bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Genotype Modulates Pulmonary Function and Exercise Capacity in Treated Patients With Congestive Stable Heart Failure
Authors: Abraham M.Roselle , Olson Lyle J. , Joyner Michael J. , Turner Stephen T. , Beck Ken C. , Johnson Bruce D.
Published: September 2002

Background—

The gene encoding ACE exhibits an insertion/deletion polymorphism resulting in 3 genotypes (DD, ID, and II), which affects serum and tissue ACE activity as well as other vasoactive substances. Pulmonary function is frequently abnormal in patients with congestive heart failure (CHF), the mechanism of which has not been completely characterized. ACE inhibition has been shown to improve diffusion across the alveolar-capillary membrane and to improve exercise capacity and gas exchange in CHF. The aim of the current study was to determine if ACE genotype is associated with altered pulmonary function and exercise intolerance in patients with treated CHF.

Methods and Results—

Fifty-seven patients (stratified according to ACE genotype as17 DD, 28 ID, 12 II) with ischemic and dilated cardiomyopathy, left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) <35%, and <10 pack-years of smoking history were studied. All patients were receiving standard therapy for left ventricular systolic dysfunction. Pulmonary function, LVEF, serum ACE, plasma angiotensin II, atrial natriuretic peptide, and brain natriuretic peptide were measured at baseline. Peak V̇
o
2
and gas exchange measurements were assessed with graded exercise. Resting LVEF was similar among the genotype groups (25% to 28%), and no differences were observed in diastolic function or pulmonary artery pressures (
P
>0.05). Mean peak V̇
o
2
and forced vital capacity (% Pred) were significantly reduced (
P
<0.05), whereas mean serum ACE activity and plasma angiotensin II concentration were highest in DD homozygotes. Subjects homozygous for the D-allele also demonstrated higher mean ventilatory equivalents for carbon dioxide (V̇
e
/V̇
co
2
) during exercise (
P
<0.05).

Conclusions—

ACE DD genotype is associated with decreased exercise tolerance in CHF, possibly mediated by altered pulmonary function. Pharmacological strategies effecting more complete inhibition of serum and tissue ACE and/or potentiation of bradykinin may improve exercise capacity in patients with CHF and ACE DD genotype.
Increased Activity of Endogenous Endothelin in Patients With Type II Diabetes Mellitus
Authors: Cardillo Carmine , Campia Umberto , Bryant Melissa B. , Panza Julio A.
Published: September 2002

Background—

Endothelial dysfunction may contribute to the risk of premature atherosclerosis in patients with diabetes. Endothelin (ET-1) may be involved in this process by activating smooth muscle cell mitogenesis and leukocyte adhesion. We sought to assess the activity of endogenous ET-1 in a group of patients with type II diabetes mellitus with the use of antagonists of ET-1 receptors.

Methods and Results—

Forearm blood flow (FBF) responses (strain gauge plethysmography) to intraarterial infusion of a selective blocker of ET
A
receptors (BQ-123) and, on a different occasion, to ET-1, were measured in 15 patients with diabetes and 12 healthy controls. In addition, 5 patients with diabetes received coinfusion of BQ-123 and BQ-788 (a selective blocker of ET
B
receptors). In normal subjects, BQ-123 did not significantly modify FBF from baseline (
P
=0.16). In contrast, BQ-123 administration resulted in a significant vasodilator response in patients with diabetes (
P
<0.001). Infusion of exogenous ET-1 resulted in lower vasoconstrictor responses in patients with diabetes than in controls (
P
=0.001), whereas the vasoconstrictor response to norepinephrine was similar in the 2 groups (
P
=0.78). In patients with diabetes, the vasodilator response to selective ET
A
blockade was not significantly modified by nonselective blockade of ET-1 receptors obtained by coinfusion of BQ-123 and BQ-788.

Conclusions—

The activity of endogenous ET-1 on ET
A
receptors is enhanced in the resistance vessels of patients with diabetes, whereas their sensitivity to exogenous ET-1 is blunted. This abnormality may participate in the pathophysiology of vascular complications associated with diabetes.
Systolic Improvement and Mechanical Resynchronization Does Not Require Electrical Synchrony in the Dilated Failing Heart With Left Bundle-Branch Block
Authors: Leclercq Christophe , Faris Owen , Tunin Richard , Johnson Jennifer , Kato Ritsuchi , Evans Frank , Spinelli Julio , Halperin Henry , McVeigh Elliot , Kass David A.
Published: September 2002

Background—

Biventricular (BiV) and left ventricular (LV) pacing similarly augment systolic function in left bundle-branch block (LBBB)-failing hearts despite different electrical activation. We tested whether electrical synchrony is required to achieve mechanical synchronization and functional benefit from pacing.

Methods and Results—

Epicardial mapping, tagged MRI, and hemodynamics were obtained in dogs with LBBB-failing hearts during right atrial, LV, and BiV stimulation. BiV and LV both significantly improved chamber hemodynamics (eg, 25% increase in dP/dt
max
and aortic pulse pressure) compared with atrial pacing-LBBB, and this improvement correlated with mechanical resynchronization. Electrical dispersion, however, decreased 13% with BiV but increased 23% with LV pacing (
P
<0.01).

Conclusion—

Improved mechanical synchrony and function do not require electrical synchrony. Mechanical coordination plays the dominant role in global systolic improvement with either pacing approach.
A novel error critic for variable structure control with an ADALINE
Authors: Efe Mehmet Önder
Published: September 2002

This paper discusses a novel method for variable structure control. The method aims to create and maintain a predefined sliding motion in the phase space by adjusting the parameters of an ADALINE-type controller. The objective of the paper is to demonstrate that the task can be achieved under the assumption that the plant under control could be driven towards the sliding manifold. The approach presented assumes the structure of the dynamic representation of the plant is known but the analytical details embodying it are unavailable. The results obtained confirm the prescribed form of tracking claim together with low computational cost due to the adjustment of the controller parameters.
Guaranteed cost control of uncertain discrete-time delay systems using dynamic output feedback
Authors: Guo Lei
Published: September 2002

Guaranteed cost control problems for discrete-time systems with uncertainties and time delays are addressed in this paper. The delays may simultaneously appear not only in the state, but in control input and measurement output. Also, parametric uncertainties may exist in all system matrices of the systems considered in this paper. First, a new linear matrix inequality (LMI)-based approach is developed to construct dynamic guaranteed cost controllers for delay systems without uncertainties. Then this result is extended to discrete-time delay systems with uncertainties in linear fractional form in all system matrices. The solvability of these robust control problems for uncertain delay systems can be reduced to that for certain auxiliary systems without uncertainty. Numerical examples are provided to show the effectiveness of our approach.
Application of a least-squares parameter estimation approach for 2-D spatial modelling of compensators for intensity-modulated radiotherapy
Authors: Meyer J. , Burnham K. J. , Haas O. C.L. , Mills J. A. , Parvin E. M.
Published: September 2002

A spatial modelling technique is presented to model inversely the attenuation behaviour of poly-energetic high-energy photon beams within a metal compensator for intensity-modulated radiotherapy. The algorithm aims to predict modulators (compensators), which produce an intended intensity-modulated beam after the beam has passed through the metal. The proposed method considers two spatial dimensions and is based on a least-squares approach. The nonlinear system is modelled by means of an initial 2-D spatial model, which is linear in the parameters, and which takes into account primary and scattered radiation. This model is then refined and simplified resulting in a rotational-symmetrical 2-D spatial representation, which reduces the calculation time and makes the model more generally applicable. Compared with other techniques, it is not necessary to know the linear absorption coefficient of the compensator material.
Spoken word comprehension in children with SLI: A comparison of three case studies
Authors: Crosbie Sharon , Dodd Barbara , Howard David
Published: September 2002

Case studies of spoken word comprehension of three boys with specific language impairment are presented. The children were assessed with standardized assessments and experimental tasks that examined their language processing skills. The three children performed similarly on standardized assessments. However, the experimental tasks identified different underlying processes responsible for each child’s language profile. The implications for assessment and intervention are discussed.
Collaborative pretend play: From theory to therapy
Authors: Lederer Susan Hendler
Published: September 2002

Collaborative pretend play provides an important cognitive, linguistic, and social intervention context. In this paper, the nature of collaborative pretend play is discussed and a rationale is provided for its inclusion in an overall language intervention programme. The development of pretend play is reviewed, highlighting prerequisite skills necessary to succeed in this context. A protocol is presented for identifying specific strengths and needs in collaborative pretend, which leads to goal setting and intervention strategies. A child study is used to illustrate the assessment and intervention process.
Randomised controlled trials investigating pharmacological and psychological interventions for treatment-refractory depression
Authors: Stimpson Nicola , Agrawal Niruj , Lewis Glyn
Published: September 2002

Background

About 30% of people with depression do not respond to an antidepressant at the recommended dose and can be described as having treatment-refractory depression.

Aims

To summarise the findings from all randomised controlled trials (RCTs) that have assessed the efficacy of a pharmacological or psychological intervention for treatment-refractory depression.

Method

We used a systematic search strategy to identify RCTs that included adults aged 18–75 years with a diagnosis of unipolar depression that had not responded to a 4-week course of a recommended dose of an antidepressant.

Results

We identified 16 RCTs. None of the included trials assessed the efficacy of psychotherapy. All the trials were too small to detect an important clinical response. We found only two trials on lithium augmentation, which randomised 50 subjects in total.

Conclusions

There is little evidence to guide the management of depression that has not responded to a course of antidepressants. Treatment-refractory depression is an important public health problem and large pragmatic trials are needed to inform clinical practice.
New Directions
Authors: Lahey Karen Eikers
Published: September 2002

NA
From the Editor Vol 4 No 2
Authors: Mandell Lewis
Published: September 2002

NA
Fund Closings as a Signal to Investors
Authors: Smaby Timothy R. , Fizel John L.
Published: September 2002

This article examines the growing phenomenon of mutualfund closings by analyzing the investmentper$ormance of open-endfinds that close to new investors. Wefind that: (I) the average excess return (estimated by Jensen’s alpha) was positive in the 24 months prior to closing, (2) the average excess return was not sign$icantly differentfrom zero in the 24 months ajier closing, and (3) the funds in the sample on average exhibited a significant decline in investment pe$ormance afrer closing. These findings suggest that thefund managers’ strategic decision to close the find in order to slow down the growth in net assets does not prevent investmentperjormancefrom declining. For the individual investor, an impendinghnd closing is a signal not to invest in the fund. It is also a signal that current shareholders consider alternative investments.
Commission-Motivated Brokers Across The Production Month
Authors: Benson Earl D. , Rystrom David S. , Smersh Greg T.
Published: September 2002

The intramonthpattem of broker commission earnings is examinedfor a sample of one hundred brokers from a national brokerage firm. It is hypothesized that the structure of broker commissions leads to distortions in trading. The evidence shows that in the last five days of the production month, more than one-fourth of the brokers earned a significantly higher proportion of their monthly commissions than would be expected if trading were uniform across the month. This suggests that the structure of the commission system may lead some brokers to encourage individual investors to unnecessarily trade securities near the end of the production month to boost their commission income.
Optimal Holding Period for Assets That Must Be Liquidated
Authors: Knight John R. , Mandell Lewis
Published: September 2002

Consumers ojien invest with a spec$c goal in mind and often know with some precision when the investment proceeds will be needed to achieve that goal. Because different investors have different attitudes toward risk and because different asset types exhibit difSerent risk characteristics, there is often confusion as to the appropriate investment asset for a particular investor with a known investment horizon. It is also frequently unclear as to whether investments should be switched to a less risky asset as time to liquidation becomes short. This paper addresses the issues of initial asset choice and the advisability of switching among assets when the investment goal date is known, employ- ing the methodology of certaimy equivalent wealth. In addition to suggesting optimal investment strategies for individuals based upon holding period and degree of risk aversion, it shows that switching investment assets produces suboptimal results.
The Market Pricing of Disability Income Insurance for Individuals
Authors: Cox Larry A. , Gustavson Sandra G.
Published: September 2002

Individuals ’ needs for disability income insurance dominate thosefor life insurance, yet relativelyfew buyersandsellersenterintodisabilitycontractscomparedtolifecontracts. This phenomenon appears contradictory to the existence of a workably competitive market. This study examines the relation of disability income insurance prices to underlying contractual and insurer characteristics. Our results are supportive of a competitive market scenario. We observe a strong relation between prices and elimina- tionperiods, which isconsistentwiththepresence ofadverse selection. Our resultshave implicationsfor how individuals should choose some policy and insurer characteristics, but they also suggest that buyers may need to be better informed about other pricing factors.
Credit Cards and The Option to Default
Authors: Sullivan A. Charlene , Worden Debra Drecnik
Published: September 2002

The value of the option to default on unsecured credit contracts is estimated and found to be signij?cantly impacted by state and federal laws governing creditors’ collection practices and bankruptcy. Thedatasuggest thattheexpected valueoftheoptiontodefault influences debtors’ choices in default and is correlated with their use of their credit cards before default. Cardholders who use their lines of credit very intensely before default are signtjiiantly more likely to make choices in default which allow them to realize a greater benefit from default. Furthermore, these results offer a possible explanation for consumers’ seeming insensitivityto interest rates charged on revolving lines of credit.
Household Insolvency
Authors: DeVaney Sharon A. , Lytton Ruth H.
Published: September 2002

This review paper explores the issues related to the meaning and measurement of insolvency within the domain of household finances. Conceptual and empirical evidence to explain the onset of insolvency is reviewed. Predictive models andfinancial ratios are presentedas techniquesfor identifying insolvent households. Implications for monitoring of solvency by households and responses to insolvency are presented,
Abstracts of Articles on Individual Financial Management
Authors: Myers Phyllis Schiller
Published: September 2002

NA
Index: Vol 3 and 4
Authors: Mandell Lewis
Published: September 2002

NA
Getting the point: electrophysiological correlates of protodeclarative pointing
Authors: Henderson Lynnette M. , Yoder Paul J. , Yale Marygrace E. , McDuffie Andrea
Published: September 2002

We examined the longitudinal relationships between power data in two bands (i.e. 4–6 and 6–9 Hz) of electrical activity in the brain at 14 months, as measured by background electroencephalograms (EEG), with protodeclarative and protoimperative pointing at 18 months, as measured by the Early Social Communication Scales (ESCS), [Mundy et al., ESCS: A Preliminary Manual for the Abridged Early Social Communication Scales, 1996, unpublished manual] (n=27). EEGs were recorded from 64 sensors using the Electrical Geodesics (EGI) system's dense array sensor nets. Multivariate permutation testing (MPT), which controlled for experiment‐wise error due to multiple significance tests, revealed significant correlations between log‐transformed power in the frontal region at 14 months and protodeclarative, but not protoimperative, pointing at 18 months.
Language transactions during development and intervention: theoretical implications for developmental neuroscience
Authors: Camarata Stephen , Yoder Paul
Published: September 2002

Recent modeling of language development and intervention for children with disabilities has increasingly focused on the interactions between adults and children. These models have resulted in a number of recent advances in the behavioral treatment of language abilities in children with disabilities. Because these interventions are associated with substantial growth in a number of skills including speech, grammar and vocabulary, these paradigms may provide a useful model for studying neurological development of these aspects of language. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the potential neurodevelopmental ramifications of this type of theoretical model for facilitating language growth in children with and without disabilities. Indeed, because intervention can sometimes trigger rapid advances in language skills and presumably, associated neurological organization, this may prove to be a very useful paradigm for understanding the neurological correlates of language growth.
Alexander disease: a review and the gene
Authors: Johnson Anne B.
Published: September 2002

This review presents historical and clinical information on the rare human brain disorder known as Alexander disease (ALX), and reports on the recent discovery of the gene that appears to be causative. The disease is a fatal, white matter disorder (leukodystrophy) of childhood. Adult onset cases also have been described, but it has not been clear whether they represent the same disease. Until recently the diagnosis was made by the pathological examination of brain tissue, in which abundant Rosenthal fibers were found. These abnormal structures occurred within astrocytes, but their composition was unclear. In 1985, a child underwent a diagnostic brain biopsy at this institution, which established the diagnosis of ALX. Ultrastructural immunocytochemistry revealed that the Rosenthal fibers contained abundant amounts of glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), a normal component of astocytic intermediate filaments. Thus, the gene for this filament protein was considered a candidate gene for the cause of ALX, and DNA samples from children presumed or proven to have this disorder were banked for future study. Other work on the same brain biopsy showed that Rosenthal fibers also contained abundant αB‐crystallin, a heat shock protein, but no defect was found in its gene. A decade after the biopsy, a transgenic mouse with an extra copy of the gene for GFAP was produced. These mice died early and their brains contained Rosenthal fibers. Although not an exact model for ALX, this also suggested that the gene for GFAP should be considered a candidate gene for ALX. Subsequent research has demonstrated that the great majority of childhood ALX cases contain mutations in the gene for GFAP. This work is now being extended as a diagnostic test, as well as to seek understanding of the pathogenesis of ALX and possible approaches for treatment.
Gene structure and genetic localization of the PCLO gene encoding the presynaptic active zone protein Piccolo
Authors: Fenster Steven D. , Garner Craig C.
Published: September 2002

Piccolo belongs to a family of presynaptic cytoskeletal proteins likely to be involved in the assembly and function of presynaptic active zones as sites of neurotransmitter release. Given that abnormalities in the formation of synaptic junctions are thought to contribute to cognitive dysfunction during brain development, we have analyzed and compared the gene structure of the Piccolo gene, PCLO, from humans and mice and determined their chromosomal localization. A comparison of the deduced amino acid sequence of cDNA clones encoding Piccolo from human, mouse, rat and chicken reveals the presence of distinct homology domains. Only subsets of these are also present in the structurally related active zone protein Bassoon indicating that Piccolo and Bassoon perform related but distinct functions at active zones. Characterization of the PCLO gene reveals the presence of 25 coding exons spread over 380 kb of genomic DNA. The human PCLO gene maps to 7q11.23‐q21.3, a region of chromosome 7 implicated as a linkage site for autism and Williams Syndrome suggesting that alterations in the expression of Piccolo or the PCLO gene could contribute to developmental disabilities and mental retardation.
Functions of PI 3‐kinase in development of the nervous system
Authors: Rodgers Erin E. , Theibert Anne B.
Published: September 2002

In the nervous system, receptor regulated phosphoinositide (PI) 3‐kinases (PI 3‐kinases) participate in fundamental cellular activities that underlie development. Activated by trophic factors, growth factors, neuregulins, cytokines, or neurotransmitters, PI 3‐kinases have been implicated in neuronal and glial survival and differentiation. PI 3‐kinases produce inositol lipid second messengers that bind to pleckstrin homology (PH) domains in diverse groups of signal transduction proteins, and control their enzymatic activities, subcellular membrane localization, or both. Downstream targets of the inositol lipid messengers include protein kinases and regulators of small GTPases. The kinase Akt/PKB functions as a key component of the PI 3‐kinase dependent survival pathway through its phosphorylation and regulation of apoptotic proteins and transcription factors. Furthermore, since members of the Rho GTPase and Arf GTPase families have been implicated in regulation of the actin cytoskeleton, vesicular trafficking, and transcription, the downstream targets of PI 3‐kinase that control these GTPases are excellent candidates to mediate aspects of PI 3‐kinase dependent neuronal and glial differentiation.
Modulation of glial glutamate transport through cell interactions with the extracellular matrix
Authors: Ye Zu‐Cheng , Sontheimer Harald
Published: September 2002

Glial glutamate transport plays a pivotal role in maintaining glutamate homeostasis in the central nervous system. Expression of glutamate transporters is highly regulated during brain development, and a number of pathological conditions are associated with deficits in expression and/or function of glutamate transports. While several soluble factors have been shown to regulate the expression of glutamate transporter, the contribution of cell–cell interaction and cell–environmental interaction in the regulation of glutamate transport is unknown. Extracellular matrix (ECM) molecules are essential components in cell–cell and cell–environmental interactions, and the ECM has been shown to play critical role in normal development and during brain pathogenesis. We, therefore, investigated the possibility that ECM molecules may regulate astrocytic glutamate transport. Therefore, we cultured rat cortical astrocytes with different ECMs and determined expression levels of the two astrocytic glutamate transporters GLT‐1 and GLAST by Western Blot and determined transporter activity through measurements of 3H‐d‐aspartate uptake. Astrocytes grown on poly‐ornithine or poly‐d/l‐lysine showed approximately two‐fold higher GLT‐1 expression than sister cells grown on plastic dishes without ECM. Naturally occurring ECM's, including laminin and collagen, showed a dose‐dependent regulation of GLT‐1 protein expression. These effects were specific for GLT‐1 as GLAST expression was unaffected by different ECMs. Surprisingly, however, none of the examined ECMs altered the apparent glutamate uptake activity. In probing blots side‐by‐side for expression of Na+/K+‐ATPase, we found that ECMs affected expression of Na+/K+‐ATPase and GLT‐1 in a reciprocal fashion. Poly‐ornithine, for example, enhanced GLT‐1 expression, but reduced expression of Na+/K+‐ATPase. Na+ transport may, thus, be a limiting factor for glutamate uptake.
22q11 DS: genomic mechanisms and gene function in DiGeorge/velocardiofacial syndrome
Authors: Maynard Thomas M. , Haskell Gloria T. , Lieberman Jeffrey A. , LaMantia Anthony‐Samuel
Published: September 2002

22q11 deletion syndrome (22qDS), also known as DiGeorge or velocardiofacial syndrome (DGS/VCFS), is a relatively common genetic anomaly that results in malformations of the heart, face and limbs. In addition, patients with 22qDS are at significant risk for psychiatric disorders as well, with one in four developing schizophrenia, and one in six developing major depressive disorders. Like several other deletion syndromes associated with psychiatric or cognitive problems, it has been difficult to determine which of the specific genes in this genomic region may mediate the syndrome. For example, patients with different genomic deletions within the 22q11 region have been found that have similar phenotypes, even though their deletions do not compromise the same set of genes. In this review, we discuss the individual genes found in the region of 22q11 that is commonly deleted in 22qDS patients, and the potential roles each of these genes may play in the syndrome. Although many of these genes are interesting candidates by themselves, we hypothesize that the full spectrum of anomalies associated with 22qDS may result from the combined result of disruptions to numerous genes within the region that are involved in similar developmental or cellular processes.
Non-parametric exploratory analysis of the covariance structure for genetic analysis of repeated
measures and other function-value traits
Authors: JAFFRÉZIC FLORENCE , PLETCHER SCOTT D. , HILL WILLIAM G.
Published: September 2002

In the analysis of longitudinal data, before assuming a parametric model, an idea of the shape of the variance and correlation functions for both the genetic and environmental parts should be known. When a small number of observations is available for each subject at a fixed set of times, it is possible to estimate unstructured covariance matrices, but not when the number of observations over time is large and when individuals are not measured at all times. The non-parametric approach, based on the variogram, presented by Diggle & Verbyla (1998), is specially adapted for exploratory analysis of such data. This paper presents a generalization of their approach to genetic analyses. The methodology is applied to daily records for milk production in dairy cattle and data on age-specific fertility in Drosophila.
Spoilage patterns of skim and whole milks
Authors: DEETH HILTON C. , KHUSNIATI TATIK , DATTA NIVEDITA , WALLACE ROBERT B.
Published: September 2002

The reason for the reported difference in spoilage behaviour of skim and whole pasteurised milks was investigated. The rates of growth of psychrotrophic bacteria were not significantly different in the two milks and the bacterial types, all pseudomonads, present at spoilage were also similar. However, when representative spoilage organisms were cultured into freshly pasteurised skim and whole milks, skim milks exhibited predominantly bitter flavours while whole milk showed mostly sour flavours. The different spoilage behaviours can be largely explained by greater proteolysis in skim milk than in whole milk, caused by higher production of protease and greater susceptibility of the protein to protease attack. In addition, lipolysis in whole milk, caused by the substantial quantities of lipase produced by spoilage pseudomonads in this milk, also contributes to the different flavours produced during cold storage of these milk types.
Cytotoxic and antibacterial activities of chemically synthesized κ-casecidin and its partial peptide fragments
Authors: MATIN MD. ABDUL , OTANI HAJIME
Published: September 2002

Milk is known to provide not only excellent nutrition but also protection against
infection in mammalian neonates. Whey proteins, such as immunoglobulins,
lactoferrin, lysozyme and lactoperoxidase, are well known antimicrobial components
in milk. Håkansson et al. (1995) demonstrated that some multimeric human
α-lactalbumin derivatives induced apoptosis in immature and tumour cells. Yoo et al.
(1997) found that lactoferricin, which had been isolated from peptic lactoferrin as an
antimicrobial peptide, induced apoptosis in tumour and immature mammalian cells.
Apoptotic cell death is considered to be an important physiological function in the
development and homeostasis of multicellular organisms and to be a highly
controlled means of eliminating dangerous, damaged or unnecessary cells without
causing tissue damage. Therefore, these findings suggest that whey proteins may
have beneficial health effects by restricting specific cell population in the body.
Eukaryotic elongation factor-2 (eEF-2) activity in bovine mammary tissue in relation to milk protein synthesis
Authors: CHRISTOPHERSEN CLAUS T. , KARLSEN JAKOB , NIELSEN METTE O. , RIIS BENT
Published: September 2002

The amount of protein synthesis translational elongation factor 2 (eEF-2) was estimated employing diphtheria toxin-dependent ADP-ribosylation in samples prepared from small amounts of tissue from mammary gland, skeletal muscle and liver from lactating dairy cows. A very high level of ADP-ribosylatable eEF-2 was found in mammary gland, amounting to 20-times the level found in liver and 50-times the level found in skeletal muscle. This obviously reflects the high protein synthesis activity in mammary tissue. To our knowledge, similar high activities have previously been reported only for cancer cells. A close linear relationship was found between the amount of diphtheria-toxin catalysed ADP-ribosylated eEF-2 and protein and casein output in milk from cows in late lactation. This strongly suggests that eEF-2 may be a limiting factor in milk protein synthesis.
Catholicism, Kinship and the Public Memory of Sir Thomas More
Authors: QUESTIER MICHAEL
Published: September 2002

Historians are now particularly aware that kinship had political and social resonances in the early modern period. Historians of English Catholicism in this same period have always stressed that a web of family networks helped to sustain the English Catholic community within its harsh post-Reformation environment. But how exactly did this happen, particularly when Catholicism in England was so diverse, and when Catholics were often deeply divided over key political and religious issues? In this essay I examine how these relationships worked for one significant kinship group, a set of people descended from or related to the Henrician Lord Chancellor, Sir Thomas More, and thus how they affected Catholicism's political and ecclesial expressions of itself. I argue that in doing this, we can begin not only to reveal how far religious continuity depended on or was influenced by kinship, but also to describe some of the ways in which post-Reformation Catholicism was defined and perceived.
Instability of long-wavelength disturbances on
gravity-modulated surfactant-covered
thin liquid layers
Authors: KUMAR SATISH , MATAR OMAR K.
Published: September 2002

The effect of gravity modulation on long-wavelength disturbances at the free surface
of a surfactant-covered thin liquid layer is analysed. The surfactants are assumed
to be insoluble so that variations in their concentration along the free surface
produce Marangoni flows in the underlying liquid. Lubrication theory is applied to
obtain nonlinear partial differential equations that describe the behaviour of the free
surface height and surfactant concentration, and the stability of these equations to
small-amplitude disturbances is examined by applying Floquet theory. It is found that
long-wavelength disturbances are destabilized by gravity modulation when surfactants
are present, whereas such disturbances are stable when surfactants are absent. Results
from additional calculations indicate that the instability becomes more difficult to
excite as the Marangoni forces, body forces, capillary forces and surfactant diffusivity
increase, and becomes easier to excite as the van der Waals forces increase.
Magnetohydrodynamic flows
in porous media
Authors: GEINDREAU C. , AURIAULT J.-L.
Published: September 2002

The aim of this work is to investigate the tensorial filtration law in rigid porous media
for steady-state slow flow of an electrically conducting, incompressible and viscous
Newtonian fluid in the presence of a magnetic field. The seepage law under a magnetic
field is obtained by upscaling the flow at the pore scale. The macroscopic magnetic field
and electric flux are also obtained. We use the method of multiple-scale expansions
which gives rigorously the macroscopic behaviour without any preconditions on the
form of the macroscopic equations. For finite Hartmann number, i.e. ε [Lt ]
Ha [Lt ] ε−1,
and finite load factor, i.e. ε [Lt ] [Kscr ] [Lt ] ε−1,
where ε characterizes the separation
of scales, the macroscopic mass flow and electric current are coupled and both depend on the
macroscopic gradient of pressure and the electric field. The effective coefficients satisfy
the Onsager relations. In particular, the filtration law is shown to resemble Darcy's
law but with an additional term proportional to the electric field. The permeability
tensor, which strongly depends on the magnetic induction, i.e. Hartmann number, is
symmetric, positive and satisfies the filtration analogue of the Hall effect.
Born-again Buganda or the limits of traditional resurgence in Africa
Authors: Englebert Pierre
Published: September 2002

Since the restoration of traditional leaders in Uganda in 1993, the Kingdom of Buganda has developed unusually effective institutions, financing mechanisms and policy tools, re-building itself as a quasi-state. The reinforcement of Buganda's empirical statehood provides one of the farthest-reaching examples of the current trend of traditional resurgence in African politics and to some extent supports claims for the participation of traditional structures in contemporary political systems. Yet, the Buganda experiment also highlights the limits of traditional resurgence as a mode of reconfiguration of politics in Africa. First, it is unclear how the kingdom can maintain the momentum of its revival and the allegiance of its subjects in view of its fiscal pressure on the latter and the limited material benefits it provides to them. Already the monarchists are finding it difficult to translate the king's symbolic appeal into actual mobilisation for development, shedding doubts on one of the main justifications for the kingdom's rebirth. Second, Buganda's claims to political participation clash with the competing notion of sovereignty of the post-colonial state. These limits are likely to confront other similar experiments across the continent.
Larval settlement behaviour of the barnacle Balanus reticulatus in the laboratory
Authors: Thiyagarajan V. , Nair K.V.K. , Subramoniam T. , Venugopalan V.P.
Published: September 2002

The effect of algal food concentration, substratum, light, salinity, cyprid density and ‘footprints’, cyprid age, films of organic biopolymers, bacteria and diatoms on the settlement of Balanus reticulatus cyprids were studied. The algal food quantity (from 7×104 to 4×105 cells ml−1) fed to nauplii had a significant effect on the settlement. Cyprids failed to settle on glass surfaces but would settle on polystyrene. Light, cyprid ‘footprints’ and age significantly affected the settlement, however, salinity (from 20 to 40 psu) and cyprid density (from 5 to 200 per 5 ml of seawater) had no effect on the settlement. Films of organic polymers, bacteria, and diatoms inhibited the settlement compared to control. It is suggested that cyprids of B. reticulatus can serve as an appropriate test material for antifouling bioassays in those areas where the former forms a dominant species.
Spatio–temporal differentiation in the population structure of Hydrobia ulvae on an intertidal mudflat (Marennes-Oléron Bay, France)
Authors: Haubois A.-G. , Guarini J.-M. , Richard P. , Blanchard G.F. , Sauriau P.-G.
Published: September 2002

Spatio–temporal changes in density, breeding cycle, growth and population structure of Hydrobia ulvae (Gastropoda: Prosobranchia) were studied by monthly sampling of a wide bare mudflat in Marennes-Oléron Bay. Four stations, located along a cross-shore transect and characterized by different geomorphological structures, were investigated from March 2000 to February 2001. Hydrobia ulvae was mainly distributed in the upper half part of the mudflat and no individuals were found in the lower part. The breeding cycle extended from March to December and showed two annual peaks, in spring and in autumn. Three cohorts were recruited during the year and showed high growth rates during summer; the parameters of the von Bertalanffy model describing the growth curves were equal to kmax=0·47±0·5 mm
month−1 and L∞=5·4±0·2 mm. The snail population had similar size–frequency structure along the transect at the beginning of the survey but summer recruitment initiated spatial differentiation. Reproduction occurred in the middle part of the mudflat but recruits mainly settled down at the upper level of the mudflat; new cohorts appeared with increasing individual densities. The middle part of the mudflat was rather dominated by adult individuals which showed large density fluctuations.
The influence of shell growth rate on striae deposition in the scallop Pecten maximus
Authors: Owen Richard , Richardson Christopher , Kennedy Hilary
Published: September 2002

The relationship between shell growth rate and striae deposition was investigated in a field study in which groups of juvenile scallops, Pecten maximus, (Pectinidae: Bivalvia) were deployed for monthly periods over a year in the Menai Strait (North Wales). The number of striae deposited per day, inter-striae width (the increment of shell deposited between successive striae) and striae abundance (the number of striae deposited per mm of shell height) all correlated well with measured shell growth rates. During the winter months, when seawater temperatures were minimal (6°C), inter-striae width declined, whilst striae abundance increased, whereas during the summer when seawater temperatures were maximal (18°C), shell growth was rapid with maximum inter-striae width, resulting in a seasonal pattern of narrowly grouped, then widely spaced striae. This seasonal pattern in inter-striae width variation provides an accurate and reliable method for estimating the number of growth cycles and hence the age of P. maximus.
Statolith age validation and growth of Loligo plei (Cephalopoda: Loliginidae) in the north-west Gulf of Mexico during spring/summer
Authors: Jackson G.D. , Forsythe J.W.
Published: September 2002

Statolith validation and age and growth analysis was undertaken for the loliginid squid Loligo plei in the north-west Gulf of Mexico off Galveston, Texas. Statolith increments were shown to be laid down daily based on tetracycline staining of 19 individuals maintained in captivity. Ageing of field-captured individuals from late summer revealed that this species has rapid growth rates and a life span of about five months at least during the warm period of the year in this region of the Gulf of Mexico.
Max Perutz (1914–2002)
Authors: BLOW DAVID
Published: September 2002

Max Ferdinand Perutz, molecular biologist; born Vienna 19 May 1914; Director, MRC Unit for Molecular Biology 1947–62; FRS 1954; Reader, Davy Faraday Research Laboratory, Royal Institution 1954–68, Fullerian Professor of Physiology 1973–79; Chairman, MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology 1962–79; Nobel Prize for Chemistry (jointly) 1962; CBE 1963; Chairman, European Molecular Biology Organisation 1963–69; CH 1975; OM 1988; married 1942 Gisela Peiser (one son, one daughter); died Cambridge 6 February 2002.
INSTRUMENTS REAL AND IMAGINARY: AARON'S INTERPRETATION OF ISIDORE AND AN ILLUSTRATED COPY OF THE TOSCANELLO
Authors: Ceulemans Anne-Emmanuelle
Published: September 2002

Pietro Aaron (c.1480-c.1550) is the author of five music treatises. The first, Libri tres de institutione harmonica (Bologna, 1516), was composed in Italian and then translated into Latin by the humanist Giovanni Antonio Flaminio (1464-1536); the other four appeared in Italian, which made Aaron a pioneer in this regard. The Thoscanello de la musica, the first of the vernacular treatises, proved very successful and was reissued three times in the course of the sixteenth century under the title Toscanello in musica (Venice, 1529, 1539, 1562). These reissues are very similar to each other, but are clearly distinct from the first edition, in particular by the addition of an appendix (aggiunta) on various questions concerning musica ficta and the modes of Gregorian chant.
MUSICA MUNDANA, ARISTOTELIAN NATURAL PHILOSOPHY AND PTOLEMAIC ASTRONOMY
Authors: Ilnitchi Gabriela
Published: September 2002

Emanating from a cosmos ordered according to Pythagorean and Neoplatonic principles, the Boethian musica mundana is the type of music that ‘is discernible especially in those things which are observed in heaven itself or in the combination of elements or the diversity of seasons’. At the core of this recurring medieval topos stands ‘a fixed sequence of modulation [that] cannot be separated from this celestial revolution’, one most often rendered in medieval writings as the ‘music of the spheres’ (musica spherarum). In the Pythagorean and Neoplatonic cosmological traditions, long established by the time Boethius wrote his De institutione musica, the music of the spheres is just one possible manifestation of the concept of world harmony. It pertains to a universe in which musical and cosmic structures express the same mathematical ratios, each of the planets produces a distinctive sound in its revolution and the combination of these sounds themselves most often forms a well-defined musical scale. Although the Neoplatonic world harmony continued to function in medieval cosmology as the fundamental conceptual premise, the notion of the music of the spheres, despite its popularity among medieval writers, was generally treated neither at any significant length nor in an innovative fashion. Quite exceptional in this respect is the treatise that forms the subject of the present study, a text beginning Desiderio tuo fili carissime gratuito condescenderem and attributed to an anonymous bishop in the late thirteenth-century manuscript miscellany now in the Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana (Barb. lat. 283, fols. 37r-42v) but probably coming from a Franciscan convent in Siena. This seldom considered work affords a remarkable and special insight into the ways in which old and new ideas converged, intermingled and coexisted in the dynamic and sometimes volatile cross-currents of medieval scholarship.
English in a historical perspective – a neglected inheritance?
Authors: Rastall Paul
Published: September 2002

PAUL RASTALL assesses current issues and possibilities
in studying the history of English

“…often…in words contemplated singly, there
are boundless stores of moral and historic truth,
and no less of passion and imagination are laid
up – that from these lessons of infinite worth
may be derived…”(Richard C. Trench, 1851, 1)

When we think of “English today”, a range of issues naturally springs to mind. Principally, they are “synchronic” issues. They can be matters “internal” to linguistic systems, or viewpoints “external” to English considered as a communication system. Externally, we might consider, for example, the diversity of geographical, generational or sociolinguistic varieties, teaching and learning conditions and problems, the political and economic issues arising from the enormous spread of English worldwide. Internally, there are the many questions of phonology, grammar, lexicon, usage and textual practices, which are more directly “linguistic” in the narrow sense. A little less obviously, we can consider issues of the future of English both from the “external” point of view, looking at – for example – the selection of varieties for teaching or international communication purposes, and from the “internal” viewpoint, the “synchronic dynamics” of English, looking at the ways in which English is currently changing or tending to change. All of those matters and others are well covered in English Today.
J. R. R. Tolkien and the OED
Authors: Gulliver Peter
Published: September 2002

Amid all the publicity surrounding the release of the film of J. R. R. Tolkien's The Fellowship of the Ring, it has occasionally been mentioned that Tolkien was an English professor. What is rather less well known is that in 1919 and 1920, at the very start of his career, Tolkien worked on the staff of the Oxford English Dictionary; he later said of this time that he ‘learned more in those two years than in any other equal period of my life’.
Constraint satisfaction algorithms for graph
pattern matching
Authors: LARROSA JAVIER , VALIENTE GABRIEL
Published: September 2002

Graph pattern matching is a central problem in many application fields. Since it is
NP-complete, we cannot expect to find algorithms with a good worst-case performance.
However, there is still room for general procedures with a good average performance. In this
paper we explore four different solving approaches within the constraint satisfaction
framework, and introduce a new algorithm, which we call nRF+. The algorithm is a
refinement of really full look ahead that takes advantage of the problem structure in order
to enhance the look ahead procedure. We give a formal proof that nRF+ is superior to the
other approaches in terms of number of visited nodes. An additional contribution of this
paper is the introduction of a new benchmark for testing algorithms in this domain. It is
formed by a large set of well-defined graphs of very diverse nature. In this benchmark, we
show that nRF+ can efficiently solve a broad range of problems, while still leaving many
problem instances unsolved. The use of this challenging benchmark is encouraged for future
algorithms evaluation.
Constructing Trees in Graphs whose Complement
has no K2,s
Authors: DOBSON EDWARD
Published: September 2002

We show that, if G is a graph of order n with maximal degree Δ(G) and minimal degree
δ(G) whose complement contains no K2,s, s [ges ] 2, then G contains every tree T of order
n−s+1 whose maximal degree is at most Δ(G) and whose vertex of second-largest degree
is at most δ(G). We then show that this result implies that special cases of two conjectures
are true. We verify that the Erdös–Sós conjecture, which states that a graph whose average
degree is larger than k−1 contains every tree of order k+1, is true for graphs whose
complement does not contain a K2,4, and the Komlós–Sós conjecture, which states that
every graph of median degree at least k contains every tree of order k+1, is true for graphs
whose complement does not contain a K2,3.