bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Mineralocorticoid Receptor Agonists Induce Mouse Aortic Aneurysm Formation and Rupture in the Presence of High Salt
Authors: Liu Shu , Xie Zhongwen , Daugherty Alan , Cassis Lisa A. , Pearson Kevin J. , Gong Ming C. , Guo Zhenheng
Published: May 2013

Objective—

Elevated plasma aldosterone concentrations in patients have been linked to a spectrum of cardiovascular diseases. Mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists provide additional benefits in patients with heart failure. However, whether aldosterone and the mineralocorticoid receptor are involved in aortic aneurysm is unknown.

Approach and Results—

We report that administration of deoxycorticosterone acetate (DOCA) and salt or aldosterone and salt, but not DOCA or salt alone, to C57BL/6 male mice induced abdominal and thoracic aortic aneurysm formation and rupture in an age-dependent manner. DOCA and salt- or aldosterone and salt-induced aortic aneurysm mimicked human aortic aneurysm with respect to elastin degradation, inflammatory cell infiltration, smooth muscle cell degeneration and apoptosis, and oxidative stress. Aortic aneurysm formation did not correlate with the increase in blood pressure induced by DOCA and salt. Systemic administration of the angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor, enalapril, or angiotensin type 1 receptor antagonist, losartan, did not affect DOCA and salt-induced aortic aneurysm. In contrast, the mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists, spironolactone or eplerenone, significantly attenuated DOCA and salt- or aldosterone and salt-induced aortic aneurysm.

Conclusions—

The current study describes a novel aortic aneurysm animal model induced by mineralocorticoid receptor agonist and high salt, and reveals a previously unrecognized but potentially significant role of aldosterone in the pathogenesis of aortic aneurysm. These findings imply that mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists may be effective in the treatment of some aortic aneurysms.
Basilar Artery Diameter Is an Independent Predictor of Incident Cardiovascular Events
Authors: Tanaka Makiko , Sakaguchi Manabu , Miwa Kaori , Okazaki Shuhei , Furukado Shigetaka , Yagita Yoshiki , Mochizuki Hideki , Kitagawa Kazuo
Published: May 2013

Objective—

Basilar arterial (BA) dolichoectasia is associated with cerebral small-vessel disease and stroke. However, the association between moderate dilation of the BA and cerebral small-vessel disease or subsequent cardiovascular events remains unclear. This study aims to clarify the factors related to BA diameter and to clarify whether the BA diameter is an independent predictor of cardiovascular events.

Approach and Results—

The study subjects comprised 493 outpatients with atherosclerotic risk factors. BA diameter, lacunar infarct, severity of deep white matter hyperintensities, and intracranial steno-occlusive lesions were assessed with MRI and magnetic resonance angiography. Then, we prospectively evaluated the association between BA diameter and cardiovascular events. The BA diameter ranged from 1.1 to 5.2 mm, and only 0.8% of the patients had dolichoectasia. Male sex, the presence of lacunar infarcts, the severity of deep white matter hyperintensities, the fetal-type variation of the circle of Willis, and intracranial steno-occlusive lesions were independently associated with BA diameter. In the mean follow-up of 6.0 years, 91 patients developed cardiovascular events. BA diameter was independently associated with total cardiovascular events after adjusting for age, sex, and conventional risk factors (hazard ratio, 1.55 per 1 mm increase in BA diameter;
P
=0.009).

Conclusions—

Increased BA diameter within the normal range is related to both large-vessel disease and cerebral small-vessel disease, and it could be a new predictor of cardiovascular events.
Impact of Inherited Genetic Variants Associated With Lipid Profile, Hypertension, and Coronary Artery Disease on the Risk of Intracranial and Abdominal Aortic Aneurysms
Authors: van ‘t Hof Femke N.G. , Ruigrok Ynte M. , Baas Annette F. , Kiemeney Lambertus A.L.M. , Vermeulen Sita H. , Uitterlinden André G. , Hofman Albert , Rivadeneira Fernando , Rinkel Gabriël J.E. , de Bakker Paul I.W.
Published: May 2013

Background—

Epidemiological studies show that an unfavorable lipid profile and coronary artery disease (CAD) are risk traits for abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAAs) but not for intracranial aneurysms (IAs), and that hypertension is a main risk trait for IAs but not for AAAs. To evaluate these observations, we investigated single-nucleotide polymorphisms associated with serum lipid levels, hypertension, and CAD and tested their contribution to AAA and IA risk.

Methods and Results—

We defined sets of single-nucleotide polymorphisms previously reported to be associated with serum lipid levels, CAD, and blood pressure. From previously collected genome-wide data, we extracted genotypes for these single-nucleotide polymorphism sets in 709 IA cases and 2692 controls and 807 AAA cases and 1905 controls (all of Dutch origin). We computed genetic scores for each individual by summing the observed number of risk alleles weighted by their previously published effect size. Using logistic regression, we tested the genetic scores for association with IAs and AAAs and found significant associations for genetic scores of total cholesterol (
P
=3.6×10
-6
), low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (
P
=5.7×10
-7
), and CAD (
P
=0.0014) with AAAs and for the blood pressure score with IAs (
P
=0.0030).

Conclusions—

We demonstrate that genetic risk profiles of lipid factors and CAD are associated with AAAs but not with IAs, and the genetic risk profile of blood pressure is associated with IAs but not with AAAs. These findings are consistent with epidemiological observations.
Coronary Heart Disease in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Is Associated With Interferon Regulatory Factor-8 Gene Variants
Authors: Leonard Dag , Svenungsson Elisabet , Sandling Johanna K. , Berggren Olof , Jönsen Andreas , Bengtsson Christine , Wang Chuan , Jensen-Urstad Kerstin , Granstam Sven-Olof , Bengtsson Anders A. , Gustafsson Johanna T. , Gunnarsson Iva , Rantapää-Dahlqvist Solbritt , Nordmark Gunnel , Eloranta Maija-Leena , Syvänen Ann-Christine , Rönnblom Lars
Published: May 2013

Background—

Patients with systemic lupus erythematosus have increased morbidity and mortality in coronary heart disease (CHD). We asked whether there was a genetic influence on CHD in systemic lupus erythematosus.

Methods and Results—

The association between single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and CHD in 2 populations of patients with systemic lupus erythematosus was assessed. Patients were genotyped on a custom 12k Illumina Array. The allele frequencies were compared between patients with (n=66) and without (n=509) CHD. We found 61 SNPs with an association (
P
<0.01) to CHD, with the strongest association for 3 SNPs located in the interferon regulatory factor-8 (
IRF8
) gene. Comparison of the allele frequencies of these 61 SNPs in patients with (n=27) and without (n=212) CHD in the second study population revealed that 2 SNPs, rs925994 and rs10514610 in
IRF8
(linkage disequilibrium,
r
2
=0.84), were associated with CHD in both study populations. Meta-analysis of the SNP rs925994 gave an odds ratio of 3.6 (2.1–6.3),
P
value 1.9×10
–6
. The identified
IRF8
allele remained as a risk factor for CHD after adjustment for traditional CHD risk factors. The
IRF8
risk allele was associated with the presence of carotid plaques (
P
<0.001) and increased intima-media thickness (
P
=0.01). By electrophoretic mobility shift assays, we show weaker binding of protein to the risk allele of the highly linked SNP rs11117415, and by flow cytometry, a reduced frequency of circulating B cells was detected in patients with the
IRF8
risk allele.

Conclusions—

There is a considerable genetic component for CHD in systemic lupus erythematosus, with
IRF8
as a strong susceptibility locus.
Functional Characterization of a Novel Mutation in
NKX2-5
Associated With Congenital Heart Disease and Adult-Onset Cardiomyopathy
Authors: Costa Mauro W. , Guo Guanglan , Wolstein Orit , Vale Molly , Castro Maria L. , Wang Libin , Otway Robyn , Riek Peter , Cochrane Natalie , Furtado Milena , Semsarian Christopher , Weintraub Robert G. , Yeoh Thomas , Hayward Christopher , Keogh Anne , Macdonald Peter , Feneley Michael , Graham Robert M. , Seidman Jonathan G. , Seidman Christine E. , Rosenthal Nadia , Fatkin Diane , Harvey Richard P.
Published: May 2013

Background—

The transcription factor NKX2-5 is crucial for heart development, and mutations in this gene have been implicated in diverse congenital heart diseases and conduction defects in mouse models and humans. Whether NKX2-5 mutations have a role in adult-onset heart disease is unknown.

Methods and Results—

Mutation screening was performed in 220 probands with adult-onset dilated cardiomyopathy. Six
NKX2-5
coding sequence variants were identified, including 3 nonsynonymous variants. A novel heterozygous mutation, I184M, located within the NKX2-5 homeodomain, was identified in 1 family. A subset of family members had congenital heart disease, but there was an unexpectedly high prevalence of dilated cardiomyopathy. Functional analysis of I184M in vitro demonstrated a striking increase in protein expression when transfected into COS-7 cells or HL-1 cardiomyocytes because of reduced degradation by the Ubiquitin-proteasome system. In functional assays, DNA-binding activity of I184M was reduced, resulting in impaired activation of target genes despite increased expression levels of mutant protein.

Conclusions—

Certain NKX2-5 homeodomain mutations show abnormal protein degradation via the Ubiquitin-proteasome system and partially impaired transcriptional activity. We propose that this class of mutation can impair heart development and mature heart function and contribute to
NKX2-5
–related cardiomyopathies with graded severity.
Predictors of Mortality and Outcomes of Therapy in Low-Flow Severe Aortic Stenosis
Authors: Herrmann Howard C. , Pibarot Philippe , Hueter Irene , Gertz Zachary M. , Stewart William J. , Kapadia Samir , Tuzcu E. Murat , Babaliaros Vasilis , Thourani Vinod , Szeto Wilson Y. , Bavaria Joseph E. , Kodali Susheel , Hahn Rebecca T. , Williams Mathew , Miller D. Craig , Douglas Pamela S. , Leon Martin B.
Published: May 2013

Background—

The prognosis and treatment of patients with low-flow (LF) severe aortic stenosis are controversial.

Methods and Results—

The Placement of Aortic Transcatheter Valves (PARTNER) trial randomized patients with severe aortic stenosis to medical management versus transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR; inoperable cohort) and surgical aortic valve replacement versus TAVR (high-risk cohort). Among 971 patients with evaluable echocardiograms (92%), LF (stroke volume index ≤35 mL/m
2
) was observed in 530 (55%); LF and low ejection fraction (<50%) in 225 (23%); and LF, low ejection fraction, and low mean gradient (<40 mm Hg) in 147 (15%). Two-year mortality was significantly higher in patients with LF compared with those with normal stroke volume index (47% versus 34%; hazard ratio, 1.5; 95% confidence interval, 1.25–1.89;
P
=0.006). In the inoperable cohort, patients with LF had higher mortality than those with normal flow, but both groups improved with TAVR (46% versus 76% with LF and 38% versus 53% with normal flow;
P
<0.001). In the high-risk cohort, there was no difference between TAVR and surgical aortic valve replacement. In patients with paradoxical LF and low gradient (preserved ejection fraction), TAVR reduced 1-year mortality from 66% to 35% (hazard ratio, 0.38;
P
=0.02). LF was an independent predictor of mortality in all patient cohorts (hazard ratio, ≈1.5), whereas ejection fraction and gradient were not.

Conclusions—

LF is common in severe aortic stenosis and independently predicts mortality. Survival is improved with TAVR compared with medical management and similar with TAVR and surgical aortic valve replacement. A measure of flow (stroke volume index) should be included in the evaluation and therapeutic decision making of patients with severe aortic stenosis.

Clinical Trial Registration—

URL:
http://www.clinicaltrial.gov
. Unique identifier: NCT0053089.4.
White Goods in Italy during a Golden Age (1948–1973)
Authors: Paris Ivan
Published: May 2013

The rise in popularity of such domestic appliances as “white goods” is a characteristic element of consumption patterns during the golden age of the Western economy. Data gleaned from heretofore untapped sources reveal the causes of white-goods' different rates of diffusion in Italy during that period. Besides the usual strictly economic circumstances, social, cultural, and technological factors conspired to slow the progress of white-goods consumption in certain geographical areas and among the different social classes, often when affordability was not the decisive issue. The study of how white goods spread brings new information to the understanding of how Italy completed the transition from an agricultural country to an industrial power.
Neurobiological Systems for Lexical Representation and Analysis in English
Authors: Bozic Mirjana , Tyler Lorraine K. , Su Li , Wingfield Cai , Marslen-Wilson William D.
Published: May 2013

Current research suggests that language comprehension engages two joint but functionally distinguishable neurobiological processes: a distributed bilateral system, which supports general perceptual and interpretative processes underpinning speech comprehension, and a left hemisphere (LH) frontotemporal system, selectively tuned to the processing of combinatorial grammatical sequences, such as regularly inflected verbs in English [Marslen-Wilson, W. D., & Tyler, L. K. Morphology, language and the brain: The decompositional substrate for language comprehension. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society: Biological Sciences, 362, 823–836, 2007]. Here we investigated how English derivationally complex words engage these systems, asking whether they selectively activate the LH system in the same way as inflections or whether they primarily engage the bilateral system that support nondecompositional access. In an fMRI study, we saw no evidence for selective activation of the LH frontotemporal system, even for highly transparent forms like bravely. Instead, a combination of univariate and multivariate analyses revealed the engagement of a distributed bilateral system, modulated by factors of perceptual complexity and semantic transparency. We discuss the implications for theories of the processing and representation of English derivational morphology and highlight the importance of neurobiological constraints in understanding these processes.
Analysis of the Stabilized Supralinear Network
Authors: Ahmadian Yashar , Rubin Daniel B. , Miller Kenneth D.
Published: May 2013

We study a rate-model neural network composed of excitatory and inhibitory neurons in which neuronal input-output functions are power laws with a power greater than 1, as observed in primary visual cortex. This supralinear input-output function leads to supralinear summation of network responses to multiple inputs for weak inputs. We show that for stronger inputs, which would drive the excitatory subnetwork to instability, the network will dynamically stabilize provided feedback inhibition is sufficiently strong. For a wide range of network and stimulus parameters, this dynamic stabilization yields a transition from supralinear to sublinear summation of network responses to multiple inputs. We compare this to the dynamic stabilization in the balanced network, which yields only linear behavior. We more exhaustively analyze the two-dimensional case of one excitatory and one inhibitory population. We show that in this case, dynamic stabilization will occur whenever the determinant of the weight matrix is positive and the inhibitory time constant is sufficiently small, and analyze the conditions for supersaturation, or decrease of firing rates with increasing stimulus contrast (which represents increasing input firing rates). In work to be presented elsewhere, we have found that this transition from supralinear to sublinear summation can explain a wide variety of nonlinearities in cerebral cortical processing.
Spike-Based Probabilistic Inference in Analog Graphical Models Using Interspike-Interval Coding
Authors: Steimer Andreas , Douglas Rodney
Published: May 2013

Temporal spike codes play a crucial role in neural information processing. In particular, there is strong experimental evidence that interspike intervals (ISIs) are used for stimulus representation in neural systems. However, very few algorithmic principles exploit the benefits of such temporal codes for probabilistic inference of stimuli or decisions. Here, we describe and rigorously prove the functional properties of a spike-based processor that uses ISI distributions to perform probabilistic inference. The abstract processor architecture serves as a building block for more concrete, neural implementations of the belief-propagation (BP) algorithm in arbitrary graphical models (e.g., Bayesian networks and factor graphs). The distributed nature of graphical models matches well with the architectural and functional constraints imposed by biology. In our model, ISI distributions represent the BP messages exchanged between factor nodes, leading to the interpretation of a single spike as a random sample that follows such a distribution. We verify the abstract processor model by numerical simulation in full graphs, and demonstrate that it can be applied even in the presence of analog variables. As a particular example, we also show results of a concrete, neural implementation of the processor, although in principle our approach is more flexible and allows different neurobiological interpretations. Furthermore, electrophysiological data from area LIP during behavioral experiments are assessed in light of ISI coding, leading to concrete testable, quantitative predictions and a more accurate description of these data compared to hitherto existing models.
A Bio-Inspired, Computational Model Suggests Velocity Gradients of Optic Flow Locally Encode Ordinal Depth at Surface Borders and Globally They Encode Self-Motion
Authors: Raudies Florian , Ringbauer Stefan , Neumann Heiko
Published: May 2013

Visual navigation requires the estimation of self-motion as well as the segmentation of objects from the background. We suggest a definition of local velocity gradients to compute types of self-motion, segment objects, and compute local properties of optical flow fields, such as divergence, curl, and shear. Such velocity gradients are computed as velocity differences measured locally tangent and normal to the direction of flow. Then these differences are rotated according to the local direction of flow to achieve independence of that direction. We propose a bio-inspired model for the computation of these velocity gradients for video sequences. Simulation results show that local gradients encode ordinal surface depth, assuming self-motion in a rigid scene or object motions in a nonrigid scene. For translational self-motion velocity, gradients can be used to distinguish between static and moving objects. The information about ordinal surface depth and self-motion can help steering control for visual navigation.
The Origin and Meaning of the Crimson Thread in the Mishnaic Scapegoat Ritual in Light of an Ancient Syro-Anatolian Custom
Authors: Ayali-Darshan Noga
Published: May 2013

Abstract

The custom of tying a crimson thread to the head of an animal as part of the High Priest’s official rites on the Day of Atonement and the purification rite for the leper is not specified in the Pentateuch but is known solely from mishnaic sources. The Second Temple practice is also attested by two independent early Christian sources that evidently drew on a common source that was not the Mishna. The present article searches for the origin of this tradition and its original purpose and setting through the ancient Syro-Anatolian apotropaic rites.
“By the Favour of Ahuramazda I Am King”: On the Promulgation of a Persian Propaganda Text among Babylonians and Judaeans
Authors: Granerød Gard
Published: May 2013

Abstract

The aim of this article is to explore how the Achaemenid kings disseminated their official ideology among their subjects—including Judaeans outside of and within the Persian province of Yehud—in the Achaemenid period. The main text that the article focuses on is King Darius I’s Bisitun inscription (DB) and the remains of it that have been found in Babylon (DB Bab) and within the context of the Judaean community on the Elephantine Island in Upper Egypt (DB Aram). The author discusses the contents of the Persian propaganda text and how it was disseminated among and possibly received by the Judaeans.
Russian Spiritual Christianity and the Closing of the Black-Earth Frontier: The First Heresy Trials of the Dukhobors in the 1760s
Authors: Eugene Clay J.
Published: May 2013

Russia’s expansion to the south in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries encouraged the development of new, dynamic religious movements, including Spiritual Christianity. Represented today by the two important Russian religious traditions of the Dukhobors and the Molokans, Spiritual Christianity first appears in archival documents from the 1760s in the black-earth provinces of Voronezh and Tambov. Holding to a radical eschatology that predicted the imminent return of Christ, these original Spiritual Christians rejected the priests, sacraments, and icons of the Orthodox Church, and instead introduced the practice of venerating one another, for each person was created in the true image of God. The remoteness of Tambov and Voronezh initially made the provinces more hospitable to different religious ideas and practices in the seventeenth century. But as the frontier closed in the black-earth region, new institutions of social control, such as the Tambov diocesan consistory, began policing religious and cultural practices in Tambov and Voronezh. At the same time, the closing of the frontier also led to the decline of the smallholders, who lost their service rank and were increasingly integrated into the state peasantry. This unhappy social group comprised a large percentage of the Spiritual Christians, who so decisively rejected the state church. After Russia’s victory over the Ottoman Empire in the Russo-Turkish War, many Spiritual Christians moved to the new frontiers of New Russia.
Mircea Eliade’s Understanding of Religion and Eastern Christian Thought
Authors: Rennie Bryan
Published: May 2013

This article introduces Mircea Eliade. His biography and his understanding of religion are outlined and the possibly formative influence of Eastern Orthodoxy is considered, as are recent publications on the issue. His early essays present Orthodoxy as a mystical religion in which, without some experience of the sacred, profane existence is seen as meaningless and he later identified this same basic schema in all religion. Orthodox theologians Vladimir Lossky and Dumitru Stăniloae are inspected for similarities to Eliade. Ten consonances between Eliade’s thought and Orthodox theology are considered. However, dissonances are also noted, and for every potential Orthodox source of Eliade’s theories there is another equally credible source, causing a controversy over the formative influences of his Romanian youth as opposed to his later Indian experience. It is suggested that Eliade gained insight from Orthodoxy, but that this was brought to consciousness by his sojourn in India. Theology in the form of categorical propositions is present in the Eastern Church but exists alongside other equally important expressions in the visual, dramatic, and narrative arts. The Eastern Church as a multi-media performative theater prepared Eliade to apprehend religion as inducing perceptions of the “really real”—creative poesis exercising a practical influence on its audience’s cognitions. Orthodoxy is a tradition in which categorical propositions had never come to dominate the expression of the sacred, and Eliade wrote from a vantage point on the border, not only between East and West, but also between the scholar and the artist.
More women, lower pay? Occupational sex composition, wages and wage growth
Authors: Magnusson Charlotta
Published: May 2013

Research consistently shows that the share of females in an occupation is negatively associated with wages, and this has frequently been interpreted as an expression of devaluation of women’s work. However, few studies have described the detailed shape of the relationship between wages and occupational sex composition. Using Swedish register data from 2001 and 2003, I advance our understanding of the devaluation process by studying the functional form more closely in both the cross-section and panel. The analyses reveal a non-linear relationship between sex composition and wages, where the highest wages for both men and women are earned in sex-integrated occupations. Second, studying the wage payoffs of people moving across occupations with varying sex compositions shows that both sexes gain by moving to relatively sex-integrated occupations (about 25 to 54% female).
Ketamine as a new treatment for depression: A review of its efficacy and adverse effects
Authors: Katalinic Natalie , Lai Rosalyn , Somogyi Andrew , Mitchell Philip B , Glue Paul , Loo Colleen K
Published: May 2013

Objective:

Narrative review of the literature on the efficacy and safety of subanaesthetic doses of ketamine for the treatment of depression.

Method:

Medline and PubMed databases were searched up to October 2012 using appropriate keywords.

Results:

The studies consistently report substantial efficacy with high response and remission rates from 4 to 72 hours (averages 77% and 43%, respectively) from single doses, though not all patients respond to ketamine. Early relapse is common. While the usual procedure involves the administration of intravenous ketamine at a dose of 0.5 mg/kg over 40 minutes, some preliminary evidence suggests other dosing regimens and routes of administration may be useful or even better. Repeated doses and maintenance pharmacological treatments have been investigated in order to prolong the antidepressant effects, with only modest success.

Conclusions:

Current research on the antidepressant effects of ketamine has consistently shown rapid and substantial improvement in mood in the majority of patients. However, these effects have often been found to be short-lived. Future research should focus on identifying predictors of response (e.g. clinical, genetic, pharmacokinetic, environmental), examining different dosing regimens and routes of administration, and strategies to maintain the antidepressant response.
(Re)Considerations of Ignorance and Resistance in Teacher Education
Authors: Garrett H. James , Segall Avner
Published: May 2013

This article questions the status of two recurring concepts in teacher preparation: resistance and ignorance. Both of these terms have significant presence within the teacher education literature. Because both of these terms often occur in relation to a particular topic, that of race and multicultural education, we also utilize race as the discourse that frames our consideration of these two important issues. To reframe and reorient our attention to the processes of ignorance and resistance, we turn to psychoanalytic considerations of those terms and consider what such a turn can offer teacher educators as they engage teacher candidates with issues of race.
The Deconstructive Approach to Understanding Community College Students’ Pathways and Outcomes
Authors: Bahr Peter Riley
Published: May 2013

Two related themes currently dominate discourse on open-access colleges, particularly community colleges: increasing college-going and degree attainment and improving the performance of postsecondary institutions with respect to producing graduates. Largely missing from this discourse, however, is cogency concerning the innumerable ways in which students use open-access institutions, and the ways in which students’ patterns of use interact with institutional policies and practices to influence the outcomes that they experience. Absent a thorough understanding of students’ pathways through the institution, the development of interventions and the adjustment of institutional policies and practices to improve students’ outcomes will be more a product of guesswork than of sound empirical reasoning. Unfortunately, traditionally favored analytical approaches are unlikely to rectify this large and troubling gap in our understanding. In this essay, I present the case for a different approach—a deconstructive approach—to illuminate students’ pathways and the relationships between these pathways and outcomes.
Teaching Motivational Interviewing to Undergraduates
Authors: Madson Michael B. , Schumacher Julie A. , Noble Jeremy J. , Bonnell Melissa A.
Published: May 2013

Many undergraduate psychology students assume positions as mental health paraprofessionals during or after college. The present study was a quasi-experimental evaluation of the effectiveness of teaching motivational interviewing (MI), a counseling approach that applies to many paraprofessional occupations. Results from 83 undergraduates indicated that both intensive and extended MI courses resulted in greater increases in MI knowledge, confidence, and skill than a brief MI lecture but did not differ from one another. Post-course reflective listening, summarizing sills, and ability to develop discrepancy for these two groups neared or exceeded beginning proficiency thresholds. Findings of this study suggest that even without outside practicum experience, students can achieve meaningful improvements in MI skill through undergraduate courses, which may enhance their performance as paraprofessionals.
The Flipped Class
Authors: Wilson Stephanie Gray
Published: May 2013

Undergraduate statistics courses are perceived as challenging by both students and instructors. Students’ attitudes, motivation, math anxiety, and preparedness can negatively impact the student and instructor experience and have the potential to negatively impact student learning. This article describes an attempt to address some of these challenges through structural and procedural changes to an undergraduate statistics course that is required for social science majors. The traditional lecture/homework structure of the course was “flipped” so that the majority of basic knowledge acquisition moved out of the classroom, making room for interactive activities during class time. The described changes had a positive impact on students’ attitudes toward the class and instructor as well as on students’ performance in the class.
Illness Online: Self-reported Data and Questions of Trust in Medical and Social Research
Authors: Wyatt Sally , Harris Anna , Adams Samantha , Kelly Susan E
Published: May 2013

Self-reported data are regarded by medical researchers as invalid and less reliable than data produced by experts in clinical settings, yet individuals can increasingly contribute personal information to medical research through a variety of online platforms. In this article we examine this ‘participatory turn’ in healthcare research, which claims to challenge conventional delineations of what is valid and reliable for medical practice, by using aggregated self-reported experiences from patients and ‘pre-patients’ via the internet. We focus on 23andMe, a genetic testing company that collects genetic material and self-reported information about disease from its customers. Integral to this research method are relations of trust embedded in the information exchange: trust in customers’ data; trust between researchers/company and research subjects; trust in genetics; trust in the machine. We examine the performative dimension of these trust relations, drawing on Shapin and Schaffer’s (1985) discussion of how material, literary and social technologies are used in research in order to establish trust.

Our scepticism of the company’s motives for building trust with the self-reporting consumer forces us to consider our own motives. How does the use of customer data for research purposes by 23andMe differ from the research practices of social scientists, especially those who also study digital traces? By interrogating the use of self-reported data in the genetic testing context, we examine our ethical responsibilities in studying the digital selves of others using internet methods. How researchers trust data, how participants trust researchers, and how technologies are trusted are all important considerations in studying the social life of digital data.
Reacting to Timbuktu
Authors: Dick Archie L
Published: May 2013

Comments posted on the website of the Library and Information Association of South Africa regarding the destruction of a library in Timbuktu are analyzed to reveal how we talk about the preservation and destruction of libraries, books, and manuscripts.
Advancing the Empirical Study of Performance Management
Authors: Moynihan Donald P.
Published: May 2013

Interest in performance management has never been higher. But what does actual research on this topic tell us about the effects of performance management, reform efforts, and governance more generally? Historically, the answer often seemed to be that such reforms did not work very well. This article focuses on a recent chapter in the history of performance management at the U.S. federal government, the Program Assessment Rating Tool (PART). PART was created by the George W. Bush administration, and ended by the Obama White House. PART, like many management initiatives, came and went. What distinguishes it, however, is the quality and breadth of the research it prompted—research that has increased our knowledge of performance management and reform implementation as well as a whole host of fundamental governance phenomena such as political ideology, administrative burden, performance information use, leadership commitment, and goal ambiguity.
Implementing a Revenue Authority Model of Tax Administration in Ghana
Authors: Ohemeng Frank L. K. , Owusu Francis Y.
Published: May 2013

The desire to increase domestic revenue mobilization has made tax reform a priority for governments in many developing countries. Addressing the tax problem, however, is often a complex process that involves reforming the tax system, as well as setting up effective administrative structures to administer that system. Many see the revenue authority (RA) model as the solution to these problems. Developing an RA model in Ghana began in the mid 1980s; it was not, however, fully operational and integrated until 2010. Using social learning theory, we argue that Ghana’s successful readoption of the RA model can be attributed to the lessons learned both in its own first attempts and from the successful tax reform experiences of other countries.
Optimal scan timing of hepatic arterial-phase imaging of hypervascular hepatocellular carcinoma determined by multiphasic fast CT imaging technique
Authors: Kagawa Yuki , Okada Masahiro , Yagyu Yukinobu , Kumano Seishi , Kanematsu Masayuki , Kudo Masayuki , Murakami Takamichi
Published: May 2013

Background

A new multiphasic fast imaging technique, known as volume helical shuttle technique, is a breakthrough for liver imaging that offers new clinical opportunities in dynamic blood flow studies. This technique enables virtually real-time hemodynamics assessment by shuttling the patient cradle back and forth during serial scanning.

Purpose

To determine optimal scan timing of hepatic arterial-phase imaging for detecting hypervascular hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) with maximum tumor-to-liver contrast by volume helical shuttle technique.

Material and Methods

One hundred and one hypervascular HCCs in 50 patients were prospectively studied by 64-channel multidetector-row computed tomography (MDCT) with multiphasic fast imaging technique. Contrast medium containing 600 mg iodine per kg body weight was intravenously injected for 30 s. Six seconds after the contrast arrival in the abdominal aorta detected with bolus tracking, serial 12-phase imaging of the whole liver was performed during 24-s breath-holding with multiphasic fast imaging technique during arterial phase. By placing regions of interest in the abdominal aorta, portal vein, liver parenchyma, and hypervascular HCCs on the multiphase images, time-density curves of anatomical regions and HCCs were composed. Timing of maximum tumor-to-liver contrast after the contrast arrival in the abdominal aorta was determined.

Results

For the detection of hypervascular HCC at arterial phase, mean time and value of maximum tumor-to-liver contrast after the contrast arrival were 21 s and 38.0 HU, respectively.

Conclusion

Optimal delay time for the hepatic arterial-phase imaging maximizing the contrast enhancement of hypervascular HCCs was 21 s after arrival of contrast medium in the abdominal aorta.
Analysis of the levonorgestrel-releasing intrauterine system in women with endometriosis
Authors: Lan Shen , Ling Liu , Jianhong Zhao , Xijing Jiang , Lihui Wang
Published: May 2013

Objectives

To compare the efficacy, safety and other clinical benefits of the levonorgestrel-releasing intrauterine system (LNG-IUS) and gonadotropin-releasing hormone analogues (GnRH-a) in women with endometriosis.

Methods

A systematic search was carried out using the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, PubMed, MEDLINE™ and EMBASE databases for all randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that evaluated the use of the LNG-IUS and GnRH-a in premenopausal women with endometriosis.

Results

Five RCTs studies were identified. A meta-analysis showed that, in women with endometriosis, both the LNG-IUS and GnRH-a reduced pain visual analogue scale scores (weighted mean difference [WMD] 0.03 [95% confidence interval [CI] −0.53, 0.59]), serum levels of CA125 (WMD −12.29 [95% CI −29.90, 3.32]), and American Society of Reproductive Medicine staging scores (WMD 1.10 [95% CI −27.98, 30.18]). Psychological and general wellbeing index scores were increased (WMD 1.50 [95% CI −6.19, 9.19]). Levels of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol were also significantly reduced in patients treated with the LNG-IUS (WMD 39.30 [95% CI 6.74, 71.86]).

Conclusions

The LNG-IUS had clinical efficacy equivalent to that of GnRH-a but may have some clinical advantages over GnRH-a in the treatment of endometriosis-associated symptoms. These observations will require further verification in additional studies employing larger patient populations.
The effect of d0 reference value on a neutron diffraction study of residual stress in a γ/γ′ nickel-base superalloy
Authors: Rolph James , Iqbal Naveed , Hoffman Michael , Evans Alex , Hardy Mark C , Glavicic Michael G , Preuss Michael
Published: May 2013

A nickel-base superalloy sub-scale disc has been studied using neutron diffraction to characterise the residual stress distribution following heat treatment. Strain has been calculated using measured neutron diffraction d-spacings in combination with d0 reference values obtained using three distinct methods, namely, measurement of a stress-free cube, a sin2 ψ characterisation (used independently and as a correction factor), and an axial stress balance. In addition, data obtained using the contour method have been included since it allows comparison of diffraction-based data to a technique that does not require a d0 value. In terms of residual stress, agreement between all d0 measurement techniques and the contour method was high, with the exception being those made using the sin2 ψ technique. An offset of approximately 350 MPa was observed in these data, and a possible systematic error was ascribed to a unique diffraction characteristic of a γ/ γ′ nickel-base superalloy. A global d0 value obtained using a stress balance or stress-free cube was found to be reliable throughout the sample bulk in cases where thermal processing was carried out at a slow rate, such as ageing. However, d0 differences equivalent to 400 µε were observed between central and surface regions when a global d0 was applied to a water-quenched sample.
Bupivacaine Induces Short-Term Alterations and Impairment in Rat Tendons
Authors: Lehner Christine , Gehwolf Renate , Hirzinger Corinna , Stephan Daniel , Augat Peter , Tauber Mark , Resch Herbert , Bauer Hans-Christian , Bauer Hannelore , Tempfer Herbert
Published: May 2013

Background:

Toxicity of the local anesthetic bupivacaine (BV) has been a matter of debate across medical fields. Numerous in vitro studies demonstrate considerable toxicity of BV on various cell types.

Purpose:

This study addresses the question of how tendon tissue responds to BV in vivo and in vitro.

Study Design:

Controlled laboratory study.

Methods:

In vitro studies on cultured rat Achilles tendon–derived cells were performed with cell viability assays and cleaved caspase 3 immunocytochemistry. Quantitative reverse transcription–polymerase chain reaction, Western blotting, gelatin zymography, and a biomechanical testing routine were applied on rat Achilles tendons at 1 and 4 weeks after a single unilateral peritendinous injection of 0.5% BV. The BV-mediated cell death in tendons was estimated with terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick end labeling (TUNEL) staining and immunohistochemical detection of cleaved caspase 3.

Results:

Treatment of rat tendon–derived cells with 0.5% bupivacaine for 10 minutes had detrimental effects on cell viability, which can be reduced by N-acetyl-L-cysteine or reduction of extracellular calcium. In vivo, single peritendinous injections of BV caused apoptosis in endotenon cells and an increase of pro–matrix metalloproteinase-9 after 6 hours. The collagen ratio shifted toward collagen type III after 6 hours and 2 days; scleraxis messenger RNA (mRNA) expression was reduced by 87%. Maximum tensile load was reduced by 17.6% after 1 week.

Conclusion:

Bupivacaine exerts a severe, reactive oxygen species–mediated effect on tendon cell viability in vitro in a time- and dose-dependent manner, depending on extracellular calcium concentration. Culture conditions need to be taken into account when in vitro data are translated into the in vivo situation. In vivo, administration of BV elicits a marked but temporary functional damage.

Clinical Relevance:

Local anesthetics cause short-term alterations in rat tendons, which, if occurring in humans to a similar extent, may be relevant regarding decreased biomechanical properties and increased vulnerability to tendon overload or injury.
The Historical Roots of Tax Increment Financing, or How Real Estate Consultants Kept Urban Renewal Alive
Authors: Weber Rachel , O’Neill-Kohl Sara
Published: May 2013

Scholars often explain the rise of tax increment financing (TIF) as a natural progression toward localized revenue sources born of devolution, increased interlocal competition for business investment, and fiscal constraint. Although such factors provide important context, our genealogy of TIF in the state of Illinois reveals that critical actors—private real estate consultants—actively promoted the adoption and subsequent promotion of TIF as an economic development tool. Through interviews and a review of primary documents, we uncover a network of private consultants who had prior experience shepherding federal urban renewal dollars to cities and who later mobilized concerns around the 1970s deindustrialization crisis to steer the use of property tax incentives from job creation/retention to real estate development.
Gardening for the Mental Well-Being of Homeless Women
Authors: Grabbe Linda , Ball Janell , Goldstein Allison
Published: May 2013

Purpose: To explore the perceptions of homeless women regarding their experience in a shelter-based garden project to promote mental wellness. Participants planted and tended the vegetable garden and prepared and ate the fruits of their labor. Design: A qualitative descriptive design with a conventional content analysis of narrative data. Method: Data were gathered in semistructured interviews. Participants were homeless daytime shelter guests who had participated in at least eight gardening sessions over 4 weeks. The project was started in the fall of 2010 and the interviews were conducted over 2 months in the summer of 2011. Findings: Two polarized themes were identified in the narratives, clustering around negative and positive thoughts. The “dark” theme centered on marginalization and the oppressiveness of shelter life. The “light” theme centered on stress relief, feeling socially included, and personal change. Conclusion: The gardening experience interrupted the participants’ negative ruminations, offering stress relief and elements of social inclusion and self-actualization. Gardening is an inexpensive and positive intervention for a population with a high incidence of mental illness and distress.
Recent developments in International Organization for Standardization geometrical product specification standards and strategic plans for future work
Authors: Nielsen Henrik S
Published: May 2013

Over the last 2 years, ISO TC 213, the committee that publishes the ISO geometrical product specification (GPS) standards, has published about 35 standards, more than double the number of the preceding 4 years. This rapid development has brought many significant changes to the ISO-GPS system. The author is the chairman of that committee and gives an overview of the more important ones in this article. The work is now at a crossroad, where items that have been on the TC 213 work program for many years have been completed. This has allowed TC 213 to start new strategic initiatives that will guide the development of ISO-GPS standards over the next 8–10 years. This article will outline the two stages of the strategic plan, the changes to the ISO-GPS standards complex that is envisioned, and how it will impact the users of these standards; whether they are part of the specification community or the verification community.
Investigation on the influence of adhesive properties on the formability of adhesive-bonded steel sheets
Authors: Satheeshkumar V , Narayanan R Ganesh
Published: May 2013

The main aim of this research work is to study the influence of adhesive properties on the formability of adhesive-bonded steel sheets. The adhesive properties were varied by having two different adhesives, epoxy based and acrylic based, and by changing the hardener to resin ratios. The deep drawing quality cold rolled steel and stainless steel (SS 316L) sheets were used as base materials. The epoxy and acrylic adhesives show improved elongation with increase in hardener to resin ratio. This is because of changeover of resin-rich formulation to hardener-rich formulation, making the sample more ductile. The adhesive-bonded blanks show improved elongation as compared to double sheets, which is due to the presence of adhesive delaying the onset of necking. With increase in hardener to resin ratio of both the adhesives, the elongation of individual sheets has improved. This is due to the improvement in elongation of adhesives with increase in hardener to resin ratio. The strain hardening exponent ( n) of adhesive-bonded blanks has improved with increase in hardener to resin ratio in all the regions of deformation. The limit strain of deep drawing quality and SS 316L sheets constituting adhesive-bonded blanks shows improvement with increase in hardener to resin ratio. The adhesive-bonded blanks with interface bonding exhibit better limit strain as compared to the case without interface bonding.