bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Selective Realism
Authors: Pötzsch Holger
Published: June 2015

The present article develops the concept of selective realism to understand how design features and narrative frames of first- and third-person shooters (F/TPS) exclude attention to salient, yet unpleasant, features of warfare such as problematic forms of violence, long-term psychological impacts, or sociopolitical blowbacks. Identifying four specific filters that frame player experiences, I argue that the resulting selectivity is significant because it is characteristic of the F/TPS genre as a whole that, through its wide dissemination, impacts upon the cultural framing of actual warfare. The article illustrates features of selective realism before it conducts in-depth analysis of the titles Spec Ops: The Line and The Last of Us to show how critical game design can invite a conscious unraveling of the generic frames and the ideological positions these invite. The article concludes with a reassessment of arguments regarding alleged sociopolitical impacts of war- and violence-themed computer games.
Emotion, Goals, and Distance: A View From the Study of Adult Development and Aging
Authors: Isaacowitz Derek M. , Freund Alexandra M.
Published: June 2015

In this commentary, we consider how Balcetis’s proposals may interface with the study of motivation and emotion in lifespan developmental psychology, pointing to open questions regarding the distance perception of long-term chronic goals as well as age-related shifts from informational to emotional goals.
The inter-rater reliability of the Smith hand function test: A South African perspective
Authors: de Klerk Susan , Coetzee Zelda
Published: June 2015

Introduction

The Smith hand function test is a performance-based hand function assessment with limited evidence on its psychometric properties. This study was conducted to investigate the inter-rater reliability of the Smith hand function test and for consideration in a developing country context.

Methods

Twenty-two participants living in Cape Town, South Africa were selected by convenience sampling. The sample performed test–retest of the Smith hand function test items four times by four different raters. The inter-rater reliability was calculated using intraclass correlation coefficients, with 95% confidence interval, testing absolute agreement and consistency.

Results

The intraclass correlation coefficients were above 0.75 for all subtests apart from the button board test item. This item had intraclass correlation coefficients of 0.579 (agreement) and 0.577 (consistency) with a standard deviation of 3.64 s and a 0.39 s standard error of measurement.

Conclusions

The inter-rater reliability of the Smith hand function test following a test–retest design by multiple raters was good. This suggests that further psychometric studies on the Smith hand function test could be valuable for clinical hand practice.
The Development of a Continuous Intravascular Glucose Monitoring Sensor
Authors: Crane Barry C. , Barwell Nicholas P. , Gopal Palepu , Gopichand Mannam , Higgs Timothy , James Tony D. , Jones Christopher M. , Mackenzie Alasdair , Mulavisala Krishna Prasad , Paterson William
Published: June 2015

Background:

Glycemic control in hospital intensive care units (ICU) has been the subject of numerous research publications and debate over the past 2 decades. There have been multiple studies showing the benefit of ICU glucose control in reducing both morbidity and mortality. GlySure Ltd has developed a glucose monitor based on a diboronic acid receptor that can continuously measure plasma glucose concentrations directly in a patient’s vascular system. The goal of this study was to validate the performance of the GlySure CIGM system in different patient populations.

Methods:

The GlySure Continuous Intravascular Glucose Monitoring (CIGM) System was evaluated in both the Cardiac ICU (33 patients) and MICU setting (14 patients). The sensor was placed through a custom CVC and measured the patients’ blood glucose concentration every 15 seconds. Comparison blood samples were taken at 2 hourly then 4 hourly intervals and measured on a YSI 2300 STAT Plus or an i-STAT.

Results:

Consensus error grid analysis of the data shows that the majority of the data (88.2% Cardiac, and 95.0% MICU) fell within zone A, which is considered to be clinically accurate and all data points fell within zones A and B. The MARD of the Cardiac trial was 9.90% and the MICU trial had a MARD of 7.95%. Data analysis showed no significant differences between data generated from Cardiac and MICU patients or by time or glucose concentration.

Conclusions:

The GlySure CIGM System has met the design challenges of measuring intravascular glucose concentrations in critically ill patients with acceptable safety and performance criteria and without disrupting current clinical practice. The accuracy of the data is not affected by the patients’ condition.
Multicenter Observational Study of the First-Generation Intravenous Blood Glucose Monitoring System in Hospitalized Patients
Authors: Bochicchio Grant V. , Hipszer Brian R. , Magee Michelle F. , Bergenstal Richard M. , Furnary Anthony P. , Gulino Angela M. , Higgins Michael J. , Simpson Peter C. , Joseph Jeffrey I.
Published: June 2015

Background:

Current methods of blood glucose (BG) monitoring and insulin delivery are labor intensive and commonly fail to achieve the desired level of BG control. There is great clinical need in the hospital for a user-friendly bedside device that can automatically monitor the concentration of BG safely, accurately, frequently, and reliably.

Methods:

A 100-patient observation study was conducted at 6 US hospitals to evaluate the first generation of the Intravenous Blood Glucose (IVBG) System (Edwards Lifesciences LLC & Dexcom Inc). Device safety, accuracy, and reliability were assessed. A research nurse sampled blood from a vascular catheter every 4 hours for ≤ 72 hours and BG concentration was measured using the YSI 2300 STAT Plus Analyzer (YSI Life Sciences). The IVBG measurements were compared to YSI measurements to calculate point accuracy.

Results:

The IVBG systems logged more than 5500 hours of operation in 100 critical care patients without causing infection or inflammation of a vein. A total of 44135 IVBG measurements were performed in 100 patients with 30231 measurements from the subset of 75 patients used for accuracy analysis. In all, 996 IVBG measurements were time-matched with reference YSI measurements. These pairs had a mean absolute difference (MAD) of 11.61 mg/dl, a mean absolute relative difference (MARD) of 8.23%, 93% met 15/20% accuracy defined by International Organization for Standardization 15197:2003 standard, and 93.2% were in zone A of the Clarke error grid. The IVBG sensors were exposed to more than 200 different medications with no observable effect on accuracy.

Conclusions:

The IVBG system is an automated and user-friendly glucose monitoring system that provides accurate and frequent BG measurements with great potential to improve the safety and efficacy of insulin therapy and BG control in the hospital, potentially leading to improved clinical outcomes.
Coming safely to a stop: a review of platelet activity after cessation of antiplatelet drugs
Authors: Ford Isobel
Published: June 2015

The platelet P2Y12 antagonists are widely used, usually in combination with aspirin, to prevent atherothrombotic events in patients with acute coronary syndromes during percutaneous coronary intervention and after placement of arterial stents. Inhibition by clopidogrel or prasugrel lasts for the lifetime of the affected platelets and platelet haemostatic function gradually recovers after stopping the drug, as new unaffected platelets are formed. The optimal durations for dual antiplatelet therapy are prescribed by clinical guidelines. Continuation beyond the recommended duration is associated with an increased mortality, mainly associated with major bleeding. Fear of a ‘rebound’ of prothrombotic platelet activity on stopping the drug has provoked much discussion and many studies. However, review of the available literature reveals no evidence for production of hyper-reactive platelets after cessation of clopidogrel in patients who are stable. Any increase in acute coronary and other vascular events after stopping seems most likely therefore to be due to premature discontinuation or disruption of treatment while thrombotic risk is still high. No difference in rebound was found with the newer P2Y12 inhibitors, although ticagrelor and prasugrel are more potent platelet inhibitors than clopidogrel. Recent randomized controlled trials confirm it is safe to stop the thienopyridine and continue with aspirin alone in most patients after the duration of treatment recommended by the guidelines. Decisions on when to stop therapy in individuals, however, remain challenging and there is a growing rationale for platelet testing to assist clinical judgement in certain situations such as patients stopping dual antiplatelet therapy before surgery or in individuals at highest bleeding or thrombotic risk.
A case of feline systemic reactive angioendotheliomatosis
Authors: Yamamoto Soshin , Shimoyama Yumiko , Haruyama Takashi
Published: June 2015

A 3-year-old domestic shorthair cat presented with lethargy and anorexia. A blood test showed regenerative anaemia and thrombocytopenia. Thoracic radiographs showed a small amount of pleural effusion. The cat did not respond to treatment and died on the fifth day. Necropsy revealed moderate pericardial effusion, and multifocal coalescing haemorrhages were observed on both atria. Histological analysis revealed that the most severe lesions were located on the heart. Numerous arterioles supplying the heart were partially to completely filled with plump spindle cells that often formed glomerulus-like arrangements within the lumen. Similar vascular proliferative lesions were also found in the liver, pancreas and kidney. Immunohistochemical analysis showed that these intraluminal proliferative spindle cells were positive for anti-von Willebrand factor (vWF). Strongly positive antismooth muscle actin staining was observed at the periphery of these intraluminal proliferations (comprising arteriolar smooth muscle) and certain intraluminal cells (pericytes). The intraluminal thrombi were also positive for vWF. Those thrombi were confirmed as platelet thrombi by phosphotungstic acid haematoxylin and Masson’s trichrome staining. These results were consistent with feline systemic reactive angioendotheliomatosis.
Multiple acquired portosystemic shunts in a cat secondary to chronic diaphragmatic rupture
Authors: Barfield Dominic M , Gibson Andrew D , Lipscomb Vicky J
Published: June 2015

Case summary

A cat with a chronic diaphragmatic rupture presented with neurological signs, including twitching and focal seizures. Blood ammonia level was markedly elevated and therefore neurological signs were thought to be related to hepatic encephalopathy. Exploratory laparotomy revealed that the left lateral and medial liver lobes were herniated into the thorax and multiple acquired portosystemic shunts (MAPSS) were present. The hernia was reduced and the diaphragm repaired. Neurological signs gradually resolved following surgery and 1 year postoperatively the cat was clinically normal, was not on any medication and had no evidence of hepatic dysfunction.

Relevance and novel information

This is the first report of a chronic diaphragmatic rupture leading to MAPSS in a cat.
Evaluation of thromboelastography in two factor XII-deficient cats
Authors: Blois Shauna L , Holowaychuk Marie K , Wood R Darren
Published: June 2015

Case summary

The current report describes thromboelastography (TEG) findings in two cats with factor XII (FXII) deficiency. The first cat was diagnosed with bilateral perinephric pseudocysts; hemostatic testing was performed prior to performing renal aspirates. The second cat was healthy; hemostatic testing was performed prior to inclusion into a research project. Both cats had markedly prolonged partial thromboplastin times and hypocoagulable TEG tracings when samples were activated with kaolin. However, when tissue factor (TF) was used to activate the sample, both cats had normal-to-hypercoagulable TEG tracings. The cats each had a subnormal FXII level.

Relevance and novel information

TEG is becoming widely used to investigate hemostasis in veterinary patients, and TEG results in cats with FXII deficiency have not been previously reported. FXII deficiency is the most common hereditary hemostatic defect in cats. While FXII deficiency does not lead to in vivo hemorrhagic tendencies, it can lead to marked prolongation in activated partial thromboplastin and activated clotting times, and cannot be differentiated from true hemorrhagic diatheses without measuring individual factor activity. With the increased use of TEG to evaluate hemostasis in veterinary patients, it is important to recognize the effects of FXII deficiency on this testing modality. The finding of a hypocoagulable kaolin-activated TEG tracing and a concurrent normal TF-activated TEG tracing in samples should prompt clinicians to consider ruling out FXII deficiency.
Is Scheduled Intravenous Acetaminophen Effective in the Pain Management Protocol of Geriatric Hip Fractures?
Authors: Bollinger Alexander J. , Butler Paul D. , Nies Matthew S. , Sietsema Debra L. , Jones Clifford B. , Endres Terrence J.
Published: June 2015

Background:

Hip fractures have significant effects on the geriatric population and the health care system. Prior studies have demonstrated both the safety of intravenous (IV) acetaminophen and its efficacy in decreasing perioperative narcotic consumption. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effect of scheduled IV acetaminophen for perioperative pain control on length of hospital stay, pain level, narcotic use, rate of missed physical therapy (PT) sessions, adverse effects, and discharge disposition in geriatric patients with hip fractures.

Methods:

A retrospective review was performed of all patients 65 years and older admitted to a level I trauma center, who received operative treatment for a hip fracture over a 2-year period. Demographic data, in-hospital variables, and outcome measures were analyzed. Three hundred thirty-six consecutive fractures in 332 patients met inclusion criteria. These patients were divided into 2 cohorts. Group 1 (169 fractures) consisted of patients treated before the initiation of a standardized IV acetaminophen perioperative pain control protocol, and group 2 (167 fractures) consisted of those treated after the protocol was initiated.

Results:

Group 2 had a statistically significant shorter mean length of hospital stay (4.4 vs 3.8 days), lower mean pain score (4.2 vs 2.8), lower mean narcotic usage (41.3 vs 28.3 mg), lower rate of PT sessions missed (21.8% vs 10.4%), and higher likelihood of discharge home (7% vs 19%; P ≤ .001). Use of IV acetaminophen was also consistently and independently predictive of the same variables ( P < .01).

Conclusion:

The utilization of scheduled IV acetaminophen as part of a standardized pain management protocol for geriatric hip fractures resulted in shortened length of hospital stay, decreased pain levels and narcotic use, fewer missed PT sessions, and higher rate of discharge to home.

Level of Evidence:

Therapeutic level III.
Introducing a New Technique for Limb Prepping in Orthopedic Surgeries
Authors: Taghi Mojeni Mohammad , Najafi Soroosh Aminolsharieh , Nomali Mahin
Published: June 2015

Lifting and holding patients’ limbs while preparing the skin for orthopedic surgeries may be a lengthy process causing work-related musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) for preoperative team members. Studies reported weight limits for lifting and holding limbs; whenever this weight is greater than a specific amount, additional staff or assistive devices are needed because nurses and support staff working in orthopedic operating rooms (ORs) are at high risk of MSDs. The aim of this study was to demonstrate the design, construction, and effectiveness of a limb-lifting assistive device installed in the OR of 5 Azar Hospital affiliated with Golestan University of Medical Sciences and used during the surgical preparation process.
Parents’ Experiences With Ultrasound During Pregnancy With a Lethal Fetal Diagnosis
Authors: Denney-Koelsch Erin M. , Côté-Arsenault Denise , Lemcke-Berno Erin
Published: June 2015

This longitudinal naturalistic study sought to describe parent experiences of ultrasounds during pregnancies with lethal fetal diagnoses (LFDs). We interviewed 16 mothers and 14 partners twice during pregnancy and twice after birth and death of their infant. Parents reported that ultrasound providers had a profound impact on their experiences with LFDs. Within three stages of pregnancy (pre-diagnosis, learning the diagnosis, and living with the diagnosis), themes of optimistic expectation, hearing bad news, need to know, and time with baby emerged. The dynamics of interactions with ultrasound providers included differing goals and expectations, and compatibility of interactions. These interactions were either satisfying or added to parents’ burden. Ultrasound providers have the opportunity to share valuable knowledge and facilitate understanding and precious time with the baby. Providers of obstetrical care can improve communication with parents with LFDs at critical time periods by matching their interaction to parents’ needs.
The LSD1 inhibitor RN-1 induces fetal hemoglobin synthesis and reduces disease pathology in sickle cell mice
Authors: Cui Shuaiying , Lim Kim-Chew , Shi Lihong , Lee Mary , Jearawiriyapaisarn Natee , Myers Greggory , Campbell Andrew , Harro David , Iwase Shigeki , Trievel Raymond C. , Rivers Angela , DeSimone Joseph , Lavelle Donald , Saunthararajah Yogen , Engel James Douglas
Published: June 2015

Key Points

RN-1 treatment of SCD mice results in increased human fetal γ-globin induction and fetal hemoglobin synthesis. RN-1 treatment of SCD mice significantly reduces sickling, hemolysis, and tissue injury with no obvious adverse side effects.
Altered effector functions of NK cells in chronic hepatitis C are associated with IFNL3 polymorphism
Authors: Rogalska-Taranta Magdalena , Markova Antoaneta A , Taranta Andrzej , Lunemann Sebastian , Schlaphoff Verena , Flisiak Robert , Manns Michael P , Cornberg Markus , Kraft Anke R M , Wedemeyer Heiner
Published: June 2015

Interferon α-mediated effector functions of NK cells may contribute to the control of HCV replication and the pathogenesis of liver disease. The single-nucleotide polymorphism rs12979860 near IFNL3 (previously known as IL28B) is important in response to IFN-α treatment and in spontaneous resolution of acute hepatitis C. The role of the IFNL3 polymorphism in NK cell function is unclear. Thus, we investigated the role of IFNL3 polymorphism in type I IFN-dependent regulation of NK cell functions in patients with cHC and healthy control subjects. We demonstrated a marked polarization of NK cells toward cytotoxicity in response to IFN-α stimulation in patients with hepatitis C. That TRAIL up-regulation was present, particularly in patients with the IFNL3-TT allele, was supported by a shift in the pSTAT-1:pSTAT-4 ratios toward pSTAT-1. In patients bearing the IFNL3-TT allele, NK cell effector function correlated with liver disease activity. In contrast, higher cytokine production of NK cells was observed in healthy individuals with the IFNL3-CC genotype, which may support spontaneous HCV clearance in acute infection. Overall, these findings show that the role of NK cells may differ in chronic infection vs. early antiviral defense and that the IFNL3 genotype differentially influences NK cell function.
The future of murine sepsis and trauma research models
Authors: Efron Philip A , Mohr Alicia M , Moore Frederick A , Moldawer Lyle L
Published: June 2015

Recent comparisons of the murine and human transcriptome in health and disease have called into question the appropriateness of the use of murine models for human sepsis and trauma research. More specifically, researchers have debated the suitability of mouse models of severe inflammation that is intended for eventual translation to human patients. This mini-review outlines this recent research, as well as specifically defines the arguments for and against murine models of sepsis and trauma research based on these transcriptional studies. In addition, we review newer advancements in murine models of infection and injury and define what we envision as an evolving but viable future for murine studies of sepsis and trauma.
Efforts to monitor and characterize the recent increasing seismicity in central Oklahoma
Authors: McNamara D. E. , Rubinstein J. L. , Myers E. , Smoczyk G. , Benz H. M. , Williams R. A. , Hayes G. , Wilson D. , Herrmann R. , McMahon N. D. , Aster R. C. , Bergman E. , Holland A. , Earle P.
Published: June 2015

The sharp increase in seismicity over a broad region of central Oklahoma has raised concerns regarding the source of the activity and its potential hazard to local communities and energy-industry infrastructure. Efforts to monitor and characterize the earthquake sequences in central Oklahoma are reviewed. Since early 2010, numerous organizations have deployed temporary portable seismic stations in central Oklahoma to record the evolving seismicity. A multiple-event relocation method is applied to produce a catalog of central Oklahoma earthquakes from late 2009 into early 2015. Regional moment tensor (RMT) source parameters were determined for the largest and best-recorded earthquakes. Combining RMT results with relocated seismicity enabled determination of the length, depth, and style of faulting occurring on reactivated subsurface fault systems. It was found that the majority of earthquakes occur on near-vertical, optimally oriented (northeast-southwest and northwest-southeast) strike-slip faults in the shallow crystalline basement. In 2014, 17 earthquakes occurred with magnitudes of 4 or larger. It is suggested that these recently reactivated fault systems pose the greatest potential hazard to the region.
A comparison of seismicity rates and fluid-injection operations in Oklahoma and California: Implications for crustal stresses
Authors: Göbel Thomas
Published: June 2015

Fluid injection into deep wellbores can increase pore pressure, reduce effective stress, and trigger earthquakes. The extent of the seismogenic response to injection provides insight into how close faults are to failure in the injection-affected area. The seismogenic response to injection operations in hydrocarbon basins is examined in California and Oklahoma. Changes in spatial and temporal seismicity rates are tested for significant variations, and timing and location of such variations are determined based on nonparametric modeling of background seismicity rates. Oklahoma has experienced a recent surge of seismic events, which exceeded the 95% confidence limit of Poissonian background rates in c. 2010. Annual injection volumes in Oklahoma increased systematically between 1998 and 2013 and have been connected to several earthquake sequences. In California, injection volumes increased monotonically between 2001 and 2009; however, the seismogenic response was limited and was devoid of large-scale background rate increase. A detailed comparison of injection parameters in Oklahoma and California included well density, wellhead pressures, peak and cumulative rates, and injection depths. No detectable difference was found that could readily explain the observed changes in seismicity rate in Oklahoma and the lack thereof in California. A strongly different seismogenic response to similar pressure perturbations indicates that the injection parameters considered are only of secondary influence on the resulting earthquake activity. The primary controls on injection-induced earthquakes might be the specific geologic setting and the stress state on nearby faults.
Induced seismicity of the Groningen gas field: History and recent developments
Authors: van Thienen-Visser K. , Breunese J. N.
Published: June 2015

Induced seismicity of the Groningen gas field is caused by the production of gas. Because of the large areal extent of the reservoir, the long history of depletion, and the available data sets (which exist as a result of consequences and public unrest caused by induced seismicity), the field presents a valuable case for studying the relationships among geologic, flow-dynamic, geomechanical, and seismological models. Gas production from the Groningen field started in 1963. Induced seismicity of the field first was recorded in 1991 (ML 2.4). During the subsequent 10 years, induced seismicity stayed at a rate of about five events (ML ≥ 1.5) per year. Starting in 2003, the number of events and magnitudes started to increase. In 2012, the largest event (ML 3.6) occurred, which caused the most damage to date. As a consequence, studies carried out in 2013 have fundamentally changed the way to look at the relationship between induced seismicity and gas depletion. There appears to be a close link between induced seismicity and reservoir compaction resulting from extraction of gas. Because compaction manifests itself as surface subsidence, accuracy of the subsidence measurements is deemed much more important than previously thought. The same holds true for quality and specific details of the static and dynamic models of the reservoir and its surroundings. In January 2014, it was decided to limit gas production in the central and highest-subsidence part of Groningen field and allow more production from the less compacted field periphery. Seismicity observed in 2014 was markedly different from that in earlier years. Although not yet statistically significant, this observation suggests a close link among production, compaction, and seismicity.
Geomechanical modeling of induced seismicity resulting from hydraulic fracturing
Authors: Maxwell S. C. , Zhang F. , Damjanac B.
Published: June 2015

The number of instances of induced seismicity associated with hydraulic fracturing has increased over the last few years, resulting in the development of industry protocols to mitigate seismic hazard. The main focus of these protocols is “traffic-light” systems based on seismic monitoring, in which operations are modified if a specified “yellow-light” magnitude level is reached or ultimately are stopped at a “red-light” magnitude. A variety of operational changes is possible to mitigate the seismic hazard at the different traffic-light levels, including slowing injection rate or volume, skipping stages, or ultimately stopping or flowing back the well. Empirical evidence of induced-seismicity magnitudes, including microseismic-imaging projects in which no induced seismicity occurred, are inconclusive about the impact of changing volume or rate. Although the largest observed magnitudes occur at large injection volumes, significant variability in magnitudes is found for both injection rate and volume. Alternatively, a geomechanical simulation can examine pore-pressure diffusion and mechanical stresses and strains associated with hydraulic-fracture treatments and can be used to model fault activation and corresponding estimates of seismic magnitudes. These geomechanical models complement monitoring-based traffic-light systems and can be used to test various operational changes to identify a scenario that reduces seismic hazard.
Unconventional Resources Technology Conference (URTeC) set 20–22 July in San Antonio
Authors: Sparkman Gene
Published: June 2015

Three years ago, leaders from three major E&P societies spawned the idea of a collaborative event for the main disciplines of the asset teams that develop the unconventional resources that are expanding in North America and worldwide. The result is a unique event, the Unconventional Resources Technology Conference (URTeC), sponsored by SPE, AAPG, and SEG.
Seismic petrophysics: Part 2
Authors: Amato del Monte Alessandro
Published: June 2015

In Part 1 of this tutorial in the April 2015 issue of TLE, we loaded some logs and used a data framework called Pandas to manage them. We made a lithology-fluid-class (LFC) log and used it to color a crossplot. This month, we take the workflow further with fluid-replacement modeling based on Gassmann's equation. This is just an introduction; see Wang (2001) and Smith et al. (2003) for comprehensive overviews.
Schleicher: Open data are available in the SEG Wiki
Authors: Farley Isaac
Published: June 2015

This SEG Wiki interview, the fourth in the series, features Karl Schleicher, senior research fellow, Bureau of Economic Geology at the University of Texas at Austin. Schleicher joins Isaac Farley, SEG digital publications manager, to discuss open data in the SEG Wiki. In August, look for the final wiki interview of 2015 with John W. Stockwell Jr., 2014 SEG Wiki Champion.

[Figure: see text]
Accurate Prediction and Validation of Response to Endocrine Therapy in Breast Cancer
Authors: Turnbull Arran K. , Arthur Laura M. , Renshaw Lorna , Larionov Alexey A. , Kay Charlene , Dunbier Anita K. , Thomas Jeremy S. , Dowsett Mitch , Sims Andrew H. , Dixon J. Michael
Published: June 2015

Purpose

Aromatase inhibitors (AIs) have an established role in the treatment of breast cancer. Response rates are only 50% to 70% in the neoadjuvant setting and lower in advanced disease. Accurate biomarkers are urgently needed to predict response in these settings and to determine which individuals will benefit from adjuvant AI therapy.

Patients and Methods

Pretreatment and on-treatment (after 2 weeks and 3 months) biopsies were obtained from 89 postmenopausal women who had estrogen receptor–alpha positive breast cancer and were receiving neoadjuvant letrozole for transcript profiling. Dynamic clinical response was assessed with use of three-dimensional ultrasound measurements.

Results

The molecular response to letrozole was characterized and a four-gene classifier of clinical response was established (accuracy of 96%) on the basis of the level of two genes before treatment (one gene [IL6ST] was associated with immune signaling, and the other [NGFRAP1] was associated with apoptosis) and the level of two proliferation genes (ASPM, MCM4) after 2 weeks of therapy. The four-gene signature was found to be 91% accurate in a blinded, completely independent validation data set of patients treated with anastrozole. Matched 2-week on-treatment biopsies were associated with improved predictive power as compared with pretreatment biopsies alone. This signature also significantly predicted recurrence-free survival (P = .029) and breast cancer –specific survival (P = .009). We demonstrate that the test can also be performed with use of quantitative polymerase chain reaction or immunohistochemistry.

Conclusion

A four-gene predictive model of clinical response to AIs by 2 weeks has been generated and validated. Deregulated immune and apoptotic responses before treatment and cell proliferation that is not reduced 2 weeks after initiation of treatment are functional characteristics of breast tumors that do not respond to AIs.
Mental Health Services for Parents Who Lost a Child to Cancer: If We Build Them, Will They Come?
Authors: Lichtenthal Wendy G. , Corner Geoffrey W. , Sweeney Corinne R. , Wiener Lori , Roberts Kailey E. , Baser Raymond E. , Li Yuelin , Breitbart William , Kissane David W. , Prigerson Holly G.
Published: June 2015

Purpose

To examine bereavement mental health service use, barriers to use, and factors associated with use in parents bereaved by cancer.

Patients and Methods

A multicenter, cross-sectional study of 120 parents bereaved by cancer between 6 months and 6 years after their loss was performed. Parents completed self-report assessments of mental health service use and barriers, prolonged grief, depression, anxiety, attachment styles, and sense of meaning by phone, in person, or on their own.

Results

Forty-one percent of bereaved parents were currently using mental health services (talk therapy, psychotropic medication, and/or a support group), most commonly within the first 2 years after their loss. Talk therapy was the most frequently used service, although 36% of parents who discontinued therapy did so because it was not helpful. Forty percent of parents who wanted bereavement support reported they were not receiving services. The most common barriers to service use were that it was too painful to speak about the loss (64%) and too difficult to find help (60%). Factors associated with current mental health service use included more recent loss, prior mental health service use, subclinical/increased depression, insecure attachment styles, and a decreased sense of meaning. Minority parents were more likely to have unmet needs than nonminority parents.

Conclusion

Parents appear to need, want, and often access bereavement mental health services, which could be offered in oncology settings. However, barriers to service use must be addressed, particularly for those with more debilitating grief symptoms and for minorities. High treatment dropout rates suggest the importance of improving retention, training providers, and developing effective grief interventions.
City of Risk
Authors: Owen Graham
Published: June 2015

Though the flooding of New Orleans was the result of shoddy construction of the city’s levees, the city’s recovery was to be not through enlightened government initiative but by frontier self-reliance, “personal responsibility.” Returning inhabitants, like pioneers, were to homestead on devastated land. This emphasis on individual recovery, in a city where large-scale urban infrastructures had failed, is key to understanding why the city has undergone only a slow and partial recuperation. The city was to be reconstructed both physically and ideologically as a city of individualization, a city of risk—a neoliberal experiment at the scale of over three hundred thousand people.
Transgression: Normativity’s Self-Inversion
Authors: Kirby Vicki
Published: June 2015

Attempting to explain the how, what, and why of normativity has exercised the attentions of social analysts for centuries, remaining an enduring puzzle in sociology since its disciplinary inception. A nest of related riddles attend the subjectivation of the individual, or how the social gets under our skin. How does an outside (social norms, grids of intelligibility, and behavioral compliance) also articulate the inside (personal belief and conscience, and even biological symptomatologies)? Given this intricate involvement between the inside and the outside, an involvement whose causal origin cannot be determined, should the conscious strategies of antinormativity be understood as interventions that hail from outside these norms or as expressions of power’s internal and perverse machinations? If norms are considered the genetics of power that inform all of social life (without necessarily dictating it), then the peculiar identity and ubiquity of a norm is neither restricted nor prohibited. In sum, what is normal about a norm?

This essay explores power’s intransitivity, its “self-possession,” by interrogating the way that cultural analysis routinely assumes that the workings of power rest on a break with nature, a break that explains human exceptionalism as an unnatural perversion of nature’s previous conventions and prescriptions. By way of Georges Canguilhem, the argument dilates on the implications of this foundational assumption, itself a form of antinormativity, by shifting its frame of reference to that of life itself.
Transgender Creeks and the Three Figures of Power in Late Liberalism
Authors: Povinelli Elizabeth A.
Published: June 2015

This essay examines the relevance of the concept of biopower and its four seminal figures (the hysterical woman, the Malthusian couple, the masturbating child, and the perverse adult) to our understanding of current formations of late liberal power. Through the example of a far north Australian creek’s attempt to persist in being, this essay argues that new figures and tactics of geontological power are displacing prior biopower ones. It further argues that this displacement demands a radical questioning of queer modes of critical thought.
Apoptotic cell-derived membrane microparticles and IFN-α induce an inflammatory immune response
Authors: Niessen A. , Heyder P. , Krienke S. , Blank N. , Tykocinski L.-O. , Lorenz H.-M. , Schiller M.
Published: June 2015

The dysregulation in clearance of apoptotic material is considered a major pathogenetic factor for the emergence of autoimmune diseases. Apoptotic cell-derived membrane microparticles (AdMPs), released from the cell surface during apoptosis, have been implicated in the pathogenesis of autoimmunity. Also of importance are cytokines such as interferon-alpha (IFN-α), known as a major player in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). This study investigates the combined effect of AdMPs and IFN-α on professional phagocytes.

In the presence of IFN-α, phagocytosis of AdMPs by human monocytes was significantly increased in a dose-dependent manner. The combination of AdMPs and raised IFN-α concentrations resulted in an increase in the secretion of pro-inflammatory cytokines and an upregulation of surface molecule expression involved in antigen uptake. Also, macrophage polarisation was shifted towards a more inflammatory type of cell. The synergism between IFN-α and AdMPs seems to be mediated by an upregulation of phosphorylated STAT1.

Our results indicate that IFN-α together with AdMPs amplify the initiation and maintenance of inflammation. Especially in disorders with a defective clearance of apoptotic material, this mechanism might play a crucial role.
The small GTPase Rab8 interacts with VAMP-3 to regulate the delivery of recycling TCRs to the immune synapse
Authors: Finetti Francesca , Patrussi Laura , Galgano Donatella , Cassioli Chiara , Perinetti Giuseppe , Pazour Gregory J. , Baldari Cosima T.
Published: June 2015

IFT20, a component of the intraflagellar transport (IFT) system that controls ciliogenesis, regulates immune synapse (IS) assembly in the non-ciliated T cell by promoting TCR recycling. Here we have addressed the role of Rab8, a small GTPase implicated in ciliogenesis, in TCR traffic to the IS. We show that Rab8, which colocalizes with IFT20 in Rab11+ endosomes, is required for TCR recycling. Interestingly, at variance with IFT20-deficient T cells, TCR+ endosomes polarized normally beneath the IS membrane in the presence of dominant negative Rab8, but were unable to undergo the final docking/fusion step. This could be accounted for by the inability of the v-SNARE VAMP-3 to cluster at the IS in the absence of functional Rab8, which is responsible for its recruitment. Of note, similar to T cells, VAMP-3 interacts with Rab8 at the base of the cilium in NIH-3T3 cells, where it regulates ciliary growth and targeting of Smoothened. The results identify Rab8 as a novel player in vesicular traffic to the IS and provide insight into the pathways co-opted by different cell types for IS assembly and ciliogenesis.
Diurnal oscillation of vocal development associated with clustered singing by juvenile songbirds
Authors: Ohgushi Eri , Mori Chihiro , Wada Kazuhiro
Published: June 2015

Spaced practice affects learning efficiency in humans and other animals. However, it is not well understood how spaced practice contributes to learning during development. Here we show the behavioral significance of singing frequency in song development in a songbird, the zebra finch. Songbirds learn a complex song pattern by trial-and-error vocalizations as self-motivated practice, which is executed over a thousand times per day during the sensitive period of vocal learning. Notably, juveniles generate songs with a high frequency of singing in clusters with dense singing, whereas adults sing in the opposite way. This juvenile-specific clustered singing was characterized by clear separations of daily time for intent practice and rest. During the epochs of vocal practice in juveniles, the song structure approached that of song produced at the end of the day. In contrast, during the epochs of vocal rest, the structure of juvenile songs regressed toward that of songs produced at the beginning of the day, indicating a dynamic progression and regression of song development over the course of day. When the singing frequency was manipulated to decrease at the juvenile stage, the oscillation rate of song development was dramatically reduced. Although the juvenile-specific clustered singing was driven in nontutored socially isolated or early-deafened birds, the diurnal oscillation of vocal development was only observed in nontutored isolated juveniles. These results show the impact of “self-motivated” vocal practice on diurnal song developmental plasticity, modulated by the amount of vocal output and auditory feedback.
Run don't walk: locomotor performance of geckos on wet substrates
Authors: Stark Alyssa Y. , Ohlemacher Jocelyn , Knight Ashley , Niewiarowski Peter H.
Published: June 2015

The gecko adhesive system has been under particular scrutiny for over a decade, as the field has recently attracted attention for its application to bio-inspired design. However, little is known about how the adhesive system behaves in ecologically relevant conditions. Geckos inhabit a variety of environments, many of which are characterized by high temperature, humidity and rain. The van der Waals-based gecko adhesive system should be particularly challenged by wet substrates because water can disrupt the intimate contact necessary for adhesion. While a few previous studies have focused on the clinging ability of geckos on wet substrates, we tested a dynamic performance characteristic, sprint velocity. To better understand how substrate wettability and running orientation affect locomotor performance of multiple species on wet substrates, we measured average sprint velocity of five species of gecko on substrates that were either hydrophilic or intermediately wetting and oriented either vertically or horizontally. Surprisingly, we found no indication that wet substrates impact average sprint velocity over one meter, and rather, in some species sprint velocity was increased on wet substrates rather than reduced. When investigating physical characteristics and behaviors that may be associated with running on wet substrates, such as total number of stops, slips and wet toes at the completion of a race, we found that there may be habitat related differences between some species. Our results show that in general, unlike clinging and walking, geckos running along wet substrates suffer no significant loss in locomotor performance over short distances.
The Problematic Issues on the Relationship Between Materiality and Audit Risk
Authors: Клинова  , Klinova E.
Published: June 2015

This paper has been devoted to problematic issues concerning the reliability of accounting (financial) reports, information materiality, audit risk, and also relationship between materiality and audit risk.
Company Standard оf Auditor Activity «Documenting order»
Authors: Лосева  , Loseva N.
Published: June 2015

This material is a company standard of auditor activity for the audit inspection documenting defining audit

organization requirements to the content and form of auditor’s working papers, and also to the ensuring of confidentiality

and safety for documents and the proprietary right to them.
Account and Assessment of Commodity Stocks According to Russian and International Standards
Authors: Дятлова  , Dyatlova O.
Published: June 2015

In this paper the author considers questions of a technique related to assessment and accounting of stocks, including goods, according to the Russian Standards and International Financial Reporting Standards.
Standard Values of Coefficients When Forming the Rating of the Financial and Economic Condition of the Enterprise
Authors: Графова  , Grafova Galina , Аврашков  , Avrashkov Lyev , Шахватова  , Shakhvatova S.
Published: June 2015

Criteria and indicators for more perfect methodical approaches to coefficients’ standard values definition and

formation of the rating assessment related to an enterprise’s financial and economic condition have been presented in this

paper as well as an analysis of these criteria and indicators.
Zwyczaj picia kawy i herbaty odzwierciedlony w polskim słownictwie i frazeologii
Authors: Piela Agnieszka
Published: June 2015

The habit of drinking coffee and tea reflected in Polish lexicon and phraseology

The paper shows that it is not just the habit of drinking coffee and tea that has changed over the centuries, but also the lexicon of the related semantic circle. Polish preserves the basic vocabulary pertaining to the culture of coffee and tea drinking; some units have undergone a semantic metamorphosis and remained in the language, others did not withstand the test of time and faded into oblivion. It should be emphasized that the analysed lexical layer is constantly evolving, as is proven by new names for our stimulants, such as lura ‘weak tea’, słomka ‘weak tea’, pistoletówka ‘black coffee’, szatan ‘strong black coffee’ etc.
Etymologia a językowo-kulturowy obraz jałowca i kaliny
Authors: Kielak Olga
Published: June 2015

Etymology and the cultural-linguistic image of jałowiec ‘juniper’ and kalina ‘viburnum’

The paper tries to answer the question about the onomastic base of the names for ‘juniper’ and ‘viburnum’, i.e. which of their features or what image of these plants has been preserved in their names. The author tests whether the features captured in literary and dialectal Polish names for these shrubs are confirmed by folk texts, popular narratives and beliefs. Hypotheses put forward by etymologists are verified and confronted with the linguistic material which the author used to reconstruct the linguistic-cultural image of juniper and viburnum in colloquial and folk Polish. The paper is a yet another voice in the discussion about the suitability of ethnolinguistic research for the study of etymology, and the usefulness of etymology for ethnolinguists.
Rosyjskie липа, липовый i polskie lipa, lipny
Authors: Skarżyński Mirosław
Published: June 2015

Russian липа, липовый ‘counterfeit’ and Polish lipa, lipny ‘false’

The paper debates the interpretation of the etymology of Polish lipa ‘something untrue’ given by A. Bańkowski in his Etymologiczny słownik języka polskiego ‘Etymological dictionary of Polish’. Based on Russian and Polish lexicographical data, the author describes the rise of the Russian noun липа as a derivative from the older adjective липовый ‘false, counterfeit’ in the thieves’ slang of the 19th century, and subsequently its path into colloquial Russian. The word lipa was borrowed into Polish in the second half of the 19th century in the meaning ‘fake passport, document’, also ‘something counterfeit’. It first appeared in the slang of Polish thieves, then penetrated into the dialect of Warsaw, and eventually into colloquial Polish where it is used as a polysemous word, and became the base for the also polysemous derivative adjective lipny.
Archaizmy leksykalne w gwarach góralskich (na przykładzie wybranego słownictwa rodzinnego)
Authors: Gotówka Agnieszka
Published: June 2015

Lexical archaisms in the dialects of Polish highlanders (using the example of selected native vocabulary)

The material for our analysis of archaisms came from peripheral dialects of Polish highlanders. These dialects are some of the varieties of Polish which have been quite well preserved. The term ‘highlanders’ dialect’ is understood broadly, to be any dialect of Polish highlanders from Podhale, Spiš, Orava, the Ƶywiec area, and Cieszyn Silesia. The lexical individuality of these regions is a result of different historical and geographical factors. My reasearch focused on vocabulary related to family, and in particular to the ways of referring to important figures in familial relations. Highlanders’ families did and still do traditionally hierarchize the roles of family members with regard to their age and position. The discussed lexemes have been long archived in literary Polish; they are now entirely passive in their primary meanings, but they continue to thrive in dialects.