineages are abundant, little is known about them and currently no pure‐culture representatives or genomic fragments of them are available. In a screen of a genomic library from the moderately eutrophic freshwater Lake Kinneret, five fosmid clones containing actinobacterial genomic fragments were found. Three ∼40 kb genomic fragments were chosen for sequencing. Fosmids K003 and K005 showed high similarity and were affiliated with the acIV actinobacterial freshwater lineage. Fosmid K004 was affiliated with the highly abundant acI lineage. A comparative genomic analysis revealed high synteny between the two freshwater clones K003 and K005 but a lower synteny between these two and the K004 fosmid. Fosmids K003 and K005 share an identical arrangement of arginine biosynthesis gene while K004 showed a slightly different arrangement by lacking the argF gene. Fosmid Ant4E12, an Antarctic actinobacterial clone, showed a higher synteny with K003/5 than K004 and a similar arginine operon, but in a different genomic context. The Clusters of Orthologous Groups categories assignment of the three fosmids yielded genes that were mostly involved in amino acid and nucleotide metabolism, as well as transport and ribosomal RNA translation, structure and biogenesis. These genomic fragments represent the first sequences to be published from these lineages, providing a cornerstone for future work on this environmentally dominant group.
Comparative analysis of the widespread and conserved PB1‐like viruses infecting Pseudomonas aeruginosa
Authors: Ceyssens Pieter‐Jan , Miroshnikov Konstantin , Mattheus Wesley , Krylov Victor , Robben Johan , Noben Jean‐Paul , Vanderschraeghe Simon , Sykilinda Nina , Kropinski Andrew M. , Volckaert Guido , Mesyanzhinov Vadim , Lavigne Rob
Published: August 2009

We examined the genetic diversity of lytic Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacteriophage PB1 and four closely related phages (LBL3, LMA2, 14‐1 and SN) isolated throughout Europe. They all encapsulate linear, non‐permuted genomes between 64 427 and 66 530 bp within a solid, acid‐resistant isometric capsid (diameter: 74 nm) and carry non‐flexible, contractile tails of approximately 140 nm. The genomes are organized into at least seven transcriptional blocks, alternating on both strands, and encode between 88 (LBL3) and 95 (LMA2) proteins. Their virion particles are composed of at least 22 different proteins, which were identified using mass spectrometry. Post‐translational modifications were suggested for two proteins, and a frameshift hotspot was identified within ORF42, encoding a structural protein. Despite large temporal and spatial separations between phage isolations, very high sequence similarity and limited horizontal gene transfer were found between the individual viruses. These PB1‐like viruses constitute a new genus of environmentally very widespread phages within the Myoviridae.
DNA content in the diagnostic biopsy for benign‐adjacent and cancer‐tissue areas predicts the need for treatment in men with T1c prostate cancer undergoing surveillance in an expectant management programme
Authors: Isharwal Sumit , Makarov Danil V. , Carter H. Ballentine , Epstein Jonathan I. , Partin Alan W. , Landis Patricia , Marlow Cameron , Veltri Robert W.
Published: August 2009

Study Type – Prognosis (case series)Level of Evidence 4

OBJECTIVE

To assess the DNA content in benign‐adjacent and cancer‐tissue areas of a diagnostic biopsy, to predict which patients would subsequently develop an unfavourable biopsy necessitating treatment for prostate cancer in the expectant management (EM) programme.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

Of 71 patients who had benign‐adjacent and cancer‐tissue areas of diagnostic biopsies available, 39 developed unfavourable biopsies (Gleason score ≥7, Gleason pattern 4/5, three or more cores positive for cancer, >50% of any core involved with cancer), while 32 maintained favourable biopsies on annual surveillance examination (median follow‐up 3.7 years). DNA content was measured on Feulgen‐stained biopsy sections using an automatic imaging system (AutoCyteTM, TriPath Imaging Inc, Burlington, NC, USA). Cox proportional‐hazard regression and Kaplan‐Meier plots were used to identify significant predictors for unfavourable biopsy conversion.

RESULTS

Univariately, DNA content measurements i.e. an excess of optical density (OD) in the benign‐adjacent tissuer area, and the sd of the OD in the cancer tissue were significant, with a hazard ratio and 95% confidence interval of 2.58 (1.17–5.68; P = 0.019) and 5.36 (1.89–15.24; P = 0.002), respectively, for predicting unfavourable biopsy conversion that required intervention. Also, several other DNA content measurements in benign‐adjacent and cancer‐tissue areas showed a trend to statistical significance. Further, benign‐adjacent excess of OD (3.12, 1.4–6.95; P = 0.005) and cancer sd of OD (5.88, 2.06–16.82; P = 0.001) remained significant in the multivariate model to predict unfavourable biopsy conversion. Patients with benign‐adjacent excess of OD > 25.0 and cancer sd of OD of >4.0 had the highest risk for unfavourable biopsy conversion (P < 0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

DNA content measurements in the benign‐adjacent and cancer‐tissue areas appear to be useful for predicting unfavourable biopsy conversion (a recommendation for intervention) on annual surveillance examinations in the EM programme.
Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivational Orientations in the Competitive Context: An Examination of Person–Situation Interactions
Authors: Abuhamdeh Sami , Csikszentmihalyi Mihaly
Published: August 2009

ABSTRACT
The current study examined Intrinsic Motivation Orientation and Extrinsic Motivation Orientation (Work Preference Inventory; Amabile, Hill, Hennessey, & Tighe, 1994) as potential trait‐level moderators of the way Internet chess players responded to the intrinsic and extrinsic rewards of the chess games they played. On the basis of the defining characteristics of these 2 types of motivational orientations, we predicted that (a) Intrinsic Motivation Orientation would be associated with a stronger curvilinear relationship between challenge and enjoyment and (b) Extrinsic Motivation Orientation would be associated with a heightened affective responsivity to competitive outcome (i.e., winning vs. losing). Results supported the predictions. Implications of the findings are discussed.
Something old, something new: a developmental transition from familiarity to novelty preferences with hidden objects
Authors: Shinskey Jeanne L. , Munakata Yuko
Published: August 2009

Novelty seeking is viewed as adaptive, and novelty preferences in infancy predict cognitive performance into adulthood. Yet 7‐month‐olds prefer familiar stimuli to novel ones when searching for hidden objects, in contrast to their strong novelty preferences with visible objects (Shinskey & Munakata, 2005). According to a graded representations perspective on object knowledge, infants gradually develop stronger object representations through experience, such that representations of familiar objects can be better maintained, supporting greater search than with novel objects. Object representations should strengthen with further development to allow older infants to shift from familiarity to novelty preferences with hidden objects. The current study tested this prediction by presenting 24 11‐month‐olds with novel and familiar objects that were sometimes visible and sometimes hidden. Unlike 7‐month‐olds, 11‐month‐olds showed novelty preferences with both visible and hidden objects. This developmental shift from familiarity to novelty preference with hidden objects parallels one that infants show months earlier with perceptible stimuli, but the two transitions may reflect different underlying mechanisms. The current findings suggest both change and continuity in the adaptive development of object representations and associated cognitive processes.
Choice latency as a cue for children’s subjective confidence in the correctness of their answers
Authors: Koriat Asher , Ackerman Rakefet
Published: August 2009

Research with adults indicates that confidence in the correctness of an answer decreases as a function of the amount of time it takes to reach that answer, suggesting that people use response latency as a mnemonic cue for subjective confidence. Experiment 1 extended investigation to 2nd, 3rd and 5th graders. When children chose the answer to general knowledge questions, their confidence in the answer was inversely related to choice latency. However, the strength of the relationship increased with grade, suggesting increased reliance with age on the feedback from task performance. The validity of latency as a cue for the accuracy of the answer also increased with age, possibly contributing to the observed age increase in the extent to which confidence judgment discriminated between correct and wrong answers. Whereas these results illustrate the dependence of metacognitive monitoring on the feedback from control operations, Experiments 2 and 3 examined the idea that control‐based monitoring affects subsequent control operations. When children were free to choose which answers to volunteer under a payoff schedule that emphasized accuracy, they tended to volunteer high‐confidence answers more than low‐confidence answers (Experiment 2) and more short‐latency answers than long‐latency answers (Experiment 3). The latter tendency was again stronger for older than for younger children. The results are discussed in terms of the intricate relationships between monitoring and control processes.
Knowing about not remembering: developmental dissociations in lack‐of‐memory monitoring
Authors: Ghetti Simona , Castelli Paola , Lyons Kristen E.
Published: August 2009

Children aged 7 and younger encounter great difficulty in assessing whether lack of memory for an event indicates that the event was not experienced. The present research investigated whether this difficulty results from a general inability to evaluate memory absence or from a specific inability to monitor one feature of memory absence that has been examined in previous studies, namely expected memorability. Seven‐, 8‐ and 9‐year‐olds, and adults (N = 72) enacted, imagined and confabulated about bizarre and common actions. Two weeks later, participants were asked to recognize the actions that had been enacted. Even 7‐year‐olds monitored the relative familiarity of rejected distracters (i.e. reported higher confidence for the rejection of novel versus imagined and confabulated distracters). However, only older children and adults exhibited the ability to monitor expected memorability (e.g. reported higher confidence for the rejection of bizarre versus common distracters). These results suggest that young children exhibit specific, rather than general, deficits in monitoring memory absence, and provide an indication of the specific domains in which lack‐of‐memory monitoring improves during childhood.
COVARIATE‐ADJUSTED REGRESSION FOR LONGITUDINAL DATA INCORPORATING CORRELATION BETWEEN REPEATED MEASUREMENTS
Authors: Nguyen Danh V. , Şentürk Damla
Published: August 2009

We propose an estimation method that incorporates the correlation/covariance structure between repeated measurements in covariate‐adjusted regression models for distorted longitudinal data. In this distorted data setting, neither the longitudinal response nor (possibly time‐varying) predictors are directly observable. The unobserved response and predictors are assumed to be distorted/contaminated by unknown functions of a common observable confounder. The proposed estimation methodology adjusts for the distortion effects both in estimation of the covariance structure and in the regression parameters using generalized least squares. The finite‐sample performance of the proposed estimators is studied numerically by means of simulations. The consistency and convergence rates of the proposed estimators are also established. The proposed method is illustrated with an application to data from a longitudinal study of cognitive and social development in children.
AN EVALUATION OF NON‐ITERATIVE METHODS FOR ESTIMATING THE LINEAR‐BY‐LINEAR PARAMETER OF ORDINAL LOG‐LINEAR MODELS
Authors: Beh Eric J. , Farver Thomas B.
Published: August 2009

Parameter estimation for association and log‐linear models is an important aspect of the analysis of cross‐classified categorical data. Classically, iterative procedures, including Newton's method and iterative scaling, have typically been used to calculate the maximum likelihood estimates of these parameters. An important special case occurs when the categorical variables are ordinal and this has received a considerable amount of attention for more than 20 years. This is because models for such cases involve the estimation of a parameter that quantifies the linear‐by‐linear association and is directly linked with the natural logarithm of the common odds ratio. The past five years has seen the development of non‐iterative procedures for estimating the linear‐by‐linear parameter for ordinal log‐linear models. Such procedures have been shown to lead to numerically equivalent estimates when compared with iterative, maximum likelihood estimates. Such procedures also enable the researcher to avoid some of the computational difficulties that commonly arise with iterative algorithms. This paper investigates and evaluates the performance of three non‐iterative procedures for estimating this parameter by considering 14 contingency tables that have appeared in the statistical and allied literature. The estimation of the standard error of the association parameter is also considered.
Wittgenstein, Dreaming and Anti‐Realism: A Reply to Richard Scheer
Authors: Child William
Published: August 2009

I have argued that Wittgenstein's treatment of dreaming involves a kind of anti‐realism about the past: what makes “I dreamed p” true is, roughly, that I wake with the feeling or impression of having dreamed p. Richard Scheer raises three objections. First, that the texts do not support my interpretation. Second, that the anti‐realist view of dreaming does not make sense, so cannot be Wittgenstein's view. Third, that the anti‐realist view leaves it a mystery why someone who reports having dreamed such‐and‐such is inclined to report what she does. The Reply defends my reading of Wittgenstein against these objections.
A Phase‐Based Comparative Approach to Modification and Word Order in Germanic
Authors: Hinterhölzl Roland
Published: August 2009

Abstract. This paper proposes a novel phase‐based approach to directionality parameters in Germanic. Basic OV and basic VO order are argued to follow from two interacting types of mapping constraints at the interfaces. The properties of event‐related adjuncts are shown not to follow from a dual structure involving cascades, but are derived by (silent) scrambling of arguments and adjuncts plus vP intraposition, which serves to license event‐related adjuncts as (superimposed) predicates.
Playing with Residuals
Authors: Farnsworth David L.
Published: August 2009

A simple way is given to create residual plots that are words or pictures. Three illustrative examples are presented.
Helping Students Develop Statistical Reasoning: Implementing a Statistical Reasoning Learning Environment
Authors: Garfield Joan , Ben‐Zvi Dani
Published: August 2009

This article describes a model for an interactive, introductory secondary‐ or tertiary‐level statistics course that is designed to develop students' statistical reasoning. This model is called a ‘Statistical Reasoning Learning Environment’ and is built on the constructivist theory of learning.
Why Don't We Live Forever?
Authors: Falk Ruma
Published: August 2009

The older one gets, the more one's life expectancy exceeds the population's given expectancy (at birth). Yet longevity is finite. This apparent paradox is analysed probabilistically with reference to empirical demographic data.
Straddling Two Worlds: Reflections of a Retired Criminal Cases Review Commissioner
Authors: Duff Peter
Published: August 2009

In this paper, I draw upon the ‘systems theory’ approach to miscarriages of justice (adopted by Nobles and Schiff) to reflect upon my experience as a member of the Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission. I demonstrate how the Commission manages the tensions between the rather different ‘legal’ and ‘lay’ worlds which it inhabits. More particularly, I argue that the Commission, while heavily constrained by the law and a legal world view, is more independent of the legal ‘system’ than some commentators would suggest. I substantiate my arguments through describing some of the debates that took place within the Scottish Commission and analysing in depth the judgements of the Scottish appeal court in some of the cases referred to it by the Commission. Much of what I say is applicable in varying degrees to the English Commission and to the current debate in England as to what constitutes a ‘miscarriage of justice’.
Strasbourg, the House of Lords or Elected Politicians: Who decides about rights after Re P?
Authors: Kavanagh Aileen
Published: August 2009

In Re P, the House of Lords decided that art 14 of the Adoption (Northern Ireland) Order 1987 which prohibited unmarried couples from being eligible to adopt, violated articles 8 and 14 of the European Convention on Human Rights. Apart from its significance for adoption law and anti‐discrimination law, Re P is also important in understanding the constitutional role of the courts under the Human Rights Act 1998 (HRA). Re P recognizes that if Strasbourg has determined that an issue falls within states' margin of appreciation, this does not prevent municipal courts from enforcing those rights. This comment will discuss the meaning and scope of the courts' obligation under section 2 of the HRA, the status of the rights protected by the HRA and the appropriate role of the courts in a rights dispute which is subject to moral, social, religious or political controversy.
THE MYSTERY OF GOD AND THE SUFFERING OF HUMAN BEINGS1
Authors: MILLER RICHARD W.
Published: August 2009

The proper theological response to the problem of reconciling human suffering with the Christian belief in a God of infinite wisdom, power, and goodness is not to try to solve the unsolvable, but to preserve the mystery of God. The concept ‘mystery’ as attributed to God signifies intelligibility — inexhaustible intelligibility — not contradiction. Mystery suggests the range and limits of a human being's knowledge of God. We cannot know why God permits suffering in this particular instance or the character of God's response to someone in the throes of suffering. We can know in a general way the necessary conditions of the possibility for the realization of God's purpose because we know the purpose of God's activity through revelation. This paper argues that if God created the universe so that creatures could share in the fullness of God's life, God could not have achieved God's purpose without any human suffering. This argument upholds the inexhaustible intelligibility of God's activity and thus preserves the mystery of God, for if God could have achieved God's purpose without any suffering, yet willed the suffering of creatures, then the eternal plan of providence and the actual unfolding of salvation history would be arbitrary and irrational.
The Moral Theology of John Paul II: A Response to Charles E. Curran
Authors: Walsh Francis Michael
Published: August 2009

Over a long career of teaching and writing in the area of moral theology Charles E. Curran has experienced large areas of agreement with John Paul II on issues of social justice even while in other areas of personal and sexual issues the two are in serious disagreement. This phenomenon of agreement/disagreement has suggested to Curran that the pope is guilty of using a double methodology in his moral theological writing. Curran's book, The Moral Theology of Pope John Paul II, seeks to uncover and substantiate the root of their agreements and disagreements. This article seeks to evaluate Curran's theory. This analysis is done in two parts: first, an examination of the evidence that Curran presents to support his charge against the pope, and second, an examination of the alternative possibility that it is Curran who has the double methodology rather than the pope.
Phylogenetic relationships based on two mitochondrial genes and hybridization patterns in Anatidae
Authors: Gonzalez J. , Düttmann H. , Wink M.
Published: August 2009

We produced DNA sequence data from two mitochondrial genes (cytochrome b and the NADH dehydrogenase subunit 2) to reconstruct the phylogenetic relationships among 121 species of the Anseriformes (waterfowls including ducks, geese, swans, the magpie goose and screamers). Phylogenetic analyses converged into a congruent topology and defined several well‐supported clades. We calibrated a molecular clock and reconstructed ancestral biogeographical areas using Bayesian inference supporting an austral continental (Gondwanaland) origin of the waterfowls. Ducks, swans and geese might have diversified during the Miocene (23–5 Myr ago) reaching northern distributions in Holarctic and Afrotropical regions. The evolution of hybridization patterns in Anseriformes has been investigated using a cladistic analysis (morphology), which may underestimate or overestimate the phylogenetic divergence among species, or restricted only to ducks. Using a phylogenetic framework, genetic‐based distances and a Bayesian time calibration, our data support the hypothesis based on immunological distances of slow rate of appearance of reproductive incompatibilities in waterfowls compared with other vertebrates and the view that these birds may be like frogs in having lost their interspecific hybridization potential more slowly than mammals.
Ellagic acid and its methyl‐derivatives inhibit a newly found nitratase activity
Authors: Léger Claude L. , Torres‐Rasgado Enrique , Fouret Gilles , Lauret Céline , Carbonneau Marie‐Annette
Published: August 2009

We have recently shown that low density lipoprotein (LDL) was able to denitrate albumin‐bound 3‐NO2‐Tyr residues and to concomitantly release NO3− through a Ca2+‐dependent process that has been ascribed to a specific protein structure. A lipophilic food component (γ‐tocopherol), which is easily loaded into LDL has been found to totally inhibit denitrating activity. We presently found that ellagic acid (EA) and its methylated derivatives, 4,4′O‐methyl‐ and 3,3′O‐methyl‐ellagic acids (MeEA1 and MeEA2, respectively), amphipathic phenolic components of certain fruits and beverages, were also able to inhibit this activity, with a total inhibition for EA and a 60% inhibition for MeEA1 and MeEA2. EA exhibited the highest affinity for protein plasma, whereas a higher affinity of MeEA1 and MeEA2 (with MeEA1 > MeEA2) than EA was found for lipoprotein fractions, suggesting that the inhibition‐driving property is protein affinity. As a result of this nitratase‐inhibition property EA and its natural metabolite MeEA2 may have a beneficial role in special physiopathological conditions.
Droperidol and ondansetron in vitro electrophysiological drug interaction study
Authors: Weissenburger Jacques , Funck‐Brentano Christian , Jaillon Patrice , Charbit Beny
Published: August 2009

Droperidol and ondansetron are potent anti‐emetic agents which are often administered together. Although both drugs prolong QT interval in man by inhibition of Human Ether‐a‐go‐go Related Gene‐coded potassium channels, only droperidol was tested using more integrated experimental models. Therefore, we studied the effects of both compounds and their combination on action potentials (AP) of rabbit Purkinje fibers using conventional intracellular glass microelectrode. Purkinje fibers, driven at 1 Hz, were exposed to increasing concentrations (from 0.001 to 10 μm) of droperidol (n = 7) or ondansetron (n = 8) at 30 min intervals at 36.5°C. Other fibers were exposed to a constant droperidol concentration (0.1 μm) alone (n = 7) or together with the same increasing concentrations of ondansetron (n = 6). Droperidol increased AP duration measured at 90% repolarization (APD90) in a concentration‐dependent manner from 4.4 ± 0.8% (mean ± SEM) after 1 nmto a maximum of 158 ± 72% after 1 μm. Ondansetron significantly increased APD90 by 5.3 ± 2.1% at 100 nmup to 76 ± 14% after10 μm. Early after‐depolarization occurred in 6/7 fibers exposed to droperidol and 1/8 fibers exposed to ondansetron. When given together, pure additive effects were observed. The concentrations that increased APD90 by 50% were 0.25 ± 0.25 μmdroperidol, 3.8 ± 2.4 μmondansetron and 1.5 ± 0.8 μmondansetron when given together with droperidol. Both ondansetron and droperidol prolong AP duration in Purkinje fibers, droperidol being 10 times more potent than ondansetron. Combination of ondansetron and droperidol exhibits an additive effect on AP duration. However, within clinically relevant concentrations, ondansetron does not further increase the AP prolongation caused by droperidol alone.
A NEW TRUE ORTHO‐PHOTO METHODOLOGY FOR COMPLEX ARCHAEOLOGICAL APPLICATION
Authors: ALSHAWABKEH YAHYA , HAALA NORBERT , FRITSCH DIETER
Published: August 2009

Ortho‐photo is one of the most important photogrammetric products for archaeological documentation. It consists of a powerful textured representation combining geometric accuracy with rich detail, such as areas of damage and decay. Archaeological applications are usually faced with complex object shapes. Compared with conventional algorithms, ortho‐projection of such rough curved objects is still a problem, due to the complex description of the analytical shape of the object. Even using a detailed digital surface model, typical ortho‐rectification software does not produce the desired outcome, being incapable of handling image visibility and model occlusions, since it is limited to 2.5‐dimensional surface descriptions. This paper presents an approach for the automated production of true ortho‐mosaics for the documentation of cultural objects. The algorithm uses precise three‐dimensional surface representations derived from laser scanning and several digital images that entirely cover the object of interest. After identifying all model surface triangles in the viewing direction, the triangles are projected back on to all initial images to establish visibilities for every available image. Missing image information can be filled in from adjacent images that must have been subjected to the same true ortho‐photo procedure.
Mentors as Social Capital: Gender, Mentors, and Career Rewards in Law Practice*
Authors: Kay Fiona M. , Wallace Jean E.
Published: August 2009

Previous studies have demonstrated that mentoring provides numerous career benefits to individuals and organizations. This article advances past work by examining the effects of individuals’ primary and multiple developmental relationships in a longitudinal study of the careers of lawyers. We develop a social capital perspective on mentorship emphasizing reciprocity of exchange, resource mobilization, and normative expectations embedded within mentoring relationships. We empirically assess mentoring benefits across a diverse range of career rewards. The results provide evidence that male lawyers gain more from their mentor‐derived social capital than female lawyers. Specifically, male lawyers with mentors of senior status benefit with elevated earnings, greater perceived fairness in their workplace, and greater work satisfaction. Women with multiple mentors, however, report enhanced work satisfaction. Implications for research on mentoring, social capital, and professional careers are discussed.
Nasogastric tube feeding in cats with suspected acute pancreatitis: 55 cases (2001–2006)
Authors: Klaus Jennifer A. , Rudloff Elke , Kirby Rebecca
Published: August 2009

Objective –To evaluate the complications and outcome associated with different nasogastric tube (NGT) feeding techniques in cats with suspected acute pancreatitis.

Design –Descriptive retrospective case series

Setting –Small animal emergency and referral hospital

Animals –The patient database (2001‐2006) was searched for cats with suspected acute pancreatitis that received NGT liquid enteral feeding within 72 hours of admission and ≥12 hours during hospitalization.

Measurements and Main Results –Signalment, history, clinical signs, laboratory data and abdominal ultrasonographic examinations were used for suspected diagnosis. Cats were grouped based upon whether they received bolus feeding or continuous rate infusion (CRI) of a liquid diet via the NGT, and whether or not administration of an intravenous amino acid and carbohydrate solution occurred prior to NGT feeding (AAS and non‐AAS group, respectively). Fifty‐five cats were included. For all cats, NGT feeding was initiated at a mean of 33.5 ± 15.0 hours and the target caloric intake (1.2 X {(30 X BW [kg]) +70}) was reached at 58.0 ± 28.4 hours from presentation. There was a significantly longer time from admission to the initiation of NGT feeding in the 34/55 cats in the AAS group vs. the 21/55 cats in the non‐AAS group (P = 0.009). The 8 bolus‐fed cats took longer to reach target caloric intake vs. the 47 CRI‐fed cats (P = 0.002). Complications associated with NGT feeding for all cats included: mechanical problems (13%), diarrhea (25%), vomiting following NGT placement (20%) and vomiting following NGT feeding (13%). Mean time to discharge for all cats occurred after 78.6 ± 29.5 hours with an overall weight gain of 0.08 ± 0.52 kg. Fifty cats survived 28 days post‐discharge.

Conclusions –NGT feeding in this group of cats with suspected acute pancreatitis was well tolerated, and associated with a low incidence of diarrhea, vomiting, and mechanical complications.
The value of a wound score for diabetic foot infections in predicting treatment outcome: A prospective analysis from the SIDESTEP trial
Authors: Lipsky Benjamin A. , Polis Adam B. , Lantz Keith C. , Norquist Josephine M. , Abramson Murray A.
Published: August 2009

Scoring the severity of a diabetic foot wound infection may help assess the severity, determine the type and urgency of antibiotic and surgical treatment needed, and predict clinical outcomes. We developed a 10‐item diabetic foot infection wound score (results could range from 3 to 49 [least to most severe]) incorporating semi‐quantitative grading of both wound measurements and various infection parameters. Using data from a prospective diabetic foot infection antibiotic trial (SIDESTEP), we evaluated the score's accuracy in predicting outcome, analyzed its components and tested it for consistency, construct, and validity. Wound scores for 371 patients significantly correlated with the clinical response; it was favorable at the follow‐up assessment in 94.8% with a baseline score ≤12 compared with 77.0% with a score >19. Scores demonstrated good internal consistency (Cronbach's α >0.70 to <0.95). Patients with more severe wounds had higher scores, supporting construct validity. Excluding scores for wound discharge (purulent and nonpurulent), leaving an eight‐item score, provided better measurement statistics. This easily performed wound score appears to be a reliable, valid, and useful tool for predicting clinical outcomes. Further validation studies in different patient populations should refine the items included.
Dravet syndrome: From electroclinical characteristics to molecular biology
Authors: Arzimanoglou Alexis
Published: August 2009

The onset of Dravet syndrome typically occurs within the first year, with prolonged, generalized, or unilateral clonic seizures triggered by fever. In the early stages, other types of refractory seizures usually present that include myoclonic seizures, atypical absences, and partial seizures. Electroencephalography (EEG) findings are not pathognomonic, and signs of cognitive arrest or deterioration progressively appear. In contrast, in adults, myoclonic seizures, atypical absences, and focal seizures tend to disappear, and short tonic–clonic seizures, often associating a focal component, persist particularly during sleep. The sensitivity to fever persists into adulthood, and although mental deterioration occurs in infancy, usually leaving patients with severe mental impairment, further deterioration does not occur. The identification of genes associated with Dravet syndrome and related syndromes hints at the complexity of the etiology of such epilepsies. IdentifyingSCN1Amutations has become useful as a means to support an early diagnosis of Dravet syndrome, to benefit counseling, and to avoid use of antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) that may have adverse effects. However, the defining characteristics of seizure type and EEG patterns initially identified by Dravet remain fundamental to diagnosis.
The first line of therapy in a girl with juvenile myoclonic epilepsy: Should it be valproate or a new agent?
Authors: Montouris Georgia , Abou‐Khalil Bassel
Published: August 2009

Juvenile myoclonic epilepsy is a common idiopathic generalized epileptic syndrome that includes generalized myoclonic seizures and commonly generalized tonic–clonic and generalized absence seizures. Before the emergence of the newer antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) in the 1990s, valproate was the usual first‐line treatment in both men and women. However, the frequent adverse effect of weight gain and the risk of teratogenicity have resulted in a search for alternative first‐line therapies in women. Four new AEDs— lamotrigine, topiramate, levetiracetam, and zonisamide—have been used as monotherapy or adjunctive therapy for juvenile myoclonic epilepsy in small patient series. Because they are not associated with weight gain and because they may have less risk of teratogenicity than valproate, they have been proposed as alternative first‐line agents in women who have childbearing potential. However, the new AEDs may not be effective for all the seizure types of juvenile myoclonic epilepsy, and valproate appeared overall more effective in a large comparative trial in idiopathic generalized epilepsy. In addition, valproate is often effective at lower doses that have less teratogenicity, and an extended‐release preparation may be less likely to produce weight gain. The current review presents evidence and arguments supporting the use of a new AED and those supporting the use of valproate as the first‐line treatment in a girl with newly diagnosed juvenile myoclonic epilepsy. The review then concludes with a compromise approach.
Tonic and atonic seizures: Medical therapy and ketogenic diet
Authors: Vining Eileen P.G.
Published: August 2009

Tonic and atonic seizures are typically seen in what are often referred to as the catastrophic epilepsies. In simply considering what each of the terms signifies (either the complete loss of tone or a marked increase in tone), they would appear to be at the most diverse ends of the spectrum. They would appear to be as opposite as hot and cold or hard and soft. And yet they are often found to occur in the same patient. This article examines the nature of these seizures and discusses some of the syndromes in which they are seen. Although these seizures are often very difficult to control, some of our medications/therapies have been shown to be effective. Recommendations concerning the efficacy of these therapies and a review of the newer therapies are provided. In addition, the ketogenic diet has been particularly successful in treating these seizures; this is discussed in some detail. Finally, although outcomes for these children are generally less than ideal, many can be helped with a persistent approach that balances seizure control against the side effects of medication.
Some treatments cause seizure aggravation in idiopathic epilepsies (especially absence epilepsy)
Authors: Somerville Ernest R.
Published: August 2009

Seizure aggravation by antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) is a rare phenomenon, occurring mostly in generalized epilepsies treated with drugs that are more efficacious against partial seizures. Its frequency is greatly overestimated by doctors and especially by patients. There are many other reasons for seizures to deteriorate but they are often not considered. Seizure aggravation by AEDs is important to recognize but equally important not to overdiagnose. It can largely be prevented by accurate syndromic diagnosis and the treatment of generalized epilepsies with drugs that are effective against primary generalized seizures and avoiding those that are not.
Clinical Value of Noninducibility by High‐Dose Isoproterenol Versus Rapid Atrial Pacing After Catheter Ablation of Paroxysmal Atrial Fibrillation
Authors: CRAWFORD THOMAS , CHUGH AMAN , GOOD ERIC , YOSHIDA KENTARO , JONGNARANGSIN KRIT , EBINGER MATTHEW , PELOSI Jr. FRANK , BOGUN FRANK , MORADY FRED , ORAL HAKAN
Published: August 2009

Noninducibility by High‐Dose Isoproterenol. Objective: To determine the relative clinical value of noninducibility of atrial fibrillation (AF) by isoproterenol (ISO) and by rapid atrial pacing (RAP) in patients with paroxysmal AF (PAF).

Background:
AF can be induced by RAP or ISO in >85% of patients with PAF.

Methods:
ISO was administered in escalating doses of 5, 10, 15, and 20 μg/min in 112 patients (age = 56 ± 13 years) with PAF before radiofrequency catheter ablation. AF was inducible in 97 of 112 patients (87%) at a mean dose of 15 ± 5 μg/min. RAP induced AF in the remaining 14 of 15 patients. Antral pulmonary vein (PV) isolation (APVI) was followed by ablation of complex fractionated atrial electrograms (CFAEs) as necessary to terminate AF and render AF noninducible in response to ISO.

Results:
AF terminated during APVI in 72 of 111 patients (65%) and after APVI plus ablation of CFAEs in 11 of 111 patients (10%). In the remaining 28 patients (25%), sinus rhythm was restored by transthoracic cardioversion. RAP was performed in the last 61 consecutive patients who were rendered noninducible by ISO. RAP initiated AF in 20 of 61 patients (33%) and atrial flutter in 6 patients (10%). No additional ablation was performed if AF was induced with RAP; however, atrial flutter was targeted. At 12 ± 5 months, 63/75 patients (84%) who were noninducible by ISO and 2 of 8 (25%) who still were reinducible by ISO were free from recurrent AF after a single ablation procedure without antiarrhythmic drugs (P = 0.001). AF recurred in 20 of 36 patients (56%) who required cardioversion for persistent AF after ablation (P < 0.001). Among the 61 patients who also underwent RAP, 12 of 20 (60%) who were, and 31 of 41 (76%) who were not inducible by RAP were free from recurrent AF (P = 0.21). The accuracy of noninducibility as a predictor of clinical outcome was 83% with ISO and 64% by RAP (P = 0.03).

Conclusions:
The response to isoproterenol after catheter ablation of PAF more accurately predicts clinical outcome than the response to RAP. (J Cardiovasc Electrophysiol, Vol. 21, pp. 13–20, January 2010)
Dynamic Registration of Preablation Imaging With a Catheter Geometry to Guide Ablation in a Swine Model: Validation of Image Integration and Assessment of Catheter Navigation Accuracy
Authors: WEST J. JASON , PATEL AMIT R. , KRAMER CHRISTOPHER M. , HELMS ADAM S. , OLSON ERIC S. , RANGAVAJHALA VAMSEE , FERGUSON JOHN D.
Published: August 2009

Image Integration with a Catheter Mapping System. Background: Catheter ablation of atrial and ventricular tachyarrhythmia involves anatomically based cardiac ablation strategies. CT and MRI images provide the most detailed cardiac anatomy available. Integration of these images into a mapping system should produce detailed and accurate models suitable to guide ablation.

Objective:
The purpose of this study was to validate and assess the accuracy of a novel CT and MRI image integration algorithm designed to facilitate catheter navigation and ablation.

Methods:
Using a lateral thoracotomy, markers were sutured to the epicardial surface of each cardiac chamber in 12 swine. Detailed CT/MRI anatomy was imported into the mapping system. The CT/MRI image was then integrated with a detailed catheter geometry of the relevant chamber using a new image integration algorithm. The epicardial markers, identified from the CT/MRI images, were then displayed on the surface of the integrated image. Guided only by the integrated CT/MRI, a single RF lesion was directed at the corresponding endocardial site for each epicardial marker. At autopsy, the distance from the endocardial RF lesion to the target site was assessed.

Results:
The mean position error (CT/MRI) for the left atrium was 2.5 ± 2.4 mm/5.1 ± 3.9 mm, for the right atrium 6.2 ± 6.5 mm/4.3 ± 2.2 mm, for the right ventricle 6.2 ± 4.3 mm/6.6 ± 5.3 mm, and for the left ventricle 4.7 ± 3.4 mm/3.1 ± 2.7 mm. There was no cardiac perforation or tamponade.

Conclusion:
CT and MRI images can be effectively utilized for catheter navigation when integrated into a mapping system. This novel registration module with dynamic registration provides effective guidance for ablation. (J Cardiovasc Electrophysiol, Vol. 21, pp. 81–87, January 2010)
A Novel Mechanism of Failure to Detect Atrial Arrhythmias by Pacemakers and Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillators
Authors: ROSE EMILY , CHINITZ LARRY A. , HOLMES DOUGLAS S. , AIZER ANTHONY
Published: August 2009

Failed Atrial Arrhythmia Detection by Pacemakers and ICDs.  A 64‐year‐old man with complete heart block, status post‐Medtronic dual chamber pacemaker insertion, failed ablation for atrial tachycardia at an outside institution. Despite persistent palpitations and known unsuccessful ablation, pacemaker interrogation revealed no evidence of atrial arrhythmias. At electrophysiology study, burst pacing from the high right atrium and distal coronary sinus at 370 ms revealed bidirectional 2:1 interatrial conduction block. Left atrial burst pacing at 260 ms induced an atrial tachycardia (cycle length 340 ms) with 2:1 left to right atrial block and right atrial activation at 680 ms. The tachycardia was localized to the lateral left atrial roof. A series of ablation lesions from left to right superior pulmonary vein terminated the tachycardia. Left to right interatrial conduction block is a mechanism for underdetection of atrial arrhythmias with implantable devices not previously described. As the extent of atrial ablation increases, the incidence of this mechanism of underdetection may increase. Though devices are often considered ideal for atrial arrhythmia detection and are used in multiple trials, detection failures can occur despite appropriate device function. This case underscores the need for electrocardiographic monitoring in addition to device‐based electrogram monitoring. (J Cardiovasc Electrophysiol, Vol. 21, pp. 325–328, March 2010)
Children's Sense of Self in Relation to Clinical Processes: Portraits of Pharmaceutical Transformation
Authors: Carpenter‐Song Elizabeth
Published: August 2009

This article presents in‐depth accounts of pharmaceutical transformation from the perspective of two children diagnosed with behavioral and emotional disorders. These portraits provide the basis for an examination of the complex interrelation between self and clinical processes. Narrative data were collected in the context of a 13‐month anthropological study of the lived experiences of children diagnosed with behavioral and emotional disorders and their families living in the northeastern United States. Participating families (N=20) were from diverse racial/ethnic (African American, Euro‐American, and Latino) and socioeconomic backgrounds. Psychiatric diagnoses and pharmaceuticals present tangible constraints in the lives of children that call attention to otherwise fluid and ephemeral self processes. These accounts suggest that psychiatric diagnoses and psychotropic medications present dilemmas for children's developing sense of self, revealing limitations to biopsychiatric “pharmaceutical promises.” [children, self processes, subjective experience, psychiatric disorder, pharmaceuticals]
Bridging Psychiatric and Anthropological Approaches: The Case of “Nerves” in the United States
Authors: Dahlberg Britt , Barg Frances K. , Gallo Joseph J. , Wittink Marsha N.
Published: August 2009

Psychiatrists and anthropologists have taken distinct analytic approaches when confronted with differences between emic and etic models for distress: psychiatrists have translated folk models into diagnostic categories whereas anthropologists have emphasized culture‐specific meanings of illness. The rift between psychiatric and anthropological research keeps “individual disease” and “culture” disconnected and thus hinders the study of interrelationships between mental health and culture. In this article we bridge psychiatric and anthropological approaches by using cultural models to explore the experience of nerves among 27 older primary care patients from Baltimore, Maryland. We suggest that cultural models of distress arise in response to personal experiences, and in turn, shape those experiences. Shifting research from a focus on comparing content of emic and etic concepts, to examining how these social realities and concepts are coconstructed, may resolve epistemological and ontological debates surrounding differences between emic and etic concepts, and improve understanding of the interrelationships between culture and health. [“nerves,” cultural models, metaphor, psychiatry, embodiment]
Using Cultural Discourse Analysis to Research Gender and Environmental Understandings in China
Authors: Broussard Julia T.
Published: August 2009

My purpose in this article is to discuss the application of cultural discourse analysis to questions of environmentalism—particularly for examining how environmental meaning making is connected to cultural meaning making around other topics, such as gender. The article centers on my own use of cultural discourse analysis to examine interview data collected from Chinese village participants in the Environmental Empowerment Program (EEP), a program that educates Chinese women farmers in community development principles, ecological science, and sustainable agricultural development. I first share my method—how I used cultural discourse analysis techniques to analyze what EEP participants had to say in interviews, followed by an explanation of the main findings of this analysis. I use the explanation of these findings as springboard for the final discussion—the implications of using cultural discourse analysis as an environmental research tool. [discourse analysis, China, gender, environmentalism, cultural schema]
Fulminant parvovirus B19‐associated pancarditis with haemophagocytic lympho‐histiocytosis in an immunocompetent adult
Authors: BAL AMANJIT , MISHRA BAIJAYANTIMALA , SINGH NAVNEET , DAS ASHIM , JINDAL SK
Published: August 2009

Myocarditis is a common cardiac disease that is identified on routine postmortem examinations. Initially, coxsackie viruses, other enteroviruses and adenoviruses were thought to be more common causes of myocarditis; however, recently, parvovirus B19 (PVB19) as well as human herpesvirus 6 (HHV6) have entered the arena. We describe autopsy findings of a patient who had a lethal myocarditis with haemophagocytic lympho‐histiocytosis in a course of systemic PVB19 infection. The present case illustrates the unusually severe and rapid course of PVB19 myocarditis with associated haemophagocytic lympho‐histiocytosis leading to death.