bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
6 The Chinese Arms Embargo Affair
Authors: Casarini Nicola
Published: February 2010

This chapter examines the debate surrounding the proposal — (officially put forward in Autumn 2003) to lift the EU arms embargo imposed on China in June 1989, after the crackdown on students in Tiananmen Square. Alongside EU—China space cooperation, the proposal to lift the arms ban is the other initiative which has attracted most of the attention, and the concern, of the United States and its East Asian allies. This chapter presents the positions in favour and against the lifting, the current technical provisions regulating European arms sales to China, and the strong opposition to the lifting by the United States and its East Asian allies (in particular Japan and Taiwan). This chapter delves into the analysis of the different connections made by EU policy makers on the one hand and American, Japanese, and Taiwanese on the other, in the period 2003–5, regarding China's rise and East Asia's strategic balance.
7 The EU and East Asia's Strategic Balance
Authors: Casarini Nicola
Published: February 2010

This chapter traces the process leading to the emergence of changing perceptions of the EU in East Asia following the establishment of an EU—China techno‐political linkage and the proposal to lift the EU arms embargo on China. The first part examines Europe's traditional involvement in East Asian security affairs, including the Taiwan question and cross‐Strait relations. In the second part, this chapter analyses the novelty represented by the promotion of EU space and defence interests in China, including its impact on a regional environment characterized by the security dilemma and balance of power logic. This chapter concludes with a discussion on whether, and to what extent, the promotion of EU space and defence interests in China coupled with the peculiar characteristics of East Asia's international system has made the EU to be perceived as a novel strategic factor in the region.
8 Global Concert of Democracies?
Authors: Casarini Nicola
Published: February 2010

This chapter focuses on the evolution of the EU's foreign and security policy towards China and East Asia, including EU realignment on the position of the United States following the shelving of the proposal to lift the Chinese arms embargo in Summer 2005. This chapter discusses the reasons for this policy realignment and whether (and to what extent) the EU has started to adopt some form of containment vis‐à‐vis China. The second part of this chapter examines the prospects — put forward by some US and Japanese scholars and policy makers — for the emergence of a global concert of democracies that would contain authoritarian countries such as China, discussing the likelihood, and feasibility, for the Europeans to join such a concert. This chapter concludes with an examination of the similarities, and the differences, among the core liberal—democratic nations (United States, Europe, and Japan) on how to deal with a rising China.
The Social Amplification of Risk Framework (SARF): Theory, Critiques, and Policy Implications
Authors: Pidgeon Nick , Henwood Karen
Published: February 2010

This chapter focuses on the social amplification of risk framework (SARF) proposed by Kasperson et al. (1988). Their thesis is that certain aspects of hazard events and their portrayal in mediated and other sources interact with psychological, social, institutional, and cultural processes in ways that might attenuate (decrease) or amplify (increase) perceptions of risk and, through this, shape behaviour. There is considerable evidence now that risk attenuation and intensification phenomena have occurred in America and Europe in recent years, raising the question of whether the SARF might inform our understanding of basic risk communication processes and lead to improved practice in health communication and in related areas such as environmental policy.
The interpretation of topical indefinites as direct and indirect aboutness topics
Authors: Ebert Cornelia , Hinterwimmer Stefan
Published: February 2010

The Interpretation of Topical Indefinites as Direct and Indirect Aboutness Topics’ by Cornelia Ebert and Stefan Hinterwimmer deals with the interpretation of sentences that contain indefinite DPs marked as topics. It has often been observed that topical indefinites can be interpreted in either of the following ways: (i.) they receive widest scope (in episodic sentences); (ii.) they are interpreted generically (in sentences with generic tense); (iii.) they induce so‐called Quantificational Variability Effects (in the presence of adverbial quantifiers). These three observations have not been systematically related to each other so far. The contribution of the paper consists in showing that the three readings that are in principle available to topical indefinites can be based on a single underlying principle, which is responsible for the interpretive effect of topicality in the context of adverbial quantifiers and generic operators as well as in combination with determiner quantifiers.
Biased questions, intonation, and discourse
Authors: Reese Brian , Asher Nicholas
Published: February 2010

In chapter 7 ‘Biased questions, intonation, and discourse’, Brian Reese and Nicholas Asher explore how the intonation contributes to what is said through an examination of a particular sentence type, focusing on interrogative constructions that give rise to biased questions.  The authors examine three kinds of interrogative construction, tag questions, negative polar questions and what they call ‘emphatic focus questions’.  After a critical review of past approaches, it is argued that prosody and information from the syntax/semantics interface combine in these constructions to produce complex speech acts consisting of both an assertion and a question.   It is also argued that the study of such interrogative forms sheds light on the complex interaction between prosodic and lexical and compositional semantic information.
2 The Quest for Democratization
Authors: Eriksen Erik O.
Published: February 2010

This chapter first briefly addresses the legitimation problems of the Union and the concept of legitimacy. What does it mean and what are the implications for the political theory of the Union? On the basis of the contention that citizens must be offered justification for the exercise of political power that has convincing force in light of standards that are accessible to them, a distinction is made between democracy as a legitimation principle and as an organizational principle. The first gives rise to a deliberative concept of democracy, while the latter points us to some institutional prerequisites that constitute the yardstick for addressing the actual democratic deficits of the Union.
3 Democratic Legitimacy Through Deliberation?
Authors: Eriksen Erik O.
Published: February 2010

This chapter enquires into what model of deliberative democracy can account for post-national legitimacy. This has to do with the relationship between an epistemic and a participatory account of democratic legitimacy. The question is whether the quality of the debate and rational and fair outcomes bear the burden of legitimation, or if the political process based on equal rights, including universal suffrage, elections, majority vote, representation and the like, is the main constituent of democratic legitimacy. It is contended that legitimacy requires institutions and that government or the state is an enabling condition for justice. Thus, it is argued, what is needed is an alternative conception of democratic legitimacy, based on the notion of a working agreement.
Chapter 8 Government or Transnational Governance?
Authors: Eriksen Erik O.
Published: February 2010

This chapter addresses the prospects for democratizing transnational governance structures and asks whether democracy can be disassociated from government. Hierarchical government is increasingly supplanted by policy networks, epistemic communities and committees, and other arrangements for common problem‐solving. The exercise of authority is no longer exclusively governmental as the generation of norms takes place transnationally via practices of governance in spontaneous coordination processes, in committees and networks. The White Paper on European Governance suggests networking and partnership models of integration as a means to bring the EU closer to its citizens. These may help in rationalizing policymaking and implementation but, it is contended, do not contribute much to close the legitimacy gap. On the contrary, their effects on legitimacy may be perverse. The chapter examines the strengths and weaknesses of transnational governance and reconceptualizes government as opposed to both governance and state‐based perspectives on post‐national democracy.
Chapter 9 A State‐less Government
Authors: Eriksen Erik O.
Published: February 2010

What form of democracy is needed in the post‐national configuration? The EU is not a state and its power is limited. However, although the member states hold the means of legitimate violence in reserve, the EU has achieved competences and capabilities similar to authoritative government. The point of government is not state in its collectivistic, nationalistic reading, but democratic institutions. A non‐state entity can amount to government in so far as it performs the functions of authorized jurisdictions. In line with this, the Union can be considered as a state‐less government that finds part of its justification as a regional subset of a larger cosmopolitan order. The legitimacy requirement of such a governmental order must be different from that of a fully authorized power‐wielding polity. Nevertheless, due to the democratic deficit, it is not possible to establish the conditions under which a process of public justification is deemed legitimate.
Chapter 9 Reforming the German Civil Servant Pension Plan
Authors: Maurer Raimond , Mitchell Olivia S. , Rogalla Ralph
Published: February 2010

This chapter analyzes the risks and rewards of moving from an unfunded defined benefit pension system to a funded plan for civil servants in Germany, allowing for alternative portfolio mixes using a Monte Carlo framework and a Conditional Value at Risk metric. The authors identify an investment strategy for plan assets that will minimize worst-case pension costs; this turns out to be 22 percent in equities, 47 percent in bonds, and 31 percent in real estate. The authors show that moving toward a funded pension system for German civil servants can be beneficial to both taxpayers and civil servants.
The Idea of the Library in the Ancient World
Authors: Too Yun Lee
Published: February 2010

The Idea of the Library in the Ancient World takes the reader not just to Alexandria, the home of the famed library of Greco‐Roman antiquity, but far beyond it. Reading across antiquity from the fifth century BCE to the ninth century CE with Photius, the Byzantine scholar, this study recognizes that ‘library’ in antiquity comes in various forms and shapes. It can be a building with books, but it can also be individual people and individual books themselves. Its functions in antiquity are also numerous. The library is an instrument of power, of memory, of which it has various modes; it is an articulation of a political ideal, an art gallery, a place for social intercourse. The book indirectly raises issues about the contemporary library as a collection and in this way it demonstrates that antiquity offers insight into the topics that the library now raises.
The Birth ofaLibrary
Authors: Too Yun Lee
Published: February 2010

Chapter 1 looks at the narratives concerning the formation of the library in the ancient world. It shows how authors demonstrate that successive libraries always trace their origins to the same prior bodies of texts so that there appears to have been only one library that is constantly expanded in antiquity. It also considers how the formation of the library is associated with political or intellectual power, with ruling individuals, or with wars and conquest.
Library Catalogues: From Literary Description to Literary Self‐Description
Authors: Too Yun Lee
Published: February 2010

Chapter 2 examines the ways in which the library was catalogued so that people would know where to find things in a body of works and in individuals' works. It traces this impulse back to statements in poetry about the contents of a work, to the catalogues in Alexandria, and, finally, to tables of contents in subsequent works such as those of Pliny and Aulus Gellius.
The Breathing Library: Performing Cultural Memories
Authors: Too Yun Lee
Published: February 2010

Chapter 3 states that the library need not be a physical collection of texts, and it explores the phenomenon of the learned literary individual who becomes a virtual library. The personified library grows out of the person who had to personify literature in an earlier period and he becomes an authorized and authorizing figure, who, as the example of Aristophanes, the first librarian at Alexandria, shows, can attest to the legitimacy of texts. Individuals such as Longinus, Nepotianus, and Apuleius come to embody their society's learning and culture, although in later antiquity, with Athenaeus, the memorization of literary texts places the library‐individuals under great pressure as the attempt to accrue literary authority becomes an exaggerated and ridiculous venture.
Inside and Outside the Library: The Memory of Canon
Authors: Too Yun Lee
Published: February 2010

Chapter 6 is concerned with the Library of Photius, the Byzantine patriarch and scholar, a work that recalls literature in a very particular fashion. The Library relies on Photius' memory, and its deficiencies are due to the shortcomings of his memory, but it also concerns itself with the works themselves, providing incidental facts about the texts. This chapter argues that Photius engages in the production of ‘metadata’, concerning himself with a very different form of memory from what has come before.
The Sociality of the Ancient Library
Authors: Too Yun Lee
Published: February 2010

Libraries have the power to change how people live their lives. They were places in which one did research, they were, as in the case of Alexandria, hothouses of intellectual rivalry, they were places of relaxation, as in the bath‐houses of Rome, they were public and they were private and they could also be imaginary.
Transnational Investment Arbitration: From Delegation to Constitutionalization?
Authors: Sweet Alec Stone , Grisel Florian
Published: February 2010

This chapter compares different ‘Principal-Agent’ (P-A) models of arbitration and adjudication, and then applies them as a means of focusing empirical attention on how investor-State arbitration is, in fact, evolving. There is a familiar traditional distinction between, on the one side, state-centred conceptions of international judges as agents of states with mandates limited by public international law; and, on the other side, private law conceptions of commercial arbitrators settling private disputes on the basis of private contracts. The chapter argues that the arbitral world is being gradually transformed through a process of ‘judicialization’, which blurs the traditional distinctions and raises important constitutional issues. It illustrates the argument with reference to the increasing recourse to judicial precedents, balancing the review of the ‘proportionality’ of State restrictions on investors' rights, and to the increasing calls for appellate review of the decisions of investor-state arbitral tribunals.
10 Credit Default Swaps: The Key to Financial Reform
Authors: Mehrling Perry
Published: February 2010

Based on the importance of CDS, Mehrling argues in his chapter that the current crisis is best seen as the first test of the new system of structured finance. That test has revealed the crucial role played by credit insurance of various kinds, including CDS, for supporting both valuation and liquidity of even the top tranches of structured finance products. The various government interventions of the last year amount, in his view, to the public sector going into the credit insurance business in response to crisis—by either writing credit insurance or taking over insurance contracts written by others. The author calls this the “Paulson‐Bernanke CDS put.” In his view, a basic lesson of the crisis is that the government must be in the credit insurance business in normal times as well.
A Zeptospace Odyssey: A Journey into the Physics of the LHC
Authors: Giudice Gian Francesco
Published: February 2010

It is at this very moment that the most ambitious scientific experiment of all time is about to begin, and yet its precise aims are rather poorly understood by the general public. This book provides an everyman's guide for understanding and following the discoveries that will take place within the next few years at the LHC project at CERN. This book shares an insider's view of the world of particle physics and allows for an appreciation of a true intellectual revolution that is about to take place. The technological innovations required to build the LHC constitute not the least among the many astonishing aspects of this scientific adventure, and they too are described here as part of the LHC story. The book culminates with an outline of the scientific aims and expectations at the LHC. Does the mysterious Higgs boson exist? Does space hide supersymmetry or extend into extra dimensions? How can colliding protons at the LHC unlock the secrets of the origin of our universe? These questions are all framed and then addressed by an expert in the field.
Organization and physiology of posterior lateral line afferent neurons in larval zebrafish
Authors: Liao James C.
Published: February 2010

The lateral line system of larval zebrafish can translate hydrodynamic signals from the environment to guide body movements. Here, I demonstrate a spatial relationship between the organization of afferent neurons in the lateral line ganglion and the innervation of neuromasts along the body. I developed a whole cell patch clamp recording technique to show that afferents innervate multiple direction-sensitive neuromasts, which are sensitive to low fluid velocities. This work lays the foundation to integrate sensory neuroscience and the hydrodynamics of locomotion in a model genetic system.
A nonlinear equation for ionic diffusion in a strong binary electrolyte
Authors: Ghosal Sandip , Chen Zhen
Published: February 2010

The problem of the one-dimensional electro-diffusion of ions in a strong binary electrolyte is considered. The mathematical description, known as the Poisson–Nernst–Planck (PNP) system, consists of a diffusion equation for each species augmented by transport owing to a self-consistent electrostatic field determined by the Poisson equation. This description is also relevant to other important problems in physics, such as electron and hole diffusion across semiconductor junctions and the diffusion of ions in plasmas. If concentrations do not vary appreciably over distances of the order of the Debye length, the Poisson equation can be replaced by the condition of local charge neutrality first introduced by Planck. It can then be shown that both species diffuse at the same rate with a common diffusivity that is intermediate between that of the slow and fast species (ambipolar diffusion). Here, we derive a more general theory by exploiting the ratio of the Debye length to a characteristic length scale as a small asymptotic parameter. It is shown that the concentration of either species may be described by a nonlinear partial differential equation that provides a better approximation than the classical linear equation for ambipolar diffusion, but reduces to it in the appropriate limit.
Arabidopsis S-Sulfocysteine Synthase Activity Is Essential for Chloroplast Function and Long-Day Light-Dependent Redox Control
Authors: Bermúdez Maria Angeles , Páez-Ochoa Maria Angeles , Gotor Cecilia , Romero Luis C.
Published: February 2010

In bacteria, the biosynthesis of Cys is accomplished by two enzymes that are encoded by the cysK and cysM genes. CysM is also able to use thiosulfate as a substrate to produce S-sulfocysteine. In plant cells, the biosynthesis of Cys occurs in the cytosol, mitochondria, and chloroplasts. Chloroplasts contain two O-acetylserine(thiol)lyase homologs, which are encoded by the OAS-B and CS26 genes in Arabidopsis thaliana. An in vitro enzymatic analysis of the recombinant CS26 protein demonstrated that this isoform possesses S-sulfocysteine synthase activity and lacks O-acetylserine(thiol)lyase activity. In vivo functional analysis of this enzyme in knockout mutants demonstrated that mutation of CS26 suppressed the S-sulfocysteine synthase activity that was detected in the wild type; furthermore, the cs26 mutants exhibited a reduction in size and showed paleness, but penetrance of the growth phenotype depended on the light regime. The cs26 mutant plants also had reductions in chlorophyll content and photosynthetic activity (neither of which were observed in oas-b mutants) as well as elevated glutathione levels. However, cs26 leaves were not able to properly detoxify reactive oxygen species, which accumulated to high levels under long-day growth conditions. The transcriptional profile of the cs26 mutant revealed that the mutation had a pleiotropic effect on many cellular and metabolic processes. Our findings reveal that S-sulfocysteine and the activity of S-sulfocysteine synthase play important roles in chloroplast function and are essential for light-dependent redox regulation within the chloroplast.
Out of the Mouths of Plants: The Molecular Basis of the Evolution and Diversity of Stomatal Development
Authors: Peterson Kylee M. , Rychel Amanda L. , Torii Keiko U.
Published: February 2010

Stomata are microscopic valves on the plant epidermis that played a critical role in the evolution of land plants. Studies in the model dicot Arabidopsis thaliana have identified key transcription factors and signaling pathways controlling stomatal patterning and differentiation. Three paralogous Arabidopsis basic helix-loop-helix proteins, SPEECHLESS (SPCH), MUTE, and FAMA, mediate sequential steps of cell-state transitions together with their heterodimeric partners SCREAM (SCRM) and SCRM2. Cell–cell signaling components, including putative ligands, putative receptors, and mitogen-activated protein kinase cascades, orient asymmetric cell divisions and prevent overproduction and clustering of stomata. The recent availability of genome sequence and reverse genetics tools for model monocots and basal land plants allows for the examination of the conservation of genes important in stomatal patterning and differentiation. Studies in grasses have revealed that divergence of SPCH-MUTE-FAMA predates the evolutionary split of monocots and dicots and that these proteins show conserved and novel roles in stomatal differentiation. By contrast, specific asymmetric cell divisions in Arabidopsis and grasses require unique molecular components. Molecular phylogenetic analysis implies potential conservation of signaling pathways and prototypical functions of the transcription factors specifying stomatal differentiation.
Child Protection, Public Services and the Chimera of Market Force Efficiency
Authors: Barker Richard W.
Published: February 2010

The different agencies and professions that contribute towards child protection services have all recently had to begin to take account of the impact of market forces on their activities, yet detailed consideration of the consequences of this are slow to emerge. This article begins to consider these changes for child protection services. Having briefly described the child protection systems in England and Wales, it looks at the theoretical underpinning to the market forces approach which has become a significant ideological position in respect of public services in the UK and increasingly throughout the world. The article then considers the impact of a market forces approach on the organization of child protection services in relation to coordination versus fragmentation, profit versus professionalism, planning versus short‐termism, and cooperation versus competition. It concludes that the argument that a market forces approach to child protection will lead to greater efficiency in relation to protecting children is a chimera. The article is thus of relevance for the different professions who contribute to child protection services in all countries where a market approach to public welfare is being suggested or implemented.
Vector within‐host feeding preference mediates transmission of a heterogeneously distributed pathogen
Authors: DAUGHERTY MATTHEW P. , LOPES JOAO , ALMEIDA RODRIGO P. P.
Published: February 2010

1. Ecological theory predicts that vector preference for certain host species or discrimination between infected versus uninfected hosts impacts disease incidence. However, little information exists on the extent to which vector within‐host feeding preference mediates transmission. This may be particularly important for plant pathogens, such as sharpshooter transmission of the bacterium Xylella fastidiosa, which are distributed irregularly throughout hosts.

2. We documented the within‐host distribution of two vector species that differ in transmission efficiency, the leafhoppers Draeculacephala minerva and Graphocephala atropunctata, and which are free to move throughout entirely caged alfalfa plants. The more efficient vector D. minerva fed preferentially at the base of the plant near the soil surface, whereas the less efficient G. atropunctata preferred overwhelming the top of the plant.

3. Next we documented X. fastidiosa heterogeneity in mechanically inoculated plants. Infection rates were up to 50% higher and mean bacterial population densities were 100‐fold higher near the plant base than at the top or in the taproot.

4. Finally, we estimated transmission efficiency of the two leafhoppers when they were confined at either the base or top of inoculated alfalfa plants. Both vectors were inefficient when confined at the top of infected plants and were 20–60% more efficient when confined at the plant base.

5. These results show that vector transmission efficiency is determined by the interaction between leafhopper within‐plant feeding behaviour and pathogen within‐plant distribution. Fine‐scale vector and pathogen overlap is likely to be a requirement generally for efficient transmission of vector‐borne pathogens.
Evidence of selection at the ramosa1 locus during maize domestication
Authors: SIGMON BRANDI , VOLLBRECHT ERIK
Published: February 2010

Modern maize was domesticated from Zea mays parviglumis, a teosinte, about 9000 years ago in Mexico. Genes thought to have been selected upon during the domestication of crops are commonly known as domestication loci. The ramosa1 (ra1) gene encodes a putative transcription factor that controls branching architecture in the maize tassel and ear. Previous work demonstrated reduced nucleotide diversity in a segment of the ra1 gene in a survey of modern maize inbreds, indicating that positive selection occurred at some point in time since maize diverged from its common ancestor with the sister species Tripsacum dactyloides and prompting the hypothesis that ra1 may be a domestication gene. To investigate this hypothesis, we examined ear phenotypes resulting from minor changes in ra1 activity and sampled nucleotide diversity of ra1 across the phylogenetic spectrum between tripsacum and maize, including a broad panel of teosintes and unimproved maize landraces. Weak mutant alleles of ra1 showed subtle effects in the ear, including crooked rows of kernels due to the occasional formation of extra spikelets, correlating a plausible, selected trait with subtle variations in gene activity. Nucleotide diversity was significantly reduced for maize landraces but not for teosintes, and statistical tests implied directional selection on ra1 consistent with the hypothesis that ra1 is a domestication locus. In maize landraces, a noncoding 3′‐segment contained almost no genetic diversity and 5′‐flanking diversity was greatly reduced, suggesting that a regulatory element may have been a target of selection.
Beyond MHC: signals of elevated selection pressure on Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) immune‐relevant loci
Authors: TONTERI A. , VASEMÄGI A. , LUMME J. , PRIMMER C. R.
Published: February 2010

Using Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) as a model system, we investigated whether 18 microsatellites tightly linked to immune‐relevant genes have experienced different selection pressures than 76 loci with no obvious association with immune function. Immune‐relevant loci were identified as outliers by two outlier tests significantly more often than nonimmune linked loci (22% vs. 1.6%). In addition, the allele frequencies of immune relevant markers were more often correlated with latitude and temperature. Combined, these results support the hypothesis that immune‐relevant loci more frequently exhibit footprints of selection than other loci. They also indicate that the correlation between immune‐relevant loci and latitude may be due to temperature‐induced differences in pathogen‐driven selection or some other environmental factor correlated with latitude.
Molecular cloning and characterisation of two calmodulin isoforms of the Madagascar periwinkle Catharanthus roseus
Authors: Poutrain P. , Guirimand G. , Mahroug S. , Burlat V. , Melin C. , Ginis O. , Oudin A. , Giglioli‐Guivarc’h N. , Pichon O. , Courdavault V.
Published: February 2010

Involvement of Ca2+signalling in regulation of the biosynthesis of monoterpene indole alkaloids (MIA) in Catharanthus roseus has been extensively studied in recent years, albeit no protein of this signalling pathway has been isolated. Using a PCR strategy, two C. roseus cDNAs encoding distinct calmodulin (CAM) isoforms were cloned and named CAM1 and CAM2. The deduced 149 amino acid sequences possess four Ca2+ binding domains and exhibit a close identity with Arabidopsis CAM isoforms (>91%). The ability of CAM1 and CAM2 to bind Ca2+ was demonstrated following expression of the corresponding recombinant proteins. Furthermore, transient expression of CAM1‐GFP and CAM2‐GFP in C. roseus cells showed a typical nucleo‐cytoplasm localisation of both CAMs, in agreement with the wide distribution of CAM target proteins. Using RNA blot analysis, we showed that CAM1 and CAM2 genes had a broad pattern of expression in C. roseus organs and are constitutively expressed during a C. roseus cell culture cycle, with a slight inhibitory effect of auxin for CAM1. Using RNA in situ hybridisation, we also detected CAM1 and CAM2 mRNA in the vascular bundle region of young seedling cotyledons. Finally, using specific inhibitors, we also showed that CAMs are required for MIA biosynthesis in C. roseus cells by acting on regulation of expression of genes encoding enzymes that catalyse early steps of MIA biosynthesis, such as 1‐deoxy‐d‐xylulose 5‐phosphate reductoisomerase and geraniol 10‐hydroxylase.
New mothers' experiences of social disruption and isolation during the severe acute respiratory syndrome outbreak in Hong Kong
Authors: Dodgson Joan E. , Tarrant Marie , Chee Yuet‐Oi , Watkins Amanda
Published: February 2010

In Hong Kong during the severe acute respiratory syndrome outbreak of 2003, sustained uncertainty caused daily stress for residents for > 3 months. Expectant women experienced unexpected social disruption and isolation within their day‐to‐day life that have not been described in their own voice. The purpose of this study was to describe the experiences of women who became mothers during the outbreak and the ways in which these experiences impacted their early post‐partum mothering. A phenomenological research design was chosen. The participants' responses then led the interview process. As the women's experiences had many similarities, saturation was reached after eight interviews. Four themes emerged: living with uncertainty, intense vigilance, isolation, and disrupted expectations. The participants spoke of disrupted daily routines as they tried to eliminate their risk of contracting this disease, including relationship difficulties with their spouse. None of the women had the birth experience they had hoped for because of changes in hospital practices.
Mode of reproduction of Barbarea vulgaris in two different habitats in Tohoku, Japan
Authors: TACHIBANA MASAAKI , ITOH KAZUYUKI , WATANABE HIROAKI , NAKAYAMA SOICHI
Published: February 2010

This study was conducted to determine the reproductive characteristics of Barbarea vulgaris under different disturbance regimes (mowing and tilling) in two different habitats: a levee and a wheat field. On the levee, 77 of the 114 individuals that had had their floral stalks removed by the first mowing produced new rosettes at the basal part of the stem during the same growing season. The plants that were mowed four times per year had a significantly greater survival rate than the plants that were mowed twice per year. The levee population that was mowed without tillage was largely maintained by vegetative reproduction. These results suggest that mowing the levees promotes the vegetative reproduction of B. vulgaris and helps it to compete with tall‐growing plants, thus facilitating its survival as a perennial. In spite of the high sprouting ability of the plant's root fragments, most of the root fragments did not regenerate when buried or when exposed to high soil moisture conditions in tilled wheat fields. The population of B. vulgaris in tilled wheat fields was maintained almost entirely by sexual reproduction. Barbarea vulgaris can survive under two different management regimes by altering its mode of reproduction.
Optimizing the performance of diclofop‐methyl, cycloxydim, and clodinafop‐propargyl on littleseed canarygrass (Phalaris minor) and wild oat (Avena ludoviciana) control with adjuvants
Authors: MOHASSEL MOHAMMAD HASSAN RASHED , ALIVERDI AKBAR , HAMAMI HOSSEIN , ZAND ESKANDAR
Published: February 2010

Optimizing the herbicide dose by the addition of adjuvants is an acceptable way to reduce the risk of side‐effects from herbicides. Therefore, to detect a suitable adjuvant for diclofop‐methyl, cycloxydim, and clodinafop‐propargyl against littleseed canarygrass (Phalaris minor) and wild oat (Avena ludoviciana), six dose–response experiments were conducted. The treatments consisted of diclofop‐methyl at 0, 112, 225, 450, 675, and 900 g ai ha−1, cycloxydim at 0, 15, 30, 60, 90, and 120 g ai ha−1, and clodinafop‐propargyl at 0, 8, 16, 32, 48, and 64 g ai ha−1 with and without the adjuvants of Frigate, olive oil, and castor oil at 0.2% (v/v) in order to control both littleseed canarygrass and wild oat. Tested herbicides performance was enhanced by all adjuvants against littleseed canarygrass and wild oat. The addition of Frigate and the vegetable oils had the lowest and the highest effect on the performance of all of the herbicides on both littleseed canarygrass and wild oat, respectively, which confirms the solubilizing nature of the cuticular waxes by vegetable oils. A comparison between the two vegetable oils revealed that olive oil exerted a greater control of littleseed canarygrass than did the castor oil. In contrast, castor oil exerted a greater control of wild oat than did the olive oil, which can be related to differences in the leaf surface micromorphology of the weeds.
The Pseudomonas aeruginosa patatin‐like protein PlpD is the archetype of a novel Type V secretion system
Authors: Salacha Richard , Kovačić Filip , Brochier‐Armanet Céline , Wilhelm Susanne , Tommassen Jan , Filloux Alain , Voulhoux Romé , Bleves Sophie
Published: February 2010

We discovered a novel secreted protein by Pseudomonas aeruginosa, PlpD, as a member of the bacterial lipolytic enzyme family of patatin‐like proteins (PLPs). PlpD is synthesized as a single molecule consisting of a secreted domain fused to a transporter domain. The N‐terminus of PlpD includes a classical signal peptide followed by the four PLP conserved blocks that account for its lipase activity. The C‐terminus consists of a POTRA (polypeptide transport‐associated) motif preceding a putative 16‐stranded β‐barrel similar to those of TpsB transporters of Type Vb secretion system. We showed that the C‐terminus remains inserted into the outer membrane while the patatin moiety is secreted. The association between a TpsB component and a passenger protein is a unique hybrid organization that we propose to classify as Type Vd. More than 200 PlpD orthologues exist among pathogenic and environmental bacteria, which suggests that bacteria secrete numerous PLPs using this newly defined mechanism.
A simple risk score to identify Southern Chinese at high risk for diabetes
Authors: Ko G. , So W. , Tong P. , Ma R. , Kong A. , Ozaki R. , Chow C. , Cockram C. , Chan J.
Published: February 2010

Diabet. Med. 27, 644–649 (2010)

Aims  To develop a simple scoring system for identifying Southern Chinese at risk of diabetes.

Methods  The score was derived from a risk factor matching cohort for Type 2 diabetes in Hong Kong Chinese (cohort 1, 2448 subjects without a history of diabetes; age, mean ± sd 37.2 ± 8.9 years, median 36.0 years; 1649 had risk factors for diabetes and 799 were age‐matched control subjects from the community). Two other cohorts were used to validate the risk score (cohort 2, 3734 subjects with risk factors for diabetes; and cohort 3, 1513 participants of a community diabetes survey). All subjects had a 75 g oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT).

Results  In cohort 1, 270 (11%) of the subjects were found to have diabetes on OGTT. A risk score system was derived using the β values of the corresponding predictors in the logistic regression analysis. The area under the curve (95% confidence intervals) of the score system was 0.735 (0.705, 0.765). The application of a risk score of ≥ 16 increased the detection rate 2.5–4 times in all three cohorts. A high post‐test probability of diabetes of > 60% was derived from a risk score of ≥ 20. Only 10–20 and ∼5% with a score of ≥ 12 and ≥ 16, respectively, are indicated for OGTT. This will considerably improve the yield of OGTT screening.

Conclusions  A simple risk score identifies young‐to‐middle‐aged Southern Chinese at high risk for diabetes. Subjects with a score of 16 or above (out of 30) should undergo OGTT for definitive diagnosis of diabetes.
The Dynamics of Labour Flexibility: Relationships between Employment Type and Innovativeness
Authors: Martínez‐Sánchez Angel , Vela‐Jiménez María‐José , Pérez‐Pérez Manuela , de‐Luis‐Carnicer Pilar
Published: February 2010

abstract

This paper investigates the relationship between flexible human resource (HR) practices and innovativeness. Testing the research model in a sample of first‐tier automotive suppliers indicates that internal flexibility practices are positively related to innovativeness. Regarding external flexibility, the association depends on the type of contingent employee: negative association for ‘short‐term hires’ and positive association for ‘consulting/contracting firms’. The relationships to innovativeness for practices associated with knowledge transfer are moderated by environmental dynamism, but the non‐knowledge related practices are not. Firms in highly dynamic environments can benefit more from flexible HR practices than firms in less dynamic environments.
Specialized search and innovation performance – evidence across Europe
Authors: Sofka Wolfgang , Grimpe Christoph
Published: February 2010

Searching for external knowledge has frequently been characterized as crucial for firm success. However, little is known about how the direction of search strategies influences innovation performance. In this paper, we argue that firms need to specialize their search strategy and that its effectiveness is moderated by research and development (R&D) investments and potential knowledge spillovers from a firm's environment. Based on a sample of >5,000 firms from five European countries, our results show that being open for innovation generally pays off. However, both moderating factors have a crucial role to play: on the one hand, in‐house R&D investments are most effective when combined with a market‐oriented search strategy. On the other hand, a technologically advanced environment requires firms to reach out to sources of scientific knowledge in order to access highly novel knowledge and to enhance innovation performance. We develop targeted management recommendations based on these results.
Inflation Developments and Perceptions after the Euro Cash Changeover
Authors: Ehrmann Michael
Published: February 2010

This paper analyses the evolution of inflation and of consumers’ inflation perceptions in the aftermath of the euro cash changeover. It finds that the cross-country variation of food product inflation was dependent on the complexity of conversion rates, with statistically significant and economically sizeable effects especially for low-priced items sold in mid-priced stores. The paper also shows that cross-country differences in the mismatch of perceived and actual inflation were linked to differences in the complexity of conversion rates. These results are in line with theories of finite information-processing capacities on the side of consumers.
Public Expenditures on Education and Cultural Affairs in the West German States: Does Government Ideology Influence the Budget Composition?
Authors: Potrafke Niklas
Published: February 2010

This paper examines whether government ideology influenced the allocation of public expenditures on education and cultural affairs in the West German states in the 1974-2006 period. I explicitly consider the allocation of policy responsibilities between the federal and the states’ governments. The results suggest that leftist governments slightly increased public spending for schooling, whereas right wing governments spent somewhat more on universities and cultural affairs. This spending pattern appears to be in line with the preferences of the governing parties’ constituencies and indicates political competition in a time of declining electoral cohesion.
Electrically evoked nociceptive potentials for early detection of diabetic small‐fiber neuropathy
Authors: Mueller D. , Obermann M. , Koeppen S. , Kavuk I. , Yoon M.‐S. , Sack F. , Diener H.‐C. , Kaube H. , Katsarava Z.
Published: February 2010

Background and purpose:  This study investigated the utility of pain‐related evoked potentials (PREP’s) elicited by a nociceptive electrical stimulation of the skin (= electrically evoked nociceptive potentials) in early detection of diabetic small‐fiber neuropathy.

Methods:  We studied 36 ‘young’ (19–35 years) and 24 ‘older’ (36–65 years) healthy subjects as well as 35 patients (35–64 years) with diabetes and neuropathic symptoms and 22 patients (34–64 years) with diabetes without neuropathic symptoms. Only patients with normal standard nerve conduction testing were included.

Results:  In patients with neuropathic symptoms, we found a significant increase in PREP latencies and decrease of amplitudes elicited from both, upper and lower limbs. In non‐symptomatic diabetic patients, we observed PREP abnormalities from lower limbs only.

Conclusions:  These data suggest that the method of pain‐related evoked potentials elicited by a nociceptive electrical stimulation of the skin may contribute to the early detection of diabetic sensory neuropathy.
The effect of psychosocial stimulation on cognition and behaviour at 6 years in a cohort of term, low‐birthweight Jamaican children
Authors: WALKER SUSAN P , CHANG SUSAN M , YOUNGER NOVIE , GRANTHAM‐MCGREGOR SALLY M
Published: February 2010

Aim  The aim of this study was to determine whether psychosocial stimulation up to the age of 2 years benefits cognition and behaviour at age 6 years in low‐birthweight, term‐born (LBW‐T) children (gestational age ≥37wk, birthweight <2500g), and to compare LBW‐T and normal‐birthweight (NBW) children.

Method  LBW‐T Jamaican infants were randomized at birth to a control group or an intervention group. Children in the intervention group received psychosocial stimulation for 2 years. LBW‐T infants were also compared with NBW infants born in the same hospital. IQ, cognitive function, and behaviour were measured at age 6 years in 109 LBW‐T infants. The LBW‐T group were divided into the intervention group (55 out of 70 enrolled, 32 females, 23 males; mean birthweight 2190g, SD 200g; and the control group (54 out of 70 enrolled, 33 females, 21 males; birthweight 2240g, SD 180g]. These were compared with 73 out of 94 enrolled NBW infants (38 females 35 males; birthweight 3130g, SD 330g).

Results  Among the LBW‐T children performance IQ scores were higher in the intervention group than in the control group (regression coefficient [B] 4.06, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.01–7.98) as were visual–spatial memory scores (B 1.12, 95% CI 0.45–1.87). Children in the intervention group also exhibited fewer behavioural difficulties (B −2.21, 95% CI −4.13 to −0.10) than children in the control group. Compared with NBW children, LBW‐T children in the control group had poorer selective attention (B=−3.35, 95% CI −5.59 to −1.26) and visual–spatial memory (B=−0.76, 95% CI −1.54 to 0.00), but there were no differences in IQ, language, or behaviour.

Interpretation  Stimulation had sustained benefits in LBW‐T infants. Finding few differences between LBW‐T and NBW school‐aged children concurs with results from other developing countries.
Antifibrotic activity of an inhibitor of histone deacetylases in DOCA‐salt hypertensive rats
Authors: Iyer Abishek , Fenning Andrew , Lim Junxian , Le Giang T , Reid Robert C , Halili Maria A , Fairlie David P , Brown Lindsay
Published: February 2010

Background and purpose:  Histone deacetylases (HDACs) silence genes by deacetylating lysine residues in histones and other proteins. HDAC inhibitors represent a new class of compounds with anti‐inflammatory activity. This study investigated whether treatment with a broad spectrum HDAC inhibitor, suberoylanilide hydroxamic acid (SAHA), would prevent cardiac fibrosis, part of the cardiovascular remodelling in deoxycorticosterone acetate (DOCA)‐salt rats.

Experimental approach:  Control and DOCA‐salt rats were treated with SAHA (25 mg·kg−1·day−1 s.c.) for 32 days. Changes in cardiovascular structure and function were assessed by blood pressure in vivo and in Langendorff perfused hearts, ventricular papillary muscle and in aortic rings in vitro. Left ventricular collagen deposition was assessed by histology.

Key results:  Administration of SAHA to DOCA‐salt rats attenuated the following parameters: the increased concentration of over 20 pro‐inflammatory cytokines in plasma, increased inflammatory cell infiltration and interstitial collagen deposition, increased passive diastolic stiffness in perfused hearts, prolongation of action potential duration at 20% and 90% of repolarization in papillary muscle, development of left ventricular hypertrophy, systolic hypertension and changes in vascular dysfunction.

Conclusions and implications:  The HDAC inhibitor, SAHA, attenuated the cardiovascular remodelling associated with DOCA‐salt hypertensive rats and improved cardiovascular structure and function, especially fibrosis, in the heart and blood vessels, possibly by suppressing inflammation. Control of cardiac histone or non‐histone protein acetylation is a potential therapeutic approach to preventing cardiac remodelling, especially cardiac fibrosis.