bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Constructing the Nation Every Night: Hegemonic Formations in Today Tonight and A Current Affair
Authors: Muscat Tanya
Published: January 2017

Political articulations of identities and the nation occur both through the demands of the commercial current affairs format and the journalistic use of textual elements. The tabloid format engages in processes of politicising divergent cultural identities through the appeal to mass Australia. Indeed, the particular feature of ethnic individuals in content provides a hegemonic formation through which the ‘nation’ can be articulated. This article draws upon the discursive hegemony of Laclau and Mouffe to deliberate how the journalistic use of production elements functions to negotiate both identity and the nation through the sub-genre of sexuality. It uses a text-based analysis to argue that the content structure demonstrates how information can be constructed incongruously across production elements. The journalistic use of textual elements in Channel Seven's Today Tonight and Channel Nine's A Current Affair is analysed to reveal complexities in structuring discourses of the nation and representing identities.
(FAN) Scholars and Superheroes: The Role and Status of Comics Fandom Research in Australian Media History
Authors: Patrick Kevin
Published: January 2017

Comic books, eagerly consumed by Australian readers and reviled with equal intensity by their detractors, became embroiled in post-war era debates about youth culture, censorship and Australian national identity. Yet there are few references to this remarkable publishing phenomenon in most histories of Australian print media, or in studies of Australian popular culture. This article demonstrates how the history of comic books in Australia has largely been recorded by fans and collectors who have undertaken the process of discovery, documentation and research – a task that, in any other field of print culture inquiry, would have been the preserve of academics. While acknowledging some of the problematic aspects of fan literature, the article argues that future research into the evolution of the comic-book medium within Australia must recognise, and engage with, this largely untapped body of ‘fan scholarship’ if we are to enrich our understanding of this neglected Australian media industry.
Facebook Politics: Strategic Network Campaigning in the 2012 Taiwan Presidential Election
Authors: Lin Luc Chia-Shin
Published: January 2017

The networked nature of social media allows users to link their pre-existing connections and develop new types of online relationships. This study aimed to examine the relationships between candidates' camps and ‘netizens' during the 2012 Taiwan presidential election. To benefit from the rapid growth of social networking, political candidates have used social media as an election campaign tool. However, the strategic approach of these candidates seems to contradict the networked nature of social media, especially in terms of friendship. Through in-depth interviews with campaign staff, journalists and scholars, this research found that a new concept – strategic network campaigning (SNC) – can be proposed. Combining ‘two-step flow’ communication, para-social relationships and network society theory, SNC explains how election camps mimic Facebook's networked nature by placing staff in the network to influence netizens. Through SNC, campaign staff develop hubs that they can control, establish friend-like relationships with netizens, and influence perceptions of candidates.
Sport and the Transformation of Australian Television
Authors: Goldsmith Ben
Published: January 2017

This article examines the history of Australian broadcast television through the lens of sports programming. Ever since the introduction of the medium in Australia just before the 1956 Olympic Games, sports programming – both event coverage and sports-related content – has played a major role in defining television's forms, concerns and technologies, as well as in developing audiences for services and channels. Looking at a series of pivotal moments in Australian television history – the 1956 Olympics, the coming of colour, aggregation in the late 1980s, the launch of subscription television in 1995 and commercial free-to-air multi-channelling – the article examines sports programming as a site of both competition and collaboration between networks and services. It also discusses the role of sports in shaping the schedules and profiles of the two Australian public service broadcasters, before concluding with a look at the possible future of sport and Australian broadcast television.
Smash and Bash Cricket? Affective Technological Innovations in the Big Bash
Authors: Sturm Damion
Published: January 2017

Focusing on the Australian KFC T20 Big Bash League (BBL), this article explores the innovative televisual technologies that represent T20 cricket as an action packed ‘smash and bash’ spectacle. An array of innovative technologies is deployed to aesthetically and affectively re-present the BBL. Cameras and microphones are embedded within the field of play, operate in highly mobile and fluid ways, and are framed in close proximity to the action – particularly when placed on the players themselves. The BBL provides intersecting affective layers for viewer engagement built upon tools for analysis, sites of commodification, visual renditions of pseudo-player perspectives and an emphasis on fast-paced entertainment. By constructing degrees of sensory invigoration and vicarious involvement for both casual and invested viewers, these innovative technologies mobilise ‘smash and bash’ cricket as an affective televisual spectacle.
Broadcast Yourself: An Exploratory Study of Sharing Physical Activity on Social Networking Sites
Authors: Stragier Jeroen , Evens Tom , Mechant Peter
Published: January 2017

This article focuses on the practice of self-tracking of physical activity data and sharing it via social networking sites. The use of wearable technology devices and the latest smartphones with built-in GPS tracking technology – capturing the speed, distance and duration of physical activities such as running and cycling – is a striking example of the trend towards quantifying sports performances. The study explores the determinants and motivations of recreational athletes to share physical activity status updates on the social networking sites Facebook and Twitter. Evidence is drawn from a large-scale survey of 400 users of Strava, a popular fitness app and online community. The results suggest that intrinsic rather than extrinsic motivations determine a person's willingness to share physical activity via social networking sites.
The Curious Case for Media Monopoly in Technology-Driven Sports
Authors: Potts Jason , Thomas Stuart
Published: January 2017

This article examines the effect of technological change (innovation) on sports. We argue that innovation affects a sport through two pathways: sports equipment and sports media. We propose a simple economic model with positive feedback, which predicts that technology-enhanced sports will dominate the sports ecology. There is also the opposite phenomenon of technological overshooting that causes the elite end of a sport to develop much faster than the beginner's end, damaging entry into the sport. We present this model through a case study on windsurfing, illustrating the role of sports media. A surprising result is that the case study suggests a welfare-maximising case for monopoly licensing of sports media in newly emerging sports, or sports with rapidly changing equipment technologies.
There is no fuzziness when it comes to measuring service quality in national parks
Authors: Saayman Melville , Martín Juan Carlos , Román Concepción
Published: January 2017

Nature-based tourism is the leitmotiv for South African National Parks (SANParks) and Kruger National Park is an icon within the system. The mission and vision of SANParks have evolved from pure conservationism to a more recreation- and customer-oriented agent. The aim of this article is to address the issue of service quality (SQ) provided to satisfy the visitors’ needs, demands and expectations. A questionnaire with eight different dimensions and 31 SQ attributes is used to evaluate the SQ for the period April 2012 to March 2013. A method based on a fuzzy multi-criteria decision-making model is applied to dynamically evaluate the SQ in the park. Our results suggest that the SQ differs depending on which time of the year the park is visited, opening an important venue to park managers about whether a price discrimination policy could moderate this observed effect.
Attraction agglomeration and destination appeal
Authors: Bo Zhou , Hailin Qu , Ningqiao Li
Published: January 2017

Using panel data from 225 cities in China over the 2002–2012 period along with dynamic panel data models, this study aims to quantify the impact of attraction agglomeration (AA) on the appeal of a destination at the macrolevel. The study results show that the agglomeration of natural and cultural attractions contributes to destination appeal in domestic tourism markets. The agglomeration of natural, cultural, and man-made attractions enhances destination appeal in international tourism markets. The agglomeration of cultural attractions has the most significant contribution in both domestic and international tourism markets. This study also demonstrates the lock-in effect of AA of a certain type, which means that diversification of attraction type will undermine the benefits of AA of a specific type. The results should help governments and industry organizations plan and develop regional tourism more effectively.
The influence of formal trade agreements and informal economic cooperation on international tourism flows
Authors: Saayman Andrea , Figini Paolo , Cassella Silvio
Published: January 2017

This article aims to contribute to the literature on the effects of trade bloc formation and plurilateral economic cooperation on international tourism flows. This research expands previous findings in the number of countries (58) and types of agreements (formal and informal, global and regional) under investigation in order to (i) capture the effect of both formal trade agreements and plurilateral economic integration on bilateral tourism flows; (ii) test the robustness of previous findings through the use of alternative econometric specifications, estimation techniques and measurement of tourism flows. In this respect, an important feature of this research is the introduction of ‘total tourism’, corresponding to the ‘total trade’ variable in trade studies, as an alternative dependent variable in the specification of the gravity model used throughout the article.
Policy, power, stigma and silence: Exploring the complexities of a primary mental health care model in a rural South African setting
Authors: Burgess Rochelle Ann
Published: January 2017

The Movement for Global Mental Health’s (MGMH) efforts to scale up the availability of mental health services have been moderately successful. Investigations in resource-poor countries like South Africa have pointed to the value of an integrated primary mental health care model and multidisciplinary collaboration to support mental health needs in underserved and underresourced communities. However, there remains a need to explore how these policies play out within the daily realities of communities marked by varied environmental and relational complexities. Arguably, the lived realities of mental health policy and service delivery processes are best viewed through ethnographic approaches, which remain underutilised in the field of global mental health. This paper reports on findings from a case study of mental health services for HIV-affected women in a rural South African setting, which employed a motivated ethnography in order to explore the realities of the primary mental health care model and related policies in South Africa. Findings highlighted the influence of three key symbolic (intangible) factors that impact on the efficacy of the primary mental health care model: power dynamics, which shaped relationships within multidisciplinary teams; stigma, which limited the efficacy of task-shifting strategies; and the silencing of women’s narratives of distress within services. The resultant gap between policy ideals and the reality of practice is discussed. The paper concludes with recommendations for building on existing successes in the delivery of primary mental health care in South Africa.
Beyond temporality: Notes on the anthropology of time from a shrinking fieldsite
Authors: Ringel Felix
Published: January 2017

With the help of ethnographic material from Germany’s fastest shrinking city, I critically engage in this paper with the term ‘temporality’. By bringing together recent insights from the anthropology of time and the future, the literature on post-socialism, and contemporary philosophical debates on the problem of presentism, I pursue a thorough re-conceptualization of time as a matter of knowledge practices. I thereby question the idea of temporality as an inherent quality of anthropology’s objects of inquiry. Beyond temporality, I urge for abandoning such temporal attributions altogether whilst scrutinizing the temporal underpinnings of our own theories and analytics, as manifested in the term post-socialism. I claim that if anthropologists, and other social scientists, want to avoid determinists’ fallacies they should acknowledge that there is, indeed, no need for temporality in their analyses.
Emotional arousal in the making of cultural selves
Authors: Quinn Naomi , Mathews Holly F.
Published: January 2017

The highly variable selves that ethnographers have documented cross-culturally all build upon the universal human self described by neurobiologists. The link between cultural selfhood and this neurally-based self is emotional arousal. Arousal heightens the effect of synaptic plasticity, insuring that clusters of strong associations, or cognitive schemas, result from many fewer repetitions of the arousing experience. There are identifiable types of such predictably arousing experiences cross-culturally, many occurring early in life. While susceptible to individual variation, these are typically based in kinds of experience widespread in groups. Culturally elaborated, these shared experiences result in distinctive cultural selves. The argument is illustrated at length with one of these types, disciplinary childrearing practices. Early attachment, cultural psychodynamic defenses, and several other shared, culturally variable experiences that are predictably emotionally arousing are also considered: unintended consequences of childrearing; separation from primary caretaker(s); trauma of all kinds; rituals such as initiation rites or religious conversion; and cultural idealizations of occasions, institutions, or roles.
Time in early childhood: Creative possibilities with different conceptions of time
Authors: Farquhar Sandy
Published: January 2017

Time is an important driver of pedagogy which is often overlooked in the busy atmosphere of an early childhood centre. Engaging philosophically with three different concepts of time, and drawing examples from literature and art to focus attention on how time is constituted in early childhood centres, this article argues that we inhabit the intersection of several different forms of time. Despite this, we tend to focus on only one form of time – chronological time, a formulation that is at the basis of our western education system. Our understandings of time impact on the way we think about education and the way we teach children. Incorporating different understandings of time in the space of early childhood has transformative potential, the enactment of which is at the heart of a good education. This article accepts the need for young children to be familiar with social conventions to do with time, but also advocates for an expanded subjectivity that flourishes within alternative notions of time.
Shifting temporal frames in children’s common worlds in the Anthropocene
Authors: Pacini-Ketchabaw Veronica , Kummen Kathleen
Published: January 2017

In this article, the authors bring the new temporal theorizations of the Anthropocene into the pedagogical realm by grappling with the shifting time relationships the Anthropocene makes one aware of within the context of children’s common worlds. Using an actively inclusive more-than-human common worlds framework that reassembles worlds by countering the divisive distinction that is often drawn between sociocultural contexts (mostly dominated by clock time) and natural environments, the authors resist the epistemological division between society and/or culture as distinct from nature that underpins post-Enlightenment western thinking in early childhood pedagogies. The authors’ common world pedagogies are primarily interested in the real-life worlds that 21st-century children inherit, inhabit and share with human and more-than-human others. They acknowledge that these lifeworlds are imperfect and complex, and that they come with multiple legacies. In this article, the authors focus on the temporal legacies young children inherit and inhabit in their common worlds.
Interaction of Selective Amino Acid Residues of KCa Channels with Carbon Monoxide
Authors: Wang Rui , Wu Lingyun
Published: January 2017

The activation of big-conductance KCa channels in vascular smooth muscle cells by carbon monoxide (CO) has been demonstrated previously. One specific target of CO on KCa channel proteins is the histidine residue. The roles of other amino acid residues on the functionality of KCa channels, as well as their reactions to CO, have been unclear. In the present study, the cell-free single channel recording technique was used to investigate the chemical modification of KCa channels by CO and other chemical agents. The modification of negatively charged carboxyl groups and the ε-amino group of lysine did not affect the open probability, but decreased single-channel conductance of KCa channels. When sulfhydryl groups of cysteine were modified with N-ethylmaleimide, the open probability of KCa channels was decreased, but single-channel conductance was not affected. None of the above chemical modifications affected the CO-induced increase in the open probability of KCa channels. However, N-ethylmaleimide treatment reduced the stimulatory effect of nitric oxide (NO) on KCa channels. Finally, pretreatment of smooth muscle cells with NO abolished the effects of subsequently applied CO on KCa channel proteins. Our study demonstrates that CO and NO acted on different amino acid residues of KCa channel proteins. The interaction of CO and NO determines the functional status of KCa channels in vascular smooth muscle cells
Adaptive Responses to the Stress Induced by Hyperthermia or Hydrogen Peroxide in Human Fibroblasts
Authors: Grasso S. , Scifo C. , Cardile V. , Gulino R. , Renis M.
Published: January 2017

Perturbation of oxidant/antioxidant cellular balance, induced by cellular metabolism and by exogenous sources, causes deleterious effects to proteins, lipids, and nucleic acids, leading to a condition named “oxidative stress” that is involved in several diseases, such as cancer, ischemia-reperfusion injury, and neurodegenerative disorders. Among the exogenous agents, both H2O2and hyperthermia have been implicated in oxidative stress promotion linked with the activation of apoptotic or necrotic mechanisms of cell death. The goal of this work was to better understand the involvement of some stress-related proteins in adaptive responses mounted by human fibroblasts versus the oxidative stress differently induced by 42°C hyperthermia or H2O2.The research was developed, switching off inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) expression through antisense oligonucleotide transfection by studying the possible coregulation in the expression of HSP32 (also named HO-1), HSP70, and iNOS and their involvement in the induction of DNA damage. Several biochemical parameters, such as cell viability (MTT assay), cell membrane integrity (lactate dehydrogenase release), reactive oxygen species formation, glutathione levels, immunocytochemistry analysis of iNOS, HSP70, and HO-1 levels, genomic DNA fragmentation (HALO/COMET assay), and transmembrane mitochondrial potential (ΔΨ) were examined. Cells were collected immediately at the end of the stress-inducing treatment. The results, confirming the pleiotropic function of i-NOS, indicate that: (i) HO-1/HSP32, HSP70, and iNOS are finely tuned in their expression to contribute all together, in human fibroblasts, in ameliorating the resistance to oxidative stress damage; (ii) ROS exposure, at least in hyperthermia, in human fibroblasts contributes to growth arrest more than to apoptosis activation; and (iii) mitochondrial dysfunction, in presence of iNOS inhibition seems to be clearly involved in apoptotic cell death of human fibroblasts after H2O2treatment, but not after hyperthermia.
Regional Rat Brain Distribution of Heme Oxygenase-1 and Manganese Superoxide Dismutase mRNA: Relevance of Redox Homeostasis in the Aging Processes
Authors: Colombrita Claudia , Calabrese Vittorio , Stella Anna Maria Giuffrida , Mattei Francesca , Alkon Daniel L. , Scapagnini Giovanni
Published: January 2017

Increasing evidence supports the notion that reduction of cellular expression and activity of antioxidant proteins and the resulting increase of oxidative stress are fundamental causes in the aging processes and neurodegenerative diseases. In the present study, we evaluated, in the brains of young and aged rats, the gene expression profiles of two inducible proteins critically involved in the cellular defense against endogenous or exogenous oxidants: heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) and manganese superoxide dismutase-2 (SOD-2). SOD-2 is an essential antioxidant and HO-1 has been reported to be very active in regulating cellular redox homeostasis. Deregulation of these enzymes has been extensively reported to play a crucial role in the pathogenesis of neurodegenerative disorders. To measure the regional distribution of HO-1 and SOD-2 transcript levels in the rat brain, we have developed a real time quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction protocol. Although these two genes presented a highly dissimilar range of expression, with SOD-2 >HO-1, both transcripts were highly expressed in the cerebellum and the hippocampus, showing in a different scale a strikingly parallel distribution gradient. To further investigate the regional brain expression of these mRNAs, we performed in situ hybridization using specific riboprobes. In situ hybridization results showed that both transcripts were highly concentrated in the hippocampus, the cerebellum and some specific regions of the brain cortex. We have also quantified, by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction, the brain expression of HO-1 and SOD-2 mRNAs in middle aged (12 months) and aged (28 months) rats. We found that the hippocampus of aged rats presents a significant down regulation of SOD2 mRNA expression and a parallel upregulation of HO-1 mRNA compared with young (6 months) and middle-aged rats. Furthermore, in the cerebellum of the aged rats, we detected a parallel significant upregulation of both HO-1 and SOD-2 transcripts. These regional age-dependent differences may help to explain the increased susceptibility to oxidative damage in these two brain areas during aging.
Regulation of Heme Oxygenase-1 Gene Expression by Anoxia and Reoxygenation in Primary Rat Hepatocyte Cultures
Authors: Ohlmann Andreas , Giffhorn-Katz Susanne , Becker Ivonne , Katz Norbert , Immenschuh Stephan
Published: January 2017

Heme oxygenase (HO) catalyzes the rate-limiting enzymatic step of heme degradation and regulates the cellular heme content. Gene expression of the inducible isoform of HO, HO-1, is upregulated in response to various oxidative stress stimuli. To investigate the regulatory role of anoxia and reoxygenation (A/R) on hepatic HO-1 gene expression, primary cultures of rat hepatocytes were exposed after an anoxia of 4 hr to normal oxygen tension for various lengths of time. For comparison, gene expression of the noninducible HO isoform, HO-2, and that of the heat-shock protein 70 (HSP70) were determined. During reoxygenation, a marked increase of HO-1 and HSP70 steady-state mRNA levels was observed, whereas no alteration of HO-2 mRNA levels occurred. Corresponding to HO-1 mRNA, an increase of HO-1 protein expression was determined by Western blot analysis. The anoxia-dependent induction of HO-1 was prevented by pretreatment with the transcription inhibitor, actinomycin D, but not by the protein synthesis inhibitor, cycloheximide, suggesting a transcriptional regulatory mechanism. After exposure of hepatocytes to anoxia, the relative levels of oxidized glutathione increased within the first 40 min of reoxygenation. Pretreament of cell cultures with the antioxidant agents, β-carotene and allopurinol, before exposure to A/R led to a marked decrease of HO-1 and HSP70 mRNA expression during reoxygenation. An even more pronounced reduction of mRNA expression was observed after exposure to desferrioxamine. Taken together, the data demonstrate that HO-1 gene expression in rat hepatocyte cultures after A/R is upregulated by a transcriptional mechanism that may be, in part, mediated via the generation of ROS and the glutathione system.
A Dietary Supplement Abolishes Age-Related Cognitive Decline in Transgenic Mice Expressing Elevated Free Radical Processes
Authors: Lemon J.A. , Boreham D.R. , Rollo C.D.
Published: January 2017

We previously found that transgenic mice overexpressing growth hormone (TGM) have elevated and progressively increasing free radical processes in brain that strongly correlates with reduced survivorship. Young mature TGM, however, displayed vastly enhanced learning of an eight-choice cued maze and qualitatively different learning curves than normal controls. Here we document the age-related patterns in learning ability of TGM and normal mice. Learning appeared inferior in both genotypes of very young mice but TGM were confirmed to be superior to normal mice upon maturity. Older TGM, however, showed rapid age-related loss of their exceptional learning, whereas normal mice at 1 year of age showed little change. The cognitive decline of TGM was abolished by a complex “anti-aging” dietary supplement formulated to promote membrane and mitochondrial integrity, increase insulin sensitivity, reduce reactive oxygen and nitrogen species, and ameliorate inflammation. Results are discussed in the context of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species, long-term potentiation, learning, aging and neuropathology, based on known impacts of the growth hormone axis on the brain, and characteristics of TGM.
The Complete Genome Sequence of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus Strain HKU-39849 (HK-39)
Authors: Zeng F.Y. , Chan C.W.M. , Chan M.N. , Chen J.D. , Chow K.Y.C. , Hon C.C. , Hui K.H. , Li J. , Li V.Y.Y. , Wang C.Y. , Wang P.Y. , Guan Y. , Zheng B. , Poon L.L.M. , Chan K.H. , Yuen K.Y. , Peiris J.S.M. , Leung F.C.
Published: January 2017

The complete genomic nucleotide sequence (29.7kb) of a Hong Kong severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) coronavirus (SARS-CoV) strain HK-39 is determined. Phylogenetic analysis of the genomic sequence reveals it to be a distinct member of the Coronaviridae family. 5′ RACE assay confirms the presence of at least six subgenomic transcripts all containing the predicted intergenic sequences. Five open reading frames (ORFs), namely ORF1a, 1b, S, M, and N, are found to be homologues to other CoV members, and three more unknown ORFs (X1, X2, and X3) are unparalleled in all other known CoV species. Optimal alignment and computer analysis of the homologous ORFs has predicted the characteristic structural and functional domains on the putative genes. The overall nucleotides conservation of the homologous ORFs is low (<5%) compared with other known CoVs, implying that HK-39 is a newly emergent SARS-CoV phylogenetically distant from other known members. SimPlot analysis supports this finding, and also suggests that this novel virus is not a product of a recent recombinant from any of the known characterized CoVs. Together, these results confirm that HK-39 is a novel and distinct member of the Coronaviridae family, with unknown origin. The completion of the genomic sequence of the virus will assist in tracing its origin.
Targeted Ablation of Prostate Carcinoma Cells Through LH Receptor Using Hecate-CGβ Conjugate: Functional Characteristic and Molecular Mechanism of Cell Death Pathway
Authors: Bodek Gabriel , Kowalczyk Anna , Waclawik Agnieszka , Huhtaniemi Ilpo , Ziecik Adam J.
Published: January 2017

A Hecate-CGβ conjugate (lytic peptide and β-chorionic gonadotropin) selectively destroyed cells possessing LH receptors. This study described functional characteristics of the conjugate and the molecular mechanism of the cell death pathway in prostate cancer cells. Based on in vitro studies, we conclude that the conjugate kills cells possessing luteinizing hormone receptors (LHR) faster than Hecate alone. Competitive studies have shown that blocking of LHR by preincubation with chorionic gonadotropin (100 ng/ml) reduced toxicity of the conjugate in low concentrations. Further studies have also shown that the conjugate in treated cells both did not induce internucleosomal DNA fragmentation and did not induce morphological changes in cells characterized as having apoptotic features. These results proved that cells died by necrosis rather than apoptosis after the conjugate treatment.
A Review of Animal Model Studies of Tomato Carotenoids, Lycopene, and Cancer Chemoprevention
Authors: Cohen Leonard A.
Published: January 2017

There are relatively few reports on the cancer chemopreventive effects of lycopene or tomato carotenoids in animal models. The majority, but not all, of these studies indicate a protective effect. Inhibitory effects were reported in two studies using aberrant crypt foci, an intermediate lesion leading to colon cancer, as an end point and in two mammary tumor studies, one using the dimethylbenz(a)anthracene model, and the other the spontaneous mouse model. Inhibitory effects were also reported in mouse lung and rat hepatocarcinoma and bladder cancer models. However, a report from the author's laboratory found no effect in the N-nitrosomethylurea-induced mammary tumor model when crystalline lycopene or a lycopene-rich tomato carotenoid oleoresin was administered in the diet. Unfortunately, because of differences in routes of administration (gavage, intraperitoneal injection, intra-rectal instillation, drinking water, and diet supplementation), species and strain differences, form of lycopene (pure crystalline, beadlet, mixed carotenoid suspension), varying diets (grain-based, casein based) and dose ranges (0.5–500 ppm), no two studies are comparable. It is clear that the majority of Ingested lycopene is excreted in the feces and that 1000-fold more lycopene is absorbed and stored in the liver than accumulates in other target organs. Nonetheless, physiologically significant (nanogram) levels of lycopene are assimilated by key organs such as breast, prostate, lung, and colon, and there is a rough dose-response relationship between lycopene intake and blood levels. Pure lycopene was absorbed less efficiently than the lycopene-rich tomato carotenoid oleoresin and blood levels of lycopene in rats fed a grain-based diet were consistently lower than those in rats fed lycopene in a casein-based diet. The latter suggests that the matrix in which lycopene is incorporated is an important determinant of lycopene uptake. A number of issues remain to be resolved before any definitive conclusions can be drawn concerning the anticancer effects of lycopene. These include the following: the optimal dose and form of lycopene, interactions among lycopene and other carotenoids and fat soluble vitamins such as vitamin E and D, the role of dietary fat in regulating lycopene uptake and disposition, organ and tissue specificity, and the problem of extrapolation from rodent models to human populations.
Lycopene, Atherosclerosis, and Coronary Heart Disease
Authors: Rissanen Tiina , Voutilainen Sari , Nyyssönen Kristhna , Salonen Jukka T.
Published: January 2017

Diets rich in fruits and vegetables containing carotenoids have been of interest because of their potential health benefit against chronic diseases such as cardiovascular diseases (CVD) and cancer. Interest particularly in lycopene is growing rapidly following the recent publication of epidemiological studies that have associated high lycopene levels with reductions in CVD incidence. Two studies were conducted. In the first one, we examined the role of lycopene as a risk-lowering factor with regard to acute coronary events and stroke in the prospective Kuopio Ischemic Heart Disease Risk Factor (KIHD) Study. The subjects were 725 middle-aged men free of coronary heart disease and stroke at the study baseline. In a Cox's proportional hazards' model adjusting for covariates, men in the lowest quartile of serum levels of lycopene had a 3.3-fold (P < 0.001) risk of the acute coronary event or stroke as compared with others. In the second study, we assessed the association between plasma concentration of lycopene and intima-media thickness of the common carotid artery wall (CCA-IMT) in a cross-sectional analysis of the Antioxidant Supplementation in the Atherosclerosis Prevention (ASAP) study data in 520 asymptomatic men and women. In a covariance analysis adjusting for common cardiovascular risk factors, low plasma levels of lycopene were associated with an 18% Increase of IMT in men as compared with men in whom plasma levels were higher than median (P = 0.003 for difference). In women, the difference did not remain significant after the adjustments. On the basis of these works, it is evident that the circulating levels of lycopene play some role with regard to cardiovascular health in Finland, at least in men. We conclude that circulating levels of lycopene, a biomarker of tomato-rich food, may play a role in early stages of atherogenesis and may have clinical and public health relevance.
Renal Dopamine Receptors and Hypertension
Authors: Hussain Tahir , Lokhandwala Mustafa F.
Published: January 2017

Dopamine has been recognized as an important modulator of central as well as peripheral physiologic functions in both humans and animals. Dopamine receptors have been identified in a number of organs and tissues, which Include several regions within the central nervous system, sympathetic ganglia and postganglionic nerve terminals, various vascular beds, the heart, the gastrointestinal tract, and the kidney. The peripheral dopamine receptors influence cardiovascular and renal function by decreasing afterload and vascular resistance and promoting sodium excretion. Within the kidney, dopamine receptors are present along the nephron, with highest density on proximal tubule epithelial cells. It has been reported that there is a defective dopamine receptor, especially D1receptor function, in the proximal tubule of various animal models of hypertension as well as in humans with essential hypertension. Recent reports have revealed the site of and the molecular mechanisms responsible for the defect in D1receptors in hypertension. Moreover, recent studies have also demonstrated that the disruption of various dopamine receptor subtypes and their function produces hypertension in rodents. In this review, we present evidence that dopamine and dopamine receptors play an important role in regulating renal sodium excretion and that defective renal dopamine production and/or dopamine receptor function may contribute to the development of various forms of hypertension.
Mammary Gland Morphogenesis is Enhanced by Exposure to Flaxseed or Its Major Lignan During Suckling in Rats
Authors: Tan Kah Poh , Chen Jianmin , Ward Wendy E. , Thompson Lilian U.
Published: January 2017

The exposure of rats to 10% flaxseed (FS) or an equivalent level of its major lignan, secoisolariciresinol diglucoside (SDG), during suckling enhances mammary gland differentiation, which protects against mammary carcinogenesis at adulthood. We determined whether this diet-induced mammary gland differentiation is mediated through the estrogenic pathway via epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and estrogen receptor (ER) signaling. Rats were fed the AIN-93G basal diet (BD) from day 7 of pregnancy until delivery and then randomized to consume BID, FS, or SDG during lactation. After weaning, female offspring were fed BD throughout the experiment. At postnatal day (PND) 21 and the proestrus phase on PND 49-51, mammary glands of offspring were analyzed for morphology, cell proliferation, and expression of EGFR, epidermal growth factor (EGF), transforming growth factor-α, ER-α, and ER-ß. At PND 21, compared with the BD control, the number of terminal end buds (TEBs) and terminal ducts were increased by FS, whereas mammary epithelial cell proliferation was increased by both FS and SDG, suggesting that mammary morphogenesis was enhanced. Epithelial EGFR and stromal fibroblast EGF were increased by SDG, whereas epithelial ER-ß was decreased by FS. Conversely, at PND 49-51, a lower number of TEBs but a higher ratio of lobules to TEBs with decreased expression of EGFR or EGF was observed in both treatment groups. EGFR expression was positively associated with EGF expression and cell proliferation in TEB epithelium at PND 21. Urinary lignans of lactating dams were related to their offspring's indices of mammary gland development. In conclusion, exposure to FS or SDG during suckling enhanced mammary gland morphogenesis by modulation of EGFR and ER signaling, which led to more differentiated mammary glands at PND 49-51. The physiological outcomes of FS and SDG were similar, which suggests that SDG is partly responsible for the mammary gland differentiation effect.
Mechanisms of Oxygen Demand/Supply Balance in the Right Ventricle
Authors: Zong Pu , Tune Johnathan D. , Downey H. Fred
Published: January 2017

Few studies have investigated factors responsible for the O2demand/supply balance in the right ventricle. Resting right coronary blood flow is lower than left coronary blood flow, which Is consistent with the lesser work of the right ventricle. Because right and left coronary artery perfusion pressures are Identical, right coronary conductance is less than left coronary conductance, but the signal relating this conductance to the lower right ventricular O2demand has not been defined. At rest, the left ventricle extracts ~75% of the O2delivered by coronary blood flow, whereas right ventricular O2extraction Is only ~50%. As a result, resting right coronary venous PO2is ~30 mm Hg, whereas left coronary venous PO2is ~20 mm Hg. Right coronary conductance does not sufficiently restrict flow to force the right ventricle to extract the same percentage of O2as the left ventricle. Endogenous nitric oxide impacts the right ventricular O2demand/supply balance by increasing the right coronary blood flow at rest and during acute pulmonary hypertension, systemic hypoxia, norepinephrine infusion, and coronary hypoperfusion. The substantial right ventricular O2extraction reserve is used preferentially during exercise-induced increases in right ventricular myocardial O2consumption. An augmented, sympathetic-mediated vasoconstrictor tone blunts metabolically mediated dilator mechanisms during exercise and forces the right ventricle to mobilize its O2extraction reserve, but this tone does not limit resting right coronary flow. During exercise, right coronary vasodilation does not occur until right coronary venous PO2decreases to ~20 mm Hg. The mechanism responsible for right coronary vasodilation at low PO2has not been delineated. In the poorly autoregulating right coronary circulation, reduced coronary pressure unloads the coronary hydraulic skeleton and reduces right ventricular systolic stiffness. Thus, normal right ventricular external work and O2demand/supply balance can be maintained during moderate coronary hypoperfusion.
Production of Modified C-Reactive Protein in U937-Derived Macrophages
Authors: Ciubotaru Irina , Potempa Lawrence A. , Wander Rosemary C.
Published: January 2017

Plasma C-reactive protein (CRP) has been proposed to be a strong independent predictor for cardiovascular disease. This circulating form of CRP (native CRP or nCRP) is well described. Recently, the existence of a conformationally distinct isoform of CRP (modified CRP or mCRP) has been reported. The relevance of each CRP isoform to atherosclerotic disease is unknown. The purpose of this study was to examine the natural expression of CRP in undifferentiated, differentiated, and stimulated macrophages, cells known to contribute to atherogenesis in vivo, and to determine whether transcribed CRP was expressed as nCRP or mCRP. Macrophages were generated from U937 monocytes using phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate. Differentiated macrophages were further stimulated with lipopolysaccharides (LPS). In undifferentiated, differentiated, and stimulated cells, CRP expression was assessed by reverse transcription–polymerase chain reaction, and CRP protein production was measured by fluorescence microscopy and flow cytometry (cellular CRP) or high-sensitivity enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (secreted CRP). CRP transcript was minimally expressed in undifferentiated cells. Expression increased markedly in macrophages during differentiation and was not affected by LPS at 24 hrs. Cellular CRP protein increased in a time-dependent manner after LPS stimulation, and this induction was mediated via interleukin (IL)-6 and IL-1β. A small amount of secreted CRP was detected in the media of differentiated cells, but it was not significantly increased after LPS stimulation. Using specific monoclonal antibodies, our data indicate that cellular CRP is directly translated as the mCRP rather than the nCRP isomer. These results indicate that U937-derived macrophages are a good cell model to further study the production of mCRP under conditions relevant for the atherogenic process.
The Physiological Roles of Extracellular Metallothionein
Authors: Lynes Michael A. , Zaffuto Kristin , Unfricht Darryn W. , Marusov Gregory , Samson Jacqueline S. , Yin Xiuyun
Published: January 2017

Metallothionein (MT) is a low-molecular-weight protein with a number of roles to play in cellular homeostasis. MT is synthesized as a consequence of a variety of cellular stressors, and has been found in both intracellular compartments and in extracellular spaces. The intracellular pool of this cysteine-rich protein can act as a reservoir of essential heavy metals, as a scavenger of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species, as an antagonist of toxic metals and organic molecules, and as a regulator of transcription factor activity. The presence of MT outside of cells due to the Influence of stressors suggests that this protein may make important contributions as a “danger signal” that influences the management of responses to cellular damage. While conventional wisdom has held that extracellular MT is the result of cell death or leakage from stressed cells, there are numerous examples of selective release of proteins by nontraditional mechanisms, including stress response proteins. This suggests that MT may similarly be selectively released, and that the pool of extracellular MT represents an important regulator of various cellular functions. For example, extracellular MT has effects both on the severity of autoimmune disease, and on the development of adaptive immune functions. Extracellular MT may operate as a chemotactic factor that governs the trafficking of inflammatory cells that move to resolve damaged tissues, as a counter to extracellular oxidant-mediated damage, and as a signal that influences the functional behavior of wounded cells. A thorough understanding of the mechanisms of MT release from cells, the conditions under which MT is released to the extracellular environment, and the ways in which MT Interacts with sensitive cells may both illuminate our understanding of an important control mechanism that operates in stressful conditions, and should indicate new opportunities for therapeutic management via the manipulation of this pool of extracellular MT.
Hepatocytes Detoxify Atuna racemosa Extract
Authors: Buenz Eric J.
Published: January 2017

A number of traditional medicine plants are hepatotoxic. Thus, while the traditional uses of Atuna racemosa suggest little indication for toxicity, it is nonetheless important to examine the potential for this extract to target the liver. Using Jurkat T cells and HepG2 hepatocytes as a model, the potential hepatotoxicity of this extract was evaluated. The results of a conditioned media experiment suggest that A. racemosa extract would likely be detoxified by the liver. These results provide the necessary background to Initiate an in vivo toxicology investigation.
Epoxyeicosatrienoic Acid Inhibition Alters Renal Hemodynamics During Pregnancy
Authors: Huang Hui , Chang Hsin-Hsin , Xu Yue , Reddy D. Sudarshan , Du Juan , Zhou Yiqiang , Dong Zheng , Falck John R. , Wang Mong-Heng
Published: January 2017

In this study we examined the expression of cytochrome P450 (CYP) 2C and CYP2J Isoforms in renal proximal tubules and microvessels isolated from rats at different stages of pregnancy. We also selectively inhibited epoxyeicosatrienoic acid (EET) production by the administration of N-methanesulfonyl-6-(2-proparyloxyphenyl)hexanamide (MSPPOH 20 mg/kg/day iv) to rats during Days 14–17 of gestation and to age-matched virgin rats and determined the consequent effects on renal function. Western blot analysis showed that CYP2C11, CYP2C23, and CYP2J2 expression was significantly increased in the renal microvessels of pregnant rats on Day 12 of gestation. In the proximal tubules, CYP2C23 expression was significantly increased throughout pregnancy, while the expression of CYP2C11 was increased in early and late pregnancy and the expression of CYP2J2 was increased in middle and late pregnancy. MSPPOH treatment significantly Increased pregnant rats’ mean arterial pressure, renal vascular resistance, and sodium balance but significantly decreased renal blood flow, glomerular filtration rate, and urinary sodium excretion, as well as fetal pups’ body weight and length. In contrast, MSPPOH treatment had no effect on renal hemodynamics or urinary sodium excretion in age-matched virgin rats. In pregnant rats, MSPPOH treatment also caused selective inhibition of renal cortical EET production and significantly decreased the expression of CYP2C11, CYP2C23, and CYP2J2 in the renal cortex, renal microvessels, and proximal tubules. These results suggest that upregulation of renal vascular and tubular EETs contributes to the control of blood pressure and renal function during pregnancy.
Revisiting the Rationing of Medical Degrees in the United States
Authors: Jenkins Tania M. , Reddy Shalini
Published: January 2017

Degree rationing is good for U.S. med school graduates, even as it exacerbates physician shortages.
Activating Politics with Poetry and Spoken Word
Authors: Chepp Valerie
Published: January 2017

Millennial activism, so often maligned, finds new purchase in a revival of spoken word poetry as an adaptable advocacy, organizing, and mobilizing tool.
Antwerp’s Appetite for African Hands
Authors: Folsom Jenny
Published: January 2017

The hand is a symbol, to most in Antwerp, of resilience, but it is also a dark, omnipresent reminder of the brutality of Belgian rule in the Congo.
Mapping Where the Girls Are
Authors: Brush Lisa D.
Published: January 2017

Peggy Orenstein’s book, Girls & Sex, is reviewed, with attention to its framing of sexualization of girls and women and approaches to unraveling American “rape culture.”
The Year English Soccer Wasn’t For Sale
Authors: Lindner Andrew M. , Larson Ryan P.
Published: January 2017

In the 2015/2016 season, the close link between big budgets and soccer dominance broke down in the English Premier League. Here, a look at what motivated the surprise and why American-style sport socialism still isn’t likely to emerge in European leagues.
Out of the Closet, Onto the Field?
Authors: Veliz Philip
Published: January 2017

Data show that sport remains a heterosexual domain, even as sexual minority youth participation in sport sees modest gains.