bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Anosognosia for memory impairment in Alzheimer's disease
Authors: Stewart Georgina , McGeown William J. , Shanks Michael F. , Venneri Annalena
Published: July 2010

Stewart G, McGeown WJ, Shanks MF, Venneri A. Anosognosia for memory impairment in Alzheimer's disease.

Objective

To investigate whether patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD) were able to alter their awareness of memory deficits after exposure to a memory task.

Methods:

Thirty normal older adults and 23 mild AD patients participated in the study. Anosognosia was assessed using discrepancies between self- and informant-evaluations of cognitive and functional performance. Participants estimated their performance on the Verbal Paired Associates task at different points in time (before, immediately after the task and after a 1-h delay).

Results:

AD patients were generally less able to judge their memory abilities than healthy older adults, and tended to overestimate their task performance beforehand. Their prediction accuracy increased immediately after the task, but after a 1-h delay, they again misjudged their abilities at pretesting accuracy levels. Self-carer discrepancy scores of awareness of deficits in memory and other areas correlated significantly with memory tests but not with other neuropsychological tasks in the assessment, and larger discrepancy scores were associated with poorer performance.

Conclusion:

AD patients can monitor their task performance online, but are unable to maintain awareness of their deficits over time. Loss of awareness of memory deficits (or of any other deficits) in early stage AD may indicate damage to a system which updates a personal knowledge base with recent information. Failure to retain this information impedes abstraction from episodic to semantic memory.
Dementia and oral health among subjects aged 75 years or older
Authors: Syrjälä Anna‐Maija Hannele , Ylöstalo Pekka , Ruoppi Piia , Komulainen Kaija , Hartikainen Sirpa , Sulkava Raimo , Knuuttila Matti
Published: July 2010

doi: 10.1111/j.1741‐2358.2010.00396.x

Dementia and oral health among subjects aged 75 years or older

Objective:  To study the association between diagnosed dementia and oral health, focusing on the type of dementia, among an elderly population aged 75 years or older.

Background:  Elderly people with dementia are at risk from oral diseases, but to date, only a few studies have analysed the association between type of dementia and oral health, and their results are inconclusive.

Materials and methods:  This cross‐sectional study is based on the Geriatric multi‐disciplinary strategy (Gems) study that included 76 demented and 278 non‐demented subjects. The data were collected by means of an interview and an oral clinical examination. The type of dementia was diagnosed according to DSM‐IV criteria. Poisson’s and logistic regression models were used to determine relative risks (RR), odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence limits (CI).

Results:  Our results showed that patients with Alzheimer’s disease and those with other types of dementia had an increased likelihood of having carious teeth, teeth with deep periodontal pockets, and poor oral and denture hygiene, compared with non‐demented persons. The results showed that the type of dementia does not seem to be an essential determinant of oral health.

Conclusions:  Among the elderly aged 75 years or older, patients with Alzheimer’s disease or other types of dementia are at increased risk of poor oral health and poor oral hygiene.
Richard Yates’s Fictional Treatment of Women
Authors: Charlton‐Jones Kate
Published: July 2010

This article is an attempt to broaden the scope of how we read Richard Yates’s work; there was far more to Yates than one, albeit exceptional, novel. Richard Yates had much to say about the difficulties both men and women have in finding a means of honest communication. He was particularly interested in how women’s lives were proscribed by the men in their lives and by the means they chose to overcome their difficulties. With his early short stories and his first novel, Revolutionary Road, Yates’s observations about life in fifties America make interesting reading and add to the growing sense that new shoots of feminism were beginning to appear well before Betty Friedan’s The Feminine Mystique (1963). However, interest in Yates’s work too often starts and ends with Revolutionary Road: while it remains his most significant work, his other novels and stories need attention. The role of women, the growth of a materialistic, performative culture led by the increasingly powerful advertising and movie industries and the small lives of ordinary people coming to terms with banal tragedies that suggest the complexity and pain of human existence are investigated in all his work.
Ciz1, a p21Cip1/Waf1‐interacting zinc finger protein and DNA replication factor, is a novel molecular partner for human enhancer of rudimentary homolog
Authors: Łukasik Anna , Uniewicz Katarzyna A. , Kulis Marta , Kozlowski Piotr
Published: July 2010

Enhancer of rudimentary homolog (Drosophila) (ERH) is a small, highly conserved, nuclear protein with a unique three‐dimensional structure, whose gene has been identified in animals, plants and protists, but not in fungi. Involvement of ERH in fundamental processes such as regulation of pyrimidine metabolism, cell cycle progression, transcription and cell growth control has been suggested. Here, employing a yeast two‐hybrid system, a glutathione S‐transferase pull‐down assay and tandem MS, we demonstrate that Ciz1 is a bona fide interactor of human ERH. Ciz1 is a nuclear zinc finger protein interacting with p21Cip1/Waf1, a universal inhibitor of cyclin‐dependent kinases, and is a DNA replication factor. The region of Ciz1 necessary for the interaction with ERH spans residues 531–644, encompassing its first zinc finger motif. This region overlaps the p21Cip1/Waf1‐binding site, suggesting that the interaction with ERH could block the binding of p21Cip1/Waf1 by Ciz1 in the cell. When ERH and Ciz1 are coexpressed in HeLa cells, Ciz1 recruits ERH to DNA replication foci.
Visfatin is induced by peroxisome proliferator‐activated receptor gamma in human macrophages
Authors: Mayi Thérèse Hèrvée , Duhem Christian , Copin Corinne , Bouhlel Mohamed Amine , Rigamonti Elena , Pattou François , Staels Bart , Chinetti‐Gbaguidi Giulia
Published: July 2010

Obesity is a low‐grade chronic inflammatory disease associated with an increased number of macrophages (adipose tissue macrophages) in adipose tissue. Within the adipose tissue, adipose tissue macrophages are the major source of visfatin/pre‐B‐cell colony‐enhancing factor/nicotinamide phosphoribosyl transferase. The nuclear receptor peroxisome proliferator‐activated receptor gamma (PPARγ) exerts anti‐inflammatory effects in macrophages by inhibiting cytokine production and enhancing alternative differentiation. In this study, we investigated whether PPARγ modulates visfatin expression in murine (bone marrow‐derived macrophage) and human (primary human resting macrophage, classical macrophage, alternative macrophage or adipose tissue macrophage) macrophage models and pre‐adipocyte‐derived adipocytes. We show that synthetic PPARγ ligands increase visfatin gene expression in a PPARγ‐dependent manner in primary human resting macrophages and in adipose tissue macrophages, but not in adipocytes. The threefold increase of visfatin mRNA was paralleled by an increase of protein expression (30%) and secretion (30%). Electrophoretic mobility shift assay experiments and transient transfection assays indicated that PPARγ induces visfatin promoter activity in human macrophages by binding to a DR1–PPARγ response element. Finally, we show that PPARγ ligands increase NAD+ production in primary human macrophages and that this regulation is dampened in the presence of visfatin small interfering RNA or by the visfatin‐specific inhibitor FK866. Taken together, our results suggest that PPARγ regulates the expression of visfatin in macrophages, leading to increased levels of NAD+.
Cigarette Smoke Extracts Promote Vascular Smooth Muscle Cell Proliferation and Enhances Contractile Responses in the Vasculature and Airway
Authors: Xu Cang‐Bao , Lei Ying , Chen Qingwen , Pehrson Christina , Larsson Lennart , Edvinsson Lars
Published: July 2010

Abstract:  Cigarette smoke exposure is a strong risk factor for cardiovascular and respiratory diseases. However, the knowledge about how cigarette smoke induces damage to vasculature and airway is limited. The present study was designed to examine the effects of cigarette smoke particles extracted by heptane (heptane‐soluble smoke particles, HSP), by water (water‐soluble smoke particles, WSP) and by DMSO (DMSO‐soluble smoke particles, DSP), which represent lipophilic, hydrophilic and ambiphoteric constituents from the cigarette smoke, respectively. Human aortic smooth muscle cell (HASMC) proliferation was assessed in cell culture. Rat resistance artery and airway contractile responses to serotonin, U46619, phenylephrine, noradrenaline, acetylcholine, des‐Arg9‐bradykinin, bradykinin, sarafotoxin 6c and endothelin‐1 were monitored by a sensitive myograph system. Immunocytochemistry and cell‐based phosphoELISA assay were used to demonstrate activation of extracellular signal‐regulated kinases 1/2 (ERK1/2). For the first time, our results demonstrate that although all the three extracts promote HASMC proliferation, the HSP and DSP effects occur earlier. HSP and DSP, but not WSP, increase the contractile responses to sarafotoxin 6c, U46619 or bradykinin in rat mesenteric artery and/or in bronchi. ERK1/2 is activated by HSP and DSP in HASMCs and inhibition of ERK1/2 abrogated the smoke extracts‐induced HASMC proliferation, while blockage of nicotinic receptors had no effects, suggesting that the toxic effects of the smoke extracts occur via activation of intracellular ERK1/2 signalling, but not nicotinic receptors.
VLT and GTC observations of SDSS J0123+00: a type 2 quasar triggered in a galaxy encounter
Authors: Villar-Martín M. , Tadhunter C. , Pérez E. , Humphrey A. , Martínez-Sansigre A. , Delgado R. González , Pérez-Torres M.
Published: July 2010

We present long-slit spectroscopy, continuum and [O iii]λ5007 imaging data obtained with the Very Large Telescope and the Gran Telescopio Canarias of the type 2 quasar SDSS J0123+00 at z = 0.399. The quasar lies in a complex, gas-rich environment. It appears to be physically connected by a tidal bridge to another galaxy at a projected distance of ∼100 kpc, which suggests this is an interacting system. Ionized gas is detected to a distance of at least ∼133 kpc from the nucleus. The nebula has a total extension of ∼180 kpc. This is one of the largest ionized nebulae ever detected associated with an active galaxy. Based on the environmental properties, we propose that the origin of the nebula is tidal debris from a galactic encounter, which could as well be the triggering mechanism of the nuclear activity. SDSS J0123+00 demonstrates that giant, luminous ionized nebulae can exist associated with type 2 quasars of low radio luminosities, contrary to expectations based on type 1 quasar studies.
Power and spectral index anisotropy of the entire inertial range of turbulence in the fast solar wind
Authors: Wicks R. T. , Horbury T. S. , Chen C. H. K. , Schekochihin A. A.
Published: July 2010

We measure the power and spectral index anisotropy of magnetic field fluctuations in fast solar wind turbulence from scales larger than the outer scale down to the ion gyroscale, thus covering the entire inertial range. We show that the power and spectral indices above the outer scale of turbulence are approximately isotropic. The turbulent cascade causes the power anisotropy at smaller scales manifested by anisotropic scalings of the spectrum: close to k−5/3 across and k−2 along the local magnetic field, consistent with a critically balanced Alfvénic turbulence. By using data at different radial distances from the Sun and calculating the radial dependence of the ratio of the outer scale to the ion gyroscale, we show that the width of the inertial range does not change with heliocentric distance. At the smallest scales of the inertial range, close to the ion gyroscale, we find an enhancement of power parallel to the magnetic field direction coincident with a decrease in the perpendicular power. This is most likely related to energy injection by ion kinetic modes such as the firehose instability and also marks the beginning of the kinetic range, sometimes called the dissipation range, of solar wind turbulence.
Pathophysiology and treatment of patients with type 2 diabetes exhibiting failure to oral drugs
Authors: Efendic S. , Alvarsson M. , Brismar K. , Wagner H.
Published: July 2010

It is generally accepted that a poor glycaemic control increases the risk for development of vascular complications in diabetic patients. This advocates for early introduction of insulin treatment in patients with type 2 diabetes exhibiting a secondary failure to oral treatment. This strategy is facilitated by introduction of long‐acting insulin glargine and biphasic insulin aspart 70/30. The introduction of Glucagon‐like peptide‐1 (GLP‐1) mimetics and dipeptidyl peptidase 4 (DPP‐4) inhibitors in treatment of type 2 diabetes will however, to a large extent, influence therapeutic policy. Thus we suggest that DPP‐4 inhibitors or long‐acting GLP‐1 mimetics will be used as either first‐line therapy or as an early addition to metformin. The already generated results in animal and clinical studies suggest that these two classes of antidiabetic drugs may in addition to improving glycaemic control protect islet β‐cell mass and thereby postpone development of a secondary failure. When patients treated with metformin, sulfonylurea (SU), tiazolidinediones or a combination of these drugs fail, the GLP‐1 mimectics may be preferred to insulin treatment. First, the risk of hypoglycaemia is less if not combined with SU. Secondly, the body weight is usually decreased while insulin treatment increases weight. Patients not responding to GLP‐1 mimetics or experiencing significant side effects will be treated with insulin. Irrespective of the policy used for the drug treatment of type 2 diabetes, exercise and proper diet will remain important for optimization of metabolic control.
Sign Language Processing
Authors: Carreiras Manuel
Published: July 2010

Sign languages present a unique and natural opportunity to investigate the cognitive mechanisms of language comprehension and production, particularly in terms of their universality. Sign‐speech comparisons can lead to important theoretical insights about language processing. In the present paper, we enquire about the processing – recognition and production – of sign languages with special attention to the effects of age of acquisition and iconicity. Our aim is to provide a review of current findings about the psychological processes involved in sign language processing examining what aspects may be universal and what aspects are affected by modality.
Key Theory and Evolving Debates in International Housing Policy: From Legalisation to Perceived Security of Tenure Approaches
Authors: Kiddle Gabriel Luke
Published: July 2010

Continued global urbanisation has resulted in a proliferation of squatter or informal settlements across the globe. Debate, shaping international housing policy, has always raged about how best to improve conditions for households living in such areas. The paper introduces key early theory shaping housing policy; traces evolving international housing policy and particularly focuses on summarising the recent policy debate (and how recent practise has responded to this). This recent debate is focused around: (i) legalisation approaches that attempt to increase legal orde juresecurity of tenure (largely through titling) and (ii) alternative approaches that rather seek to increase perceived orde factosecurity of tenure in settlements. Recent international low‐income housing policy now reflects the understanding that increasingde factoor perceived security of tenure, through a variety of different means, is a pragmatic and affordable approach to improving shelter standards in settlements.
A Paradigm Shift in Hydrology: Storage Thresholds Across Scales Influence Catchment Runoff Generation
Authors: Spence Christopher
Published: July 2010

A paradigm shift is occurring in the science surrounding runoff generation processes. Results of recent field investigations in landscapes and during periods previously unobservable are shaping new ideas on how runoff is generated and transferred from the hillslope to the catchment outlet. The previous paradigm saw runoff generation and contributing area variability as a continuum. The new paradigm is based not on continual storage satisfaction and runoff generation but threshold‐mediated, connectivity‐controlled processes dictated by heterogeneity in the catchment. This review focuses on the body of literature summarizing research on storage, storage thresholds and runoff generation, particularly over the last several years during which this paradigm shift has occurred. Storage thresholds that control the release of water exist at scales as small as the soil matrix and as large as the catchment. Hysteresis in storage–runoff relationships at all scales manifest because of these thresholds. Because storage thresholds at a range of scales have now been recognized as important, connectivity has become an important concept crucial to understanding how water is transferred through a catchment. This new paradigm requires basins to be instrumented within the context of a water budget investigation, with measurements taken within key catchment units, in order to be successful. New model approaches that incorporate connectivity are required to address the findings of field hydrologists. These steps are crucial if our community wishes to adopt the holisitic view of the catchment necessary to answer the questions posed to us by the society.
The Deciduous Forest – Boreal Forest Ecotone
Authors: Goldblum David , Rigg Lesley S.
Published: July 2010

Ecotones have been subject to significant attention over the past 25 years as a consensus emerged that they might be uniquely sensitive to the effects of climate change. Most ecotone field studies and modeling efforts have focused on transitions between forest and non‐forest biomes (e.g. boreal forest to Arctic tundra, forest to prairie, subalpine forests to alpine tundra) while little effort has been made to evaluate or simply understand forest–forest ecotones, specifically the deciduous forest – boreal forest ecotone. Geographical shifts and changes at this ecotone because of anthropogenic factors are tied to the broader survival of both the boreal and deciduous forest communities as well as global factors such as biodiversity loss and dynamics of the carbon cycle. This review summarizes what is known about the location, controlling mechanisms, disturbance regimes, anthropogenic impacts, and sensitivity to climate change of the deciduous forest – boreal forest ecotone.
Geographies of Multifunctional Agriculture: Developing Governance Explanations
Authors: Clark Julian
Published: July 2010

This article charts some of the major recent contributions to the growing social sciences literature on multifunctional agriculture (MFA). It identifies three main geographies of MFA. The first is a broadly sociostructural view as policy discourses that communicate and coordinate new political imperatives in agriculture – increasingly global in reach. The second is as an empirical characteristic of land use management and local actor‐based decision‐making – embedded within but extending outwards from territories and rural communities. The third and most recent is as a theoretical perspective that conceptualises agricultural/rural structural transitions. Coherent in their own right, each of these geographies however remains relatively autonomous. The article contends that one means of synthesising these geographies is to build upon current widespread use of governance concepts. Developing governance explanations in line with contemporary theorising in the social sciences would offer MFA research novel insights and valuable new analytical foci. I conclude that using governance explanations in this way would not only open out social science debates, but would also offer the prospect of creating new interdisciplinary conversations with burgeoning natural science research on multifunctionality.
Multifocal papular deep bacterial pyoderma in a Boxer dog caused by Pseudomonas aeruginosa
Authors: Baxter CG , Vogelnest LJ
Published: July 2010

A young adult Boxer dog was presented with a papular dermatitis on the dorsal back and ventral neck that had developed while it was being treated with cyclosporine and cephalexin for atopic dermatitis and secondary superficial staphylococcal pyoderma, respectively. Histopathology demonstrated nodular to diffuse pyogranulomatous dermatitis with focal furunculosis. Numerous bacterial rods, free in the tissue and engulfed by neutrophils and macrophages, could be demonstrated on stained samples (haematoxylin–eosin; Giemsa). Bacterial culture from an aseptically collected skin biopsy punch sample yielded a pure growth of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, sensitive to a variety of antimicrobials. Successful treatment was accomplished following discontinuation of cyclosporine and an extended course of enrofloxacin. There has not been a recurrence of the pseudomonal pyoderma during the subsequent 2 years.
The Impact of Self‐Affirmation on Health‐Related Cognition and Health Behaviour: Issues and Prospects
Authors: Harris Peter R. , Epton Tracy
Published: July 2010

In a recent paper (Harris & Epton, Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 2009; 3, 962–978), we reviewed the evidence showing that self‐affirming – the act of reflecting upon cherished values or attributes – can reduce resistance to health‐risk information. In this companion paper, we extend the discussion of issues arising from that review and describe key questions for future research. Overall, we regard the picture emerging from this nascent literature as encouraging. Nevertheless, more needs to be discovered about how self‐affirming achieves its effects and their limits. Despite lowering an important barrier to health behaviour change by reducing message resistance, there is currently only limited evidence that self‐affirming changes subsequent health behaviour. We consider why. We also discuss issues to address in interventions involving self‐affirmation and examine evidence that self‐affirming alters relationships between variables. There is also scope for extending the range of samples, health information and health behaviours examined and for assessing more spontaneous self‐affirmation.
Blood Pressure and Emotional Responses to Stress: Perspectives on Cardiovascular Reactivity
Authors: Hilmert Clayton , Kvasnicka Lexi
Published: July 2010

It has long been thought that increases in blood pressure in response to stress are associated with emotional responses to stress. The health implications of such an association are clear; excessive emotional reactivity leads to excessive cardiovascular reactivity (CVR), which is associated with cardiovascular disease. However, the data do not support a strong association between CVR and emotional responses to acute stress. This lack of support has lead to research that interprets CVR to stress in at least three different ways: (1) as a potential contributor to disease development, (2) as an index of active coping, or (3) as a multidimensional construct that is affected by cognitive appraisals of a situation. In this article, we review these separate perspectives on CVR and suggest that a multidimensional perspective of CVR and emotional responding to stress may help integrate the CVR – health, effort, and appraisal points of view.
Effect of diabetes on enzymes involved in rat hepatic corticosterone production
Authors: HYATT Tanya , CHEN Ruimin , WANG Xudong , MICK Gail , MCCORMICK Kenneth
Published: July 2010

Background:  Numerous studies have explored the etiologic or permissive role of 11β‐hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (11β‐HSD1) in obesity and Type 2 diabetes, biochemical conditions often with concurrent hyperinsulinism. In contrast, there are limited data on the effect of insulin deficiency (i.e. Type 1 diabetes) on 11β‐HSD1 or endoplasmic reticulum enzymes that generate the reduced pyridine cofactor NADPH. Thus, the aim of the present study was to examine the effect of insulin‐deficient, streptozotozin diabetes on key microsomal enzymes involved in rat hepatic corticosterone production.

Methods:  After rats had been rendered diabetic with streptozotocin and some had been treated with insulin (2–6 units, s.c., long‐acting insulin once daily) for 7 days, hepatic microsomes were isolated. Serum corticosterone and fructosamine were obtained premortem. Intact microsomes were incubated in vitro and 11β‐HSD1, hexose‐6‐phosphate dehydrogenase (H6PDH), and isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH) measured.

Results:  Although diabetes markedly altered body weight gain and serum protein glycosylation (assessed by fructosamine), there was no significant change in hepatic 11β‐HSD1 reductase activity, with or without insulin treatment. However, serum corticosterone levels were significantly correlated with 11β‐HSD1 reductase activity when all groups were analyzed together (P < 0.05). Untreated diabetes modified (P < 0.01) two hepatic microsomal NADPH‐generating enzymes, namely H6PDH and IDH, resulting in a 37% decrease and 14% increase in enzyme levels, respectively.

Conclusions:  Consistent with most in vivo studies, chronic insulin deficiency with attendant hyperglycemia does not significantly modify hepatic 11β‐HSD1 reductase activity, but does alter the activity of two microsomal enzymes coupled with pyridine cofactors.
A Qualitative Risk Assessment Approach for Swiss Dairy Products: Opportunities and Limitations
Authors: Menéndez González S. , Hartnack S. , Berger T. , Doherr M. , Breidenbach E.
Published: July 2010

Switzerland implemented a risk‐based monitoring of Swiss dairy products in 2002 based on a risk assessment (RA) that considered the probability of exceeding a microbiological limit value set by law. A new RA was launched in 2007 to review and further develop the previous assessment, and to make recommendations for future risk‐based monitoring according to current risks. The resulting qualitative RA was designed to ascertain the risk to human health from the consumption of Swiss dairy products. The products and microbial hazards to be considered in the RA were determined based on a risk profile. The hazards included Campylobacter spp., Listeria monocytogenes, Salmonella spp., Shiga toxin‐producing Escherichia coli, coagulase‐positive staphylococci and Staphylococcus aureus enterotoxin. The release assessment considered the prevalence of the hazards in bulk milk samples, the influence of the process parameters on the microorganisms, and the influence of the type of dairy. The exposure assessment was linked to the production volume. An overall probability was estimated combining the probabilities of release and exposure for each combination of hazard, dairy product and type of dairy. This overall probability represents the likelihood of a product from a certain type of dairy exceeding the microbiological limit value and being passed on to the consumer. The consequences could not be fully assessed due to lack of detailed information on the number of disease cases caused by the consumption of dairy products. The results were expressed as a ranking of overall probabilities. Finally, recommendations for the design of the risk‐based monitoring programme and for filling the identified data gaps were given. The aims of this work were (i) to present the qualitative RA approach for Swiss dairy products, which could be adapted to other settings and (ii) to discuss the opportunities and limitations of the qualitative method.
Note on Self‐Selection of Auditors in the Municipal Sector*
Authors: BANDYOPADHYAY SATI P. , KAO JENNIFER L.
Published: July 2010

The objective of this article is to revisit the literature on Big‐N audit fee premiums in the municipal setting using a methodology that controls for self‐selection bias. Because auditor choices can be predicted based on certain client characteristics, using standard one‐stage ordinary least squares regressions to draw inferences about the presence or absence of such a premium in the extant public‐sector audit fee studies may not be appropriate.

Results indicate that, after controlling for a self‐selection bias, Big‐6 (non‐Big‐6) municipal clients on average pay a fee premium, compared to the case if they were to retain a non‐Big‐6 (Big‐6) auditor. Results continue to hold when we conduct further analyses on a subset of municipalities with access to both Big‐6 and non‐Big‐6 auditors in a local market defined by a 60‐km radius, rather than over a province‐wide audit market. The existence of non‐Big‐6 audit fee premiums has not been documented previously in the private‐ or public‐sector audit fee literature. We surmise that it may be caused by the dominance (79.4 percent) of non‐Big‐6 auditors in the Ontario municipal market, compared to most private‐sector audit markets where their market share generally does not exceed 20 percent. The strong market position of non‐Big‐6 firms in turn may have allowed these auditors to command a fee premium for the subset of municipalities that self‐selects to be audited by them.

An implication from our study is that Ontario municipalities often choose to be audited by more costly auditors, even though they could have paid lower audit fees by switching to an alternative auditor type. These results do not support those reported by Chaney et al. (2004), who find that U.K. private firms are audited by the least costly auditor type. The conflicting findings may be attributable to the fact that the Ontario municipal audit market is subject to regulation by not just the audit profession but also the Ontario government and that, unlike business corporations, municipalities receive funding from provincial governments to fulfil much of their financial requirements. Thus, municipal clients may be relatively more willing to accept higher audit fees provided their chosen auditor (or auditor type) matches their needs.
Incidence of swallowing during exercise in horses with dorsal displacement of the soft palate
Authors: PIGOTT J. H. , DUCHARME N. G. , MITCHELL L. M. , SODERHOLM L. V. , CHEETHAM J.
Published: July 2010

Reasons for performing study:The relationship between dorsal displacement of the soft palate (DDSP) and swallowing is unclear.

Objective:To quantify the relationship between DDSP and swallowing in horses at exercise.

Hypotheses:The frequency of swallowing increases immediately prior to DDSP in horses at exercise.

Methods:Videoendoscopic and upper airway pressure data were collated from horses with a definitive diagnosis of DDSP at exercise. Horses with no upper airway abnormalities were matched by age, breed and sex and used as controls. Sixty‐nine horses were identified with a definitive diagnosis of DDSP during the study interval. Airway pressure data were available for 42 horses.

Results:The majority of horses displaced at high exercising speeds while accelerating; a smaller number displaced during deceleration after peak speed had been reached. Horses swallowed significantly more frequently in the 1 min immediately preceding DDSP than in the control horses at equivalent speeds. DDSP at exercise results in a significant increase in tracheal expiratory pressure, a significant decrease in pharyngeal expiratory pressure and a significantly less negative pharyngeal inspiratory pressure compared to matched controls and compared to the pressures during the 1 min interval prior to DDSP. There was no significant difference between any measure of airway pressure before or after a swallow when examined at each time interval in the DDSP population.

Conclusions:The frequency of swallowing decreases with increasing speed in normal horses. In contrast, the frequency of swallowing increases immediately prior to onset of DDSP. This is not a result of pharyngeal and tracheal pressure changes.

Potential relevance:The increased frequency of swallowing observed prior to DDSP may be related to the aetiology of the disease.
Multitechnique characterization of adsorbed peptide and protein orientation: LK310 and Protein G B1
Authors: Baio J. E. , Weidner T. , Samuel N. T. , McCrea Keith , Baugh Loren , Stayton Patrick S. , Castner David G.
Published: July 2010

The ability to orient biologically active proteins on surfaces is a major challenge in the design, construction, and successful deployment of many medical technologies. As methods to orient biomolecules are developed, it is also essential to develop techniques that can accurately determine the orientation and structure of these materials. In this study, two model protein and peptide systems are presented to highlight the strengths of three surface analysis techniques for characterizing protein films: time-of-flight secondary-ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS), sum-frequency generation (SFG) vibrational spectroscopy, and near-edge x-ray absorption fine structure (NEXAFS) spectroscopy. First, the orientation of Protein G B1, a rigid 6 kDa domain covalently attached to a maleimide-functionalized self-assembled monolayer, was examined using ToF-SIMS. Although the thickness of the Protein G layer was similar to the ToF-SIMS sampling depth, orientation of Protein G was successfully determined by analyzing the C2H5S+ intensity, a secondary-ion derived from a methionine residue located at one end of the protein. Next, the secondary structure of a 13-mer leucine-lysine peptide (LK310) adsorbed onto hydrophilic quartz and hydrophobic fluorocarbon surfaces was examined. SFG spectra indicated that the peptide’s lysine side chains were ordered on the quartz surface, while the peptide’s leucine side chains were ordered on the fluorocarbon surface. NEXAFS results provided complementary information about the structure of the LK310 film and the orientations of amide bonds within the LK310 peptide.
Global Convergence in the Temperature Sensitivity of Respiration at Ecosystem Level
Authors: Mahecha Miguel D. , Reichstein Markus , Carvalhais Nuno , Lasslop Gitta , Lange Holger , Seneviratne Sonia I. , Vargas Rodrigo , Ammann Christof , Arain M. Altaf , Cescatti Alessandro , Janssens Ivan A. , Migliavacca Mirco , Montagnani Leonardo , Richardson Andrew D.
Published: July 2010

Carbon Cycle and Climate Change

As climate change accelerates, it is important to know the likely impact of climate change on the carbon cycle (see the Perspective by

Reich

). Gross primary production (GPP) is a measure of the amount of CO
2
removed from the atmosphere every year to fuel photosynthesis.

Beer
et al.

(p.
834
, published online 5 July) used a combination of observation and calculation to estimate that the total GPP by terrestrial plants is around 122 billion tons per year; in comparison, burning fossil fuels emits about 7 billion tons annually. Thirty-two percent of this uptake occurs in tropical forests, and precipitation controls carbon uptake in more than 40% of vegetated land. The temperature sensitivity (Q10) of ecosystem respiratory processes is a key determinant of the interaction between climate and the carbon cycle.

Mahecha
et al.

(p.
838
, published online 5 July) now show that the Q10 of ecosystem respiration is invariant with respect to mean annual temperature, independent of the analyzed ecosystem type, with a global mean value for Q10 of 1.6. This level of temperature sensitivity suggests a less-pronounced climate sensitivity of the carbon cycle than assumed by recent climate models.
Can Rho Regulate Its Regulator?
Authors: Ray L. Bryan
Published: July 2010

The crystal structure of an exchange factor fragment with a small GTPase reveals potential for complex regulatory interactions.
ENTROPICAL ASPECTS IN AUDITORY PROCESSES AND PSYCHOACOUSTICAL LAW OF WEBER–FECHNER
Authors: COSMA I. , POPESCU D. I.
Published: July 2010

For hearing sense, the mechanoreceptors fire action potentials when their membranes are physically stretched. Based on the statistical physics, we analyzed the entropical aspects in auditory processes of hearing. We develop a model that connects the logarithm of relative intensity of sound (loudness) to the level of energy disorder within the system of cellular sensory system. The increasing of entropy and disorder in the system is connected to the free energy available to signal the production of action potentials in inner hair cells of the vestibulocochlear auditory organ.
THE CHANGES OF STATES AND PROPERTIES OF MICROSCOPIC PARTICLES UNDER INFLUENCES OF DIFFERENT EXTERNAL POTENTIAL FIELDS
Authors: PANG XIAO-FENG
Published: July 2010

The properties of microscopic particles are studied using the linear Schrödinger equation in quantum mechanics and nonlinear Schrödinger equation, respectively. The results obtained show that the microscopic particles have only a wave nature in quantum mechanics, but a wave-corpuscle duality in nonlinear systems depicted by the nonlinear Schrödinger equation, no matter the form of external potentials. Thus we know that the kinetic energy term in dynamic equations determines the wave feature of the particles; the nonlinear interaction term determines the corpuscle feature; their combination makes the microscopic particles have a wave-corpuscle duality. However the external potential term can change the phase and group velocities of motion, phase, amplitude, frequency and form of wave for the particles in both quantum mechanics and the nonlinear quantum systems, although it cannot change these fundamental natures of particles, no matter the forms. Meanwhile, we find that the changes of positions of the microscopic particles by increasing the time under action of an external potential satisfy the Newton-type equation of motion in nonlinear quantum systems. Thus the investigations make us not only see the limits and approximations of quantum mechanics but also know the necessity and importance of developing nonlinear quantum mechanics on the basis of the nonlinear Schrödinger equation.
SEGMENTATION OF DERMATOSCOPIC IMAGES USED FOR COMPUTER-AIDED DIAGNOSIS OF MELANOMA
Authors: MESSADI MHAMMED , BESSAID ABDELHAFID , TALEB-AHMED A.
Published: July 2010

In this paper, a methodological approach to the segmentation of tumours skin lesions in dermoscopy images is presented. Melanoma is the most malignant skin tumor, growing in melanocytes, the cells responsible for pigmentation. This type of cancer is nowadays increasing rapidly, its related mortality rate increases by more modest and inversely proportional to the thickness of the tumor. This rate can be decreased by an earlier detection and better prevention. In dermatoscopic images, the segmentation is essential to characterize the information shape of the lesion and also to locate the tumor for analysis. In this domain, we have evaluated several techniques for the segmentation of dermatoscopic images. All these methods do not exactly separate the lesion from the background. In this work a fast approach in border detection of dermoscopy pigmented skin lesions images based on the region growing algorithm is presented. This method is tested on a set of 60 dermoscopy images. The obtained results show that the presented method achieves both fast and accurate border detection.
Synthesis of meso-tetraarylporphyrins possessing amino and carboxy groups and their peptides
Authors: Tamiaki Hitoshi , Kozawa Takaaki , Kitamoto Rika , Kunieda Michio
Published: July 2010

meso-Tris(3,5-di-tert-butylphenyl)porphyrin (P- H ) is bonded with L-phenylalanine (H-Phe-OH) directly at the unsubstituted meso-position of the former and the p-position of phenyl group of the latter to afford chiral porphyrin-amino acid conjugate H-Phe(p-P)-OH. The N-(9-fluorenyl)-methyloxycarbonyl compound, Fmoc-Phe(p-P)-OH, was synthesized without any loss of enantiomeric purity (based on chiral HPLC analysis) from commercially available L-tyrosine and was useful for preparation of the peptides in both liquid and solid phases. Other meso-tetraarylporphyrins possessing multi-amino acid moieties are reported, as well as achiral porphyrin-amino acids readily prepared and their dipeptidyl porphyrin dyads.
'Tritus in eo lector': Grotius's emendations to the text of Tacitus
Authors: Damon Cynthia
Published: July 2010

This paper considers Grotius's emendations to the text of Tacitus in his 1640 Notae et emendationes, with a particular emphasis on those passages in which Grotius has made a lasting contribution to our understanding of the ancient author: An. 1.32.3, 6.3.1, 11.14.3, 15.47.1, H. 2.1.2, Ag. 10.5, 46.2. It also argues that in four further passages (An. 3.54.6, 12.37.2, 13.46.3, 16.26.2) his contribution deserves to loom a little larger in the text, or at least in the apparatus criticus, of Tacitus's works than it presently does. These emendations are a valuable indication of Grotius's close engagement with the text of an author whose style he aims to reproduce in his own historical writings.
Developing positive relationships with voices: A preliminary Grounded Theory
Authors: Jackson Lana J. , Hayward Mark , Cooke Anne
Published: July 2010

Background: Research has been exploring the phenomenon of ‘voice hearing’ within a relational framework. To date, studies have paid limited attention to voice hearers who view the experience positively.

Material: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with five mental health service users and seven non-service users who had had positive experiences of hearing voices. Interview transcripts were analyzed using Grounded Theory.

Conclusions: The preliminary theory suggests that the moderation of fear and control may impact on relationships with voices. Actively engaging with voices to understand their subjective meaning may be beneficial. Promoting a positive self-concept and connecting with communities who value and accept voice-hearing experiences may be particularly important.
The history and future of nation-building? Building capacity for public results
Authors: Bourgon Jocelyne
Published: July 2010

The goal of nation-building is to build the collective capacity to achieve public results and to pursue a shared vision of the future. This article, which is based on a theoretical vantage point and the author’s experience as a senior public official, explores the theme of collective capacity-building from the point of view of government. It describes how achieving collective results requires institutional and organizational capacities but, building on these foundations, governments must also develop greater capacity to anticipate, innovate and adapt in the face of increasingly complex public issues and unpredictable circumstances.

Points for practitioners

Building institutional capacity has been a focus of governments for many decades and, indeed, centuries. Building organizational capacity has been the centrepiece of reforms since the 1980s. But public organizations are not yet aligned with the complex problems they are expected to address. Addressing complexity and uncertainty will likely require practitioners to work with (i) a broader definition of public results, (ii) an expanded view of the role of government and of the range of possible relationships between government and citizens, and (iii) a more dynamic approach to public administration.
Vibration Sensor Characteristics of Piezoelectric Electro-active Paper
Authors: Kim Jungyun , Lee Hocheol , Kim Heung Soo , Kim Jaehwan
Published: July 2010

The possibility of EAPap as a vibration sensor based on piezoelectricity was investigated in this article. The EAPap was fabricated by regenerating and tape casting cellulose. The sample was coated by a thin laminating film for packaging. The capacitance of EAPap was measured and compared with commercial PVDF. Relative permittivity of EAPap was 12, which was the same as commercially available PVDF. This reveals that EAPap has sensing potential similar to synthetic piezo polymer film. The simple aluminum cantilevered beam was used for the vibration testing and EAPap was attached on the beam. The original EAPap sensor without grounding and shielding is greatly affected by surrounding noise, especially power noise. The power noise dropped dramatically when the sensor was grounded and shielded. The impulsive response of EAPap provided the correct dynamic characteristics of the beam, especially the twisting mode of the beam was observed clearly even though the EAPap was attached at the center of the beam. This is because the sensing capability of EAPap is based on piezoelectricity which is bidirectional strain characteristics. EAPap sensor based on piezoelectricity provided a great potential as a vibration sensor.
Designing and implementing sample and data collection for an international genetics study: the Type 1 Diabetes Genetics Consortium (T1DGC)
Authors: Hilner Joan E , Perdue Letitia H , Sides Elizabeth G , Pierce June J , Wägner Ana M , Aldrich Alan , Loth Amanda , Albret Lotte , Wagenknecht Lynne E , Nierras Concepcion , Akolkar Beena ,   T1DGC
Published: July 2010

Background and Purpose The Type 1 Diabetes Genetics Consortium (T1DGC) is an international project whose primary aims are to: (a) discover genes that modify type 1 diabetes risk; and (b) expand upon the existing genetic resources for type 1 diabetes research. The initial goal was to collect 2500 affected sibling pair (ASP) families worldwide.

Methods T1DGC was organized into four regional networks (Asia-Pacific, Europe, North America, and the United Kingdom) and a Coordinating Center. A Steering Committee, with representatives from each network, the Coordinating Center, and the funding organizations, was responsible for T1DGC operations. The Coordinating Center, with regional network representatives, developed study documents and data systems. Each network established laboratories for: DNA extraction and cell line production; human leukocyte antigen genotyping; and autoantibody measurement. Samples were tracked from the point of collection, processed at network laboratories and stored for deposit at National Institute for Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) Central Repositories. Phenotypic data were collected and entered into the study database maintained by the Coordinating Center.

Results T1DGC achieved its original ASP recruitment goal. In response to research design changes, the T1DGC infrastructure also recruited trios, cases, and controls. Results of genetic analyses have identified many novel regions that affect susceptibility to type 1 diabetes. T1DGC created a resource of data and samples that is accessible to the research community.

Limitations Participation in T1DGC was declined by some countries due to study requirements for the processing of samples at network laboratories and/or final deposition of samples in NIDDK Central Repositories. Re-contact of participants was not included in informed consent templates, preventing collection of additional samples for functional studies.

Conclusions T1DGC implemented a distributed, regional network structure to reach ASP recruitment targets. The infrastructure proved robust and flexible enough to accommodate additional recruitment. T1DGC has established significant resources that provide a basis for future discovery in the study of type 1 diabetes genetics. Clinical Trials 2010; 7: S5—S32. http://ctj.sagepub.com