bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Asthma and Serum IgE Levels in Children in a Desert Country
Authors: Strannegård Inga-Lisa , Strannegård Örjan
Published: August 2009

The frequency of asthma admissions to the paediatric outpatient clinic in a teaching hospital in Kuwait was found to increase from 8.8 to 14.9% of all admissions during a 3-year period. Seasonal variation of admissions was consistent, with peak incidences during the cold and humid months. The incidence of asthma was remarkably well correlated to low temperature and high frequency of upper respiratory infections but not to pollen seasons or occurrence of dust storms. In agreement with the clinical impression that atopic allergy is frequent in Kuwait, high levels of IgE were found in different groups of individuals. In umbilical cord serum, elevated IgE levels in blood donors and in children with asthma or other diseases were clearly higher than those found in corresponding groups in Western countries. Possible factors contributing to the generally increased IgE levels may be endemic diseases, like viral hepatitis and brucellosis.
Vitamin A Acetate as a Regulator of Accessory Cell Function in Delayed-Type Hypersensitivity Responses
Authors: Katz D.R. , Mukherjee S. , Maisey J. , Miller K.
Published: August 2009

Mice fed on a vitamin A acetate (VAA)-supplemented diet respond to concentrations of oxazolone which are too low to elicit contact sensitivity on a standard diet. This study has investigated whether enhanced responsiveness could be due to VAA-induced changes in antigen-presenting cell function. The draining lymph nodes were used as the source for accessory cell populations, and cells from control and sensitized mice on either standard or VAA diet were compared in syngeneic and allogeneic responses. Their ability to induce delayed-type hypersensitivity reactions was also compared. There was no qualitative difference between accessory cells from the standard and VAA-fed groups respectively, but there was already a striking quantitative increase in the number of accessory cells which correlated with augmented sensitization. These findings are consistent with the postulate that the effect of VAA may be associated with regulation of accessory cell function, and that susceptibility to contact sensitization can be modified by quantitative changes in antigen presentation.
Antigenic Stimulation with Proteins of Cow’s Milk via the Oral Route in Guinea Pigs and Rats 2.
Authors: Suzuki S. , Koritz T.N. , Coombs R.R.A.
Published: August 2009

The intestinal contents of guinea pigs and rats on a milk-drinking diet were examined for mucosal-secreted antibody to β-lactoglobulin. Assay of the immunoglobulin content of duodenum, jejunum and ileum of the guinea pig gave geometric means of 70, 90 and 95 µg/ml. In the rat, where isotype-specific antiglobulin reagents were available, similar figures were obtained but it could be shown that the vast majority was IgA. Passive haemagglutination titres up to 1,000 of secreted anti-β-lactoglobulin antibody (resistant to the endogenous proteases in the intestinal contents) were measured in guinea pigs. Fifteen days after cessation of milk-drinking, the antibody had dropped to undetectable levels. No such antibody could be shown in rats. Rats also failed to develop detectable serum antibody whereas, the guinea pigs had passive haemagglutination titres in the order of 16,000.
Comparison of Arachidonic Acid Metabolism in Nasal Polyps and Eosinophils
Authors: Smith Douglas M. , Gerrard Jon M. , White James G.
Published: August 2009

Nasal polyp tissue is characterized by its frequent infiltration by large numbers of eosinophils. We have studied the metabolism of 14C-labeled arachidonic acid by both nasal polyp tissue and by eosinophils. The major metabolite produced by both is 15-hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acid (HETE) with lesser amounts of 12-HETE. No cyclooxygenase pathway products were found. The 15-lipoxygenase activity of nasal polyps averages 30 times that of normal nasal mucosa or chronically inflamed sinus mucosa. Nasal polyps which contained significant numbers of eosinophils averaged 7 times the 15-lipoxygenase activity of nasal polyps without eosinophilia. Thus, eosinophils appear to be a major source of 15-lipoxygenase activity in nasal polyps.
Similarities between IgE in Human Feces and a Chymotrypsin-Digest of an IgE Myeloma Protein
Authors: Kolmannskog Svein
Published: August 2009

Immunoglobulin E (IgE) in human feces was characterized by radioimmunoassays with different specificities of the second antibodies, and by immunoprecipitation techniques. The fecal IgE was compared with an intact IgE myeloma protein and with FcXXX fragments of the IgE molecules, obtained after prolonged chymotrypsin-digestion of the IgE myeloma protein. The experiments showed that both the fecal IgE and FcXXX fragments shared the Dε1 antigenic determinants while the intact IgE had both Dε1 and Dε2 determinants. They also shared thermal stability at 56°C as compared to intact IgE. Fecal IgE and FcXXX fragments both showed rapid anodal migration in an electric field, different to that of intact IgE. A tandem crossed immunoelectrophoresis technique provided signs of immunological identity between the precipitates of fecal IgE and those of the FcXXX fragments. It is therefore likely that most, if not all, IgE in human feces consists of FcXXX fragments.
Activity of Nedocromil Sodium in Mast-Cell-Dependent Reactions in the Rat
Authors: Riley P.A. , Mather M.E. , Keogh R.W. , Eady R.P.
Published: August 2009

Nedocromil sodium, a pyranoquinoline dicarboxylic acid derivative which differs structurally and physiochemically from sodium cromoglycate, was nonetheless shown to be effective in classical models of anti-allergic activity in the rat. These models, based on immediate hypersensitivity reactions in the passively sensitized rat, involve release of mediators from mast cells following cross-linking of membrane-bound IgE antibodies by specific antigen. In this system, nedocromil sodium exhibited a similar profile of activity to that of sodium cromoglycate. Whilst not predictive for therapeutic activity, rat models of immediate hypersensitivity are believed to reflect one component of obstructive airways disease. The results suggest that nedocromil sodium is worthy of clinical evaluation in this indication.
Glycoprotein Allergens in Pollen of Timothy V.
Authors: Haavik Svein , Paulsen Berit Smestad , Wold Jens K.
Published: August 2009

When the allergen was oxidized with periodate the size of its precipitate in rocket immunoelectrophoresis (RIE) was reduced. Incubation of the allergen with various glycosidases did not significantly affect its precipitation in RIE. The binding of human IgE and IgG to allergen bound to nitrocellulose seemed not to be affected by incubation with α-L·fucosidase, β-D-xylosidase, β-D-galactosidase or periodate oxidation. Incubation with α-D-mannosidase reduced the binding of IgG to the allergen but not its binding of IgE. Periodate oxidation did not significantly affect the IgE binding of the allergen in radioallergosorbent test (RAST) inhibition. When RAST discs of the allergen were incubated with α-D-mannosidase, α-D-galactosidase, Arachis hypogaea lectin and concanavalin A, the IgE binding to the discs was slightly reduced. Pretreatment of the discs with the monoclonal antibody FMC-A9 against ryegrass pollen allergens and β-D-xylosidase did not reduce their IgE binding. L-Arabinose, D-mannose, methyl-α-D-mannopyranoside, D-galactose, D-glucose or the monoclonal antibody FMC-A9 did not inhibit the binding of IgE to RAST discs of the allergen. After incubation of the allergen with pronase, it did not form a precipitate in RIE and its IgE-binding ability in RAST and RAST inhibition was almost completely lost.
Synergistic Enhancement of Mitogen Responses of Human Lymphocytes by Inhibitors of Cyclo-Oxygenase and 5,8,11-Eicosatriynoic Acid, an Inhibitor of 12-Lipoxygenase and Leukotriene Biosynthesis
Authors: Blomgren Henric , Hammarström Sven , Wasserman Jerzy
Published: August 2009

Blood mononuclear cells are well-known producers of various cyclo-oxygenase and lipoxygenase metabolites of arachidonic acid, some of which possess immunoregulatory functions. In the present investigation, we have examined 3H-thymidine incorporation in human blood lymphocytes cultured with polyclonal mitogens and antigens in the presence of various inhibitors of cyclo-oxygenase (such as indomethacin and meclofenamic acid) and an inhibitor of 12-lipoxygenase and leukotriene biosynthesis, 5,8,11-eicosatriynoic acid (ETI). It was observed that these inhibitors could augment mitogen responses of nonpurified lymphocyte preparations but not of preparations which were depleted of monocytes. The results indicate that monocytes and not lymphocytes were the main producers of immunosuppressive eicosanoids derived from arachidonic acid. Further, mitogenic responses in the presence of both an inhibitor of cyclo-oxygenase and ETI were augmented to a higher extent than expected. Again, this enhancement was not observed in preparations depleted of monocytes. Arachidonic acid metabolism was examined in mitogen-stimulated cultures pulsed with 14C-arachidonic acid. It was observed that the production of three metabolites was inhibited by meclofenamic acid, whereas the amounts of another 14Cr-labeled compound were almost doubled in the presence of meclofenamic acid.
Immunological Effects of Ciclosporin in Primary Biliary Cirrhosis: Suppression of Activated T Cells and Autoantibody Levels
Authors: Karlsson-Parra A. , Tötterman T.H. , Nyberg A. , Mendel-Hartvig I. , Lööf L. , Forsum U.
Published: August 2009

The effects of ciclosporin (CS) on liver immunohistology and peripheral blood T lymphocyte distribution were studied in 5 patients with primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) receiving CS treatment for 6 months. Several significant immunological changes were seen during the course of treatment: the numbers of infiltrating T cells (Leu4+) and HLA-DR+ cells (mainly macrophage/dendritic-like) within the lobule parenchyma decreased; the total circulating T cell numbers increased and the percentage of activated, HLA-DR-expressing Leu2a+ (‘suppressor/cytotoxic’) T cells and Leu3a+ (‘helper/inducer’) T cells decreased. Moreover, using a highly sensitive enzyme immunoassay for antimitochondrial antibody (AMA), a selective decrease of IgM-type (but not IgG-type) AMA levels was observed in 4 patients. A reversal towards pretreatment values was observed for all these immunological parameters 3–6 months after withdrawal of therapy. We conclude that CS may inhibit both cell-mediated and antibody-mediated autoimmune mechanisms operating in PBC.
Effect of Azelastine on the Release and Action of Leukotriene C4 and D4
Authors: Katayama S. , Tsunoda H. , Sakuma Y. , Kai H. , Tanaka I. , Katayama K.
Published: August 2009

The effect of azelastine on the release of leukotriene C4 and D4 (LTC4 and LTD4), and the antagonistic action of the drug against the leukotrienes were determined by using in vitro tests and compared with those of ketotifen and chlorpheniramine. Azelastine inhibited LTC4 and LTD4 release from guinea pig lung fragments passively sensitized with homologous anti-ovalbumin IgG1-b antibody. The 50% inhibitory concentration (IC50) of azelastine was 6.4 × 10––5M for a 15-min preincubation or 4.7 × 10––5M for a 30-min preincubation. Ketotifen and chlorpheniramine were inhibitory only at the highest concentration tested (3 × 10––4M), giving inhibitions of 35.6 and 21.3%, respectively. Azelastine also inhibited calcium ionophore A23187-induced release of leukotrienes from human polymorphonuclear leukocytes; the IC50 values were 3.6 × 10––5M for 15 min and 2.3 × 10––6M for 30 min of preincubation. Ketotifen and chlorpheniramine were inhibitory only after a 30-min preincubation, with IC50 values of 2.1 × 10––5 and 5.9 × 10––5M, respectively. The potent inhibition by azelastine might be partly a result of the inhibition of 5-lipoxygenase, since 5-hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acid formation in rat basophilic leukemia cell homogenate was inhibited by azelastine. Pretreatment of guinea pig ileum with azelastine antagonized LTC4- and LTT-Vinduced contraction of the ileum with IC50 values of 7.0 × 10––6 and 1.1 × 10––5M, respectively. Azelastine (with a 50% relaxation concentration of 6.0 × 10––6M) relaxed the ileum contracted by LTC4. These antagonistic actions of azelastine were 2–3 times more potent than those of ketotifen. The present results suggest that the anti-allergic action of azelastine may be based on not only inhibition of the release of mediators (including LTC4/D4 and histamine), but also antagonism against leukotrienes and histamine.
Eosinophil Chemotactic Lymphokine Produced by Spleen Cells of Schistosoma japonicum-lnfected Mice
Authors: Owhashi M. , Nawa Y.
Published: August 2009

The physicochemical nature of eosinophil chemotactic factor (ECF) was examined by using different maturation stages of eosinophils, namely eosinophils obtained from bone marrow (BM-Eo) and those obtained from peritoneal cavity (PEC-Eo), as the indicator of in vitro chemotaxis. As the ECF source, the conditioned medium of the culture of spleen cells obtained from Schistosoma japonicum-infectedmice was used. When the conditioned medium was chromatographed by Sephadex G75, apparent molecular weight of ECF activity against BM-Eo was 15,000, whereas that against PEC-Eo was 30,000. Similar results were obtained when the conditioned medium was chromatographed by high-pressure liquid chromatography using SW3000 column. After NaCl-linear gradient elution of DE52 anion-exchange chromatography of the conditioned medium, ECF activity against PEC-Eo was detected at the 0.1 M NaCl region of the gradient, whereas that against BM-Eo was detected at around the 0.14 M NaCl region. After isoelectric focusing, however, ECF activity against BM-Eo and PEC-Eo was detected at the same position, approximately pH 3.6. The results of surface phenotype analysis show that the cells responsible for the production of two types of ECF lymphokines are both Thy-1.2+, Lyt-1.2––, Lyt-2.2+. When ECF activity in the conditioned medium of antigen-specific T cell clones was examined, 6 out of 7 clones produce ECF lymphokine relatively selective to PEC-Eo, whereas one clone produce ECF lymphokine relatively selective to BM-Eo. These results suggest that physicochemically different ECF lymphokines selective to different maturation stages of eosinophils are involved in the mediation of eosinophilia.
New Immunomodulator Lobenzarit Disodium (CCA): Activation of IgE Class-Specific Suppressor T Lymphocytes and Regulation of IgE Antibody Response Enhanced by Sublethal X-Irradiation in SJL/J Mice
Authors: Yamashita Yasuhiro , Nakano Toshiaki , Ohsugi Yoshiyuki
Published: August 2009

The effect of the new immunomodulator lobenzarit disodium (CCA, disodium-2,2′-iminodibenzoate) on IgE antibody response was studied in X-irradiated SJL/J mice. IgE antibody response to dinitrophenyl-keyhole limpet hemocyanin (DNP-KLH) was enhanced by sublethal X-irradiation (400 R), and this enhanced IgE production was suppressed by unprimed normal spleen cell transfer. Oral administration of CCA, every day from 1 day after immunization with DNP-KLH to 1 day before bleeding out, reduced IgE antibody response in sublethally X-irradiated SJL/J mice. The suppressive effect of CCA in the mice was exerted at an early stage of the IgE antibody response. Moreover, CCA showed IgE class-specific suppression and did not suppress IgG class antibody production. CCA-induced reduction of IgE antibody response in SJL/J mice seems to be mediated by suppressor T cells, since depletion of T cells by treatment with antithymocyte serum and complement abolished the CCA-induced reduction and splenic T cells from CCA-treated mice were able to transfer the suppressive effect.
Inhibitory Immunization Using Complete Freund’s Adjuvant on Ongoing Eosinophilia Induced by Repeated Antigen-Stimulations in Guinea Pigs
Authors: Kasuya Shiro , Otsuka Setsuko , Kano Shiro , Ohtomo Hiroshi
Published: August 2009

Ongoing eosinophilia, in guinea pigs repeatedly sensitized with dinitrophenylated (DNP)-Ascaris antigen (DNP-Asc) into the peritoneal cavity, was suppressed significantly by complementary immunizations with a heterologous antigen, e.g., ovalbumin (OA) or bovine γ-globulin (BGG) emulsified in complete Freund’s adjuvant (CFA). Challenge injections of DNP-OA or DNP-BGG elicited peritoneal eosinophilia in animals that were sensitized repeatedly with DNP-Asc. Under these conditions, antigen specificity in suppressive immunization was studied. Eosinophilia, induced by DNP-OA challenge, was suppressed by immunization with either OA in CFA or BGG in CFA. However, Asc (homologous carrier of sensitizing antigen) elicited no suppression. Additionally, CFA, used as an adjuvant, played an important role in suppressive immunization, but CFA alone had no effect in suppressing peritoneal eosinophilia. Anti-DNP antibody, detected by hemagglutination test or passive cutaneous anaphylaxis, was not affected by complementary immunization. These results suggested that peritoneal eosinophilia was suppressed concomitantly by a supplemental immunization in an antigen-nonspecific manner. Eosinophilia in the bone marrow also was suppressed significantly by complementary immunization, but the pattern was quite different from that shown in the peritoneal cavity. The first nuclear cell response peak after challenging, including eosinophils, was stanched completely by CFA itself. The second nuclear cell peak, on day 5, recovered, but eosinophil response continued to be suppressed.
Immunogenicity of Acrylate Chemicals as Assessed by Antibody Induction
Authors: Bull J.E. , Henderson D.C. , Turk J.L.
Published: August 2009

The immunogenicities of two acrylate chemicals, trimethylolpropane triacrylate (TMPTA) and methyl acrylate (MeAc), and one related vinyl compound, 4-vinyl pyridine (4VP), were investigated by determining the in vivo induction of IgG antibodies in guinea pigs. The injection of the chemicals emulsified in Freund’s complete adjuvant resulted in the induction of serum antibody responses against MeAc and 4VP but not TMPTA. However, antibody with anti-TMPTA activity was produced following immunization of guinea pigs with TMPTA conjugated to protein, which allowed comparisons to be made of the immunogenic structural features of the compounds.
Tryptase and Kinin Generation: Tryptase from Human Mast Cells Does Not Activate Human Urinary Prokallikrein
Authors: Alter S.C. , Yates P. , Margolius H.S. , Schwartz L.B.
Published: August 2009

The effect of tryptase, a neutral protease released from human lung mast cell secretory granules, on the tissue prokallikrein present in human urine was examined. Tryptase has been shown previously to lack activity against plasma prokallikrein. Purified tryptase was incubated with a concentrated preparation of urinary prokallikrein. No increase in kallikrein-like enzymatic activity or immunoreactive tissue kallikrein was detected. Activation of urinary prokallikrein with trypsin served as a positive control. Furthermore, preincubation of urinary prokallikrein with tryptase did not diminish the subsequent activation of urinary prokallikrein by trypsin. Therefore, tryptase neither activates nor destroys human tissue or plasma prokallikreins.
Histochemical and Functional Characteristics of the Human Nasal Mast Cell
Authors: Gomez E. , Corrado O.J. , Davies R.J.
Published: August 2009

It is currently accepted that mast cell heterogeneity occurs not only in different species but also within the same organ in the same species. This study demonstrates that the majority of mast cells in the human nasal mucosa of non-atopic non-rhinitic subjects do not stain after fixation with 10% buffered formol saline and, although they stain with alcian blue, they do not counterstain with safranine O, indicating that nasal mast cells may contain a proteoglycan other than heparin. Further, mast cells in the nasal mucosa are essentially unaffected by the polyamine compound 48/80, indicating that they are functionally dissimilar to the connective tissue type mast cells exemplified by those present in the rat tongue.
Distribution of a Major Allergen of Rye Grass (Lolium perenne) Pollen between Other Grass Species
Authors: Standring Ruth , Spackman Vivienne , Porter Sarah J.
Published: August 2009

Polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis in sodium dodecyl sulphate (SDS) followed by protein staining has shown that extracts from 11 different grass pollens contained proteins with similar molecular weights to that of the allergen R7 from rye grass (Lolium perenne) pollen extract (i.e. 29,000–31,000 daltons). Western blotting and detection with polyclonal (rabbit) antibodies raised against the purified R7 (Rye I) allergen indicated that these proteins were antigenically related and their allergenic properties were demonstrated by the binding of human IgE to immunoblots. The distribution of cross-reacting antigenic determinants was further investigated by immunoblotting with 2 mouse monoclonal antibodies, R7M1 and R7M2, produced with purified R7 as the initial immunogen. The 2 monoclonal antibodies were shown to react with ‘R7-like’ components of grass pollen extracts other than the component from rye grass. Differences in the distribution of R7M1 and R7M2 binding were found indicating that they are directed at separate R7 epitopes.
Glycoprotein Allergens in Pollen of Timothy
Authors: Haavik Svein , Frostad Arve Bryhni , Paulsen Berit Smestad , Wold Jens K.
Published: August 2009

Crossed immunoelectrophoresis (CIE) and tandem CIE indicated that a basic glycoprotein allergen isolated from pollen of timothy is immunochemically identical to the allergen formerly denoted as antigen 30. The glycoprotein gave one band in SDS-PAGE and agarose isoelectric focusing. After transfer to nitrocellulose by electroblotting or by capillary blotting, the allergen specifically bound IgE from persons allergic to timothy pollen. The single allergen inhibited about 15% of the IgE binding to radioallergosorbent test discs of whole timothy pollen extract. Sera from patients investigated also contained detectable amounts of IgG towards the allergen. In quantitative skin prick tests, the mean activity of 2 μg/ml purified allergen in 7 patients was equivalent to that of a timothy pollen extract containing 10 000 BU/ml (assayed relatively to histamine in skin prick test). The ability of the allergen to form a precipitate in rocket immunoelectrophoresis was lost when it was heated to 80°C or incubated with 4 M guanidine hydrochloride.
Enhanced Mitogenic Reactivity of Human T Cells after Passage through the Thymus. Response to Phytohemagglutinin and Mercuric Chloride
Authors: Nordlind K. , Ernström U. , Henze A.
Published: August 2009

Lymphocytes in blood samples taken from the thymic, brachiocephalic and internal jugular vein of children undergoing thoracic surgery were compared regarding their phenotypic markers and their proliferative response to mercuric chloride (HgCl2) and phytohemagglutinin (PHA). Of these two mitogens, PHA stimulated the DNA synthesis of the lymphocytes from the thymic vein to a significantly higher degree than those taken from the brachiocephalic or internal jugular vein. The response to HgCl2 resulted in the highest stimulation of the DNA synthesis in cells from the thymic and the brachiocephalic veins, though the differences were not significant. The higher reactivity to PHA and the tendency to higher reactivity to HgCl2 of lymphocytes taken from efferent thymic blood might be due to a higher frequency of T cells. This, however, could not be verified by immunohistochemical staining, as Leu4-positive cells occurred in the same proportion in all three venous samples. We therefore suggest that the passage through the thymus of circulating T cells may increase their immune reactivity by the influence of thymic maturation hormones.
Right-to-Left Ventricular Diastolic Delay in Chronic Thromboembolic Pulmonary Hypertension Is Associated With Activation Delay and Action Potential Prolongation in Right Ventricle
Authors: Hardziyenka Maxim , Campian Maria E. , Bouma Berto J. , Linnenbank André C. , de Bruin-Bon H.A.C.M. Rianne , Kloek Jaap J. , van der Wal Allard C. , Baan Jan , de Beaumont Edouard M. , Reesink Herre J. , de Bakker Jacques M.T. , Bresser Paul , Tan Hanno L.
Published: August 2009

Background—

Delayed left ventricle (LV)–to–right ventricle (RV) peak shortening results in cardiac output reduction in patients with chronic thromboembolic hypertension (CTEPH) and other types of pulmonary arterial hypertension. Why the synchrony between LV and RV is lost is unknown. We hypothesized that RV electrophysiological remodeling, notably, conduction slowing and action potential prolongation, contribute to this loss in synchrony.

Methods and Results—

We conducted epicardial mapping during pulmonary endarterectomy in 26 patients with CTEPH and compared these findings with clinical, hemodynamic, and echocardiographic variables. We consecutively placed a multielectrode grid on the epicardium of the RV free wall and LV lateral wall. These regions corresponded to RV and LV areas where echocardiographic Doppler sample volumes were placed to measure RV-to-LV diastolic interventricular delay. RV and LV epicardial action potential duration was assessed by measuring activation-recovery interval. Onset of diastolic relaxation of RV free wall with respect to LV lateral wall (diastolic interventricular delay) was delayed by 38�31 ms in patients with CTEPH versus −12�13 ms in control subjects (
P
<0.001), because, in patients with CTEPH, RV completed electric activation later than LV (65�20 versus 44�7 ms,
P
<0.001) and epicardial action potential duration, as assessed by activation-recovery interval measurement, was longer in RV free wall than in LV lateral wall (253�29 versus 240�22 ms,
P
<0.001).

Conclusion—

Additive effects of electrophysiological changes in RV, notably, conduction slowing and action potential prolongation, assessed by epicardial activation-recovery interval, contribute to diastolic interventricular delay in patients with CTEPH.
Intertextuality in Folklore: Pagan Themes in Jewish Folktales from the Early Modern Era
Authors: Yassif Eli
Published: August 2009

This article deals with the concept of intertextuality in folk narrative—a theme that has been dealt with only rarely. By analyzing the Hasidic, nineteenth-century folktale of The Sacrificers of Children, we attempt to demonstrate the importance of this theme for folkloristic scholarship and its centrality in the interpretation of folktales.The true importance of intertextuality lies in its contribution to the complexity of the text. The presence of secondary textual elements that are incorporated into the primary text but do not interfere with its ideological and aesthetic independence creates the powerful effect of multiple layers and meanings.We have here a story whose intent and purpose are distinctly and unquestionably didactic and conservative. The storyteller uses the earlier sources—biblical, midrashic, travel literature, medieval exempla—not only as narrative materials, but as references which can bring religious meaning and authority to his text. And yet it can also be read from an entirely different perspective thanks to textual elements from another world, and one which is diametrically opposed to Jewish morality. The intertextuality here is not, therefore, simply an interweaving of texts, but an existential dialogue that is conducted and deciphered by means of textual elements.
The Story of the Samaritan and the Innkeeper (Luke 10:30-35): A Study in Character Rehabilitation
Authors: Longenecker Bruce
Published: August 2009

The aphorism 'context is everything' has been a guiding principle in many studies of Jesus' parabolic sayings. This is true, for instance, of studies attempting to recover a parable's significance in relation to the ministry of Jesus of Nazareth, or in relation to its literary placement and function, or in relation to its polyvalent potential. It is also true of this study, which examines Jesus' narrative of the Samaritan—usually referred to as the 'parable of the good Samaritan'. It suggests that, when the Samaritan story is placed within a certain contextual configuration, its narrative features align themselves in ways that have either been conspicuously neglected or consciously avoided in the history of the story's interpretation. Rather than neglecting or avoiding the significance of these narrative features, this essay seeks to exploit their interpretative significance in a fresh manner, entertaining possibilities of meaning beyond the Lukan interpretative framework. In particular, consideration is given to the relationship between the Samaritan and the innkeeper as representing an exceptional partnership that testifies to the reign of God in making each party vulnerable to loss while promoting goodness towards others.
Exodus Inverted: A New Look at The Grapes of Wrath
Authors: Eckert Ken
Published: August 2009

John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath has been read typically as period social activism, as sentimental Marxist fable, and as watered-down Christian theology via its failed preacher, Jim Casy. Religious interpretations have at best seen the text as an allegorical reenactment of Exodus. Yet such criticism requires a willful misreading of the text, as the Joads end the story not in a promised land but destitute. The novel makes more sense, however, if seen as a reversal of Exodus. The Joads progress from a despoiled but occupied promised land (Oklahoma) toward bondage in Egypt (California). This extended image pattern permits Steinbeck to draw a larger thematic vision in which material poverty teaches the Joads a broadly Christian worldview. Far from ending in despair, the novel closes in the Joads emerging from a self-satisfied and legalistic moralism into a new ethos of universal love in the pattern of Christ, culminating in Rose of Sharon's spiritual maturity in her selfless act at the novel's end when the family finally moves from “I” to “we.”
Energy Production, Frictional Dissipation, and Maximum Intensity of a Numerically Simulated Tropical Cyclone*
Authors: Wang Yuqing , Xu Jing
Published: August 2009

A tropical cyclone (TC) viewed as a heat engine converts heat energy extracted from the ocean into the kinetic energy of the TC, which is eventually dissipated due to surface friction. Since the energy production rate is a linear function while the frictional dissipation rate is a cubic power of surface wind speed, the dissipation rate is generally smaller than the production rate initially but increases faster than the production rate as the storm intensifies. When the dissipation rate eventually reaches the production rate, the TC has no excess energy to intensify. Emanuel hypothesized that a TC achieves its maximum potential intensity (E-MPI) when the surface frictional dissipation rate balances the energy production rate near the radius of maximum wind (RMW). Although the E-MPI agrees well with the maximum intensity of numerically simulated TCs in earlier axisymmetric models, the balance hypothesis near the RMW has not been evaluated. This study shows that the frictional dissipation rate in a numerically simulated mature TC is about 25% larger than the energy production rate near the RMW, while the dissipation rate is lower than the energy production rate outside the eyewall. This finding implies that the excess frictional dissipation under the eyewall should be partially balanced by the energy production outside the eyewall and thus the local balance hypothesis underestimates the TC maximum intensity. Both Lagrangian and control volume equivalent potential temperature (θe) budget analyses demonstrate that the energy gained by boundary layer inflow air due to surface entropy fluxes outside of and prior to interaction with the eyewall contributes significantly to the energy balance in the eyewall through the lateral inward energy flux. This contribution is further verified using a sensitivity experiment in which the surface entropy fluxes are eliminated outside a radius of 30–45 km, which leads to a 13.5% reduction in the maximum sustained near-surface wind speed and a largely reduced size of the model TC.
Convection Parameterization, Tropical Pacific Double ITCZ, and Upper-Ocean Biases in the NCAR CCSM3. Part II: Coupled Feedback and the Role of Ocean Heat Transport
Authors: Zhang Guang J. , Song Xiaoliang
Published: August 2009

This study investigates the coupled atmosphere–ocean feedback and the role of ocean dynamic heat transport in the formation of double ITCZ over the tropical Pacific in the NCAR Community Climate System Model, version 3 (CCSM3) and its alleviation when a revised Zhang–McFarlane (ZM) convection scheme is used. A hierarchy of coupling strategy is employed for this purpose. A slab ocean model is coupled with the atmospheric component of the Community Atmosphere Model, version 3 (CAM3) to investigate the local feedback between the atmosphere and the ocean. It is shown that the net surface energy flux differences in the southern ITCZ region between the revised and original ZM scheme seen in the stand-alone CAM3 simulations can cool the SST by up to 1.5°C. However, the simulated SST distribution is very sensitive to the prescribed ocean heat transport required in the slab ocean model. To understand the role of ocean heat transport, the fully coupled CCSM3 model is used. The analysis of CCSM3 simulations shows that the altered ocean dynamic heat transport when the revised ZM scheme is used is largely responsible for the reduction of SST bias in the southern ITCZ region, although surface energy flux also helps to cool the SST in the first few months of the year in seasonal variation.

The results, together with those from Part I, suggest that the unrealistic simulation of convection over the southern ITCZ region in the standard CCSM3 leads to the double-ITCZ bias through complex coupled interactions between atmospheric convection, surface winds, latent heat flux, cloud radiative forcing, SST, and upper-ocean circulations. The mitigation of the double-ITCZ bias using the revised ZM scheme is achieved by altering this chain of interactions.
Modeling Landfast Sea Ice by Adding Tensile Strength
Authors: König Beatty Christof , Holland David M.
Published: August 2009

Landfast ice is sea ice that forms and remains fixed along a coast, where it is either attached to the shore or held between shoals or grounded icebergs. The current generation of sea ice models is not capable of reproducing certain aspects of landfast ice behavior, for example the persistence of landfast sea ice under the effect of offshore winds. The authors develop a landfast sea ice model by adding tensile strength to the viscous–plastic as well as two versions of the elastic–viscous–plastic sea ice rheologies. One-dimensional implementations of these rheologies are used to explore the ability of coastal sea ice to resist offshore winds over extended times. While all modified rheologies are capable of maintaining landfast ice–like structures in the model, only the viscous–plastic rheology fulfills theoretical expectations. The elastic–viscous–plastic rheologies show initial elastic waves that weaken the ice and thus reduce its capacity of maintaining landfast ice. Further, special care has to be taken when implementing the most commonly used version of the elastic–viscous–plastic rheology because the standard set of parameters is not adequate for landfast sea ice modeling.
“No Irish Need Apply”? Veto Players and Legislative Productivity in the Republic of Ireland, 1949-2000
Authors: Conley Richard S. , Bekafigo Marija A.
Published: August 2009

This analysis fills an important lacuna in comparative legislative studies by testing the veto players theory against a newly constructed data set of significant domestic policy legislation passed in the Republic of Ireland between 1949 and 2000. Distinguishing between single-party majority, coalition, and minority governments, the analysis places into sharp relief the ways in which the unique context of Irish political parties and institutional dynamics conflict with the basic tenets of the veto players framework. The results underscore the contextual constraints on applicability of the theory.
Discrete Event Front-tracking Simulation of a Physical Fire-spread Model
Authors: Filippi Jean-Baptiste , Morandini Frédéric , Balbi Jacques Henri , Hill David RC
Published: August 2009

Simulation of moving interfaces such as a fire front usually requires resolution of a large-scale and detailed domain. Such computing involves the use of supercomputers to process the large amount of data and calculations. This limitation is mainly due to the fact that a large scale of space and time is usually split into nodes, cells, or matrices and the solving methods often require small time steps. In this paper we present a novel method that enables the simulation of large-scale/highresolution systems by focusing on the interface and its application to fire-spread simulation. Unlike the conventional explicit and implicit integration schemes, it is based on the discrete-event approach, which describes time advance in terms of increments of physical quantities rather than discrete time stepping. In addition, space is not split into discrete nodes or cells, but we use polygons with real coordinates. The system is described by the behavior of its interface and evolves by computing collision events of this interface in the simulation. As this simulation technique is suitable for a class of models that can explicitly provide the rate of spread, we developed a radiation-based propagation model of wild land fire. Simulations of a real large-scale fire performed by implementation of our method provide very interesting results in less than 30 s with a 3-m resolution with current personal computers.
Becoming Middle Class: How Working-class University Students Draw and Transgress Moral Class Boundaries
Authors: Lehmann Wolfgang
Published: August 2009

This article analyses the expectations and experiences of a group of Canadian working-class, first-generation university students. I outline the structural disadvantages, in terms of economic, social, and cultural capital, these young people encounter. Rather than viewing working-class status exclusively as a barrier, I show how these students draw on their working-class backgrounds to construct uniquely working-class moral advantages, such as those associated with a strong work ethic, maturity, responsibility, and real-life experiences, to overcome structural disadvantages.Their narratives of moral class advantages, however, lack class consciousness.They can be interpreted as individualistic strategies that draw on collective values. Ultimately, these working-class students hope to transcend their class position. Drawing on working-class moralities supports their claim for recognition as educated middle-class subjects, but with moral dispositions rooted in their social background and upbringing.
Researching, Not Playing, in the Public Sphere
Authors: Brownlie Julie
Published: August 2009

Journals and research networks are awash with advice about how best to promote children and young people's participation, with young people's involvement in the doing of research often presented as a specific expression of this wider good. Most of this discussion, however, is concerned with methods, the practicalities of securing research involvement and, more recently, with research training. At the same time, wider debates about the uses of sociological research have unfolded at an abstract level, framed in terms of `knowledge for what' and `knowledge for whom' with little focus on research practice, including who is carrying it out. In this article, I examine the `young researcher' to do two things: embed discussions about young people's research participation in long-standing epistemological and political debates about the role of research; and add to the broader sociological debate by foregrounding the question of who carries out research.
Effectiveness of Career Counseling and the Impact of the Working Alliance
Authors: Masdonati Jonas , Massoudi Koorosh , Rossier Jérôme
Published: August 2009

This study analyzes the role of the working alliance on the life satisfaction and career decision difficulties of clients participating in career counseling in Switzerland. The study also compares these career counseling clients to a group of students who did not seek counseling, to explore the overall effectiveness of a face-to-face career counseling intervention, using a pre—post design. Results indicated that the working alliance was positively associated with clients’ satisfaction with the intervention and with the final level of their life satisfaction. Working alliance was also negatively associated with the final levels of career decision difficulties. Moreover, clients’ career decision difficulties significantly decreased and their life satisfaction increased throughout the intervention. These findings suggest that working alliance represents an important variable to better understand career interventions’ underlying mechanisms. Moreover, face-to-face career counseling is effective considering career-specific as well as broader, life-related indicators.
Multiple imputation in a large-scale complex survey: a practical guide
Authors: He Y. , Zaslavsky AM , Landrum MB , Harrington DP , Catalano P.
Published: August 2009

The Cancer Care Outcomes Research and Surveillance (CanCORS) Consortium is a multisite, multimode, multiwave study of the quality and patterns of care delivered to population-based cohorts of newly diagnosed patients with lung and colorectal cancer. As is typical in observational studies, missing data are a serious concern for CanCORS, following complicated patterns that impose severe challenges to the consortium investigators. Despite the popularity of multiple imputation of missing data, its acceptance and application still lag in large-scale studies with complicated data sets such as CanCORS. We use sequential regression multiple imputation, implemented in public-available software, to deal with non-response in the CanCORS surveys and construct a centralised completed database that can be easily used by investigators from multiple sites. Our work illustrates the feasibility of multiple imputation in a large-scale multiobjective survey, showing its capacity to handle complex missing data. We present the implementation process in detail as an example for practitioners and discuss some of the challenging issues which need further research.
On the Ethnographic Part of the Mix
Authors: Agar Michael
Published: August 2009

Ethnography plays a partial role in organizational development in ways that call out for a kind of ‘‘tale of the field’’ that represents what Geertz calls a ‘‘blurred genre.’’ It is blurred by a mixture of ethnographic epistemology based on abductive logic and context/meaning questions, together with ideas from organizational intervention from work by such figures as Argyris, Schein and Stacey. This article defines and exemplifies the blend with two case studies from a state court and a cancer treatment center. The conclusion is that the tale, blurred genre though it is, is in fact clear and it works. The problem is that political and implementation issues typically block a trial run of the proposed solutions that it generates.
Effects of dynamic lighting on the visual performance of older adults
Authors: Izsó L. , Laufer L. , Suplicz S.
Published: August 2009

This is the second of the three papers providing fundamental information for the development of an adaptive lighting system for older adults. This paper examines the effects of two different forms of dynamic lighting — having the same average illuminance over time — on the performance of the numerical verification task (NVT) by older adults. As a group, the older adults showed no difference between the two forms of dynamic lighting. However, by involving the individual’s sensation seeking needs it was shown that the kind of dynamism (quickly increasing or quickly decreasing) influences both the subjective preferences and the objective visual performance. As individuals, all of the participants’ performances were determined mainly by the time, and illuminance variables proving the effect of dynamic lighting.
Mndal, a new interferon-inducible family member, is highly polymorphic, suppresses cell growth, and may modify plasmacytoma susceptibility
Authors: Zhang Ke , Kagan Daniel , DuBois Wendy , Robinson Richard , Bliskovsky Valery , Vass William C. , Zhang Shuling , Mock Beverly A.
Published: August 2009

The human HIN-200 gene cluster and its mouse counterpart, the interferon inducible-200 (Ifi200) family, both on Chr 1, are associated with several diseases, including solid tumors and lupus. Our study was initiated to identify the modifier gene(s) encoded by the Pctm locus, in which mouse B-cell plasmacytomas induced by pristane are associated with heterozygosity of Chr 1 genes near the Ifi200 cluster. A screen for differentially expressed genes in granulomatous tissues induced by pristane in resistant and susceptible strains identified a new Ifi200 member whose expression was 1000-fold higher in the strain carrying the resistant allele of Pctm and was the most highly expressed Ifi200 gene. The gene, designated Mndal (for MNDA-like, myeloid nuclear differentiation antigen-like), was absent in the susceptible genome, as were genomic sequences upstream of Ifi203, the gene adjacent to Mndal. Ectopic expression of MNDAL suppressed cell growth, which, together with the disease susceptibility of heterozygotes at the Pctm locus, suggests that Mndal, perhaps with Ifi203, acts as a tumor suppressor and display(s) haploinsufficiency. Mndal is highly polymorphic among inbred mouse strains, because it is absent in 10 of 24 strains. This polymorphism may have implications for other disease modifiers mapping to the same region.