bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Loss of Hypoxia-Inducible Factor Prolyl Hydroxylase Activity in Cardiomyocytes Phenocopies Ischemic Cardiomyopathy
Authors: Moslehi Javid , Minamishima Yoji Andrew , Shi Jianru , Neuberg Donna , Charytan David M. , Padera Robert F. , Signoretti Sabina , Liao Ronglih , Kaelin William G.
Published: August 2010

Background—

Ischemic cardiomyopathy is the major cause of heart failure and a significant cause of morbidity and mortality. The degree of left ventricular dysfunction in this setting is often out of proportion to the amount of overtly infarcted tissue, and how decreased delivery of oxygen and nutrients leads to impaired contractility remains incompletely understood. The Prolyl Hydroxylase Domain-Containing Protein (PHD) prolyl hydroxylases are oxygen-sensitive enzymes that transduce changes in oxygen availability into changes in the stability of the hypoxia-inducible factor transcription factor, a master regulator of genes that promote survival in a low-oxygen environment.

Methods and Results—

We found that cardiac-specific PHD inactivation causes ultrastructural, histological, and functional changes reminiscent of ischemic cardiomyopathy over time. Moreover, long-term expression of a stabilized hypoxia-inducible factor α variant in cardiomyocytes also led to dilated cardiomyopathy.

Conclusion—

Sustained loss of PHD activity and subsequent hypoxia-inducible factor activation, as would occur in the setting of chronic ischemia, are sufficient to account for many of the changes in the hearts of individuals with chronic coronary artery disease.
Differential Cardiac Remodeling in Preload Versus Afterload
Authors: Toischer Karl , Rokita Adam G. , Unsöld Bernhard , Zhu Wuqiang , Kararigas Georgios , Sossalla Samuel , Reuter Sean P. , Becker Alexander , Teucher Nils , Seidler Tim , Grebe Cornelia , Preuß Lena , Gupta Shamindra N. , Schmidt Kathie , Lehnart Stephan E. , Krüger Martina , Linke Wolfgang A. , Backs Johannes , Regitz-Zagrosek Vera , Schäfer Katrin , Field Loren J. , Maier Lars S. , Hasenfuss Gerd
Published: August 2010

Background—

Hemodynamic load regulates myocardial function and gene expression. We tested the hypothesis that afterload and preload, despite similar average load, result in different phenotypes.

Methods and Results—

Afterload and preload were compared in mice with transverse aortic constriction (TAC) and aortocaval shunt (shunt). Compared with sham mice, 6 hours after surgery, systolic wall stress (afterload) was increased in TAC mice (+40%;
P
<0.05), diastolic wall stress (preload) was increased in shunt (+277%;
P
<0.05) and TAC mice (+74%;
P
<0.05), and mean total wall stress was similarly increased in TAC (69%) and shunt mice (67%) (
P
=NS, TAC versus shunt; each
P
<0.05 versus sham). At 1 week, left ventricular weight/tibia length was significantly increased by 22% in TAC and 29% in shunt mice (
P
=NS, TAC versus shunt). After 24 hours and 1 week, calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II signaling was increased in TAC. This resulted in altered calcium cycling, including increased L-type calcium current, calcium transients, fractional sarcoplasmic reticulum calcium release, and calcium spark frequency. In shunt mice, Akt phosphorylation was increased. TAC was associated with inflammation, fibrosis, and cardiomyocyte apoptosis. The latter was significantly reduced in calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase IIδ-knockout TAC mice. A total of 157 mRNAs and 13 microRNAs were differentially regulated in TAC versus shunt mice. After 8 weeks, fractional shortening was lower and mortality was higher in TAC versus shunt mice.

Conclusions—

Afterload results in maladaptive fibrotic hypertrophy with calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II–dependent altered calcium cycling and apoptosis. Preload is associated with Akt activation without fibrosis, little apoptosis, better function, and lower mortality. This indicates that different loads result in distinct phenotype differences that may require specific pharmacological interventions.
C5a Receptor Targeting in Neointima Formation After Arterial Injury in Atherosclerosis-Prone Mice
Authors: Shagdarsuren Erdenechimeg , Bidzhekov Kiril , Mause Sebastian F. , Simsekyilmaz Sakine , Polakowski Thomas , Hawlisch Heiko , Gessner J. Engelbert , Zernecke Alma , Weber Christian
Published: August 2010

Background—

Receptor binding of complement C5a leads to proinflammatory activation of many cell types, but the role of receptor-mediated action during arterial remodeling after injury has not been studied. In the present study, we examined the contribution of the C5a receptor (C5aR) to neointima formation in apolipoprotein E–deficient mice employing a C5aR antagonist (C5aRA) and a C5aR-blocking monoclonal antibody.

Methods and Results—

Mice fed an atherogenic diet were subjected to wire-induced endothelial denudation of the carotid artery and treated with C5aRA and anti-C5aR-blocking monoclonal antibody or vehicle control. Compared with controls, neointima formation was significantly reduced in mice receiving C5aRA or anti-C5aR-blocking monoclonal antibody for 1 week but not for 3 weeks, attributable to an increased content of vascular smooth muscle cells, whereas a marked decrease in monocyte and neutrophil content was associated with reduced vascular cell adhesion molecule-1. As assessed by immunohistochemistry, reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction, and flow cytometry, C5aR was expressed in lesional and cultured vascular smooth muscle cells, upregulated by injury or tumor necrosis factor-α, and reduced by C5aRA. Plasma levels and neointimal plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 peaked 1 week after injury and were downregulated in C5aRA-treated mice. In vitro, C5a induced plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 expression in endothelial cells and vascular smooth muscle cells in a C5aRA-dependent manner, possibly accounting for higher vascular smooth muscle cell immigration.

Conclusions—

One-week treatment with C5aRA or anti-C5aR-blocking monoclonal antibody limited neointimal hyperplasia and inflammatory cell content and was associated with reduced vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 expression. However, treatment for 3 weeks failed to reduce but rather stabilized plaques, likely by reducing vascular plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 and increasing vascular smooth muscle cell migration.
Trends in Time to Confirmation and Recognition of New-Onset Hypertension, 2002–2006
Authors: Selby Joe V. , Lee Janelle , Swain Bix E. , Tavel Heather M. , Ho P. Michael , Margolis Karen L. , O'Connor Patrick J. , Fine Lawrence , Schmittdiel Julie A. , Magid David. J.
Published: August 2010

Achieving full benefits of blood pressure control in populations requires prompt recognition of previously undetected hypertension. In 2003, the Seventh Report of the Joint National Committee on Prevention, Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Pressure provided definitions of hypertension and recommended that single elevated readings be confirmed within 1 to 2 months. We sought to determine whether the time required to confirm and recognize (ie, diagnose and/or treat) new-onset hypertension decreased from 2002 to 2006 for adult members of 2 large integrated healthcare delivery systems, Kaiser Permanente Northern California and Colorado. Using electronically stored office blood pressure readings, physician diagnoses, and pharmacy prescriptions, we identified 200 587 patients with new-onset hypertension (2002–2006) marked by 2 consecutive elevated blood pressure readings in previously undiagnosed, untreated members. Mean confirmation intervals (time from the first to second consecutive elevated reading) declined steadily from 103 to 89 days during this period. For persons recognized within 12 months after confirmation, the mean interval to recognition declined from 78 to 61 days. However, only 33% of individuals were recognized within 12 months. One third were never recognized during observed follow-up. For these patients, most subsequent blood pressure recordings were not elevated. Higher initial blood pressure levels, history of previous cardiovascular disease, and older age were associated with shorter times to recognition. Times to confirmation and recognition of new-onset hypertension have become shorter in recent years, especially for patients with higher cardiovascular disease risk. Variability in office-based blood pressure readings suggests that further improvements in recognition and treatment may be achieved with more specific automated approaches to identifying hypertension.
First Trimester Vitamin D, Vitamin D Binding Protein, and Subsequent Preeclampsia
Authors: Powe Camille E. , Seely Ellen W. , Rana Sarosh , Bhan Ishir , Ecker Jeffrey , Karumanchi S. Ananth , Thadhani Ravi
Published: August 2010

Previous studies report an association between vitamin D deficiency and hypertension, including the pregnancy-specific disorder preeclampsia. Circulating vitamin D is almost entirely bound to vitamin D binding protein, which increases 2-fold during pregnancy and previous studies have not examined vitamin D binding protein or free vitamin D levels. We performed a nested case-control study within the Massachusetts General Hospital Obstetric Maternal Study, measuring first trimester total 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25[OH]D) and vitamin D binding protein and calculating free 25(OH)D levels. We compared these levels from pregnancies complicated by subsequent preeclampsia (cases, n=39) with those from normotensive pregnancies (controls, n=131). First trimester total 25(OH)D levels were similar in cases and controls (27.4±1.9 versus 28.8±0.80 ng/mL;
P
=0.435). Despite an association between higher first trimester blood pressures and subsequent preeclampsia, first trimester total 25(OH)D was not associated with first trimester systolic (
r
=0.11;
P
=0.16) or diastolic blood pressures (
r
=0.03;
P
=0.72). Although there was a trend toward increased risk of preeclampsia with 25(OH)D levels <15 ng/mL (odds ratio: 2.5 [95% CI: 0.89 to 6.90]), this was attenuated after adjustment for body mass index and other covariates (odds ratio: 1.35 [95% CI: 0.40 to 4.50]). First trimester vitamin D binding protein and free 25(OH)D levels were similar in cases and controls and were not associated with first trimester blood pressures. These data suggest that first trimester total and free 25(OH)D levels are not independently associated with first trimester blood pressure or subsequent preeclampsia.
Viral Architecture, Viral Landscapes: The Impact of Modern Science on Helen Chadwick's Art
Authors: Walker Stephen
Published: August 2010

This article addresses certain enduring interests that the British artist Helen Chadwick (1953–1996) pursued over the course of her career. While she produced a diverse range of work using a wide range of media, the article will focus on her theoretical considerations of the conjunction of self and world, emphasizing her interest in, and the importance she attached to, the understanding of nature and our place “within” it. She was dissatisfied with received explanations of this relationship, which in her view remained more or less within a Newtonian, mechanical framework. Her research and practice signaled an alternate approach, a “viral technique,” informed by and accommodating her interest in modern biology and physics.
Contemplating Moments
Authors: Johnson Nigel , Albada Duke , Lawrence Dave
Published: August 2010

Moments is an art installation that asks you to pause for a moment … to contemplate. This article reflects on the process of the collaboration, as well as outlining the conceptual and practical issues of the project. The work was realized within the framework of the European Mobile Lab for Interactive Artists (e-MobiLArt) and funded through the CULTURE 2007 Programme of the European Union.
Assessment of Reanalysis Daily Extreme Temperatures with China’s Homogenized Historical Dataset during 1979–2001 Using Probability Density Functions
Authors: Mao Jiafu , Shi Xiaoying , Ma Lijuan , Kaiser Dale P. , Li Qingxiang , Thornton Peter E.
Published: August 2010

Using a recently homogenized observational daily maximum (TMAX) and minimum temperature (TMIN) dataset for China, the extreme temperatures from the 40-yr ECMWF Re-Analysis (ERA-40), the Japanese 25-year Reanalysis (JRA-25), the NCEP/Department of Energy Global Reanalysis 2 (NCEP-2), and the ECMWF’s ERA-Interim (ERAIn) reanalyses for summer (June–August) and winter (December–February) are assessed by probability density functions for the periods 1979–2001 and 1990–2001. For 1979–2001, no single reanalysis appears to be consistently accurate across eight areas examined over China. The ERA-40 and JRA-25 reanalyses show similar representations and close skill scores over most of the regions of China for both seasons. NCEP-2 generally has lower skill scores, especially over regions with complex topography. The regional and seasonal differences identified are commonly associated with different geographical locations and the methods used to diagnose these quantities. All the selected reanalysis products exhibit better performance for winter compared to summer over most regions of China. The TMAX values from the reanalysis tend to be systematically underestimated, while TMIN is systematically closer to observed values than TMAX. Comparisons of the reanalyses to reproduce the 99.7 percentiles for TMAX and 0.3 percentiles for TMIN show that most reanalyses tend to underestimate the 99.7 percentiles in maximum temperature both in summer and winter. For the 0.3 percentiles in TMIN, NCEP-2 is relatively inaccurate with a −12°C cold bias over the Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau in winter. ERA-40 and JRA-25 generally overestimate the extreme TMIN, and the extreme percentage differences of ERA-40 and JRA-25 are quite similar over all of the regions. The results are generally similar for 1990–2001, but in contrast to the other three reanalysis products the newly released ERAIn is very reasonable, especially for wintertime TMIN, with a skill score greater than 0.83 for each region of China. This demonstrates the great potential of this product for use in future impact assessments on continental scales where those impacts are based on extreme temperatures.
Frontal Scale Air–Sea Interaction in High-Resolution Coupled Climate Models
Authors: Bryan Frank O. , Tomas Robert , Dennis John M. , Chelton Dudley B. , Loeb Norman G. , McClean Julie L.
Published: August 2010

The emerging picture of frontal scale air–sea interaction derived from high-resolution satellite observations of surface winds and sea surface temperature (SST) provides a unique opportunity to test the fidelity of high-resolution coupled climate simulations. Initial analysis of the output of a suite of Community Climate System Model (CCSM) experiments indicates that characteristics of frontal scale ocean–atmosphere interaction, such as the positive correlation between SST and surface wind stress, are realistically captured only when the ocean component is eddy resolving. The strength of the coupling between SST and surface stress is weaker than observed, however, as has been found previously for numerical weather prediction models and other coupled climate models. The results are similar when the atmospheric component model grid resolution is doubled from 0.5° to 0.25°, an indication that shortcomings in the representation of subgrid scale atmospheric planetary boundary layer processes, rather than resolved scale processes, are responsible for the weakness of the coupling. In the coupled model solutions the response to mesoscale SST features is strongest in the atmospheric boundary layer, but there is a deeper reaching response of the atmospheric circulation apparent in free tropospheric clouds. This simulated response is shown to be consistent with satellite estimates of the relationship between mesoscale SST and all-sky albedo.
Surface Ocean Mixing Inferred from Different Multisatellite Altimetry Measurements
Authors: Beron-Vera Francisco J. , Olascoaga María J. , Goni Gustavo J.
Published: August 2010

Two sea surface height (SSH) anomaly fields distributed by Archiving, Validation, and Interpretation of Satellite Oceanographic (AVISO) Altimetry are evaluated in terms of the effects that they produce on mixing. One SSH anomaly field, tagged REF, is constructed using measurements made by two satellite altimeters; the other SSH anomaly field, tagged UPD, is constructed using measurements made by up to four satellite altimeters. Advection is supplied by surface geostrophic currents derived from the total SSH fields resulting from the addition of these SSH anomaly fields to a mean SSH field. Emphasis is placed on the extraction from the currents of Lagrangian coherent structures (LCSs), which, acting as skeletons for patterns formed by passively advected tracers, entirely control mixing. The diagnostic tool employed to detect LCSs is provided by the computation of finite-time Lyapunov exponents. It is found that currents inferred using UPD SSH anomalies support mixing with characteristics similar to those of mixing produced by currents inferred using REF SSH anomalies. This result mainly follows from the fact that, being more easily characterized as chaotic than turbulent, mixing as sustained by currents derived using UPD SSH anomalies is quite insensitive to spatiotemporal truncations of the advection field.
On the Calculation of Available Potential Energy in Internal Wave Fields
Authors: Kang Dujuan , Fringer Oliver
Published: August 2010

A comparison of three common formulations for calculating the available potential energy (APE) in internal wave fields is presented. The formulations are the perturbation APE (APE1), the exact local APE (APE2), and its approximation for linear stratification (APE3). The relationship among these formulations is illustrated through a graphical interpretation and a derivation of the energy conservation laws. Numerical simulations are carried out to quantitatively assess the performance of each APE formulation under the influence of different nonlinear and nonhydrostatic effects. The results show that APE2 is the most attractive in evaluating the local APE, especially for nonlinear internal waves, since use of APE2 introduces the smallest errors when computing the energy conservation laws. Larger errors arise when using APE1 because of the large disparity in magnitude between the kinetic energy and APE1. It is shown that the disparity in the tendency of APE1 is compensated by a large flux arising from the reference pressure and density fields. Because the tendency of the kinetic energy is close to that of APE3, computational errors arise when using APE3 only in the presence of nonlinear stratification, and these errors increase for stronger flow nonlinearity.
Conservative Transport Schemes for Spherical Geodesic Grids: High-Order Reconstructions for Forward-in-Time Schemes
Authors: Skamarock William C. , Menchaca Maximo
Published: August 2010

The finite-volume transport scheme of Miura, for icosahedral–hexagonal meshes on the sphere, is extended by using higher-order reconstructions of the transported scalar within the formulation. The use of second- and fourth-order reconstructions, in contrast to the first-order reconstruction used in the original scheme, results in significantly more accurate solutions at a given mesh density, and better phase and amplitude error characteristics in standard transport tests. The schemes using the higher-order reconstructions also exhibit much less dependence of the solution error on the time step compared to the original formulation.

The original scheme of Miura was only tested using a nondeformational time-independent flow. The deformational time-dependent flow test used to examine 2D planar transport in Blossey and Durran is adapted to the sphere, and the schemes are subjected to this test. The results largely confirm those generated using the simpler tests. The results also indicate that the scheme using the second-order reconstruction is most efficient and its use is recommended over the scheme using the first-order reconstruction. The second-order reconstruction uses the same computational stencil as the first-order reconstruction and thus does not create any additional parallelization issues.
Multiscale Interactions in the Life Cycle of a Tropical Cyclone Simulated in a Global Cloud-System-Resolving Model. Part I: Large-Scale and Storm-Scale Evolutions*
Authors: Fudeyasu Hironori , Wang Yuqing , Satoh Masaki , Nasuno Tomoe , Miura Hiroaki , Yanase Wataru
Published: August 2010

The Nonhydrostatic Icosahedral Atmospheric Model (NICAM), a global cloud-system-resolving model, successfully simulated the life cycle of Tropical Storm Isobel that formed over the Timor Sea in the austral summer of 2006. The multiscale interactions in the life cycle of the simulated storm were analyzed in this study. The large-scale aspects that affected Isobel’s life cycle are documented in this paper and the corresponding mesoscale processes are documented in a companion paper.

The life cycle of Isobel was largely controlled by a Madden–Julian oscillation (MJO) event and the associated westerly wind burst (WWB). The MJO was found to have both positive and negative effects on the tropical cyclone intensity depending on the location of the storm relative to the WWB center associated with the MJO. The large-scale low-level convergence and high convective available potential energy (CAPE) downwind of the WWB center provided a favorable region to the cyclogenesis and intensification, whereas the strong large-scale stretching deformation field upwind of the WWB center may weaken the storm by exciting wavenumber-2 asymmetries in the eyewall and leading to the eyewall breakdown.

Five stages are identified for the life cycle of the simulated Isobel: the initial eddy, intensifying, temporary weakening, reintensifying, and decaying stages. The initial eddy stage was featured by small-scale/mesoscale convective cyclonic vortices developed in the zonally elongated rainband organized in the preconditioned environment characterized by the WWB over the Java Sea associated with the onset of an MJO event over the East Indian Ocean. As the MJO propagated eastward and the cyclonic eddies moved southward into an environment with weak vertical shear and strong low-level cyclonic vorticity, a typical tropical cyclone structure developed over the Java Sea, namely the genesis of Isobel. Isobel experienced an eyewall breakdown and a temporary weakening when it was located upwind of the WWB center as the MJO propagated southeastward and reintensified as its eyewall reformed as a result of the axisymmetrization of an inward spiraling outer rainband that originally formed downwind of the WWB center. Finally Isobel decayed as it approached the northwest coast of Australia.
Seasonal Prediction of Tropical Cyclone Activity Near Taiwan Using the Bayesian Multivariate Regression Method
Authors: Lu Mong-Ming , Chu Pao-Shin , Lin Yun-Ching
Published: August 2010

A Poisson generalized linear regression model cast within a Bayesian framework is applied to forecast the seasonal tropical cyclone (TC) counts in the vicinity of Taiwan. The TC season considered is June–November and the data period used for model development is 1979–2007. A stepwise regression procedure is applied for predictor selection. Three large-scale climate variables, namely, relative vorticity at 850 hPa (Vor850), vertical wind shear, and sea level pressure over the western and central North Pacific from the antecedent May, are selected as predictors. Leave-one-out cross validation is performed and forecast skill is thoroughly evaluated. The skill level of the Bayesian regression model is better than what can be achieved by climatology and persistence methods. Most importantly, the Bayesian probabilistic inference can provide an uncertainty expression in the parameter estimation. Among the three predictors, Vor850 is found to be the most important because it reflects the variation of the ridge position of the westward extension of the western Pacific subtropical high. The model shows negative bias during the years with successive TCs, which are generated by easterly waves before approaching Taiwan. Recommendations for real-time operational forecast and future development are discussed.
Class as a Normative Category: Egalitarian Reasons to Take It Seriously (With a South African Case Study)
Authors: Glaser Daryl
Published: August 2010

Race and sex/gender are commonly argued to deserve equal priority with class oppression in egalitarian politics. However, placing race and sex in the same list as what is here termed “standard-of-living class” constitutes a category error. Standard of living, alongside power and status, belongs to a distinctive list of “metrics of hierarchy” that should be accorded priority in an important respect: in the specification of the hierarchies (or “distribution strata”) that egalitarians seek ultimately to eliminate or reduce. Race and sex, along with other “differentiators,” matter primarily for the way they are “used” by social arrangements (e.g., apartheid, patriarchy, capitalism) to assign persons to places in hierarchies of living standard, power, and status. Examining policies to promote black capitalism in post-apartheid South Africa, the author shows how the conflation of differentiators (race, in this case) and distribution strata (like standard-of-living class) is complicit in justifying multiracialized inequality.
Economic Ideas and the Political Process: Debating Tax Cuts in the U.S. House of Representatives, 1962-1981
Authors: Popp Berman Elizabeth , Pagnucco Nicholas
Published: August 2010

While sociologists and political scientists have become interested in the role of ideas in the political process, relatively little work looks at how ideological claims are actually deployed in political discourse. This article examines the economic claims made in two pairs of Congressional debates over tax cuts, one (in 1962 and 1964) generally associated with Keynesian economic theories, and one (in 1978 and 1981) tied to supply-side ideas. While these bills were indeed initiated by groups subscribing to different economic ideologies, subsequent debates look surprisingly similar. The bills were closer in substance than one might expect, and while their proponents came from opposite political camps, in both cases supporters focused more on supply-side than demand-side effects and emphasized tax cuts’ ability to pay for themselves through economic stimulation. The authors propose that politically acceptable economic claims may evolve more slowly than the economic theories that inspire policy entrepreneurs, and that this “discursive opportunity structure” may not only constrain the political process but may potentially shape the political effects of expert knowledge.
Averting “Disruption and Reversal”: Reassessing the Logic of Rapid Trade Reform in Latin America
Authors: Samford Steven
Published: August 2010

This study revisits the debate on trade reform in Latin America, focusing specifically on what combinations of conditions were necessary and sufficient for very rapid trade liberalization. It departs significantly from two types of studies that have been previously used to examine Latin American trade reform: (1) those using large samples and linear statistics to test the mean effects of variables on levels of trade protection and (2) those isolating necessary conditions for rapid reform but using a small number of case studies. Using fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis and short case studies, the study considers trade policy in sixty-one administrations. It finds that a key motivating factor for rapid trade opening is potential resistance from protected industry; it further identifies several other important enabling conditions, such as hyperinflation, devaluation, and an unconstrained executive. In combination, these enabling conditions are sufficient to account for a high percentage of rapid reform episodes.
Retrofitting the Suburbs to Increase Walking: Evidence from a Land-use-Travel Study
Authors: Boarnet Marlon G. , Joh Kenneth , Siembab Walter , Fulton William , Mai Thi Nguyen
Published: August 2010

This paper reports results from a detailed travel diary survey of 2125 residents in the South Bay area of Los Angeles County—a mature, auto-oriented suburban region. Study areas were divided into four centres, typical of compact development or smart growth, and four linear, auto-oriented corridors. Results show substantial variation in the amount of walking across study areas. Trips are shorter and more likely to be via walking in centres. A key to the centres’ increased walking travel is the concentration of local shopping and service destinations in a commercial core. Yet the amount of business concentration that is associated with highly pedestrian-oriented neighbourhoods is from three to four times as large as what can be supported by the local resident base, suggesting that pedestrian-oriented neighbourhoods necessarily import shopping trips, and hence driving trips, from larger surrounding catchment areas. The results suggest both land use and mobility strategies that can be appropriate for suburban regions.
Constrained switching stabilization of linear uncertain switched systems using piecewise linear Lyapunov functions
Authors: Yfoulis Christos A.
Published: August 2010

The problem of switching stabilizability of linear uncertain switched systems with unstable modes has recently attracted increased interest. For a given collection of unstable linear uncertain subsystems, the problem is to determine asymptotically stabilizing switching signals or to ascertain the absence of such laws. In this paper, we deal with the switching stabilizability problem for a class of autonomous continuous-time switched linear systems with time-varying parametric uncertainties in the presence of additional state constraints. With a special emphasis on two-dimensional systems we extend previous relevant results in the literature, and we propose a computational technique that generates piecewise linear Lyapunov functions of a convex or non-convex nature. The algorithm is graph-based and consists of determining controlled invariant polytopes induced by systematic conic decompositions of the state-space and corresponding state-dependent switching control actions. Further extension of this computational tool to higher dimensional systems is also discussed.
Irrational Capitalism: The Social Map, Neoliberalism and the Demodernization of the West
Authors: Bone John David
Published: August 2010

This article argues that the current trajectory of neoliberal led global development can be seen to have unleashed a regressive process of ‘demodernization’ within Western ‘developed’ economies and beyond. Informed by a developing ‘neurosociological’ theory, the article sets out to offer an original perspective on some widely debated issues, namely why the current era can be seen to have been marked by a regressive decline in ‘modern’ rational order, progress and faith in the future and a concomitant rise in irrationality, short-termism, mindless bureaucratization, instability, de-structuring and unpredictability. This trend, it is argued, due to its incompatibility with fundamental human ‘needs’, has dismantled the necessary conditions for personal and communal well-being, undermining socio-economic stability and social cohesion within the neoliberal societies that fostered and embraced this doctrine and, to a greater or lesser extent, within all nations connected to the global economy.
Latin America: Underdevelopment and Surpluses of Population
Authors: Figueroa Sepúlveda Victor M.
Published: August 2010

The present work discusses the origin and forms of manifestation of the surplus population in Latina America. It is argued that (a) the relations between developed and underdeveloped countries rest on an asymmetric production integration, which, in turn, results from the different production relations in both categories of countries; and (b) this integration determines a structurally unequal exchange as well as an unequal distribution of the energy to create a surplus population, concentrating it in underdeveloped countries, and (c) consequently, Latin America produces both a relative and an absolute surplus population.

The surplus population’s meaning vis-a-vis the process of accumulation, of which it is a result, is spread heterogeneously throughout its ranks. In the discussion of this population’s position with respect to capital and its manifestation forms, special attention is paid to pirate capital and home-based domestic labor.
Sacrificing Neoliberalism to Save Capitalism: Latin America Resists and Offers Answers to Crises
Authors: de la Barra Ximena
Published: August 2010

The current global crisis is not merely a speculative financial crisis that has impacted the real economy in the form of overproduction and demand contraction. It is also a social, environmental and energy crisis; a crisis of democracy, of multilateralism, of neoliberalism and ultimately a crisis of capitalism. In large measure, it is an ethical crisis where a few have been allowed to freely engage in speculative and predatory practices while jeopardizing the interests of humankind. This article focuses on several countries in Latin America where hope is building, creative solutions are being tested, a popular response to crises is emerging, and the basis for an alternative to capitalism is being drafted. These proposals, uncharted elsewhere, are only possible within the context of an alternative, solidarity-based regional integration. They constitute the first steps in the process of development of socialism from the base — a socialism of the 21st century.
Cytokine Storm in the Pediatric Oncology Patient
Authors: Parsons Melissa
Published: August 2010

Cytokine storm is an immune reaction to an acute or chronic injury and may be caused by a disease itself or by treatment directed at an underlying disease. The result is an overwhelming release of cytokines which can cause a sepsis-like response and may lead to multi-system organ failure and even death. Because it occurs in various settings, oncology nurses need to be aware of this process when assessing the pediatric oncology patient. Early recognition and treatment initiation is imperative and may lead to better outcomes for the patient.
The Effect of a Narrative Intervention on Story Retelling and Personal Story Generation Skills of Preschoolers With Risk Factors and Narrative Language Delays
Authors: Spencer Trina D. , Slocum Timothy A.
Published: August 2010

Narration, or storytelling, is an important aspect of language. Narrative skills have academic and social importance. This study evaluated the effects of a narrative intervention on story retelling and personal story generation skills of preschoolers with risk factors and narrative language delays. Narrative intervention was delivered in a small group arrangement, and materials, activities, and assistance were systematically adjusted within sessions to facilitate increasingly independent practice of oral narration. Participants were 5 preschoolers enrolled in a Head Start classroom who performed below average on two narrative language tasks. Participants made substantial gains in narrative retelling, demonstrated improved preintervention to postintervention scores for personal story generations, and maintained improvements when assessed following a 2-week break. These results have several implications for practice, including narrative intervention’s versatility with a range of children from diverse backgrounds and its use of economic and efficient classroom-based small group formats for intervention.
Goblet Cell Carcinoid of the Appendix: A Clinicopathological and Immunohistochemical Study of 26 Cases From Southwest China
Authors: Yong Jiang  , Huawei Liu  , Hu Long  , Yingying Yang  , Dianying Liao  , Xiuhui Zhang
Published: August 2010

Goblet cell carcinoid (GCC) of the appendix is characterized by a dual differentiation of both endocrine and gland. This study, therefore, explores its clinicopathological and immunohistochemical features. The authors reviewed clinicopathological and immunohistochemical features of 26 GCC cases in Southwest China between 1991 and 2009. The incidence is 0.0453%, with a gender ratio of 2.71:1 (19 males and 7 females). Three cases were combined with schistosomiasis, suggesting schistosomiasis may be associated with GCC. Eighteen cases available for immunohistochemistry showed a few scattered positive cells for CD56, NSE, CgA, and Syn; diffuse positive for CEA; and preserved positive for E-cadherin and β-catenin. Follow-up data showed that 1 patient died from peritoneal metastasis and that the other 17 cases survived free of the tumor. The authors characterize GCC as a special low-grade malignant carcinoma with a primary epithelial differentiation and little neuroendocrine differentiation. A combination of both histological features and immunoreactivity is needed to diagnose GCC.
Clinicopathological Strategies to Identify Contralateral Prostate Cancer Involvement in Potential Candidates for Focal Therapy
Authors: Grover Sonal , Srivastava Abhishek , Tan Gerald , Sooriakumaran Prasanna , John Majnu , Mudaliar Kumaran , El-Douaihy Youssef , Leung Robert , Shevchuk Maria , Tewari Ashutosh K.
Published: August 2010

Objective: To identify the magnitude and possible predictors of contralateral lobe involvement and contralateral extraprostatic extension (EPE) in prostatic biopsy—defined localized unilateral cancers. Patients and Methods: Between January 2005 and August 2009, 1861 patients underwent robotic-assisted radical prostatectomy at the authors’ institution. A total of 1114 had unilateral disease on preoperative biopsy. Final histopathology reports of these patients were reviewed. Results: Of the 1114 patients with unilateral disease on biopsy, 867 (77.9%) had contralateral or bilateral disease on final histopathology. EPE was found in 132 patients (11.9%). Twenty patients (1.8%) had contralateral EPE involvement. High-grade prostatic intraepithelial neoplasm (HGPIN) on biopsy was the significant predictor of contralateral lobe involvement on both univariate ( P = .02; odds ratio [OR] = 1.791) and multivariate analysis ( P = .004; OR = 2.677). Clinical stage T2 was the significant predictor of contralateral EPE on both univariate ( P = .012; OR = 5.250) and multivariate analysis ( P = .007; OR = 8.656). Conclusion: HGPIN on biopsy significantly predicts for contralateral lobe involvement and should be considered an exclusion criterion for focal therapy in prostate cancer patients. Patients with palpable tumor on digital rectal examination should be advised in favor of radical treatment as these patients may harbor more aggressive tumors involving the contralateral side despite the biopsy findings.
Highway on-ramp Control using Fuzzy Decision Making
Authors: Chiang Tung-Chien , Wang Wen-June
Published: August 2010

This work presents a fuzzy logic-based highway on-ramp control (HORC) approach that works by controlling the traffic lights at the on-ramp to facilitate the flow of traffic onto the highway. The proposed HORC comprises a fuzzy logic system and a decision-making model. The former determines the switching probability of the traffic light, while the latter makes the decision concerning the switching of the traffic light. The HORC requires only the velocities and the difference of velocities of the vehicles that are entering the highway. Simulation results indicate that the proposed HORC outperforms pre-timed ramp control.
Love Wave at a Layer Medium Bounded by Irregular Boundary Surfaces
Authors: Singh S.S.
Published: August 2010

The problem of the propagation of a Love wave in a corrugated isotropic layer over a homogeneous isotropic half-space has been investigated. The dispersion relation of Love wave propagation in a corrugated layer medium bounded by irregular boundaries is derived. In special cases, the dispersion relation is reduced for the corrugated layers bounded by periodic boundary surfaces, d cos px, d1 cos px and d2 cos px. The dispersion relation is found to be a function of the amplitudes of the corrugation, frequency and position parameters of the corrugated boundary surfaces. The results of Ewing et al. and results similar to Noyer are recovered from our analysis. The phase velocity and group velocity of Love waves are computed numerically and the results are depicted graphically.
Seismic Response of a Historical Masonry Minaret using a Finite Element Model Updated with Operational Modal Testing
Authors: Bayraktar Alemdar , Altunişik Ahmet Can , Sevim Bariş , Türker Temel
Published: August 2010

This paper presents the earthquake response of a historical masonry minaret after a finite element model updating was undertaken using the information from full scale ambient vibration testing. The Iskenderpaşa historical masonry minaret dating back to the 16th century with a height of 21m located in the city center of Trabzon, Turkey is selected as an application. Analytical modal analysis is performed on the 3D finite element model of the minaret considering field survey and engineering judgments to obtain the analytical frequencies and mode shapes. The field ambient vibration tests on the minaret under natural excitations such as wind loading and human movement are conducted. The Peak Picking and the Stochastic Subspace Identification techniques are used to extract the modal parameters from the ambient vibration test. A good correlation was found among the modal parameters identified from the two techniques. The finite element model of the minaret is updated to minimize the differences between analytically and experimentally estimated modal properties by changing some uncertain modeling parameters such as material properties and boundary conditions. The analytical model of the minaret after finite element model updating is analyzed using the 1992 Erzincan earthquake record, which occurred near the area, to determine the earthquake behavior of the minaret. At the end of the study, maximum differences in the natural frequencies are reduced on average from 27% to 5% and a good agreement is found between analytical and experimental natural frequencies and mode shapes by model updating. Also, it is seen from the earthquake analysis that the displacements increase along the height of the minaret and the maximum and minimum principal stresses occur at the region of the transition segment and the cylindrical body.
Social Class, Culture, and Cognition
Authors: Grossmann Igor , Varnum Michael E. W.
Published: August 2010

There are competing accounts of the relationship among social class, culture, and cognition. An interactive hypothesis suggests the relationship between social class and cognitive tendencies varies inasmuch as societies differ in their endorsement of those cognitive tendencies. An alternative additive hypothesis suggests that class-related environments promote differences in cognition. The authors addressed the validity of these accounts by simultaneously examining the effects of class among Americans (an independent society) and Russians (an interdependent society). Consistent with the additive hypothesis, lower social class was associated with more holistic cognition and more interdependent self-views in both countries. In Study 1, people from lower social class backgrounds and Russians displayed less dispositional bias. In Study 2, people from lower social class backgrounds and Russians demonstrated more contextual attention, more nonlinear reasoning about change, and more interdependent self-views (less self-inflation). Furthermore, in Study 2 differences in self-views mediated country and class effects on cognitive tendencies.
Th17 immune responses contribute to the pathophysiology of aplastic anemia
Authors: de Latour Regis Peffault , Visconte Valeria , Takaku Tomoiku , Wu Colin , Erie Andrew J. , Sarcon Annahita K. , Desierto Marie J. , Scheinberg Phillip , Keyvanfar Keyvan , Nunez Olga , Chen Jichun , Young Neal S.
Published: August 2010

T helper type 17 (Th17) cells have been characterized based on production of interleukin-17 (IL-17) and association with autoimmune diseases. We studied the role of Th17 cells in aplastic anemia (AA) by isolating Th17 cells from patients blood (n = 41) and bone marrow (BM) mononuclear cells (n = 7). The frequency and total number of CD3+CD4+IL-17–producing T cells were increased in AA patients at presentation compared with healthy controls (P = .0007 and .02, respectively) and correlated with disease activity. There was an inverse relationship between the numbers of Th17 cells and CD4+CD25highFoxP3+ regulatory T cells (Tregs) in the blood of AA patients. Concomitant with the classical Th1 response, we detected the presence of CD4+ and CD8+ IL-17-producing T cells in a mouse model of lymph node infusion–induced BM failure. Although anti–IL-17 treatment did not abrogate BM failure, early treatment with the anti–IL-17 antibody reduced the severity of BM failure with significantly higher platelet (P < .01) and total BM cell (P < .05) counts at day 10. Recipients that received anti-IL-17 treatment had significantly fewer Th1 cells (P < .01) and more Treg cells (P < .05) at day 10 after lymph node infusion. Th17 immune responses contribute to AA pathophysiology, especially at the early stage during disease progression.
Persistent expression of the full genome of hepatitis C virus in B cells induces spontaneous development of B-cell lymphomas in vivo
Authors: Kasama Yuri , Sekiguchi Satoshi , Saito Makoto , Tanaka Kousuke , Satoh Masaaki , Kuwahara Kazuhiko , Sakaguchi Nobuo , Takeya Motohiro , Hiasa Yoichi , Kohara Michinori , Tsukiyama-Kohara Kyoko
Published: August 2010

Extrahepatic manifestations of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection occur in 40%-70% of HCV-infected patients. B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma is a typical extrahepatic manifestation frequently associated with HCV infection. The mechanism by which HCV infection of B cells leads to lymphoma remains unclear. Here we established HCV transgenic mice that express the full HCV genome in B cells (RzCD19Cre mice) and observed a 25.0% incidence of diffuse large B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphomas (22.2% in males and 29.6% in females) within 600 days after birth. Expression levels of aspartate aminotransferase and alanine aminotransferase, as well as 32 different cytokines, chemokines and growth factors, were examined. The incidence of B-cell lymphoma was significantly correlated with only the level of soluble interleukin-2 receptor α subunit (sIL-2Rα) in RzCD19Cre mouse serum. All RzCD19Cre mice with substantially elevated serum sIL-2Rα levels (> 1000 pg/mL) developed B-cell lymphomas. Moreover, compared with tissues from control animals, the B-cell lymphoma tissues of RzCD19Cre mice expressed significantly higher levels of IL-2Rα. We show that the expression of HCV in B cells promotes non-Hodgkin–type diffuse B-cell lymphoma, and therefore, the RzCD19Cre mouse is a powerful model to study the mechanisms related to the development of HCV-associated B-cell lymphoma.