bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Cost-Effectiveness of Dual-Chamber Pacing Compared With Ventricular Pacing for Sinus Node Dysfunction
Authors: Rinfret Stéphane , Cohen David J. , Lamas Gervasio A. , Fleischmann Kirsten E. , Weinstein Milton C. , Orav John , Schron Eleanor , Lee Kerry L. , Goldman Lee
Published: January 2005

Background—

Compared with single-chamber ventricular pacing, dual-chamber pacing can reduce adverse events and, as a result, improve quality of life in patients paced for sick sinus syndrome. It is not clear, however, how these benefits compare with the increased cost of dual-chamber pacemakers.

Methods and Results—

We used 4-year data from a 2010-patient, randomized trial to estimate the incremental cost-effectiveness of dual-chamber pacing compared with ventricular pacing and then projected these findings over the patients’ lifetimes by using a Markov model that was calibrated to the first 5 years of in-trial data. To assess the stability of the findings, we performed 1000 bootstrap analyses and multiple sensitivity analyses. During the first 4 years of the trial, dual-chamber pacemakers increased quality-adjusted life expectancy by 0.013 year per subject at an incremental cost-effectiveness ratio of $53 000 per quality-adjusted year of life gained. Over a lifetime, dual-chamber pacing was projected to increase quality-adjusted life expectancy by 0.14 year with an incremental cost-effectiveness ratio of ≈$6800 per quality-adjusted year of life gained. In bootstrap analyses, dual-chamber pacing was cost-effective in 91.9% of simulations at a threshold of $50 000 per quality-adjusted year of life and in 93.2% of simulations at a threshold of $100 000. Its cost-effectiveness ratio was also below this threshold in numerous sensitivity analyses that varied key estimates.

Conclusions—

For patients with sick sinus syndrome requiring pacing, dual-chamber pacing increases quality-adjusted life expectancy at a cost that is generally considered acceptable.
Interplay Between Different Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids and Risk of Coronary Heart Disease in Men
Authors: Mozaffarian Dariush , Ascherio Alberto , Hu Frank B. , Stampfer Meir J. , Willett Walter C. , Siscovick David S. , Rimm Eric B.
Published: January 2005

Background—

Consumption of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) may reduce coronary heart disease (CHD) risk, but n-6 PUFAs may compete with n-3 PUFA metabolism and attenuate benefits. Additionally, seafood-based, long-chain n-3 PUFAs may modify the effects of plant-based, intermediate-chain n-3 PUFAs. However, the interactions of these PUFAs in relation to CHD risk are not well established.

Methods and Results—

Among 45 722 men free of known cardiovascular disease in 1986, usual dietary intake was assessed at baseline and every 4 years by using validated food-frequency questionnaires. CHD incidence was prospectively ascertained. Over 14 years of follow-up, participants experienced 218 sudden deaths, 1521 nonfatal myocardial infarctions (MIs), and 2306 total CHD events (combined sudden death, other CHD deaths, and nonfatal MI). In multivariate-adjusted analyses, both long-chain and intermediate-chain n-3 PUFA intakes were associated with lower CHD risk, without modification by n-6 PUFA intake. For example, men with ≥ median long-chain n-3 PUFA intake (≥250 mg/d) had a reduced risk of sudden death whether n-6 PUFA intake was below (<11.2 g/d; hazard ratio [HR]=0.52; 95% confidence interval [CI]=0.34 to 0.79) or above (≥11.2 g/d; HR=0.60; 95% CI=0.39 to 0.93) the median compared with men with a < median intake of both. In similar analyses, ≥ median intake of intermediate-chain n-3 PUFAs (≥1080 mg/d) was associated with a reduced total CHD risk whether n-6 PUFA intake was lower (HR=0.88; 95% CI=0.78 to 0.99) or higher (HR=0.89; 95% CI=0.79 to 0.99) compared with a < median intake of both. Intermediate-chain n-3 PUFAs were particularly associated with CHD risk when long-chain n-3 PUFA intake was very low (<100 mg/d); among these men, each 1 g/d of intermediate-chain n-3 PUFA intake was associated with an ≈50% lower risk of nonfatal MI (HR=0.42; 95% CI=0.23 to 0.75) and total CHD (HR=0.53; 95% CI=0.34 to 0.83).

Conclusions—

n-3 PUFAs from both seafood and plant sources may reduce CHD risk, with little apparent influence from background n-6 PUFA intake. Plant-based n-3 PUFAs may particularly reduce CHD risk when seafood-based n-3 PUFA intake is low, which has implications for populations with low consumption or availability of fatty fish.
Using Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells to Determine a Gene Expression Profile of Acute Ischemic Stroke
Authors: Moore David F. , Li Hong , Jeffries Neal , Wright Violet , Cooper Ronald A. , Elkahloun Abdel , Gelderman Monique P. , Zudaire Enrique , Blevins Gregg , Yu Hua , Goldin Ehud , Baird Alison E.
Published: January 2005

Background—

Direct brain biopsy is rarely indicated during acute stroke. This study uses peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) to determine whether a systemic gene expression profile could be demonstrated in patients with acute ischemic stroke.

Methods and Results—

Using oligonucleotide microarrays, we compared the gene expression profile of an index cohort of 20 patients with confirmed ischemic stroke on neuroimaging studies with that of 20 referent subjects. Validation studies used quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction to measure the levels of 9 upregulated genes in the index cohort, and an independent cohort of 9 patients and 10 referent subjects was prospectively studied to determine the accuracy of the Prediction Analysis for Microarrays list to classify stroke. After correction for multiple comparisons with the Bonferroni technique, 190 genes were significantly different between the stroke and referent groups. Broad classes of genes included white blood cell activation and differentiation (≈60%), genes associated with hypoxia and vascular repair, and genes potentially associated with an altered cerebral microenvironment. Real-time polymerase chain reaction confirmed increased mRNA expression in 9 of 9 upregulated stroke-associated genes in the index cohort. A panel of 22 genes derived from the Prediction Analysis for Microarrays algorithm in the index cohort classified stroke in the validation cohort with a sensitivity of 78% and a specificity of 80%. Control for the Framingham stroke risk score revealed only a partial dependence of the stroke gene expression profile in PBMCs on vascular risk.

Conclusions—

This study demonstrated an altered gene expression profile in PBMCs during acute ischemic stroke. Some genes with altered expression were consistent with an adaptive response to central nervous system ischemia.
Effects of Angiotensin Type-1 Receptor Antagonism on Small Artery Function in Patients With Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus
Authors: Malik Rayaz A. , Schofield Ian J. , Izzard Ashley , Austin Clare , Bermann Georgina , Heagerty Anthony M.
Published: January 2005

Endothelial dysfunction has been demonstrated to occur in small arteries from patients with type 2 diabetes and hypertension. The effects of angiotensin II receptor blockade on vessel function were examined using pressure myography in a randomized 12-week double-blind placebo-controlled parallel group study using candesartan cilexitil. The maximal vascular response to acetylcholine (Ach) was impaired at baseline and improved with candesartan. This improvement was primarily caused by an effect in the nitric oxide component of Ach-mediated dilatation. The degree of endothelial dysfunction directly correlated with serum low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels. Sodium nitroprusside-induced endothelium-independent dilatation was reduced in diabetic patients and intervention with candesartan lead to an improvement in EC50 with no change in maximal response. Vasoconstriction to norepinephrine was normal and did not change with intervention, but responses to angiotensin II were reduced after candesartan in diabetic patients. These results demonstrate that even brief treatment with angiotensin II receptor blockade is associated with a significant improvement in resistance vessel endothelial function.
In Preeclampsia, the Circulating Factors Capable of Altering In Vitro Endothelial Function Precede Clinical Disease
Authors: Myers Jenny , Mires Gary , Macleod Maureen , Baker Philip
Published: January 2005

The pathophysiology of preeclampsia involves the release of a circulating factor(s) from a hypoperfused placenta that activates the maternal endothelium. This study investigated the effect on in vitro endothelial function of plasma taken from women in whom preeclampsia subsequently developed. Women at increased risk for an adverse pregnancy outcome were identified using Doppler waveform analysis. Plasma samples (22 and 26 weeks) were incubated with myometrial vessels taken from women with uncomplicated pregnancies. Wire myography was used to study the effect of plasma on the endothelium-dependent vessel behavior. Incubation of vessels from normal pregnant women with plasma from women in whom preeclampsia subsequently developed (n=19) significantly reduced endothelium-dependent relaxation, compared with vessels incubated with plasma from normal pregnant women (n=48). This effect was demonstrable for plasma taken at 22 weeks (residual constriction 47.1±6.6% versus 32.0±4.4%,
P
=0.004 at 1-hour incubation; and 59.1±8.4% versus 42.3±5.9%,
P
=0.001 at 18-hour incubation) and 26 weeks (59.2±5.2% versus 29.1±5.6%,
P
<0.001 at 1 hour; and 63.3±7.6% versus 31.9 +/-7.2%,
P
<0.0001 at 18 hours). Endothelial-dependent relaxation was unaltered after incubation with plasma taken from women in whom normotensive intrauterine growth restriction subsequently developed (n=19). This study supports the hypothesis that plasma, from women in whom preeclampsia develops, collected weeks before diagnosis is capable of altering endothelial function.
Face Recognition and Name Recall
Authors: Magnini Vincent P. , Honeycutt Earl D.
Published: January 2005

Hospitality corporations continually seek to implement strategies that enhance customer satisfaction and loyalty. One potential strategy that contributes to increased customer satisfaction and loyalty is training both associates and managers in techniques to recognize guests' faces and names. Psychological research has shown how face recognition and name recall can be applied in hospitality situations, in particular to create pseudorelationships with guests and to convert those to genuine relationships with loyal customers. Training employees and managers in mnemonic techniques for name recollection will almost certainly be a wise investment in creating satisfied guests.
The Case against Multibranding Strategy
Authors: DiPietro Robin B.
Published: January 2005

While it may appear to be a good idea on the surface, restaurant cobranding raises potential problems in three areas. First, cobranding may cannibalize both sales and image of one brand with the addition of another brand in the same restaurant space. Second, cobranding may cause operational confusion, because managers and employees will have to learn two different operating systems. Third, cobranding may increase costs because of the need to train employees in two systems. As an additional point, cobranding may also confuse consumers with regard to what a restaurant is offering.
The Storms of Summer
Authors: Higgins Barbara A.
Published: January 2005

Unlike the hoteliers chronicled in the accompanying report on the blackout of '03, the Walt Disney World® Resort did not face an electrical blackout when three hurricanes passed through Florida during the hurricane season of 2004. However, the dangerous storms forced Walt Disney World to suspend operations and ask guests to remain in their hotel rooms. The storms' violence also caused the company to fine-tune its disaster plan. With an emphasis on communication and support of employees, the company's plan allowed the Walt Disney World Resort to resume operations after the storms, even while it assisted employees with storm relief.
Racial Identity as a Predictor of the Psychological Health of African American Students at a Predominantly White University
Authors: Pillay Yegan
Published: January 2005

This study examined racial identity attitudes, acculturation, and gender as predictors of psychological health in a sample of African American college students. The participants were 136 undergraduate students who attended a predominantly White midwestern university. Hierarchical regression analysis indicated that gender was a significant predictor and contributed to 3.5% of the variance in psychological health. Acculturation was a significant predictor above and beyond that accounted for by gender and contributed to 3.7% of the variance in psychological health. Finally, racial identity was a significant predictor of psychological health above and beyond that accounted for by both gender and acculturation and contributed to 20.7% of the variance in psychological health. Limitations of the study and recommendations for future research are offered.
Revisiting Du Bois: The Relationship Between African American Double Consciousness and Beliefs About Racial and National Group Experiences
Authors: Lyubansky Mikhail , Eidelson Roy J.
Published: January 2005

This study revisits Du Bois’s concept of double consciousness by examining the relationship between racial and mainstream acculturation and African Americans’ beliefs about their racial and national groups. Surveys completed by 100 prospective Black jurors at a municipal courthouse approximately 6 months after 9/11 revealed that they perceived their racial group as more unjustly treated and more helpless than their national group but believed their national group was more vulnerable and more in need of maintaining a distrustful posture than their racial group. In addition, beliefs about racial group vulnerability, unjust treatment, and superiority were stronger for those respondents more deeply immersed in Black culture, whereas engagement with mainstream culture was unrelated to the strength of these convictions. In contrast, both racial and mainstream acculturation tended to predict beliefs about the American national group in the domains of vulnerability, injustice, distrust, and superiority.
Black Students’ Responses to Afrocentric Communication Stimuli
Authors: Armstrong Ketra L.
Published: January 2005

This study examined Black students’ cognitive and affective responses to race of messenger and cultural content of message as Afrocentric communication stimuli. The sample consisted of 127 Black students (89 in the experimental group and 38 in the control group). Results of a 2 X 2 factorial MANOVA design indicated minimal yet significant main effects for messenger and message content stimuli; however, several significant Race of Messenger X Message Content interactions were revealed. The general nature of the findings offered notable support for the premise of Afrocentricity as a paradigm from which to effectively communicate with Black message recipients.
Racial Self-Designation and Disorder in African American Psychiatric Patients
Authors: Whaley Arthur L.
Published: January 2005

This study examined the relationship between racial self-designation and disorder in a sample of 156 African American psychiatric inpatients. It tested the hypothesis that self-identified African Americans have better mental health than those who adopt the label “Black.” Patients underwent a multistage diagnostic procedure including a screening interview and a research interview. Subjective and objective measures of patients’ mental health and social functioning were used. Patients were asked in the screening interview whether they described themselves as “African American,” “Black,” “Negro,” or “Other.” The majority of the patients preferred the label Black, followed by African American, Negro, and Other, respectively. Univariate and multivariate statistical tests suggested that the self-label Black is associated with a similar level of psychosocial functioning to the African American label. The implications of these results for further studies of the relationship between racial self-designation and mental health in people of African ancestry are discussed.
N-methyl-D-aspartate Receptor Subtypes: Multiple Roles in Excitotoxicity and Neurological Disease
Authors: Waxman Elisa A. , Lynch David R.
Published: January 2005

N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors are the major mediator of excitotoxicity. Although physiological activation of the NMDA receptor is necessary for cell survival, overactivation is a signal for cell death. Several pathways are activated through NMDA receptor stimulation, most of which can contribute to excitotoxicity. These include events leading to mitochondrial dysfunction, activation of calcium-dependent enzymes, and activation of mitogen-activated protein kinase pathways. Understanding the role of these mechanisms is important in developing agents that block excitotoxicity without inhibiting functions necessary for survival. NMDA receptor subtypes may be responsible for mediating separate pathways, and subtype-specific inhibition has shown promising results in some neurological models. This review examines the roles of NMDA receptor subtypes in excitotoxicity and neurological disorders.
Adenosine and Epilepsy: From Therapeutic Rationale to New Therapeutic Strategies
Authors: Boison Detlev
Published: January 2005

Adenosine, as the brain’s endogenous anticonvulsant, is considered to be responsible for seizure arrest and postictal refractoriness. On the other hand, deficiencies within the adenosine-based neuromodulatory system may contribute to epileptogenesis. Based on these natural mechanisms and on findings that adenosine and its analogs can suppress pharmacoresistant seizures, a new field of adenosine-based therapies has emerged, including the use of adenosine receptor agonists and adenosine transport inhibitors, or the inhibition of adenosine kinase, which is thought to be the key enzyme for the regulation of intra- and extracellular adenosine levels. However, most of these pharmacological approaches are limited by strong systemic side effects ranging from a decrease of heart rate, blood pressure, and body temperature to sedation. Recently, new strategies have been developed aimed at the local reconstitution of the inhibitory adenosinergic tone by intracerebral implantation of cells engineered to release adenosine. Adenosine-releasing cells or devices implanted into or near a seizure focus offer new hopes for a side effect-free therapy for pharmacoresistant epilepsy.
Building and Burying Fear Memories in the Brain
Authors: Maren Stephen
Published: January 2005

The world is a dangerous place. Whether this danger takes the form of an automobile careening toward you or a verbal threat from a stranger, your brain is highly adapted to perceive such threats, organize appropriate defensive behaviors, and record the circumstances surrounding the experience. Indeed, memories of fearful events serve a critical biological function by allowing humans and other animals to anticipate future dangers. But these memories can also feed pathological fear, yielding crippling clinical conditions such as panic disorder. In this review, the author will examine how the brain builds fear memories and how these memories come to be suppressed when they no longer predict danger. The review will focus on the fundamental role for synapses in the amygdala in acquiring fear memories and the function of neural circuits interconnecting the amygdala, hippocampus, and prefrontal cortex in modulating the expression of such memories once learned. The discovery of the neural architecture for fear memory highlights the powerful interplay between animal and human research and the promise for understanding the neurobiological mechanisms of other complex cognitive phenomena.
Defining the Role of the Bcl-2 Family of Proteins in the Nervous System
Authors: Lindsten Tullia , Zong Wei-Xing , Thompson Craig B.
Published: January 2005

The Bcl-2 family of apoptotic-regulating proteins plays important roles during both neural development and maintenance of tissue homeostasis. The major antiapoptotic family members, Bcl-xL and Bcl-2, and the major proapoptotic proteins, Bax and Bak, show distinct temporal and spatial patterns of expression in the developing brain. Targeted deletions of Bcl-xL and Bcl-2 as well as Bax and Bak have proven to be important tools in delineating the process of cell death in the nervous system. These genetic models show that Bcl-xL and Bax play crucial roles in regulating the survival of differentiating neurons. In contrast, Bax and Bak play redundant roles in regulating the size of the neural progenitor cell population in postnatal mice and in the normal development of the retinal layers of the eye. Bax, Bcl-xL, and Bcl-2 regulate the apoptotic response to neurotrophic factor deprivation. In contrast, excitotoxic cell death is not dependent on either Bax or Bak. In fact, the absence of proapoptotic Bcl-2 proteins can enhance the toxicity of neuroexcitatory molecules. Together, these data establish the intrinsic apoptotic pathway regulated by Bcl-2 proteins as a critical but not exclusive regulator of neural cell survival.
The Out-of-Body Experience: Disturbed Self-Processing at the Temporo-Parietal Junction
Authors: Blanke Olaf , Arzy Shahar
Published: January 2005

Folk psychology postulates a spatial unity of self and body, a “real me” that resides in one’s body and is the subject of experience. The spatial unity of self and body has been challenged by various philosophical considerations but also by several phenomena, perhaps most notoriously the “out-of-body experience” (OBE) during which one’s visuo-spatial perspective and one’s self are experienced to have departed from their habitual position within one’s body. Here the authors marshal evidence from neurology, cognitive neuroscience, and neuroimaging that suggests that OBEs are related to a failure to integrate multisensory information from one’s own body at the temporo-parietal junction (TPJ). It is argued that this multisensory disintegration at the TPJ leads to the disruption of several phenomenological and cognitive aspects of self-processing, causing illusory reduplication, illusory self-location, illusory perspective, and illusory agency that are experienced as an OBE.
A Molecular Window on Sleep: Changes in Gene Expression between Sleep and Wakefulness
Authors: Cirelli Chiara
Published: January 2005

Sleep is thought to be “by the brain and for the brain,” but despite decades of behavioral and neurophysiologic research, we still do not know why the brain actually needs to sleep. Recently, gene expression studies have allowed researchers to investigate the molecular correlates of sleep and wakefulness and to gain new insights into the benefits that sleep may bring at the cellular level. In the latest series of studies, a genome-wide screening of brain gene expression was performed in rats that had been asleep, spontaneously awake, or sleep deprived for 8 hours. It was found that of ~15,000 transcripts expressed in the cerebral cortex, about 5% change their expression levels depending on behavioral state but independently of time of day. Half of the modulated genes increase in wakefulness and half in sleep. Moreover, wakefulness-related and sleep-related transcripts belong to different functional categories. Waking-related transcripts are involved in energy metabolism, excitatory neurotransmission, transcriptional activation, synaptic potentiation and memory acquisition, and the response to cellular stress. Sleep-related transcripts are involved in brain protein synthesis, synaptic consolidation/depression, and membrane trafficking and maintenance, including cholesterol metabolism, myelin formation, and synaptic vesicle turnover.
First-episode schizophrenia: review of cognitive deficits and cognitive remediation
Authors: Gopal Y. Vishnu , Variend Hannele
Published: January 2005

The presence of cognitive deficits in schizophrenic illness has been extensively documented, and deficits in memory and executive functioning may be related to poor prognosis. Targeting these deficits during the early phase has potential benefits. The neural basis for cognitive deficits in schizophrenia is not well understood, and hence pharmacological interventions alone are insufficient. Future strategies should focus on pharmacological interventions combined with psychological techniques such as cognitive remediation. This review summarises recent findings relating to first-episode schizophrenia.
Supporting and assessing dissertations and practical projects in media studies degrees: towards collaborative learning
Authors: Calvert Ben , Casey Bernadette
Published: January 2005

This article is a reflection on one aspect of a research project on effective dissertation support at undergraduate level. Whilst the research project sought to investigate supervision practices across a range of subject areas, an interesting specific focus emerged in relation to dissertations
in media studies, where practice and theoretical work can, and often do, intersect. This investigation discusses a range of issues around the experience of supervising and being supervised, within the context of ongoing debates about the relative position and status of practical and theoretical
work in media studies. It suggests that a ‘collaborative learning’ approach to supervision might be a fruitful way forward.
Bilingue l’obscur: Blanchot in the interstices of Abdelkebir Khatibi’s Amour bilingue
Authors: Quinney Anne
Published: January 2005

This study understands the textual resemblance between the 1941 novel Thomas l’obscur by Maurice Blanchot and the 1983 novel Amour bilingue by Abdelkebir Khatibi to be more than coincidental, and is instead a calculated, strategic rewriting on the part of Khatibi. This analysis
targets the reasons behind Khatibi’s appropriation of Blanchot, suggesting that the obvious textual borrowing ultimately works to advance Khatibi’s project of the ‘double critique’. An examination of Khatibi’s theoretical strategies as a politically committed
writer reveal his aim to articulate the multifarious nature of Maghreb identity freed from the unitary and universalizing notions of national and cultural identity inherent in Western metaphysics and Arab-Islamic culture. These well-studied strategies structure his novel, Amour bilingue, although
it is Blanchot’s significant influence on the novel that has eluded critics in the past. The implications of this act of textual appropriation challenge the ideas we have about originality and creation while they also raise questions about the liberties to which politically committed
literature lays claim.
Book Reviews
Authors: Redouane Rabia , Accilien Cécile , Cook Aline , Corcoran Patrick , Monjib Maâti , Small Audrey , Waters Julia
Published: January 2005

Amours Sorcières, Tahar Ben Jelloun (2003) Paris: Le Seuil, 296 pp.

Les theâtres francophones et créolophones de la Caraïbe, Alvina Ruprecht (ed.), (2003) Paris: L’Harmattan, 254 pp.

La langue française au
Cameroun, Edmond Biloa, (2003) Bern: Peter Lang, 342 pp.

The Francophone World Cultural Issues and Perspectives, Michelle Beauclair (ed.), (2003) Francophone Cultures and Literatures (Vol. 20), New York: Peter Lang, 175 pp.

L’Armée de Libération
nationale marocaine: 1955-56. Retour sans visa (Journal d’un résistant maghrébin), Nadir Bouzar (dit Abdelkader), (2002) Paris: Publisud, 181 pp.

(Re)productions. Autobiography, Colonialism, and Infanticide, Mary-Kay F. Miller, (2003) Francophone
Cultures and literatures, No. 41, New York: Peter Lang, 146 pp.

Voices from Madagascar: An Anthology of Contemporary Francophone Literature (Voix de Madagascar: Anthologie de littérature francophone contemporaine), Jacques Bourgeacq and Liliane Ramarosoa, (eds), (2002)
Research in International Studies, African Series, No. 75 (bilingual edition), Athens, OH: Ohio University Press, 314 pp.
Industrial success and failure in a globalizing world
Authors: Lall Sanjaya
Published: January 2005

Globalization is a pervasive influence on industrialization in the developing world. As the embodiment of technological progress and more open markets, it offers huge productive benefits to developing countries. However, its effects are very uneven. It is driving a growing wedge between
the (relatively few) successful countries and the (large mass of) others. The wedge is not a temporary one, a ‘Jcurve’ that will reverse itself if countries persist with liberalization. It reflects underlying structural factors that are very difficult to alter in the short to medium
term. Because of cumulativeness in these structural factors, divergences are likely to carry on growing unless measures are undertaken to reverse them. Development policy has to address these growing structural gaps and to reverse or relax the stringent rules of the game that constrain the
use of (previously successful) industrial policy. Such successful industrial policies have taken many different forms and countries have to choose combinations that suit the demands of current globalization.
Globalization, national innovation systems and response of public policy
Authors: Singh Lakhwinder
Published: January 2005

This paper attempts to set the significance of public innovation policies in contemporary developing countries in the context of the fast pace of globalization. It is fairly well established both in theory and practice that investment expenditure on innovation projects is likely to be low if left in the hands of private economic agents as they have a tendency to under-invest due to the ‘public good’ nature of the outcomes of R&D. However, policy in developing economies seldom takes seriously the importance of investment in innovation projects. This has not been without far-reaching implications for the growth and development performance of developing countries in general. The paper explores the role of international institutions and national governments in the task of strengthening national innovation systems through innovative interventions at national and international levels.
Integrierte Fahrdynamikregelung mit ESP, aktiver Lenkung und aktivem Fahrwerk (Integrated Vehicle Dynamics Control Using Active Brake, Steering, and Suspension Systems)
Authors: Trächtler Ansgar
Published: December 2004

In diesem Beitrag wird ein Konzept zur Fahrdynamikregelung durch koordinierte Ansteuerung aktiver Brems-, Lenk- und Fahrwerksysteme vorgestellt, das auf einer konsequenten Aufteilung der Fahrdynamikfunktionen in dezentrale Aktuatorfunktionen und in übergreifende zentrale Fahrzeugfunktionen beruht. Wesentlicher Bestandteil ist eine Querdynamikregelung mit einer situationsgerechten Verteilung (Koordination) der Stellbefehle auf die vorhandenen aktiven Fahrwerksysteme, wodurch einerseits die Funktionalität der Systeme voll ausgeschöpft wird und andererseits etwaige negative gegenseitige Beeinflussungen strukturell ausgeschlossen werden.
Laseroptische Charakterisierung von gasgetragenen Nanoteilchen mit der zeitaufgelösten laserinduzierten Glühtechnik (TIRE-LII) (Laser-Optical Characterization of Air-Borne Nanoparticles by Time-Resolved Laser-Induced Incandescence (TIRE-LII))
Authors: Schraml Stephan , Sommer Roland , Kremer Heiko , Leipertz Alfred
Published: December 2004

Die Charakterisierung gasgetragener Nanoteilchen ist für eine Vielzahl industrieller und natürlicher Prozesse von entscheidender Bedeutung. Insbesondere die Überwachung von in Verbrennungssystemen erzeugten Rußteilchen und die für die Nanoteilchentechnologie notwendige Produktcharakterisierung und Prozesssteuerung benötigen in zunehmendem Maße geeignete Analysenmesstechniken, die schnelle, empfindliche und zuverlässige Aussagen über eine Vielzahl von Messgrößen zulässt. Mit der laserinduzierten Glühtechnik (laser-induced incandescence, LII) steht ein nicht-invasives laseroptisches Online-Verfahren zur Verfügung, das neben einer hochempfindlichen Konzentrationsbestimmung auch dazu in der Lage ist, die spezifische Oberfläche bzw. die Primärteilchengröße der Partikel zu bestimmen.
Children's Sleep: An Interplay Between Culture and Biology
Authors: Jenni Oskar G. , O'Connor Bonnie B.
Published: January 2005

Pediatricians provide a major source of knowledge for parents about children's behavior and development, although their advice is largely based on their own cultural values and beliefs in interaction with their personal and clinical experience. This review presents cross-cultural aspects of children's sleep behavior in industrialized and complex modern societies and provides a basis for understanding dimensions and mechanisms of cultural differences. We submit that it is the interaction between culture and biology that establishes behavioral and developmental norms and expectations regarding normal and problematic children's sleep. Pediatricians need to recognize the cultural environment in which children live and be knowledgeable about how cultural beliefs and values of both families and physicians interact with the needs and biological characteristics of individual children.
A Longitudinal Study of Bed Sharing and Sleep Problems Among Swiss Children in the First 10 Years of Life
Authors: Jenni Oskar G. , Fuhrer Heidi Zinggeler , Iglowstein Ivo , Molinari Luciano , Largo Remo H.
Published: January 2005

Objective. To study age trends, long-term course and secular changes of bed-sharing practices, and sleep problems among Swiss families.

Methods. A total of 493 children were longitudinally followed between 1974 and 2001 by using structured sleep-related interviews at 1, 3, 6, 9, 12, 18, and 24 months after birth and at annual intervals thereafter until 10 years of age. Parents were queried about bed sharing, night wakings, bedtime resistance, and sleep-onset difficulties during the 3 months before each follow-up interview.

Results. Although in the first year of life relatively few children slept with their parents (<10%), bed sharing increased with age and reached a maximum at 4 years (≥1 times per week: 38%). Bed sharing of at least once per week was noted in 44% of the children between 2 and 7 years old. Nocturnal wakings also increased from 6 months old to a maximum at 4 years, when more than half of all children woke up at least once per week (22% every night at 3 years). Less than 10% of all children demonstrated frequent bedtime resistance and sleep-onset difficulties. Bed sharing and night wakings during early infancy were not predictive for bed sharing or night wakings during childhood, whereas both bed sharing and night wakings during childhood tended to persist over time. In contrast, bedtime resistance and sleep-onset difficulties seemed to be rather transient phenomena across all ages. No consistent cohort trends were found except for bedtime resistance, which decreased significantly between 1974 and 2001.

Conclusions. Bed sharing and nocturnal wakings are common during early childhood. Developmental changes in separation-attachment processes, cognitive capabilities to develop self-recognition and nighttime fears, and motor locomotion may contribute to the particular age trend of night wakings and bed sharing during early childhood.
Commentary: Sleep in German Infants—The “Cult” of Independence
Authors: Valentin Stephan R.
Published: January 2005

Objectives. Significant cultural variations exist in sleep practices for young children, including bedtime rituals and routines, soothing techniques, and cosleeping. This study examined parenting styles at bedtime and sleep behavior in a group of German infants. The results are compared with sleep practices of other western European countries.

Participants. German parents of 50 boys and 50 girls 6 to 30 months old.

Method. Parents were asked to fill out a questionnaire about the sleep behavior of their child. Personal interviews with the parents were conducted to augment the survey results; in selected cases, bedtime routines were filmed.

Results. The infants in this sample largely slept in their own bed in a separate room. Bedtime rituals were common and in general characterized by parents maintaining behavioral distance from the infants during the bedtime routine. However, parenting style was likely to become more “proximal” (close) in response to bedtime refusal and nocturnal infant crying. A majority of parents (79%) used lullabies as part of the bedtime ritual, and the use of a sleep aid was very common (80%).

Conclusion. As is the case with most cultures, German bedtime parenting practices tend to reflect parenting values and beliefs associated with their specific culture. The parenting style at bedtime in this group of infants in general seemed less rigid and less distancing than bedtime rituals typically described in other northern European countries and may represent more of a synthesis of parenting styles across various Western cultures.
Isolated Areolar Apocrine Chromhidrosis
Authors: Griffith Joan R.
Published: January 2005

A case of isolated areolar apocrine chromhidrosis in an 11-year-old female is presented. This is the youngest case cited in Medline. The goal of this review is to increase awareness of apocrine chromhidrosis among primary care providers and to discuss treatment. Capsaicin cream 0.025% is a proven treatment that may reduce the potential psychological impact and embarrassment that patients experience.
How Rapidly Do Oncologists Respond to Clinical Trial Data?
Authors: Buzdar Aman , Macahilig Cynthia
Published: January 2005

Learning Objectives

After completing this course, the reader will be able to:

Define the role of aromatase inhibitors in the treatment of early breast cancer. Describe trends in the use of aromatase inhibitors to treat early-stage breast cancer. Discuss U.S. trends over time in the use of aromatase inhibitors in the past 3 years.

Access and take the CME test online and receive 1 hour of AMA PRA category 1 credit at CME.TheOncologist.com

In the era of evidence-based medicine, convincing clinical trial data should influence clinical practice if disseminated in an appropriate manner. Here we discuss the influence of clinical trial results from the Arimidex, Tamoxifen Alone or in Combination trial on the usage of tamoxifen and anastrozole in the treatment of postmenopausal women with hormone receptor-positive early breast cancer. Data were derived from structured interviews with practicing medical oncologists over a period of 28 months. The overall use of hormonal therapy was high and increasing over the period studied. Significant increases in the use of anastrozole as adjuvant hormonal therapy were accompanied by significant decreases in the use of tamoxifen. This culminated in the use of anastrozole surpassing tamoxifen use by the end of the study period, accounting for over 50% of hormonal therapy use for postmenopausal early breast cancer. This study suggests that the dissemination of key clinical data, accompanied by professional commentary and regulatory actions, can rapidly influence the clinical practice of medical oncologists.
Combined Modality Therapy of Gemcitabine and Radiation
Authors: Pauwels Bea , Korst Annelies E.C. , Lardon Filip , Vermorken Jan B.
Published: January 2005

Learning Objectives

After completing this course, the reader will be able to:

List the advantages of combination chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Explain the rationale for doing in vitro research in the radiochemotherapy field. Describe the results of studies combining gemcitabine and radiotherapy.

Access and take the CME test online and receive 1 hour of AMA PRA category 1 credit at CME.TheOncologist.com

The combination of gemcitabine and radiotherapy is a promising combined modality therapy. However, the clinical application of this combination has to be implemented carefully because of an increased toxicity to normal tissues. A body of experimental evidence shows that gemcitabine is a potent radiosensitizer in vitro and in vivo. The observations so far indicate that various mechanisms are responsible for the radiosensitizing effect. Although it is often difficult to transfer experimental data to the clinic, these studies offer the possibility to develop an improved schedule of administration for patient treatment, based on rational evidence in tumor biology. In the current review, the preclinical data that support the use of gemcitabine as a radiosensitizing agent and the clinical trials that have been conducted to date are summarized.
Practical implementation of multichannel adaptive filters based on FTF and AP algorithms for active control
Authors: González Alberto , Ferrer Miguel , de Diego María , Piñero Gema , López José J.
Published: December 2004

In this paper, multichannel affine projection (AP) algorithms and fast transversal filters (FTF) are introduced for active noise control. A comparative practical study of the mentioned algorithms with the filtered‐X LMS (F‐XLMS) and the recursive least squares (RLS) is presented for multichannel systems. This study is based on simulations using real data and is mainly focused on: their computational cost and memory load, their convergence properties, their stability and their ability to create quiet zones around listener ears. Simulations show that algorithms based on FTF exhibit a good trade‐off between computational cost and convergence speed. On the other hand, those based on RLS are slightly faster but they present higher computational load and stability problems in their practical implementation. It has also been observed that algorithms based on low order AP algorithms present less computational cost than the FTF‐based ones but a slightly slower convergence speed. Therefore these algorithms show a desirable behaviour and versatility for practical applications. Finally, results obtained in a real‐time multichannel system validate the use of AP algorithms in practical applications as an alternative to the classical multichannel F‐XLMS since they provide meaningful attenuation levels, lower convergence time and similar computational cost. Additionally, as simulations indicated, AP algorithm performance can be easily improved increasing its projection order and using fast versions. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Materials chemistry and thermodynamics of REBa2Cu3O7−x
Authors: Macmanus‐Driscoll Judith L.
Published: December 2004

This review focuses on the materials chemistry and thermodynamics of the REBa2Cu3O7−x (RE = rare earth) series of superconductors. The importance of this basic information for predicting and controlling structure and microstructure of single crystals, thin films, and bulk materials is discussed. Examples of where an understanding of the thermodynamics has led to advances in processing are presented, and future areas of research that are key to the second decade of superconductor processing are highlighted.
Microcontact printing and electroplating on curved substrates: Production of free‐standing three‐dimensional metallic microstructures
Authors: Rogers John A. , Jackman Rebecca J. , Whitesides George M.
Published: December 2004

Parts for microelectromechanical systems often need to be three dimensional (3D) and have sizes in the micrometer range. A novel method is described for the convenient fabrication of such 3D microstructures by means of microcontact printing, electrodeposition, and removal of the substrate. The technique is illustrated with the fabrication of structures with the form required for coronary stents (see Figure).

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Superstructures of lipid bilayers by complexation with helical biopolymers
Authors: Wenzel Anije , Antonietti Markus
Published: December 2004

Polyelectrolyte–surfactant complexes have properties that may allow them to be used to replace expensive and syntehtically complicated chiral liquid‐crystal systems in display applications, for example. The model systems of poly‐L‐lysin complexed with soybean lecithin—the Figure shows the structure model—and κ‐carrageenan with various dialkyldimethylammonium salts are described.

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Chiroptical properties of poly{2, 5‐bis[(S)‐2‐methylbutoxy]‐1, 4‐phenylene vinylene}
Authors: Peeters Emiel , Delmotte Ann , Janssen René A. J. , Meijer E. W.
Published: December 2004

The photoluminescent and electroluminescent properties of conjugated polymers are, in part, controlled by interchain interactions in solid films. A study of the (chir)optical properties of optically active BMB‐PPV (see Figure) shows that circular dichroism spectroscopy is very powerful in detecting association of the polymer. Two different forms of BMB‐PPV are reported to be present in solution, depending on the solvent.

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Superconducting RNi2B2C (R = Y, Lu) nanoparticles: Size effects and weak links
Authors: Maser Wolfgang K. , Bernier Patrick , Luk'yanchuk Igor , Molinié Philippe , Lefrant Serge , Redlich Philipp , Ajayan Pulickel M.
Published: December 2004

The potential of the are discharge technique for the growth of complex nanocrystallien systems is demonstrated here with the formation of quaternary superconducting nanoparticles belonging to the recently discovered intermetallic boron carbide family RNi2B2C (R = Y, Lu). The nanoparticles, which were embedded in a glassy carbon matrix and had Tc – 15 K, are reported to exhibit magnetic behavior characterized by finite size effects and weak Josephson links between the particles. The formation and characterization of the nanoparticles are detailed.
Block copolymer epitaxy
Authors: Sano Masahito
Published: December 2004

Polymer‐induced epitaxy allows polymer epitaxy to be used not only for growth of crystalline polymers but also in techniques for functionalizing surfaces. A method is described by which it is possible to produce a crystalline polymer but also in techniques for functionalizing surfaces. A method is described by which it is possible to produce a crystalline polymer block epitaxially on a substrate with a non‐crystalline block—which can later be functionalized—anchored to the crystalline block but not attached to the surface (see Figure).

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The syndrome of diabetic amyotrophy
Authors: Chokroverty S. , Reyes M. G. , Rubino F. A. , Tonaki H.
Published: December 2004

Changes in the electromyograms and motor nerve conduction velocities in 12 patients with diabetic amyotrophy suggested mild distal and moderate proximal neuropathy in the lower limbs. Histological and histochemical findings in the vastus medialis muscles were consistent with denervation. Electron microscopical examination of the vastus medialis muscles in 6 patients revealed myofibrillar degeneration. One patient had abnormal mitochondria and tubular aggregates. The basement membranes of the intramuscular capillaries were thickened in all but 1 patient. Histochemical staining of the myoneural junctions showed changes consistent with degeneration and regeneration. We conclude that diabetic amyotrophy is a distinct clinical entity and is secondary to metabolic derangement rather than diabetic microangiopathy.