bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Therapeutic inducers of the HSP70/HSP110 protect mice against traumatic brain injury
Authors: Eroglu Binnur , Kimbler Donald E. , Pang Junfeng , Choi Justin , Moskophidis Demetrius , Yanasak Nathan , Dhandapani Krishnan M. , Mivechi Nahid F.
Published: June 2014

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) induces severe harm and disability in many accident victims and combat‐related activities. The heat‐shock proteins Hsp70/Hsp110 protect cells against death and ischemic damage. In this study, we used mice deficient in Hsp110 or Hsp70 to examine their potential requirement following TBI. Data indicate that loss of Hsp110 or Hsp70 increases brain injury and death of neurons. One of the mechanisms underlying the increased cell death observed in the absence of Hsp110 and Hsp70 following TBI is the increased expression of reactive oxygen species‐induced p53 target genes Pig1, Pig8, and Pig12. To examine whether drugs that increase the levels of Hsp70/Hsp110 can protect cells against TBI, we subjected mice to TBI and administered Celastrol or BGP‐15. In contrast to Hsp110‐ or Hsp70i‐deficient mice that were not protected following TBI and Celastrol treatment, there was a significant improvement of wild‐type mice following administration of these drugs during the first week following TBI. In addition, assessment of neurological injury shows significant improvement in contextual and cued fear conditioning tests and beam balance in wild‐type mice that were treated with Celastrol or BGP‐15 following TBI compared to TBI‐treated mice. These studies indicate a significant role of Hsp70/Hsp110 in neuronal survival following TBI and the beneficial effects of Hsp70/Hsp110 inducers toward reducing the pathological consequences of TBI.

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Our data indicate that loss of Hsp110 or Hsp70 in mice increases brain injury following TBI. (a) One of the mechanisms underlying the increased cell death observed in the absence of these Hsps following TBI is the increased expression of ROS‐induced p53 target genes known as Pigs. In addition, (b) using drugs (Celastrol or BGP‐15) to increase Hsp70/Hsp110 levels protect cells against TBI, suggesting the beneficial effects of Hsp70/Hsp110 inducers to reduce the pathological consequences of TBI.
Dynamics of hippocampal acetylcholine release during lithium‐pilocarpine‐induced status epilepticus in rats
Authors: Hillert Markus H. , Imran Imran , Zimmermann Martina , Lau Helene , Weinfurter Stefanie , Klein Jochen
Published: June 2014

The lithium‐pilocarpine model is a rat model of epilepsy that mimics status epilepticus in humans. Here, we report changes of acetylcholine (ACh) release in the hippocampus before, during and after status epilepticus as monitored by microdialysis in unanesthetized rats. Administration of pilocarpine (30 mg/kg s.c.) to rats pretreated with lithium chloride (127 mg/kg i.p.) caused a massive, six‐fold increase of hippocampal ACh release, paralleling the development of tonic seizures. When seizures were stopped by administration of diazepam (10 mg/kg i.p.) or ketamine (75 mg/kg i.p.), ACh levels returned to normal. Extracellular concentrations of glutamate remained unchanged during this procedure. Administration of atropine (1 mg/kg i.p.) 2 h after pilocarpine caused a further increase of ACh but did not affect seizures, whereas injection of mecamylamine (5 mg/kg i.p.) reduced ACh levels and seizures in a delayed fashion. Local infusion of tetrodotoxin, 1 μM locally) or hemicholinium (10 μM locally) strongly reduced ACh release and had delayed effects on seizures. Administration of glucose or inositol (250 mg/kg each i.p.) had no visible consequences. In parallel experiments, lithium‐pilocarpine‐induced status epilepticus also enhanced striatal ACh release, and hippocampal ACh levels equally increased when status epilepticus was induced by kainate (30 mg/kg i.p.). Taken together, our results demonstrate that seizure development in status epilepticus models is accompanied by massive increases of extracellular ACh, but not glutamate, levels. Treatments that reduce seizure activity also reliably reduce extracellular ACh levels.

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Status epilepticus was induced in rats by lithium‐pilocarpine administration, and extracellular levels of acetylcholine (ACh) were measured in the hippocampus by microdialysis. Seizures caused several‐fold increases of ACh levels which were reduced to control levels when seizures were stopped by diazepam or ketamine. Further experiments confirmed that cholinergic hyperexcitation accompanies status epilepticus, even when kainate was used as inducing agent.
Schemas of Marital Change: From Arranged Marriages to Eloping for Love
Authors: Allendorf Keera
Published: June 2014

In recent decades, arranged marriages have become less common in many parts of Asia. This paper explores people's schemas surrounding just such a marital change in one Indian village using semi‐structured interviews (N = 30) and ethnographic fieldwork. Respondents categorize marriages into two main types: arranged marriages and elopements, also called love marriages. Arranged marriages were common in the past, while elopements are now dominant. Both types of marriages have characteristics that are perceived positively and the ideal marriage is a hybrid of the two. Respondents ascribe the rise of love marriages to educational expansion, technological change, and foreign influence. Many also see it as an inevitable part of a larger process of socioeconomic change. These schemas are strongly shaped by global influences, but also reflect multiple layers of local beliefs and cultures. The schemas also demonstrate a complex integration of both structural and ideational factors in accounting for marital change.
Poverty at a Racial Crossroads: Poverty Among Multiracial Children of Single Mothers
Authors: Bratter Jenifer L. , Damaske Sarah
Published: June 2014

Although multiracial youth represent a growing segment of children in all American families, we have little information on their well‐being within single‐mother households. This article examines multiracial children's level of poverty within single‐mother families to identify the degree to which they may stand out from their monoracial peers. Using data from the 2006–2008 American Community Survey (3‐year estimates), we explore the level of racial disparities in child poverty between monoracial White children and monoracial and multiracial children of color. Fully adjusted multivariate logistic regression analyses (n = 359,588) reveal that nearly all children of color are more likely to be poor than White children. Yet many multiracial children appear to hold an in‐between status in which they experience lower rates of poverty than monoracial children of color. The high level of variation across groups suggests that the relationship between race and childhood poverty is more complicated than generally presumed.
Gender Dynamics Predict Changes in Marital Love Among African American Couples
Authors: Stanik Christine E. , McHale Susan M. , Crouter Ann C.
Published: June 2014

This study examined the implications of gender attitudes and spouses' divisions of household labor, time with children, and parental knowledge for their trajectories of love in a sample of 146 African American couples. Multilevel modeling in the context of an accelerated longitudinal design accommodated 3 annual waves of data. The results revealed that traditionality in husbands' gender attitudes was linked to lower levels of love. Furthermore, divisions of household labor and parental knowledge moderated changes in love such that couples with more egalitarian divisions exhibited higher and more stable patterns of love, whereas more traditional couples exhibited significant declines in love over time. Finally, greater similarity between spouses' time with their children was linked to higher levels of marital love. The authors highlight the implications of gender dynamics for marital harmony among African American couples and discuss ways that this work may be applied and extended in practice and future research.
Relationship Transitions Among Older Cohabitors: The Role of Health, Wealth, and Family Ties
Authors: Vespa Jonathan
Published: June 2014

This study explored how health, wealth, and family ties shape older cohabitors' chances of marrying or separating. Drawing on rational choice and exchange theories, the author argues these factors affect women and men differently because the rewards, alternatives, and barriers of later‐life union formation differ by gender. The study used panel data from the 1998–2006 Health and Retirement Study and a sample of cohabitors 50 and older (N = 1,136). For older female cohabitors, large families and entitlement income lower the risk of marrying, whereas close social networks raise the risk of separating. Moreover, health and wealth have an interactive relationship in that the risk of marrying is highest for unhealthy male cohabitors when they are very wealthy but is highest for the poorest female cohabitors when they are in excellent health. Older men may be exchanging economic resources for caregiving, and cohabitation may be an adaptive response to the gendered costs and barriers of later‐life union formation.
Intergenerational Support and the Emotional Well‐being of Older Jews and Arabs in Israel
Authors: Silverstein Merril , Lowenstein Ariela , Katz Ruth , Gans Daphna , Fan Yu‐Kang , Oyama Petrice
Published: June 2014

This investigation examined the cultural context of intergenerational support among older Jewish and Arab parents living in Israel. The authors hypothesized that support from adult children would be more positively consequential for the psychological well‐being of Arab parents than of Jewish parents. The data derived from 375 adults age 65 and older living in Israel. Psychological well‐being was measured with positive and negative affect subscales of the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule. Overall, positive affect was highest when filial expectations for support were congruent with whether or not instrumental support was received. Findings by cultural background revealed that, among older Jews, receiving instrumental support raised positive affect and stronger filial expectations lowered it. Among older Arabs, receiving financial support raised positive affect and receiving instrumental support lowered it. Culture appears to serve as a potent force in determining which types of intergenerational support functions are expected and accepted means of serving the everyday needs of older parents.
Families Created by Donor Insemination: Father–Child Relationships at Age 7
Authors: Casey Polly , Jadva Vasanti , Blake Lucy , Golombok Susan
Published: June 2014

This study examined the psychological well‐being of fathers and father–child relationships in families with a 7‐year‐old child conceived by donor insemination. Twenty‐four donor insemination families and comparison groups of 25 egg donation and 32 unassisted‐conception families were assessed using a standardized interview and questionnaires administered to the father, and father–child dyads participated in an observational assessment of father–child interaction. On the basis of perspectives from Parental Investment Theory and stress‐related models, it was expected that donor insemination fathers would show raised levels of psychological problems and a poorer quality of parenting and have more conflictual relationships with their children than genetically related fathers in egg donation and unassisted‐conception families. These hypotheses were not supported by the findings. Instead, it seems that commitment to parenthood may be more important than genetic relatedness for positive father–child relationships.
Marital Quality, Socioeconomic Status, and Physical Health
Authors: Choi Heejeong , Marks Nadine F.
Published: June 2014

Recent efforts to promote marriage among the socioeconomically disadvantaged are based on the assumption that marriage is equally beneficial for persons with varying levels of socioeconomic status. Using 3 waves of data from a sample of married adults (the National Survey of Families and Households; N = 1,849), the authors evaluated whether the health benefits of marital happiness and the health costs of marital conflict might vary by education and income levels. They found that increases in marital happiness were associated with increases in self‐rated health for individuals with more education. In addition, increases in marital conflict were linked to greater increases in functional impairment for persons with lower income. Although the results were not consistent and effect sizes were modest, the evidence nonetheless tentatively suggests that higher levels of marital happiness may be less beneficial for health and that higher levels of marital conflict may be more detrimental to health among persons with lower socioeconomic status.
Early Adult Obesity and U.S. Women's Lifetime Childbearing Experiences
Authors: Frisco Michelle L. , Weden Margaret
Published: June 2014

Literature from multiple disciplines suggests that women who are obese during early adulthood may accumulate social and physiological impediments to childbearing across their reproductive lives. This led the authors to investigate whether obese young women have different lifetime childbearing experiences than leaner peers by analyzing data from 1,658 female participants in the 1979 National Longitudinal Survey of Youth. Study sample members were nulliparous women ages 20–25 in 1982. The authors examined their childbearing experiences between 1982 and 2006 and found that young women who were obese at baseline had higher odds of remaining childless and increased odds of underachieving fertility intentions than young women who were normal weight at baseline. These results suggest that obesity has long‐term ramifications for women's childbearing experiences with respect to whether and how many children women have in general and relative to the number of children they want.
What Narrows the Stepgap? Closeness Between Parents and Adult (Step)Children in Germany
Authors: Becker Oliver Arránz , Salzburger Veronika , Lois Nadia , Nauck Bernhard
Published: June 2014

Using data from the German Family Panel (pairfam) based on 11,746 intergenerational family relationships, the present study examined differences in parental closeness across relations with multiple, coresidential, and non‐coresidential adolescent and adult children. Replicating previous research in a multilevel analysis across families, the authors found a strong positive effect of biological descent on closeness in comparison to adoptive and steprelations; this parental favoritism toward biological offspring was partly explained by selection via parental resources and attitudes. Supplemental within‐parent fixed effect analyses suggested that the relative disadvantage of stepchildren was offset by longer duration of the stepparent–stepchild relationship, lower household income, fewer children in the household, and high parental affirmation of familism.
Family Instability and the Transition to Adulthood
Authors: Fomby Paula , Bosick Stacey J.
Published: June 2014

Children's experience of repeated family structure change has a robust association with compromised development across the early life course. Implicit in prior research is the expectation that disparities in cognition and behavior accumulate through childhood and adolescence to influence the transition to adulthood. The authors assessed the association of early and later family structure instability with events in the transition to adulthood up to age 24 using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (N = 8,841).They found that early and later family instability are associated with low rates of college completion, early union formation and childbearing, and an early entry into the labor force. The associations are explained by family structure, delinquency, and academic performance in adolescence.
Generosity and the Maintenance of Marital Quality
Authors: Dew Jeffrey , Bradford Wilcox W.
Published: June 2014

This study examined whether generosity in marriage was associated with marital quality. The authors conceptualized generosity as a type of relationship maintenance behavior and used data from the new Survey of Marital Generosity (a national survey of married couples, N = 1,365 couples and 2,730 total participants). They found that generosity—defined here as small acts of kindness, displays of respect and affection, and a willingness to forgive one's spouse his or her faults and failings—was positively associated with marital satisfaction and negatively associated with marital conflict and perceived divorce likelihood.
The Decoupling of Marriage and Parenthood? Trends in the Timing of Marital First Births, 1945–2002
Authors: Hayford Sarah R. , Guzzo Karen Benjamin , Smock Pamela J.
Published: June 2014

Family formation changed dramatically over the 20th century in the United States. The impact of these changes on childbearing has primarily been studied in terms of nonmarital fertility. However, changes in family formation behavior also have implications for fertility within marriage. The authors used data from 10 fertility surveys to describe changes in the timing of marital childbearing from the 1940s through the 21st century for non‐Hispanic White and non‐Hispanic Black women. Based on harmonized data from the Integrated Fertility Survey Series, the results suggest increasing divergence in fertility timing for White women. A growing proportion of marriages begin with a premarital conception; at the same time, an increasing proportion of White women are postponing fertility within marriage. For Black women, marital fertility is increasingly postponed beyond the early years of marriage. Evaluating the sequencing of marriage and parenthood over time is critical to understanding the changing meaning of marriage.
How to Deal With Moral Tales: Constructions and Strategies of Single‐Parent Families
Authors: Zartler Ulrike
Published: June 2014

This study explored how normative understandings based on the nuclear family ideology are linked to constructions of single‐parent families and sheds light on the strategies single parents and their children adopt in dealing with negative accounts. Guided by social constructionist and configurational approaches, the in‐depth analysis is based on an Austrian qualitative study, comprising interviews with 50 ten‐year‐old children and their 71 parents, living in nuclear, reconstituted, and single‐parent families. The results showed that single‐parent families are constructed predominantly in terms of deficits and disadvantages, with the nuclear family serving as an ideological code along the dimensions of normalcy, complementarity, and stability. To deal with negative accounts, single parents and their children use three basic types of strategy: (a) imitation, (b) compensation, and (c) delimitation.
Severe group A streptococcal infections in a paediatric intensive care unit
Authors: Lithgow Anna , Duke Trevor , Steer Andrew , Smeesters Pierre Robert
Published: June 2014

Aim

To describe the clinical presentation, management and outcomes for children with invasive group A streptococcal (GAS) infection in a paediatric intensive care unit (PICU).

Methods

We reviewed the clinical and laboratory records of patients admitted to a PICU in Melbourne with invasive GAS infection from April 2010 to April 2013. Outcomes recorded included survival, organ failure, need for extracorporeal support, renal replacement therapy and prolonged neuromuscular weakness.

Results

Twelve cases of invasive GAS infection were identified. The most common clinical presentations were pneumonia (n = 5), bacteraemia with no septic focus (n = 4) and septic arthritis (n = 3). Necrotising fasciitis occurred in one patient and another patient presented with ischaemic lower limbs requiring amputation. Of the eight isolates with available emm typing results, the most common emm type was emm1 (n = 4) followed by emm4, 12 and 22. Nine patients had multi‐organ failure. Ten patients required mechanical ventilation for a median duration of 8 days. Nine patients required inotropic and/or vasopressor support and four patients extracorporeal membrane oxygenation support. Eleven patients survived. A prolonged period of neuromuscular weakness following the initial severe illness was common (n = 5), but most children returned to normal or near normal neurological function.

Conclusions

Invasive GAS disease in children may cause severe multi‐organ failure with resultant prolonged intensive care stay and significant morbidity. However, a high rate of survival and return to normal functioning may be achieved with multi‐system intensive care support and multi‐disciplinary rehabilitation.
Enterovirus infections are associated with white matter damage in neonates
Authors: Wu Tai , Fan Xiao‐Ping , Wang Wei‐Yan , Yuan Tian‐Ming
Published: June 2014

Aim

To explore the imaging findings of neonatal infants infected with enteroviruses.

Methods

A retrospective study was conducted on 12 patients who were diagnosed with encephalitis caused by enterovirus. Clinical presentation, cranial ultrasonography (cUS), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings and neurodevelopment outcome of 12 cases were analysed.

Results

Twelve infants, with a gestational age of 35 to 39 weeks, presented at 36 to 41 weeks postmenstrual age with clinical symptoms of enterovirus infections. Ten of 12 neonatal infants had a fever and 4 of 12 presented with a sepsis‐like illness. cUS in one preterm infant showed periventricular echogenicity. Neonatal MRI confirmed white matter changes in 12 infants. Follow‐up of infants were 18 months. Outcome was variable with cerebral palsy in 2 infants and normal neurodevelopment outcome in 10 infants.

Conclusions

Enterovirus may cause severe central nervous system infection in the neonatal period. The neuroimaging studies are informative and should be a part of care for infants with enteroviruses.
Self-Reported Indicators of Hypersexuality and Its Correlates in a Female Online Sample
Authors: Klein Verena , Rettenberger Martin , Briken Peer
Published: June 2014

Introduction

Hypersexual behavior has been a controversial and much disputed issue in the field of sexual medicine. However, only little attention has been paid to hypersexual behavior in women. Therefore, to date there is limited knowledge on the behavioral patterns of hypersexuality in women.

Aims

The purpose of the present study was to examine which sexual behavioral patterns are associated with self-reported indicators of hypersexuality in a female online sample. The second aim was to evaluate the association between hypersexuality and sexual risk behavior in women.

Methods

In total, 988 women participated in an online survey. Logistic regression analysis was conducted to examine the association between sexual behavioral patterns and hypersexuality. Furthermore, correlation analyses were calculated in order to identify the relationship between sexual risk behavior and hypersexuality.

Main Outcome Measures

Indicators of hypersexual behavior were measured by the Hypersexual Behavior Inventory (HBI). In addition, current and present impersonal sexual activities were investigated. Sexual risk behavior was assessed using the Sexual Sensation Seeking Scale (SSSS).

Results

High masturbation frequency, number of sexual partners, and pornography use were associated with a higher degree of hypersexual behavior in women. Furthermore, the HBI total score was positively correlated to sexual risk behavior.

Conclusion

The results of the current study do not support the idea of previous research that hypersexual women are typically engaged in more passive forms of sexual behavior. Rather female hypersexuality seems to be more characterized by impersonal sexual activity. An association between hypersexual behavior and sexual risk behavior was identified. The implications of these findings for potential prevention strategies and therapeutic interventions are discussed.
High-Intensity Physical Activity, Stable Relationship, and High Education Level Associate with Decreasing Risk of Erectile Dysfunction in 1,000 Apparently Healthy Cardiovascular Risk Subjects
Authors: Ettala Otto O. , Syvänen Kari T. , Korhonen Päivi E. , Kaipia Antti J. , Vahlberg Tero J. , Boström Peter J. , Aarnio Pertti T.
Published: June 2014

Introduction

Erectile dysfunction (ED) is especially common in men with cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). However, the data are scarce concerning populations without manifested CVD.

Aim

The aim of this study was to describe factors associated with ED, especially those associated with decreasing risk of ED, in men with cardiovascular risk factors but without CVD, diabetes, or chronic renal disease.

Methods

In 2004 to 2007, a cross-sectional population-based sample of men 45 to 70 years old in two rural towns in Finland was collected. Men with previously diagnosed CVD, diabetes, or kidney disease were not invited to the study. In total 1,000 eligible men with cardiovascular risk factors, i.e., central obesity, high scores in the Finnish Diabetes Risk Score, high blood pressure, antihypertensive medication, or family history of coronary heart disease, myocardial infarction, or stroke, were included in the analysis. Questionnaires, clinical measurements, and laboratory tests were obtained. The prevalence of ED was studied comparing the means, and risk factors were studied using multivariate logistic regression analysis.

Main Outcome Measures

The rate of ED was defined by the International Index of Erectile Function short form (IIEF-5) and by two questions (2Q) about the ability to achieve and to maintain an erection.

Results

The prevalence of ED was 57% or 68% using IIEF-5 or 2Q, respectively. Age (odds ratio [OR]: up to 9.16; 95% confidence interval [CI], 5.00–16.79; P < 0.001), smoking (OR: 1.41; 95% CI, 1.04–1.91; P = 0.028), depressive symptoms (OR: 4.04 for moderate and severe; 95% CI,1.22–13.45; P = 0.001), high-intensity physical activity (OR: 0.50; 95% CI, 0.29–0.86; P = 0.045), high education (OR: 0.52; 95% CI, 0.33–0.83; P = 0.013), and stable relationship (OR: 0.43; 95% CI, 0.21–0.88; P = 0.046) were associated with ED.

Conclusions

In apparently healthy men with cardiovascular risk factors, decreasing risk of ED is associated with high-intensity physical activity, stable relationship, and high education level.
Neural Plasticity, Neuronal Recycling and Niche Construction
Authors: MENARY RICHARD
Published: June 2014

InReading in the Brain, Stanislas Dehaene presents a compelling account of how the brain learns to read. Central to this account is his neuronal recycling hypothesis: neural circuitry is capable of being ‘recycled’ or converted to a different function that is cultural in nature. The original function of the circuitry is not entirely lost and constrains what the brain can learn. It is argued that the neural niche co‐evolves with the environmental niche in a way that does not undermine the core ideas of neuronal recycling, but which is quite different from the models of cognitive and cultural evolution provided by evolutionary psychology and epidemiology.

Dehaene contrasts neuronal recycling with a naïve model of the brain as a general learning device that is unconstrained in what it can learn. Consequently a tension develops in Dehaene's account of the role of plasticity in the acquisition of language. It is argued that the functional and structural changes in the brain that Dehaene documents in great detail are driven by learning and that this learning‐driven plasticity does not commit us to a naïve model of the brain.
All Forms of Writing
Authors: DOWNEY GREG
Published: June 2014

Anthropological contributions are essential to understanding the evolution of writing and its potential variation. Although Stanislas Dehaene calls for a ‘neuro‐anthropological perspective’, he neglects anthropological evidence, including the only indisputable case of independent invention of writing: the pre‐Columbian systems of the Americas. Here I argue that anthropological and historical accounts of the cultural evolution of language suggest that ecological, technological, social and political factors have all influenced the ongoing development of writing systems, even in directions contrary to that predicted by a model of increased neural efficiency. In addition, Pre‐Columbian writing systems, not subject to a diffusionist confound because of their independent invention, caution that our research on diversity in writing may represent a small, systematically biased sample. To truly understand neuro‐cognitive variation, we have to avoid both overly ambitious universalisms and radical cultural relativism.
Speech Acts: Natural or Normative Kinds? The Case of Assertion
Authors: BALL BRIAN
Published: June 2014

There are two views of the essences of speech acts: according to one view, they are natural kinds; according to the other, they are what I call normative kinds—kinds in the (possibly non‐reductive) definition of which some normative term occurs. In this article I show that speech acts can be normative but also natural kinds by deriving Williamson's account of assertion, on which it is an act individuated, and constitutively governed, by a norm (the knowledge rule), from a consideration of the natural characteristics of normal cases of its performance.
Rice fortification: a comparative analysis in mandated settings
Authors: Forsman Carmen , Milani Peiman , Schondebare Jill A. , Matthias Dipika , Guyondet Christophe
Published: June 2014

Legal mandates can play an important role in the success of rice fortification programs that involve the private sector. However, merely enacting mandatory legislation does not guarantee success; it requires a coordinated, multidimensional cross‐sector effort that addresses stewardship, develops an appropriate rice fortification technology, enables sustainable production and distribution channels through a range of private‐sector players, ensures quality, generates consumer demand, and monitors progress. Furthermore, economic sustainability must be built into the supply chain and distribution network to enable the program to outlast government administrations and/or time‐limited funding. Hence, mandates can serve as valuable long‐term enablers of cross‐sector mobilization and collaboration and as catalysts of civil society engagement in and ownership of fortification programs. This paper compares the rice fortification experiences of Costa Rica and the Philippines—two countries with mandates, yet distinctly different industry landscapes. Costa Rica has achieved national success through strong government stewardship and active market development—key elements of success regardless of industry structure. With a comparatively more diffuse rice industry structure, the Philippines has also had success in limited geographies where key stakeholders have played an active role in market development. A comparative analysis provides lessons that may be relevant to other rice fortification programs.
Evolution of morphological allometry
Authors: Pélabon Christophe , Firmat Cyril , Bolstad Geir H. , Voje Kjetil L. , Houle David , Cassara Jason , Rouzic Arnaud Le , Hansen Thomas F.
Published: June 2014

Morphological allometry refers to patterns of covariance between body parts resulting from variation in body size. Whether measured during growth (ontogenetic allometry), among individuals at similar developmental stage (static allometry), or among populations or species (evolutionary allometry), allometric relationships are often tight and relatively invariant. Consequently, it has been suggested that allometries have low evolvability and could constrain phenotypic evolution by forcing evolving species along fixed trajectories. Alternatively, allometric relationships may result from natural selection for functional optimization. Despite nearly a century of active research, distinguishing between these alternatives remains difficult, partly due to wide differences in the meaning assigned to the termallometry. In particular, a broad use of the term, encompassing any monotonic relationship between body parts, has become common. This usage breaks the connection to the proportional growth regulation that motivated Huxley's original narrow‐sense use of allometry to refer to power–law relationships between traits. Focusing on the narrow‐sense definition of allometry, we review here evidence for and against the allometry‐as‐a‐constraint hypothesis. Although the low evolvability and the evolutionary invariance of the static allometric slope observed in some studies suggest a possible constraining effect of this parameter on phenotypic evolution, the lack of knowledge about selection on allometry prevents firm conclusions.
Early Cretaceous non‐marine Ostracoda from theNorthFalklandBasin,SouthAtlantic
Authors: Ayress Michael A. , Whatley Robin C.
Published: June 2014

Twenty‐seven species of well‐preserved and abundant Early Cretaceous non‐marine ostracod crustaceans were recovered from the North Falkland Basin. The assemblage is unusually diverse for a non‐marine palaeoenvironment and is sourced from cuttings samples collected during 2011 drilling of wells by Desire and Rockhopper Exploration, in the northern and southern areas of the basin. Ostracoda are entirely undocumented in published accounts from this basin, and all but one species appear to be new to science. For the new taxa, one new family (Alloiocyprideidae; type genusHourcqia) is proposed and includesHourcqia woodisp. nov. Four new genera are erected:Falklandicyprisgen. nov.; type speciesF. petrasaltatasp. nov.,Gangamoncytheregen. nov.; type speciesG. colinisp. nov.,Paraplesiocyprideagen. nov.; type speciesP. alloiossp. nov., andMusacchiocytheregen nov.; type speciesM. sarunata(Musacchio,). Nine other species are described as new and areFalklandicypris desiderata,Clinocypris epacrus,Cypria poietes,Ilhasina? leiodermatus,Looneyellopsis tuberculatus,Theriosynoecum petasmathylacus,Theriosynoecum ballentae,Timiriasevia fluitans,andVecticypris samesi. The remainder are left in open nomenclature due to paucity of material. The ostracod assemblage is largely restricted to the southern part of the basin (wells 25/5‐1 and 26/6‐1). In the northern part of the basin only four species, dominated byVecticypris samesi, are present and with one possible exception are restricted there. There appears to have been little or no interchange of species suggesting that a barrier probably existed between the northern and southern regions. The more diverse southern assemblage indicates that more favourable conditions existed to the south. Stratigraphically, a distinct change in faunal composition recorded in both southern wells is likely to be an isochronous event correlatable across the southern area, and of an age no younger than Hauterivian.
New data on the palaeobiology of the enigmatic yunnanozoans from theChengjiangBiota,LowerCambrian,China
Authors: Cong Pei‐Yun , Hou Xian‐Guang , Aldridge Richard J. , Purnell Mark A. , Li Yi‐Zhen
Published: June 2014

Interpretation of the enigmatic soft‐bodied yunnanozoans from theLowerCambrian (Stage 3,Series 2)ChengjiangBiota has remained controversial for decades because of their strange body plan and their variable taphonomic alteration. Proposed affinities have ranged from stem bilaterian to stem vertebrate. A study of over seven hundred slabs, many newly collected, from five sections at two localities demonstrates that yunnanozoans have sclerotized dorsal and axial segments, a body cavity, a unique feeding region and a coiled alimentary canal. Although two genera have been previously discriminated, all specimens have the same number of filamentous arches (seven pairs) and of ventral circular structures (four pairs); this indicates thatHaikouellaChen,Huang andLi, 1999 is a junior synonym ofYunnanozoonHou,Ramsköld andBergström, 1991. Our analysis reveals new details of the putative pharyngeal pores ofYunnanozoon lividum,and although there are similarities with the gill slits of deuterostomes, the question of their homology remains moot. The filamentous arches and their supporting rods were probably sclerotized and represent a specialized feeding structure. Yunnanozoans exhibit characters that are open to a number of alternative interpretations of putative homology, encompassing comparisons with deuterostomes and protostomes (including members of thePlatyzoa). Given their unique features, and the current lack of secure homologies, the affinities of yunnanozoans should continue to be considered in a wider bilaterian context.
In utero sensitization modulates IgG isotype, IFN‐γ and IL‐10 responses of neonates in bancroftian filariasis
Authors: Achary K. G. , Mandal N. N. , Mishra S. , Mishra R. , Sarangi S. S. , Satapathy A. K. , Kar S. K. , Bal M. S.
Published: June 2014

In utero exposure has been considered as a risk factor for filarial infection. To evaluate the influence of maternal infection on filarial‐specific IgG subclass response in neonates and their correlation with plasma levels IL‐10 and interferon‐γ, 145 pairs of mothers and their respective cord bloods were examined. Transplacental transfer of circulating filarial antigen (CFA) was observed in 34·8% cord bloods from CFA positive mothers. Filarial‐specific IgG1, IgG2 and IgG4 responses of cord bloods were found to be positively correlated with CFA of mothers. In contrast, IgG3 responses negatively correlated with CFA of mothers. The % of similarity of recognition pattern in the cord blood with maternal blood was high for IgG3 response than IgG4 in all three groups. An increased levels of IL‐10 and decreased levels of interferon gamma (IFN‐γ) were observed in cord blood of infected mothers. Interferon gamma was positively correlated with IgG3 and negatively correlated with IgG4 level. On the other hand, IL‐10 was positively correlated with IgG4 and CFA, indicating that cytokines may play a role in modulating the immune responses in cord bloods of sensitized foetus. The findings of the study reveal that in utero tolerance or sensitization may influence the filarial‐specific immunity to infection in neonates.
Intake Fraction Variability Between Air Pollution Emission Sources Inside an Urban Area
Authors: Tainio Marko , Holnicki Piotr , Loh Miranda M. , Nahorski Zbigniew
Published: June 2014

The cost‐effective mitigation of adverse health effects caused by air pollution requires information on the contribution of different emission sources to exposure. In urban areas the exposure potential of different sources may vary significantly depending on emission height, population density, and other factors. In this study, we quantified this intraurban variability by predicting intake fraction (iF) for 3,066 emission sources in Warsaw, Poland. iF describes the fraction of the pollutant that is inhaled by people in the study area. We considered the following seven pollutants: particulate matter (PM), nitrogen oxides (NOx), sulfur dioxide (SO2), benzo[a] pyrene (BaP), nickel (Ni), cadmium (Cd), and lead (Pb). Emissions for these pollutants were grouped into four emission source categories (Mobile, Area, High Point, and Other Point sources). The dispersion of the pollutants was predicted with the CALPUFF dispersion model using the year 2005 emission rate data and meteorological records. The resulting annual average concentrations were combined with population data to predict the contribution of each individual source to population exposure. The iFs for different pollutant‐source category combinations varied between 51 per million (PM from Mobile sources) and 0.013 per million (sulfate PM from High Point sources). The intraurban iF variability for Mobile sources primary PM emission was from 4 per million to 100 per million with the emission‐weighted iF of 44 per million. These results propose that exposure due to intraurban air pollution emissions could be decreased more effectively by specifically targeting sources with high exposure potency rather than all sources.
Girls in Combat: Zoia Kosmodem'ianskaia and the Image of Young Soviet Wartime Heroines
Authors: TIPPNER ANJA
Published: June 2014

This article explores the literary stylization of adolescent girls as wartime heroes and martyrs. The most famous Soviet adolescent girl heroes of World War II were Zoia Kosmodem'ianskaia, Liza Chaikina, or Zinaida Portnova, but Zoia's short life more than any was transformed into an inspirational story for young Soviet readers. She was presented as the perfect female embodiment of the Stalinist values of innocence, youth, altruism, impatience, intellectual curiosity, modesty, and above of all, strong willpower. I demonstrate how the stories about Zoia and other girl fighters became iconic in Soviet culture, and how the following generations of Soviet girls were expected to emulate them. Zoia's story conceptualized life experiences of girls who were both exceptional and ordinary and projected a vivid picture of the Soviet understanding of emancipation, gender equality and progress.
Increased Interleukin‐27 Promotes Th1 Differentiation in Patients with Chronic Immune Thrombocytopenia
Authors: Li Q. , Zhang L. , Yang M. , Xia R. , Xia L. , Liu F.
Published: June 2014

Chronic immune thrombocytopenia (cITP) is an autoimmune disease with disturbed cytokine profile. Although plasma levels of IL‐27 are shown to be associated with cITP, its association with T cell subsets has not been studied. The objective of this study was to study the association between IL‐27 and different T cell subsets in patients with cITP. Heparinized blood was collected from 31 patients with cITP and 36 healthy controls (platelet count <100 × 109/l and 103–280 × 109/l, respectively). The percentage of Th1, Th2 and Th17 cells in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) were enumerated by flow cytometry, and the mRNA levels of IL‐27, T‐bet, GATA‐3 and retinoid‐related orphan receptor gamma (RORγt) by real‐time reverse transcriptase polymerase chain (RT‐PCR). Plasma cytokine levels of IL‐27, interferon‐gamma (IFN‐γ), IL‐4 and IL‐17A were estimated by flow cytometrix. The effect of exogenous recombinant IL‐27(rhIL‐27) on the differentiation of T cells into Th1, Th2 and Th17 cells was investigated by cell culture. The percentage of Th1 and Th17 cells and the plasma concentration and mRNA levels of IL‐27 were significantly higher in cITP patients compared with healthy controls. Plasma levels of IL‐27 correlated positively with percentage of Th1 cells in patients with cITP. Exogenous (rhIL‐27) could significantly up‐regulate the percentage of Th1 cells and down‐regulate Th2 cells in vitro. Th17 cells were reduced in the presence of (rhIL‐27) in controls but had no effect in patients with cITP. The up‐regulation of IL‐27 might cause Th1 differentiation and might be involved in the pathophysiology of cITP.
Naive Tumour‐Specific CD4+ T Cells were Efficiently Primed in Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia
Authors: Noyan F. , Lieke T. , Taubert R. , Sievers M. , Dywicki J. , Hapke M. , Falk C. S. , Manns M. P. , Jaeckel E. , Hardtke‐Wolenski M.
Published: June 2014

The recognition and neutralization of tumour cells is one of the big challenges in immunity. The immune system has to recognize syngeneic tumour cells and has to be primed and respond in an adequate manner. Priming of a leukaemia‐specific immune response is a crucial step in tumour immunology that can mislead to tumour tolerance either by T cell ignorance, deletion or Treg induction. To resemble the situation of acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) in patients, we used the murine BALB/c model with syngeneic BM185 tumour cells. We established a tumour cell line that expresses the neo‐antigen ovalbumin (BM185‐OVA/GFP) to allow the application of T cell receptor transgenic, antigen‐specific CD4+ T cells. Here, we demonstrate that effective anti‐ALL immunity can be established by in vivo priming of CD4+ T cells that is sufficient to differentiate into effector cells. Yet they failed to control tumour alone, but initiated a Th1 response. An efficient tumour clearance was dependent on both antigen‐specific CD4+ T cells and CD8+ effector T cells from the endogenous repertoire. The tolerogeneic milieu was characterized by increased Tregs numbers and elevated IL‐10 level. Tregs hamper effective antitumour immune response, but their depletion did not result in reduced tumour growth. In contrast, neutralization of IL‐10 improved median mouse survival. Future therapies should focus on establishing a strong CD4+ T cells response, either by adjuvant or by adoptive transfer.
Evaluation of peptide selection approaches for epitope‐based vaccine design
Authors: Schubert B. , Lund O. , Nielsen M.
Published: June 2014

A major challenge in epitope‐based vaccine (EV) design stems from the vast genomic variation of pathogens and the diversity of the host cellular immune system. Several computational approaches have been published to assist the selection of potential T cell epitopes for EV design. So far, no thorough comparison between the current methods has been realized. Using human immunodeficiency virus as test case, different EV selection algorithms were evaluated with respect to their ability to select small peptides sets with broad coverage of allelic and pathogenic diversity. The methods were compared in terms of in silico measurements simulating important vaccine properties like the ability of inducing protection against a multivariant pathogen in a population; the predicted immunogenicity; pathogen, allele, and population coverage; as well as the conservation of selected epitopes. Additionally, we evaluate the use of human leukocyte antigen (HLA) supertypes with regards to their applicability for population‐spanning vaccine design. The results showed that in terms of induced protection methods that simultaneously aim to optimize pathogen and HLA coverage significantly outperform methods focusing on pathogen coverage alone. Moreover, supertype‐based approaches for coverage of HLA diversity were showed to yield only satisfying results in populations in which the supertype representatives are prevalent.
An HLA‐A*11 variant, A*11:166, revealed in a Taiwanese unrelated bone marrow hematopoietic stem cell donor
Authors: Yang K. L. , Lee S. K. , Hung J. H. , Lin P. Y.
Published: June 2014

One nucleotide replacement in codon 35 of the human leukocyte antigen HLA‐A*11:01:01 results in a new allele, HLA‐A*11:166.
Using the five practices model to promote statistical discourse
Authors: Groth Randall E.
Published: June 2014

Statistical tasks that can be solved in a variety of ways provide rich sites for classroom discourse. Orchestrating such discourse requires careful planning and execution. Five specific practices can help teachers do so. The five practices can be used to structure conversations so that coherent classroom narratives about solutions to tasks may be formed. In this manuscript, two classroom examples that illustrate the five practices are offered. It is argued that employing the five practices can lead to higher quality classroom discussion than some commonly used arrangements.