bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Strategic factors affecting warehouse maintenance costs
Authors: De Marco Alberto , Ruffa Suela , Mangano Giulio
Published: April 2010

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to determine the fundamental factors influencing maintenance costs of logistic buildings and to provide benchmark indications for designing maintenance efficient warehouses that contribute to the enhancement of business performance.

Design/methodology/approach

The relations between factors and indicators of building facilities maintenance costs are examined using regression analysis of a dataset collected from about 100 distribution warehouses leased by a leading global freight provider throughout Italy.

Findings

Maintenance cost reduction can only be achieved by making appropriate design decisions on the strategic characteristics of warehouse facilities. In particular, the location and the age of a building are relevant factors of breakdown maintenance, while the monthly volume of freight transiting the warehouse is a significant cost factor of maintenance due to damage.

Research limitations/implications

This paper is limited to logistic service providing organisations, has local impact, and does not consider operational requirements in suggesting design criteria. Further research may gainfully generalise the model by examining other businesses, geographical areas and industrial operations issues. Leasing and frequently relocating facilities have emerged as appropriate distribution management strategies to control location, size and age of a building, and thus to face dynamic business conditions.

Originality/value

This paper provides maintenance cost benchmarks and supports design decision making of distribution warehouse facilities.
Transformational learning: challenging assumptions in the workplace
Authors: Mathis Daniel
Published: April 2010

Purpose

The article aims to offer organizational leadership a framework to integrate opportunities for transformation learning into workplace experiences and maximize the personal growth of employees. Transformational learning is a concept often discussed within higher and adult education but rarely considered in the workplace; the article offers an opportunity to conceptualize transformational learning in workplace contexts.

Design/methodology/approach

Two summaries of transformational learning theory shape a foundational understanding of transformational learning. The conceptual framework is connected to examples of transformational learning in the workplace and subsequently offers three areas, cross‐cultural experiences, interactive leadership and development, and action research projects, for leaders to integrate into their practice.

Findings

Transformational learning can be observed and encouraged within the workplace. Organizational leadership can be intentional about the incorporation of opportunities for transformational learning.

Practical implications

Leaders must re‐frame their approach to cultural diversity, training and development, and action research. This altered perspective does not require an overhaul of existing policies and procedures, but a change to the way leaders think about workplace experiences and communicate with employees.

Originality/value

The article connects a substantial body of literature on transformational learning in a new way – in the context of work. In the process of questioning their assumptions and the assumptions of others, leaders become adept at critical thinking, empathy, and the ability to provide opportunities for the personal growth in the workplace.
Evaluation of nutrient status of different organic wastes along with environmental quality in the different phases of vermicomposting by Perionyx excavatus Perrier
Authors: Chanda G.K. , Bhunia G. , Chakraborty S.K.
Published: April 2010

Purpose

The aim of this paper is to assess the trend of changes of nutritional status and environmental quality of different decomposing organic wastes in different phases of vermicomposting utilizing an indigenous earthworm's species Perionyx excavatus.

Design/methodology/approach

Four different organic wastes were selected as basic ingredients for vermicompost production. Dried waste materials (2 kg) of each were mixed with dried cow dung and placed in experimental plastic trays with 60 individuals of selected earthworm species. Samples were collected from each tray at an interval of 15 days. Six trays were used: three were with both wastes, three trays having only wastes were treated as control.

Findings

Regression equation has shown the rate of change of nutrients – both in control and experiment vermicomposting units over time – which revealed significant changes of C, N, P and C/N ratio during different phases of vermicomposting.

Practical implications

Vermitechnology is now being considered as an eco‐friendly, user‐friendly and cost‐effective biotechnological tool for the conversion of decomposable organic wastes into valuable organic manure, ensuring pollution abatement, self employment and sustainability in agriculture.

Originality/value

The paper helps to identify the potential of locally available earthworm species and organic materials for the mass production of vermicompost involving local peoples and locally available bioresources.
Structuring stakeholder e‐inclusion needs
Authors: Wright David
Published: April 2010

Purpose

This purpose of this paper is to identify principal stakeholders and needs in e‐inclusion, with particular reference to senior citizens, determining to what extent those needs are being met or could be met by other stakeholders. It considers inclusive stakeholder organisational structures that could address unmet needs.

Design/methodology/approach

Although the European Commission (EC), Member States, local authorities, industry, and researchers have called for greater collaboration and partnerships among stakeholders to overcome the so‐called digital divides, little attention has been giv]en to the form of collaboration. Reviewing various policy‐oriented documents, this paper compiles a list of principal stakeholders and their e‐inclusion needs, reviews existing multi‐stakeholder undertakings and partnership structures as candidates for addressing needs not already met.

Findings

Many important e‐inclusion needs are not addressed by any multi‐stakeholder undertaking. Some structured collaboration or partnership should address those needs. A new structure should not merely represent all interested stakeholders, but involve them in decision‐making processes.

Research limitations/implications

This is a conceptual paper, constrained by length from producing a detailed list of needs. Similarly, although the paper identifies 12 different stakeholder categories, some could be further segmented.

Practical implications

Further research and analysis could be undertaken sourcing each identified need, perhaps adding others and further segmenting stakeholder categories.

Originality/value

The paper is of value to stakeholders involved or interested in e‐inclusion efforts. It uses a novel, straight‐forward, approach for identifying stakeholders and needs, who can meet those needs and who is addressing those needs.
Alignment of performance metrics in a multi‐enterprise agribusiness
Authors: Bryceson Kim P. , Slaughter Geoff
Published: April 2010

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the disconnect that can develop between corporate goals and those of individual intra‐organisational business units arranged as an internal supply chain within a large vertically integrated agribusiness. It also aims to explore and discuss the development of a holistic performance metrics system that facilitates internal supply chain coordination and cohesion, while allowing synergies to develop across the company.

Design/methodology/approach

A case study approach involving a participative action research component was used to examine the disconnect between internal business unit (operational) goals and overall corporate (strategic) goals and to develop a conceptual performance assessment model addressing both operational and strategic contexts.

Findings

The findings show that appropriate performance indicators and measures can be created that relate directly to logical operational outcomes, thus encouraging a more tightly integrated internal supply chain, a stronger coherence among the components and a better aligned set of operational and corporate goals.

Research limitations/implications

Only financial information and data obtained from a participative managerial decision‐making simulation were used to explore performance goal incongruence between operational and corporate managers, compared with the need for multiple contextual performance measurement metrics that the literature suggests provides a best practice system.

Originality/value

The rapidly developing corporate agribusiness sector provides a unique operating environment in that these companies deal primarily in self‐regenerating assets such as livestock. Additionally the development of performance metrics for improving the coordinated integration of autonomous business units is explored for the first time and the concept of “Integrated Autonomy” is suggested as a way to describe the resulting situation.
The intellectual odyssey of David D. Monieson (1927‐2008): a quest for usable knowledge
Authors: Brian Jones D.G. , Cunningham Peggy , McLean Paula , Shapiro Stanley
Published: April 2010

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present a biographical sketch of David D. Monieson whose academic career in marketing included time spent at the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Toronto, and over 30 years at Queen's University. It is focussed on Monieson's contributions to the history and philosophy of marketing thought, especially with respect to what Monieson called “usable knowledge” in marketing.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper uses a traditional historical narrative based on extensive personal interviews with Monieson and with some of his students and colleagues as well as archival research including personal correspondence, course notes, research notes, and other unpublished documents.

Findings

Monieson made important contributions to the thinking about history and philosophy of marketing thought. Some of his ideas, such as the intellectualization and re‐enchantment of marketing, have found a following among marketing academics; others, such as complexity, have not.

Originality/value

There is no published biographical study of Monieson and no detailed analysis of his contributions to marketing thought. This biographical sketch provides insights into several significant marketing ideas and tells the life story of an important marketing scholar.
Perceptions of occupiers' liability risk by estate managers
Authors: Bennett Luke , Gibbeson Carolyn
Published: April 2010

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present a socio‐legal case study, examining how the legal notion of “reasonable safety” provision has come to be constructed by municipal cemetery managers in relation to gravestones and other memorial structures over the last decade in England.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper takes a social constructionist approach to the subject of the case study. It is based upon a literature review of relevant law, policy and guidance, and on the results of qualitative face‐to‐face, semi‐structured interviews with a small sample of English municipal cemetery managers.

Findings

The issue of memorial safety illustrates the tensions that can arise between safety and conflicting priorities, in this case sensitivity to the bereaved. The paper shows that the simple promulgation of guidance will not automatically lead to it being accepted by all as “good practice”. The interviews show how organisations and individual managers have sought to make sense of, and render workable, their legal obligations, by drawing upon, and at times ignoring or adapting, available guidance.

Research limitations/implications

The interview study is based upon a small non‐random sample, accessed via a single phase of enquiry in Spring 2008. The influence of fear of liability may manifest differently in other cemetery managers and/or change over time. In view of the novel, and powerful, “resisting‐forces” in the case of cemeteries direct comparison with the risk perception of managers in other parts of the built environment may be difficult.

Originality/value

Given the lack of existing research in the field of liability perception by landowners, the paper contributes to the analysis of the generic processes by which safety guidance is negotiated, and reconciled with competing drivers in the management of the built environment.
Eight years after – a follow‐up study of mothers and children at psychosocial risk who received early treatment: does early intervention leave its mark?
Authors: Wadsby Marie , Arvidsson Elisabeth
Published: April 2010

One‐hundred forty‐five mothers at psychosocial risk who, with their babies, had been given treatment at a parent–baby clinic during a 2‐year period starting in 1999, treatment designed to strengthen the mother–child relationship, were followed up 8 years later. Both the mothers who had agreed to take part in the treatment programme (n= 73) and those who had declined (n= 72) were searched for in the records of the Social Welfare office to determine if the treated mothers had been focused on to a lesser degree in the following 8 years than those who had declined treatment, a hypothesis that was initially put forward. The behaviour of the children whose mothers had undergone treatment (n= 46) was studied. The initial hypothesis had to be rejected; support and intervention from the social authorities had been equally common in both groups. However, the children of treated mothers had fewer externalizing behaviour than children of untreated mothers at psychosocial risk.
Subungual keratoacanthoma: analysis of cell proliferation and copy number variation of oncogenes compared with periungual squamous cell carcinoma
Authors: Honma M. , Kato N. , Hashimoto M. , Takahashi H. , Ishida-Yamamoto A. , Iizuka H.
Published: April 2010

Background. Subungual keratoacanthoma (SUKA) is a rare cutaneous tumour with several features distinct from ordinary KA. SUKA may not show spontaneous regression and sometimes grows progressively, resulting in phalangeal bone destruction. This makes its distinction from digital squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) difficult.

Aim. To investigate differences in molecular expression between SUKA and digital SCC.

Methods. In addition to immunohistochemical analysis of Ki-67, one of the markers differentiating KA from SCC, we investigated the copy numbers of various oncogenes by multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification (MLPA) using two cases of SUKA and three cases of periungual SCC.

Results. Ki-67 was moderately or strongly positive in SCC but negative in SUKA. The MLPA analysis showed that the nuclear factor (NF)κB1 and cortactin (CTTN; formerly known as EMS1) genes are amplified in SUKA but not in digital SCC. This increase in NFκB1 was confirmed by immunohistochemical analysis.

Conclusion. NFκB1 could be a novel marker to differentiate between SUKA and SCC. Although this study was performed on limited numbers of patients with SUKA, MLPA analysis could be applied to differentiate other benign tumours from their malignant counterparts.
Wells syndrome associated with Churg–Strauss syndrome
Authors: Fujimoto N. , Wakabayashi M. , Kato T. , Nishio C. , Tanaka T.
Published: April 2010

Churg–Strauss syndrome (CSS) is a systemic vasculitis occurring in patients with a history of asthma. Wells’ syndrome (WS) is a rare inflammatory dermatosis that clinically resembles cellulitis, and is histologically characterized by eosinophilic infiltration and flame figures. We report a case of WS associated with CSS. There have been three previous reports of WS associated with CSS; ours is the fourth. All cases had bullous lesions, and three cases were positive for antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibodies.
Antixenosis phloem‐based resistance to aphids: is it the rule?
Authors: LE ROUX VINCENT , DUGRAVOT SÉBASTIEN , BRUNISSEN LAURENCE , VINCENT CHARLES , PELLETIER YVAN , GIORDANENGO PHILIPPE
Published: April 2010

1. The concept of plant defence syndrome states that plant species growing in similar biotic or abiotic constraints should have convergent defensive traits. This article is a first step to test the prediction of this concept, by conducting experiments on wild Solanum species (or accessions) that originated from the Andes. The nature and the tissue localisation of the resistance of five wild Solanum species known to be resistant against the aphids Myzus persicae and Macrosiphum euphorbiae were determined by olfactometry and electrical penetration graph experiments.

2. Volatile organic compounds may contribute to wild Solanum resistance, depending on Solanum accessions and aphid species. Volatiles of S. bukasovii and S. stoloniferum PI 275248 were not attractive to M. persicae, whereas S. bukasovii was repulsive to M. euphorbiae. In contrast, volatiles of S. stoloniferum PI 275248 were attractive for M. euphorbiae.

3. Some wild Solanum species presented a generalised resistance in all plant tissues, so as for S. bukasovii and S. stoloniferum PI 275248 against M. persicae. However, except for S. bukasovii which was susceptible to M. euphorbiae, all tested Solanum species presented a phloem‐based antixenosis resistance against the two aphid species.

4. A review of articles focused on the nature of resistance of wild Solanum species against aphids corroborated with our results, i.e. a phloem‐based antixenosis resistance against aphids is the rule concerning the system aphids–wild Solanum species.
Ontogeny of worker body size distribution in bumble bee (Bombus impatiens) colonies
Authors: COUVILLON MARGARET J. , JANDT JENNIFER M. , DUONG NHI , DORNHAUS ANNA
Published: April 2010

1. Bumble bees exhibit worker size polymorphisms; highly related workers within a colony may vary up to 10‐fold in body mass. As size variation is an important life history feature in bumble bees, the distribution of body sizes within the colony and how it fluctuates over the colony cycle were analysed.

2. Ten commercially purchased colonies of Bombus impatiens (Cresson) were reared in ad libitum conditions. The size of all workers present and newly emerging workers (callows) was recorded each week.

3. The average size of bumble bee workers did not change with colony age, but variation in body size tended to decrease over time. The average size of callows did not change with population size, but did tend to decrease with colony age. In all measures, there was considerable variation among colonies.

4. Colonies of B. impatiens usually produced workers with normally distributed body sizes throughout the colony life cycle. Unlike most polymorphic ants, there was no increase in worker body size with colony age or colony size. This provides the first, quantitative data on the ontogeny of bumble bee worker size distribution. The potential adaptive significance of this size variation is discussed.
Effects of colony size on larval performance in a processionary moth
Authors: RONNÅS CECILIA , LARSSON STIG , PITACCO ANDREA , BATTISTI ANDREA
Published: April 2010

1. Some lepidopteran species have larvae that live gregariously, especially in early instars. Colony‐living species may benefit from improved protection from predators, thermoregulation, and feeding facilitation, for example.

2. While many studies have compared solitary and gregarious life styles, few data exist as to the relationship between size of the larval colony and larval performance in gregarious species. The present study was aimed at understanding the importance of colony size for growth and survival of the northern pine processionary moth (Thaumetopoea pinivora) larvae.

3. Field studies, comparing three different sizes of colonies of T. pinivora larvae, showed that individuals in larger colonies had a higher survival rate compared with those living in smaller colonies and also a faster growth rate.

4. The higher survival rate of large colonies was attributed to improved protection from predacious arthropods.

5. In early spring, the young larvae bask in the sun to increase their body temperature. In field experiments the thermal gain was higher in large colonies, and individuals in such colonies also grew faster. As growth rate was not affected by colony size when the ability to bask was experimentally removed in a laboratory experiment, the higher growth rate of the larger colonies was probably due to improved thermoregulation rather than feeding facilitation.

6. The size of larval colonies of gregarious insects depends on natural mortality events as well as on female oviposition strategy. Our results show that decreasing colony size can lead to a reduction in growth rate and survival. It is therefore important to understand whether or not small colonies will benefit equally from the gregarious behaviour.
Connectivity counts: disentangling effects of vegetation structure elements on the searching movement of a parasitoid
Authors: RANDLKOFER BARBARA , OBERMAIER ELISABETH , CASAS JÉRÔME , MEINERS TORSTEN
Published: April 2010

1. A heterogeneous habitat structure can have a profound impact on foraging carnivorous arthropods. In the present study, we examined which elements of complex vegetation structure influence the searching movement of a parasitoid model organism.

2. Previous field work showed that tall and dense vegetation reduces the parasitism success of the eulophid egg parasitoid Oomyzus galerucivorus while the probability of host egg deposition increased close to plant tips.

3. In laboratory bioassays, dried grass stems were arranged according to the natural situation in different setups. The wasps' walking time on stems increased with increasing stem height and density. High stem density decreased the walking time of the parasitoids on the ground and an increased stem height reduced the propensity to fly to the ground. Connectivity had a minor positive effect on the number of stem contacts, but considerably reduced the number of wasps reaching the upper part of grass stems by two‐thirds.

4. Thus, although enhanced vegetation complexity enhances walking activity of the parasitoids in the vegetation, laying eggs at the tip of long grass stems in dense vegetation can be an adaptive strategy for the host, as it maximises the number of connections between plant parts to cross by parasitoids before reaching the host. The connection points disorient the wasps, which lose time, reverse their direction or fly away.
Scaling analysis of water retention curves for unsaturated sandy loam soils by using fractal geometry
Authors: Fallico C. , Tarquis A. M. , De Bartolo S. , Veltri M.
Published: April 2010

Fractal geometry was deployed to analyse water retention curves (WRC). The three models used to estimate the curves were the general pore‐solid fractal (PSF) model and two specific cases of the PSF model: the Tyler & Wheatcraft (TW) and the Rieu & Sposito (RS) models. The study was conducted on 30 undisturbed, sandy loam soil samples taken from a field and subjected to laboratory analysis. The fractal dimension, a non‐variable scale factor characterizing each water retention model proposed, was estimated by direct scaling. The method for determining the fractal dimension proposed here entails limiting the analysis to the interval between an upper and lower pressure head cut‐off on a log‐log plot, and defining the dimension itself as the straight regression line that interpolates the points in the interval with the largest coefficient of determination, R2. The scale relative to the cut‐off interval used to determine the fractal behaviour in each model used is presented. Furthermore, a second range of pressure head values was analysed to approximate the fractal dimension of the pore surface. The PSF model exhibited greater spatial variation than the TW or RS models for the parameter values typical of a sandy loam soil. An indication of the variability of the fractal dimension across the entire area studied is also provided.
Validation of novel promoter sequences derived from two endogenous ubiquitin genes in transgenic Aedes aegypti
Authors: Anderson M. A. E. , Gross T. L. , Myles K. M. , Adelman Z. N.
Published: April 2010

To date, only a limited number of promoter sequences have been described to drive transgene expression in the disease vector Aedes aegypti. We sought to increase this repertoire by characterizing the ability of upstream sequences derived from the Ae. aegypti UbL40 and polyubiquitin genes to drive the expression of marker proteins. Both genomic fragments were able to drive robust expression of luciferase in cultured mosquito cells. Following Mos1‐transformation, the UbL40 promoter drove strong expression of a fluorescent marker in early larvae and in ovaries, while the polyubiquitin promoter drove robust EGFP expression in all stages of development, including constitutive expression throughout the midgut. These promoter fragments provide two new expression profiles for future Ae. aegypti genetic experiments.
Characterization of a vitellogenin gene reveals two phase regulation of vitellogenesis by engorgement and mating in the soft tick Ornithodoros moubata (Acari: Argasidae)
Authors: Horigane M. , Shinoda T. , Honda H. , Taylor D.
Published: April 2010

Synthesis of the precursor yolk protein vitellogenin (Vg) occurs after engorgement in haematophagous arthropods. We identified the Vg cDNA of the soft tick Ornithodoros moubata (OmVg) and compared its expression in mated and virgin females. Both mated and virgin females showed increases in OmVg expression after engorgement but expression was higher in mated females than virgin females particularly as time advanced. Delayed mating in virgin females induced an increase in OmVg expression. OmVg expression was observed in the midgut and fat body by whole mount in situ hybridization, but enlarged fat body with high expression occurred in only mated females during the late phase of vitellogenesis. Therefore, engorgement initially induces OmVg expression but mating is necessary for continued Vg expression to produce mature eggs.
Cadmium pollution triggers a positive biodiversity–productivity relationship: evidence from a laboratory microcosm experiment
Authors: Li Jin‐Tian , Duan Hong‐Nan , Li Shao‐Peng , Kuang Jia‐Liang , Zeng Yi , Shu Wen‐Sheng
Published: April 2010

1. Human activities are greatly changing the conditions of ecosystems. One of these major changes is that more and more ecosystems are facing increasing concentrations of highly toxic heavy metals like cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb) and mercury (Hg). Previous studies have shown this type of pollution may be associated with the loss of biodiversity, leaving some pollution‐tolerant species to dominate the polluted ecosystems. To date, however, little is known about the extent to which the pollution caused by these toxins may affect the relationship between biodiversity and ecosystem function.

2. In this study, we aimed to assess the role of Cd pollution in determining biodiversity–productivity relationships in aquatic ecosystems, by using data from a laboratory microcosm experiment that tested 110 algal communities with three levels of Cd pollution.

3. Our results showed that the productivities of algal communities growing in non‐Cd‐polluted media did not significantly increase with increasing species richness, and this pattern did not change over time. In contrast, significantly positive biodiversity–productivity relationships were consistently found in algal communities growing in Cd‐polluted media.

4. We revealed that the putative facilitation among algal species in response to Cd pollution was the main driver of the observed significantly positive biodiversity–productivity relationships. Most importantly, we found that not only Cd‐tolerant algal species but also Cd‐sensitive algal species were able to dominate Cd‐polluted polycultures and contribute to the increased productivities of these polycultures.

5. Synthesis and applications. Collectively, our results provide the first explicit experimental evidence that Cd pollution can trigger a positive biodiversity–productivity relationship. We identify two profound implications: (i) conservation of biodiversity in all environments may reduce the future impacts of increasing environmental stresses (like Cd pollution) on ecosystem function (such as primary productivity); (ii) one possible approach to maintain or improve algal primary productivity in a polluted aquatic ecosystem may be to construct some suitable diverse algal assemblages that include not only pollution‐tolerant species but also pollution‐sensitive ones.
Challenges of foraging on a high‐quality but unpredictable food source: the dynamics of grass production and consumption in savanna grazing lawns
Authors: Bonnet Olivier , Fritz Hervé , Gignoux Jacques , Meuret Michel
Published: April 2010

1. Grazing lawns are short grassland areas where intense grazing maintains grass in an early growth stage. These areas represent a source of high‐quality forage for herbivores. However, as herbivores continually remove nearly all the newly accumulated biomass, instantaneous resource availability depends on the dynamics of grass growth.

2. In this study, we investigate how production and consumption inside grazing lawns are synchronized. We then explore how that synchronization affects the ability of large herbivores to use these lawns. We also provide a critical comparison between grazing lawns and intensively managed grasslands in livestock farms.

3. We investigated vegetation production and herbivore grazing activity during a wet and a dry season using clipping experiments and direct observation in two grazing lawns in a South African savanna.

4. Weekly total grazing activity by unit area was strongly and positively related to short‐term primary production. This indicates a close synchronization between these two processes. In contrast, grazing activity was poorly related to standing biomass. Primary production had a threshold response to the weekly pattern of rainfall, implying a stochastic dynamics of grass growth.

5. The dynamics of grass production and consumption of grazing lawns is similar to the one of continuously stocked grazing systems from intensively managed grasslands. But the mechanisms regulating the two systems lead to different equilibrium points between production and consumption. The two systems also have opposed nutritional functions within the animal diet.

6. Synthesis. The close synchronization between resource production and consumption inside grazing lawns indicates that instantaneous resource availability is a direct function of the short‐term rate of grass growth. In tropical savannas, the main source of variability of lawn grass primary productivity is the stochastic nature of short‐term rainfall. As a result, herbivores’ ability to use grazing lawns is poorly predictable in time. This has important consequences on the degree of information herbivores can use in the elaboration of their foraging strategies, and on the potential interest of grazing lawns.
Patient perceived priorities between technical skills and interpersonal skills: their influence on correlates of patient satisfaction
Authors: Murakami Genki , Imanaka Yuichi , Kobuse Hiroe , Lee Jason , Goto Etsu
Published: April 2010

Objectives  The study objective was to elucidate the differences in factors related to overall patient satisfaction levels among subgroups based on whether patients placed higher priorities on technical or interpersonal skills of health care personnel.

Methods  This questionnaire survey targeted 2341 patients discharged from five Japanese hospitals in 2007. Patients were grouped based on whether they prioritized technical or interpersonal skills by chi‐squared automatic interaction detection (CHAID) analysis. Multiple regression analysis was used to compare and evaluate differences in various factors related to patient satisfaction among the subgroups.

Results  Survey respondent rate was 55.7% (1305 patients). CHAID analysis showed that patients, in particular those warded in surgery departments, tended to place a higher value on technical skills, although paediatric and rehabilitation patients also placed a high value on interpersonal skills. While it has been shown that non‐surgical patients tended to prioritize interpersonal skills, our results revealed that patients warded in the surgery department who did not undergo operations still prioritized technical skills. These variation patterns among patient subgroups were further supported by regression analysis of overall patient satisfaction. In surgical patients, the 40‐ to 79‐year‐old subgroup regarded technical skills to be more important and the role of the doctor was found to be more associated with overall satisfaction. However, even among surgical patients, older patients placed higher values on interpersonal skills, and overall satisfaction was found to be more associated with health care professionals (besides doctors) and living arrangements.

Conclusions  We conclude that differences in patient satisfaction levels could be influenced by different perspectives on prioritized skills.
The Australasian contribution to malaria vaccine development
Authors: REDMOND A. M. , DOOLAN D. L.
Published: April 2010

Malaria remains a major threat to public health worldwide, despite intense research efforts spanning decades. Much of this work has been directed towards developing an effective malaria vaccine, and scientists from Australasia have made significant contributions to progress in this area. Herein, we review the research undertaken in Australasia and summarize some of the important roles that Australasian researchers have played in malaria vaccine development that has occurred outside the region.
Haim Munk syndrome and Papillon Lefevre syndrome – allelic mutations in cathepsin C with variation in phenotype
Authors: Rai Reena , Thiagarajan S. , Mohandas Soumya , Natarajan Karthika , Shanmuga Sekar C. , Ramalingam S.
Published: April 2010

Papillon–Lefevre syndrome and Haim Munk syndrome are palmoplantar keratodermas associated with premature periodontal destruction. The additional findings of Haim Munk Syndrome include onychogryphosis, arachnodactyly, acral osteolysis and pes planus. Both are associated with mutations in the lysosomal protease cathepsin C. We describe a patient with phenotype for Haim Munk Syndrome and genetic analysis revealed a homozygous point mutation in exon 1 of the gene encoding cathepsin C.
Osteosarcoma of the skin
Authors: Larsen Sangeetha , Davis Dawn Marie R. , Comfere Nneka I. , Folpe Andrew L. , Sciallis Gabriel F.
Published: April 2010

Background  Osteosarcoma is a common malignancy, although skin metastasis is rare. We sought to review the incidence, epidemiology, risk factors, and prognosis of osteosarcoma with skin involvement.

Methods  We conducted a retrospective chart review that covered 30 years and involved clinic patients younger than 18 years who had cutaneous metastases of osteosarcoma. The main outcome measure was histologic documentation of both primary tumor and metastatic lesion in the skin.

Results  Two patients were found to have osteosarcoma with skin involvement. No unifying factors were identified.

Conclusions  Although osteosarcoma is a common malignancy with frequent metastases, involvement of the skin is rare. Further studies to identify risk factors and subsequent prognosis are necessary. Nevertheless, unidentifiable skin lesions in a patient with a history of osteosarcoma should be investigated to rule out tumor metastasis, regardless of cancer status.
Co‐infection of mucosal leishmaniasis and extra pulmonary tuberculosis in a patient with inherent immune deficiency
Authors: Rathnayake Deepani , Ranawake Ranthilaka R. , Sirimanna Ganga , Siriwardhane Yamuna , Karunaweera Nadeera , De Silva Rajiv
Published: April 2010

Background  In Sri Lanka, cutaneous leishmaniasis is a well‐established disease caused by Leishmania donovani. Only a few cases of visceral disease and mucosal localization have been reported to date.

Case report  A 52‐year‐old man presented with severe local destruction of his upper and lower lip and total destruction of the anterior nasal septum and was diagnosed with mucosal leishmaniasis. The causative organism was confirmed to be Leishmania donovani. In addition he had tuberculous lymphadenitis and inherent immune deficiency. His previous medical history was unremarkable. The patient was successfully treated with intramuscular sodium stibogluconate.

Conclusion  The clinical picture and satisfactory treatment response to antimony are similar to mucosal leishmaniasis caused by L. donovani reported in India and Sudan and with the absence of primary skin lesions make it different from new world mucosal leishmaniasis. Even though leishmania and tuberculous co‐infection has been reported in association with HIV this has not been reported in inherent immune deficiency.
Leishmaniasis recidivans among school children in Bam, South‐east Iran, 1994–2006
Authors: Sharifi Iraj , Fekri Ali Reza , Aflatoonian Mohammad Reza , Khamesipour Ali , Mahboudi Fereidoun , Dowlati Yahya , Nadim Abolhassan , Modabber Farrokh
Published: April 2010

Background  Leishmaniasis recidivans (LR) is a rare phenomenon in the world with high morbidity in children.

Methods  Overall 22 838 school children were examined during 1994–2006. Diagnosis was performed by combination of methods as clinical appearance, direct smears, cultures, polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and histology.

Results  Ninety‐eight cases were diagnosed as LR with duration of lesions varying from 2 to 8 years and diameter of lesions 1–5 cm, yellowish‐brown appearance with papules around or in the scar. Most of the lesions (95%) were on the face. No amastigote was found in direct smears. Identification of nine random isolates by PCR confirmed all species to be L. tropica. Tissue sections showed typical granulomatous reactions with various inflammatory cells but no visible amastigote was seen.

Conclusions  The presence of LR as an important cause of morbidity has future implications for treatment regimens and immunoprophylaxis.
Genetic homogeneity of mutational spectrum of group‐A xeroderma pigmentosum in Tunisian patients
Authors: Messaoud Olfa , Ben Rekaya Mariem , Cherif Wafa , Talmoudi Faten , Boussen Hammouda , Mokhtar Inçaf , Boubaker Samir , Amouri Ahlem , Abdelhak Sonia , Zghal Mohamed
Published: April 2010

Background Xeroderma Pigmentosum(XP) is a rare autosomal recessive disorder characterized by cutaneous and ocular alterations. Eight genes,Xeroderma Pigmentosumgroup A (XPA)toXeroderma Pigmentosumgroup G (XPG)andXeroderma Pigmentosumgroup V (XPV), are known to be responsible for the disease and products of these genes are involved in the repair of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) lesions generated by UV radiation. Several XP patients suffer from neurological defects, found in the XPA (the most common form), D and G groups. The aim of this study was to investigate the mutational spectrum ofXPAin Tunisia, in order to propose a simple tool for molecular diagnosis.

Methods This study was carried out on six unrelated families with nine Tunisian XPA patients. Clinical features were recorded. As a previous study showed the presence of the R228X mutation in Tunisia, patients were first screened for this mutation by polymerase chain reaction‐restriction fragment length polymorphism and then confirmed by direct sequencing.

Results The results showed that all patients carried theXPAR228X mutation. This mutation corresponds to a C to T transition, which creates a premature stop codon at position 228, thus causing a DNA repair defect.

Conclusions TheXPAR228X mutation is common in Tunisian population. This mutation is associated with a relatively moderate phenotype of the XPA. As all explored patients presented the recurrent mutationXPAR228X, a potential founder effect was searched and confirmed by haplotype analysis. Taking into account similar genetic background, investigation of this mutation should allow a cost effective and rapid diagnosis of XPA in north‐African populations.
Cardiac findings in Behçet’s patients
Authors: Heper Gulumser , Polat Mualla , Yetkin Ertan , Senen Kubilay
Published: April 2010

Behçet’s disease is a chronic multi‐system inflammatory disorder and the severity and clinical manifestations of Behçet’s patients may show geographic variation. We aimed to detect the cardiac findings in 30 Behçet’s patients and compare them with the normal population (n = 29). We used color‐doppler echocardiography and transesophageal echocardiography in combination. We calculated manually QT intervals and QT dispersion (QTd) from twelve‐lead ECG recordings. There was no E/A inversion and coronary ischemia in all patients or control group. The E velocity difference between groups was not significant. The mean A velocity was significantly lower in Behçet’s patients than normal group. The mean DT was 154.4 ± 5.8 msec in Behçet’s patients and 122.59 ± 0.96 msec in control group (P < 0.0001). The mean IVRT was 75.66 ± 1.36 msec in Behçet’s patients and 69.1 ± 0.55 msec in control group (P < 0.0001). There was no QTc time difference between the Behçet’s patients and the control group. The mean QT dispersion (QTd) interval was 45.46 ± 2.65 msec in Behçet’s patients and 31.83 ± 1.23 msec in control group (P < 0.0001). Atrial septal aneurysm, mitral valve prolapse and insufficiency, tricuspid valve insufficieny, and pulmonary hypertension frequencies in Behçet’s patients were significantly higher than in the control group. We concluded that Behçet’s cardiac involvement may effect cardiac structure and cause diastolic dysfunction, electrical instability and structural abnormalities. We also concluded that cardiac involvement in Behçet’s disease may be specific for this geographic area.
Analysis of clinical and molecular characteristics of Wiskott–Aldrich syndrome in 24 patients from 23 unrelated Chinese families
Authors: Zhang Zhi‐Yong , Xiao Hui‐Qin , Jiang Li‐Ping , Zhou Yu , Zhao Qin , Yu Jie , Liu Wei , Yang Xi‐Qiang , Zhao Xiao‐Dong
Published: April 2010

Zhang Z‐Y, Xiao H‐Q, Jiang L‐P, Zhou Y, Zhao Q, Yu J, Liu W, Yang X‐Q, Zhao X‐D. Analysis of clinical and molecular characteristics of Wiskott–Aldrich syndrome in 24 patients from 23 unrelated Chinese families. Pediatr Allergy Immunol 2010: 21: 522–532. © 2010 John Wiley & Sons A/S

The clinical data of 24 children with Wiskott–Aldrich syndrome (WAS) from 23 unrelated Chinese families were reviewed in the present study. WAS protein (WASP) expression in peripheral blood mononuclear cells was examined by flow cytometry (FCM); WASP gene was amplified by PCR and directly sequenced to analyze mutations in the WASP gene in patients and their female relatives. FCM analysis of 21 patients showed that 18 cases were WASP‐negative, and three had partially WASP expression. WASP gene analysis revealed mutations in 23 patients, including five missense mutations, four nonsense mutations, four deletion mutations, three insertion mutations, six splice site mutations, and one complex mutation, among which, 20 unique mutations were detected, including seven novel mutations (168 C>A, 747–748del T, 793–797del C, 1185 ins C, Dup 1251–1267, 1277 insA and 1266 C>G; 1267–1269del C). Five WAS children underwent stem cell transplantation. After 2 months of transplantation, WASP expression was restored to normal in all five patients whereas one patient died of cytomegalovirus‐induced interstitial lung disease. WASP gene analysis can make a definite diagnosis of WAS and identify mutation carriers, beneficial for timely treatment and genetic counseling for children with WAS.
Cutaneous leishmaniasis in a child treated with oral fluconazole
Authors: Sklavos Angelo V , Walls Tony , Webber Murray T , Watson Alan B
Published: April 2010

We report a case of cutaneous leishmaniasis in a 3‐year‐old West African girl with a 3‐month history of multiple disfiguring, infiltrated, ulcerating and variably necrotic granulomatous plaques on the limbs and face that occurred after swimming in a river approximately 6 weeks before arriving in Australia. A diagnosis of cutaneous leishmaniasis, a protozoal zoonosis usually transmitted by the Phlebotomus species of sandfly, was considered. The clinico‐pathological features were consistent with Leishmania major infection, known to be the major endemic species causing cutaneous leishmaniasis in the country of origin. Because of the presence of lesions on the face, active treatment was instituted. Continuing resolution of all lesions over 6 weeks was noted to occur with cribiform scarring with the use of oral fluconazole 150 mg daily. Oral fluconazole appears to be emerging as a therapy for uncomplicated cutaneous leishmaniasis, with advantages particularly important in paediatrics.
Antithrombotic management of ischaemic stroke and transient ischaemic attack in China: A consecutive cross‐sectional survey
Authors: Wang Yi‐Long , Wu Di , Nguyen‐Huynh Mai N , Zhou Yong , Wang Chun‐Xue , Zhao Xing‐Quan , Liao Xiao‐Ling , Liu Li‐Ping , Wang Yong‐Jun ,   for The Prevention of Recurrences of Stroke Study in China (PRESS‐China) Investigators
Published: April 2010

1. Little is known about the prevention of secondary stroke in China. In the present study, we assessed the status of antithrombotic management of stroke patients in clinics across China.

2. A cross‐sectional survey was conducted in 19 urban neurological clinics. All subjects diagnosed with ischaemic stroke (IS) or transient ischaemic attack (TIA) were enrolled consecutively in the study. Face‐to‐face interviews were conducted by research assistants using questionnaires on the day of enrolment. The data recorded included demographic and clinical characteristics, medication and reasons for not using medication. Independent predictors for the prescription of antiplatelet drugs were determined using multivariate logistic regression models.

3. Of the 2283 patients with IS or TIA enrolled in the study (34.7% women; mean ( ± SD) age 65.8 ± 11.6 years), 1719 (75.3%) had a prescription for antiplatelet therapy. Of the 108 patients with atrial fibrillation, only 14 (13.0%) were receiving warfarin therapy. The main independent factors significantly associated with being on antiplatelet therapy were having basic health insurance (odds ratio (OR) 1.47; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.09–1.99), government insurance and labour insurance (OR 1.63; 95% CI 1.03–2.59) and a monthly income of > 500 yuan (US$66.70; OR 2.14; 95% CI 1.51–3.03). Being older (OR 0.70; 95% CI 0.50–0.99) and having a severe disability (OR 0.68; 95% CI 0.49–0.97) were associated with lower odds of receiving antiplatelet therapy.

4. Based on the survey results, adherence to guidelines for antithrombotic management in neurological clinics in China is poor. The main reasons contributing to the less than optimal management of stroke patients include negative attitudes among neurologists, a lack of medical insurance, a lower income and being elderly and/or severely disabled.