bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
An electrically assisted device for protein crystallization in a vapor-diffusion setup
Authors: Flores-Hernández Edith , Stojanoff Vivian , Arreguín-Espinosa Roberto , Moreno Abel , Sánchez-Puig Nuria
Published: May 2013

A new easy-to-use device has been designed and implemented for electric field-induced protein crystallization in a vapor-diffusion configuration. The device not only controls crystal nucleation by means of the electrical current, but also favors crystal growth owing to its vapor-diffusion setup. Crystallization was conducted in the presence of an internal electric field and direct current. The proteins investigated were lysozyme, as model protein, and 2TEL–lysozyme (a synthetic protein consisting of two tandem alpha helix motifs connected to a lysozyme moiety). Lysozyme crystals that grew attached to the cathode were larger than those grown attached to the anode or in the absence of an electric current. On the other hand, crystals of 2TEL–lysozyme qualitatively showed a better X-ray diffraction pattern when grown in the presence of an electric current.
The hybrid big bang–big crunch method for solving crystal structure from powder diffraction data
Authors: Altomare Angela , Corriero Nicola , Cuocci Corrado , Moliterni Anna , Rizzi Rosanna
Published: May 2013

The big bang–big crunch method is a global optimization approach developed upon the analogy of one of the cosmological theories of the evolution of the universe. It has been suitably combined with a simulated annealing algorithm and used for solving crystal structure from powder diffraction data in direct space. When compared with the traditional simulated annealing method, it provides a significant advance: good solutions are attained in a shorter time. The new method has been implemented in theEXPOpackage. Its successful application is demonstrated with examples of already known structures.
The coordination chemistry of two symmetric double-armed oxadiazole-bridged organic ligands with copper salts
Authors: Wu Xiang-Wen , Xin Meng-Meng , Ma Jian-Ping , Wu Zhen-Hua , Dong Yu-Bin
Published: May 2013

Two new symmetric double-armed oxadiazole-bridged ligands, 4-methyl-{5-[5-methyl-2-(pyridin-3-ylcarbonyloxy)phenyl]-1,3,4-oxadiazol-2-yl}phenyl pyridine-3-carboxylate (L1) and 4-methyl-{5-[5-methyl-2-(pyridin-4-ylcarbonyloxy)phenyl]-1,3,4-oxadiazol-2-yl}phenyl pyridine-4-carboxylate (L2), were prepared by the reaction of 2,5-bis(2-hydroxy-5-methylphenyl)-1,3,4-oxadiazole with nicotinoyl chloride and isonicotinoyl chloride, respectively. LigandL1 can be used as an organic clip to bind CuIIcations and generate a molecular complex, bis(4-methyl-{5-[5-methyl-2-(pyridin-3-ylcarbonyloxy)phenyl]-1,3,4-oxadiazol-2-yl}phenyl pyridine-3-carboxylate)bis(perchlorato)copper(II), [Cu(ClO4)2(C28H20N4O5)2], (I). In compound (I), the CuIIcation is located on an inversion centre and is hexacoordinated in a distorted octahedral geometry, with the pyridine N atoms of twoL1 ligands in the equatorial positions and two weakly coordinating perchlorate counter-ions in the axial positions. The two arms of theL1 ligands bend inward and converge at the CuIIcoordination point to give rise to a spirometallocycle. LigandL2 binds CuIcations to generate a supramolecule, diacetonitriledi-μ3-iodido-di-μ2-iodido-bis(4-methyl-{5-[5-methyl-2-(pyridin-4-ylcarbonyloxy)phenyl]-1,3,4-oxadiazol-2-yl}phenyl pyridine-4-carboxylate)tetracopper(I), [Cu4I4(CH3CN)2(C28H20N4O5)2], (II). The asymmetric unit of (II) indicates that it contains two CuIatoms, oneL2 ligand, one acetonitrile ligand and two iodide ligands. Both of the CuIatoms are four-coordinated in an approximately tetrahedral environment. The molecule is centrosymmetric and the four I atoms and four CuIatoms form a rope-ladder-type [Cu4I4] unit. Discrete units are linked into one-dimensional chains through π–π interactions.
Magnetic investigations of a two-dimensional coordination polymer with a three-dimensional supramolecular framework: poly[[bis[μ2-1,4-bis(1,2,4-triazol-1-yl)butane]bis(thiocyanato-κN)cobalt(II)] dihydrate]
Authors: Tao Jian-Qing , Mao Dan , Wang Jun
Published: May 2013

In the title mixed-ligand metal–organic polymeric complex, {[Co(NCS)2(C8H12N6)2]·2H2O}n, the asymmetric unit contains a divalent CoIIcation, which sits on an inversion centre, two halves of two crystallographically distinct and centrosymmetric 1,4-bis(1,2,4-triazol-1-yl)butane (BTB) ligands, oneN-bound thiocyanate ligand and one solvent water molecule. The CoIIatom possesses a distorted {CoN6} octahedral geometry, with the equatorial positions taken up by triazole N atoms from four different BTB ligands. The axial positions are filled by thiocyanate N atoms. In the crystal, each CoIIatom is linked covalently to four others through the distal donors of the tethering BTB ligands, forming a neutral (4,4)-topology two-dimensional rhomboid grid layer motif, which is coincident with the (1\overline{2}1) crystal planes. Magnetic investigations show that weak antiferromagnetic coupling exists between CoIIatoms in the complex.
A novel two-dimensional CuSCN network templated by 2,2′-dimethyl-1,1′-(butane-1,4-diyl)bis(1H-imidazol-3-ium) cations
Authors: Liu Shan-Shan , Yuan Shuai , Lu Hai-Feng , Xu Meng-Zhen , Sun Di
Published: May 2013

The cation-templated self-assembly of 1,4-bis(2-methyl-1H-imidazol-1-yl)butane (bmimb) with CuSCN gives rise to a novel two-dimensional network, namelycatena-poly[2,2′-dimethyl-1,1′-(butane-1,4-diyl)bis(1H-imidazol-3-ium) [tetra-μ2-thiocyanato-κ4S:S;κ4S:N-dicopper(I)]], {(C12H20N4)[Cu2(NCS)4]}n. The CuIcation is four-coordinated by one N and three S atoms, giving a tetrahedral geometry. One of the two crystallographically independent SCN−anions acts as a μ2-S:Sbridge, binding a pair of CuIcations into a centrosymmetric [Cu2(NCS)2] subunit, which is further extended into a two-dimensional 44-sql net by another kind of SCN−anion with an end-to-end μ2-S:Ncoordination mode. Interestingly, each H2bmimb dication, lying on an inversion centre, threads through one of the windows of the two-dimensional 44-sql net, giving a pseudorotaxane-like structure. The two-dimensional 44-sql networks are packed into the resultant three-dimensional supramolecular framework through bmimb–SCN N—H...N hydrogen bonds.
Anthocyanins from black soybean inhibit Helicobacter pylori‐induced inflammation in human gastric epithelial AGS cells
Authors: Kim Jung‐Min , Kim Kyung‐Mi , Park En‐Hee , Seo Ji‐Hyun , Song Jae‐Young , Shin Sung‐Chul , Kang Hyung‐Lyun , Lee Woo‐Kon , Cho Myung‐Je , Rhee Kwang‐Ho , Youn Hee‐Shang , Baik Seung‐Chul
Published: May 2013

Infection with Helicobacter pylori leads to gastritis, peptic ulcers and gastric cancer. Moreover, when the gastric mucosa is exposed to H. pylori, gastric mucosal inflammatory cytokine interleukin‐8 (Il‐8) and reactive oxygen species increase. Anthocyanins have anti‐oxidative, antibacterial and anti‐inflammatory properties. However, the effect of anthocyanins in H. pylori‐infected cells is not yet clear. In this study, therefore, the effect of anthocyanins on H. pylori‐infected human gastric epithelial cells was examined. AGS cells were pretreated with anthocyanins for 24 hrs followed by H. pylori 26695 infection for up to 24 hrs. Cell viability and ROS production were examined by 3‐(4,5‐dimethylthiazol‐2‐yl)‐2,5‐diphenyltetrazolium bromide and 2′,7′–dichlorofluorescein diacetate assay, respectively. Western blot analyses and RT‐PCR were performed to assess gene and protein expression, respectively. IL‐8 secretion in AGS cells was measured by ELISA. It was found that anthocyanins decrease H. pylori‐induced ROS enhancement. Anthocyanins also inhibited phosphorylation of mitogen‐activated protein kinases, translocation of nuclear factor‐kappa B and Iκβα degradation. Furthermore anthocyanins inhibited H. pylori‐induced inducible nitric oxide synthases and cyclooxygenase‐2 mRNA expression and inhibited IL‐8 production by 45.8%. Based on the above findings, anthocyanins might have an anti‐inflammatory effect in H. pylori‐infected gastric epithelial cells.
Late Miocene/Early Pliocene vertebrate fauna from Mallorca (Balearic Islands, Western Mediterranean): an update
Authors: BOVER Pere , ROFES Juan , BAILON Salvador , AGUSTÍ Jordi , CUENCA‐BESCÓS Gloria , TORRES Enric , ALCOVER Josep Antoni
Published: May 2013

The vertebrate fossil record from the Balearic Islands (western Mediterranean) has improved considerably over the past decade, especially in Mallorca and Menorca. In Menorca, the Pliocene terrestrial fauna was updated by the discovery and description of the large‐sized leporidNuralagus, several reptiles and an amphibian. In Mallorca, paleontological exploration yielded 2 deposits with a Late Miocene/Early Pliocene chronology, Caló den Rafelino (CdR) and Na Burguesa‐1 (NB‐1). So far, 4 new mammalian taxa and 2 new reptiles have been identified for the CdR deposit, whereas the faunal assemblage from the recently discovered deposit (Apr 2012) of NB‐1 is currently composed of, at least, 6 terrestrial mammals, 8 reptiles and an amphibian. Its faunal composition and some primitive characteristics of the obtained taxa suggest that the chronology of this deposit is slightly earlier than the CdR. The terrestrial vertebrates recorded in these 2 Mallorcan deposits are changing the view of the paleofaunal assemblage previously known for the Plio–Pleistocene of the island. Morphological characteristics displayed by some of the taxa suggest that these faunas would be at the beginning of an isolated evolution. In this paper we present a preliminary report on the fossils recovered from the NB‐1 deposit, as well as some unpublished data from CdR, and we analyze the whole fauna from both Mallorcan deposits, focusing on taxonomical and paleobiogeographical aspects.
Effect of Military Conflicts on the Formation of Emergency Medical Services Systems Worldwide
Authors: Goniewicz Mariusz
Published: May 2013

Objectives

This article briefly reviews the evolution of medical support during wars and conflicts from ancient to modern times and discusses the effect warfare has had on the development of civilian health care and emergency medical services (EMS). Medical breakthroughs and discoveries made of necessity during military conflicts have developed into new paradigms of medical care, including novel programs of triage and health assessment, emergency battlefield treatment and stabilization, anesthesia, and other surgical and emergency procedures. The critical role of organizations that provide proper emergency care to help the sick and injured both on the battlefield and in the civilian world is also highlighted.
Interobserver Agreement in the Clinical Assessment of Children With Blunt Abdominal Trauma
Authors: Yen Kenneth , Kuppermann Nathan , Lillis Kathleen , Monroe David , Borgialli Dominic , Kerrey Benjamin T. , Sokolove Peter E. , Ellison Angela M. , Cook Lawrence J. , Holmes James F. ,   The Intra‐abdominal Injury Study Group for the Pediatric Emergency Care Applied Research Network (PECARN)
Published: May 2013

Objectives

The objective was to determine the interobserver agreement of historical and physical examination findings assessed during the emergency department (ED) evaluation of children with blunt abdominal trauma.

Methods

This was a planned substudy of a multicenter, prospective cohort study of children younger than 18 years of age evaluated for blunt abdominal trauma. Patients were excluded if injury occurred more than 24 hours prior to evaluation or if computed tomography (CT) imaging was obtained at another hospital prior to transfer to a study site. Two clinicians independently recorded their clinical assessments of a convenience sample of patients onto data collection forms within 60 minutes of each other and prior to CT imaging (if obtained) or knowledge of laboratory results. The authors categorized variables as either subjective symptoms (i.e., patient history) or objective findings (i.e., physical examination). For each variable recorded by the two observers, the agreement beyond that expected by chance was estimated, using the kappa (κ) statistic for categorical variables and weighted κ for ordinal variables. Variables with 95% lower confidence limits (LCLs) κ ≥ 0.4 (moderate agreement or better) were considered to have acceptable agreement.

Results

A total of 632 pairs of physician observations were obtained on 23 candidate variables. Acceptable agreement was achieved in 16 (70%) of the 23 variables tested. For six subjective symptoms, κ ranged from 0.48 (complaint of shortness of breath) to 0.90 (mechanism of injury), and only the complaint of shortness of breath had a 95% LCL κ < 0.4. For the 17 objective findings, κ ranged from –0.01 (pelvis instability) to 0.82 (seat belt sign present). The 95% LCL for κ was <0.4 for flank tenderness, abnormal chest auscultation, suspicion of alcohol or drug intoxication, pelvis instability, absence of bowel sounds, and peritoneal irritation.

Conclusions

Observers can achieve at least acceptable agreement on the majority of historical and physical examination variables in children with blunt abdominal trauma evaluated in the ED. Those variables are candidates for consideration for development of a clinical prediction rule for intra‐abdominal injury in children with blunt trauma.
Cravings as a mediator and moderator of drinking outcomes in the COMBINE study
Authors: Subbaraman Meenakshi Sabina , Lendle Samuel , van der Laan Mark , Kaskutas Lee Ann , Ahern Jennifer
Published: May 2013

Aims

Investigators of the COMBINE (Combining Medications and Behavioral Interventions for Alcoholism) study examined whether combining medications with a behavioral intervention would improve outcomes over monotherapies. Unexpectedly, the combination did not offer any advantage over either treatment alone. This study aimed to explain the lack of incremental benefit offered by the combination over either monotherapy by assessing the role of cravings as a treatment mediator and moderator.

Design

Secondary mediation and moderation analyses of COMBINE study data.

Setting

Eleven United States academic sites.

Participants

A total of 863 patients randomized to one of four treatment groups: naltrexone (100 mg/day; n = 209), the combined behavioral intervention (CBI, n = 236), naltrexone and CBI combined (n = 213) and placebo naltrexone (n = 205).

Measurements

Percentage of days abstinent (PDA) measured between 13 and 16 weeks post‐baseline. Cravings, the potential mediator/moderator, were measured at baseline, weeks 4 and 12 using the Obsessive‐Compulsive Drinking Scale.

Findings

Compared with placebo, naltrexone, CBI and the combination all increased PDA by an additional 6–10 percentage points for those with high cravings (P < 0.05 for all three treatment groups). None had significant effects on PDA for those with low cravings. The effects of all three treatments were mediated at least partially by cravings; craving reduction explained 48–53% of treatment effects (P < 0.05 for all three treatment groups). Furthermore, naltrexone appeared to reduce cravings at 4 weeks, while CBI did not reduce cravings until 12 weeks.

Conclusions

The Combining Medications and Behavioral Interventions for Alcoholism (COMBINE) naltrexone + CBI combination may not be more beneficial than either monotherapy because craving reduction is a common mechanism of both.
Single nucleotide polymorphism discovery in albacore and Atlantic bluefin tuna provides insights into worldwide population structure
Authors: Albaina A. , Iriondo M. , Velado I. , Laconcha U. , Zarraonaindia I. , Arrizabalaga H. , Pardo M. A. , Lutcavage M. , Grant W. S. , Estonba A.
Published: May 2013

The optimal management of the commercially important, but mostly over‐exploited, pelagic tunas, albacore (Thunnus alalunga Bonn., 1788) and Atlantic bluefin tuna (BFT; Thunnus thynnus L., 1758), requires a better understanding of population structure than has been provided by previous molecular methods. Despite numerous studies of both species, their population structures remain controversial. This study reports the development of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in albacore and BFT and the application of these SNPs to survey genetic variability across the geographic ranges of these tunas. A total of 616 SNPs were discovered in 35 albacore tuna by comparing sequences of 54 nuclear DNA fragments. A panel of 53 SNPs yielded FST values ranging from 0.0 to 0.050 between samples after genotyping 460 albacore collected throughout the distribution of this species. No significant heterogeneity was detected within oceans, but between‐ocean comparisons (Atlantic, Pacific and Indian oceans along with Mediterranean Sea) were significant. Additionally, a 17‐SNP panel was developed in Atlantic BFT by cross‐species amplification in 107 fish. This limited number of SNPs discriminated between samples from the two major spawning areas of Atlantic BFT (FST = 0.116). The SNP markers developed in this study can be used to genotype large numbers of fish without the need for standardizing alleles among laboratories.
Is home‐based pelvic floor muscle training effective in treatment of urinary incontinence after birth in primiparous women? A randomized controlled trial
Authors: Åhlund Susanne , Nordgren Birgitta , Wilander Eva‐Lotta , Wiklund Ingela , Fridén Cecilia
Published: May 2013

Objective

To assess the effect of pelvic floor muscle training (PFMT) on pelvic floor muscle strength and urinary incontinence (UI) in primiparous women who underwent a home training program between three and 9 months after delivery.

Design

Randomized controlled trial.

Population

One hundred primiparous women were consecutively recruited from four different antenatal clinics in the urban area of Stockholm, Sweden. Women with UI who had undergone normal term singleton vaginal delivery, 10–16 weeks postpartum were randomly allocated to either intervention or control group.

Methods

Maximally voluntary contraction (MVC) and endurance were measured with a perionometer. The Oxford grading scale was used to manually estimate the strength of the pelvic floor muscle and self‐reported symptoms of UI was registered through the Bristol Female Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms Module (ICIQ FLUTS) questionnaire.

Main outcome measures

Maximally voluntary contraction of the pelvic floor muscle measured with a perionometer.

Results

Maximally voluntary contraction increased significantly in both groups between baseline and follow up (p < 0.05). The median MVC in cmHg for the intervention and control group was 16.2 and 12.1 at baseline and 26.0 and 18.2 at follow up, respectively. The median endurance, in seconds, for the intervention and control group was 9.6 and 12.0 at baseline and 26.7 and 23.4 at follow up, respectively. Pelvic floor muscle strength measured with the Oxford Scale increased significantly in both groups between baseline and follow up (p < 0.05).

Conclusion

The results indicate that home‐based PFMT is effective. However, written training instructions were as efficient as home‐based training with follow up visits every sixth week.
Real exchange rate appreciation, resource boom, and policy reform inMyanmar
Authors: Kubo Koji
Published: May 2013

Over the six‐year period 2006‐11, the real exchange rate of theMyanmar kyat appreciated 200 per cent, resulting in the value of theUSdollar inMyanmar falling to one‐third of its pre‐2006 level. While the resource boom is suspected to be the source of the real exchange rate appreciation, administrative controls on foreign exchange and imports had much more impact. Foreign exchange controls limited the convertibility of the kyat to foreign currencies and spurred negotiated transactions of foreign exchange outside the banking sector, hampering the foreign exchange market interventions of the government andCentralBank. Import controls repressed imports, aggravating excess supplies of foreign exchange. Relaxation of administrative controls is necessary for moderating currency appreciation.
Symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome in patients with inflammatory bowel disease: examining the role of sub‐clinical inflammation and the impact on clinical assessment of disease activity
Authors: Berrill J. W. , Green J. T. , Hood K. , Campbell A. K.
Published: May 2013

Background

Symptoms compatible with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) are frequently present in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD); however, the cause of this phenomenon is unclear.

Aim

To determine the different contributions of ‘true IBS’ and sub‐clinical inflammation in producing IBS‐type symptoms in IBD patients, and to ascertain the impact these symptoms have on the clinical assessment of IBD activity.

Methods

In this cross‐sectional study, 169 IBD patients completed questionnaires to assess disease activity, presence of IBS‐type symptoms, and levels of anxiety and depression. Stool samples were collected for analysis of faecal calprotectin (FC).

Results

IBS‐type symptoms were significantly more common in female patients (OR = 4.64, 1.55–13.88) and were associated with higher levels of anxiety (OR = 1.11, 1.01–1.21). There was no statistical difference between the FC levels of patients in clinical remission with IBS‐type symptoms compared with those without (median values = 111 μg/g vs. 45.5 μg/g respectively, P = 0.171). The prevalence of IBS‐type symptoms in patients with a normal FC level was 31%.

Conclusions

A substantial number of IBD patients with normal faecal calprotectin level experience IBS‐type symptoms. These patients exhibit similar features to people diagnosed with IBS in the general community, suggesting that the conditions are not mutually exclusive and may coexist in a considerable number of IBD patients. A systematic diagnostic approach is required to assess IBD patients with IBS‐type symptoms as sub‐clinical inflammation may play a role in a proportion of cases.
A Model of Climate Belief Profiles: How Much Does It Matter If People Question Human Causation?
Authors: Sibley Chris G. , Kurz Tim
Published: May 2013

Despite the weight of scientific evidence presented in recent assessment reports of the IPCC, there remains some skepticism among the public that the climate is changing and whether such change is caused by human activity. We modeled climate change belief profiles using Latent Class Analysis in a New Zealand national probability sample (N = 6,072). Roughly 50% of New Zealanders believed that climate change was real and caused by humans, with 30% undecided. The majority of New Zealanders believe that climate change is real and likely caused by humans, with one in six remaining skeptical. We identified two types of climate skeptics, those who did not believe in climate change (7%), and those who believed climate change was real but not caused by humans (10%). Beliefs about the reality of climate change were more predictive than beliefs about human cause of support for carbon emissions policy and self‐reported proenvironmental behavior. Our model indicates that persuading people about the reality of climate change will predict greater incremental variance in behavior and policy attitudes than persuading people of its human cause; although persuading people of both will be still more effective due to the synergistic interaction of these dual beliefs.
The Discourse of Balance: Balance as Metaphor and Ideology
Authors: Vair Hester
Published: May 2013

La combination du travail payé et la maternité est difficile parce que les institutions sociales sont basées sur la supposition que les deux sont toujous mutuellement exclusifs. Les mères qui travaillent gèrent la tension entre le travail et la maternité chaque jour, et quand elles le font, elles établissent des nouveaux modèles sociaux. Cette recherche présente les résultats d'une étude de 21 mères qui travaillent de la classe moyenne et soutient qu'elles ont été incapables de challenger l'organisation punitive du travail et de la maternité. Ces mères utilisent la métaphore de l’“équilibre” pour décrire comment elles gèrent la tension. Cependant, leurs récits des difficultés de gérer la maternité lorsque les méres travaillent décrit une autre histoire. En fait, l’“équilibre” est une idéologie qui fonctionne afin d'obscurcir la contradiction entre le travail et la maternité.

Combining paid work and motherhood is difficult because social institutions are still based on the assumption that these are mutually exclusive. Working mothers manage the tension between work and motherhood daily, and as they do, they establish new social patterns. This paper reports on the findings of a study of 21 middle‐class working mothers and argues that they have been unable to challenge the punitive organization of work and motherhood. These mothers use the metaphor of “balance” to describe how they manage the tension. However, their narratives of the difficulties of managing working motherhood tell a different story. In fact, “balance” is an ideology, which functions to obscure the contradiction between work and motherhood.
Middle Class Identity in the Modern World: How Politics and Economics Matter
Authors: Curtis Josh
Published: May 2013

It is widely accepted that people tend to identify with the middle classes regardless of their social class position. Nevertheless, this “middle class identity bias” is not equally prominent in all western democracies. The goal of this article is to assess the role of political and economic conditions in shaping this phenomenon. By exploring the relationship between class identity and national context in 15 modern societies, I address two main questions: (1) how individual‐level income affects where people place themselves in the class system, and (2) how national political and economic context affects this relationship. In doing so, I offer several important findings. First, although there is a positive relationship between income and class identification in all 15 societies, middle class identification is weakest when income inequality is high. Consistent with previous findings, the results suggest that economic development has a positive impact on class identity. The results also uncover a role for political ideology by suggesting a lingering affect of Communist rule. Even after controlling for economic development and income inequality, respondents in former Communist countries are more likely than others to identify as belonging to a low social class.
Is Industrial Unrest Reviving in Canada? Strike Duration in the Early Twenty‐First Century
Authors: Brym Robert , Bauer Louise Birdsell , McIvor Mitch
Published: May 2013

Les données canadiennes à long terme sur la fréquence, la durée et l'ampleur des grèves laissent entendre que la grève est un acte en voie de disparition. Cependant, le début du 21e siècle va à l'encontre du point de vue de ces prévisions. Depuis 2001, la durée moyenne d'une grève est plus longue, et n'est pas anticyclique. Ce document explique cette anomalie en utilisant l'argument que les employeurs tentent de réduire les gains salariaux des décennies précédentes en raison de la hausse de la dette publique et de la menace d'un marché de moins en moins entravé. Ces conditions motivent apparemment certains travailleurs à subir de très longs arrêts de travail, sans tenir compte de l'étape du cycle économique, dans le but de protéger leurs droits.

Canadian data on strike frequency, duration, and volume imply that the strike is withering away. Some research also suggests that strike duration is countercyclical. However, the early twenty‐first century was anomalous from the viewpoint of these expectations. After 2001, mean strike duration increased and was not countercyclical. This paper explains the anomaly by arguing that employers are seeking to scale back the wage gains of previous decades in the face of mounting public debt and the whip of an increasingly unfettered market. These conditions apparently motivate some workers to endure protracted work stoppages, irrespective of the phase of the business cycle, in an effort to protect their rights.
In vitro drug causality assessment in Stevens–Johnson syndrome – alternatives for lymphocyte transformation test
Authors: Porebski G. , Pecaric‐Petkovic T. , Groux‐Keller M. , Bosak M. , Kawabata T. T. , Pichler W. J.
Published: May 2013

Background

Patients with Stevens–Johnson syndrome (SJS) or toxic epidermal necrolysis (TEN) are often exposed simultaneously to a few potentially culprit drugs. However, both the standard lymphocyte transformation tests (LTT) with proliferation as the assay end‐point as well as skin tests, if done, are often negative.

Objective

As provocation tests are considered too dangerous, there is an urgent need to identify the relevant drug in SJS/TEN and to improve sensitivity of tests able to identify the causative drug.

Methods

Fifteen patients with SJS/TEN with the ALDEN score ≥ 6 and 18 drug‐exposed controls were included. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) were isolated and cultured under defined conditions with drugs. LTT was compared to the following end‐points: cytokine levels in cell culture supernatant, number of granzyme B secreting cells by ELISpot and intracellular staining for granulysin and IFNγ in CD3+ CD4+, CD3+ CD8+ and NKp46+ cells. To further enhance sensitivity, the effect of IL‐7/IL‐15 pre‐incubation of PBMC was evaluated.

Results

Lymphocyte transformation tests was positive in only 4/15 patients (sensitivity 27%, CI: 8–55%). Similarly, with granzyme B‐ELISpot culprit drugs were positive in 5/15 patients (sensitivity 33%, CI: 12–62%). The expression of granulysin was significantly induced in NKp46+ and CD3+ CD4+ cells (sensitivity 40%, CI: 16–68% and 53%, CI: 27–79% respectively). Cytokine production could be demonstrated in 38%, CI: 14–68% and 43%, CI: 18–71% of patients for IL‐2 and IL‐5, respectively, and in 55%, CI: 23–83% for IFNγ. Pre‐incubation with IL‐7/IL‐15 enhanced drug‐specific response only in a few patients. Specificities of tested assays were in the range of 95 (CI: 80–99%)–100% (CI: 90–100%).

Conclusions and Clinical Relevance

Granulysin expression in CD3+ CD4+, Granzyme B‐ELISpot and IFNγ production considered together provided a sensitivity of 80% (CI: 52–96%) and specificity of 95% (80–99%). Thus, this study demonstrated that combining different assays may be a feasible approach to identify the causative drug of SJS/TEN reactions; however, confirmation on another group of patients is necessary.
Community Reactions to Young People Who Have Sexually Abused and Their Families: A Shotgun Blast, Not a Rifle Shot
Authors: Hackett Simon , Masson Helen , Balfe Myles , Phillips Josie
Published: May 2013

Data on 117 young sexual abusers were examined to investigate the nature of community responses to young people's abusive behaviour. A wide range of community responses were found, with stigmatisation, social isolation and collateral damage being common. A contagion effect was noted, with community responses extending over time and across contexts. Some young offenders and their families were attacked and forced out of their homes. In some cases, community responses heightened risk factors. The policy and practice implications of the findings are discussed, including the need for caution about the inclusion of children in policies on community notification of sex offenders.
Early‐pregnancy maternal vitamin D status and maternal hyperglycaemia
Authors: Tomedi L. E. , Simhan H. N. , Bodnar L. M.
Published: May 2013

Aims

To estimate the association between serum 25‐hydroxyvitamin D concentrations and maternal hyperglycaemia (post‐load glucose concentration ≥ 7.5 mmol/l).

Methods

Pregnant women (n = 429; 61% black, 36% obese, 45% smokers) enrolled in a cohort study at <16 weeks gestation. Non‐fasting blood samples were assayed for serum 25‐hydroxyvitamin D at enrolment. At 24–28 weeks gestation, maternal hyperglycaemia was determined using a 50‐g 1‐h oral glucose challenge test.

Results

A total of 67% of women had 25‐hydroxyvitamin D concentrations < 50 nmol/l and 11% had maternal hyperglycaemia. Among smokers, each 23‐nmol/l increase in serum 25‐hydroxyvitamin D was associated with a reduction in the odds of maternal hyperglycaemia [odds ratio: 0.30 (95% CI: 0.13, 0.68)] after adjustment for parity, race/ethnicity, age, pre‐pregnancy BMI, marital status, income, family history of diabetes, and gestational age of gestational diabetes mellitus screening. Among non‐smokers, we found no association between early pregnancy vitamin D status and maternal hyperglycaemia.

Conclusions

Smoking status may modify the relationship between poor maternal vitamin D status and maternal hyperglycaemia.
Distal‐less and dachshund pattern both plesiomorphic and apomorphic structures in chelicerates: RNA interference in the harvestman Phalangium opilio (Opiliones)
Authors: Sharma Prashant P. , Schwager Evelyn E. , Giribet Gonzalo , Jockusch Elizabeth L. , Extavour Cassandra G.
Published: May 2013

The discovery of genetic mechanisms that can transform a morphological structure from a plesiomorphic (=primitive) state to an apomorphic (=derived) one is a cardinal objective of evolutionary developmental biology. However, this objective is often impeded for many lineages of interest by limitations in taxonomic sampling, genomic resources, or functional genetic methods. In order to investigate the evolution of appendage morphology within Chelicerata, the putative sister group of the remaining arthropods, we developed an RNA interference (RNAi) protocol for the harvestman Phalangium opilio. We silenced the leg gap genes Distal‐less (Dll) and dachshund (dac) in the harvestman via zygotic injections of double‐stranded RNA (dsRNA), and used in situ hybridization to confirm RNAi efficacy. Consistent with the conserved roles of these genes in patterning the proximo‐distal axis of arthropod appendages, we observed that embryos injected with Dll dsRNA lacked distal parts of appendages and appendage‐like structures, such as the labrum, the chelicerae, the pedipalps, and the walking legs, whereas embryos injected with dac dsRNA lacked the medial podomeres femur and patella in the pedipalps and walking legs. In addition, we detected a role for these genes in patterning structures that do not occur in well‐established chelicerate models (spiders and mites). Dll RNAi additionally results in loss of the preoral chamber, which is formed from pedipalpal and leg coxapophyses, and the ocularium, a dorsal outgrowth bearing the eyes. In one case, we observed that an embryo injected with dac dsRNA lacked the proximal segment of the chelicera, a plesiomorphic podomere that expresses dac in wild‐type embryos. This may support the hypothesis that loss of the cheliceral dac domain underlies the transition to the two‐segmented chelicera of derived arachnids.
Differences in diet and feeding ecology of similar‐sized spotted (Lepisosteus oculatus) and shortnose (Lepisosteus platostomus) gars during flooding of a south‐eastern US river
Authors: Walker Richard H. , Kluender Edward R. , Inebnit Tommy E. , Reid Adams S.
Published: May 2013

Connection events between rivers and their adjacent floodplains can alter availability of resources. Riverine fishes opportunistically exploit seasonally available resources during periods of high water. Gars are known to utilize floodplain habitats throughout different life stages for spawning and feeding. Food habits of gars have been the focus of many studies; however, less is known regarding the partitioning of food resources between syntopic species overlapping in body size. Further, little information exists on food resources of shortnose gar, Lepisosteus platostomus. We report results of diet analysis of spotted, Lepisosteus oculatus, and shortnose gar from the Fourche LaFave River in central Arkansas. Stomachs were examined from 74 adult spotted gar (46–81 cm TL) and 91 adult shortnose gar (49–76 cm TL) collected between May and July 2007 during flooding. Forty‐seven (64%) spotted and 54 (59%) shortnose gar contained identifiable prey items. Spotted and shortnose gars had low diet overlap (33.0%), indicating these two species partition food resources. Considering percent composition by weight (%Cw), spotted and shortnose gar appear to partition available food resources during summer flooding. Percent composition by weight of fishes and crustaceans was significantly greater in the diet of spotted gar than shortnose gar (Table 2). Shortnose gar had significantly greater %Cw of amphibians and terrestrial invertebrates compared to spotted gar. It is likely that the seasonal and consistent annual availability of terrestrial subsidies to the system holds a unique importance for the shortnose gar population.
The relationship between the snowmelt flood and the establishment of non‐native brown trout (Salmo trutta) in streams of theChitoseRiver,Hokkaido, northernJapan
Authors: Kawai Hideyuki , Ishiyama Nobuo , Hasegawa Koh , Nakamura Futoshi
Published: May 2013

Flow regime is one of the major determinants of establishment success for non‐native aquatic organisms. Here, we examine the influence of flow variability associated with snowmelt flood on the establishment success of non‐native brown trout in 10 streams in northern Japan. We regarded the presence ofAge‐0 brown trout as the index of the successful establishment. The emergence ofAge‐0 brown trout in our study region begins in May, a time that overlaps with the occurrence of snowmelt flood. The presence ofAge‐0 brown trout was negatively associated with flow variability, and it was also negatively associated with summer water temperature. Our results indicate that the non‐native brown trout tends to establish in the streams with smaller snowmelt floods and lower summer water temperatures. Brown trout is an invasive, non‐native species that is problematic all over the world, and effective management strategies for preventing their further expansion are urgently needed. This study suggests that river managers should recognise that stable streams such as spring‐fed streams (i.e., low flow and summer water temperature) and flow‐regulated streams, have a higher potential risk of brown trout invasion.
Contribution of environmental and spatial factors to the structure of stream fish assemblages at different spatial scales
Authors: Nakagawa Hikaru
Published: May 2013

To compare the contributions of environmental and spatial factors in structuring assemblages of temperate stream fish on different spatial scales, I evaluated the distance decay of fish assemblage similarity and correlations among species compositions, environmental factors and geographical locations at medium (inter‐reach scale, spatial extent 40 km) and fine (inter‐microhabitat scale, spatial extent <200 m) scales. Partial redundancy analysis and variation partitioning indicated that the ordinal rank of the relative importance of environmental and spatial factors differed among scales. At the medium scale, the distance decay of similarity of species composition was steep at approximately >10‐km scale, and the assemblage structure was simply explained by the distance between sites and several environmental factors (e.g., elevation and current velocity). In contrast, the distance between microhabitats explained only a small portion of the variance in species composition at the fine scale, and fish assemblages were affected by several spatial patterns of habitat (or some environmental features associated with those spatial patterns). Environmental factors at the fine scale (e.g., substratum characteristics and presence/absence of cover) correlated with each other and were spatially structured, and their contribution to species variance was smaller than that at the medium scale. These results provide evidence for scale‐dependent alternation of the rank of the relative importance of environmental and spatial factors in structuring assemblages of stream fishes via the turnover of crucially contributing factors from medium to fine spatial scales.
Streamlining the Muse: Creative Agency and the Reconfiguration of Charismatic Education as Professional Training in Israeli Poetry Writing Workshops
Authors: Wilf Eitan
Published: May 2013

In this article I seek to theorize recent institutional transformations of creative agency that involve the increasing embeddedness of art socialization in the professional and bureaucratic infrastructure of various sorts of educational organizations in the contemporary West. I argue that institutional art education involves the reconfiguration of charismatic education as professional training, and I suggest that this provides an opportunity to theorize the features shared between charismatic education and professional training against the backdrop of a research tradition that has viewed them as antithetical to one another. In doing so, I draw on ethnographic fieldwork I conducted in two Israeli poetry writing workshops, which draw their pedagogy from the rapidly growing field of creative writing programs in the United States.
Role‐Play and “As If” Self in Everyday Life
Authors: Shoshana Avi
Published: May 2013

In this article, I examine the use of role‐play strategy and its outcomes in field experiment conditions in the Boarding School for Gifted Disadvantaged in Israel. Data derive from two major sources: governmental protocols related to the organizational production of a role‐play technique and interviews with graduates of the experimental school years after their role‐playing experience. Analysis of governmental protocols shows the intentional organizational usage of the term gifted within the school population is based on a bureaucratic simulation of giftedness, which in turn creates a distinction between natural giftedness and institutional giftedness. In‐depth interviews with graduates of the school indicate that they experience their giftedness as artificial (“as if” giftedness). They describe ethnic conversion and distinction between two types of self (before and after the boarding school). My concluding discussion identifies a particular kind of reflexivity (the presence of absence) in the boarding school graduates’ concepts of self. In turn, this reflexivity indicates phenomenological consequences latent in role‐play simulations in field experiment conditions. The findings of this article enable me to address a pertinent issue of psychological anthropology not sufficiently discussed in the literature: the manner in which individuals who experience (re)construction of the self maintain their selfhood many years after the (re)construction.
“My Heart Opens and My Spirit Flies”: Musical Exemplars of Psychological Flexibility in Health and Healing
Authors: Koen Benjamin D.
Published: May 2013

Across several disciplines in the health and social sciences, psychological flexibility is gaining in influence and explanatory power as a conceptual frame to better understand diverse cultural and clinical contexts of health and healing. Although music as a potential primer of psychological flexibility is seldom considered in extant research, key contributions have framed aspects of music's potential efficacy to promote health and healing within the construct of psychological flexibility. Building from this research and from studies in psychology and anthropology concerned with flexibility, and based on field research I conducted in the Pamir Mountain region of Tajik Badakhshan, I explore how the preeminent genre of Pamiri devotional music, known asmaddoh,facilitates or primes psychological flexibility for participants. In this case study, priming a state of psychological flexibility is accomplished by engaging specific cultural exemplars found in the natural and built environments, the local belief system, poetry, prayer, and music, creating a multilayered network of flexibility.
Embodied Identity and Political Participation: Squatters’ Engagement in the Participatory Budget in Brazil
Authors: Walker Ana Paula Pimentel
Published: May 2013

In this article I examine subjective identity transformations among those who take part in programs of participatory governance, particularly the innovative mechanism of municipal resource allocation called the Participatory Budget. Focusing on the engagements of Porto Alegre city squatters, I aim to capture ambivalences that distinguish local and international discourses of participation and private property. Building on the dialectical relationship between narrative/figured worlds and positional identities, I view the Participatory Budget as a framework of meanings in flux within which some squatters who rearrange their positional identities along lines of social and power relations are then empowered to change their political practices. A novel emphasis on the distinction between squatters’ positional and embodied identities allows me to assess the political and psychological impacts of this form of participatory governance for people living in squatter settlements. I demonstrate the importance of embodied political practices and locally situated notions of male and female bodies in the squatters’ appropriation and refashioning of the identities imposed by local and international organizations.
“The Wrong Holy Ghost”: Discerning the Apostolic Gift of Discernment Using a Signaling and Systems Theoretical Approach
Authors: Lynn Christopher Dana
Published: May 2013

I develop a case study of demonic glossolalia (speaking in tongues) for its cues in conveying religious commitment among a congregation of Apostolic Pentecostals. From the perspective of signaling theory, costly or hard‐to‐fake signals may convey psychological dispositions of members and would‐be members toward an inclusive community. I utilize signaling theory in a broader systems approach to make sense of an incident of speaking in tongues that a congregation decries as demonic. To facilitate this interpretation, forms and motivations of glossolalia—the sine qua non that one has accepted Jesus as personal savior—are described and examined, including examples of calm and excited “Holy Ghost” and “backslider” and “mistaken demonic” glossolalia. To an outsider, some of the differences among these signaling modes may be difficult to distinguish, but the underlying religious and family dynamics provide insights as to how church members make distinctions they attribute to the spiritual “gift of discernment.” This approach promises to make unique contributions toward understanding the implicit folk psychologies of practices that, according to Pentecostals, mark them as “weird” or “odd.”