bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Duration Discrimination in Listeners With Cochlear Hearing Loss
Authors: Grose John H. , Hall Joseph W. , Buss Emily
Published: April 2006

This study examined the effects of cochlear hearing loss on the ability to discriminate increments in the duration of a stimulus under conditions where the frequency and/or amplitude of the stimulus change dynamically. Three stimulus types were used: pure tones, frequency-modulated tones, and narrow bands of noise. The carrier/center frequency of each 250-ms stimulus either remained constant at 1035 Hz or varied randomly from presentation to presentation across the frequency range 432–2804 Hz. Two groups of listeners participated: 9 with bilateral cochlear hearing loss and 7 with normal hearing sensitivity. The results showed no differences in performance between the 2 groups. However, both groups showed poorer duration discrimination for the conditions where the carrier/center frequency changed randomly than for the conditions where the carrier/center frequency remained constant. In addition, performance was poorer for the narrowband noise stimuli than for the tonal stimuli. This pattern of results suggests that across-frequency temporal judgments are more difficult than isofrequency temporal judgments, but that cochlear hearing loss does not exacerbate this difficulty per se.
Inference Generation During Text Comprehension by Adults With Right Hemisphere Brain Damage
Authors: Tompkins Connie A. , Fassbinder Wiltrud , Blake Margaret Lehman , Baumgaertner Annette , Jayaram Nandini
Published: April 2006

Evidence conflicts as to whether adults with right hemisphere brain damage (RHD) generate inferences during text comprehension. M. Beeman (1993) reported that adults with RHD fail to activate the lexical-semantic bases of routine bridging inferences, which are necessary for comprehension. But other evidence indicates that adults with RHD activate multiple interpretations in various comprehension domains. In addition, the activation of contextually inappropriate interpretations is prolonged for many adults with RHD and predicts poor discourse comprehension. This study contrasted Beeman's activation failure hypothesis with the prediction that adults with RHD would generate multiple interpretations in text comprehension. The relation between activation of textually incompatible inferences and discourse comprehension was also investigated for this group. Thirty-seven adults with RHD and 34 without brain damage listened to brief narratives that required a bridging inference (BI) to integrate the text-final sentence. This final sentence, when isolated from its text, was strongly biased toward a contextually incompatible alternate interpretation (AI). Auditory phoneme strings were presented for lexical decision immediately after each text's initial and final sentence. Adults with RHD were both faster and more accurate in making lexical decisions to BI-related target words in final-sentence position than in initial-sentence position. Thus, contrary to the activation failure hypothesis, adults with RHD generated the lexical-semantic foundations of BIs where they were required by the text. AI generation was evident in accuracy data as well, but not in response time data. This result is partially consistent with the multiple activation view. Finally, greater activation for contextually incompatible interpretations was associated with poorer discourse comprehension performance by adults with RHD.
Speech Motor Development During Acquisition of the Voicing Contrast
Authors: Grigos Maria I. , Saxman John H. , Gordon Andrew M.
Published: April 2006

Lip and jaw movements were studied longitudinally in 19-month-old children as theyacquired the voicing contrast for /p/ and /b/. A movement tracking system obtainedlip and jaw kinematics as participants produced the target utterances /papa/ and/baba/. Laryngeal adjustments were also tracked through acoustically recordedvoice onset time (VOT) of the consonants. Across this period of developmentalphonological change, the children began to produce VOTs in 2 distinct categoriesfor voiced and voiceless plosives. Specific kinematic differences were observedduring oral opening and closing and between spatial and temporal parametersof movement. The development of the voicing contrast was most closely associatedwith changes in jaw kinematics for oral opening in comparison to that of the lip.Conversely, movements into oral closing were not accompanied by significantincreases in jaw, upper lip, or lower lip displacement or velocity, although a decreasein jaw movement variability was found. There was no evidence of phoneme-specificmovement differences between /p/ and /b/ in the children or in the adults studied.Spatial coupling between the jaw and upper lip changed significantly across sessions,whereas changes in temporal coupling were not observed. Findings indicate thatoral opening and closing have different task requirements and that children modifytheir articulatory movements to meet the demands of each task. Overall, the findingsillustrate how orofacial movements and laryngeal function change in parallel duringlinguistic development.
Cooperating or fighting with decoherence in the optimal control of quantum dynamics
Authors: Shuang Feng , Rabitz Herschel
Published: April 2006

This paper explores the use of laboratory closed-loop learning control to either fight or cooperate with decoherence in the optimal manipulation of quantum dynamics. Simulations of the processes are performed in a Lindblad formulation on multilevel quantum systems strongly interacting with the environment without spontaneous emission. When seeking a high control yield it is possible to find fields that successfully fight with decoherence while attaining a good quality yield. When seeking modest control yields, fields can be found which are optimally shaped to cooperate with decoherence and thereby drive the dynamics more efficiently. In the latter regime when the control field and the decoherence strength are both weak, a theoretical foundation is established to describe how they cooperate with each other. In general, the results indicate that the population transfer objectives can be effectively met by appropriately either fighting or cooperating with decoherence.
Structural, electronic, and chemical properties of multiply iodized aluminum clusters
Authors: Jones N. O. , Ulises Reveles J. , Khanna S. N. , Bergeron D. E. , Roach P. J. , Castleman A. W.
Published: April 2006

The electronic structure, stability, and reactivity of iodized aluminum clusters, which have been investigated via reactivity studies, are examined by first-principles gradient corrected density functional calculations. The observed behavior of Al13Ix− and Al14Ix− clusters is shown to indicate that for x⩽8, they consist of compact Al13− and Al14++ cores, respectively, demonstrating that they behave as halogen- or alkaline earthlike superatoms. For x>8, the Al cores assume a cagelike structure associated with the charging of the cores. The observed mass spectra of the reacted clusters reveal that Al13Ix− species are more stable for even x while Al14Ix− exhibit enhanced stability for odd x(x⩾3). It is shown that these observations are linked to the formation and filling of “active sites,” demonstrating a novel chemistry of superatoms.
Identification of a structural motif crucial for infectivity of hepatitis B viruses
Authors: Stoeckl Lars , Funk Anneke , Kopitzki Ariane , Brandenburg Boerries , Oess Stefanie , Will Hans , Sirma Hüseyin , Hildt Eberhard
Published: April 2006

Infectious entry of hepatitis B viruses (HBV) has nonconventional facets. Here we analyzed whether a cell-permeable peptide [translocation motif (TLM)] identified within the surface protein of human HBV is a general feature of all hepadnaviruses and plays a role in the viral life cycle. Surface proteins of all hepadnaviruses contain conserved functional TLMs. Genetic inactivation of the duck HBV TLMs does not interfere with viral morphogenesis; however, these mutants are noninfectious. TLM mutant viruses bind to cells and are taken up into the endosomal compartment, but they cannot escape from endosomes. Processing of surface protein by endosomal proteases induces their exposure on the virus surface. This unmasking of TLMs mediates translocation of viral particles across the endosomal membrane into the cytosol, a prerequisite for productive infection. The ability of unmasked TLMs to translocate processed HBV particles across cellular membranes was shown by confocal immunofluorescence microscopy and by infection of nonpermissive cell lines with HBV processed
in vitro
with endosomal lysate. Based on these data, we propose an infectious entry mechanism unique for hepadnaviruses that involves virus internalization by receptor-mediated endocytosis followed by processing of surface protein in endosomes. This processing activates the function of TLMs that are essential for viral particle translocation through the endosomal membrane into the cytosol and productive infection.
In vivo hydrolysis of S-adenosylmethionine induces the met regulon of Escherichia coli
Authors: LaMonte Bernadette L. , Hughes Jeffrey A.
Published: April 2006

Regulation of methionine biosynthesis inEscherichia coliinvolves a complex of the MetJ aporepressor protein andS-adenosylmethionine (SAM) repressing expression of most genes in themetregulon. To test the role of SAM in the regulation ofmetgenes directly, SAM pools were depleted by thein vivoexpression of the cloned plasmid vector-based coliphage T3 SAM hydrolase (SAMase) gene. Cultures within vivoSAMase activity were assayed for expression of themetA,B,C,E,F,H,J,KandRgenes in cells grown in methionine-rich complete media as well as in defined media with and withoutl-methionine.In vivoSAMase activity dramatically induced expression between 11- and nearly 1000-fold depending on the gene assayed for all butmetJandmetH, and these genes were induced over twofold.metJ : : Tn5(aporepressor defective) andmetK : : Tn5(SAM synthetase impaired; produces <5 % of wild-type SAM) strains containingin vivoSAMase activity produced even highermetgene activity than that seen in comparably prepared cells with wild-type genes for all butmetJin a MetJ-deficient background. The SAMase-mediated hyperinduction ofmetHin wild-type cells and of themetgenes assayed inmetJ : : Tn5andmetK : : Tn5cells provokes questions about how other elements such as the MetR activator protein or factors beyond themetregulon itself might be involved in the regulation of genes responsible for methionine biosynthesis.
Requirement of clathrin heavy chain for p53-mediated transcription
Authors: Enari Masato , Ohmori Kazuji , Kitabayashi Issay , Taya Yoichi
Published: April 2006

The p53 protein is a transcription factor that activates various genes responsible for growth arrest and/or apoptosis in response to DNA damage. Here, we report that clathrin heavy chain (CHC) binds to p53 and contributes to p53-mediated transcription. CHC is known to be a cytosolic protein that functions as a vesicle transporter. We found, however, that CHC exists not only in cytosol but also in nuclei. CHC expression enhances p53-dependent transactivation, whereas the reduction of CHC expression by RNA interference (RNAi) attenuates its transcriptional activity. Moreover, CHC binds to the p53-responsive promoter in vivo and stabilizes p53–p300 interaction to promote p53-mediated transctiption. Thus, nuclear CHC is required for the transactivation of p53 target genes and plays a distinct role from clathrin-mediated endocytosis.
A Polycomb group protein complex with sequence-specific DNA-binding and selective methyl-lysine-binding activities
Authors: Klymenko Tetyana , Papp Bernadett , Fischle Wolfgang , Köcher Thomas , Schelder Malgorzata , Fritsch Cornelia , Wild Brigitte , Wilm Matthias , Müller Jürg
Published: April 2006

Polycomb response elements (PREs) are specificcis-regulatory sequences needed for transcriptional repression of HOX and other target genes by Polycomb group (PcG) proteins. Among the many PcG proteins known inDrosophila, Pho is the only sequence-specific DNA-binding protein. To gain insight into the function of Pho, we purified Pho protein complexes fromDrosophilaembryos and found that Pho exists in two distinct protein assemblies: a Pho–dINO80 complex containing theDrosophilaINO80 nucleosome-remodeling complex, and a Pho-repressive complex (PhoRC) containing the uncharacterized gene product dSfmbt. Analysis of PhoRC reveals that dSfmbt is a novel PcG protein that is essential for HOX gene repression inDrosophila. PhoRC is bound at HOX gene PREs in vivo, and this targeting strictly depends on Pho-binding sites. Characterization of dSfmbt protein shows that its MBT repeats have unique discriminatory binding activity for methylated lysine residues in histones H3 and H4; the MBT repeats bind mono- and di-methylated H3-K9 and H4-K20 but fail to interact with these residues if they are unmodified or tri-methylated. Our results establish PhoRC as a novelDrosophilaPcG protein complex that combines DNA-targeting activity (Pho) with a unique modified histone-binding activity (dSfmbt). We propose that PRE-tethered PhoRC selectively interacts with methylated histones in the chromatin flanking PREs to maintain a Polycomb-repressed chromatin state.
Blood pressure and heart rate changes during intubation: a comparison of direct laryngoscopy and a fibreoptic method
Authors: Xue F. S. , Zhang G. H. , Sun H. Y. , Li C. W. , Li P. , Sun H. T. , Liu K. P. , Xu Y. C. , Liu Y.
Published: April 2006

Blood pressure and heart rate changes during nasotracheal intubation under general anaesthesia were studied in 100 patients who were randomly allocated to fibreoptic bronchoscope or direct laryngoscopy intubation. Noninvasive blood pressure and heart rate were recorded before and immediately after anaesthesia induction, at anaesthesia intubation and every minute thereafter for 5 min. Nasotracheal intubation was accompanied by significant increases in blood pressure and heart rate compared to baseline values in both groups. Blood pressure and heart rate at intubation, and the maximum values of blood pressure during the observation were significantly higher in the fibreoptic bronchoscope group. However, the maximum values of heart rate were not significantly different between the two groups. Fibreoptic nasotracheal intubation may result in more severe pressor and tachycardiac responses than direct laryngoscopic nasotracheal intubation.
Triage in emergency departments: national survey
Authors: Göransson Katarina E , Ehrenberg Anna , Ehnfors Margareta
Published: April 2006

Aim.  This paper reports a study the aim of which was to describe how triage‐related work was organized and performed in Swedish emergency departments.

Background.  Hospitals in many developed countries use some kind of system to prioritize the patients attending emergency departments. Triage is a commonly used term to refer to the process of sorting and prioritizing patients for care. How the triage procedure is organized and which personnel perform this type of work vary considerably throughout the world. In Sweden, few studies have explored this important issue.

Method.  A national survey was conducted using telephone interviews, with nurse managers at each of the emergency departments. The sample represented 87% of emergency departments in Sweden.

Results.  The findings clearly illustrate the organization of emergency department triage, focusing on personnel who perform triage, as well as the facilities, resources and procedures available for triage. However, the results indicate that work associated with such triage in Sweden is not organized in any consistent matter. In 81% of the emergency departments a clerk, Licensed Practical Nurse or Registered Nurse were assigned to assess patients not arriving by ambulance. There was also diversity in other areas, including requirements for staff to have particular qualifications and clinical experience for being allocated to triage work, as well as facilities for triage personnel assessing and prioritizing patients. The use of triage scales and acuity ratings also lacked uniformity and disparities were observed in both the design and use of triage scales. A little less than half (46%) of the emergency departments did not use any kind of triage scale to document patient acuity ratings.

Conclusion.  In contrast to several other countries, this study shows that Swedish emergency departments do not adhere well to established standards and guidelines about triage in emergency care. Research on emergency department triage, especially in the areas of personnel performing triage, triage scales and standards and guidelines are recommended.

Relevance to clinical practice.  The diversity among several aspects of nursing triage (e.g. use of less qualified personnel performing triage, the use of different triage scales) presented in the study points to a safety risk for the patients. It also shows the need of further education for the personnel in clinical practice as well as further research on triage in order to gain national consensus about this nursing task.
Unilateral bronchospasm following interpleural analgesia with bupivacaine
Authors: Sudhakar S. , Kundra P. , Madhurima S. , Ravishankar M.
Published: April 2006

The interpleural block (IPB) is a relatively safe procedure and is commonly practised to provide analgesia. A local anaesthetic injected into the interpleural space spreads widely to block various neural structures. The IPB can initiate bronchospasm by interrupting the sympathetic outflow but sparing the parasympathetic outflow to the lungs. In addition, unilateral reduction of intercostal muscle tone with consequential selective reduction of the functional residual capacity of that lung may also mimic airflow obstruction. We report a case of unilateral bronchospasm encountered following IPB.
Isolated bilateral paralysis of the hypoglossal and recurrent laryngeal nerves (Bilateral Tapia's syndrome) after transoral intubation for general anesthesia
Authors: Cinar S. O. , Seven H. , Cinar U. , Turgut S.
Published: April 2006

Tapia's syndrome is due to extracranial involvement of the hypoglossal nerve and the recurrent laryngeal branch of the vagal nerve. The injury of these nerves is a rare complication of anesthetic airway management. We present a patient with a postoperative bilateral hypoglossal and recurrent laryngeal nerves palsy after uncomplicated orotracheal intubation. Corticosteroid therapy was started after diagnosis. Forty‐eight hours later, the movements of the vocal cords started to recover and full recovery was achieved by the fourth day. Within 3 days, tongue mobility was gradually improved and the patient's symptoms resolved completely by 4 weeks.
Acute barium nitrate intoxication treated by hemodialysis
Authors: Bahlmann H. , Lindwall R. , Persson H.
Published: April 2006

A 22‐year‐old male was admitted to hospital with diarrhea and vomiting, cardiac arrhythmias, severe hypokalemia and gradual onset of muscular weakness. A potassium infusion was started, but for several hours serum potassium remained low. Evidence of toxic ingestion was initially lacking. When it became clear – after a considerable delay – that the patient had ingested barium nitrate, hemodialysis was started. This resulted in rapid clinical improvement with correction of hypokalemia and restored muscular function. Intoxication with barium causes hypokalemia, arrhythmias, muscular weakness and paralysis, often requiring respiratory support. This patient presented with symptoms typical of severe barium intoxication, non‐responsive to potassium supplementation. There are few published reports on the use of hemodialysis in barium poisoning. This case confirms the possible benefit of hemodialysis in severe cases, where potassium supplementation alone is insufficient.
Sub‐specialization in general surgery: the problem of providing a safe emergency general surgical service
Authors: Garner J. P. , Prytherch D. , Senapati A. , O'Leary D. , Thompson M. R.
Published: April 2006

Background  The increasing subspecialization of general surgeons in their elective work may result in deskilling and create problems in providing expert care for emergency cases. To evaluate the size of the problem this study determined how often complex emergency surgical cases are treated by general surgeons working outside their own elective subspecialty.

Method  In a district general hospital in the south of the UK serving a population of 550 000 where there is almost complete subspecialization within general surgery, 1554 patients having emergency general surgical operations were studied in a one‐year review. The time an operation occurred, the seniority of the operating surgeon, the subspecialty interest of the consultant responsible for the case compared with the specialist nature of the operation was determined.

Results  Of 1554 patients having emergency general surgical operations, 23% (352/1554) were of a high category of complexity. Ninety were vascular procedures and were dealt with by specialist vascular surgeons on a separate rota. Of the remaining 262 operations, 78 (30%) did not match the subspecialty of the consultant surgeon responsible for their care; 56 (72%) of these occurred out of hours of which 14 (18%) had a consultant surgeon present and scrubbed in the theatre; one per month of the study. Seventy‐three percent (57/78) of these were complex colorectal operations.

Conclusion  The mismatch between the subspecialist elective interests of the consultant general surgeon and out of hours specialist major surgery needing consultant involvement occurred infrequently, and was mainly due to major lower gastrointestinal cases managed by upper gastrointestinal and breast surgeons. This has important implications for the future training of general surgeons and the provision of an emergency nonvascular general surgical service.
READING REPLICATIONS: ROMAN RHETORIC AND GREEK QUOTATIONS
Authors: VARNER ERIC R.
Published: April 2006

Adolf Furtwangler's concept of Roman copies and lost Greek originals has been largely dismantled in recent scholarship. Nevertheless, Romans created a sophisticated visual vocabulary which included direct quotations of Greek models, as well as allusions to styles associated with particular periods or individual Greek artists.

The art‐historical consciousness of Roman artists, patrons and visually literate viewers was not limited to the elite, but also pervaded works of private funerary art which often employed recognizably Greek compositions and body types for rhetorical effect in order to access abstract concepts of heroism, virtue and apotheosis. Ultimately, sculptural quotations and replications from the Greek are not symptomatic of a derivative and imitative artistic culture, but rather reveal a highly original and particularly Roman aesthetic of hybridity.
ON THE TENACITY OF CHRISTIAN ANTI‐JUDAISM1
Authors: LOWE WALTER
Published: April 2006

Joachim of Fiore's three ages of Father, Son and Spirit demonstrated that the supersessionist gambit Christianity had introduced against Judaism is a logic any successor can employ. Modernity (cf. modo, “now”) is constituted by a relentless supersessionist logic; the modern issue is less supersessionism than a conflict of supersessionisms. Christianity has repeatedly overspiritualized God's “bodily covenant” with Israel (Wyschogrod). This distortive tendency is intensified in modernity by Christianity's anxiety that it too will appear old/“Jewish” vis‐à‐vis a new New Testament of infinite spiritual freedom (cf. Romanticism.) One corrective would be for Christianity to return to a more Jewish understanding of election.
Growth, photosynthesis and chlorophyll fluorescence of sweet pepper plants as affected by the cultivation method
Authors: Del Amor F.M.
Published: April 2006

Different methods of sweet pepper cultivation (organic, integrated and conventional farming) were evaluated under greenhouse conditions. Organic treatment was defined as only 4‐kg manure application at the preplanting stage. Conventional and integrated treatments consisted of application of the manure dosage plus chemical fertiliser at 100% and 50% of the local farmers’ amount, respectively, to avoid nutrient depletion. Plant growth parameters such as shoot dry matter, total leaf area and leaf weight fraction were all reduced in the organic treatment compared with the conventional. Leaf expansion was dramatically reduced in the organic treatment 155 days after transplanting. Relative growth rates were significantly affected by the nitrogen concentration in each organ and were directly related to the cultivation method. Chlorophylls (a + b) contents in the leaves were reduced in the organic treatment and were directly correlated with the nondestructive quantification of chlorophylls using a portable chlorophyll meter. Net photosynthesis was also reduced in the organic treatment, but chlorophyll fluorescence was not affected. This study shows that biometric monitoring and fast and non‐invasive techniques of plant nutrient status analysis could help to improve growth as easy and useful tools to follow the nutrient status at different phenological stages, especially when no chemical fertilisers are applied.
Bartonella henselae
Pap31, an Extracellular Matrix Adhesin, Binds the Fibronectin Repeat III
13
Module
Authors: Dabo S. M. , Confer A. W. , Anderson B. E. , Gupta Snehalata
Published: April 2006

Bartonella henselae
wound-associated infections suggest involvement of extracellular matrix molecules in adhesion and invasion. Pap31 was previously identified as a hemin-binding protein. Our recent studies suggest the protein is an adhesin that is recognized by the host's immune systems. In this study we examined the interactions of
B. henselae
Pap31 with fibronectin (Fn), heparin (Hep), and human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs). The cloned gene was expressed in
Escherichia coli
, and the purified Pap31 protein elicited strong antibody responses in mice and was reactive with rabbit anti-live
B. henselae
and mouse anti-Pap31 antibodies by Western blotting. Pap31 bound to immobilized Fn and to HUVECs in a dose-dependent manner and to Hep. Fn fragment-binding assays identified the Hep-1 and Hep-2 binding domains of human Fn and in particular the
12-13
FnIII repeat module as primary binding sites for this adhesin. Furthermore, Pap31 binding to the above Fn fragments could be inhibited by Hep, suggesting a common binding site involving the
13
FnIII repeat module on the Hep-2 domain of Fn. Adherence of intact
B. henselae
to HUVECs was inhibited by increasing concentrations of anti-Pap31 antibodies. In addition, purified Pap31 coprecipitated effectively with Fn and anti-Fn antibodies. Taken together, these data suggest that Pap31 is an Fn-binding protein mediating the
B. henselae
-host interaction(s), and they implicate the
13
FnIII repeat module as an important binding site for this adhesin on the Fn molecule. These interactions may be important initial steps leading to bacterial attachment and colonization that promote the establishment of
B. henselae
infections in vivo.
The Posttranscriptional Regulator RsmA Plays a Role in the Interaction between
Pseudomonas aeruginosa
and Human Airway Epithelial Cells by Positively Regulating the Type III Secretion System
Authors: Mulcahy Heidi , O'Callaghan Julie , O'Grady Eoin P. , Adams Claire , O'Gara Fergal
Published: April 2006

Posttranscriptional regulation of certain virulence-related genes in
Pseudomonas aeruginosa
is brought about by RsmA, a small RNA-binding protein. During interaction with airway epithelial cells, RsmA promoted actin depolymerization, cytotoxicity, and anti-internalization of
P. aeruginosa
by positively regulating the virulence-associated type III secretion system.
Development and implementation of a participative intervention to improve the psychosocial work environment and mental health in an acute care hospital
Authors: Bourbonnais R , Brisson C , Vinet A , Vézina M , Lower A
Published: April 2006

Objectives:To describe the development and implementation phases of a participative intervention aimed at reducing four theory grounded and empirically supported adverse psychosocial work factors (high psychological demands, low decision latitude, low social support, and low reward), and their mental health effects.

Methods:The intervention was realised among 500 care providers in an acute care hospital. A prior risk evaluation was performed, using a quantitative approach, to determine the prevalence of adverse psychosocial work factors and of psychological distress in the hospital compared to an appropriate reference population. In addition, a qualitative approach included observation in the care units, interviews with key informants, and collaborative work with an intervention team (IT) including all stakeholders.

Results:The prior risk evaluation showed a high prevalence of adverse psychosocial factors and psychological distress among care providers compared to a representative sample of workers from the general population. Psychosocial variables at work associated with psychological distress in the prior risk evaluation were high psychological demands (prevalence ratio (PR) = 2.27), low social support from supervisors and co-workers (PR = 1.35), low reward (PR = 2.92), and effort-reward imbalance (PR = 2.65). These results showed the empirical relevance of an intervention on the four selected adverse psychosocial factors among care providers. Qualitative methods permitted the identification of 56 adverse conditions and of their solutions. Targets of intervention were related to team work and team spirit, staffing processes, work organisation, training, communication, and ergonomy.

Conclusion:This study adds to the scarce literature describing the development and implementation of preventive intervention aimed at reducing psychosocial factors at work and their health effects. Even if adverse conditions in the psychosocial environment and solutions identified in this study may be specific to the healthcare sector, the intervention process used (participative problem solving) appears highly exportable to other work organisations.
Detection of serum hepcidin in renal failure and inflammation by using ProteinChip System
Authors: Tomosugi Naohisa , Kawabata Hiroshi , Wakatabe Rumi , Higuchi Masato , Yamaya Hideki , Umehara Hisanori , Ishikawa Isao
Published: April 2006

Hepcidin, a key regulator of iron metabolism, is expressed in the liver, distributed in blood, and excreted in urine. However, to date, no reliable and practical method for measuring the bioactive form of hepcidin in serum has been developed. Here, we used surface-enhanced laser desorption ionization time of flight mass spectrometry (SELDI-TOF MS) to analyze the distinctive serum proteomic patterns of patients receiving hemodialysis. In the range of 1000 to 15 000 m/z, we found 3 peptides at 2192, 2789, and 2851 m/z that showed a significant correlation with the serum ferritin levels. The molecular sizes of peptides at 2192 and 2789 m/z matched with the reported sizes of hepcidin-20 and -25, respectively, and the serum peptide at 2789 m/z was identified as hepcidin-25 by collision-induced dissociation tandem MS. By using SELDI-TOF MS, we developed a semiquantitative assay for hepcidin-25. In this assay, the level of serum hepcidin-25 correlated well with levels of serum ferritin and serum interleukin-6. Hepcidin-25 was found to accumulate in the serum of patients receiving hemodialysis; this could contribute to the pathogenesis of renal anemia by decreasing the available iron for hematopoiesis. Thus, SELDI-TOF MS would be a clinically useful tool to detect and semiquantify bioactive hepcidin in serum.
Semiﬁeld ﬂocks, eggs, and ovoids of Q (4,q)
Authors: Lavrauw Michel
Published: April 2006

In this article we consider the connection between semiﬁeld ﬂocks of a
quadratic cone in PG(3, q n
 ), eggs in PG(4n - 1, q ) and ovoids of Q (4, q n
 ), when
q is odd. Starting from a semiﬁeld ﬂock ℱ of a
quadratic cone in PG(3, q n
 ),q odd,
one can obtain an ovoid ## add figure 'advg.5.3.333_01.gif' ##(ℱ ) of
Q (4, q n
 ) using the construction of Thas [J. A. Thas,
Symplectic spreads in PG(3, q )inversive planes and projective planes.
Discrete Math. 174 (1997), 329–336]. With a semiﬁeld
ﬂock there also corresponds a good egg ℰ of PG(4n - 1, q ) (see, e.g., [M. Lavrauw, T. Penttila, On
eggs and translation generalised quadrangles. J. Combin. Theory Ser. A 96 (2001),
303–315]) and the TGQ T (ℰ ) contains at least q 3n
 + q 2n
subquadrangles all isomorphic to
Q (4, q n
 ) (Thas [J. A. Thas, Generalized
quadrangles of order (s, s 
2). I. J. Combin.
Theory Ser. A 67 (1994), 140–160]). Hence
by subtending one can obtain ovoids of
Q (4, q n
 ) (consider the set of points in the subquadrangle collinear
with a point not in the subquadrangle). Here we prove that all the ovoids
subtended from points of type (ii) are isomorphic to ## add figure
'advg.5.3.333_01.gif' ##(ℱ ), and that in at least 2q n

subGQ’s the ovoids subtended from points of type (i)
are isomorphic to the ovoids subtended from points of type
(ii).
Iconicity, Ratosh’s lexical innovations, and beyond
Authors: Ephratt Michal
Published: April 2006

Yonatan Ratosh (1909–1981), a renowned Hebrew poet,
made his living as a translator. His translations and lists found in his lexical
legacy, contain thousands of his suggestions for new Hebrew terms. Among them
many instances stand out that manifest some sort of similarity between the
concept and the term proposed by Ratosh, thus raising the issue of
iconicity.

This paper takes a closer look at these instances,
integrating theoretical aspects of iconicity and issues concerning lexicon in
general, and Ratosh’s means of lexical innovations in particular.

Specifically, we first look at image (onomatopoeia,
sound symbolism, and also metalanguage) and diagram (matters of order,
diminutive and echo-words). We then move beyond the dyad to consider metaphor.
After that discussion we point out the asymmetry caused by omitting folk
etymology, metonymy, and ellipsis. We propose, then, that semiotics should
restrict iconicity only to intrinsic relations within the sign itself, hence
image and diagram, thus not contaminating iconicity with cases of secondness,
thirdness, or endless conventionalism.
UVB Effects on the Photosystem II‐D1 Protein of Phytoplankton and Natural Phytoplankton Communities
Authors: Bouchard Josée Nina , Roy Suzanne , Campbell Douglas A.
Published: April 2006

The reaction center of photosystem II is susceptible to photodamage. In particular the D1 protein located in the photosystem II core has a rapid, light‐dependent turnover termed the photosystem II repair cycle that, under illumination, degrades and resynthesizes D1 protein to limit accumulation of photodamaged photosystem II. Most studies concerning the effects of UVB (280–320 nm) on this cycle have been on cyanobacteria or specific phytoplankton species rather than on natural communities of phytoplankton. During a 5‐year multidisciplinary project on the effects of UV radiation (200–400 nm) on natural systems, the effects of UVB on the D1 protein of natural phytoplankton communities were assessed. This review provides an overview of photo‐inhibitory effects of light on cultured and natural phytoplankton, with an emphasis on the interrelation of UVB exposure, D1 protein degradation and the repair of photosystem II through D1 resynthesis. Although the UVB component of the solar spectrum contributes to the primary photoinactivation of photosystem II, we conclude that, in natural communities, inhibition of the rate of the photosystem II repair cycle is a more important influence of UVB on primary productivity. Indeed, exposing tropical and temperate phytoplankton communities to supplemented UVB had more inhibitory effect on D1 synthesis than on the D1 degradation process itself. However, the rate of net D1 damage was faster for the tropical communities, likely because of the effects of high ambient light and water temperature on mechanisms of protein degradation and synthesis.
Type of Oral Cleft and Mothers’ Perceptions of Care, Health Status, and Outcomes for Preadolescent Children
Authors: Damiano Peter C. , Tyler Margaret C. , Romitti Paul A. , Momany Elizabeth T. , Canady John W. , Karnell Michael P. , Murray Jeffrey C.
Published: April 2006

Objective:

To evaluate the outcomes of care for children by type of oral cleft.

Design:

Data were collected through structured telephone interviews during 2003 in Iowa with mothers of 2- to 12-year-old children with oral clefts. Interviews with mothers of children with clubfoot and statewide data on Iowa children were used for comparison.

Participants:

Participants included mothers of children in Iowa born between 1990 and 2000 with nonsyndromic oral clefts. Children were identified by the statewide Iowa Registry for Congenital and Inherited Disorders.

Main Outcome Measures:

Rating of cleft care, severity of condition, health status, esthetic outcome, speech, and school performance were evaluated by type of oral cleft.

Results:

Children with cleft lip and palate were most likely to have their clefts rated as very severe. Children with palatal involvement were reported to have a lower health status and were almost twice as likely to be identified as having a special health care need compared with either children with cleft lip or children statewide. Children with cleft lip had more esthetic concerns; children with palatal involvement had the most speech concerns.

Conclusions:

Although mothers generally believed their children had received high-quality care, ratings of the children's current health status and outcomes of care varied significantly by type of cleft (cleft lip, cleft palate, and cleft lip and palate). Differences observed in this population-based study support the proposition that cleft type should be considered when examining outcomes of care for children with oral clefts.
Role of Small-Scale Variations in Water Saturation in Optimization of Steamflood Heavy-Oil Recovery in the Midway-Sunset Field, California
Authors: Schamel Steven , Deo Milind
Published: April 2006

In recovery of heavy oil by steamflood, efficiencies can be realized by limiting the placement of steam to the portions of the reservoir with highest oil saturations, thus reducing the disproportionate loss of heat to connate water. This optimization strategy requires knowledge of water-saturation (Sw) distributions within the heavy-oil reservoir at the scale of operations. Application of this strategy has contributed to the successful reactivation of the shut-in Pru Fee property in the Midway-Sunset field 1 mile west of Taft, a U.S. Dept. of Energy (DOE) Class 3 oil-technology demonstration project.

The 40 new wells drilled and logged within the 40-acre Pru Fee property, together with a single continuous core, have permitted 3D mapping of Sw within the 250- to 350-ft-thick pay zone in the Monarch sand reservoir. Water saturations are observed to vary at three different scales:

A systematic vertical reduction in Sw through a 100- to 150-ft interval above the oil/water contact (OWC) caused by dominant capillary influence where the buoyancy effects are diminished by the low-density contrast of the 13°API oil and formation water. Lateral variations in Sw on the scale of 10 to 100 ft caused principally by prior oil production from the reservoir, but modified by its internal stratigraphic architecture. Bed-to-bed variations in Sw on the order of a few feet or less constrained by grain-size-controlled differences in porosity/ permeability in these crudely graded sands.

Overall production efficiency in the steamflood has been improved by limiting steam injection to the upper one-half to two-thirds of the pay zone, where Sw is lowest. Knowledge of the lateral variations in Sw has permitted more accurate appraisal of the effectiveness of individual producers and nine-spot injector/ producer arrays. The recognition of the bed-to-bed variations has permitted a better petrophysical model for calibrating Sw calculated from logs.
Teaching of Hygiene in Native Primary Schools
Authors: Jaques A. A.
Published: April 2006

So far, hygiene hardly seems to have received the place and attention it deserves in the syllabus of teaching in the native primary schools. Even without sharing the opinion of the Phelps Stokes Commission that health should be given precedence over all other subjects of instruction in African primary schools, it must be admitted that the importance of this subject can hardly be over-estimated. Hygiene covers such a wide field and is related to so many walks of life that its teaching cannot but deeply affect the development of native children.
Changing Conditions in Marital Relations and Parental Duties among Urbanized Natives
Authors: Krige Eileen Jensen
Published: April 2006

Opening Paragraph

Everywhere in Africa contact with the European is causing change and disturbance, institutional dislocation and disintegration. If Bantu society is to survive the shock, its disintegrating institutions must eventually resolve themselves into new or modified forms better suited to the changed conditions. This transition can be accomplished only by gradual, often painful adjustments, in which the responses and reactions to the challenge of the more advanced culture might be investigated and the nature of culture growth analysed. One of the most fruitful approaches to the sociological processes involved in culture growth and the implication of the changes that occur is the study of the impact of a foreign culture upon the family and its associated institutions. Disturbances in these are often the reflection of widespread social and economic disintegration, and the extent of the disturbance may be regarded as a measure of the shock that has been sustained by the society. The purpose of this attempt at describing and analysing changing conditions in marital and parental relations is to show the extent of disintegration, the weaknesses and disadvantages of some of the institutions that are proving inadequate to meet the new demands, and the nature of the adjustments that are being made to regain equilibrium.
La Famille Galoase et son Évolution Désirée par la Jeunesse
Authors: Grébert F. , Keller J.
Published: April 2006

Comme parallèle à mon article d'Africa, du vol. v, no. 2, 1931, sur la famille pahouine, nous voulons essayer de montrer l'évolution de la famille galoase et les améliorations désirées par l'élite de la jeunesse. Les Galoas sont une branche des tribus de langue Omyεnε, qui se sont répandues dans tout le bassin du Bas-Ogoué, de la Côte équatoriale et dans l'estuaire du Gabon. Celles du Bas-Ogoué se livraient autrefois spécialement à l'achat des esclaves venus de l'intérieur (par la rivière Ngounyi et le Haut-Ogoué), et à leur vente aux négriers espagnols ou portugais qui emmenaient leur cargaison humaine en Amérique. L'occupation française de ces régions a fait cesser ce trafic, et les Galoas se sont mis au commerce des marchandises, soit en devenant eux-mêmes traitants, ou transitaires, ou encore en prenant des concessions de forêts pour l'abattage des bois d'okoumé.
The Kono People of Sierra Leone. Their Clans and Names
Authors: Langley E. Ralph
Published: April 2006

Kono Country is situated in the eastern part of Sierra Leone and is about two thousand square miles in extent with a population of roughly eighty-five thousand souls. The administrative head-quarters is situated at Sefadu, itself in Kono country, and distant fifty-eight miles approximately due north of the railway station of Segbwema on the main Freetown-Pendembu railway line and connected with that station by a motor road. This head-quarters has been opened since 1927 before which the district was administered from Panguma in the Mende country. The opening of the head-quarters in Kono country itself and the better communication established by the motor road has already greatly benefited the Kono people.
Leprosy and the Cultural Development of Africa
Authors: Hoffmann W. H.
Published: April 2006

Leprosy is the curse of Africa. Four thousand years ago Egyptian documents tell us about the occurrence of leprosy among Sudanese slaves, and it is highly probable that tropical Africa is the real home of the disease whence it has been transported all over the world.
Poésies Chez les Barundi
Authors: Zuure R. P. Bernard
Published: April 2006

En écoutant les Barundi dans leurs proverbes, devinettes, contes, même dans leurs noms propres, le moins qu'on en puisse dire, me semble-t-il, c'est qu'ils ne sont pas dénués de toute poésie. On est même étonné de constater que leur mentalité révèle une tournure esthéque, un goût pour les images et le rythme, qui étonnent chez un peuple si arriéré au point de vue de la culture matérielle. Nous osons aller plus loin en avançant qu'au Burundi on rencontre des poésies, des poèmes.
L'Ethnologie de l'Afrique Centrale et le Musée du Congo Belge
Authors: Maes J.
Published: April 2006

Dans l'introduction de sa remarquable étude traitant de l'activité ethnographique des Belges au Congo, publiée en 1908, M. De Jonghe nous dit:

‘L’efficacité de toute œuvre de civilisation se mesure sur la connaissance plus ou moins exacte de la mentalité des populations indigènes.

‘Le colonisateur est, en dernière analyse, un civilisateur. Placé en présence de peuples d'une civilisation inférieure à la sienne, il s'efforce de les élever graduellement à son niveau. On peut le comparer à un agriculteur qui veut mettre un champ en rapport. Le premier soin de celui-ci doit être de connaître la composition de la terre pour y adapter son mode de culture, pour choisir avec discernement les substances chimiques capables d'en activer la production. La psychologie de l'indigène est pour le colonisateur ce qu'est pour l'agriculteur la connaissance des conditions chimiques de la terre qu'il veut cultiver. Connaître le tempérament et le caractère des peuplades qu'il doit civiliser est la première condition à réaliser par l'explorateur s'il veut procéder avec sûreté dans l'atténuation ou l'extirpation de leurs qualités mauvaises et pernicieuses, et dans le développement intense de leurs aptitudes morales et fécondes.

‘La science qui consigne, classe, synthétise les données sur la psychologie des peuples non-civilisés, s'appelle l'ethnographie. L'ethnographie est donc à la base de toute action civilisatrice véritable.

‘A un point de vue moins élevé, au point de vue exclusivement économique, elle mérite de préoccuper sérieusement le colonisateur. Innombrables sont les malentendus, les froissements, les conflits sanglants même, qui, à toute époque, ont surgi entre colonies et mères-patries et qui ont eu leur cause profonde dans l'ignorance des mœurs et coutumes locales.’
The Marriage Customs of the Ovimbundu
Authors: Evambi Raul Kavita
Published: April 2006

A Young man and a young woman of the same village or of divisions of the same village look and look at each other with shy glances. The young man is in love with the girl and the girl is in love with the young man. One day the young man will speak to the other young men in the onjango and say, Fellows, Ngandi's little daughter hurts me. Now then if I had said, After a few days I shall send you to propose a trial marriage to her, would it have been all right? Then the others will say, Yeah, old man, maybe you are talking nonsense; we thought that there was something between you, as you avoid each other; there is no hindrance, it is all right in that quarter, old fellow.
Asu (Pare) Proverbs and Songs
Authors: Bull A. F.
Published: April 2006

1. Eima kiandeni emanyifwa ni mofi.

Lit. He who digs in the hollow is known (i.e. betrayed) by the smoke, i.e. A man may dig quietly for a month without any one knowing much about it, but sooner or later he will have to burn his weeds, then the smoke will rise and fill the valley, and the secret be out. ‘Things done in secret shall be revealed openly.’
La Maladie du Sommeil au Cameroun
Authors: Jamot E.
Published: April 2006

D'après la tradition indigène certaines contrées de la région de Ngaoundéré, de Batouri, de Yokadouma et de Lomié auraient été autrefois décimées par la maladie du sommeil. Ce que nous savons actuellement des conditions dans lesquelles cette affection se propage rend cette hypothèse tout-à-fait improbable et en vérité nous ne savons ni quand, ni comment, la maladie du sommeil a fait son apparition dans le centre et l'est du Cameroun.