bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A decision-making support model for enterprises localization strategies
Authors: Morena Marzia , Luisa Del Gatto Maria , Gornati Anna
Published: March 2014

Purpose

– The paper aims at describing a supporting model for the decision-making process that may steer the location decisions of international businesses. This is made possible by a measurement system where the characteristics of a territory are assessed with reference to some key factors that are internationally known to investors, to the aim of spotting the best location to implement a property investment.

Design/methodology/approach

– The surveys analysed when producing this paper highlighted the presence of internationally renowned and shared factors that the enterprises generally take into consideration in their decision-making process, and which strongly influence the decision to locate a business in a territory to the detriment of another. By adopting and organizing these “key factors” in a systemic way, the model introduced in this paper supports enterprises in their location choice. It analyses and measures some territorial contexts (with no limits regarding their size) based on the scores assigned to these contexts after the analysis of the 12 key factors.

Findings

– The analysis had two outputs: on the one hand, its results allowed to check whether the areas are actually in line with the expectations and with the requirements of a potential investor, with reference to the activity that such investor is willing to promote; on the other, the identification of the characteristics of the area provides the basis to define the vocation of the areas under examination, thus helping the drawing of future development scenarios.

Originality/value

– The surveys analysed when producing this paper highlighted the presence of internationally renowned and shared factors that the enterprises generally take into consideration in their decision-making process, and which strongly influence the decision to locate a business in a territory to the detriment of another.
History, field definition and management studies: the case of the New Deal
Authors: Foster Jason , J. Mills Albert , Weatherbee Terrance
Published: March 2014

Purpose

– The aim of this paper is threefold. First, to argue for a more historically engaged understanding of the development of management and organization studies (MOS). Second, to reveal the paradoxical character of the recent “historical turn,” through exploration of how it both questions and reinforces extant notions of the field. Third, to explore the neglect of the New Deal in MOS to illustrate not only the problem of historical engagement, but also to encourage a rethink of the paradigmatic limitations of the field and its history.

Design/methodology/approach

– Adopting the theory of ANTi-history, the paper conducts an analysis of historical management textbooks and formative management journals to explore how and why the New Deal has been neglected in management theory.

Findings

– Focussing on the New Deal raises a number of questions about the relationship between history and MOS, in particular, the definition of the field itself. Questions include the ontological character of history, context and relationalism, and the link between history and MOS, ethics, Anglo-American centredness, and the case for historical engagement.

Originality/value

– The paper argues for a new approach to historical understanding that encourages a revisiting of what constitutes the field of MOS; a greater awareness of and opening up to alternative (hi)stories and, thus, approaches to MOS; and a re-evaluation of phenomena such as the New Deal and other more radical ways of organizing.
Discovering the foundational philosophies, practices, and influences of modern management theory
Authors: B. Dent Eric , Bozeman Pamela
Published: March 2014

Purpose

– The aim of this paper is to discuss the factors that influenced the establishment of modern management into the pervasive force it is today. It briefly describes modern management and discusses the reasons for this gap in knowledge in such a critical area. The main analysis of the paper focuses on the following social ideas and influences that created the conditions for modern management to be formed and established: social Darwinism and religion, the rise of social science, the promise of the scientific method, and the perspectives of the business tycoons.

Design/methodology/approach

– This paper analyzes the prevailing trends of the late 1800 s to determine which had the greatest influence on the formation of modern management.

Findings

– This paper concludes that the greatest factors on the establishment of modern management were social Darwinism and the promise of the scientific method. These, then, provided the perfect environment for Frederick W. Taylor to become the embodiment and popularizer of modern management. Perhaps, surprisingly, Christianity had little influence.

Originality/value

– Now that the prevailing influences of modern management have been surfaced, scholars and practitioners can more effectively critique the current state of management and determine whether legacy assumptions and influences are still valid, or whether modern management should change in some way(s) to better reflect accurate assumptions and influences operative today. The anonymous reviewers of this paper have found this analysis to be provocative and challenging. They have also concluded that a single article cannot do justice to such an important, yet relatively unexplored area. Consequently, the authors hope that other researchers will also be provoked to join in this important task.
The 1920 Farrow's Bank failure: a case of managerial hubris?
Authors: Hollow Matthew
Published: March 2014

Purpose

– The aim of this paper is to evaluate the extent to which hubristic behaviour on the part of Thomas Farrow contributed to the downfall of Farrow's Bank in 1920.

Design/methodology/approach

– The article traces the way in which Thomas Farrow's behaviour changed over the course of his managerial career using primary sources obtained from various British archives, including: court records, witness statements, auditors' reports, newspapers, journals, and personal letters. The article then evaluates Farrow's actions in relation to the criteria outlined in Petit and Bollaert's “Framework for diagnosing CEO hubris” so as to assess how far he can be said to have become afflicted by managerial hubris.

Findings

– All the collected evidence points to the conclusion that Thomas Farrow had, by the time of the Bank's collapse in 1920, become afflicted by managerial hubris. This was reflected most clearly in the fact that he increasingly came to view himself as being somehow above and beyond the laws of the wider community. As a result, he felt little compunction about fraudulently writing-up the Bank's assets so as to cover the huge losses that his reckless investments had produced.

Practical implications

– The Farrow's Bank episode confirms that the probability of management hubris materialising is enhanced when external control mechanisms are either lacking or inefficiently applied. On top of this, the amateurish organizational set-up of the Bank also suggests that the likelihood of hubris syndrome developing is enhanced when organizations themselves grant too much discretion to their leaders.

Originality/value

– The paper breaks new ground by applying the latest management and psychology theories on the subject of leadership hubris to the field of financial management. Its value lies in the fact that it provides scholars and practitioners with an in-depth insight into how hubris syndrome can develop in organizational settings.
Product market strategies and innovation types: finding the fit!
Authors: Basu Shubhabrata
Published: March 2014

Purpose

– This paper reviews an underexplored dimension in strategic management namely, the strategic fit between various types of innovation and their corresponding product-market strategies.

Design/methodology/approach

– The article is prepared by reviewing the relevant literatures on innovation and product market strategies and comparing and contrasting the common characteristics to attain a fit.

Findings

– The paper presents the criteria for distinguishing the different types of innovation vis-a-vis the product market strategies, along with a tabular frame of reference that fits a particular type of innovation with its corresponding product market strategy.

Practical implications

– Further the article provides an action framework that characterises the product market strategies along with the benefits that accrue on adopting a particular type of innovation for the corresponding product market strategy. That way, the probability of firms, failing due to the launch of an inappropriate innovation in an inappropriate market, will be less.

Originality/value

– This brief article presents an original framework, with significant practical applications, in a succinct manner. The frameworks will provide a guide to the top management on market or domain identification, resource allocation and launching and fitting an appropriate innovation in an appropriate market.
Itch and nerve fibers with special reference to atopic dermatitis: Therapeutic implications
Authors: Tominaga Mitsutoshi , Takamori Kenji
Published: March 2014

Nerve density in the epidermis is partly involved in itch sensitization in pruritic skin diseases, such as atopic dermatitis (AD). Epidermal innervation is thought to be regulated by the balance between nerve elongation factors (e.g. nerve growth factor) and nerve repulsion factors (e.g. semaphorin 3A). Semaphorin 3A (Sema3A) has been shown to inhibit nerve growth factor (NGF)‐induced sprouting of sensory nerves, and epidermal Sema3A levels are lower in AD patients, concomitant with an increase in epidermal nerve density. In addition, treatment with anti‐NGF, Sema3A replacement, and several existing treatments, such as ultraviolet‐based therapies, normalized the hyperinnervation in AD, resulting in suppression of itching. This review expands knowledge regarding potential therapeutic strategies for ameliorating intractable pruritus in AD.
Epidemiology of atopic dermatitis in Japan
Authors: Takeuchi Satoshi , Esaki Hitokazu , Furue Masutaka
Published: March 2014

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a common, chronic or chronically relapsing, severely pruritic and eczematous skin disease. AD is the second most frequently observed skin disease in dermatology clinics in Japan. Prevalence of childhood AD is 12–13% in mainland Japan; however, it is only half that (~6%) in children from Ishigaki Island, Okinawa. Here, we summarize the prevalence, incidence and spontaneous regression of AD and the relation of AD to other allergic diseases from previous reports. We also refer to our recent findings from a population cohort study on Ishigaki Island, Okinawa.
Cutaneous Langerhans cell histiocytosis in elderly with chronic myelomonocytic leukemia
Authors: Iwasaki Takeshi , Takahashi Ichiro , Nagashima Takahiro , Igawa Satomi , Komatsu Shigetsuna , Honma Masaru , Ishida‐Yamamoto Akemi , Iizuka Hajime
Published: March 2014

Langerhans cell histiocytosis (LCH) is a rare histiocytic neoplasm characterized by clonal proliferation of Langerhans cells in multi‐organ systems including skin, bone, pituitary gland, liver and spleen. Skin‐limited involvement of LCH usually indicates an indolent clinical course; however, in rare cases, LCH is accompanied by other myeloproliferative disorders, which may determine the prognosis. An 82‐year old Japanese man presented with numerous asymptomatic facial papules clinically simulating rhinophyma. Although findings of histopathology and general examination including bone marrow biopsy led to the diagnosis of cutaneous LCH, he died from chronic myelomonocytic leukemia, which emerged 10 months after the initial diagnosis of LCH. The previously reported cases of LCH concomitant with other hematological disorders are also summarized and described compared with the present case.
Thymus and activation‐regulated chemokine as a clinical biomarker in atopic dermatitis
Authors: Kataoka Yoko
Published: March 2014

Thymus and activation‐regulated chemokine (TARC/CCL17) is a member of the T‐helper 2 chemokine family. In Japan, serum TARC level has been commercially measured since 2008. After years of experience, we realized that TARC is an extremely useful clinical biomarker for atopic dermatitis (AD) treatment. Usually, physicians conduct a visual examination to determine whether their treatment has been successful; however, the visual examination results may not always be accurate; in such cases, serum TARC levels should be measured to eliminate any ambiguity regarding the treatment outcome. When the waning and waxing of eczema and fluctuations in the serum TARC levels were considered, we frequently found that AD does not follow a natural course but follows non‐regulated inflammatory floating caused by insufficient intermittent topical treatment. Serum TARC is a promising biomarker for remission and can be used for accurately monitoring proactive treatment for long‐term control. Abnormally high serum TARC levels indicate accelerated pathogenesis of cutaneous inflammation. Rapid normalization and maintaining normal serum TARC levels using appropriate topical treatment is a reasonable strategy for alleviating inflammation without upregulating cytokine expression. Observing serum TARC levels during early intervention for severe infantile AD is worthwhile to determine initial disease activity and evaluate treatment efficacy. Appropriate control of severe early‐onset infantile AD is important for improving prognosis of eczema and for preventing food allergies. Additionally, this biomarker is useful for improving patient adherence. Dermatologists will be able to make great progress in treating AD by adopting biomarkers such as TARC for accurately assessing non‐visible subclinical disorders.
Risks, dangers and competing clinical decisions on venous thromboembolism prophylaxis in hospital care
Authors: Boiko Olga , Sheaff Rod , Child Susan , Gericke Christian A.
Published: March 2014

Drawing on wider sociologies of risk, this article examines the complexity of clinical risks and their management, focusing on risk management systems, expert decision‐making and safety standards in health care. At the time of this study preventing venous thromboembolism (VTE) among in‐patients was one of the top priorities for hospital safety in the English National Health Service (NHS). An analysis of 50 interviews examining hospital professionals' perceptions aboutVTErisks and prophylaxis illuminates how National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) guidelines influenced clinical decision‐making in four hospitals in oneNHSregion. We examine four themes: the identification of new risks, the institutionalisation and management of risk, the relationship between risk and danger and the tensions between risk management systems and expert decision‐making. The implementation ofNICEguidelines forVTEprevention extended managerial control over risk management but some irreducible clinical dangers remained that were beyond the scope of the newVTErisk management systems. Linking sociologies of risk with the realities of hospital risk management reveals the capacity of these theories to illuminate both the possibilities and the limits of managerialism in health care.
Influence of exopolysaccharide‐producing cultures on the volatile profile and sensory quality of low‐fat Tulum cheese during ripening
Authors: Oluk Aylin C , Guven Mehmet , Hayaloglu Ali Adnan
Published: March 2014

The objective of this investigation was to compare the composition and changes in the concentration of volatiles in low‐fat and full‐fat Tulum cheeses during ripening. Tulum cheese was manufactured from low‐ or full‐fat milk using exopolysaccharide (EPS)‐producing or non‐EPS‐producing starter cultures. A total of 82 volatile compounds were identified belonging to the following chemical groups: acids (seven), esters (21), ketones (14), aldehydes (six), alcohols (14) and miscellaneous compounds (20). The relative amounts of acids, alcohols and aldehydes increased in the cheeses made with EPS‐producing cultures during 90 days of ripening. Differences were found in the volatile profile of full‐fat Tulum cheese compared with the low‐fat variant, especially after 90 days of ripening. Exopolysaccharide‐producing cultures changed the volatile profile, and the EPS‐producing cultures including Streptococcus thermophilus + Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus + Lactobacillus helveticus (LF‐EPS2) produced cheese with higher levels of methyl ketones and aldehydes than the non‐EPS cultures. In the sensory analysis, full‐fat Tulum cheeses and the cheese produced with the EPS‐producing culture containing Lb. helveticus (LF‐EPS2) were preferred by the expert panel. It was concluded that the use of EPS‐producing starter cultures in the manufacture of low‐fat Tulum cheese had the potential to improve the flavour.
Compositional, biochemical and textural changes during ripening of Tulum cheese made with different coagulants
Authors: Şengül Mustafa , Erkaya Tuba , Dervişoğlu Muhammet , Aydemir Oğuz , Gül Osman
Published: March 2014

In the present study, biochemical, chemical and texture changes in Tulum cheeses made using calf rennet and microbial rennets (Aspergillus niger protease and Rhizomucor miehei protease) were compared during ripening for up to 90 days. A total of 15 free fatty acids (FFAs) were detected in the cheese samples. The peroxide values (PV) of the cheeses increased significantly (P < 0.05) during ripening and the cheese made with calf rennet had the highest PV. Proteolysis in the cheeses increased as the ripening time increased. αs1‐casein and β‐casein degradation was higher in cheeses manufactured with R. miehei protease. Cheeses made with calf rennet were significantly (P < 0.05) harder, more adhesive, more cohesive and more resilient than those made with microbial rennet.
How Large is Congressional Dependence in Agriculture? Bayesian Inference about ‘Scale’ and ‘Scope’ in Measuring a Spatial Externality
Authors: Holloway Garth , Lacombe Donald J. , Shaughnessy Timothy M.
Published: March 2014

The political economy literature on agriculture emphasises influence over political outcomes via lobbying conduits in general, political action committee contributions in particular, and the pervasive view that political preferences with respect to agricultural issues are inherently geographic. In this context, ‘interdependence’ in Congressional vote behaviour manifests itself in two dimensions. One dimension is the intensity by which neighbouring vote propensities influence one another, and the second is the geographic extent of voter influence. We estimate these facets of dependence using data on a Congressional vote on the 2001 Farm Bill using routine Markov chain Monte‐Carlo procedures and Bayesian model averaging, in particular. In so doing, we develop a novel procedure to examine both the reliability and the consequences of different model representations for measuring both the ‘scale’ and the ‘scope’ of spatial (geographic) co‐relations in voting behaviour.
Trophic overlap between sexes in the dimorphicAfrican black oystercatcher foraging on an alien mussel
Authors: Kohler Sophie A. , Connan Maëlle , Kolasinski Joanna , Cherel Yves , McQuaid Christopher D. , Jaquemet Sébastien
Published: March 2014

Sex‐specific feeding segregation related to sexual bill dimorphism has been described in several oystercatcher species, including theAfrican black oystercatcher. For the latter, studies concerned only a small number of breeding pairs and were done prior the invasion of theSouthAfrican rocky shores by theMediterranean mussel, which is believed to have benefited oystercatchers by increasing overall biomass. Here, we investigated geographic variability in the segregation of diet, biometrics and body condition between sexes in theAfrican species, in relation to changes in foraging habitats along theSouthAfrican coastline, using stable isotope analyses. Males and females and their potential prey (mussels, limpets, polychaetes and ascidians) were sampled on the southernAfrican west, south‐west and south‐east coasts for stable isotope analyses and biometrics and body conditions of birds were measured. Bill dimorphism occurred throughout the study area and south‐west males had lower body conditions than other males and females in general. Sexes displayed little differences in their δ13Cratios and in the relative consumption of the different prey throughout the study area, except on the south‐east coast where males were slightly depleted in13Crelative to females and the most abundant prey elsewhere (theMediterranean mussel) is rare. Females were slightly but significantly enriched in15Nby 0.3‰ compared to their breeding partners and this did not link clearly to differences in diet. We argue that the combined effect of biogeographic variations in rocky shores diversity and biomass, heterogeneous invasion by the Mediterranean mussel on theSouthAfrican coastline and bill dimorphism may have altered the sex‐specific feeding behaviour of oystercatchers differently between coastal regions and possibly had an additional cost for male oystercatchers faced with lower prey biomass and diversity on the south‐west coast.
Altered N, P and C dynamics with absence of fire in Eucalyptus forests affected by premature decline
Authors: Jones Alan G. , Davidson Neil J.
Published: March 2014

Absence of fire is increasingly recognized as an important driver of soil nutrient budgets in Eucalyptus forest, especially in forests affected by premature Eucalyptus decline, due to the effects of soil nutrient accumulation on nutrient balances and forest community dynamics. In this study, we present a dataset of soil and foliar nutrient analyses, and vegetation measurements from a fire chronosequence survey in native E. delegatensis forest. Measured indices include total soil and extractable soil nitrogen (N), or phosphorus (P), soil organic carbon (C), soil acid‐phosphatase (PME) activity, foliar N and foliar P, and understorey and overstorey vegetation canopy height. We show that in some cases indices are strongly linked to time since fire (2–46 years). Time since fire correlated positively with foliar N, total and extractable soil N, soil organic C, and also soil PME activity; the latter an indicator of biotic P demand. Differences in the strength of these relationships were apparent between two geology types, with stronger relationships on the potentially less‐fertile geology. The strong positive correlation with time since fire and understorey canopy height reflected increasing shrub biomass and thickening of the shrub layer. The strong positive correlation for soil or foliar N, but not P, with time since fire, indicates that P does not increase relative to N over time. P may, therefore, become limiting to growth in this plant community. Similarly, the significantly higher concentrations of soil N but not P, also found in both older and long‐unburnt forest stands (>100 years since management), may exacerbate a situation of soil nutrient limitation over several decades. A characteristic feature of long unmanaged stands is a developing tea tree (Leptospermum sp.) understorey, which may benefit from elevated soil N availability and increasing organic C accumulation with prolonged fire absence. This increased shrub biomass would outcompete Eucalyptus for resources, including soil nutrients and water.
The use of proton pump inhibitors and the spectrum and number of biliary pathogens in patients with acute cholangitis
Authors: Schneider J. , Weidner W. , Hapfelmeier A. , Wantia N. , Feihl S. , Schmid R. M. , Neu B. , von Delius S. , Algül H. , Huber W. , Weber A.
Published: March 2014

Background

Knowledge of the bacterial spectrum for acute cholangitis is essential for adequate empiric antibiotic treatment.

Aim

To analyse the relation of proton pump inhibitors (PPI) with biliary pathogens in patients with acute cholangitis.

Methods

This retrospective study identified 278 patients with 318 acute cholangitis episodes using an endoscopic database. The relationship between PPI and microbiological outcomes was assessed by logistic and poisson regression analysis for binary and count data.

Results

In total, 882 pathogens were isolated, of which, 120 cholangitis episodes occurred with PPI; 198 cholangitis episodes without PPI. Multivariate poisson regression analysis showed that PPI use resulted in a 23% increase in the number of biliary pathogens [3.14 vs. 2.55 (Δ = 0.59), P < 0.01], whereas stent therapy, previous interventional procedures (endoscopic retrograde cholangiography/percutaneous transhepatic cholangiography), genesis, age and sex showed no significant association with the number of biliary pathogens. Significantly, more cholangitis episodes with more than one pathogen isolated occurred during PPI treatment [103/120 (86%) vs. 151/198 (76%), P = 0.04]. Analysis of intrinsic anti‐microbial resistance patterns was performed: Anti‐microbial combination therapies were significantly more required to cover all isolated pathogens in cholangitis episodes with PPI than in cholangitis episodes without PPI (44/120 vs. 46/198, P = 0.01). Additionally, PPI use was associated with a significantly higher incidence of oropharyngeal flora in the biliary tract (53/120 vs. 61/198, P = 0.02).

Conclusions

Proton pump inhibitors seem to influence biliary pathogens by increasing the number and broadening the spectrum of biliary pathogens. However, the findings of this hypothesis‐generating study need to be tested by confirmatory studies.
Randomised clinical trial: Lactobacillus GG modulates gut microbiome, metabolome and endotoxemia in patients with cirrhosis
Authors: Bajaj J. S. , Heuman D. M. , Hylemon P. B. , Sanyal A. J. , Puri P. , Sterling R. K. , Luketic V. , Stravitz R. T. , Siddiqui M. S. , Fuchs M. , Thacker L. R. , Wade J. B. , Daita K. , Sistrun S. , White M. B. , Noble N. A. , Thorpe C. , Kakiyama G. , Pandak W. M. , Sikaroodi M. , Gillevet P. M.
Published: March 2014

Background

Safety of individual probiotic strains approved under Investigational New Drug (IND) policies in cirrhosis with minimal hepatic encephalopathy (MHE) is not clear.

Aim

The primary aim of this phase I study was to evaluate the safety, tolerability of probiotic Lactobacillus GG (LGG) compared to placebo, while secondary ones were to explore its mechanism of action using cognitive, microbiome, metabolome and endotoxin analysis in MHE patients.

Methods

Cirrhotic patients with MHE patients were randomised 1:1 into LGG or placebo BID after being prescribed a standard diet and multi‐vitamin regimen and were followed up for 8 weeks. Serum, urine and stool samples were collected at baseline and study end. Safety was assessed at Weeks 4 and 8. Endotoxin and systemic inflammation, microbiome using multi‐tagged pyrosequencing, serum/urine metabolome were analysed between groups using correlation networks.

Results

Thirty MHE patients (14 LGG and 16 placebo) completed the study without any differences in serious adverse events. However, self‐limited diarrhoea was more frequent in LGG patients. A standard diet was maintained and LGG batches were comparable throughout. Only in the LGG‐randomised group, endotoxemia and TNF‐α decreased, microbiome changed (reduced Enterobacteriaceae and increased Clostridiales Incertae Sedis XIV and Lachnospiraceae relative abundance) with changes in metabolite/microbiome correlations pertaining to amino acid, vitamin and secondary BA metabolism. No change in cognition was found.

Conclusions

In this phase I study, Lactobacillus GG is safe and well‐tolerated in cirrhosis and is associated with a reduction in endotoxemia and dysbiosis.
Tolerability, pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of TA‐8995, a selective cholesteryl ester transfer protein (CETP) inhibitor, in healthy subjects
Authors: Ford John , Lawson Matt , Fowler David , Maruyama Nobuko , Mito Seiji , Tomiyasu Koichi , Kinoshita Shuji , Suzuki Chisa , Kawaguchi Atsuhiro , Round Patrick , Boyce Malcolm , Warrington Steve , Weber Werner , van Deventer Sander , Kastelein John J. P.
Published: March 2014

Aims

Two double‐blind, randomized studies were conducted to assess the tolerability, pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of oral TA‐8995, a new cholesteryl ester transfer protein (CETP) inhibitor, in healthy subjects.

Methods

Study 1: Subjects received single doses of TA‐8995 or placebo (fasted). Doses were 5, 10, 25, 50 (fed/fasted), 100 and 150 mg (Caucasian males, 18–55 years), 25 mg (Caucasian males, > 65 years and Caucasian females, 18–55 years), 25, 50, 100 and 150 mg (Japanese males, 18–55 years). Study 2: Caucasian males (18–55 years) received 1, 2.5, 10 or 25 mg once daily TA‐8995 or placebo for 21–28 days. Blood and urine for pharmacokinetics and/or pharmacodynamics were collected. Tolerability was assessed by adverse events, vital signs, electrocardiograms and laboratory safety tests.

Results

Peak TA‐8995 concentrations occurred approximately 4 h post‐dose. Mean half‐lives ranged from 81 to 166 h, without an obvious dose relationship. Exposure increased less than proportionally to dose. TA‐8995 was not excreted in urine. Following 2.5 to 25 mg once daily dosing, TA‐8995 demonstrated nearly complete inhibition of CETP activity (92–99%), increased high density lipoprotein‐cholesterol (HDL‐C) by 96 to 140% and decreased low density liporotein‐cholesterol (LDL‐C) by 40% to 53%. There were dose‐related increases in apolipoproteins A‐1 and E, HDL2‐C and HDL3‐C, and decreases in apolipoprotein B and lipoprotein A. There was no evidence of significant effects of age, gender, ethnicity or food on pharmacokinetics or pharmacodynamics. All doses were well tolerated.

Conclusions

TA‐8995 is a potent CETP inhibitor and warrants further investigation.
Differences in incidence of suicide attempts between bipolar I and II disorders and major depressive disorder
Authors: Holma K Mikael , Haukka Jari , Suominen Kirsi , Valtonen Hanna M , Mantere Outi , Melartin Tarja K , Sokero T Petteri , Oquendo Maria A , Isometsä Erkki T
Published: March 2014

Objectives

Whether risk of suicide attempts (SAs) differs between patients with bipolar disorder (BD) and patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) is unclear. We investigated whether cumulative risk differences are due to dissimilarities in time spent in high‐risk states, incidence per unit time in high‐risk states, or both.

Methods

Incidence rates for SAs during various illness phases, based on prospective life charts, were compared between patients from the Jorvi Bipolar Study (n = 176; 18 months) and the Vantaa Depression Study (n = 249; five years). Risk factors and their interactions with diagnosis were investigated with Cox proportional hazards models.

Results

By 18 months, 19.9% of patients with BD versus 9.5% of patients with MDD had attempted suicide. However, patients with BD spent 4.6% of the time in mixed episodes, and more time in major depressive episodes (MDEs) (35% versus 21%, respectively) and in subthreshold depression (39% versus 31%, respectively) than those with MDD. Compared with full remission, the combined incidence rates of SAs were 5‐, 25‐, and 65‐fold in subthreshold depression, MDEs, and BD mixed states, respectively. Between cohorts, incidence of attempts was not different during comparable symptom states. In Cox models, hazard was elevated during MDEs and subthreshold depression, and among patients with preceding SAs, female patients, those with poor social support, and those aged < 40 years, but was unrelated to BD diagnosis.

Conclusions

The observed higher cumulative incidence of SAs among patients with BD than among those with MDD is mostly due to patients with BD spending more time in high‐risk illness phases, not to differences in incidence during these phases, or to bipolarity itself. BD mixed phases contribute to differences involving very high incidence, but short duration. Diminishing the time spent in high‐risk phases is crucial for prevention.
E‐assessment: Institutional development strategies and the assessment life cycle
Authors: Tomas Carmen , Borg Michaela , McNeil Jane
Published: March 2014

E‐assessment is an umbrella term that comprises a complex array of tools of varying capacities. This paper focuses on the topic of e‐assessment from the perspective of its strategic institutional development in higher education. The paper argues that research on e‐assessment has been dominated by a focus on investigating benefits of use and adoption rather than building an understanding of development and implementation. The current paper proposes a qualitative assessment and process‐specific framework, both to investigate e‐assessment and chart its institutional development. This framework is an annual assessment life cycle, and one case illustrates its use to elaborate an institutional development agenda for e‐assessment.

The institutional inquiry into e‐assessment consisted of interviews with 22 academic staff members using the assessment life cycle. The goal was to identify how technology played a role in assessment in general. The information gathered was used to construct an institutional overview of how electronic and paper‐based modes supported assessment.

The overview, which used the life cycle framework, revealed a subtle interplay between assessment stakes, type, stages and modes. Initial stages in the assessment life cycle are substantively supported electronically. Middle stages (submission, marking, feedback return) present great complexity and different uses of paper and electronic modes depending on the assessment type. High‐stakes summative assessment shows a hybrid process, where both paper and electronic modes fulfil substantive roles in supporting the assessment stages. The later stages of the cycle are mainly paper based regardless of assessment type. Low‐stakes e‐assessment may be an all‐electronic process. This simplified institutional overview of the state of e‐assessment and the emphasis on the cyclical nature have helped to elaborate a differentiated development strategy for various e‐assessment forms, considering assessment type and particular stages as the foci of development.
Indigenous, Mestizo and Afro‐Descendent Women against Violence: Building Interethnic Alliances in the Context of Regional Autonomy
Authors: FIGUEROA ROMERO DOLORES , BARBEYTO ARELLY
Published: March 2014

This essay analyses the contemporary activism of women's organisations of Nicaragua's North Atlantic Coast autonomous region. Its thesis is that the struggle against gender violence has enabled local women to develop a common agenda over and above whatever ideological–political differences and ethnic–racial hierarchies divide them. It argues that the role of Coast women activists has been central to articulating, in a reflexive way, a position as indigenous, Mestizo and Afro‐descendent women in order to adapt a human rights approach to the regional political–cultural context, and to use it effectively to achieve a life free of violence.
Variable immune cell frequencies in peripheral blood of LEW.1AR1-iddmrats over time compared to other congenic LEW strains
Authors: Arndt T , Jörns A , Hedrich H-J , Lenzen S , Wedekind D
Published: March 2014

The LEW.1AR1-iddm rat is an animal model of human type 1 diabetes (T1D), which arose through a spontaneous mutation within the major histocompatibility complex (MHC)-congenic background strain LEW.1AR1. The LEW.1AR1-iddm rat is characterized by two phenotypes: diabetes development with a diabetes incidence of 60% and a variable T cell frequency in peripheral blood. In this study the immune cell repertoire of LEW.1AR1-iddm rats was analysed over time from days 30 to 90 of life and compared to the background strain LEW.1AR1 and the LEW rat strain as well as the LEW.1WR1 rat strain. The LEW.1AR1-iddm rats are characterized by a high variability of CD3+, CD4+ and CD8+T cell frequencies in peripheral blood over time, and the frequency is unique for each animal. The variability within the frequencies resulted in changes of the CD4+ : CD8+T cell ratio. The other three rat strains studied were characterized by a stable but nevertheless strain-specific T cell frequency resulting in a specific CD4+ : CD8+T cell ratio. The frequency of natural killer (NK) cells and B cells in LEW.1AR1-iddm rats was increased, with a higher variability compared to the other strains. Only monocytes showed no differences in frequency and variability between all strains studied. These variabilities of immune cell frequencies in the LEW.1AR1-iddm rats might lead to imbalances between autoreactive and regulatory T cells in peripheral blood as a prerequisite for diabetes development.
CD84 is markedly up-regulated in Kawasaki disease arteriopathy
Authors: Reindel R , Bischof J , Kim K-Y A , Orenstein J M , Soares M B , Baker S C , Shulman S T , Perlman E J , Lingen M W , Pink A J , Trevenen C , Rowley A H
Published: March 2014

The major goals of Kawasaki disease (KD) therapy are to reduce inflammation and prevent thrombosis in the coronary arteries (CA), but some children do not respond to currently available non-specific therapies. New treatments have been difficult to develop because the molecular pathogenesis is unknown. In order to identify dysregulated gene expression in KD CA, we performed high-throughput RNA sequencing on KD and control CA, validated potentially dysregulated genes by real-time reverse transcription–polymerase chain reaction (RT–PCR) and localized protein expression by immunohistochemistry. Signalling lymphocyte activation molecule CD84 was up-regulated 16-fold (P < 0·01) in acute KD CA (within 2 months of onset) and 32-fold (P < 0·01) in chronic CA (5 months to years after onset). CD84 was localized to inflammatory cells in KD tissues. Genes associated with cellular proliferation, motility and survival were also up-regulated in KD CA, and immune activation molecules MX2 and SP140 were up-regulated in chronic KD. CD84, which facilitates immune responses and stabilizes platelet aggregates, is markedly up-regulated in KD CA in patients with acute and chronic arterial disease. We provide the first molecular evidence of dysregulated inflammatory responses persisting for months to years in CA significantly damaged by KD.
GFI1B mutation causes autosomal dominant gray platelet syndrome
Authors: Aminkeng F.
Published: March 2014

A dominant‐negative GFI1B mutation in the gray platelet syndrome.

Monteferrari, et al. (2014)

N Engl J Med; 370(3):245–253.
Personalized therapy for breast cancer
Authors: De Abreu F.B. , Schwartz G.N. , Wells W.A. , Tsongalis G.J.
Published: March 2014

Breast cancer is a complex disease characterized by many morphological, clinical and molecular features. For many years, this disease has been classified according to histopathologic criteria, known as the tumor, node and metastasis (TNM) staging system. Clinical criteria that include immunohistochemical markers, such as the estrogen receptor (ER), the progesterone receptor (PR), and the human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2), provide a classification of breast cancer and dictates the optimal therapeutic approach for treatment. With genomic techniques, such as real‐time reverse transcriptase PCR (RT‐PCR), microarrays, next‐generation sequencing, and whole‐exome sequencing, breast cancer diagnostics is going through a significant evolution. Genomic and transcriptomic technologies make the analysis of gene expression signatures and mutation status possible so that tumors may now be classified more accurately with respect to diagnosis and prognosis. The ‐omic era has also made the possible identification of new biomarkers involved in breast cancer development, survival and invasion that can be gradually incorporated either into clinical testing or clinical trials. Together, clinical and molecular criteria can contribute to a more personalized management of the breast cancer patient. This article will present the progress made in the diagnosis and management of breast cancer using molecular information provided by genomic and transcriptomic technologies.
Increase of elastic fibers in lichen sclerosus et atrophicus
Authors: Shiba Yohei , Ono Koji , Akiyama Minoru , Fujimoto Norihiro , Tajima Shingo
Published: March 2014

Background

Lichen sclerosus et atrophicus (LSA) is histopathologically characterized by upper dermal hyalinization with vacuolar alteration, whereas no particular microscopic change in the mid to lower dermis has been described. The purpose of this study was to investigate any histopathologic changes involving elastic fibers in the mid to lower dermis in patients with LSA.

Methods

We surveyed 22 paraffin‐embedded specimens of vulval (18 cases) and extragenital (4 cases) LSA. The sliced skin sections were stained with elastic van Gieson (EVG), and then the degree of elastic fiber change was determined.

Results

We found an increase in elastic fibers in the mid to lower dermis in contrast to a decrease or disappearance of elastic fibers in the superficial hyalinized dermis. The level of increase of elastic fibers varies from normal (8/22 cases) to moderate (7/22 cases) to advanced (7/22 cases) levels.

Conclusions

An increase in elastic fibers in the mid to lower dermis may reflect a repairing process in response to the degraded upper dermal elastic fibers, which could be related to the pathogenesis of LSA.
Changes in alcohol policies and public opinions in Finland 2003–2013
Authors: Österberg Esa , Lindeman Mikaela , Karlsson Thomas
Published: March 2014

Introduction

There is a constant and ongoing interplay between public opinions and public policies, alcohol policies being no exception. This article describes the development of public opinions regarding alcohol policy in Finland during a 10‐year period between 2003 and 2013. Fluctuations in the alcohol policy opinion climate are put in context by looking at concurrent changes in alcohol policies and in total alcohol consumption.

Data and Methods

The study is based on data from opinion surveys on alcohol policies commissioned by the National Institute for Health and Welfare and the Finnish Social and Health Association. The opinion polls include questions about the general acceptance of prevailing alcohol policies, appropriate sales channels of different alcoholic beverage categories and opinions about the legal age limits and prices of alcoholic beverages. In the study, changes in alcohol policy during 2003–2013 are surveyed, and their relationship with changes in alcohol policy opinion is examined.

Results

There seem to be a strong positive correlation during the study period between the level of alcohol consumption and the share of those wanting a more restrictive alcohol policy in Finland.

Discussion

It seems that an increased level of awareness of alcohol‐related issues among the general public created a more restrictive opinion climate on alcohol policy issues after the big alcohol excise duty decrease in 2004. The reverse seems to happen but in a lesser degree when alcohol excise duties has been increased after the year 2007. [Österberg E, Lindeman M, Karlsson T. Changes in alcohol policies and public opinions in Finland 2003–2013. Drug Alcohol Rev 2014;33:242–248]
The ebb and flow of attitudes and policies on alcohol in Ireland 2002–2010
Authors: Hope Ann
Published: March 2014

Introduction and Aims

This paper examines the level of public support for alcohol control policies during a period of policy evolution in Ireland.

Design and Methods

A comparison of attitudes to alcohol policy at three points in time was undertaken. The first survey took place in 2002 and was repeated in 2006 and 2010 using a national quota sample of 1000 adults with face‐to‐face interviews. Policy areas examined were drunk‐driving, price, availability and promotion.

Results

In 2002, the highest level of public support was for drink‐driving countermeasures (84% favoured random breath testing) and measures to restrict alcohol promotions (67% favoured restrictions). Support for stricter measures on price and availability was lower. Trends showed a decline in support for tax increases and for early closing time, whereas support for fewer outlets (off‐trade) increased.

Discussion and Conclusion

When public concerns (level of support) for stricter alcohol policies were seen to be meet, as occurred with price and hours through increased tax and reversal of opening hours, public concern/support declined. When concerns were not met, as with outlets, support continued to rise most likely influenced by greater number of off‐trade outlets and cheaper alcohol. Support for liberal alcohol policies was low and the majority favoured the status quo on price and availability. Public support for policy is one element of the complexity of policymaking along with consensus building across government and management of vested interests, so that the policy outcome is seldom assured. [Hope A. The ebb and flow of attitudes and policies on alcohol in Ireland 2002–2010. Drug Alcohol Rev 2014;33:235–241]
How can knowledge of the climate niche inform the weed risk assessment process? A case study of Chrysanthemoides monilifera in Australia
Authors: Beaumont Linda J. , Gallagher Rachael V. , Leishman Michelle R. , Hughes Lesley , Downey Paul O.
Published: March 2014

Aim

Climate change and the ability of alien populations to realize different climatic niches compared to native populations pose challenges for pre‐empting invasion risk. These issues are not addressed in Weed Risk Assessments (WRAs), which have been developed to identify potentially invasive species and prevent their importation. Chrysanthemoides monilifera, native to Southern Africa, has two subspecies invasive in Australia, which has led to an importation ban on all six subspecies. We assess whether the two invasive subspecies occupy different realized climatic niches, compared with native populations, and the climatic suitability of Australia for all subspecies under current and future climate scenarios.

Location

Southern Africa and Australia

Methods

Realized climatic niches of native and alien populations of two invasive subspecies (Bitou Bush and Boneseed) were compared using niche identity tests. The distribution of climatically suitable habitat within Australia for all subspecies was modelled using MaxEnt, under current and future climate scenarios. For invasive subspecies, models were calibrated using (1) native or (2) alien range data.

Results

Realized climatic niches of native and alien populations are not identical, with some alien populations of Boneseed occupying climatic niches absent from Southern Africa. As such, MaxEnt models for Boneseed based on native range data failed to classify one‐third of Australian populations as inhabiting suitable climate.

Main Conclusions

We validate the Australian decision to ban all subspecies by showing that climatically suitable habitat in Australia for non‐introduced subspecies exceeds that of introduced subspecies, under current and future climates. Niche shifts and climate change alter estimates of invasion risks, and this may reduce efficacy of current WRAs. We call for greater dialogue to identify and standardize a comprehensive system for incorporating these challenging issues into WRA systems to ensure that they remain effective in reducing the weed risk into the future.
Spatial metaphor in language can promote the development of cross‐modal mappings in children
Authors: Shayan Shakila , Ozturk Ozge , Bowerman Melissa , Majid Asifa
Published: March 2014

Pitch is often described metaphorically: for example, Farsi and Turkish speakers use a ‘thickness’ metaphor (low sounds are ‘thick’ and high sounds are ‘thin’), while German and English speakers use a height metaphor (‘low’, ‘high’). This study examines how child and adult speakers of Farsi, Turkish, and German map pitch and thickness using a cross‐modal association task. All groups, except for German children, performed significantly better than chance. German‐speaking adults’ success suggests the pitch‐to‐thickness association can be learned by experience. But the fact that German children were at chance indicates that this learning takes time. Intriguingly, Farsi and Turkish children's performance suggests that learning cross‐modal associations can be boosted through experience with consistent metaphorical mappings in the input language.