bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Satellite RNA reduces expression of the 2b suppressor protein resulting in the attenuation of symptoms caused by Cucumber mosaic virus infection
Authors: HOU WEI‐NA , DUAN CHENG‐GUO , FANG RONG‐XIANG , ZHOU XIAO‐YANG , GUO HUI‐SHAN
Published: January 2011

Satellite RNAs (satRNAs) depend on cognate helper viruses for replication, encapsidation, movement and transmission. Many satRNAs with different symptom modulation effects have been reported. The pathogenicity of satRNAs is thought to be the result of a direct interaction among the satRNA, helper viruses and host factors by unknown mechanisms. To understand the effect of satRNA of Cucumber mosaic virus (a severe field ShanDong strain, SD‐CMV) on pathogenicity, and the possible involvement of host RNA silencing pathways in pathogenicity, we constructed biologically active CMV cDNA clones and a CMV‐Δ2b mutant lacking the open reading frame of 2b, a silencing suppressor protein, in order to infect Nicotiana benthamiana and Arabidopsis with or without SD‐satRNA. We found that SD‐satRNA reduced the accumulation of the 2b protein and its coding RNA4A and attenuated the yellowing caused by SD‐CMV infection. Small RNA analysis indicated that the 2b protein interfered with RNA silencing, specifically in the synthesis of CMV RNA3‐derived small interfering RNAs (R3‐siRNAs). The accumulation of R3‐siRNAs in CMV‐Δ2b infection was reduced in the presence of satRNA, for which greater accumulation of satRNA‐derived siRNAs (satsiRNAs) was detected. Our results suggest that abundant SD‐satRNA serving as target for RNA silencing may play a role in protecting helper CMV RNA, especially, subgenomic RNA4, from being targeted by RNA silencing. This compensates for the increase in RNA silencing resulting from the reduction in expression of the 2b suppressor in the presence of satRNA. Our data provide evidence that a plant silencing mechanism is involved in the pathogenicity of satRNA.
Direct thrombin inhibitors
Authors: Lee Catherine J. , Ansell Jack E.
Published: January 2011

Heparins and vitamin K antagonists have been the primary agents used for anticoagulation in certain cardiovascular and thromboembolic diseases for over 50 years. However, they can be difficult to administer and are fraught with limitations. In response to the need for new anticoagulants, direct thrombin inhibitors (DTIs) have been developed and investigated for their utility in prophylaxis and treatment of venous thromboembolism (VTE), heparin‐induced thrombocytopenia (HIT), acute coronary syndromes (ACS), secondary prevention of coronary events after ACS, and nonvalvular atrial fibrillation. Currently, four parenteral direct inhibitors of thrombin activity are FDA‐approved in North America: lepirudin, desirudin, bivalirudin and argatroban. Of the new oral DTIs, dabigatran etexilate is the most studied and promising of these agents. This review discusses the clinical indications and efficacy of these direct thrombin inhibitors as well as future directions in anticoagulant therapy.
Blockade of interleukin‐6 signalling with siltuximab enhances melphalan cytotoxicity in preclinical models of multiple myeloma
Authors: Hunsucker Sally A. , Magarotto Valeria , Kuhn Deborah J. , Kornblau Steven M. , Wang Michael , Weber Donna M. , Thomas Sheeba K. , Shah Jatin J. , Voorhees Peter M. , Xie Hong , Cornfeld Mark , Nemeth Jeffrey A. , Orlowski Robert Z.
Published: January 2011

Signalling through the interleukin (IL)‐6 pathway induces proliferation and drug resistance of multiple myeloma cells. We therefore sought to determine whether the IL‐6‐neutralizing monoclonal antibody siltuximab, formerly CNTO 328, could enhance the activity of melphalan, and to examine some of the mechanisms underlying this interaction. Siltuximab increased the cytotoxicity of melphalan in KAS‐6/1, INA‐6, ANBL‐6, and RPMI 8226 human myeloma cell lines (HMCLs) in an additive‐to‐synergistic manner, and sensitized resistant RPMI 8226.LR5 cells to melphalan. These anti‐proliferative effects were accompanied by enhanced activation of drug‐specific apoptosis in HMCLs grown in suspension, and in HMCLs co‐cultured with a human‐derived stromal cell line. Siltuximab with melphalan enhanced activation of caspase‐8, caspase‐9, and the downstream effector caspase‐3 compared with either of the single agents. This increased induction of cell death occurred in association with enhanced Bak activation. Neutralization of IL‐6 also suppressed signalling through the phosphoinositide 3‐kinase/Akt pathway, as evidenced by decreased phosphorylation of Akt, p70 S6 kinase and 4E‐BP1. Importantly, the siltuximab/melphalan regimen demonstrated enhanced anti‐proliferative effects against primary plasma cells derived from patients with myeloma, monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance, and amyloidosis. These studies provide a rationale for translation of siltuximab into the clinic in combination with melphalan‐based therapies.
Modelling the koi herpesvirus (KHV) epidemic highlights the importance of active surveillance within a national control policy
Authors: Taylor Nick G.H. , Norman Rachel A. , Way Keith , Peeler Edmund J.
Published: January 2011

1. Koi herpesvirus can cause serious disease in carp Cyprinus carpio populations globally. Populations of carp exposed to the virus are already widespread across England and Wales, and there is a need to determine whether and how to control its spread. This study evaluates potential management options and provides recommendations applicable to many infected countries.

2. The influences of the main drivers of the epidemic were investigated using simple compartment based models, and the effectiveness of several potential control options were evaluated. Models were parameterized using recorded fish movement, field and experimental data.

3. Experimental studies suggested the risk of transmitting the virus between waters on angling equipment was low. Data from previous studies suggested live fish movements between fisheries, and the introduction of imported ornamental fish to be the most likely routes by which a fishery could be infected.

4. The models suggest that fish movements between fisheries alone could not have led to the number of exposed sites known to exist in 2007. An additional external infection pressure such as the introduction of imported ornamental fish would have been required, and is likely to have been the main driver of the epidemic in its early stages.

5. Predictions of future scenarios suggest that fish movements between fisheries have taken over as the main driver of the epidemic, and consequently restricting imports to reduce the external infection pressure is unlikely to have much impact on its own.

6. Due to the small proportion of infected waters currently detected, increasing the duration of movement restrictions placed on infected sites from four years to permanent was predicted to have little effect on the epidemic.

7. Synthesis and applications. Given the current stage of the koi herpesvirus epidemic, reducing the spread of the virus between fisheries is likely to be challenging, but may be possible by conducting an active surveillance programme and placing permanent movement restrictions on exposed sites. However, this will only be effective if the external infection pressure can also be reduced, possibly through restrictions on the import of fish from koi herpesvirus infected countries.
Bayesian analysis of hybridization and introgression between the endangered european mink (Mustela lutreola) and the polecat (Mustela putorius)
Authors: CABRIA M. T. , MICHAUX J. R. , GÓMEZ‐MOLINER B. J. , SKUMATOV D. , MARAN T. , FOURNIER P. , LÓPEZ de LUZURIAGA J. , ZARDOYA R.
Published: January 2011

Human‐mediated global change will probably increase the rates of natural hybridization and genetic introgression between closely related species, and this will have major implications for conservation of the taxa involved. In this study, we analyse both mitochondrial and nuclear data to characterize ongoing hybridization and genetic introgression between two sympatric sister species of mustelids, the endangered European mink (Mustela lutreola) and the more abundant polecat (M. putorius). A total of 317 European mink, 114 polecats and 15 putative hybrid individuals were collected from different localities in Europe and genotyped with 13 microsatellite nuclear markers. Recently developed Bayesian methods for assigning individuals to populations and identifying admixture proportions were applied to the genetic data. To identify the direction of hybridization, we additionally sequenced mtDNA and Y chromosomes from 78 individuals and 29 males respectively. We found that both hybridization and genetic introgression occurred at low levels (3% and 0.9% respectively) and indicated that hybridization is asymmetric, as only pure polecat males mate with pure European mink females. Furthermore, backcrossing and genetic introgression was detected only from female first‐generation (F1) hybrids of European mink to polecats. This latter result implies that Haldane’s rule may apply. Our results suggest that hybridization and genetic introgression between the two species should be considered a rather uncommon event. However, the current low densities of European mink might be changing this trend.
Saline stress tolerance partly matches with habitat preference in ground‐living wolf spiders
Authors: PÉTILLON JULIEN , LAMBEETS KEVIN , RACT‐MADOUX BRUNILDE , VERNON PHILIPPE , RENAULT DAVID
Published: January 2011

Salinity interacts with many physiological functions and therefore probably influences the distribution of terrestrial fauna in tidal flooded salt marshes. The present study tests the hypothesis that the physiological tolerance of stenotopic wolf spiders for saline conditions at least partially determines their occurrence throughout salt‐marsh and nonsaline habitats. The duration of survival of three stenotopic wolf spider species (Araneae: Lycosidae) with different habitat preferences is compared in a controlled laboratory experiment. The forest‐dwellingPardosa saltans, the salt‐marsh residentPardosa purbeckensisand its sister species the inland‐livingPardosa agrestisare exposed to experimental conditions with different levels of salinity. Individuals (45 males and 20–45 females per treatment) are placed in individual air‐tight boxes filled with water‐saturated sand. Three levels of salinity are tested: nonsaline (0‰), medium saline (33–35‰) and highly saline (66–70‰). Contents of carbon, hydrogen and nitrogen and the molar ration carbon/nitrogen remain constant over time and do not differ among salinity treatments, indicating that starvation effects on survival, if any, are similar for all treatments. Conversely, body water significantly decreases over time and differs among salinity treatments, in accordance with patterns of survival. Conforming to their habitat preference, the survival ofP. saltansandP. agrestisdecreases quickly under highly saline conditions.Pardosa purbeckensis, however, has a high survival under both saline and nonsaline conditions. The duration of survival of females is significantly lower than that of males ofP. saltansandP. purbeckensis. Durations of survival of ground‐living wolf spiders exposed to salinity partly match their habitat distribution but do not explain the restriction of salt‐marsh species to saline habitats.
Design and usability of heuristic‐based deliberation tools for women facing amniocentesis
Authors: Durand Marie‐Anne , Wegwarth Odette , Boivin Jacky , Elwyn Glyn
Published: January 2011

Background  Evidence suggests that in decision contexts characterized by uncertainty and time constraints (e.g. health‐care decisions), fast and frugal decision‐making strategies (heuristics) may perform better than complex rules of reasoning.

Objective  To examine whether it is possible to design deliberation components in decision support interventions using simple models (fast and frugal heuristics).

Design  The ‘Take The Best’ heuristic (i.e. selection of a ‘most important reason’) and ‘The Tallying’ integration algorithm (i.e. unitary weighing of pros and cons) were used to develop two deliberation components embedded in a Web‐based decision support intervention for women facing amniocentesis testing. Ten researchers (recruited from 15), nine health‐care providers (recruited from 28) and ten pregnant women (recruited from 14) who had recently been offered amniocentesis testing appraised evolving versions of ‘your most important reason’ (Take The Best) and ‘weighing it up’ (Tallying).

Results  Most researchers found the tools useful in facilitating decision making although emphasized the need for simple instructions and clear layouts. Health‐care providers however expressed concerns regarding the usability and clarity of the tools. By contrast, 7 out of 10 pregnant women found the tools useful in weighing up the pros and cons of each option, helpful in structuring and clarifying their thoughts and visualizing their decision efforts. Several pregnant women felt that ‘weighing it up’ and ‘your most important reason’ were not appropriate when facing such a difficult and emotional decision.

Conclusion  Theoretical approaches based on fast and frugal heuristics can be used to develop deliberation tools that provide helpful support to patients facing real‐world decisions about amniocentesis.
Chylothorax secondary to catheter related thrombosis successfully treated with heparin
Authors: Siu Sylvia LY , Yang Janet YK , Hui John PK , Li Rever CH , Cheng Vinson YW , Cheung Tammy WY , Kwong Albert NS
Published: January 2011

It has been well recognized that intra‐thoracic surgery is a major cause of chylothorax in the newborn period; however, catheter‐related thrombosis could also be a cause. We report a preterm baby who presented with right chylothorax secondary to venous thrombosis postinadvertent right internal jugular vein catheterization. The complication resolved with drainage, catheter removal and low molecular weight heparin. The literature on neonatal chylothorax and thrombosis and case reports reporting thrombosis‐related chylothorax that have been successfully treated with anticoagulation are reviewed.
Obesity and the developmental origins of health and disease
Authors: Kemp Matthew W , Kallapur Suhas G , Jobe Alan H , Newnham John P
Published: January 2011

The concept that environmental stimuli imparted on a developing organism have the potential to affect both its short‐ and long‐term developmental profiles is intuitively appealing and, more importantly, supported by a growing body of experimental and observational evidence. A number of groups have posited model hypotheses in tandem with experimental data, linking extrinsic factors to the development of a host of human diseases. Here, we review the evolution of ‘the developmental origins of health and disease’ as a concept and discuss recent advances in the association of specific stimuli to obesity, an epidemic cause of human morbidity and mortality.
Risk factors associated with pneumothorax in Malaysian neonatal intensive care units
Authors: Boo Nem‐Yun , Cheah Irene Guat‐Sim ,   for the Malaysian National Neonatal Registry
Published: January 2011

Aims:  This study aimed to determine the risk factors associated with the development of pneumothorax among infants admitted to the Malaysian neonatal intensive care units (NICUs).

Methods:  Twenty‐nine of forty NICUs in Malaysian public hospitals participated in the 2006 Malaysian National Neonatal Registry (MNNR). Data of infants from this registry with and without pneumothorax were analysed. A diagnosis of pneumothorax was made in the presence of extra‐pleural air detected by chest radiograph or needle aspiration.

Results:  There were 10 387 infants admitted to these NICUs who met the MNNR inclusion criteria and were included in this study. Pneumothorax developed in 505 (4.9%) of them. Pneumothorax was most common (7.3%) among the extremely low birthweight infants (birthweight equal or less than 1000 g) and the extremely preterm infants of gestation equal or less than 26 weeks (6.8%). Logistic regression analysis showed that the significant risk factors associated with increased risk of development of pneumothorax were: meconium aspiration syndrome (adjusted odds ratio (OR) = 2.1, 95% confidence intervals (CI): 1.7, 2.7), intermittent mandatory ventilation (adjusted OR = 1.5, 95% CI: 1.2, 2.0), high‐frequency oscillatory ventilation (adjusted OR = 3.9, 95% CI: 3.0, 5.2) and confirmed sepsis (adjusted OR = 1.6, 95% CI: 1.3, 2.1). Infants on nasal continuous positive airway pressure (nCPAP) therapy were associated with significantly lower risk of pneumothorax (adjusted OR = 0.5, 95% CI: 0.4, 0.6).

Conclusion:  Meconium aspiration syndrome, mechanical ventilation and sepsis were associated with increased risk and the use of nCPAP with decreased risk of pneumothorax in Malaysian NICUs.
Effects of laughter therapy on depression, cognition and sleep among the community‐dwelling elderly
Authors: Ko Hae‐Jin , Youn Chang‐Ho
Published: January 2011

Aim:  To investigate the effects of laughter therapy on depression, cognitive function, quality of life, and sleep of the elderly in a community.

Methods:  Between July and September 2007, the total study sample consisted of 109 subjects aged over 65 divided into two groups; 48 subjects in the laughter therapy group and 61 subjects in the control group. The subjects in the laughter therapy group underwent laughter therapy four times over 1 month. We compared Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS), Mini‐Mental State Examination (MMSE), Short‐Form Health Survey‐36 (SF‐36), Insomnia Severity Index (ISI) and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) between the two groups before and after laughter therapy.

Results:  There were no significant differences in baseline characteristics between the two groups. Before laughter therapy, the GDS scores were 7.98 ± 3.58 and 8.08 ± 3.96; the MMSE scores were 23.81 ± 3.90 and 22.74 ± 4.00; total scores of SF‐36 were 54.77 ± 17.63 and 52.54 ± 21.31; the ISI scores were 8.00 ± 6.29 and 8.36 ± 6.38; the PSQI scores were 6.98 ± 3.41 and 7.38 ± 3.70 in laughter therapy group and control groups, respectively. After laughter therapy, the GDS scores were 6.94 ± 3.19 (P = 0.027) and 8.43 ± 3.44 (P = 0.422); the MMSE scores were 24.63 ± 3.53 (P = 0.168) and 23.70 ± 3.85 (P = 0.068); total scores of SF‐36 were 52.24 ± 17.63 (P = 0.347) and 50.32 ± 19.66 (P = 0.392); the ISI scores were 7.58 ± 5.38 (P = 0.327) and 9.31 ± 6.35 (P = 0.019); the PSQI scores were 6.04 ± 2.35 (P = 0.019) and 7.30 ± 3.74 (P = 0.847) in both groups, respectively.

Conclusion:  Laughter therapy is considered to be useful, cost‐effective and easily‐accessible intervention that has positive effects on depression, insomnia, and sleep quality in the elderly. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2011; 11: 267–274.
Discrepancy between clinical and pathological stage: external validation of the impact on prognosis in an international radical cystectomy cohort
Authors: Svatek Robert S. , Shariat Shahrokh F. , Novara Giacomo , Skinner Eila C. , Fradet Yves , Bastian Patrick J. , Kamat Ashish M. , Kassouf Wassim , Karakiewicz Pierre I. , Fritsche Hans‐Martin , Izawa Jonathan I. , Tilki Derya , Ficarra Vincenzo , Volkmer Bjoern G. , Isbarn Hendrik , Dinney Colin P.
Published: January 2011

Study Type – Prognosis (case series) Level of Evidence 4

What’s known on the subject? and What does the study add?

Observations from small retrospective studies have indicated that a considerable number of patients undergoing radical cystectomy for bladder cancer experience a stage migration (either upstaging or downstaging) when comparing clinical and pathological staging. In addition, it is unclear if pathological upstaging is an adverse prognostic feature independent of pathological stage.

We report the frequency of upstaging and downstaging using a large, international multicentre cohort of patients undergoing radical cystectomy for bladder cancer without neoadjuvant chemotherapy. Our findings indicate that pathological upstaging is not an independent adverse prognostic feature when considering pathological stage.

OBJECTIVE

• To compare the clinical and pathologic stage among a large, multi‐institutional series of patients undergoing radical and to determine the effect of stage discrepancy on outcomes.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

• Data was collected from nine centers and 3,393 patients with urothelial carcinoma of the bladder (UCB) treated with radical cystectomy and pelvic lymphadenectomy without neo‐adjuvant chemotherapy.

• A retrospective cohort design was used to assess the percentage of patients experiencing stage discrepancy and the impact of stage discrepancy on time to disease relapse and time to death from UCB.

RESULTS

• Clinical under staging occurred in 50% of patients and pathologic down staging occurred in 18% of patients.

• Up staging to muscle invasive disease occurred in 45.9% (n = 592) of 1,291 patients with clinical ≤T1, including 30.6% of patients with Tis only at transurethral resection.

• Of the 3,166 patients with clinically organ confined (OC) tumor stage, 1,357 (42.9%) were up staged to non‐organ confined pathologic tumor stage.

• Within each clinical stage stratum, patients who were clinically under staged had a higher probability of disease relapse or death from UCB compared to those who were same staged or down staged on pathologic examination (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

• We identified clinical under staging in half of the patients undergoing radical cystectomy for UCB.

• Up staging resulted in a higher likelihood of disease progression and eventual death from UCB.

• These findings should be considered when utilizing pre‐operative risk‐adapted strategies for selecting candidates for neoadjuvant chemotherapy.
Inverse stage migration in patients undergoing radical prostatectomy: results of 8916 European patients treated within the last decade
Authors: Budäus Lars , Spethmann Jan , Isbarn Hendrik , Schmitges Jan , Beesch Laura , Haese Alexander , Salomon Georg , Schlomm Thorsten , Fisch Margit , Heinzer Hans , Huland Hartwig , Graefen Markus , Steuber Thomas
Published: January 2011

Study Type – Therapy (case series)

Level of Evidence 4

What’s known on the subject? and What does the study add?

The widespread use of PSA testing resulted in a stage migration towards clinical organ‐confined prostate cancers at diagnosis during the last decade. However, our study of a large cohort demonstrates an increasing proportion of patients with non‐organ confined cancers after radical prostatectomy. These findings may be related to the introduction of new, non‐established treatment options for low‐risk prostate cancer patients during the last years and the growing adoption of RP in a multimodal treatment setting for locally advanced tumours.

OBJECTIVE

• To investigate the stage migration patterns during the last decade in European men treated with radical prostatectomy (RP).

PATIENTS AND METHODS

• Between 2000 and 2009, RP was performed in 8916 patients at a single European tertiary‐care institution.

• Age at diagnosis, clinical and pathological data were prospectively collected, and trends and proportions of preoperative and pathological findings were analysed over time.

RESULTS

• The median (mean) age of patients increased from 62 (62) to 63 (65) years between 2000 and 2009 (P < 0.001).

• When patients were stratified based on their clinical findings according to the D’Amico risk groups for disease progression, the proportion of low‐risk patients dropped from 66% in 2004 to 35% (P= 0.016) in the final year of the study period.

• Similarly, histopathological evaluation of RP specimens showed a decrease of favourable disease (organ confinement and Gleason 3 + 3 grade) from 53 to 17% (P= 0.008).

• This trend was accompanied by an increase in the number of patients with non‐organ‐confined prostate cancer (PCa) from 19% in 2003 to 33% in 2009 (P= 0.008).

• The restriction of the analyses in the present study to a single tertiary‐care centre could limit the generalizeability of the results.

CONCLUSIONS

• During the last decade, we observed an inverse stage migration trend in those European patients with PCa who were treated with RP.

• The recorded increase in patients with non‐organ‐confined disease after RP could be related to changes in patient selection and the growing adoption of RP in multimodal treatment settings for locally advanced tumours as well as the availability of new treatment alternatives for low‐risk disease.
Cerebral infarction associated with transient visual loss in child with diabetic ketoacidosis
Authors: Lee H. S. , Hwang J. S.
Published: January 2011

Diabet. Med. 28, 516–518 (2011)

Background  Diabetic ketoacidosis is a metabolic disorder caused by insulin deficiency and is the most important cause of mortality and morbidity in children with Type 1 diabetes mellitus. Acute neurological complications related to diabetic ketoacidosis include cerebral oedema, cerebral infarction, brain herniation, cortical venous thrombosis and cerebral haemorrhage. Cerebral infarction is rare in juvenile diabetic ketoacidosis.

Case report  We report a girl with a newly diagnosed Type 1 diabetes mellitus who presented with diabetic ketoacidosis and developed cerebral infarction with transient visual loss.

Conclusions  Our findings emphasize the importance of prompt evaluation and proper management of intracranial crises in diabetic ketoacidosis.
How and why do patients with Type 1 diabetes sustain their use of flexible intensive insulin therapy? A qualitative longitudinal investigation of patients’ self‐management practices following attendance at a Dose Adjustment for Normal Eating (DAFNE) course
Authors: Rankin D. , Cooke D. D. , Clark M. , Heller S. , Elliott J. , Lawton J. ,   for the UK NIHR DAFNE Study Group
Published: January 2011

Diabet. Med. 28, 532–538 (2011)

Background  Conventional insulin therapy requires patients with Type 1 diabetes to adhere to rigid dietary and insulin injection practices. Recent trends towards flexible intensive insulin therapy enable patients to match insulin to dietary intake and lifestyle; however, little work has examined patients’ experiences of incorporating these practices into real‐life contexts. This qualitative longitudinal study explored patients’ experiences of using flexible intensive insulin therapy to help inform the development of effective long‐term support.

Methods  Semi‐structured interviews were conducted with 30 adult patients with Type 1 diabetes following participation in a structured education programme on using flexible intensive insulin therapy, and 6 and 12 months post‐course. Longitudinal data analysis used an inductive, thematic approach.

Results  Patients consistently reported feeling committed to and wanting to sustain flexible intensive insulin therapy. This regimen was seen as a logical and effective method of self‐management, as patients experienced improved blood glucose readings and/or reported feeling better. Implementing and sustaining flexible intensive insulin therapy was enhanced when patients had stable routines, with more challenges reported by those working irregular hours and during weekends/holidays. Some patients re‐crafted their lives to make this approach work for them; for instance, by creating dietary routines or adjusting dietary choices.

Conclusions  Clinical data have shown that flexible intensive insulin therapy can lead to improvement in glycaemic control. This study, drawing on patients’ perspectives, provides further endorsement for flexible intensive insulin therapy by demonstrating patients’ liking of, and their motivation to sustain, this approach over time. To help patients implement and sustain flexible intensive insulin therapy, follow‐up support should encourage them to identify routines to better integrate this regimen into their lives.
From Peg to Float: Exchange Market Pressure and Monetary Policy in the Czech Republic
Authors: Kemme David M. , Lyakir Gennady
Published: January 2011

Exchange market pressure (EMP) in the Czech Republic is calculated for 1995–2006, when the Czech National Bank transitioned to inflation targeting (IT). EMP is a useful indicator of incipient foreign exchange market pressures, a signal of the need for policy adjustments and a clear delineator of monetary policy regime change. VAR estimates clearly identify quite different policy responses during the two regimes. During 1995–98, interest rate and domestic credit responses to EMP were statistically significant and in accord with traditional theory, i.e. domestic credit creation and interest rates were managed to maintain the exchange rate target as if policymakers were explicitly responding to changes in EMP. During the 1998–2006 IT regime there is a link between domestic credit creation and EMP, with no interest rate effects. Exchange market interventions were incidental and supportive of IT goals. Impulse response functions mirror the VAR and Granger causality results.
Foreign News and Spillovers in Emerging European Stock Markets
Authors: Hanousek Jan , Kočenda Evžen
Published: January 2011

We analyze foreign news and spillovers in the emerging EU stock markets (the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Poland). We employ high‐frequency five‐minute intraday data on stock market index returns and four classes of EU and US macroeconomic announcements during 2004–07. We account for the difference of each announcement from its market expectation and we jointly model the volatility of the returns accounting for intraday movements and day‐of‐the‐week effects. Our findings show that intraday interactions on the new EU markets are strongly determined by mature stock markets as well as the macroeconomic news originating thereby. We show that strong contemporaneous links across markets are present even after controlling for macroeconomic announcements. Finally, in terms of specific announcements, we are able to show the exact sources of macro news spillovers from the developed foreign markets to the three new EU markets under research.
Linking Maternal Warmth and Responsiveness to Children's Self‐regulation
Authors: von Suchodoletz Antje , Trommsdorff Gisela , Heikamp Tobias
Published: January 2011

The present study demonstrated that a more differentiated view of positive parenting practices is necessary in the study of children's acquisition of self‐regulation. Here, the unique contributions of maternal warmth and responsiveness to distress to children's self‐regulation were tested in a sample of 102 German mothers and their kindergarten children (51 girls and 51 boys). Behavior regulation and internalization of rules of conduct were examined as specific components of children's self‐regulation. As expected, maternal warmth was positively related to the child's behavior regulation. Responsiveness to distress was positively linked to the child's internalization of rules of conduct. No significant interactions between maternal parenting and either the child's gender or effortful control were found. The results are discussed with regard to the unique functions that different parenting practices have for children's self‐regulation.
Adolescent Naturalistic Conceptions of Moral Maturity
Authors: Hardy Sam A. , Walker Lawrence J. , Olsen Joseph A. , Skalski Jonathan E. , Basinger Jason C.
Published: January 2011

Understanding lay conceptions of morality is important not only because they can guide moral psychology theory but also because they may play a role in everyday moral functioning. Thus, the purpose of this study was to examine adolescent conceptions of moral maturity. Study 1 (200 adolescents 12–18 years) involved a free‐listing procedure to generate traits descriptive of a moral person. In Study 2, involving 100 early (11–14 years) and 99 late (15–18 years) adolescents, the moral person traits obtained in the first study were rated in terms of how well they described a moral person. Study 3, with 234 early (10–14 years) and 240 late (15–18 years) adolescents, entailed a similarity‐sorting task and a rating procedure similar to that from Study 2. This set of studies uncovered early and late adolescents' implicit typologies of moral maturity and pointed to possible age similarities and differences.
Individual Differences in Infants' Emotional Resonance to a Peer in Distress: Self–Other Awareness and Emotion Regulation
Authors: Geangu Elena , Benga Oana , Stahl Daniel , Striano Tricia
Published: January 2011

In this study, relations between emotional resonance responses to another's distress, emotion regulation, and self‐other discrimination were investigated in infants three‐, six‐, and nine‐months‐old. We measured the emotional reactions to the pain cry of a peer, along with the ability to regulate emotions and to discriminate between self and other body movements. We found evidence that infants do regulate their emotional resonance responses to another's distress. This relation is age specific, with younger infants using more primitive self‐soothing behaviors, while in older participants attentional based strategies relate to affect sharing reactions. Only nine‐month‐old infants have shown self‐other differentiation abilities, and these were significantly connected to their emotions in response to a peer's distress. These findings have implications for our understanding of early empathy development.
Robustness and Accuracy of Methods for High Dimensional Data Analysis Based on Student’st-Statistic
Authors: Delaigle Aurore , Hall Peter , Jin Jiashun
Published: January 2011

Student’s t-statistic is finding applications today that were never envisaged when it was introduced more than a century ago. Many of these applications rely on properties, e.g. robustness against heavy-tailed sampling distributions, that were not explicitly considered until relatively recently. We explore these features of the t-statistic in the context of its application to very high dimensional problems, including feature selection and ranking, the simultaneous testing of many different hypotheses and sparse, high dimensional signal detection. Robustness properties of the t-ratio are highlighted, and it is established that those properties are preserved under applications of the bootstrap. In particular, bootstrap methods correct for skewness and therefore lead to second-order accuracy, even in the extreme tails. Indeed, it is shown that the bootstrap and also the more popular but less accurate t-distribution and normal approximations are more effective in the tails than towards the middle of the distribution. These properties motivate new methods, e.g. bootstrap-based techniques for signal detection, that confine attention to the significant tail of a statistic.
Penalized Composite Quasi-Likelihood for Ultrahigh Dimensional Variable Selection
Authors: Bradic Jelena , Fan Jianqing , Wang Weiwei
Published: January 2011

In high dimensional model selection problems, penalized least square approaches have been extensively used. The paper addresses the question of both robustness and efficiency of penalized model selection methods and proposes a data-driven weighted linear combination of convex loss functions, together with weighted L1-penalty. It is completely data adaptive and does not require prior knowledge of the error distribution. The weighted L1-penalty is used both to ensure the convexity of the penalty term and to ameliorate the bias that is caused by the L1-penalty. In the setting with dimensionality much larger than the sample size, we establish a strong oracle property of the method proposed that has both the model selection consistency and estimation efficiency for the true non-zero coefficients. As specific examples, we introduce a robust method of composite L1–L2, and an optimal composite quantile method and evaluate their performance in both simulated and real data examples.
The Landlord And Tenant (Temporary Provisions) Act, 1958
Authors: Montgomerie John
Published: January 2011

The Rent Act, 1957, gave to a tenant whose house was decontrolled by reason of its rateable value a breathing space of fifteen months which came to an end on October 6, 1958. That was the earliest date upon which the six‐months' notice terminating his right of occupation could take effect. During that period he retained security of tenure and if the landlord wanted to put up his rent he had to offer him a three‐year lease. There was no obligation put upon landlords to offer such a lease although from time to time the Minister of Housing and Local Government belaboured those who did not do so. In the result some tenants accepted three‐year leases which by all accounts were usually on reasonable terms but sometimes were very onerous indeed. Others bought the house in which they were living or another house or moved out to relatives. But there remained a considerable hard core of tenants who had not been offered leases by their landlords and who faced eviction on October 6 without having been able to make any alternative arrangements. To these at the eleventh hour the Landlord and Tenant (Temporary Provisions) Act, 1958, has brought some further relief.
Aiding And Abetting A Statutory Offence
Authors: Downey B. W. M.
Published: January 2011

HAD Slade J. been in a position to agree with the other members of the Divisional Court in National Coal Board v. Gamble,1 the case might have provided some important guidance on the question of the criminal responsibility of corporations for the acts of their servants or agents. As it was, the case turned upon the narrower question of the intent necessary to constitute the offence of aiding and abetting.
Disguised Extradition: The Soblen Case1
Authors: O'Higgins Paul
Published: January 2011

“… Had the country demanding Dr. Soblen's return been Mexico, for instance, or Finland—the examples are random—the story would not have been the same. But it was a cold war situation, and the cold war is an enemy of decency and consistency.” Comment in the Criminal Law Review.2
Competing Interests and Conflicting Principles: An Examination of the Power of Alteration of Articles of Association
Authors: Rixon F. G.
Published: January 2011

One learns the vast difficulty of generalising on any matter of principle, just because, short of genius, there are very few minds that have the imaginative grasp to see the full implications of a generalisation … And, perhaps, only their successors who have to work upon them appreciate how flashy have been the gnomic utterances of some of our best known judicial sages.1
TINKERING WITH THE CONSTITUTION
Authors: Loughlin Martin
Published: January 2011

The Noble Lie. The British Constitution and the Rule of Law. By Ian Harden and Norman Lewis.
A POLITICAL ANALYSIS OF PROCEDURAL LAW
Authors: Stein Alex
Published: January 2011

The Faces of Justice and State Authority. By Mirjan R. Damaska.
Liability in Negligence for Nervous Shock
Authors: Robertson David W.
Published: January 2011

Nicholas J. Mullany and Peter R. Handford, Tort Liability for Psychiatric Damage: The Law of ‘Nervous Shock,’
Sexuality and Law in the New Europe
Authors: Bamforth Nicholas
Published: January 2011

Kees Waaldijk and Andrew Clapham (eds), Homosexuality: A European Community Issue—Essays on Lesbian and Gay Rights in European Law and Policy
Bringing Cinderella to the Ball: Teaching Criminal Law in Context
Authors: Farmer Lindsay
Published: January 2011

Alan Norrie, Crime, Reason and History: A Critical Introduction to Criminal Law, London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 1993, xx + 279 pp, pb £16.95.
Psoriasis: is it the tip of the iceberg for the quality of life of patients and their families?
Authors: Tadros A. , Vergou T. , Stratigos A.J. , Tzavara C. , Hletsos M. , Katsambas A. , Antoniou C.
Published: January 2011

Objective  To evaluate the impact of psoriasis on patients’ and their relatives’ quality of life (QoL).

Methods  Eighty patients with their accompanying family members were included in the study. For measuring health related QoL (HRQoL) of patients with psoriasis, two questionnaires were used: Short Form 36 Health Survey (SF‐36) and EuroQol (EQ‐5D). Disease‐specific HRQoL was assessed by the Dermatology Life Quality Index. For measuring the quality of life of patients’ relatives, a specific questionnaire for dermatological diseases was used (Family Dermatology Life Quality Index, FDLQI).

Results  Of our patients, 88.3% reported that their disease affects in many and different ways their QoL whereas only 11.2% reported that psoriasis does not influence at all their life. Regarding FDLQI, 90% of the participating family members, responded that their relative’s psoriasis affected their own QoL.

Conclusions  Psoriasis is a chronic disease that affects in a cumulative way the quality of life of both patients and their close relatives.
Evaluation of sensitive scalp severity and symptomatology by using a new score
Authors: Misery L. , Rahhali N. , Ambonati M. , Black D. , Saint‐Martory C. , Schmitt A.‐M. , Taieb C.
Published: January 2011

Background  Among localizations of sensitive skin, scalp is one of the less known.

Objectives  We performed a study for a better understanding of sensitive scalp and proposed a new score: the 3S score.

Methods  An opinion poll was conducted on 2117 persons, which were representative of the French population. The total score was obtained by multiplying score severity of abnormal sensations by the number of these sensations.

Results  About one‐third of the population declared to suffer from a sensitive scalp. It was increasingly frequent with age. The 3S questionnaire allowed discrimination among subjects with slightly sensitive, sensitive and very sensitive scalps. Itching and prickling were the most frequent symptoms. Sensitive scalp was sometimes associated with some scalp diseases. Dandruff cannot be considered as a symptom of sensitive scalp.

Conclusions  This study is only the third reported study about sensitive scalp. The 3S questionnaire is a convenient and effective tool for investigating the severity and symptomatology of the sensitive scalp.
Comparisons of clinical features of HLA‐DRB1*07 positive and negative vitiligo patients in Chinese Han population
Authors: Hu D.‐Y. , Ren Y.‐Q. , Zhu K.‐J. , Lv Y.‐M. , Cheng H. , Zhang Z. , Li Y. , He S.‐M. , Tang J. , Liu J.‐L. , Lin Y. , Sun Y.‐Y. , Zuo X.‐B. , Chen G. , Sun L.‐D. , Yang S. , Zhang X.‐J.
Published: January 2011

Background  Human leucocyte antigen (HLA)‐II alleles have been found to be associated with vitiligo in different populations, and several studies also suggested that HLA class II alleles/haplotypes were associated with a different type vitiligo. Of HLA class II alleles, DRB1*07 has consistently shown a positive association with vitiligo in Chinese Han population.

Objective  To further explore the relationship between DRB1*07 and vitiligo and to evaluate the DRB1*07 effect on the clinical features of vitiligo in Chinese Han population.

Methods  This study investigated DRB1*07 allele distribution in 1178 unrelated Chinese vitiligo patients and 1743 healthy controls using polymerase chain reaction/sequence specific primer method and observed clinical differences between DRB1*07 positive and DRB1*07 negative patients.

Results  The analysis of the 1178 cases and 1743 controls revealed a highly association between DRB1*07 allele and vitiligo [odds ratio (OR) = 1.97, P = 2.13 × 10−17]. DRB1*07 positive patients had early disease onset (OR = 1.49, P = 0.001), higher frequency of family history (OR = 1.44, P = 0.006) compared with DRB1*07 negative patients.

Conclusions  The DRB1*07 showed significant association with vitiligo in the study population. This study confirmed that DRB1*07 positive patients had some obvious clinical differences from DRB1*07 negative patients in the Chinese Han population.
A Flexible Model for Association Analysis in Sibships with Missing Genotype Data
Authors: Dudbridge Frank , Holmans Peter A. , Wilson Scott G.
Published: January 2011

A common design in family‐based association studies consists of siblings without parents. Several methods have been proposed for analysis of sibship data, but they mostly do not allow for missing data, such as haplotype phase or untyped markers. On the other hand, general methods for nuclear families with missing data are computationally intensive when applied to sibships, since every family has missing parents that could have many possible genotypes. We propose a computationally efficient model for sibships by conditioning on the sets of alleles transmitted into the sibship by each parent. This means that the likelihood can be written only in terms of transmitted alleles and we do not have to sum over all possible untransmitted alleles when they cannot be deduced from the siblings. The model naturally accommodates missing data and admits standard theory of estimation, testing, and inclusion of covariates. Our model is quite robust to population stratification and can test for association in the presence of linkage. We show that our model has similar power to FBAT for single marker analysis and improved power for haplotype analysis. Compared to summing over all possible untransmitted alleles, we achieve similar power with considerable reductions in computation time.
An inverse correlation between the apparent rate of dopamine clearance and tonic autoinhibition in subdomains of the rat striatum: a possible role of transporter‐mediated dopamine efflux
Authors: Moquin Keith F. , Michael Adrian C.
Published: January 2011

J. Neurochem. (2011)117, 133–142.

The dopaminergic terminal field in the rat striatum is compartmentalized into sub‐domains that exhibit distinct dynamics of electrically evoked dopamine release. The fast striatal domains, where dopamine release is predominantly vesicular, exhibit conventional dopaminergic activity. However, vesicular dopamine release is tonically autoinhibited in the slow domains, which suggests that dopamine reaches the autoreceptors via a non‐vesicular route. Hence, it appears that the domains use distinct mechanisms to regulate the basal dopamine concentration available to activate, or not, pre‐synaptic autoinhibitory receptors. However, direct detection of local variations in tonic extracellular dopamine concentrations is not yet possible. So, the present study employed voltammetry to test the hypothesis that the apparent rate of dopamine clearance from the extracellular space should be domain‐dependent. The apparent rate of dopamine clearance is equal to the difference in the rates of dopamine release and uptake that determine extracellular dopamine concentrations. This study confirms that the apparent rate of dopamine clearance is slower in the slow striatal domains where vesicular dopamine release is tonically autoinhibited. These findings support the view that the basal concentration in slow domains is maintained by a non‐vesicular release process, possibly transporter‐mediated efflux.