bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Thirty‐six novel HLA alleles: 7 HLA‐A, 11 HLA‐B, 15 HLA‐C and 3 HLA‐DRB1
Authors: Anholts J. D. H. , Aneq M. , Dirks H. L. J. M. , Tas A. , Verduyn W. , Oudshoorn M.
Published: September 2009

Thirty‐six novel human leukocyte antigen (HLA) alleles are described in this article: A*9225N, A*9234, A*030106, A*0337, A*2317, A*2480, A*3023; B*070206, B*0759, B*0761, B*0765, B*150106, B*1827, B*352002, B*3585, B*3943, B*4082, B*5151; Cw*0342, Cw*0343, Cw*0344, Cw*0428, Cw*0430, Cw*0433, Cw*050104, Cw*0519, Cw*060203, Cw*070109, Cw*070202, Cw*0750, Cw*0815, Cw*120306, Cw*1409; DRB1*0336, DRB1*0473 and DRB1*1382.
Association of nutrient intake and wheeze or asthma in a Greek pre‐school population
Authors: Emmanouil Evdokia , Manios Yannis , Grammatikaki Evangelia , Kondaki Katerina , Oikonomou Evdokia , Papadopoulos Nikolaos , Vassilopoulou Emilia
Published: September 2009

Emmanouil E, Manios Y, Grammatikaki E, Kondaki K, Oikonomou E, Papadopoulos N, Vassilopoulou E. Association of nutrient intake and wheeze or asthma in a Greek pre‐school population. Pediatr Allergy Immunol 2010: 21: 90–95. © 2009 John Wiley & Sons A/S

The rise of asthma prevalence in children observed the last years might be related to several dietary factors/components as suggested by several researchers. We aimed to evaluate the potential relationship between certain nutrients intake and asthma occurrence in a population of pre‐school children. In the framework of the cross‐sectional study ‘Growth, Exercise and Nutrition Epidemiological Study In pre‐schoolers’, data were collected from 1964 children, aged 24–72 months, living in five different counties in Greece. The International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood questionnaire was used to assess asthma related outcomes. Dietary intake was assessed with 3 days diet records. The prevalence of ever wheeze, current wheeze and diagnosed asthma was 37.7%, 27.5% and 10.5% respectively. Dietary intake of magnesium had a 0.5% and 0.6% increase in the reported risk of current wheeze and diagnosed asthma respectively. On the contrary a decrease in the prevalence of ever (OR: 0.997, 95% CI: 0.995–1.000) and current wheeze (OR: 0.996, 95% CI: 0.993–0.999) was associated with vitamin C intake. Calcium intake slightly decreased the risk of current wheeze (OR: 0.999, 95% CI: 0.998–0.999). An increase of 2% of the risk of reporting ever or current wheeze was associated with mono‐unsaturated fatty acid intake. Magnesium intake was the only independent predictor for doctor’s diagnosed asthma. We conclude that dietary intake of vitamin C and calcium seem to have a protective effect on the incidence of wheeze in pre‐school children, whereas magnesium and mono‐unsaturated fatty acid may have a harmful role.
Interaction of beta‐blockers with the renal uptake transporter OCT2
Authors: Bachmakov I. , Glaeser H. , Endress B. , Mörl F. , König J. , Fromm M. F.
Published: September 2009

Aim: The uptake of drugs from the blood into the renal tubular cells is a key determinant for renal secretion and may influence their systemic plasma concentrations and extrarenal effects. Metformin, used for treatment of type 2 diabetes, is taken up into renal tubular cells by the organic cation transporter 2 (OCT2). Because many patients with type 2 diabetes receiving metformin are concomitantly treated with beta‐blockers, we tested whether beta‐blockers can inhibit OCT2‐mediated drug transport.

Method: Using Madin–Darby canine kidney II cells stably expressing the uptake transporter OCT2, we analysed whether the beta‐blockers bisoprolol, carvedilol, metoprolol and propranolol inhibit the transport of OCT2 substrates 1‐methyl‐4‐phenylpyridinium (MPP+) and metformin.

Results: Neither bisoprolol nor metoprolol significantly inhibited the uptake of MPP+, whereas a significant inhibition was observed for carvedilol und propranolol (half maximal inhibitory concentration IC50: 26.3 and 67.5 μM) respectively. Moreover, all beta‐blockers significantly inhibited OCT2‐mediated metformin uptake (IC50 for bisoprolol: 2.4 μM, IC50 for carvedilol: 2.3 μM, IC50 for metoprolol: 50.2 μM and IC50 for propranolol: 8.3 μM).

Conclusion: These in vitro results demonstrate that alterations of uptake transporter function by beta‐blockers have to be considered as potential mechanisms underlying drug–drug interactions in the kidney.
The response to short‐term intensive insulin therapy in type 2 diabetes
Authors: Retnakaran R. , Yakubovich N. , Qi Y. , Opsteen C. , Zinman B.
Published: September 2009

Aim: Although a short course of intensive insulin therapy (IIT) can improve beta‐cell function and glycaemic control in most patients with newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes (T2DM), the impact of this intervention in diabetes of longer duration has not been carefully studied. Thus, we sought to evaluate the effect of short‐term IIT in patients with established T2DM.

Methods: Thirty‐four patients, with diabetes of mean 5.9 ± 6.6 years duration, underwent 4–8 weeks of IIT, with 4‐h meal test administered at baseline and at 1 day post‐IIT. A positive clinical response was defined as fasting glucose < 7.0 mmol/l off any antidiabetic therapy at the latter test.

Results: A positive response was achieved in 68% (n = 23) of the subjects. At baseline meal test, the responders had lower glucose levels than the non‐responders from 120 to 240 min (all timepoints p ≤ 0.0008) and higher late incremental area‐under‐the‐C‐peptide‐curve (AUCCpep), particularly from 60 to 150 min (all p < 0.005). Beta‐cell function (ratio of AUCCpep to AUCgluc divided by HOMA‐IR) was similar between the groups at baseline (median 54.1 vs. 51.3, p = 0.62) but after IIT was significantly higher in the responders (109.3 vs. 57.4, p = 0.009). At baseline, the strongest predictors of the change in beta‐cell function were glucose levels between 180 and 240 min (all r = −0.5, p = 0.005) and incremental AUCCpep from 120 to 180 min (all r ≥ 0.66, p ≤ 0.0001), both reflecting late‐phase insulin secretion.

Conclusions: The clinical response to short‐term IIT is variable, consistent with the heterogeneity of T2DM. However, preserved late‐phase insulin secretion may identify those patients who can benefit from this intervention with improved beta‐cell function.
Evaluation of the Perkins®handheld applanation tonometer in the measurement of intraocular pressure in dogs and cats
Authors: Andrade Silvia Franco , Cremonezi Tatiana , Zachi Cristiane Aparecida Miranda , Lonchiati Caroline Ferreira , Amatuzzi Juliana Dalarrosa , Sakamoto Keila Priscilla , De Arruda Mello Paulo Augusto
Published: September 2009

Objective To evaluate and to validate the accuracy of the Perkins®handheld applanation tonometer in the measurement of IOP in dogs and cats.

Animals Twenty eyes from 10 dogs and 10 cats immediately after sacrifice were used for the postmortem study and 20 eyes from 10 clinically normal and anesthetized dogs and cats were used for thein vivostudy. Both eyes of 20 conscious dogs and cats were also evaluated.

Procedure Readings of IOP postmortem andin vivowere taken using manometry (measured with a mercury column manometer) and tonometry (measured with a Perkins®handheld applanation tonometer). The IOP measurement with Perkins®tonometer in anesthetized and conscious dogs and cats was accomplished by instillation of proxymetacaine 0.5% and of 1% fluorescein eye drops.

Results The correlation coefficient (r2) between the manometry and the Perkins®tonometer were 0.982 (dogs) and 0.988 (cats), and the corresponding linear regression equation werey = 0.0893x + 0.1105 (dogs) andy = 0.0899x + 0.1145 (cats) in the postmortem study. The mean IOP readings with the Perkins®tonometer after calibration curve correction were 14.9 ± 1.6 mmHg (range 12.2–17.2 mmHg) in conscious dogs, and were 15.1 ± 1.7 mmHg (range 12.1–18.7 mmHg) in conscious cats.

Conclusion There was an excellent correlation between the IOP values obtained from direct ocular manometry and the Perkins®tonometer in dogs and cats. The Perkins®handheld tonometer could be in the future a new alternative for the diagnosis of glaucoma in veterinary ophthalmology.
Retinal degeneration in the Abyssinian and Somali cat (rdAc): correlation between genotype and phenotype and rdAc allele frequency in two continents
Authors: Narfström Kristina , David Victor , Jarret Oswald , Beatty Julia , Barrs Vanessa , Wilkie David , O’Brien Stephen , Menotti‐Raymond Marilyn
Published: September 2009

Objective  To characterize hereditary retinal degeneration in the Abyssinian cat (rdAc) in a recently established closed colony segregating for the rdAc mutation, and evaluate possible differences in the age of onset and progression of disease phenotype since the initial description of rdAc 25 years ago. The sample size of an earlier study was increased in order to determine the allele frequency in Abyssinian and Somali cats on a worldwide basis.

Animals studied  Twenty rdAc affected cats from the closed animal facility, 87 Abyssinian and Somali cats for study of genotype–phenotype concordance, and DNA from 131 Abyssinian and Somali cats from Scandinavia, the UK and Australia for evaluation of the rdAc allele frequency.

Procedures  DNA was extracted from blood and buccal swabs using commercially available kits, followed by genotyping. Ophthalmic examinations were performed in the USA and Sweden by two board‐certified veterinary ophthalmologists.

Results  A greater variation in the age of onset and progression of the disease was observed compared to that previously described. An excellent correlation between genotype and phenotype was observed. A population genetic survey revealed that the rdAc allele is in moderate abundance in the Abyssinian breed in Europe and Australia. Surprisingly, homozygosity for the mutant allele was observed in a Siamese cat with ophthalmoscopic findings similar to those originally described for affected rdAc individuals.

Conclusions  Alertness to the potential of rdAc is needed on the part of the veterinary ophthalmology community, not only in Abyssinian and Somali cats but possibly also in other related cat breeds.
Central nervous system infection withStaphylococcus intermediussecondary to retrobulbar abscessation in a dog
Authors: Oliver James A. C. , Llabrés‐Diaz Francisco J. , Gould David J. , Powell Roger M.
Published: September 2009

In this report, we describe a case of retrobulbar abscessation in a dog that was initially diagnosed as masticatory myositis and treated with immunosuppressive doses of corticosteroids. Secondary bacterial infection of the central nervous system (CNS) occurred and was definitively diagnosed by the analysis and culture of the cerebrospinal fluid. This is the first time that retrobulbar infection has been definitively shown to result in secondary bacterial infection of the CNS in the dog and highlights the importance of ruling out infectious causes of retrobulbar disease before assuming and treating for an immune‐mediated etiology.
Three hundred and three dogs with cataracts seen in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Authors: Baumworcel Natasha , Soares Ana M. B. , Helms Gustavo , Rei Paulo R. L. , Castro Maria Cristina N.
Published: September 2009

Objective To describe the most common canine breeds affected with cataracts in Rio de Janeiro.

Animals Three hundred and three dogs were included in this retrospective study. Animal ages ranged from 6 months to 14.8 years.

Material and methods All records of dogs seen by the Ophthalmology Service of Policlínica Veterinária Botafogo between January 2005 and June 2008 were reviewed. Animals with cataracts were separated, and breed and age were evaluated.

Results Most of the dogs presented with cataracts were Toy Poodles with a mean age of 8.2 years, followed by Cocker Spaniels and Bichon Frises. The percentage of Toy Poodles affected with cataracts was 13.8% while 33.3% of Bichon Frise was diagnosed with cataracts.

Conclusions Toy Poodles are a popular breed in Rio de Janeiro. Without regulations on breeding, the prevalence of cataracts may increase rapidly. Furthermore, due to the relatively late onset of cataract formation in the Toy Poodle (mean 8.2 years of age), affected animals may have produced several litters of puppies. This study emphasizes the importance of screening for the presence of inherited ocular abnormalities such as cataracts prior to breeding.
Ultrasonographic and echobiometric findings in the eyes of Saanen goats of different ages
Authors: Ribeiro Alexandre P. , Silva Miguel L. , Rosa Juliana P. , Souza Samule F. , Teixeira Izabelle A. M. A. , Laus José L.
Published: September 2009

Objective To determine ultrasonographic and echobiometric findings in the eyes of goats of different ages. B and A mode ultrasonography was performed in 55 healthy Saanen goats (110 eyes) of ages 45 (n = 15), 180 (n = 20), and 549 days (n = 20).

Procedures Transcorneal ultrasonography was performed after instillation of a topical anesthetic and application of acoustic transmission gel on the 20‐MHz linear transducer tip. The transducer was placed in a longitudinal position until optimal B scan images, according to echoes of A mode images, were obtained. Statistical analysis was carried out to compare the echobiometric readings among subjects (P < 0.05).

Results The aqueous and vitreous humors of the goats, as well as the lens cortices and nuclei, appeared anechoic. The cornea, anterior and posterior lens capsule, sclera, and iris appeared hyperechoic and generated peaks on the A mode. Ocular measurements between the right and left eyes, as well as between male and female goats were not significantly different among subjects of the same age (P = 1.00). All dimensions evaluated increased significantly with age (P < 0.01).

Conclusions The ultrasonographic appearances of goat eyes were very similar to those of other animal species. The cornea, anterior chamber, lens, vitreous chamber, and axial globe length increased with age in the Saanen breed of goats. Knowledge of the normal appearance and ocular dimensions of goat eyes facilitates the use of ultrasonography in the evaluation of ocular disease in Saanen goats.
PICTURE THIS: A SIMPLE GRAPH THAT REVEALS MUCH ADO ABOUT RESEARCH
Authors: Stanley T.D. , Doucouliagos Hristos
Published: September 2009

Abstract Funnel graphs provide a simple, yet highly effective, means to identify key features of an empirical literature. This paper illustrates the use of funnel graphs to detect publication selection bias, identify the existence of genuine empirical effects and discover potential moderator variables that can help to explain the wide variation routinely found among reported research findings. Applications include union–productivity effects, water price elasticities, common currency‐trade effects, minimum‐wage employment effects, efficiency wages and the price elasticity of prescription drugs.
Ectopic expression of MgSM1, a Cerato‐platanin family protein fromMagnaporthe grisea, confers broad‐spectrum disease resistance in Arabidopsis
Authors: Yang Yayun , Zhang Huijuan , Li Guojun , Li Wei , Wang Xiao’e , Song Fengming
Published: September 2009

Proteins belonging to the newly identified Cerato‐platanin (CP) family have been shown to have elicitor activity in inducing disease resistance responses in various plants. In this study, we characterized a gene,MgSM1, fromMagnaporthe grisea, encoding a putative small protein belonging to the CP family.MgSM1was constitutively expressed not only in different fungal growth stages but also during its infection process in rice plants. Agrobacterium‐mediated transient expression of MgSM1 in Arabidopsis resulted in hypersensitive response in the infiltrated local leaves and enhanced disease resistance againstBotrytis cinereaandPseudomonas syringaepv.tomato(Pst) DC3000 in upper leaves of plants, accompanyed by up‐regulated expression of defense genes (PR‐1,PR‐5andPDF1.2). Transgenic Arabidopsis plants expressingMgSM1under control of a dexamethasone (DEX)‐inducible promoter were generated. Expression ofMgSM1in transgenic plants was induced by exogenous application of DEX.MgSM1‐expressing plants showed normal growth with application of <10 μmDEX. After DEX induction, theMgSM1‐expressing plants showed enhanced disease resistance againstB. cinerea,Alternaria brassicicolaandPstoDC3000 as well as up‐regulated expression of some of defense genes. Moreover, accumulation of reactive oxygen species was observed inMgSM1‐expressing plants. These results collectively suggest that ectopic expression ofMgSM1in transgenic plants confers broad‐spectrum resistance against different types of pathogens. Our study also provides a novel strategy to generate environment‐friendly crops with enhanced broad‐spectrum resistance through ectopic expression of microbe‐derived disease resistance‐inducing proteins.
Engineering OsBAK1 gene as a molecular tool to improve rice architecture for high yield
Authors: Li Dan , Wang Lei , Wang Min , Xu Yun‐Yuan , Luo Wei , Liu Ya‐Ju , Xu Zhi‐Hong , Li Jia , Chong Kang
Published: September 2009

Generating a new variety of plant with erect‐leaf is a critical strategy to improve rice grain yield, as plants with this trait can be dense‐planted. The erect‐leaf is a significant morphological trait partially regulated by Brassinosteroids (BRs) in rice plants. So far, only a few genes can be used for molecular breeding in rice. Here, we identified OsBAK1 as a potential gene to alter rice architecture. Based on rice genome sequences, four closely related homologs of Arabidopsis BAK1 (AtBAK1) gene were amplified. Phylogenetic analysis and suppression of a weak Arabidopsis mutant bri1‐5 indicated that OsBAK1 (Os08g0174700) is the closest relative of AtBAK1. Genetic, physiological, and biochemical analyses all suggest that the function of OsBAK1 is conserved with AtBAK1. Overexpression of a truncated intracellular domain of OsBAK1, but not the extracellular domain of OsBAK1, resulted in a dwarfed phenotype, similar to the rice BR‐insensitive mutant plants. The expression of OsBAK1 changed important agricultural traits of rice such as plant height, leaf erectness, grain morphologic features, and disease resistance responses. Our results suggested that a new rice variety with erect‐leaf and normal reproduction can be generated simply by suppressing the expression level of OsBAK1. Therefore, OsBAK1 is a potential molecular breeding tool for improving rice grain yield by modifying rice architecture.
Safener responsiveness and multiple herbicide resistance in the weed black‐grass (Alopecurus myosuroides)
Authors: Cummins Ian , Bryant David N. , Edwards Robert
Published: September 2009

Safeners enhance the selectivity of graminicidal herbicides such as fenoxaprop ethyl in cereals, by increasing their rates of detoxification in the crop. While studying the selectivity of fenoxaprop ethyl in wheat, we determined that the safeners mefenpyr diethyl and fenchlorazole ethyl also enhanced herbicide tolerance in the competing weed black‐grass (Alopecurus myosuroides). Fenoxaprop ethyl was detoxified by conjugation with glutathione in both wheat and black‐grass, with the resulting metabolites processed to the respective cysteine derivatives, which were then N‐glycosylated. In black‐grass, these detoxification pathways were only slightly enhanced by safeners, suggesting that metabolism alone was unlikely to account for increased herbicide tolerance. Instead, it was determined that safening was associated with an accumulation of glutathione and hydroxymethylglutathione and enzymes with antioxidant functions including phi and lambda glutathione transferases, active as glutathione peroxidases and thiol transferases respectively. These safener‐induced changes closely mirrored those determined in two independent black‐grass populations that had acquired multiple herbicide resistance (MHR) in the field. In addition to enhanced glutathione metabolism, both safener treatment and MHR resulted in elevated levels of flavonoids in the foliage of black‐grass plants, notably flavone‐C‐glycosides and anthocyanins. Our results demonstrate that safening in a grass weed is associated with an inducible activation in antioxidant and secondary metabolism which mirrors the biochemical phenotype exhibited in plants that are resistant to multiple classes of herbicides.
Physical activity, fitness and fatness: relations to mortality, morbidity and disease risk factors. A systematic review
Authors: Fogelholm M.
Published: September 2009

The purpose of this systematic review was to study the relative health risks of poor cardio‐respiratory fitness (or physical inactivity) in normal‐weight people vs. obesity in individuals with good cardio‐respiratory fitness (or high physical activity). The core inclusion criteria were: publication year 1990 or later; adult participants; design prospective follow‐up, case–control or cross‐sectional; data on cardio‐respiratory fitness and/or physical activity; data on BMI (body mass index), waist circumference or body composition; outcome data on all‐cause mortality, cardiovascular disease mortality, cardiovascular disease incidence, type 2 diabetes or cardiovascular and type 2 diabetes risk factors. Thirty‐six publications filled the criteria for inclusion. The data indicate that the risk for all‐cause and cardiovascular mortality was lower in individuals with high BMI and good aerobic fitness, compared with individuals with normal BMI and poor fitness. In contrast, having high BMI even with high physical activity was a greater risk for the incidence of type 2 diabetes and the prevalence of cardiovascular and diabetes risk factors, compared with normal BMI with low physical activity. The conclusions of the present review may not be applicable to individuals with BMI > 35.
An Australian Outlook on International Affairs? The Evolution of International Relations Theory in Australia
Authors: Devetak Richard
Published: September 2009

Disciplinary histories of Australian International Relations (IR) theory have tended to focus on the 1960s — when a number of Australian scholars returned from the UK to take up posts at the Australian National University's Department of International Relations — as the beginning of a discipline that has subsequently flourished through various disciplinary debates and global events. This article offers a preliminary attempt at narrating a more complete history of Australian IR by beginning to recover much‐neglected contributions made in the early interwar years. From these earliest years through to the current “era of critical diversity”, it is argued, Australian scholars have made considerable contributions not just to the intellectual formation of an Australian outlook on international affairs, but to an understanding of international relations itself.
Foreign Policy Studies in Australia
Authors: McDougall Derek
Published: September 2009

Australian contributions to foreign policy analysis have focused mainly, but not exclusively, on the study of Australian foreign policy. Contributions have been made not just by political scientists, but also by historians, journalists and practitioners. While some Australians have made theoretical contributions that are relevant to understanding foreign policy, the emphasis in the study of Australian foreign policy has not been strongly theoretical. The main focus has been on giving greater depth to issues that have been important in the public debate about foreign policy in Australia. Considerable attention has been given to Australia's major Western relationships (Britain and then the United States) and also the Asia‐Pacific regional environment. During the pre‐Second World War and Cold War periods the emphasis in the study of Australian foreign policy was broadly realist (at least implicitly), but there was also an assumption that there was an element of choice in relation to the major issues. In the post‐Cold War era Australia's international situation has become more complex, and this has been reflected in foreign policy studies. While the realist tradition is still strong, there has been more scope for critical approaches to emerge. Developments in cognate fields such as political economy, security studies and environmental politics have had some impact. There is considerable scope for more theoretically engaged work to be undertaken, but it is also important to continue the focus on the issues that are important in the public debate about foreign policy in Australia.
Australian Scholarship, International Relations and the Environment: Commitment, Critique and Contestation
Authors: Elliott Lorraine
Published: September 2009

Australian scholarship on “International Relations and the environment” rests on the shoulders of a comparatively small number of researchers. Their contribution to scholarly debate and policy analysis, however, belies the numbers. The corpus thus produced offers both breadth, through the range of environmental issues explored, and depth through a strong commitment to theoretical inquiry and a willingness to challenge and defy traditional disciplinary boundaries. Underpinning this is a recognition that the agenda of “IR and the environment” has long moved beyond policy‐tracing analysis of inter‐state cooperation, diplomatic negotiations and multilateral institutions. Robust intellectual, conceptual and empirical “conversations” on global environmental issues mean that there are often points of divergence among those working in this field. Nevertheless, the Australian scholarly output on International Relations and the environment can be characterized by three important themes: a critique of neoliberalism, a commitment to ethical inquiry (and, indeed, to a politics of solidarity) that reveals a complex politics of knowledge, discourse and power; and a disciplinary heterodoxy accompanied by a critical interrogation of theoretical constructs and organizing principles embedded in ideas about the state, sovereignty and security. This is not, I argue here, an interest in theory for theory's sake. Rather, Australian scholarship on International Relations and the environment is motivated by real concerns about how best to protect the environment and by a real commitment to those who are most affected by the ecological, social and economic consequences of environmental change.
Feminist International Relations in Australia
Authors: Lee‐Koo Katrina
Published: September 2009

I am convinced at every turn that the international is personal, and the personal is international too.1

Feminist International Relations (IR) scholarship has a small, but significant, presence in the Australian IR discipline. This presence, now over two decades old, has made important contributions to the re‐thinking of the agenda, methodology and ambitions of Australian IR. This article offers a guide to tracing the impact of feminist scholarship in the Australian IR discipline. It begins with an overview of feminist IR generally, and then moves to identify the work of Australian scholars in this field. It demonstrates the pioneering breadth and scope of this work and pays tribute to the scholars who broke down the traditional barriers of the discipline to reveal the identities, issues, and ways of thinking about world politics that had been previously unexplored. It doing so, it analyses feminist impact on the core of the discipline as well as its work on expanding the boundaries of IR. It will argue that, in Australia, feminist IR scholarship is often (though not exclusively) located within the pockets of scholarship committed to exploring critical approaches. However, this article also recognises that the discipline of International Relations in Australia has not always been welcoming of feminist insights and contributions. With this in mind, this article turns to the challenges and debates that face feminist IR both within the discipline and without, with a focus particularly on the dialogue between “critical feminism” and “mainstream International Relations”.
New Governance and the Case of Activation Policies: Comparing Experiences in Denmark and the Netherlands
Authors: Lindsay Colin , McQuaid Ronald W.
Published: September 2009

This article explores the importance of new forms of governance in active labour market policies (activation) in two countries: Denmark and the Netherlands. Drawing on research with key stakeholders in these countries, we analyse how new governance, and particularly processes of contracting‐out and localization, have found expression in recent reforms to activation. We conclude that localization and contracting‐out may have a future role to play in the development of more locally responsive and individually focused services. But both countries have encountered problems in promoting joined‐up services through local jobcentres, while contracting‐out has not always led to the tailored, individually focused services envisaged by policy‐makers. In both countries, there are also concerns that the restriction of the Public Employment Service to a ‘gatekeeping and signposting’ role will lead to inconsistencies in the quality of services, exposing the most disadvantaged to greater social risk.
Political Articulation: Parties and the Constitution of Cleavages in the United States, India, and Turkey
Authors: De Leon Cedric , Desai Manali , Tuğal Cihan
Published: September 2009

Political parties do not merely reflect social divisions, they actively construct them. While this point has been alluded to in the literature, surprisingly little attempt has been made to systematically elaborate the relationship between parties and the social, which tend to be treated as separate domains contained by the disciplinary division of labor between political science and sociology. This article demonstrates the constructive role of parties in forging critical social blocs in three separate cases, India, Turkey, and the United States, offering a critique of the dominant approach to party politics that tends to underplay the autonomous role of parties in explaining the preferences, social cleavages, or epochal socioeconomic transformations of a given community. Our thesis, drawing on the work of Gramsci, Althusser, and Laclau, is that parties perform crucial articulating functions in the creation and reproduction of social cleavages. Our comparative analysis of the Republican and Democratic parties in the United States, Islamic and secularist parties in Turkey, and the Bharatiya Janata Party and Congress parties in India will demonstrate how “political articulation” has naturalized class, ethnic, religious, and racial formations as a basis of social division and hegemony. Our conclusion is that the process of articulation must be brought to the center of political sociology, simultaneously encompassing the study of social movements and structural change, which have constituted the orienting poles of the discipline.
Herder's Heritage and the Boundary-Making Approach: Studying Ethnicity in Immigrant Societies
Authors: Wimmer Andreas
Published: September 2009

Major paradigms in immigration research, including assimilation theory, multiculturalism, and ethnic studies, take it for granted that dividing society into ethnic groups is analytically and empirically meaningful because each of these groups is characterized by a specific culture, dense networks of solidarity, and shared identity. Three major revisions of this perspective have been proposed in the comparative ethnicity literature over the past decades, leading to a renewed concern with the emergence and transformation of ethnic boundaries. In immigration research, “assimilation” and “integration” have been reconceived as potentially reversible, power-driven processes of boundary shifting. After a synthetic summary of the major theoretical propositions of this emerging paradigm, I offer suggestions on how to bring it to fruition in future empirical research. First, major mechanisms and factors influencing the dynamics of ethnic boundary-making are specified, emphasizing the need to disentangle them from other dynamics unrelated to ethnicity. I then discuss a series of promising research designs, most based on nonethnic units of observation and analysis, that allow for a better understanding of these mechanisms and factors.
Cultural Performance and Political Regime Change
Authors: Kern Thomas
Published: September 2009

The question about how culture shapes the possibilities for successful democratization has been a controversial issue for decades. This article maintains that successful democratization depends not only on the distribution of political interests and resources, but to seriously challenge a political regime, the advocates of democracy require cultural legitimacy as well. Accordingly, the central question is how democratic ideas are connected to the broader culture of a social community. This issue will be addressed in the case of South Korea. The Minjung democracy movement challenged the military regime by connecting democratic ideas concerning popular sovereignty and human rights with cultural traditions. The dissidents substantiated democratic values by (1) articulating an alternative concept of political representation against the authoritarian regime, (2) increasing the cultural resonance of their concept by linking democratic ideas to traditional narratives and practices, (3) developing a rich dramaturgical repertoire of collective action, and (4) mobilizing public outrage by fusing the above three elements within historical situations.
History of migraine with aura and cortical spreading depression from 1941 and onwards
Authors: Tfelt-Hansen PC
Published: September 2009

Several personal descriptions of migraine with aura from 1870 onwards reported a slow, gradual progression of symptoms. Lashley in 1941 meticulously chartered his own auras and concluded that the symptomatology reflected a cortical process progressing with a speed of 3 mm/min across the primary visual cortex. Leão described cortical spreading depression (CSD) in rabbits in 1944 and noticed its similarity to the migraine aura. Despite these scattered pieces of evidence, the prevailing theory was that the migraine aura was caused by a vasospasm and cortical ischaemia. The advent of a technique for measurements of regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) in 1974 made it possible to detect spreading oligaemia during migraine aura. Between 1981 and 1990 a series of studies of rCBF during migraine attacks showed reduced brain blood flow posteriorly spreading slowly and contiguously anteriorly and crossing borders of supply of major cerebral arteries. These observations refuted the ischaemic hypothesis. The human studies showed initial hyperaemia followed by prolonged hypoperfusion. The relation between aura and CSD was known to cause short-lasting, and therefore not obvious vasodilation and it was considerably strengthened by the demonstration of a long-lasting oligaemia in rats in the wake of CSD. In the primates CSD is not easily elicited, but it has in recent years been clearly demonstrated in patients with brain trauma and stroke. Finally, mutations for familial hemiplegic migraine have been expressed in mice and lower the threshold for CSD. The seminal papers on rCBF and CSD published in the 1980s caused a dramatic shift in our concepts of migraine aura. They moved attention from ischaemia to CSD and thereby to the brain itself, and paved the way for subsequent discoveries of brainstem mechanisms.
Growth rate of human fingernails and toenails in healthy American young adults
Authors: Yaemsiri S , Hou N , Slining MM , He K
Published: September 2009

Background  Human nail clippings are increasingly used in epidemiological studies as biomarkers for assessing diet and environmental exposure to trace elements or other chemical compounds. However, little is known about the growth rate of human nails.

Objective  To estimate the average growth rate of fingernails and toenails and examine factors that may influence nail growth rate.

Methods  Twenty‐two healthy American young adults marked their nails close to the proximal nail fold with a provided nail file following a standardized protocol, and recorded the date and the distance from the proximal nail fold to the mark. One to three months later, participants recorded the date and distance from the proximal nail fold to the mark again. Nail growth rate was calculated based on recorded distance and time between the two measurements.

Results  Average fingernail growth rate was faster than that of toenails (3.47 vs. 1.62 mm/month, P < 0.01). There was no significant difference between right and left fingernail/toenail growth rates. The little fingernail grew slower than other fingernails (P < 0.01); the great toenail grew faster than other toenails (P < 0.01). Younger age, male gender, and onychophagia were associated with faster nail growth rate; however, the differences were not statistically significant.

Conclusion  Nail growth rates have increased compared with previous estimates conducted decades ago. Toenail clippings may reflect a long exposure time frame given the relatively slow growth rate.
Perceived Social Acceptance and Peer Intimacy Among Children with Disabilities in Regular Schools in Norway
Authors: Wendelborg Christian , Kvello Øyvind
Published: September 2009

Background  The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between educational arrangements, social participation during leisure time and perceived social acceptance and peer intimacy among disabled children.

Methods  Eighty‐five Norwegian children with disabilities, 11‐ to 13‐year old, and their parents, participated in this study. An empirical model was generated by means of structural equation modelling using lisrel.

Results  The type and severity of the impairment has no direct effect on perceived social acceptance and peer intimacy, but an indirect effect because they influence educational arrangements, which in turn predict social participation in leisure time. Social participation in leisure time is the only variable with a direct effect on perceived social acceptance and peer intimacy.

Conclusions  Educational arrangements may obstruct the opportunities of children with disabilities have for participating and interacting socially during leisure time and may further have a negative impact on their perceived social acceptance and peer intimacy.
An Evaluation of the Implementation of Hand Held Health Records with Adults with Learning Disabilities: A Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial
Authors: Turk Vicky , Burchell Sarah , Burrha Sukhjinder , Corney Roslyn , Elliott Sandra , Kerry Sally , Molloy Catherine , Painter Kerry
Published: September 2009

Background Personal health records were implemented with adults with learning disabilities (AWLD) to try to improve their health‐care.

Materials and Method Forty GP practices were randomized to the Personal Health Profile (PHP) implementation or control group. Two hundred and one AWLD were interviewed at baseline and 163 followed up after 12 months intervention (PHP group). AWLD and carers of AWLD were employed as research interviewers. AWLD were full research participants.

Results Annual consultation rates in the intervention and control groups at baseline were low (2.3 and 2.6 visits respectively). A slightly greater increase occurred over the year in the intervention group 0.6 (−0.4 to 1.6) visits/year compared with controls. AWLD in PHP group reported more health problems at follow‐up 0.9 (0.0 to 1.8). AWLD liked their PHP (92%) but only 63% AWLD and 55% carers reported PHP usage. Carers had high turnover (34%).

Conclusions No significant outcomes were achieved by the intervention.
Roles of General Practitioners in the Provision of Health Care Services for People with Intellectual Disabilities: A National Census in Taiwan
Authors: Lin Jin‐Ding , Hsu Shang‐Wei , Yen Chia‐Feng , Chou Ying‐Ting , Wu Chia‐Ling , Chu Cordia M. , Loh Ching‐Hui
Published: September 2009

Aims  The aims of the present study were to explore the perceptions of general practitioners (GPs) in the provision of health care services for people with intellectual disabilities and to analyse GPs’ priorities in the delivery of health care services to this group of people in Taiwan.

Methods  The study employed a cross‐sectional design and was conducted by a census method, the aim being to collect information from all GPs in Taiwan. A questionnaire was mailed out, between 10 April 2006 and 16 June 2006, and the responses provided by 331 GPs (response rate = 16) were included in the analysis.

Results  The results showed that most of the respondents did not have sufficient experience to deal with patients with intellectual disabilities and lacked adequate knowledge about intellectual disabilities. Indeed, respondents expressed the need for on‐the‐job training in the field of intellectual disabilities and generally agreed that their role in providing health care services for people with intellectual disabilities was important. However, they were generally not satisfied with the achievements of their role on health care issues. The study highlighted that many issues need to be prioritized for people with intellectual disabilities in relation to policy planning at different health care stages (primary, secondary and tertiary health care). The results also revealed that those senior GPs with considerable experience in treating people with intellectual disabilities were more likely satisfied with their role in providing health care for this group of people.

Conclusions  It is concluded that Taiwanese health and welfare authorities need to focus more carefully on issues concerning deficiencies in the training of GPs, and to employ appropriate strategies to address health care issues raised in the present study so as to improve the quality of care for people with intellectual disabilities.
Functional levels and nurse workload of elderly awaiting nursing home placement and nursing home residents: a comparative study
Authors: Fjelltun Aud‐Mari , Henriksen Nils , Norberg Astrid , Gilje Fredicka , Normann Hans Ketil
Published: September 2009

The aim of this study was twofold: to compare the functional levels of elderly awaiting nursing home placement and nursing home residents, and to compare their nurses’ physical and psychological workloads. In Norway, the demand for nursing home placement has increased greatly. Elderly awaiting placement can receive care from home health care services and/or from their families. Documenting elderly’s functional levels may illuminate the extent of the carers’ workloads and the need for support during the waiting period. The study was conducted in 2005 on two groups in northern Norway. Using the Multi‐Dimensional Dementia Assessment Scale to assess functional levels, one group of nurses assessed elderly awaiting nursing home placement (n = 36) and another group of nurses assessed nursing home residents (n = 47). The nurses also reported physical and psychological workloads in caring for these elderly. A comparison of the functional levels between elderly awaiting nursing home placement and nursing home residents showed few statistically significant differences. Nursing home residents had two lower motor functions, needed more assistance with activities of daily living, more regular administration of enemas, were more often unable to speak, and showed lower orientation levels. Clinically significant similarities were found in five motor functions, including rising from lying to sitting, rising out of bed and walking, and in behavioural and psychiatric symptoms. Both groups of elderly had a high prevalence of sadness and fearfulness. The results of this study indicate that elderly awaiting nursing home placement can be as frail as nursing home residents. These results highlight the elderly’s need for assistance and reveal the need for more nursing home beds. Nurses in home health care and nursing homes rated physical and psychological workloads similarly. As many carers provide care 24 hours a day, these results also illuminate the need to support carers during the waiting period.
The representation of healthcare end users’ perspectives by surrogates in healthcare decisions: a literature review
Authors: Shah Syed Ghulam Sarwar , Farrow Alexandra , Robinson Ian
Published: September 2009

Background:  The representation of end users’ perspectives in healthcare decisions requires involvement of their surrogates when the end users, i.e. certain patients, elderly people, children and people with disabilities, are unable to present their views.

Aims:  To review critical issues, and the advantages and disadvantages of involving surrogates in representing end users’ perspectives in healthcare decisions.

Methods:  A systematic review of literature published in peer‐reviewed journals from 1990 to 2005.

Results:  Findings show that surrogates are used widely in health care and that they are necessary to represent end users’ perspectives in healthcare decisions when the latter are unable to do so themselves. Critical issues in using surrogates include key ethical, social, cultural, legal and medico‐technological factors; ascertaining the best interest of end users; potential conflict of interest; possible biased decisions and the burden on surrogates. The key advantage of surrogate involvement in healthcare decisions is their ability to represent end users’ needs, values and wishes. The main disadvantages include potential discrepancies between the decisions and conclusions of surrogates and end users; the failure of surrogates to predict end users’ preferences accurately and the lack of certainty that useful information will be obtained through the surrogacy process.

Conclusion:  This systematic review has revealed that the involvement of surrogates is an additional vital way to represent end users’ perspectives in healthcare decisions where for a range of reasons their opinions are unable to be effectively ascertained. However, because of the heterogeneity of surrogates and end users, the selection of appropriate surrogates and deploying surrogate decisions require particularly careful consideration of their value in individual cases; thus, subsequent decision‐making must be reviewed on a case‐to‐case basis to seek to ensure that the best interests, needs and wishes of the end user are fully and accurately represented.
Evidence that endogenous inosine and adenosine‐mediated hyperglycaemia during ischaemia–reperfusion through A3adenosine receptors
Authors: Cortés D. , Guinzberg R. , Villalobos‐Molina R. , Piña E.
Published: September 2009

1 The molecular mechanism underlying stress‐induced hyperglycemia has not been comprehensively clarified. Recently, we demonstrated in ischaemia‐reperfusion (I‐R) stress‐subjected liver that inosine and adenosine are mainly responsible for the hyperglycemia observed.

2 We aimed to advance in the knowledge of the role of inosine plus adenosine as mediators of hepatic‐induced hyperglycemia detected after I‐R in lower limbs.

3 Acute ischaemia was conducted in anesthetized rats by occluding downstream abdominal aorta and cava vein; then, reperfusion was allowed. Blood samples from hepatic or abdominal cava veins were taken throughout the experiments to measure glucose, inosine and adenosine. Antagonists to adenosine (AdoR) and adrenergic receptors (AdrR) were administered during ischaemia to analyze their effect on hepatic glucose release.

4 Ischaemia up to 60 min produced minor increase of glucose and nucleosides blood values, but 5 min of ischaemia followed by 2‐ (or 10‐) min reperfusion increased glucose 23%, and those of inosine or adenosine by 100%. After 60 min of ischaemia and 10 min of reperfusion, glycemia rose 2‐fold and blood inosine and adenosine, 3.3‐ and 2.7‐fold, respectively. A linear positive correlation,r2, as high as 0.839 between glucose and either nucleoside blood values was calculated. The hyperglycemia response to I‐R decreased by 0, 25, 33, 45 and 100% after selective inhibition of A2BAdoR, A2AAdoR, a1BAdrR, A1AdoR, and A3AdoR, respectively.

5 Inosine‐adenosine couple through activation of hepatic A3AdoR is the main signal for releasing glucose from liver glycogen and for promoting hyperglycemia following experimental injury of I‐R from lower limbs.