bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Spore heat resistance plays an important role in disturbance‐mediated assemblage shift of ectomycorrhizal fungi colonizing Pinus muricata seedlings
Authors: Peay Kabir G. , Garbelotto Matteo , Bruns Thomas D.
Published: March 2009

Abiotic disturbance plays an important role in determining assemblage structure and maintaining species richness in many ecosystems. Disturbances events are complex, often affecting multiple environmental parameters simultaneously and causing selective removal of biomass. For this reason, observational studies often fail to elucidate the primary mechanism by which disturbance modifies assembly structure. This is particularly true of microbial systems where reduction in biomass or removal of competitive dominants is not visually obvious.

Fire is a major disturbance in pinaceous forests, which are characterized by ectomycorrhizal fungal root associations. To determine the specific mechanisms through which this disturbance affects ectomycorrhizal communities, we experimentally simulated the effects of fire by growing seedlings in field soil exposed to factorial combinations of soil heating and ash addition. Ectomycorrhizal colonists in each of the treatments were then identified from seedling roots using DNA sequences.

Both soil heating and ash addition caused changes to the soil chemical environment and altered the fungal assemblages found on seedling roots. The effect on the ectomycorrhizal assembly was most pronounced from soil heating, which caused an overall simplification and increasing dominance by a few taxa with ruderal life‐history strategies.

We also conducted a follow‐up experiment to see whether selective mortality of ectomycorrhizal spores might contribute to these patterns. Heat exposure had strong negative effects on all species tested. However, spore heat tolerance was highest for the species that showed the greatest increase in abundance on seedlings grown in heated soils.

Synthesis. Fire alters below‐ground communities through changes in soil chemistry and mortality of resident organisms. Our results show that soil heating and selective mortality are key mechanisms determining post‐fire assemblage structure of ectomycorrhizal fungi. These disturbances favour competitively inferior species and may help maintain diversity of ectomycorrhizal assemblages at the landscape scale.
Experimental acute toxicity of xylitol in dogs
Authors: XIA Z. , HE Y. , YU J.
Published: March 2009

The Cases of xylitol poisoning in dogs are increasing as a result of ingestion of xylitol‐containing products. Eighteen adult, clinically normal Pekingese dogs were orally dosed with 1 or 4 g/kg xylitol in aqueous solution. Blood samples were collected before and after dosing. Plasma insulin concentrations of both treated groups rose sharply from 20 min after xylitol dosing, peaking at 40 min. Hypoglycemia followed the increase in insulin concentration, with blood glucose values started to decrease 30 min after dosing. Other plasma biochemistry changes associated with xylitol administration were increased alanine aminotransferase and aspartate aminotransferase activities, hypophosphatemia, hypokalemia, and hypercalcemia. Plasma sodium and chloride concentrations remained normal. This study established a biochemical basis for diagnosis and treatment of xylitol poisoning in dogs.
Mutational analysis of the hepatitis C virus E1 glycoprotein in retroviral pseudoparticles and cell‐culture‐derived H77/JFH1 chimeric infectious virus particles
Authors: Russell R. S. , Kawaguchi K. , Meunier J.‐C. , Takikawa S. , Faulk K. , Bukh J. , Purcell R. H. , Emerson S. U.
Published: March 2009

Summary.  Cell entry by enveloped viruses is mediated by viral glycoproteins, and generally involves a short hydrophobic peptide (fusion peptide) that inserts into the cellular membrane. An internal hydrophobic domain within E1 (aa262–290) of hepatitis C virus (HCV) may function as a fusion peptide. Retrovirus‐based HCV‐pseudotyped viruses (HCVpp; genotype 1a) containing Ala or Pro substitutions at conserved amino acid positions within this putative fusion peptide were generated. Mutation of conserved residues significantly reduced efficiency of HCVpp entry into Huh‐7 cells. The majority of amino acid substitutions appeared to disrupt necessary interactions between E1 and E2. For some mutants, reductions in HCVpp‐associated E1 were associated with the incorporation of a high molecular weight, hyperglycosylated E2 that displayed decreased CD81‐binding. Other entry‐deficient mutants displayed normal E1E2 incorporation into pseudoparticles and normal CD81‐binding, and therefore might affect viral fusion. One mutant (S283P) consistently displayed two‐ to threefold higher infectivity than did wild‐type. Three mutations that decreased HCVpp infectivity also reduced levels of HCVcc infectious virus production. However, the S283P mutation had a different effect in the two systems as it did not increase production of infectious HCVcc. This comprehensive mutational analysis of the putative HCV fusion peptide provides insight into the role of E1 in its interaction with E2 and in HCV entry.
Pleistocene glaciation events shape genetic structure across the range of the American lobster, Homarus americanus
Authors: KENCHINGTON ELLEN L. , HARDING GARETH C. , JONES MATHEW W. , PRODÖHL PAULO A.
Published: March 2009

A north/south discontinuity along the northeastern coast of North America in the genetic structure of the American lobster (Homarus americanus) was detected using a suite of 13 microsatellite loci assessed using spatial analyses. Population genetic data laid over existing data on physiographic changes and sea‐surface temperatures were used to reconstruct the Pleistocene distribution of this species. A postglacial northern‐edge colonization model best explains the relative genetic homogeneity of the northern region compared to the southern region centred in the Gulf of Maine. Population genetic analyses identified significant structure (range of standardized theta 0–0.02) but no significant evidence for isolation by distance. The novel application of spatial genetic analyses to a marine species allowed us to interpret these results by providing a greater insight into the evolutionary factors responsible for shaping the genetic structure of this species throughout is natural range.
HlyU acts as an H‐NS antirepressor in the regulation of the RTX toxin gene essential for the virulence of the human pathogen Vibrio vulnificus CMCP6
Authors: Liu Moqing , Naka Hiroaki , Crosa Jorge H.
Published: March 2009

In Vibrio vulnificus, HlyU upregulates the expression of the large RTX toxin gene. In this work we identified the binding site of HlyU to −417 to −376 bp of the rtxA1 operon transcription start site. lacZ fusions for a series of progressive deletions from the rtxA1 operon promoter showed that transcriptional activity increased independently of HlyU when its binding site was absent. Thus HlyU must regulate the rtxA1 operon expression by antagonizing a negative regulator. Concomitantly we found that an hns mutant resulted in an increase in the expression of the rtxA1 operon genes. Multiple copies of HlyU can increase the promoter activity only in the presence of H‐NS underscoring the hypothesis that HlyU must alleviate the repression by this protein. H‐NS binds to a region that extends upstream and downstream of the rtxA1 operon promoter. In the upstream region it binds to five AT‐rich sites of which two overlap the HlyU binding site. Competitive footprinting and gel shift data demonstrate HlyU's higher affinity as compared with H‐NS resulting in the de‐repression and a corresponding increased expression of the rtxA1 operon.
ClpS is the recognition component for Escherichia coli substrates of the N‐end rule degradation pathway
Authors: Schmidt Ronny , Zahn Regina , Bukau Bernd , Mogk Axel
Published: March 2009

The N‐end rule degradation pathway states that the half‐life of a protein is determined by the nature of its N‐terminal residue. In Escherichia coli the adaptor protein ClpS directly interacts with destabilizing N‐terminal residues and transfers them to the ClpA/ClpP proteolytic complex for degradation. The crucial role of ClpS in N‐end rule degradation is currently under debate, since ClpA/ClpP was shown to process selected N‐terminal degrons harbouring destabilizing residues in the absence of ClpS. Here, we investigated the contribution of ClpS to N‐end rule degradation by two approaches. First, we performed a systematic mutagenesis of selected N‐degron model substrates, demonstrating that ClpS but not ClpA specifically senses the nature of N‐terminal residues. Second, we identified two natural N‐end rule substrates of E. coli: Dps and PATase (YgjG). The in vivo degradation of both proteins strictly relied on ClpS, thereby establishing the function of ClpS as the essential discriminator of the E. coli N‐end rule pathway.
Identification of a new human leukocyte antigen A allele, HLA‐A*3020
Authors: Li J.‐P. , Li X.‐F. , Chen Y. , Zhang X. , Liu X.‐Z.
Published: March 2009

A new human leukocyte antigen (HLA) A allele, HLA‐A*3020, was found during routine HLA genotyping by polymerase chain reaction–sequence specific oligonucleotide probes and sequencing‐based typing. The A*3020 allele has one nucleotide change at position 294 of exon 2 from the closest matching allele A*300101, resulting in an amino acid change from D (GAC) to E (GAA) at codon 98.
The evolution of senescence through decelerating selection for system reliability
Authors: LAIRD R. A. , SHERRATT T. N.
Published: March 2009

Senescence is a universal phenomenon in organisms, characterized by increasing mortality and decreasing fecundity with advancing chronological age. Most proximate agents of senescence, such as reactive oxygen species and UV radiation, are thought to operate by causing a gradual build‐up of bodily damage. Yet most current evolutionary theories of senescence emphasize the deleterious effects of functioning genes in late life, leaving a gap between proximate and ultimate explanations. Here, we present an evolutionary model of senescence based on reliability theory, in which beneficial genes or gene products gradually get damaged and thereby fail, rather than actively cause harm. Specifically, the model allows organisms to evolve multiple redundant copies of a gene product (or gene) that performs a vital function, assuming that organisms can avoid condition‐dependent death so long as at least one copy remains undamaged. We show that organisms with low levels of extrinsic mortality, and high levels of genetic damage, tend to evolve high levels of redundancy, and that mutation–selection balance results in a stable population distribution of the number of redundant elements. In contrast to previous evolutionary models of senescence, the mortality curves that emerge from such populations match empirical senescence patterns in three key respects: they exhibit: (1) an initially low, but rapidly increasing mortality rate at young ages, (2) a plateau in mortality at advanced ages and (3) ‘mortality compensation’, whereby the height of the mortality plateau is independent of the environmental conditions under which different populations evolved.
The timing of food‐deceptive flowers: a commentary on Internicola et al. (2008)
Authors: Ruxton G. D. , Martin SchaEfer H.
Published: March 2009

A recent article presents a study of pollinator visitation behaviour that is used to evaluate the selective pressure that pollinator visitation rate might have on the timing of the production of nonrewarding flowers. Here we take issue with the conclusions of the paper that there should be selection pressure for nonrewarding flowers to be available earlier in the season in order to avoid dissimilar sympatric rewarding species. Consideration of selection pressure must take into account temporal variation in total pollinator availability, pollinator longevity and unlearned response, and the stability of plant communities over time, as well as the learned responses of individual pollinators that the original study focused on. Learning alone would not necessarily select for early flowering by nonrewarders if temporal variation in pollinator numbers is strong or naïve pollinators consistently appear throughout the flowering season. Further, we argue that early flowering could simply be a natural corollary of longevity of flowers needed to combat negative frequency‐dependent selection and low overall visitation rates by pollinators, rather than a trait that has been specifically selected to reduce temporal overlap with competing rewarding species.
Set‐up and routine use of a database of 10 555 genotyped blood donors to facilitate the screening of compatible blood components for alloimmunized patients
Authors: Perreault J. , Lavoie J. , Painchaud P. , Côté M. , Constanzo‐Yanez J. , Côté R. , Delage G. , Gendron F. , Dubuc S. , Caron B. , Lemieux R. , St‐Louis M.
Published: March 2009

Background and Objectives  Large‐scale genotyping of blood donors for red blood cell and platelet antigens has been predicted to replace phenotyping assays in the screening of compatible blood components for alloimmunized patients. Although several genotyping platforms have been described, novel procedures and processes are needed to perform genotyping efficiently and to maximize its benefits for blood banks.

Materials and Methods  Here we describe the processes and procedures developed to introduce large‐scale genotyping in our routine operations.

Results  Preliminary cost–benefit analysis indicated that genotyping must target frequent blood donors (> 3 donations/year) to be efficiently used. A custom‐designed computer application was developed to manage the whole project. It selects frequent donors among recent donations, prints coded labels to identify blood samples sent to the external genotyping laboratory, and stores genotyping results. It can search for donors compatible for any combination of the 22 genotyped antigens as well as consult the current inventory for the presence of the corresponding blood components. The phenotype of recovered components is confirmed by standard serology techniques prior to shipment to hospitals.

Conclusion  Since October 2007, 10 555 blood donors have been genotyped. The database is used on a regular basis to find compatible blood components with a genotype–phenotype concordance of 99·6%.
Handling Stress as a Measurement of Personality in Great Tit Nestlings (Parus major)
Authors: Fucikova Eva , Drent Piet J. , Smits Nadine , Van Oers Kees
Published: March 2009

Interest in personality is growing in a wide range of disciplines, but only in a few systems it is possible to assess the survival value of personality. Field studies looking at the relationship between personality and survival value early in life are greatly hampered by the fact that personality can at present only be assessed after individuals become independent from their parents. In passerines, for example, this is often after a period of intensive selection for the survival on fledglings. The main aim of this study is therefore to develop a method to measure personality before this period of selection. For this purpose, we developed the handling stress (HS) test. We measured HS in 14‐d‐old great tit nestlings by counting the number of breast movements (breath rate) in four subsequent 15‐s bouts for 1 min; before and after they were socially isolated from their siblings for 15 min. To calculate the repeatability of HS, we repeated the test 6 mo later. To assess the relationship between HS and exploratory behaviour, we correlated the outcome of both tests. We ran tests both on birds of lines selected for extreme personality and on wild birds from a natural population. We found that birds selected for fast exploration reacted more to HS compared with birds selected for slow exploration and that HS was repeatable in different life phases. We confirmed this by finding an increase in the HS with increasing exploratory scores in wild birds. These results show that we can use the HS test as a measurement of personality, making it a potential tool for studying the relationship between personality and survival value early in life.
The Economic Impacts of a New Dam in South‐East Queensland
Authors: Wittwer Glyn
Published: March 2009

South‐East Queensland has combined the most rapid population growth in Australia with rainfall that has persisted below average for many years. The Queensland Government has responded with a number of plans to supplement existing water supplies in the region. This paper uses a multiregional, dynamic CGE model to estimate the regional impacts of construction of Traveston dam. The magnitude of net welfare benefits of the project depends on underlying assumptions concerning future rainfall patterns. All the mainland state governments are proposing water supply augmentation measures. It is probable that a number of these projects are not justifiable on economic grounds.
‘A Tolerable Figure’: William III, the General Election of November–December 1701 and the Appointment of the Fourth Earl of Manchester as Secretary of State in January 1702
Authors: PRICE RICHARD
Published: March 2009

During the final weeks of his life, William III summoned a new parliament and, encouraged by the outcome of the election, began to put together a new government for the purpose of renewing his struggle against Louis XIV of France. The first appointments made by the king, who died before he could complete all the changes, have often been regarded as inferior choices, men brought into office on a temporary basis until politicians of greater weight could be employed. This article shows that any such conclusion fails to do justice to at least one of the new ministers of January 1702, the fourth earl of Manchester, whose correspondence as an ambassador in the 1690s indicates qualities and experience more than sufficient to justify his appointment as secretary of state.
Precarious Work and Economic Migration: Emerging Immigrant Divisions of Labour in Greater London's Service Sector
Authors: MCDOWELL LINDA , BATNITZKY ADINA , DYER SARAH
Published: March 2009

The aim of this article is to assess the connections between the continued expansion of forms of insecure work and the impact of rising numbers of economic migrants employed in UK labour markets. It shows how competition between foreign‐born workers for jobs in the UK is currently being recast by changes in the jobs available, in forms of precarious labour market attachment and by new patterns of migration into the UK since EU expansion in 2004. The article documents the ways in which migrants with different sets of social characteristics (nationality, gender and skin colour) and different sets of legal entitlements (legal citizenship, EU membership and entitlement to residence) are differentially placed in their competition for some of the poorest jobs in the British economy, drawing on an empirical study of the migrant divisions of labour emerging in two significant sectors in the service industries. It concludes by arguing that new and deeper divisions are emerging between foreign‐born workers in the UK.

Cet article vise àévaluer les rapports entre l'essor constant de formes de travail précaire et l'impact des migrants économiques en nombre croissant employés sur les marchés du travail britanniques. La concurrence entre les travailleurs d'origine étrangère pour des emplois au Royaume‐Uni subit actuellement une mutation du fait de l'évolution des postes disponibles, sous des formes d'intégration précaire au marché du travail et selon de nouveaux modèles d'immigration depuis l'élargissement de l'UE en 2004. À partir d'une étude empirique sur les divisions du travail qui se dessinent chez les migrants dans deux importants secteurs de l'industrie des services, l'article met en évidence les manières dont les migrants réunissant différentes caractéristiques sociales (nationalité, genre et couleur de peau) et différentes habilitations légales (citoyenneté, ressortissant de l'UE et droit de séjour) se placent différemment dans la compétition pour certains des postes les plus médiocres de l'économie britannique. Il apparaît en conclusion que des divisions nouvelles et plus profondes apparaissent entre les travailleurs d'origine étrangère au Royaume‐Uni.
The final destiny of acantholytic cells in pemphigus is Fas mediated
Authors: Pacheco‐Tovar MG , Avalos‐Díaz E , Vega‐Memije E , Bollain‐y‐Goytia JJ , López‐Robles E , Hojyo‐Tomoka MT , Domínguez‐Soto L , Herrera‐Esparza R
Published: March 2009

Background  Pemphigus is an autoimmune disease characterized by the formation of intra‐epidermal blisters. Patients develop auto‐antibodies against desmoglein 1 and 3 proteins and induce acantholysis.

Objective  This work addresses the issue of whether the Fas pathway mediates acantholysis. Furthermore, the possible suppliers of the Fas pathway were investigated.

Methods  Seventeen biopsies of pemphigus patients were studied by haematoxylin and eosin staining, and apoptosis was defined by TUNEL. The expression of Fas, FasL and caspase 3 was studied by in situ hybridization and immunohistochemistry. Cell infiltrates were studied by immunofluorescence with monoclonal anti‐CD3, CD4, CD8, CD19 and CD69.

Results  All of the biopsies showed intra‐epidermal blisters, acantholytic cells and inflammatory infiltrates. The blisters expressed Fas, FasL and caspase 3. Cell infiltrates were composed of CD8 and a few CD4+CD69+ cells. Additionally, CD19+ cells were detected. Interestingly, the Fas expression was increased in acantholytic cells and perilesional keratinocytes. Incidentally, these cells exhibited apoptotic features. Interestingly, the CD8 cells expressed FasL.

Conclusion  This paper presents the morphological evidence that apoptosis and acantholysis are linked. Therefore, the Fas pathway is associated with CD8 cells in pemphigus lesions.

Conflicts of interest

None declared.
Efficacy and safety of long‐term mycophenolate sodium therapy in pemphigus vulgaris
Authors: Baskan E Bulbul , Yilmaz M , Tunali S , Saricaoglu H
Published: March 2009

Background  Pemphigus is a chronic immunobullous disease, characterized by formation of blisters and erosions in skin and/or mucous membranes. This severe disease requires systemic immunosuppressive therapy. However, some patients are refractory, and long‐term use of immunosuppressive agents can cause serious side‐effects. Mycophenolic acid is increasingly being used as a corticosteroid‐sparing agent or as monotherapy in immunosuppressive regimens.

Objectives  We aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of mycophenolate sodium, a sodium salt of mycophenolic acid, in the treatment of pemphigus vulgaris.

Methods  Six patients who were diagnosed as pemphigus vulgaris with active, refractory disease were treated with mycophenolate sodium. Three patients received mycophenolate sodium monotherapy; three patients received mycophenolate in combination with steroid. All patients were monitored regularly.

Results  Mycophenolate sodium was well tolerated with a similar efficacy of mycophenolate mofetil, and no side‐effects have been observed.

Conclusions  Mycophenolate sodium appears to be an effective and safe alternative in the treatment of pemphigus vulgaris.
Inert gas rebreathing: the effect of haemoglobin based pulmonary shunt flow correction on the accuracy of cardiac output measurements in clinical practice
Authors: Trinkmann F. , Papavassiliu T. , Kraus F. , Leweling H. , Schoenberg Stefan O. , Borggrefe M. , Kaden J. J. , Saur J.
Published: March 2009

Background:  Cardiac output (CO) is an important cardiac parameter, however its determination is difficult in clinical routine. Non‐invasive inert gas rebreathing (IGR) measurements yielded promising results in recent studies. It directly measures pulmonary blood flow (PBF) which equals CO in absence of significant pulmonary shunt flow (QS). A reliable shunt correction requiring the haemoglobin concentration (cHb) as only value to be entered manually has been implemented. Therefore, the aim of the study was to evaluate the effect of various approaches to QS correction on the accuracy of IGR.

Methods:  Cardiac output determined by cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (CMR) served as reference values. The data was analysed in four groups: PBF without correcting for QS (group A), shunt correction using the patients’ individual cHb values (group B), a fixed standard cHb of 14·0 g dl−1 (group C) and a gender‐adapted standard cHb for male (15·0 g dl−1) and female (13·5 g dl−1) probands each (group D).

Results:  147 patients were analysed. Mean COCMR was 5·2 ± 1·4 l min−1, mean COIGR was 4·8 ± 1·3 l min−1 in group A, 5·1 ± 1·3 in group B, 5·1 ± 1·3 l min−1 in group C and 5·1 ± 1·4 l min−1 in group D. The accuracy in group A (mean bias 0·5 ± 1·1 l min−1) was significantly lower as compared to groups B, C and D (0·1 ± 1·1 l min−1; P<0·01).

Conclusion:  IGR allows a reliable non‐invasive determination of CO. Since PBF significantly increased the measurement bias, shunt correction should always be applied. A fixed cHb of 14·0 g dl−1 can be used for both genders if the exact cHb value is not known. Nevertheless, the individual value should be used if any possible.
‘The gloomy forebodings of this dread disease’, climate, famine and sleeping sickness in East Africa
Authors: ENDFIELD GEORGINA H , RYVES DAVID B , MILLS KEELY , BERRANG‐FORD LEA
Published: March 2009

Identifying the nature of the association between climate, environmental, socio‐economic and political context and disease remains a major challenge, yet a better comprehension of the linkages is imperative if predictive models to guide public health responses are to be devised. Our understanding of the relationships could be improved through investigations of historical epidemics. In this paper we draw on a range of published and unpublished documents to explore the complex relationship between climate, environmental change and epidemic disease (re)emergence in East Africa, and Uganda in particular. This is a region which has experienced climate variability at a range of temporal and spatial scales, but which also has a long history of episodic epidemic disease. We focus on the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries – a time of social, economic and political reordering in East Africa associated with European colonial intervention, but also a period which witnessed a variety of climatic, ecological and disease events. It will be argued that these developments coalesced, creating a set of spatially distinctive social and environmental conditions which fostered the emergence and prolongation of one of the most deadly episodes of disease in East African history, the sleeping sickness epidemic of c.1900–20.
Factors Associated with Increasing Nursing Home Closures
Authors: Castle Nicholas G. , Engberg John , Lave Judith , Fisher Andrew
Published: March 2009

Purpose. We determine the rate of nursing home closures for 7 years (1999–2005) and examine internal (e.g., quality), organizational (e.g., chain membership), and external (e.g., competition) factors associated with these closures.

Design and Method. The names of the closed facilities and dates of closure from state regulators in all 50 states were obtained. This information was linked to the Online Survey, Certification, and Reporting data, which contains information on internal, organizational, and market factors for almost all nursing homes in the United States.

Results. One thousand seven hundred and eighty‐nine facilities closed over this time period (1999–2005). The average annual rate of closure was about 2 percent of facilities, but the rate of closure was found to be increasing. Nursing homes with higher rates of deficiency citations, hospital‐based facilities, chain members, small bed size, and facilities located in markets with high levels of competition were more likely to close. High Medicaid occupancy rates were associated with a high likelihood of closure, especially for facilities with low Medicaid reimbursement rates.

Implications. As states actively debate about how to redistribute long‐term care services/dollars, our findings show that they should be cognizant of the potential these decisions have for facilitating nursing home closures.
Health Care Utilization and Costs Associated with Physical and Nonphysical‐Only Intimate Partner Violence
Authors: Bonomi Amy E. , Anderson Melissa L. , Rivara Frederick P. , Thompson Robert S.
Published: March 2009

Objective. To estimate health care utilization and costs associated with the type of intimate partner violence (IPV) women experience by the timing of their abuse.

Methods. A total of 3,333 women (ages 18–64) were randomly sampled from the membership files of a large health plan located in a metropolitan area and participated in a telephone survey to assess IPV history, including the type of IPV (physical IPV or nonphysical abuse only) and the timing of the abuse (ongoing; recent, not ongoing but occurring in the past 5 years; remote, ending at least 5 years prior). Automated annual health care utilization and costs were assembled over 7.4 years for women with physical IPV and nonphysical abuse only by the time period during which their abuse occurred (ongoing, recent, remote), and compared with those of never‐abused women (reference group).

Results. Mental health utilization was significantly higher for women with physical or nonphysical abuse only compared with never‐abused women—with the highest use among women with ongoing abuse (relative risk for those with ongoing abuse: physical, 2.61; nonphysical, 2.18). Physically abused women also used more emergency department, hospital outpatient, primary care, pharmacy, and specialty services; for emergency department, pharmacy, and specialty care, utilization was the highest for women with ongoing abuse. Total annual health care costs were higher for physically abused women, with the highest costs for ongoing abuse (42 percent higher compared with nonabused women), followed by recent (24 percent higher) and remote abuse (19 percent higher). Women with recent nonphysical abuse only had annual costs that were 33 percent higher than nonabused women.

Conclusion. Physical and nonphysical abuse contributed to higher health care utilization, particularly mental health services utilization.
Sediment anisotropy coincides with moraine ridge trend in south‐central Finnish Lapland
Authors: SUTINEN RAIMO , MIDDLETON MAARIT , LIWATA PAULIINA , PIEKKARI MATTI , HYVÖNEN EIJA
Published: March 2009

The morpho‐sedimentary anisotropy of a field of moraine ridges, classified previously as ribbed moraine, was studied by means of ASTER satellite data, airborne radiometric (AR) data, digital elevation models (DEMs) and azimuthal measurement of electrical conductivity (σa) in Kivitaipale, south‐central Finnish Lapland. The 20 km long corridor of moraine ridges is diagonally oriented to the youngest (Late Weichselian) active‐ice streamlined features and presumably dates back to post‐Younger Dryas. The maximum σaanisotropy of sediments is parallel to the orientation of the ridge crests. Crudely to well stratified gravels and sands of glaciofluvial open channel origin and moderately sorted sediments attributed to glaciofluvial sliding bed facies are exposed in the cores of the ridges, whereas signs of (basal) till cover or glaciodynamic deformations are absent. On the basis of morpho‐sedimentary anisotropy, we contend that the origin of the studied corridor of ridges is linked to subglacial outburst event(s) rather than a transverse‐to‐ice‐flow origin of ribbed moraine. The triggering mechanism for the outburst(s) remains unresolved, yet the timing of outburst(s), concurrent with the maximum post‐Younger Dryas fault instability, may imply that earthquake(s) contributed to subglacial drainage.
Effect of a Risk‐Based Multifactorial Fall Prevention Program on the Incidence of Falls
Authors: Salminen Marika J. , Vahlberg Tero J. , Salonoja Maritta T. , Aarnio Pertti T.T. , Kivelä Sirkka‐Liisa
Published: March 2009

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the effects of a multifactorial fall prevention program on falls and to identify the subgroups that benefit the most.

DESIGN: Randomized controlled trial.

SETTING: Community‐dwelling subjects who had fallen at least once during the previous 12 months.

PARTICIPANTS: Five hundred ninety‐one subjects randomized into intervention (IG) (n=293) and control (CG) (n=298) groups.

INTERVENTION: A multifactorial 12‐month fall prevention program.

MEASUREMENTS: Incidence of falls.

RESULTS: The intervention did not reduce the incidence of falls overall (incidence rate ratio (IRR) for IG vs CG=0.92, 95% confidence interval (CI)=0.72–1.19). In subgroup analyses, significant interactions between subgroups and groups (IG and CG) were found for depressive symptoms (P=.006), number of falls during the previous 12 months (P=.003), and self‐perceived risk of falling (P=.045). The incidence of falls decreased in subjects with a higher number of depressive symptoms (IRR=0.50, 95% CI=0.28–0.88), whereas it increased in those with a lower number of depressive symptoms (IRR=1.20, 95% CI=0.92–1.57). The incidence of falls decreased also in those with at least three previous falls (IRR=0.59, 95% CI=0.38–0.91) compared to those with one or two previous falls (IRR=1.28, 95% CI=0.95–1.72). The intervention was also more effective in subjects with high self‐perceived risk of falling (IRR=0.77, 95% CI=0.55–1.06) than in those with low self‐perceived risk (IRR=1.28, 95% CI=0.88–1.86).

CONCLUSION: The program was not effective in reducing falls in the total sample of community‐dwelling subjects with a history of falling, but the incidence of falls decreased in participants with a higher number of depressive symptoms and in those with at least three falls.
Prevalence of Methicillin‐Resistant Staphylococcus aureus Colonization in Residents and Staff in Nursing Homes in Northern Ireland
Authors: Baldwin Naomi S. , Gilpin Deirdre F. , Hughes Carmel M. , Kearney Mary P. , Gardiner D. Ann , Cardwell Chris , Tunney Michael M.
Published: March 2009

OBJECTIVES: To determine the prevalence of, and factors associated with, methicillin‐resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) colonization in residents and staff in nursing homes in one geographically defined health administration area of Northern Ireland.

DESIGN: Point prevalence study.

SETTING: Nursing homes.

PARTICIPANTS: Residents and staff in nursing homes.

MEASUREMENTS: Nasal swabs were taken from all consenting residents and staff. If relevant, residents also provided urine samples, and swabs were taken from wounds and indwelling devices.

RESULTS: A total of 1,111 residents (66% of all residents) and 553 staff (86% of available staff) in 45 nursing homes participated. The combined prevalence rate of MRSA in the resident population was 23.3% (95% confidence interval (CI)=18.8–27.7%) and 7.5% in staff (95% CI=5.1–9.9%). Residents who lived in nursing homes that were part of a chain were more likely to be colonized with MRSA (odds ratio (OR)=1.91, 95% CI=1.21–3.02) than those living in independently owned facilities. Residents were also more likely to be colonized if they lived in homes in which more than 12.5% of all screened healthcare staff (care assistants and nurses) were colonized with MRSA (OR=2.46, 95% CI=1.41–4.29) or if they lived in homes in which more than 15% of care assistants were colonized with MRSA (OR=2.64, 95% CI=1.58–4.42).

CONCLUSION: The findings suggest that there is substantial colonization of MRSA in nursing home residents and staff in this one administrative health area. Implementation of infection control strategies should be given high priority in nursing homes.
Semiparametric Theory and Missing Data by TSIATIS, A. A.
Authors: Rotnitzky Andrea
Published: March 2009

Semiparametric Theory and Missing Data

(A. A. Tsiatis)

Andrea Rotnitzky

Missing Data in Longitudinal Studies: Strategies for Bayesian Modeling and Sensitivity Analysis

(M. J. Daniels and J. W. Hogan)

Daniel F. Heitjan

Bayesian Biostatistics and Diagnostic Medicine

(L. D. Broemeling)

Paul Gustafson

Statistics in the Pharmaceutical Industry, 3rd edition

(C. R. Buncher and J.‐Y. Tsay, Editors)

Ralph B. D'Agostino Jr.

Introduction to Machine Learning and Bioinformatics

(S. Mitra, S. Datta, T. Perkins, and G. Michailidis)

Yulan Liang

The Statistics of Gene Mapping

(D. Siegmund and B. Yakir)

Hongyu Zhao

DNA Methylation Microarrays: Experimental Design and Statistical Analysis

(S.‐C. Wang and A. Petronis)

Kimberly D. Siegmund

Multiple Testing Procedures with Applications to Genomics

(S. Dudoit and M. J. van der Laan)

Ruth Heller

The Statistical Analysis of Functional MRI Data

(N. A. Lazar)

Wesley K. Thompson

Simulation and Inference for Stochastic Differential Equations with R Examples

(S. M. Iacus)

Dave Campbell

Nonparametric Analysis of Univariate Heavy‐Tailed Data: Research and Practice

(N. Markovich)

M. Ivette Gomes

Time Series Analysis with Applications in R, 2nd edition

(J. D. Cryer and K.‐S. Chan)

Timothy D. Johnson

Brief Reports by the Editor

Analysis of Variance and Covariance: How to Choose and Construct Models for the Life Sciences

(C. P. Doncaster and A. J. H. Davey)

Computational Statistics Handbook with MATLAB®, 2nd edition

(W. L. Martinez and A. R. Martinez)

Models for Probability and Statistical Inference: Theory and Applications

(J. H. Stapleton)

Medical Biostatistics, 2nd edition

(A. Indrayan)

Computational Methods in Biomedical Research

(R. Khattree and D. N. Naik, Editors)
Women's Decisions to Seek Treatment for the Symptoms of Potential Cardiac Illness
Authors: Turris Sheila A.
Published: March 2009

Cardiac disease is the number one killer of Canadian women, and therapies are often highly time dependent. Consequently, understanding the forms of knowledge that women draw upon to understand and interpret their symptoms of a potential cardiac event may be important in relation to efforts to reduce treatment‐seeking delay. Data for this grounded‐theory study were drawn from in‐depth interviews with 16 women who went to one of two emergency departments between June 2005 and June 2006 for the treatment of symptoms indicating potential cardiac illness. The basic social process of maintaining integrity explained the women's interpretations of, and actions in relation to, their symptoms. This paper indicates the findings as they relate to specific forms of knowledge the women used to make decisions about treatment‐seeking, including embodied, temporal, rational, and relational ways of knowing.

Clinical Relevance: The results of this study contribute to the body of knowledge with regard to women's decisions about seeking treatment for the symptoms of potential cardiac illness.
Atopic dermatitis in adults: evaluation of peripheral blood mononuclear cells proliferation response to Staphylococcus aureus enterotoxins A and B and analysis of interleukin‐18 secretion
Authors: Orfali Raquel Leão , Sato Maria Notomi , Takaoka Roberto , Azor Mayce Helena , Rivitti Evandro Ararigbóia , Hanifin Jon M. , Aoki Valéria
Published: March 2009

Background:  Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a chronic, inflammatory skin disease with a high prevalence and complex pathogenesis. The skin of AD patients is usually colonized by Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus); its exotoxins may trigger or enhance the cutaneous inflammation. Several mediators are related to the AD immune imbalance and interleukin‐18 (IL‐18), an inflammatory cytokine, may play a role in the atopic skin inflammation.

Aims:  To evaluate peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) proliferation response to staphylococcal enterotoxins A (SEA) and B (SEB) and the levels of IL‐18 in adults with AD.

Methods:  Thirty‐eight adult patients with AD and 33 healthy controls were analysed. PBMC were stimulated with SEA and SEB, phytohemaglutinin (PHA), pokeweed (PWM), tetanus toxoid (TT) and Candida albicans (CMA). IL‐18 secretion from PBMC culture supernatants and sera were measured by ELISA.

Results:  A significant inhibition of the PBMC proliferation response to SEA, PHA, TT and CMA of AD patients was detected (P ≤ 0.05). Furthermore, increased levels of IL‐18 were detected both in sera and non‐stimulated PBMC culture supernatants from AD patients (P ≤ 0.05).

Conclusions:  A decreased PBMC proliferation response to distinct antigens and mitogens (TT, CMA, SEA and PHA) in adults with AD suggest a compromised immune profile. IL‐18 secretion from AD upon stimulation was similar from controls, which may indicate a diverse mechanism of skin inflammation maintained by Staphylococcus aureus. On the other hand, augmented IL‐18 secretion from AD sera and non‐stimulated cell culture may enhance the immune dysfunction observed in AD, leading to constant skin inflammation.
Functional response in habitat selection and the tradeoffs between foraging niche components in a large herbivore
Authors: Bremset Hansen Brage , Herfindal Ivar , Aanes Ronny , Sæther Bernt‐Erik , Henriksen Snorre
Published: March 2009

How herbivore behaviour is influenced by changes in resource levels is central for understanding trophic interactions. We examined whether foraging tradeoffs change with food levels by comparing habitat selection and space use within and between two neighbouring, predator‐free Svalbard reindeer populations. The populations faced different food levels due to contrasting grazing history. Summer resource selection in radiocollared females was assessed by a multi‐dimensional niche approach based on habitat variables obtained from a satellite image (e.g. the normalised difference vegetation index, NDVI) and a digital terrain model. The population at the overgrazed Brøggerhalvøya faced overall lower plant cover, biomass and primary productivity (i.e. lower NDVI) than the population at Sarsøyra. At Brøggerhalvøya, most reindeer selected for productive habitat when choosing home range and patches within the home range. In contrast, habitat selection at Sarsøyra was more affected by abiotic conditions such as moisture, which may influence plant quality. Here, reindeer used patches with even less biomass than the average reindeer at the poorer Brøggerhalvøya. Such a difference in habitat preference with different habitat availability (a functional response in habitat selection) probably reflected increased selection for high‐quality forage at the expense of high forage quantity at Sarsøyra. Accordingly, a negative relationship between habitat productivity and home range size was only present across individuals within Brøggerhalvøya, where forage quantity was the important foraging niche component. Individuals having poor (and large) home ranges apparently could not compensate for this by higher patch selectivity compared to individuals with richer home ranges. The results indicate changes in foraging tradeoffs at contrasting resource levels and that strong interactions occur between habitat selection, space use and the foraging niche structure in the absence of predation.
Subcellular Localization of the Neuronal Glycine Transporter GLYT2 in Brainstem
Authors: Núñez Enrique , Pérez‐Siles Gonzalo , Rodenstein Lara , Alonso‐Torres Pablo , Zafra Francisco , Jiménez Esperanza , Aragón Carmen , López‐Corcuera Beatriz
Published: March 2009

The neuronal glycine transporter GLYT2 belongs to the neurotransmitter:sodium:symporter (NSS) family and removes glycine from the synaptic cleft, thereby aiding the termination of the glycinergic signal and achieving the reloading of the presynaptic terminal. The task fulfilled by this transporter is fine tuned by regulating both transport activity and intracellular trafficking. Different stimuli such as neuronal activity or protein kinase C (PKC) activation can control GLYT2 surface levels although the intracellular compartments where GLYT2 resides are largely unknown. Here, by biochemical and immunological techniques in combination with electron and confocal microscopy, we have investigated the subcellular distribution of GLYT2 in rat brainstem tissue, and characterized the vesicles that contain the transporter. GLYT2 is shown to be present in small and larger vesicles that contain the synaptic vesicle protein synaptophysin, the recycling endosome small GTPase Rab11, and in the larger vesicle population, the vesicular inhibitory amino acid transporter VIAAT. Rab5A, the GABA transporter GAT1, synaptotagmin2 and synaptobrevin2 (VAMP2) were not present. Coexpression of a Rab11 dominant negative mutant with recombinant GLYT2 impaired transporter trafficking and glycine transport. Dual immunogold labeling of brainstem synaptosomes showed a very close proximity of GLYT2 and Rab11. Therefore, the intracellular GLYT2 resides in a subset of endosomal membranes and may traffic around several compartments, mainly Rab11‐positive endosomes.
The influence of the Creative Learning Assessment (CLA) on children's learning and teachers' teaching
Authors: Ellis Sue , Lawrence Becky
Published: March 2009

This paper describes the development and use of the Creative Learning Assessment (CLA) as a means of evidencing, supporting and promoting children's creative learning in arts‐based contexts. The research team at the Centre for Literacy in Primary Education (CLPE) worked with a group of teachers in inner‐city Lambeth primary schools to develop an assessment system to record the impact of a creative curriculum on children's achievement and to enable schools to justify a broad‐based provision. The Assessing Learning and Communication in Creative Learning Contexts project, funded by CfBT Education Trust (CfBT), aimed to offer teachers a view of creative learning development and a framework for teacher assessment. It set out to provide a close focus on the learner and a valuable source of information for curriculum planning. This article discusses the effect of working with the CLA on children's learning and on teachers' practice through a case study of one project school, and the implications for schools and classrooms from the perspectives of the researcher and the teacher.
‘GetReel’: engaging Year 6 students in planning, scripting, actualising and evaluating media text
Authors: Kervin Lisa
Published: March 2009

The notion of ‘multiliteracies’ and the development and creation of multimodal texts within classrooms is of pedagogic interest in this age of Information and Communications Technologies (ICT). The case study reported herein provides an analysis of how one teacher engaged her class of primary school students as they responded to the challenge of creating and filming a 30‐second television commercial on a social justice issue. The media texts were constructed in a 10‐week period. The paper describes the process as the teacher and these students planned, wrote, filmed and edited their commercials. It offers an example of how the changing nature of literacy and, specifically, text, is enacted in the classroom.
Teachers as readers: building communities of readers
Authors: Cremin Teresa , Mottram Marilyn , Collins Fiona , Powell Sacha , Safford Kimberly
Published: March 2009

Given the narrow scope of primary teachers' knowledge and use of children's literature identified in Phase I of Teachers as Readers (2006–2007), the core goal of the Phase II project was to improve teachers' knowledge and experience of such literature in order to help them increase children's motivation and enthusiasm for reading, especially those less successful in literacy. The year‐long Phase II project, Teachers as Readers: Building Communities of Readers, which was undertaken in five Local Authorities (LAs) in England, also sought to build new relationships with parents and families and to explore the concept of a “Reading Teacher (RT): a teacher who reads and a reader who teaches” (Commeyras and colleagues). The research design was multilayered; involving data collection at individual, school and LA levels, and using a range of quantitative and qualitative data research methods and tools. This paper provides an overview of the Phase II research. It suggests that teachers need support if they are to develop children's reading for pleasure, and enhance their involvement as socially engaged and self‐motivated readers.