bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Metabolic profiling of kidney and urine in rats with lithium-induced nephrogenic diabetes insipidus by1H-NMR-based metabonomics
Authors: Hwang Geum-Sook , Yang Ji-Young , Ryu Do Hyun , Kwon Tae-Hwan
Published: November 2009

Lithium (Li) treatment for bipolar affective disorders is associated with a variety of renal side effects. The metabolic response of the kidney to chronic Li treatment has rarely been studied. We applied a novel method of1H-nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR)-based metabonomics to integrate metabolic profiling and to identify the changes in the levels of metabolites in the kidney and urine from rats with Li-induced NDI. Metabolic profiles of urine and kidney homogenate [3 different zones (cortex, outer medulla, and inner medulla) or whole kidney] were investigated using high-resolution NMR spectroscopy coupled with pattern recognition methods. The accurate concentrations of metabolites in kidney homogenates and urine were rapidly measured using the target-profiling procedure, and the difference in the levels of metabolites was compared using multivariate analysis, such as principal component analysis and orthogonal partial least squares-discriminant analysis. Major endogenous metabolites for kidney homogenates contained products of glycolysis (glucose, lactate) and amino acids, as well as organic osmolytes (e.g., betaine, myo-inositol, taurine, and glycerophosphocholine). Many metabolites revealed changes in their levels, including decreased levels of organic osmolytes and amino acids in the inner medulla. A number of urinary metabolites were changed in Li-induced NDI, and in particular, elevated urinary levels of acetate, lactate, allantoin, trimethylamine, and creatine could suggest Li-induced renal cell stress or injury. Taken together, metabonomics of kidney tissue and urine based on1H-NMR spectroscopy could provide insight into the effects of Li-induced renal effects and cell injury.
Endurance training reduces renal vasoconstriction to orthostatic stress
Authors: Conboy Erin E. , Fogelman Amy E. , Sauder Charity L. , Ray Chester A.
Published: November 2009

Endurance training has been associated with increased orthostatic intolerance. The purpose of the present study was to test the hypothesis that endurance training reduces renal vasoconstriction to orthostatic stress. Blood pressure, heart rate, and renal blood flow velocity were measured during a 25-min 60° head-up tilt (HUT) test before and after 8 wk of endurance training in eight healthy sedentary subjects (26 ± 1 yrs). Training elicited a 21 ± 3% increase in peak oxygen uptake (V̇o2peak) and a reduction in heart rate at rest of 8 ± 2 beats/min. During HUT, heart rate progressively increased (∼20 beats/min) over the 25-min HUT trial both before and after training. Systolic arterial blood pressure during HUT was unchanged with training, whereas diastolic arterial blood pressure was lower at the end of HUT after training. Before training renal blood flow velocity (Δ14 ± 5 cm/s) and renal vascular conductance (Δ22 ± 7%) decreased during HUT, whereas after training renal blood flow velocity (Δ2 ± 5 cm/s) and renal vascular conductance (Δ1 ± 12%) did not change significantly during HUT. Renal blood flow velocity and vascular conductance responses to HUT did not change in control subjects during the 8-wk period. These results demonstrate that endurance training reduces renal vasoconstriction during an orthostatic challenge and may contribute to training-induced orthostatic intolerance.
Attenuation of renal excretory responses to ANG II during inhibition of superoxide dismutase in anesthetized rats
Authors: Khan Md. Abdul Hye , Islam Mohammed Toriqul , Castillo Alexander , Majid Dewan Syed Abdul
Published: November 2009

To examine the functional interaction between superoxide dismutase (SOD) and NADPH oxidase activity, we assessed renal responses to acute intra-arterial infusion of ANG II (0.5 ng·kg−1·min−1) before and during administration of a SOD inhibitor, diethyldithiocarbamate (DETC, 0.5 mg·kg−1·min−1), in enalaprilat-pretreated (33 μg·kg−1·min−1) rats ( n = 11). Total (RBF) and regional (cortical, CBF; medullary; MBF) renal blood flows were determined by Transonic and laser-Doppler flowmetry, respectively. Renal cortical and medullary tissue NADPH oxidase activity in vitro was determined using the lucigenin-chemiluminescence method. DETC treatment alone resulted in decreases in RBF, CBF, MBF, glomerular filtration rate (GFR), urine flow (V), and sodium excretion (UNaV) as reported previously. Before DETC, ANG II infusion decreased RBF (−18 ± 3%), CBF (−16 ± 3%), MBF [−5 ± 6%; P = not significant (NS)], GFR (−31 ± 4%), V (−34 ± 2%), and UNaV (−53 ± 3%). During DETC infusion, ANG II also caused similar reductions in RBF (−20 ± 4%), CBF (−19 ± 3%), MBF (−2 ± 2; P = NS), and in GFR (−22 ± 7%), whereas renal excretory responses (V; −12 ± 2%; UNaV; −24 ± 4%) were significantly attenuated compared with those before DETC. In in vitro experiments, ANG II (100 μM) enhanced NADPH oxidase activity both in cortical [13,194 ± 1,651 vs. 20,914 ± 2,769 relative light units (RLU)/mg protein] and in medullary (21,296 ± 2,244 vs. 30,597 ± 4,250 RLU/mg protein) tissue. Application of DETC (1 mM) reduced the basal levels and prevented ANG II-induced increases in NADPH oxidase activity in both tissues. These results demonstrate that renal excretory responses to acute ANG II administration are attenuated during SOD inhibition, which seems related to a downregulation of NADPH oxidase in the deficient condition of SOD activity.
Physiology and pathophysiology of the calcium-sensing receptor in the kidney
Authors: Riccardi Daniela , Brown Edward M.
Published: November 2009

The extracellular calcium-sensing receptor (CaSR) plays a major role in the maintenance of a physiological serum ionized calcium (Ca2+) concentration by regulating the circulating levels of parathyroid hormone. It was molecularly identified in 1993 by Brown et al. in the laboratory of Dr. Steven Hebert with an expression cloning strategy. Subsequent studies have demonstrated that the CaSR is highly expressed in the kidney, where it is capable of integrating signals deriving from the tubular fluid and/or the interstitial plasma. Additional studies elucidating inherited and acquired mutations in the CaSR gene, the existence of activating and inactivating autoantibodies, and genetic polymorphisms of the CaSR have greatly enhanced our understanding of the role of the CaSR in mineral ion metabolism. Allosteric modulators of the CaSR are the first drugs in their class to become available for clinical use and have been shown to treat successfully hyperparathyroidism secondary to advanced renal failure. In addition, preclinical and clinical studies suggest the possibility of using such compounds in various forms of hypercalcemic hyperparathyroidism, such as primary and lithium-induced hyperparathyroidism and that occurring after renal transplantation. This review addresses the role of the CaSR in kidney physiology and pathophysiology as well as current and in-the-pipeline treatments utilizing CaSR-based therapeutics.
Auditory Temporal Acuity Probed With Cochlear Implant Stimulation and Cortical Recording
Authors: Kirby Alana E. , Middlebrooks John C.
Published: November 2009

Cochlear implants stimulate the auditory nerve with amplitude-modulated (AM) electric pulse trains. Pulse rates >2,000 pulses per second (pps) have been hypothesized to enhance transmission of temporal information. Recent studies, however, have shown that higher pulse rates impair phase locking to sinusoidal AM in the auditory cortex and impair perceptual modulation detection. Here, we investigated the effects of high pulse rates on the temporal acuity of transmission of pulse trains to the auditory cortex. In anesthetized guinea pigs, signal-detection analysis was used to measure the thresholds for detection of gaps in pulse trains at rates of 254, 1,017, and 4,069 pps and in acoustic noise. Gap-detection thresholds decreased by an order of magnitude with increases in pulse rate from 254 to 4,069 pps. Such a pulse-rate dependence would likely influence speech reception through clinical speech processors. To elucidate the neural mechanisms of gap detection, we measured recovery from forward masking after a 196.6-ms pulse train. Recovery from masking was faster at higher carrier pulse rates and masking increased linearly with current level. We fit the data with a dual-exponential recovery function, consistent with a peripheral and a more central process. High-rate pulse trains evoked less central masking, possibly due to adaptation of the response in the auditory nerve. Neither gap detection nor forward masking varied with cortical depth, indicating that these processes are likely subcortical. These results indicate that gap detection and modulation detection are mediated by two separate neural mechanisms.
Selective Involvement of Superior Frontal Cortex During Working Memory for Shapes
Authors: Yee Lydia T. S. , Roe Katherine , Courtney Susan M.
Published: November 2009

A spatial/nonspatial functional dissociation between the dorsal and ventral visual pathways is well established and has formed the basis of domain-specific theories of prefrontal cortex (PFC). Inconsistencies in the literature regarding prefrontal organization, however, have led to questions regarding whether the nature of the dissociations observed in PFC during working memory are equivalent to those observed in the visual pathways for perception. In particular, the dissociation between dorsal and ventral PFC during working memory for locations versus object identities has been clearly present in some studies but not in others, seemingly in part due to the type of objects used. The current study compared functional MRI activation during delayed-recognition tasks for shape or color, two object features considered to be processed by the ventral pathway for perceptual recognition. Activation for the shape-delayed recognition task was greater than that for the color task in the lateral occipital cortex, in agreement with studies of visual perception. Greater memory-delay activity was also observed, however, in the parietal and superior frontal cortices for the shape than for the color task. Activity in superior frontal cortex was associated with better performance on the shape task. Conversely, greater delay activity for color than for shape was observed in the left anterior insula and this activity was associated with better performance on the color task. These results suggest that superior frontal cortex contributes to performance on tasks requiring working memory for object identities, but it represents different information about those objects than does the ventral frontal cortex.
Molecular Time
Authors: Martino Tami A. , Sole Michael J.
Published: November 2009

Abstract:

Diurnal rhythms influence cardiovascular physiology such as heart rate and blood pressure and the incidence of adverse cardiac events such as heart attack and stroke. For example, shift workers and patients with sleep disturbances, such as obstructive sleep apnea, have an increased risk of heart attack, stroke, and sudden death. Diurnal variation is also evident at the molecular level, as gene expression in the heart and blood vessels is remarkably different in the day as compared to the night. Much of the evidence presented here indicates that growth and renewal (structural remodeling) are highly dependent on processes that occur during the subjective night. Myocardial metabolism is also dynamic with substrate preference also differing day from night. The risk/benefit ratio of some therapeutic strategies and the appearance of biomarkers also vary across the 24-hour diurnal cycle. Synchrony between external and internal diurnal rhythms and harmony among the molecular rhythms within the cell is essential for normal organ biology. Cell physiology is 4 dimensional; the substrate and enzymatic components of a given metabolic pathway must be present not only in the right compartmental space within the cell but also at the right time. As a corollary, we show disrupting this integral relationship has devastating effects on cardiovascular, renal and possibly other organ systems. Harmony between our biology and our environment is vital to good health.
Phase Locking Below Rate Threshold in Noisy Model Neurons
Authors: Freund Jan A. , Nikitin Alexander , Stocks Nigel G.
Published: November 2009

The property of a neuron to phase-lock to an oscillatory stimulus before adapting its spike rate to the stimulus frequency plays an important role for the auditory system. We investigate under which conditions neurons exhibit this phase locking below rate threshold. To this end, we simulate neurons employing the widely used leaky integrate-and-fire (LIF) model. Tuning parameters, we can arrange either an irregular spontaneous or a tonic spiking mode. When the neuron is stimulated in both modes, a significant rise of vector strength prior to a noticeable change of the spike rate can be observed. Combining analytic reasoning with numerical simulations, we trace this observation back to a modulation of interspike intervals, which itself requires spikes to be only loosely coupled. We test the limits of this conception by simulating an LIF model with threshold fatigue, which generates pronounced anticorrelations between subsequent interspike intervals. In addition we evaluate the LIF response for harmonic stimuli of various frequencies and discuss the extension to more complex stimuli. It seems that phase locking below rate threshold occurs generically for all zero mean stimuli. Finally, we discuss our findings in the context of stimulus detection.
Population Models of Temporal Differentiation
Authors: Tripp Bryan P. , Eliasmith Chris
Published: November 2009

Temporal derivatives are computed by a wide variety of neural circuits, but the problem of performing this computation accurately has received little theoretical study. Here we systematically compare the performance of diverse networks that calculate derivatives using cell-intrinsic adaptation and synaptic depression dynamics, feedforward network dynamics, and recurrent network dynamics. Examples of each type of network are compared by quantifying the errors they introduce into the calculation and their rejection of high-frequency input noise. This comparison is based on both analytical methods and numerical simulations with spiking leaky-integrate-and-fire (LIF) neurons. Both adapting and feedforward-network circuits provide good performance for signals with frequency bands that are well matched to the time constants of postsynaptic current decay and adaptation, respectively. The synaptic depression circuit performs similarly to the adaptation circuit, although strictly speaking, precisely linear differentiation based on synaptic depression is not possible, because depression scales synaptic weights multiplicatively. Feedback circuits introduce greater errors than functionally equivalent feedforward circuits, but they have the useful property that their dynamics are determined by feedback strength. For this reason, these circuits are better suited for calculating the derivatives of signals that evolve on timescales outside the range of membrane dynamics and, possibly, for providing the wide range of timescales needed for precise fractional-order differentiation.
Regularization Techniques and Suboptimal Solutions to Optimization Problems in Learning from Data
Authors: Gnecco Giorgio , Sanguineti Marcello
Published: November 2009

Various regularization techniques are investigated in supervised learning from data. Theoretical features of the associated optimization problems are studied, and sparse suboptimal solutions are searched for. Rates of approximate optimization are estimated for sequences of suboptimal solutions formed by linear combinations of n-tuples of computational units, and statistical learning bounds are derived. As hypothesis sets, reproducing kernel Hilbert spaces and their subsets are considered.
A Continuous Entropy Rate Estimator for Spike Trains Using a K-Means-Based Context Tree
Authors: Lin Tiger W. , Reeke George N.
Published: November 2009

Entropy rate quantifies the change of information of a stochastic process (Cover & Thomas, 2006 ). For decades, the temporal dynamics of spike trains generated by neurons has been studied as a stochastic process (Barbieri, Quirk, Frank, Wilson, & Brown, 2001 ; Brown, Frank, Tang, Quirk, & Wilson, 1998 ; Kass & Ventura, 2001 ; Metzner, Koch, Wessel, & Gabbiani, 1998 ; Zhang, Ginzburg, McNaughton, & Sejnowski, 1998 ). We propose here to estimate the entropy rate of a spike train from an inhomogeneous hidden Markov model of the spike intervals. The model is constructed by building a context tree structure to lay out the conditional probabilities of various subsequences of the spike train. For each state in the Markov chain, we assume a gamma distribution over the spike intervals, although any appropriate distribution may be employed as circumstances dictate. The entropy and confidence intervals for the entropy are calculated from bootstrapping samples taken from a large raw data sequence. The estimator was first tested on synthetic data generated by multiple-order Markov chains, and it always converged to the theoretical Shannon entropy rate (except in the case of a sixth-order model, where the calculations were terminated before convergence was reached). We also applied the method to experimental data and compare its performance with that of several other methods of entropy estimation.
Disentangling the Impact of ENSO and Indian Ocean Variability on the Regional Climate of Bangladesh: Implications for Cholera Risk
Authors: Cash Benjamin A. , Rodó Xavier , Kinter James L. , Yunus Md
Published: November 2009

Recent studies arising from both statistical analysis and dynamical disease models indicate that there is a link between the incidence of cholera, a paradigmatic waterborne bacterial illness endemic to Bangladesh, and the El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO). Cholera incidence typically increases following boreal winter El Niño events for the period 1973–2001. Observational and model analyses find that Bangladesh summer rainfall is enhanced following winter El Niño events, providing a plausible physical link between El Niño and cholera incidence. However, rainfall and cholera incidence do not increase following every winter El Niño event. Substantial variations in Bangladesh precipitation also occur in simulations in which identical sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies are prescribed in the central and eastern tropical Pacific. Bangladesh summer precipitation is thus not uniquely determined by forcing from the tropical Pacific, with significant implications for predictions of cholera risk.

Nonparametric statistical analysis is used to identify regions of SST anomalies associated with variations in Bangladesh rainfall in an ensemble of pacemaker simulations. The authors find that differences in the response of Bangladesh summer precipitation to winter El Niño events are strongly associated with the persistence of warm SST anomalies in the central Pacific. Also there are significant differences in the SST patterns associated with positive and negative Bangladesh rainfall anomalies, indicating that the response is not fully linear. SST anomalies in the Indian Ocean also modulate the influence of the tropical Pacific, with colder Indian Ocean SST tending to enhance Bangladesh precipitation relative to warm Indian Ocean SST for identical conditions in the central and eastern tropical Pacific. This influence is not fully linear. Forecasts of Bangladesh rainfall and cholera risk may thus be improved by considering the Niño-3 and Niño-4 indices separately, rather than the Niño-3.4 index alone. Additional skill may also be gained by incorporating information on the southeast Indian Ocean and by updating the forecast with information on the evolution of the SST anomalies into spring.
A Multiscalar Drought Index Sensitive to Global Warming: The Standardized Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index
Authors: Vicente-Serrano Sergio M. , Beguería Santiago , López-Moreno Juan I.
Published: November 2009

The authors propose a new climatic drought index: the standardized precipitation evapotranspiration index (SPEI). The SPEI is based on precipitation and temperature data, and it has the advantage of combining multiscalar character with the capacity to include the effects of temperature variability on drought assessment. The procedure to calculate the index is detailed and involves a climatic water balance, the accumulation of deficit/surplus at different time scales, and adjustment to a log-logistic probability distribution. Mathematically, the SPEI is similar to the standardized precipitation index (SPI), but it includes the role of temperature. Because the SPEI is based on a water balance, it can be compared to the self-calibrated Palmer drought severity index (sc-PDSI). Time series of the three indices were compared for a set of observatories with different climate characteristics, located in different parts of the world. Under global warming conditions, only the sc-PDSI and SPEI identified an increase in drought severity associated with higher water demand as a result of evapotranspiration. Relative to the sc-PDSI, the SPEI has the advantage of being multiscalar, which is crucial for drought analysis and monitoring.
Heat Budget of the Upper Ocean in the South-Central Equatorial Pacific
Authors: Liu Hailong , Lin Wuyin , Zhang Minghua
Published: November 2009

The double intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ) over the tropical Pacific, with a spurious band of maximum annual sea surface temperature (SST) south of the equator between 5°S and 10°S, is a chronic bias in coupled ocean–atmosphere models. This study focuses on a region of the double ITCZ in the central Pacific from 5°S to 10°S and 170°E to 150°W, where coupled models display the largest biases in precipitation, by deriving a best estimate of the mixed layer heat budget for the region. Seven global datasets of objectively analyzed surface energy fluxes and four ocean assimilation products are first compared and then evaluated against field measurements in adjacent regions. It was shown that the global datasets differ greatly in their net downward surface energy flux in this region, but they fall broadly into two categories: one with net downward heat flux of about 30 W m−2 and the other around 10 W m−2. Measurements from the adjacent Manus and Nauru sites of the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement Program (ARM), the Tropical Atmosphere Ocean (TAO) buoys, and the Tropical Ocean and Global Atmosphere Coupled Ocean–Atmosphere Response Experiment (TOGA COARE) are then used to show that the smaller value is more realistic. An energy balance of the mixed layer is finally presented for the region as primarily between warming from surface heat flux of 7 W m−2 and horizontal advective cooling in the zonal direction of about 5 W m−2, with secondary contributions from meridional and vertical advections, heat storage, and subgrid-scale mixing. The 7 W m−2 net surface heat flux consists of warming of 210 W m−2 from solar radiation and cooling of 53, 141, and 8 W m−2, respectively, from longwave radiation, latent heat flux, and sensible heat flux. These values provide an observational basis to further study the initial development of excessive precipitation in coupled climate models in the central Pacific.
Significance of a Midlatitude SST Frontal Zone in the Formation of a Storm Track and an Eddy-Driven Westerly Jet*
Authors: Sampe Takeaki , Nakamura Hisashi , Goto Atsushi , Ohfuchi Wataru
Published: November 2009

In a set of idealized “aquaplanet” experiments with an atmospheric general circulation model to which zonally uniform sea surface temperature (SST) is prescribed globally as the lower boundary condition, an assessment is made of the potential influence of the frontal SST gradient upon the formation of a storm track and an eddy-driven midlatitude polar front jet (PFJ), and on its robustness against changes in the intensity of a subtropical jet (STJ). In experiments with the frontal midlatitude SST gradient as that observed in the southwestern Indian Ocean, transient eddy activity in each of the winter and summer hemispheres is organized into a deep storm track along the SST front with an enhanced low-level baroclinic growth of eddies. In the winter hemisphere, another storm track forms just below the intense STJ core, but it is confined to the upper troposphere with no significant baroclinic eddy growth underneath. The near-surface westerlies are strongest near the midlatitude SST front as observed, consistent with westerly momentum transport associated with baroclinic eddy growth. The sharp poleward decline in the surface sensible heat flux across the SST frontal zone sustains strong near-surface baroclinicity against the relaxing effect by vigorous poleward eddy heat transport. Elimination of the midlatitude frontal SST gradient yields marked decreases in the activity of eddies and their transport of angular momentum into midlatitudes, in association with equatorward shifts of the PFJ-associated low-level westerlies and a subtropical high pressure belt, especially in the summer hemisphere. These impacts of the midlatitude frontal SST gradient are found to be robust against modest changes in the STJ intensity as observed in its interannual variability, suggesting the potential importance of midlatitude atmosphere–ocean interaction in shaping the tropospheric general circulation.
Downstream Development of the Summertime Tropical Cyclone/Submonthly Wave Pattern in the Extratropical North Pacific
Authors: Ko Ken-Chung , Hsu Huang-Hsiung
Published: November 2009

The impact of tropical perturbation on the extratropical wave activity in the North Pacific in the submonthly time scale is demonstrated here. Previous studies identified a tropical cyclone (TC)/submonthly wave pattern, which propagated north-northwestward in the Philippine Sea and recurved in the oceanic region between Japan and Taiwan. This study found that, after the arrival of the TC/submonthly wave pattern at the recurving region, the eastward-propagating wave activity in the extratropical North Pacific was significantly enhanced. It is suggested that the TC/submonthly wave pattern, which is originated in the tropical western North Pacific, enhances the eastward energy propagation of Rossby wave–like perturbation in the extratropical North Pacific and may have an impact on the long-range weather predictability in the eastern North Pacific and western North America.
Relationship between Precipitation in the Great Plains of the United States and Global SSTs: Insights from the IPCC AR4 Models
Authors: Capotondi Antonietta , Alexander Michael A.
Published: November 2009

Multicentury preindustrial control simulations from six of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Fourth Assessment Report (IPCC AR4) models are used to examine the relationship between low-frequency precipitation variations in the Great Plains (GP) region of the United States and global sea surface temperatures (SSTs). This study builds on previous work performed with atmospheric models forced by observed SSTs during the twentieth century and extends it to a coupled model context and longer time series. The climate models used in this study reproduce the precipitation climatology over the United States reasonably well, with maximum precipitation occurring in early summer, as observed. The modeled precipitation time series exhibit negative “decadal” anomalies, identified using a 5-yr running mean, of amplitude comparable to that of the twentieth-century droughts. It is found that low-frequency anomalies over the GP are part of a large-scale pattern of precipitation variations, characterized by anomalies of the same sign as in the GP region over Europe and southern South America and anomalies of opposite sign over northern South America, India, and Australia. The large-scale pattern of the precipitation anomalies is associated with global-scale atmospheric circulation changes; during wet periods in the GP, geopotential heights are raised in the tropics and high latitudes and lowered in the midlatitudes in most models, with the midlatitude jets displaced toward the equator in both hemispheres. Statistically significant correlations are found between the decadal precipitation anomalies in the GP region and tropical Pacific SSTs in all the models. The influence of other oceans (Indian and tropical and North Atlantic), which previous studies have identified as potentially important, appears to be model dependent.
The Virtues of Cultural Resonance, Competence, and Relational Collaboration With Native American Indian Communities: A Synthesis of the Counseling and Psychotherapy Literature
Authors: Trimble Joseph E.
Published: November 2009

The article extends the scholarship, observations, and recommendations provided in Joseph Gone’s article, “Psychotherapy and Traditional Healing for American Indians: Prospects for Therapeutic Integration” (2010 [this issue]). The overarching thesis is that for many Indian and Native clients, interpersonal and interethnic problems can emerge when a counselor’s lack of culturally resonant experience and knowledge, deeply held stereotypes, and preconceived notions interfere with the counseling relationship and impede counseling effectiveness. A brief synthesis of the counseling literature themes suggests that there is ample evidence that by using particular culturally resonant techniques, counselors can promote client trust, rapport, and cultural empathy and improve the counselor—client relationship, both in general and with American Indian and Alaska Native clients specifically. Topics consistent with Joseph Gone’s main thesis also are explored that relate to spiritual healing and other counseling considerations involving relational collaborations with Indian and Native communities. Information provided in this article is focused on helping to stimulate effective cross-cultural contacts between mental health counselors and Native American Indians.
Children’s Views on Child-friendly Environments in Different Geographical, Cultural and Social Neighbourhoods
Authors: Nordström Maria
Published: November 2009

The aim of this study was to determine how the dimensions in a theoretical framework for environmental child-friendliness developed by Horelli apply to responses about child-friendly environments from 12-year-old children living in geographically, culturally and socially different urban neighbourhoods. Children’s written responses to the question of what they find to be a child-friendly city have been analysed according to these dimensions. The results show that three of the dimensions in particular apply to the children’s responses: ‘safety and security’, ‘urban and environmental qualities’ and ‘basic services’. However, other dimensions of that framework, containing more abstract phenomena, do not seem to apply to these children’s environmental experiences. A child-friendly perspective on cities, with children’s age in mind, seems to involve a local perspective on environment, a result that indicates a need for change in current city planning practice.
Taiwanese Baseball: A Story of Entangled Colonialism, Class, Ethnicity, and Nationalism
Authors: Wang Sumei
Published: November 2009

This article is about the development of baseball in Taiwan, and how it has been connected with Taiwan’s entangled history of Japanese colonization, the Chinese Nationalist’s authoritarian rule, the ethnically stratified social structure, and the emergence of the Taiwanese identity. Baseball was foreign to Taiwan when it was first introduced to the island. The sport then crossed the ethnic and class boundary between the Japanese colonizer and the Taiwanese islander in the 1920s, later the Taiwanese natives and the Chinese mainlanders in the 1970s, and in turn became a symbol of Taiwanese nationalism. This article argues that baseball does not circulate a fixed meaning as it travels to different places. The story of Taiwanese baseball indicates the interpenetration of colonialism, class, ethnicity, and nationalism.
Network Dynamics of the Dutch Business Elite
Authors: Heemskerk Eelke , Fennema Meindert
Published: November 2009

This article investigates the cohesion of the Dutch business elite during the 20th century. First it considers the old boys’ network, where social cohesion builds on shared family and educational background. Second, the board-meeting network of corporate directors in the Netherlands is analysed as an expression of the cohesion of the corporate elite. Unlike most studies on interlocking directorates, this article focuses on the interpersonal perspective of the network instead of the intercorporate perspective. The study finds that social cohesion declined between 1976 and 2001. The meeting network of the Dutch corporate elite has become the realm of brokers rather than a device of social cohesion and social closure. It no longer serves the purpose of creating trust among the corporate elite. As a result, norms of corporate governance have become blurred.
International Graduate Science Training and Scientific Collaboration
Authors: Ynalvez Marcus Antonius , Shrum Wesley M.
Published: November 2009

Graduate training abroad is typical for scientists in developing countries. Owing to resource scarcities, collaboration is a common form of research for these same individuals. Yet few studies have examined the linkage between graduate education and scientific collaboration. This article examines this question in a population of scientists who have experienced the simultaneous influence of three scientifically strong training systems: Australia, Japan and the US. Survey data from 312 agricultural scientists in two Philippine locations are used to explore the relationships between graduate education, Internet use, professional networks and scientific collaboration. The findings show that most collaboration is domestic, but the most common international collaborations are Japanese, followed by Australian and finally US collaborations. Japanese training, but not professional networks, is associated with such collaborations, while US and Australian training appear unimportant to collaborations in these locations. This the article explains by identifying two aspects integral to graduate education, mode of study and mentoring style , which may be critical to the development of durable professional ties and ultimately to collaborative work. The results show that even among scientific training systems in developed areas, there are variations in interaction and practices that have implications for differential participation in scientific collaboration.
The Effect of Age on Sexual and Violent Reconviction
Authors: Craig Leam A.
Published: November 2009

Although a number of research studies indicate an inverse relationship between age and sexual offence recidivism, the effect of age on sexual and violent reconviction remains unclear, with some studies producing contradictory results. In the present study, reconviction data were obtained for 131 offenders (85 sex offenders and 46 violent offenders) followed up over a 2- and 5-year period. The sample was grouped into four age bands (i.e., ≤24, 25-34, 35-44, and ≥45 years) and rates of sexual, violent, sexual and violent (combined), and any offence reconviction were compared. There was an almost linear relationship between age and rate of reconviction, with the youngest age band (≤24 years) presenting the greatest risk of reconviction and the older age bands (≥45 years) presenting the lowest reconviction rate. At the 5-year follow-up, the youngest age band was significantly more likely to be reconvicted of sexual and violent offences (combined) than any other age band. This age band was significantly more likely to be actuarially assessed (i.e., Static-99) as high risk (controlling for age) and was more likely to target strangers, be single, and display non-sexual violence during the index offence. In relation to sexual reconviction, there was a plateau effect in the middle-age band, with the oldest age band (≥45 years) obtaining the highest sexual reconviction rate compared with all other age bands at the 5-year follow-up. Although these findings support the view that lower-aged sexual and violent offenders pose greater risk than their older-aged counterparts, this was not true for sexual reconviction at the 5-year follow-up. Implications of these findings are discussed.
It’s “Mean,” But What Does It Mean to Adolescents? Relational Aggression Described by Victims, Aggressors, and Their Peers
Authors: Pronk Rhiarne E. , Zimmer-Gembeck Melanie J.
Published: November 2009

Early adolescent girls and boys ( N = 33) with known histories of relational aggression and/or victimization gave detailed accounts of the nature, frequency, intensity, course, and impact of relational aggression among their peers. They also described reasons for, and forms of, aggression after being prompted by a series of hypothetical vignettes. Despite identifying many forms of aggression that were similar for girls and boys, some sex differences were found; girls were described as experiencing more victimization within close friendships than boys, with a focus on maintaining exclusivity. Boys described exclusion from larger groups with themes of masculinity, athletic skill, and/or perceived sexual identity. Girls’ and boys’ perceptions about the motivations for these different forms of relational aggression were quite similar. These included power, popularity, and wanting to fit in as well as the aggressors’ emotional states and the victims’ characteristics.
Nature and Nurture by Definition Means Both: A Response to Males
Authors: DeLisi Matt , Wright John Paul , Vaughn Michael G. , Beaver Kevin M.
Published: November 2009

Recognition of the interplay between nature and nurture is decades old in fields such as psychiatry, but other fields in the social sciences continue to be hampered by the idea that social and biological variables compete for explanatory relevance. In a recent study of the adolescent brain and risk taking, Males critiqued biologically oriented approaches as “biodeterminist” compared to environmentally friendly approaches. Here the authors suggest that the use of biological and social variables, or nature and nurture, is not only uncontroversial but also essential for understanding psychopathology, externalizing, and antisocial behaviors. Moreover, biosocial scientific inquiry has led to progressive state policy in the case of Roper v. Simmons, precisely the opposite outcome that critics of biologically friendly research often claim.
A Mathematical Model of Homeostatic Regulation of Sleep-Wake Cycles by Hypocretin/Orexin
Authors: Postnova Svetlana , Voigt Karlheinz , Braun Hans Albert
Published: November 2009

We introduce a physiology-based mathematical model of sleep-wake cycles, suggesting a novel mechanism of homeostatic regulation of sleep. In this model, the homeostatic process is determined by the neuropeptide hypocretin/ orexin, which is a cotransmitter of the lateral hypothalamus. Hypocretin/ orexin neurons are silent during sleep and active during wakefulness. Firing of these neurons is sustained by reciprocal excitatory synaptic connections with local glutamate interneurons. This feedback loop has been simulated with a minimal but physiologically plausible model. It includes 2 simplified Hodgkin-Huxley type neurons that are connected via glutamate synapses, one of which additionally contains hypocretin/orexin as the functionally relevant cotransmitter. During the active state (wakefulness), the synaptic efficacy of hypocretin/orexin declines as a result of the ongoing firing. It recovers during the silent (sleep) state. We demonstrate that these homeostatic changes can account for typical alterations of sleep-wake transitions, for example, introduced by napping, sleep deprivation, or alarm clock. In combination with a circadian input, the model mimics the transitions between silent and firing states in agreement with sleep-wake cycles. These simulation results support the concept of state-dependent alterations of hypocretin/orexin effects as an important homeostatic process in sleep-wake regulation, although additional mechanisms can be involved.
Synergic Entrainment of Drosophila’s Circadian Clock by Light and Temperature
Authors: Yoshii Taishi , Vanin Stefano , Costa Rodolfo , Helfrich-Förster Charlotte
Published: November 2009

Daily light and temperature cycles are considered the most important zeitgebers for circadian clocks in many organisms. The influence of each single zeitgeber on the clock has been well studied, but little is known about any synergistic effects of both zeitgebers on the clock. In nature, light and temperature show characteristic daily oscillations with the temperature rising during the light phase and reaching its maximum in the late afternoon. Here, we studied behavioral and molecular rhythms in Drosophila melanogaster under simulated natural low light-dark (LD) and temperature (T) cycles that typically occur during the September equinox. Wild-type flies were either subjected to simulated LD or T cycles alone or to a combination of both. Behavioral rhythms and molecular rhythms in the different clock neurons were assessed under the 3 different conditions. Although behavioral rhythms entrained to all conditions, the rhythms were most robust under the combination of LD and T cycles. The clock neurons responded differently to LD and T cycles. Some were not entrained by T cycles alone; others were only slightly entrained by LD cycles alone. The amplitude of the molecular cycling was not different between LD alone and T cycles alone; but LD alone could set the pacemaker neurons to similar phases, whereas T cycles alone could not. The combination of the 2 zeitgebers entrained all clock neurons not only with similar phase but also enhanced the amplitude of Timeless cycling in the majority of cells. Our results show that the 2 zeitgebers synergistically entrain behavioral and molecular rhythms of Drosophila melanogaster.
Circadian Expression of Clock Genes in Two Mosquito Disease Vectors: cry2 Is Different
Authors: Gentile Carla , Rivas Gustavo B. S. , Meireles-Filho Antonio C. A. , Lima José B. P. , Peixoto Alexandre A.
Published: November 2009

Different mosquito species show a full range of activity patterns, including diurnal, crepuscular, and nocturnal behaviors. Although activity and blood-feeding rhythms are controlled by the circadian clock, it is not yet known whether such species-specific differences in behavior are controlled directly by core clock genes or instead reflect differences in how the information of the central clock is translated into output signals. The authors have analyzed the circadian expression of clock genes in two important mosquito vectors of tropical diseases, Aedes aegypti and Culex quinquefasciatus . Although these two species show very different locomotor activity patterns and are estimated to have diverged more than 22 million years ago, they show conserved circadian expression patterns for all major cycling clock genes except mammalian-like cryptochrome2 ( cry2). The results indicate that different mechanisms for cry2 regulation may exist for the two species. The authors speculate that the correlation between the differences in behavior between Ae. aegypti and Cx. quinquefasciatus and their corresponding cry2 mRNA profiles suggests a potential role for this clock gene in controlling species-specific rhythmic behavior. However, further work is needed to establish that this is the case as the different cry2 expression patterns might reflect differences between the Aedes and Culex lineages that are not directly related to changes in behavior.
Correlation with Behavioral Activity and Rest Implies Circadian Regulation by SCN Neuronal Activity Levels
Authors: Houben Thijs , Deboer Tom , van Oosterhout Floor , Meijer Johanna H.
Published: November 2009

The SCN of the hypothalamus contains a major pacemaker, which exhibits 24-h rhythms in electrical impulse frequency. Although it is known that SCN electrical activity is high during the day and low during the night, the precise relationship between electrical activity and behavioral rhythms is almost entirely unknown. The authors performed long-term recordings of SCN multiple unit activity with the aid of implanted microelectrodes in parallel with the drinking activity in freely moving mice. The animals were kept in a 12h:12h light-dark cycle (LD 12:12) and in short-day (LD 8:16) and long-day photoperiods (LD 16:8). Onsets and offsets of behavioral activity occurred when SCN discharge was around half-maximum value. Of the onsets 80%, and of the offsets 62%, occurred when SCN electrical activity differed less than 15% from the half-maximum electrical activity levels. Transitions between rest and activity could be described by a sigmoid shaped probability curve with Hill coefficients of 7.0 for onsets and 5.7 for offsets. The similarity in the onset and offset levels shows an absence of hysteresis in the control of behavioral activity by the SCN. Exposure to short- or long-day photoperiods induced significant alterations in the waveform of electrical activity but did not affect SCN electrical activity levels at which behavioral transitions occurred. In all photoperiods, the SCN signal was skewed with more rapid discharge changes during onsets (19% per hour) than offsets (11% per hour). The precision of the circadian system appears optimized, as transitions between behavioral activity and rest occur when the change in SCN electrical activity is maximal, both during the declining and rising phase. The authors conclude that transitions in behavioral state can be described by a probability function around half-maximum electrical activity levels and that the parameters of the SCN, predicting onset and offset of behavior, are remarkably insensitive to environmental conditions.
Circadian Trafficking of Calbindin-ir in Fibers of SCN Neurons
Authors: LeSauter Joseph , Bhuiyan Taslima , Shimazoe Takao , Silver Rae
Published: November 2009

Calbindin-D28K (CalB)—containing cells form a distinct cluster within the core of the hamster suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN). These cells are directly retinorecipient but lack detectable rhythms in clock gene expression or electrical activity. In studies exploring SCN connectivity using double-label immunochemistry, we previously reported an absence of contacts among CalB fibers and vasopressin (VP) cells in animals sacrificed during the day. Here, we explored circadian variations in CalB-immunoreactivity (-ir) and re-examined the connections between CalB and other SCN cell types at zeitgeber times (ZT) 4 and 14. The results reveal a circadian rhythm of CalB-ir in fibers of SCN cells with high expression during the night and subjective night and low expression during the day and subjective day. This circadian difference is not seen in the other brain regions studied. Significantly more appositions were detected between CalB fibers and VP cells during the night than during the day, while circadian variation in numbers of contacts was not seen between CalB fibers and vasoactive intestinal polypeptide (VIP), cholecystokinin (CCK), or gastrin-releasing peptide (GRP) cells. There was no detectable variation in appositions from any peptidergic fiber type onto CalB cells. The present findings suggest that CalB cells relay photic information to VP oscillator cells of the SCN shell in a temporally gated manner.
Symbolic Politics, Criminal Justice Policy, and Third Political Party Platforms
Authors: Marion Nancy E. , Oliver Willard M.
Published: November 2009

The theory of symbolic politics, which posits that political acts are viewed as symbols conveying a political meaning that are an end unto themselves, is used to examine the elements of criminal justice policy in third political party platforms. It is hypothesized that third political parties use their political platforms to make symbolic, rather than substantive, statements. Data were collected from a variety of sources presenting third party platforms to assess the political language used from 1872 to 2004. A content analysis of these platforms offers some support for the use of symbolic language by third political parties.