bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Revised microcalcification hypothesis for fibrous cap rupture in human coronary arteries
Authors: Kelly-Arnold Adreanne , Maldonado Natalia , Laudier Damien , Aikawa Elena , Cardoso Luis , Weinbaum Sheldon
Published: June 2013

Using 2.1-µm high-resolution microcomputed tomography, we have examined the spatial distribution, clustering, and shape of nearly 35,000 microcalcifications (µCalcs) ≥ 5 µm in the fibrous caps of 22 nonruptured human atherosclerotic plaques. The vast majority of these µCalcs were <15 µm and invisible at the previously used 6.7-µm resolution. A greatly simplified 3D finite element analysis has made it possible to quickly analyze which of these thousands of minute inclusions are potentially dangerous. We show that the enhancement of the local tissue stress caused by particle clustering increases rapidly for gap between particle pairs (
h
)/particle diameter (
D
) < 0.4 if particles are oriented along the tensile axis of the cap. Of the thousands of µCalcs observed, there were 193 particle pairs with
h
/
D
≤ 2 (tissue stress factor > 2), but only 3 of these pairs had
h
/
D
≤ 0.4, where the local tissue stress could increase a factor > 5. Using nondecalcified histology, we also show that nearly all caps have µCalcs between 0.5 and 5 µm and that the µCalcs ≥ 5 µm observed in high-resolution microcomputed tomography are agglomerations of smaller calcified matrix vesicles. µCalcs < 5 µm are predicted to be not harmful, because the tiny voids associated with these very small particles will not explosively grow under tensile forces because of their large surface energy. These observations strongly support the hypothesis that nearly all fibrous caps have µCalcs, but only a small subset has the potential for rupture.
Anoxic photochemical oxidation of siderite generates molecular hydrogen and iron oxides
Authors: Kim J. Dongun , Yee Nathan , Nanda Vikas , Falkowski Paul G.
Published: June 2013

Photochemical reactions of minerals are underappreciated processes that can make or break chemical bonds. We report the photooxidation of siderite (FeCO
3
) by UV radiation to produce hydrogen gas and iron oxides via a two-photon reaction. The calculated quantum yield for the reaction suggests photooxidation of siderite would have been a significant source of molecular hydrogen for the first half of Earth’s history. Further, experimental results indicate this abiotic, photochemical process may have led to the formation of iron oxides under anoxic conditions. The reaction would have continued through the Archean to at least the early phases of the Great Oxidation Event, and provided a mechanism for oxidizing the atmosphere through the loss of hydrogen to space, while simultaneously providing a key reductant for microbial metabolism. We propose that the photochemistry of Earth-abundant minerals with wide band gaps would have potentially played a critical role in shaping the biogeochemical evolution of early Earth.
Toward consilience, not literary Darwinism
Authors: Gottschall Jonathan
Published: June 2013

All literary Darwinists take inspiration from E. O. Wilson’s concept of consilience--the idea that the disciplines are seamlessly interconnected, and that knowledge at higher levels of the explanatory hierarchy (e.g., biology and psychology) is constrained by knowledge at lower levels (e.g., chemistry and physics). For literary Darwinism’s founder, Joesph Carroll, committing to consilience means that literary investigation should always be tied back to the ultimate, evolutionary level of causation. In my own view, investigation in the humanities should be constrained, disciplined, and inspired by knowledge from the sciences, but I don’t think literary Darwinism is the only responsibly consilient approach to literary study.
Reading other minds
Authors: Djikic Maja , Oatley Keith , Moldoveanu Mihnea C.
Published: June 2013

The potential of literature to increase empathy was investigated in an experiment. Participants (N = 100, 69 women) completed a package of questionnaires that measured lifelong exposure to fiction and nonfiction, personality traits, and affective and cognitive empathy. They read either an essay or a short story that were equivalent in length and complexity, were tested again for cognitive and affective empathy, and were finally given a non-self-report measure of empathy. Participants who read a short story who were also low in Openness experienced significant increases in self-reported cognitive empathy (p .05). No increases in affective empathy were found. Participants who were frequent fiction-readers had higher scores on the non-self-report measure of empathy. Our results suggest a role for fictional literature in facilitating development of empathy.
Transportation into literary fiction reduces prejudice against and increases empathy for Arab-Muslims
Authors: Johnson Dan R.
Published: June 2013

In two studies, indirect out-group contact via narrative fiction was shown to foster empathic growth and reduce prejudice. Participants read an excerpt from a fictional novel about a counterstereotypical Arab-Muslim woman. Individuals who were more transported into the story rated Arab-Muslims significantly lower in stereotypical negative traits (Study 1, N = 67) and exhibited significantly lower negative attitudes toward Arab-Muslims (Study 2, N = 102) post-reading than individuals who were less transported into the story. These effects persisted after controlling for baseline Arab-Muslim prejudice, reading-induced mood change, and demand characteristics. Affective empathy for Arab-Muslims and intrinsic motivation to reduce prejudice were also significantly increased by the story and each provided independent explanatory mechanisms for transportation’s association with prejudice reduction. Narrative fiction offers a safe and rich context in which exposure and understanding of an out-group can occur and can easily be incorporated in educational and applied settings.
Using affective appraisal to help readers construct literary interpretations
Authors: Levine Sarah , Horton William S.
Published: June 2013

Students can readily engage in summary and literal sense-making when reading poems, short stories, and other literary texts, but are often unable to construct inferences and thematic interpretations of these works. This paper discusses the results of an instructional intervention built on an affect-based model of literary interpretation. Students in the intervention group spent four weeks reading and writing about popular and canonical texts, with a focus on poetry. As they read, they identified valence-laden language, made appraisals of valence, and then explained or justified their appraisals. Analyses of pre- and post-test results show that the intervention group made significant gains in the level of interpretive responses to poems compared to a control group of students who were not explicitly taught to engage in affective appraisal. This work sheds light on ways in which affect-based interpretive strategies can support novice readers’ interpretive practices.
Informed and automated k-mer size selection for genome assembly
Authors: Chikhi Rayan , Medvedev Paul
Published: June 2013

Motivation: Genome assembly tools based on the de Bruijn graph framework rely on a parameter k, which represents a trade-off between several competing effects that are difficult to quantify. There is currently a lack of tools that would automatically estimate the best k to use and/or quickly generate histograms of k-mer abundances that would allow the user to make an informed decision.

Results: We develop a fast and accurate sampling method that constructs approximate abundance histograms with several orders of magnitude performance improvement over traditional methods. We then present a fast heuristic that uses the generated abundance histograms for putative k values to estimate the best possible value of k. We test the effectiveness of our tool using diverse sequencing datasets and find that its choice of k leads to some of the best assemblies.

Availability: Our tool KmerGenie is freely available at: http://kmergenie.bx.psu.edu/.

Contact:  pashadag@cse.psu.edu
Stardust silicate nucleation kick-started by SiO+TiO
2
Authors: Goumans T. P. M. , Bromley Stefan T.
Published: June 2013

Dust particles are quintessential for the chemical evolution of the Universe. Dust nucleates in stellar outflows of dying stars and subsequently travels through the interstellar medium, continuously evolving via energetic processing, collisions and condensation. Finally, dust particles are incorporated in the next-generation star or its surrounding planetary system. In oxygen-rich stellar outflows, silicates are observed in the condensation zone (1200–1000 K), but, in spite of several decades of experimental and theoretical study, the stardust nucleation process remains poorly understood. We have previously shown that under these conditions ternary Mg–Si–O clusters may start forming at high enough rates from SiO, Mg and H
2
O through heteromolecular association processes. In this reaction scheme, none of the possible initial association reactions was thermodynamically favourable owing to the large entropy loss at these temperatures. Here, we follow a previous idea that the incorporation of TiO
2
could help to initiate stardust nucleation. In contrast to these studies, we find that there is no need for TiO
2
cluster seeds—instead, one molecule of TiO
2
is sufficient to kick-start the subsequent nucleation of a silicate dust particle.
Modelling the formation of atmospheric dust in brown dwarfs and planetary atmospheres
Authors: Helling Christiane , Fomins Aleksejs
Published: June 2013

Atmospheric dust from volcanoes, sand storms and biogenic products provides condensation seeds for water cloud formation on the Earth. Extrasolar planetary objects such as brown dwarfs and extrasolar giant planets have no comparable sources of condensation seeds. Hence, understanding cloud formation and further its implications for the climate requires a modelling effort that includes the treatment of seed formation (nucleation), growth and evaporation, in addition to rain-out, mixing and gas-phase depletion. This paper discusses nucleation in the ultra-cool atmospheres of brown dwarfs and extrasolar giant planets whose chemical gas-phase composition differs largely from the terrestrial atmosphere. A kinetic model for atmospheric dust formation is described, which, in recent work, has become part of a cloud-formation model. For the first time, diffusive replenishment of the upper atmosphere is introduced as a source term into our model equations. This paper further aims to show how experimental and computational chemistry work links into our dust-formation model, which is driven by applications in extraterrestrial environments.
Laboratory studies of electron and ion irradiation of solid acetonitrile (CH
3
CN)
Authors: Abdulgalil A. G. M. , Marchione D. , Thrower J. D. , Collings M. P. , McCoustra M. R. S. , Islam F. , Palumbo M. E. , Congiu E. , Dulieu F.
Published: June 2013

The structure and bonding of solid acetonitrile (CH
3
CN) films on amorphous silica are studied, and chemical and physical processes under irradiation with 200 keV protons and 250–400 eV electrons are quantified using transmission infrared spectroscopy, reflection–absorption infrared spectroscopy and temperature-programmed desorption, with the assistance of basic computational chemistry and nuclear materials calculations. The thermal desorption profiles are found to depend strongly on the balance between CH
3
CN–surface and CH
3
CN–CH
3
CN interactions, passing from a sub-monolayer regime (binding energy: 35–50 kJ mol
−1
) to a multilayer regime (binding energy: 38.2±1.0 kJ mol
−1
) via a fractional order desorption regime characteristic of islanding as the coverage increases. Calculations using the SRIM code reveal that the effects of the ion irradiation are dominated by electronic stopping of incident protons, and the subsequent generation of secondary electrons. Therefore, ion irradiation and electron irradiation experiments can be quantitatively compared. During ion irradiation of thicker CH
3
CN films, a cross section for secondary electron-promoted chemical destruction of CH
3
CN of 4 (±1)×10
−18
 cm
2
was measured, while electron-promoted desorption was not detected. A significantly higher cross section for electron-promoted desorption of 0.82–3.2×10
−15
 cm
2
was measured during electron irradiation of thinner CH
3
CN films, while no chemical products were detected. The differences between the experimental results can be rationalized by recognizing that chemical reaction is a bulk effect in the CH
3
CN film, whereas desorption is a surface sensitive process. In thicker films, electron-promoted desorption is expected to occur a rate that is independent of the film thickness; i.e. show zeroth-order kinetics with respect to the surface concentration.
The interaction of hydrogen with the {010} surfaces of Mg and Fe olivine as models for interstellar dust grains: a density functional theory study
Authors: Downing C. A. , Ahmady B. , Catlow C. R. A. , de Leeuw N. H.
Published: June 2013

There is no consensus as yet to account for the significant presence of water on the terrestrial planets, but suggested sources include direct hydrogen adsorption from the parent molecular cloud after the planets’ formation, and delivery of hydrous material via comets or asteroids external to the zone of the terrestrial planets. Alternatively, a more recent idea is that water may have directly adsorbed onto the interstellar dust grains involved in planetary formation. In this work, we use electronic structure calculations based on the density functional theory to investigate and compare the bulk and {010} surface structures of the magnesium and iron end-members of the silicate mineral olivine, namely forsterite and fayalite, respectively. We also report our results on the adsorption of atomic hydrogen at the mineral surfaces, where our calculations show that there is no activation barrier to the adsorption of atomic hydrogen at these surfaces. Furthermore, different surface sites activate the atom to form either adsorbed hydride or proton species in the form of hydroxy groups on the same surface, which indicates that these mineral surfaces may have acted as catalytic sites in the immobilization and reaction of hydrogen atoms to form dihydrogen gas or water molecules.
Exercise training upregulates nitric oxide synthases in the kidney of rats with chronic heart failure
Authors: Ito Daisuke , Ito Osamu , Mori Nobuyoshi , Cao Pengyu , Suda Chihiro , Muroya Yoshikazu , Hao Kiyotaka , Shimokawa Hiroaki , Kohzuki Masahiro
Published: June 2013

There is an interaction between heart and kidney diseases, which is a condition termed cardiorenal syndrome. Exercise training has cardioprotective effects, involving upregulation of endothelial (e) nitric oxide synthase (NOS) in the cardiovascular system. However, the effects of exercise training on NOS in the kidney with heart disease are unknown.

The aim of the present study was to investigate whether exercise training upregulates NOS in the kidney, left ventricle and aorta of rats with chronic heart failure (CHF).

Male Sprague‐Dawley rats underwent left coronary artery ligation (LCAL) to induce CHF and were randomly assigned to sedentary or treadmill exercise groups 4 weeks after LCAL. Three days after exercising for 4 weeks, urine samples were collected for 24 h and blood samples were collected following decapitation. Nitric oxide synthase activity and protein expression were examined.

Significant interactions between CHF and exercise training were observed on parameters of cardiac and renal function. Exercise training improved cardiac function, decreased plasma B‐type natriuretic peptide levels, decreased urinary albumin excretion and increased creatinine clearance in CHF rats. Nitric oxide synthase activity, eNOS expression and neuronal (n) NOS expression were significantly decreased in the left ventricle and kidney of CHF rats. Exercise training significantly increased NOS activity and eNOS and nNOS expression.

Upregulation of NOS in the kidney and left ventricle may contribute, in part, to the renal and cardiac protective effects of exercise training in cardiorenal syndrome in CHF rats.
The Political in the Age of the Digital: Propositions for Empirical Investigation
Authors: Bessant Judith
Published: June 2013

This article establishes whether there is a case for revising traditional accounts of politics and the public sphere given the ways in which digital technology is now being used in Western and non-Western settings to engage people politically. The article presents a case for framing this inquiry in terms of imaginaries. It then argues for a new political imaginary which helps to specify what is required for deliberative democratic practice in a way that shifts us away from the dominant liberal-utilitarian political imaginary that currently informs the political value systems of most Western nations. Drawing on the work of key political theorists such as Habermas and Dahlgren, five propositions or conditions for deliberative practice are identified that can be used in empirical investigation to help determine the democratic capacity and potential of new political communication and civic spaces being opened by means of digital media.
Diabetes mellitus and decompensated cirrhosis: Risk of hepatic encephalopathy in different age groups (糖尿病与失代偿性肝硬化：不同年龄组的肝性脑病风险)
Authors: Butt Zeeshan , Jadoon Nauman A. , Salaria Osman N. , Mushtaq Kamran , Riaz Irbaz B. , Shahzad Ahmed , Hashmi Ali M. , Sarwar Shahid
Published: June 2013

Background

The aim of the present study was to examine the association of diabetes mellitus (DM) with the prevalence and severity of hepatic encephalopathy (HE) in patients with decompensated cirrhosis (DC) and determine the impact of age and gender on this relationship.

Methods

West Haven criteria was used to prospectively evaluate 352 consecutive patients with DC for the presence of HE. Detailed clinicobiochemical profiling of patients was performed. Categorical data and ordered categorical variables were evaluated using the Chi‐squared test for independence and trend, respectively. Continuous normal and non‐parametric data were evaluated using the t‐test and Mann–Whitney U‐test, respectively.

Results

At the time of admission, HE was present in 50.3% of patients. In all, 118 patients had DM (33.5%). Patients with DM had a significantly higher prevalence (58.5% vs 42.6%; P = 0.03) and severity of HE (Ptrend = 0.01) than patients without DM. However, there were no significant differences between the two groups in terms of Child‐Pugh class, MELD scores, the presence of ascites and esophageal varices. Patients with DM had higher platelet counts than those without DM (Ptrend = 0.003). In age and gender subgroup analyses, older patients and men with DM had significantly greater evidence of HE (P = 0.02 and 0.03, respectively). Multivariate analysis showed that DM (P = 0.03) and older age (P = 0.006) were independently related to HE, whereas the association of gender was non‐significant.

Conclusion

Both DM and older age are independently associated with HE in patients with cirrhosis.
Do continence management strategies reduce falls? A systematic review
Authors: Batchelor Frances A , Dow Briony , Low May‐Ann
Published: June 2013

Urinary incontinence is associated with increased fall risk, and fall prevention programs include recommendations to manage continence as one component of fall reduction. However, the evidence to support this recommendation is unclear. The aim of this study was to identify continence management interventions that are effective in decreasing falls. A systematic review of the literature was conducted. Studies were included if they evaluated the effect of any type of continence management strategy on falls in older adults. The included studies were assessed for quality, and data relating to participants, interventions and outcomes were extracted by two independent reviewers. Four articles met the inclusion criteria. Two studies were randomised controlled trials, one a retrospective cohort study and one an uncontrolled intervention study. Interventions included pharmacological agents, a toileting regime combined with physical activity and an individualised continence program. Only the study evaluating the combination of physical activity and prompted voiding found an effect on falls. It is surprising that there has been so little research into continence management interventions that include fall outcomes. A toileting regime combined with physical activity may reduce falls in residential care. There is a need for further studies investigating the impact of continence management on falls.
Does Pharmacogenetic Testing for CYP450 2D6 and 2C19 Among Patients with Diagnoses within the Schizophrenic Spectrum Reduce Treatment Costs?
Authors: Herbild Louise , Andersen Stig E. , Werge Thomas , Rasmussen Henrik B. , Jürgens Gesche
Published: June 2013

The effect of pharmacogenetic testing for CYP450 2D6 and 2C19 on treatment costs have not yet been documented. This study used Danish patient registers to calculate healthcare costs of treating patients with diagnoses within the schizophrenic spectrum for 1 year with or without pharmacogenetic testing for polymorphisms in the genes for the CYP2D6 and CYP2C19 enzymes. In a randomized, controlled trial, stratified with respect to metabolizer genotype, 104 patients were assigned to treatment based on pharmacogenetic testing and 103 patients to treatment as usual. Random exclusion of extensive and intermediate metabolizers was used to increase the frequency of extreme metabolizers (poor metabolizers and ultrarapid metabolizers for CYP2D6) to 20% in both groups. Cost differences were analysed at several levels including (i) overall healthcare expenditure, (ii) psychiatric hospital cost (iii) nonpsychiatric hospital cost, (iv) primary care spending and (v) pharmaceuticals. Statistically significant differences in costs of psychiatric care dependent on metabolizer status were found between intervention groups. Pharmacogenetic testing significantly reduced costs among the extreme metabolizers (poor metabolizers and ultrarapid metabolizers) to 28%. Use of primary care services and pharmaceuticals was also affected by the intervention.This study confirms earlier findings that extreme metabolizers (poor and ultrarapid metabolizers) incur higher costs than similar patients with a normal metabolizer genotype. However, this study shows that these excess costs can be reduced by pharmacogenetic testing. Pharmacogenetic testing for CYP2D6 and CYP2C19 could thus be considered as a means of curtailing high psychiatric treatment costs among extreme metabolizers.
Effective and ineffective uses of emerging technologies: Towards a transformative pedagogical model
Authors: Ng'ambi Dick
Published: June 2013

Although there is an increasing use of emerging technologies (ETs) in higher education internationally and in South Africa in particular, there is little evidence that their use is transforming teaching and learning practice. Anecdotal evidence shows that there is a dichotomy between the technologies supported and used in higher education institutions (HEIs) on one hand, and technologies owned and predominately in use among students. Thus, the gulf between technologies supported and used for teaching and the technologies used by students for learning has created pressure for educators to “play catch‐up,” resulting in a continuum of pedagogically ineffective to effective uses of ETs. This paper argues that pedagogically sound uses of ETs leverage the broader context of existing practices (cultural‐historical context) to design learning activities that transform both the teaching and learning practices. The paper draws data from a national survey on uses of ETs among educators in higher education to propose a pedagogical model of use that has the potential to transform practice.
Using mobile instant messaging to leverage learner participation and transform pedagogy at aSouthAfricanUniversity ofTechnology
Authors: Rambe Patient , Bere Aaron
Published: June 2013

One of the most complicated academic endeavours in transmission pedagogies is to generate democratic participation of all students and public expression of silenced voices. While the potential of mobile phones, particularly mobile instant messaging (MIM), to trigger broadened academic participation is increasingly acknowledged in literature, integratingMIMinto classrooms and out‐of‐the‐classroom tasks has often been confronted with academic resistance. Academic uncertainty aboutMIMis often predicated on its perceived distractive nature and potential to trigger off‐task social behaviours. This paper argues thatMIMhas potential to create alternative dialogic spaces for student collaborative engagements in informal contexts, which can gainfully transform teaching and learning. An instance of aMIM,WhatsApp, was adopted for an information technology course at aSouthAfrican university with a view to heighten lecturer–student and peer‐based participation, and enhance pedagogical delivery and inclusive learning in formal (lectures) and informal spaces. The findings suggest heightened student participation, the fostering of learning communities for knowledge creation and progressive shifts in the lecturer's mode of pedagogical delivery. However, the concomitant challenge of usingMIMincluded mature adults' resentment of the merging of academic and family life occasioned byWhatsApp consultations after hours. Students also expressed ambivalence aboutMIM's wide‐scale roll‐out in different academic programmes.
Antagonism of histamine H4 receptors exacerbates clinical and pathological signs of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis
Authors: Ballerini C , Aldinucci A , Luccarini I , Galante A , Manuelli C , Blandina P , Katebe M , Chazot P L , Masini E , Passani M B
Published: June 2013

Background and Purpose

The histamine H4 receptor has a primary role in inflammatory functions, making it an attractive target for the treatment of asthma and refractory inflammation. These observations suggested a facilitating action on autoimmune diseases. Here we have assessed the role of H4 receptors in experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) a model of multiple sclerosis (MS).

Experimental Approach

We induced EAE with myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein (MOG35–55) in C57BL/6 female mice as a model of MS. The histamine H4 receptor antagonist 5‐chloro‐2‐[(4‐methylpiperazin‐1‐yl)carbonyl]‐1H‐indole (JNJ7777120) was injected i.p. daily starting at day 10 post‐immunization (D10 p.i.). Disease severity was monitored by clinical and histopathological evaluation of inflammatory cells infiltrating into the spinal cord, anti‐MOG35–55 antibody production, assay of T‐cell proliferation by [3H]‐thymidine incorporation, mononucleate cell phenotype by flow cytometry, cytokine production by elisa assay and transcription factor quantification of mRNA expression.

Key Results

Treatment with JNJ7777120 exacerbated EAE, increased inflammation and demyelination in the spinal cord of EAE mice and increased IFN‐γ expression in lymph nodes, whereas it suppressed IL‐4 and IL‐10, and augmented expression of the transcription factors Tbet, FOXP3 and IL‐17 mRNA in lymphocytes. JNJ7777120 did not affect proliferation of anti‐MOG35–55 T‐cells, anti‐MOG35–55 antibody production or mononucleate cell phenotype.

Conclusions and Implications

H4 receptor blockade was detrimental in EAE. Given the interest in the development of H4 receptor antagonists as anti‐inflammatory compounds, it is important to understand the role of H4 receptors in immune diseases to anticipate clinical benefits and also predict possible detrimental effects.

Linked Articles

This article is part of a themed issue on Histamine Pharmacology Update. To view the other articles in this issue visit http://dx.doi.org/
10.1111/bph.2013.170.issue‐1
Activation of KCa3.1 by SKA‐31 induces arteriolar dilatation and lowers blood pressure in normo‐ and hypertensive connexin40‐deficient mice
Authors: Radtke Josephine , Schmidt Kjestine , Wulff Heike , Köhler Ralf , de Wit Cor
Published: June 2013

Background and Purpose

The calcium‐activated potassium channel KCa3.1 is expressed in the vascular endothelium where its activation causes endothelial hyperpolarization and initiates endothelium‐derived hyperpolarization (EDH)‐dependent dilatation. Here, we investigated whether pharmacological activation of KCa3.1 dilates skeletal muscle arterioles and whether myoendothelial gap junctions formed by connexin40 (Cx40) are required for EDH‐type dilatations and pressure depressor responses in vivo.

Experimental Approach

We performed intravital microscopy in the cremaster muscle microcirculation and blood pressure telemetry in Cx40‐deficient mice.

Key Results

In wild‐type mice, the KCa3.1‐activator SKA‐31 induced pronounced concentration‐dependent arteriolar EDH‐type dilatations, amounting to ∼40% of maximal dilatation, and enhanced the effects of ACh. These responses were absent in mice devoid of KCa3.1 channels. In contrast, SKA‐31‐induced dilatations were not attenuated in mice with endothelial cells deficient in Cx40 (Cx40fl/fl:Tie2‐Cre). In isolated endothelial cell clusters, SKA‐31 induced hyperpolarizations of similar magnitudes (by ∼38 mV) in Cx40fl/fl:Tie2‐Cre, ubiquitous Cx40‐deficient mice (Cx40‐/‐) and controls (Cx40fl/fl), which were reversed by the specific KCa3.1‐blocker TRAM‐34. In normotensive wild‐type and Cx40fl/fl:Tie2‐Cre as well as in hypertensive Cx40‐/‐ animals, i.p. injections of SKA‐31 (30 and 100 mg·kg−1) decreased arterial pressure by ∼32 mmHg in all genotypes. The depressor response to 100 mg·kg−1 SKA‐31 was associated with a decrease in heart rate.

Conclusions and Implications

We conclude that endothelial hyperpolarization evoked by pharmacological activation of KCa3.1 channels induces EDH‐type arteriolar dilatations that are independent of endothelial Cx40 and Cx40‐containing myoendothelial gap junctions. As SKA‐31 reduced blood pressure in hypertensive Cx40‐deficient mice, KCa3.1 activators may be useful drugs for severe treatment‐resistant hypertension.
CD169‐positive macrophages in regional lymph nodes are associated with a favorable prognosis in patients with colorectal carcinoma
Authors: Ohnishi Koji , Komohara Yoshihiro , Saito Yoichi , Miyamoto Yuji , Watanabe Masayuki , Baba Hideo , Takeya Motohiro
Published: June 2013

CD169 (sialoadhesin) is a sialic acid receptor that is expressed on specific macrophages such as lymph node sinus macrophages. Animal studies have suggested that CD169+ macrophages have a pro‐inflammatory property, however, the role of these cells in human diseases has not been clarified. In our in vitro experiments with human macrophages, pro‐inflammatory cytokines, such as type 1 interferon, induced strong expression of CD169, suggesting that CD169 might be a specific marker of inflammatory macrophages. To examine the role of CD169 in antitumor immunity, we examined the expression of CD169 in regional lymph nodes (RLNs) and its association with overall survival in colorectal carcinoma (CRC). In a clinicopathological analysis on 83 CRC patients, paraffin‐embedded specimens were evaluated for CD169 expression of RLN macrophages by immunohistochemistry. We found, for the first time, a high density of CD169+ macrophages was significantly associated with longer overall survival; multivariate analysis showed that the ratio of CD169+ cells to CD68+ cells was an independent prognostic factor. The majority of CD169+ macrophages were in direct contact with CD8+ T cells expressing CD43, a major ligand of CD169. We also found that the density of CD169+ macrophages had a positive correlation with the number of CD8+ cytotoxic T cells infiltrating tumor tissues. These data suggest that CD169+ macrophages in RLNs promote CD8+ T‐cell‐mediated antitumor immunity and are associated with a better prognosis for CRC patients. CD169+ macrophages in RLNs could be a useful marker for assessing clinical prognosis and monitoring antitumor immunity in patients with CRC.
Cladistic biogeography of theNeotropical region: identifying the main events in the diversification of the terrestrial biota
Authors: Morrone Juan J.
Published: June 2013

A cladistic biogeographical analysis was undertaken to identify the main events in the biotic diversification of the terrestrialNeotropical biota. For the 36 animal and plant taxa analysed, a component × area matrix was constructed, associating geographical data only with informative nodes, and it was analysed under implied weights using the softwareTNT. The general area cladogram obtained shows that the Neotropical region constitutes a monophyletic unit, with a first split separating the Antilles and a second one dividing the continental areas into a north‐western and a south‐eastern component. Within the north‐western component the areas split following the sequence northernAmazonia, south‐westernAmazonia, north‐westernSouthAmerica, andMesoamerica. Within the south‐eastern component the areas split following the sequence south‐easternAmazonia,Chaco, andParana. The three main components are treated as subregions:Antillean,Amazonian (northernAmazonian, south‐westernAmazonian,Mesoamerican, and north‐westernSouthAmerican dominions), andChacoan (south‐easternAmazonian,Chacoan, and Parana dominions). Dispersal and vicariant events postulated to explain these pattens might have occurred during the Cretaceous, when the Caribbean plate collided with theAmericas, a combination of eustatic sea‐level changes and tectonic deformations of the continental platform exposed large parts ofSouthAmerica to episodes of marine transgressions, and the Andean uplift reconfigured theAmazonian area. Tertiary andQuaternary events are assumed to have later induced the diversification within these large biogeographical units.
Healing outcomes of large (>50%) traumatic membrane perforations with inverted edges following no intervention, edge approximation and fibroblast growth factor application; a sequential allocation, three‐armed trial
Authors: Lou Z.‐C. , Wang Y.‐B.‐Z.
Published: June 2013

Objective

The goal of this study was to evaluate the effects of perforation edge approximation and direct application of basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) each alone on the healing of large traumatic tympanic membrane perforations with inverted edges in humans.

Study Design

Prospective, sequential allocation, three‐armed, controlled clinical study.

Setting

University‐affiliated teaching hospital.

Participants

Fifty‐eight patients with large traumatic tympanic membrane perforations (i.e. affecting >50% of the surface area) with inverted edges were recruited. They were sequentially allocated to three groups: no intervention (n = 18), edge approximation alone (n = 20) and direct application of bFGF (n = 20). Otoscopy were performed before the treatment and at follow‐up visits.

Main outcome measures

The closure rate, closure time and rate of otorrhoea.

Results

Application of bFGF yielded a significantly higher average rate of perforation closure (100%) than edge approximation (60%) and no intervention (56%) (P < 0.05). It also significantly shortened the average closure time (12.4 ± 3.6 days) as compared to edge approximation (46.3 ± 8.7 days) and no intervention control (48.2 ± 5.3 days) (P < 0.05). Purulent otorrhoea was observed in none of the three groups.

Conclusion

Edge approximation of inverted edges has little benefit in improving the healing outcome of large traumatic tympanic membrane perforations and thus is not an ideal treatment option for large traumatic tympanic membrane perforations. Application of bFGF materially improves the closure rate of large traumatic tympanic membrane perforations and significantly shortens the closure time.
Clinical features of post‐polypectomy bleeding associated with heparin bridge therapy
Authors: Inoue Takuya , Nishida Tsutomu , Maekawa Akira , Tsujii Yoshiki , Akasaka Tomofumi , Kato Motohiko , Hayashi Yoshito , Yamamoto Shunsuke , Kondo Jumpei , Yamada Takuya , Shinzaki Shinichiro , Iijima Hideki , Tsujii Masahiko , Takehara Tetsuo
Published: June 2013

Background

 Heparin is given to patients undergoing colonoscopic polypectomy at high risk for thromboembolism. Little is known, however, about how heparin bridge therapy (HB) affects post‐polypectomy bleeding (PPB). The present study aimed to identify the clinical features of PPB associated with HB.

Patients and Methods

Data of consecutive inpatients who underwent colonoscopic polypectomy with antithrombotic therapy at Osaka University Hospital were retrospectively collected and categorized into a HB group or a non‐HB group. The incidence and characteristics of PPB were analyzed.

Results

A total of 117 patients with 279 lesions were identified, and the HB group included 45 patients. Nine of 10 patients with PPB were in the HB group, and the incidence of PPB was significantly higher in the HB group than in the non‐HB group (20.0% vs 1.4%, respectively). PPB onset was later in the HB group than inthe non‐HB group (median postoperative day: 4 vs 1, respectively). Five of the nine patients with PPB (55.6%) in the HB group experienced recurrent bleeding. One patient in the HB group required a blood transfusion as a result of massive PPB. All bleeding was eventually controlled endoscopically. Hospitalization was significantly longer in the HB group than in the non‐HB group (median hospitalization: 14 vs 4 days, respectively). The univariate analysis showed that the predictors of PPB were warfarin use, HB and pedunculated polyps.

Conclusions

PPB associated with HB is characterized by high incidence, late onset and recurrent bleeding, resulting in long hospitalization.
Processing of the maize Bt toxin in the gut of Mythimna unipuncta caterpillars
Authors: Pérez‐Hedo Meritxell , Reiter Dániel , López Carmen , Eizaguirre Matilde
Published: June 2013

Mythimna unipuncta Haworth (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) is a well‐known moth species whose larvae can cause devastating damage to some Poaceae crops, including maize (Zea mays L.). The low susceptibility to the Bacillus thuringiensis Berliner (Bt) toxin observed in L6 larvae of this species has been the object of several studies. This study aimed to clarify whether the toxin eliminated from the content of the peritrophic membrane is degraded or excreted and whether the effects of the Bt toxin depend on the doses ingested. To this end, L6 larvae were fed on diets with different amounts of lyophilized Bt or non‐Bt maize leaves. The effect of the Bt concentrations on larval development was measured and the fate of the toxin in the larval tissues was tracked. Results indicated that the larvae of M. unipuncta fed on the various diets showed few differences in weight gain, duration of development, or pupal weight between sublethal Bt concentrations. The larvae rapidly excreted a large part of the toxin ingested, whereas inside the peritrophic membrane the toxin was eliminated, degraded, or sequestered at a rate that increased with the dose and the duration of feeding. As a consequence, little toxin reached the midgut epithelium and therefore the binding sites of the toxin. Moreover, larvae fed on the Bt toxin recovered quickly when they were transferred to a non‐Bt diet.
Dispersal and dormancy strategies among insect species competing for a pulsed resource
Authors: PÉLISSON PIERRE‐FRANÇOIS , BERNSTEIN CARLOS , FRANÇOIS DEBIAS , MENU FRÉDÉRIC , VENNER SAMUEL
Published: June 2013

Dormancy and dispersal are thought to be major adaptive mechanisms that enable short‐lived organisms to cope with environmental stochasticity. The few empirical investigations that have explored the relationship between these two strategies in disturbed environments have focused mainly on communities of annual desert plants and suggest that dispersal plays a negligible role, as compared with dormancy, in reducing the risk of genotype extinction.

We predict that the relative advantage of dormancy versus dispersal is likely to be more balanced in species that disperse actively to select their reproductive locality.

To examine this prediction, we explored the dormancy and dispersal capacities of four actively dispersing sibling weevil species (Curculio spp.) that exploit the same, highly variable resource (oak acorns). The ability of each species to spread risks over time was estimated from the variability of dormancy duration within cohorts, while their ability to disperse spatially was quantified by flight performance.

We show that a first species, C. elephas, which was able to spread risk over time through dormancy, exhibited only medium flight capacities. In contrast, a second species, C. glandium, was able to fly over very long distances, but was hardly capable of spreading risk over time. Surprisingly, the two remaining species (C. venosus and C. pellitus) proved inefficient in spreading risk either in space or in time and seem to exhibit risk avoidance rather than risk‐spreading strategy. We conclude that this strong diversification of dispersal–dormancy strategies observed among these four sibling species might contribute to stabilising their coexistence.
Natural killer expansion, human leukocyte antigens‐E expression and CD14+CD56+ monocytes in a myelodysplastic syndrome patient
Authors: Terrazzano Giuseppe , Rubino Valentina , Palatucci Anna Teresa , Giovazzino Angela , Annunziatella Mariangela , Vitagliano Orsola , Alfinito Fiorella , Ruggiero Giuseppina
Published: June 2013

Myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) are clonal disorders characterized by ineffective hematopoiesis and possible evolution to acute leukemia. Occurrence of stem cell defects and of immune‐mediated mechanisms was evidenced as relevant for pathophysiology of MDS. Here, we described one case of MDS patient carrying CD14+CD56+ monocytes in bone marrow (BM), in the presence of a defective human leukocyte antigen (HLA)‐E expression on peripheral blood (PB) cells and of natural killer (NK) cell expansion in PB and BM. The defective HLA‐E expression and the NK expansion are proposed to be relevant for the pathogenesis of myelodysplasia in those patients showing CD14+CD56+ monocytes in BM.
Boss and Parent, Employee and Child: Work‐Family Roles and Deviant Behavior in the Family Firm
Authors: Cooper Joseph T. , Kidwell Roland E. , Eddleston Kimberly A.
Published: June 2013

The work‐family literature examines the degree to which work and family roles can be segmented or integrated by an individual. In the family firm, the requirement that work and family roles be integrated creates tension for family employees, particularly those who prefer higher degrees of segmentation between the roles. Integrating family firm with family relations research, this article explores potential difficulties experienced by family employees in making transitions from their family role to work role and the potential for family employees to engage in deviant behavior due to unresolved conflict and ambiguity from work‐family role integration. These difficulties, we argue, are in part due to problems in separating role expectations when they come from indistinct sources; that is, when the boss and father, for example, are the same person. We explain how the tensions between work and family can create a cycle of deviance in the family and family firm domains.
The Determinants of Family Owner‐Managers' Affective Organizational Commitment
Authors: Memili Esra , Zellweger Thomas M. , Fang Hanqing Chevy
Published: June 2013

Affective organizational commitment is an important predictor of the willingness to contribute to organizational goals and is of particular relevance to family firms, as these firms often rely on long‐term involvement of family members through transgenerational succession. Drawing on organizational commitment and ownership attachment theories, we probe the influence of family firm dynamics (i.e., family harmony and relationship conflict) on work‐family conflict and family owner‐managers' ownership attachment, which in turn impact affective organizational commitment. On the basis of a study of 326 family firms, we introduce ownership attachment as an important antecedent to affective organizational commitment. We find that ownership attachment is positively affected by both family harmony and work‐family conflict, whereby work‐family conflict is influenced by relationship conflict. We also find that work‐family conflict affects ownership attachment.
Effects of river control structures on the juvenile migration of Macrobrachium ohione
Authors: Olivier Tyler J. , Handy Kolby Q. , Bauer Raymond T.
Published: June 2013

Macrobrachium ohione is an amphidromous species (i.e. lives and breeds in fresh water with larval development in estuarine, brackish or coastal waters) that has experienced population declines in the Mississippi River (MR) System, possibly due to extensive human modification (e.g. wing dikes, levees, channelisation and dams). Old River Control (ORC) is a complex of locks and dams in Louisiana that separates and controls the volume of water that flows into the Atchafalaya River (AR) from the MR. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that ORC impedes or prevents movement of juvenile M. ohione from the AR into the MR.

Juvenile migrants were sampled using unbaited traps placed in the channels leading into and out of the river control structures. Variables such as location (above or below structure), water temperature and channel discharge were documented to determine their effects on juvenile migration. Migrant densities were significantly affected by the interaction between trap location and channel discharge. The densities of juveniles in the channels leading into the structures (downstream) were greater than those leading out of the structures (upstream). In addition, the densities of juveniles were consistently greater in the channels where channel discharge was the greatest. These results suggest that upstream juvenile migration is impeded by the structures, reducing the recruitment of shrimps from the AR into the MR.

As a possible solution to allow shrimps to bypass the river control structures, this study tested the hypothesis that M. ohione juveniles are able climb up structures, a behaviour observed in several amphidromous species. A laboratory experiment tested the climbing ability of juvenile migrants (i.e. number of individuals on the ramp) and climbing performance (i.e. number of individuals that completed the climb) when presenting the shrimps for 1 h with a 1.5 m ramp at various ramp angles (30°, 40°, 60°) and water velocities (0, 45, 65, 140 cm s−1). Most shrimps were observed climbing when water velocity was 65 and 140 cm s−1. Climbing performance was also influenced by the angle of the ramp, with the greater number of shrimps climbing at inclinations of 30° and 40°. Our results suggest that the installation of shrimp ladders and migratory conduits at river control structures could contribute to the restoration of M. ohione populations in the upper MR.