bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Control of cervical cancer: Women's options and rights
Authors: Cain Joanna M. , Ngan Hextan , Garland Suzanne , Wright Thomas
Published: June 2009

Cervical cancer takes the lives of more than 250 000 women each year globally, particularly in under‐resourced areas of low‐, middle‐, and high‐income countries. Options for cancer control and treatment have reached a point that there are interventions for control that could be adopted for virtually every resource and demographic situation. Women die despite the availability of attractive control options, which means that educating policy makers, women's health professionals, as well as women themselves, must become a major focus for ongoing control of this disease. The human right to life, to prevention of suffering, and to education are all key rights linked to improving the control of cervical cancer and saving the lives of women, particularly in resource‐poor parts of the world.
Management of meconium at birth
Authors: Roggensack Anne , Jefferies Ann L. , Farine Dan , Basso Melissa , Delisle Marie‐France , Hudon Lynda , Mundle William Robert , Murphy‐Kaulbeck Lynn Carole , Ouellet Annie , Pressey Tracy
Published: June 2009

Objective

To provide clinician direction that is based on the best evidence available on suctioning at the perineum for infants born with meconium stained amniotic fluid.

Evidence

The Medline database was searched for articles published in English from 2000 to 2008 on the topic of management of meconium at birth.

Values

The recommendation was made according to guidelines developed by the Canadian Task Force on Preventive Health Care.
Psychological distance asymmetry: The spatial dimension vs. other dimensions
Authors: Zhang Meng , Wang Jing
Published: June 2009

In this research we demonstrate an asymmetry between the spatial dimension and the other three dimensions of psychological distance—i.e., the temporal, social, and hypothetical dimensions. The first study shows that a distal prime along the spatial dimension leads to greater perceived distance along the other three dimensions, but not the other way around. We theorize that this is because people understand temporal, social, and hypothetical distance in terms of spatial distance. Hence, symmetric priming effects should occur when similarities between the spatial dimension and other dimensions are highlighted. Indeed, the last three studies, using multiple operationalizations, show that such priming effects could become symmetric when people engage in relational processing.
A New Porcine Skull Base Model
Authors: de Almeida John R. , Ghotme Kemel , Leong Iona , Drake James , James Adrian L. , Witterick Ian J.
Published: June 2009

OBJECTIVES

Fibrin glue is used in addition to grafts and flaps to repair cerebrospinal (CSF) leaks. We designed a porcine model to test the hypothesis that fibrin glue increases biomechanical strength.

STUDY DESIGN

A randomized experimental animal study.

METHODS

Ten pigs underwent craniotomy with creation of a fistula through the cribriform plate into the nasal cavity. CSF leaks were endoscopically confirmed and repaired using pericranial grafts. The animals were randomized into a fibrin glue group (n = 5) and a control group (n = 5). Seven days later, endoscopic examination assessed for CSF leaks. The skull bases were harvested and examined for the degree of graft adherence (graded I‐V) and subjected to burst pressure testing and histopathological analysis.

RESULTS

Eight animals survived, four in each group. There were no CSF leaks in the fibrin glue group and one in the control group. The fibrin glue group showed greater graft adherence (P = 0.029) and higher burst pressures (13.8 ± 5.4 vs 4.6 ± 3.1 psi, P = 0.021). Histopathological analysis revealed no difference in inflammation and bone remodeling.

CONCLUSIONS

The porcine model is a good model for anterior skull base defects. The model confirmed that fibrin glue reduces the rate of CSF leak by improving graft adherence and strength of repair.
Side effects of problem-solving strategies in large-scale nutrition science: towards a diversification of health
Authors: Penders Bart , Vos Rein , Horstman Klasien
Published: June 2009

Solving complex problems in large-scale research programmes requires cooperation and division of labour. Simultaneously, large-scale problem solving also gives rise to unintended side effects. Based upon 5 years of researching two large-scale nutrigenomic research programmes, we argue that problems are fragmented in order to be solved. These sub-problems are given priority for practical reasons and in the process of solving them, various changes are introduced in each sub-problem. Combined with additional diversity as a result of interdisciplinarity, this makes reassembling the original and overall goal of the research programme less likely. In the case of nutrigenomics and health, this produces a diversification of health. As a result, the public health goal of contemporary nutrition science is not reached in the large-scale research programmes we studied. Large-scale research programmes are very successful in producing scientific publications and new knowledge; however, in reaching their political goals they often are less successful.
Prototyping a tangible tool for design: Multimedia e-paper sticky notes
Authors: Back Maribeth , Matsumoto Takashi , Dunnigan Anthony
Published: June 2009

Modern design embraces digital augmentation, especially in the interplay of digital media content and the physical dispersion and handling of information. Based on the observation that small paper memos with sticky backs (such as Post-Its™) are a powerful and frequently used design tool, we have created Post-Bits, a new interface device with a physical embodiment that can be handled as naturally as paper sticky notes by designers, yet add digital information affordances as well. A Post-Bit is a design prototype of a small electronic paper device for handling multimedia content, with interaction control and display in one thin flexible sheet. Tangible properties of paper such as flipping, flexing, scattering, and rubbing are mapped to controlling aspects of the multimedia content such as scrubbing, sorting, or up- or downloading dynamic media (images, video, text). In this paper we discuss both the design process involved in building a prototype of a tangible interface using new technologies, and how the use of Post-Bits as a tangible design tool can impact two common design tasks: design ideation or brainstorming, and storyboarding for interactive systems or devices.
A tangible design tool for sketching materials in products
Authors: Saakes Daniel , Stappers Pieter Jan
Published: June 2009

Industrial designers make sketches and physical models to start and develop ideas and concept designs. Such representations have advantages that they support fast, intuitive, rich, sensory exploration of solutions. Although existing tools and techniques provide adequate support where the shape of the product is concerned, the exploration of surface qualities such as material and printed graphics is supported to a much lesser extent. Moreover, there are no tools that have the fluency of sketching that allow combined exploration of shape, material, and their interactions. This paper evaluates Skin, an augmented reality tool designed to solve these two shortcomings. By projecting computer-generated images onto the shape model Skin allows for a “sketchy” tangible interaction where designers can explore surface qualities on a three-dimensional physical shape model. The tool was evaluated in three design situations in the domain of ceramics design. In each case, we found that the joint exploration of shape and surface provided creative benefits in the form of new solutions; in addition, a gain in efficiency was found in at least one case. The results show that joint exploration of shape and surface can be effectively supported with tangible augmented reality techniques and suggest that this can be put to practical use in industry today.
Walking Together, but in Which Direction? Gender Discrimination and Multicultural Practices in Oaxaca, Mexico
Authors: Danielson Michael S. , Eisenstadt Todd A.
Published: June 2009

This article partly confirms the long-held view that multiculturalism discriminates against women. Indeed, for a majority of cases where multicultural electoral practices were recently recognized in our Oaxaca, Mexico survey sample, women did not participate in elections. However, female respondent participation in leader selection in multicultural communities was actually found to be higher in the few communities where locally established multicultural norms allowed women to serve in leadership roles. We find that while multicultural norms are often—or even usually—discriminatory, ascription to communal norms may actually encourage the participation of women in the few cases where these locally generated norms do not disenfranchise them. We conclude that, contrary to the conventional wisdom, multiculturalism that adheres to universal suffrage and human rights may not be normatively adverse to women's rights, and we argue for “conditional multiculturalism,” that is, recognition of multicultural norms but only if and when these adhere to broadly accepted human rights norms.
Whose Responsibility? The Politics of Sex Education Policy in the United States
Authors: Boryczka Jocelyn
Published: June 2009

Whose responsibility is it—that of the individual, society, or both—to meet the needs of citizens and to what degree, how, when, and why? This article investigates this set of inquiries by examining the ongoing debate over sex education in the United States between advocates for the abstinence-only and the comprehensive approaches, conveyed here through their curricula. The debate reflects a broader ideological struggle over how a democratic political community distributes moral responsibility. Personal responsibility is illustrated by abstinence-only curricula, whereas social responsibility is made evident in the comprehensive approach. These approaches establish a dualistic framework for understanding morality that marginalizes politics, deflecting attention away from the moral assumptions behind the gendered distribution of resources in a political community. Collective responsibility, this article argues, provides an alternative moral groundwork and inclusive conceptual perspective that brings politics and the power dynamics of the distributive function within a community into focus. From a collective perspective, the answer to the question “whose responsibility?” then shifts from either the individual or society to both at the same time.
Can There Be a Feminist Rational Choice Institutionalism?
Authors: Driscoll Amanda , Krook Mona Lena
Published: June 2009

Gender and politics scholars have long recognized the importance of political institutions (Lovenduski 1998). Most of this work focuses on formal institutions (Chappell 2006; Kenney 1996), but several studies discuss gendered practices and norms in ways that can be seen as consistent with definitions of informal institutions (Duerst-Lahti and Kelly 1995; Kenny 2007). Despite these shared concerns, few feminists frame their research in relation to institutionalism. To the degree that they do, they tend to view the most promising point of intersections to be with historical, sociological, and discursive versions. In contrast, they seem more wary of rational choice, arguing that this brand of institutionalism is unhelpful to, if not fundamentally incompatible with, the objectives of feminist research (cf. Kenny and Paantjens 2006).
What Can Historical Institutionalism Offer Feminist Institutionalists?
Authors: Waylen Georgina
Published: June 2009

In this essay I lay out how historical institutionalism (HI) could serve as an important tool for feminist political scientists, highlighting the potentially distinctive contribution and advantages of a feminist historical institutionalism (rather than a feminist institutionalism) for feminist political science and particularly for a feminist comparative politics. The potentially significant contribution of HI is to help us answer some “big questions,” in particular, how and why institutional change occurs. This, in turn, can help us understand how positive gender change, such as improvements in women's descriptive and substantive representation, can come about. This latter question is obviously not only of academic but also of political concern for feminists who wish to lessen gender inequality.
The Feminist Potential of Sociological Institutionalism
Authors: Mackay Fiona , Monro Surya , Waylen Georgina
Published: June 2009

On the face of it, there is considerable potential for productive dialogue between sociological institutionalism (SI) and institutionally oriented feminist political science (FPS). Both approaches employ broad conceptions of the political and its interconnection with the social: Each is concerned with the interaction between actors and institutions, broadly defined; the interplay between formal rules and informal practices, norms, and “ways of doing things”; and the consequent effects of these dynamics. Each approach takes a “value-critical” stance, sharing an understanding that seemingly neutral institutional processes and practices are, in fact, embedded in norms and cognitive frames, and in wider cultural contexts. In this short essay, we argue that SI provides one fruitful source for tools and paradigms beyond conventional political science (Lovenduski 1998; Mackay 2004), tools that may potentially enhance feminist analyses of key questions such as the following: How are institutions and institutional processes gendered? By what processes and mechanisms are institutions (re)produced and, in turn, reflect and reproduce social systems, including gender relations? How do institutions constrain actors and interests? And what is the gendered potential for, and what are the limits of, institutional innovation, reform, and change in pursuit of gender justice?
Staking the Frame of a Feminist Discursive Institutionalism
Authors: Kulawik Teresa
Published: June 2009

This essay proposes an integrated discursive institutionalism as a framework for feminist political analysis. Both historical institutionalism and discourse analysis have merits and limitations, and both perspectives complement each other and offer solutions to their respective deficiencies. Traditionally there has been a strong demarcation between the two perspectives. A common way to divide both approaches is between investigating “causal regularities” and “understanding meaning.” I argue that a feminist institutionalism needs to deconstruct the dichotomy of causal explanation versus meaning and description and to reformulate the concept of causality. There is no adequate explanation without “meaning,” and the stretching of institutionalism toward “ideas” exemplifies this inadequacy.
Already Doin' It for Ourselves? Skeptical Notes on Feminism and Institutionalism
Authors: Kenny Meryl , Mackay Fiona
Published: June 2009

Let us first lay our cards on the table: We are both invested in the “feminist institutionalist project” and have highlighted the potential benefits of such a synthesis in earlier interventions (Kenny 2007; Lovenduski 1998; Mackay and Meier 2003; see also Lovenduski 1998). However, in this essay we sound a cautionary note and urge a more skeptical approach. We pose the questions: Why does feminism need new institutionalism? What do neoinstitutionalist approaches contribute to feminist scholarship on political institutions, broadly defined? When considering the potential for intellectual “borrowing” between feminism and new institutionalism, it is important to consider whether new institutional theory is “an enabling framework—or an intellectual strait-jacket” for feminist scholarship (Mackay and Meier 2003, 6). The question, then, is not only what the new institutionalism can contribute to feminist research but also what scope there is to “gender” the new institutionalism.
Thalamische Aphasien
Authors: Heidler Maria-Dorothea
Published: June 2009

Primär nach linksseitigen thalamischen Läsionen manifestieren sich zwei sprachpathologische Syndrome, die charakterisiert sind durch eine entweder verminderte oder aber flüssige Spontansprachenproduktion, Wortabrufstörungen infolge mangelhafter semantischer Selektion, Perseverationen, Paraphasien, relativ intakte schriftsprachliche, syntaktische und repetitive Fähigkeiten, moderate auditive und visuelle Sprachverständnisstörungen sowie fakultative sprechmotorische Beeinträchtigungen wie Hypophonie und/oder Dysprosodie. Diese als «thalamische Aphasien» bezeichneten Syndrome zeigen einen im Vergleich zu kortikalen Aphasien distinkten Pathomechanismus, da vor allem kognitive Basisprozesse (wie Aufmerksamkeit, Gedächtnis, Exekutivfunktionen, Antrieb etc.) beeinträchtigt sind, die sekundär zu ineffizienten Sprachverarbeitungsprozessen führen. Zudem führen thalamische Läsionen oft zu Amnesien, Orientierungsstörungen und Anosognosie, die auf sprachlicher Ebene u. a. thematische Instabilität, Fragmentation und Konfabulationen zur Folge haben.
Bedeutung der emotionalen Valenz beim emotionalen Gedächtniseffekt bei Demenzpatienten
Authors: Blessing Andreas , Fritsche-Fäh Luzia , Schänzle-Geiger Heidi , Jäncke Lutz
Published: June 2009

Die Verbesserung der Gedächtnisleistung für emotional erregende gegenüber neutralen Informationen wird als „emotionaler Gedächtniseffekt“ bezeichnet. Inwiefern die emotionale Valenz des Materials die Erinnerungsleistung bei Demenzpatienten beeinflußt, ist bislang unklar und wurde in der vorliegenden Studie untersucht. Allen Versuchsteilnehmern wurden ein Text (emotional positiv, negativ und neutral beurteilter Abschnitt) und mehrere Bilder (emotional positiv, negativ und neutral beurteilte Bilder) präsentiert, es erfolgte ein unmittelbarer und ein verzögerter freier Abruf (30 min.). Während beim non-verbalen Material die Kontrollgruppe emotional positive und negative Informationen in gleichem Masse erinnerte, zeigte sich bei der Gruppe der Alzheimer Patienten eine verbesserte Abrufleistung für emotional negatives Material. Die vermehrte Erinnerung von emotional negativem Material trat nicht nur bei depressiven Patienten auf und ist folglich nicht durch einen „Stimmungskongruenzeffekt“ zu erklären. Beim verbalen Gedächtnistest wiesen beide Stichproben eine Tendenz zur vermehrten Erinnerung von emotional negativen Informationen auf. Die Studie zeigt, daß die emotionale Valenz des Materials die explizite Gedächtnisleistung von Demenzpatienten beeinflusst. Die Ergebnisse sind für die Therapie von und den Umgang mit Demenzpatienten von besonderer Bedeutung.
Factors Associated with Repeated Suicide Attempts
Authors: da Silva Cais Carlos Filinto , Stefanello Sabrina , Fabrício Mauro Marisa Lúcia , Vaz Scavacini de Freitas Gisleine , Botega Neury José
Published: June 2009

Background: This study compares sociodemographic and clinical characteristics of 102 first-time hospital-treated suicide attempters (first-evers) with a group of 101 repeat suicide attempters (repeaters) consecutively admitted to a general hospital in Brazil, during the intake phase of the WHO Multisite Intervention Study on Suicidal Behaviors (SUPRE-MISS). Aims: To compare sociodemographic and clinical characteristics of first-time hospital-treated suicide attempters (first-evers) with a group of repeat suicide attempters (repeaters). Methods: A standardized interview and psychometric scales were administered to all patients. Results: Repetition was associated with being of female sex (OR = 2.7; 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.2–6.2), a housewife (OR = 3.8; 95% CI = 1.2–11.8), and having a score above median on the Beck Depression Inventory (OR = 5.2; 95% CI = 1.7–15.6). Conclusions: The findings suggest that repeaters, namely, depressed housewives who have attempted suicide previously, need specific treatment strategies in order to avoid future suicide attempts.
Suicides by Jumping from Iconic Bridges in Hong Kong
Authors: Wong P.W.C. , Chan W.S.C. , Lau T.K. , Morgan P.R. , Yip P.S.F.
Published: June 2009

Background: Three bridges in Hong Kong have become iconic sites for suicide since their openings 11 years ago. Aims: This retrospective record-based study aimed to examine suicides by jumping from a group of three iconic bridges in Hong Kong, and to explore potential preventive strategies on these bridges to prevent future suicide. Methods: We examined the Coroner’s files of 12 people who killed themselves by jumping from the bridges between 1997 and 2007. We also examined the Coroner’s files of other suicides in 2003, and compared them with the bridge suicides. Results: The majority of the suicides were male, middle-age (40–59 years), married or cohabiting, not living alone, employed or self-employed, and in financial difficulty. None of these cases had a reported psychiatric diagnosis or psychiatric care history, and only one case had a history of suicidal attempt. Compared with other suicides in Hong Kong, the bridge jumpers were more likely to be younger, holding a job, indebted, free from a psychiatric and attempt history, and to leave a suicide note (p < .05). The bridge suicide cases in Hong Kong also appeared to be different from the profiles of bridge jumpers in other countries. Conclusions: Erection of an effective safety barrier has been found to prevent bridge suicides in many countries. Given the different characteristics of bridge jumpers in Hong Kong and the technical difficulties, more innovative ways may be needed to prevent suicides by such means. Potential prevention measures are discussed and, hopefully, will better inform the future design and development of bridges of significance.
Suicidal Behavior by Burns in the Province of Fars, Iran
Authors: Lari Abdolaziz Rastegar , Alaghehbandan Reza , Panjeshahin Mohammad-Reza , Joghataei Mohammad-Taghi
Published: June 2009

Background: While suicide by burns is a relatively uncommon form of suicide in developed countries, it is one of the most common methods of suicide in the Middle East region including Iran. Aims: To describe epidemiologic characteristics of suicidal behaviors by burns in the province of Fars, Iran. Methods: A prospective population-based study of all suicidal behaviors by burns requiring hospitalization was conducted in the province of Fars, Iran, from March 21, 2005 to March 20, 2006. Data were obtained from patients, family members, and/or significant others through interviews during the course of hospitalization. Results: A total of 125 patients with suicidal behavior by burns requiring hospitalization were identified during the study period, representing an overall incidence rate of 4.3 per 100,000 (95% Confidence Interval [CI]: 3.6–5.1). Females (6.2 per 100,000) had a higher rate of suicidal behavior by burns than males (2.4 per 100,000; p < .001). The age-specific rate of suicidal behavior by burns peaked at age 20–29 years (10.1 per 100,000). The rate of suicidal behavior by burns was higher among single (7.2 per 100,000) vs. married persons (4.2 per 100,000; p = 0.03). Single males aged 20–39 years and young married women aged 15–29 years were at greatest risk of suicidal behavior by burns. The most common precipitating factor (74.4%) for suicidal behavior was a quarrel with a family member, a relative, and/or a friend. Conclusions: The high rate of suicidal behavior by burns among young/married women in Fars is of concern. Social, cultural, and economic factors may contribute to suicidal behavior and need to be addressed through education, support, and commitment.
Molybdenum behavior during early diagenesis: Insights from Mo isotopes
Authors: Poulson Brucker Rebecca L. , McManus James , Severmann Silke , Berelson William M.
Published: June 2009

We present molybdenum isotope and concentration data from 14 sites in the eastern Pacific from the central California to the Peru margin. The environments studied have been chosen to represent a broad range in oxidation‐reduction (redox) potential, which provide a framework for the behavior of this redox‐sensitive element. Manganese‐rich hemipelagic sediments from the eastern tropical Pacific have a mean characteristic Mo isotope signature (δ98/95Mo = −0.49 ± 0.04‰, two times the standard deviation of the mean (2 SDOM) with n = 14) that reflects fractionation between ocean water and authigenic Mo associated with Mn oxides. Authigenic Fe‐Mo‐S deposits from reducing continental margin settings also have a characteristic Mo isotopic signature (δ98/95Mo = 1.64 ± 0.04‰, 2 SDOM with n = 136). Both of these values are in contrast to highly sulfidic (>11 μM H2Saq) restricted basin environments, which contain Mo isotope values analytically indistinguishable from seawater. In terms of the Mo isotope composition, the modern oceanic Mo sink is dominated by continental margin “type” environments where δ98/95Mo = ∼1.6‰ and Mn‐rich sediments where δ98/95Mo = approximately −0.5‰, with a minor contribution from euxinic settings where H2Saq > 11 μM.
January 2006 seafloor‐spreading event at 9°50′N, East Pacific Rise: Ridge dike intrusion and transform fault interactions from regional hydroacoustic data
Authors: Dziak Robert P. , Bohnenstiehl Delwayne R. , Matsumoto Haruyoshi , Fowler Matthew J. , Haxel Joseph H. , Tolstoy Maya , Waldhauser Felix
Published: June 2009

An array of autonomous underwater hydrophones is used to investigate regional seismicity associated with the 22 January 2006 seafloor‐spreading event on the northern East Pacific Rise near 9°50′N. Significant earthquake activity was observed beginning 3 weeks prior to the eruption, where a total of 255 earthquakes were detected within the vicinity of the 9°50′N area. This was followed by a series of 252 events on 22 January and a rapid decline to background seismicity levels during the subsequent 3 days. Because of their small magnitudes, accurate locations could be derived for only 20 of these events, 18 of which occurred during a 1‐h period on 22 January. These earthquakes cluster near 9°45′N and 9°55′N, at the distal ends of the young lava flows identified posteruption, where the activity displays a distinct spatial‐temporal pattern, alternating from the north to the south and then back to the north. This implies either rapid bilateral propagation along the rift or the near‐simultaneous injection of melt vertically from the axial magma lens. Short‐duration T wave risetimes are consistent with the eruption of lavas in the vicinity of 9°50′N on 22 January 2006. Eruptions on 12 and 15–16 January also may be inferred from the risetime data; however, the locations of these smaller‐magnitude events cannot be determined accurately. Roughly 15 h after the last earthquakes were located adjacent to the eruption site, a sequence of 16 earthquakes began to the north‐northeast at a distance of 25–40 km from the 9°50′N site. These events are located in vicinity of the Clipperton Transform and its western inside corner, an area from which the regional hydrophone network routinely detects seismicity. Coulomb stress modeling indicates that a dike intrusion spanning the known eruptive zone to the south (9°46′–9°56′N) would act to promote normal faulting or a combination of normal faulting and transform slip within this region, with stress changes on the order of 1–10 kPa.
A case study of resistivity and self‐potential signatures of hydrothermal instabilities, Inferno Crater Lake, Waimangu, New Zealand
Authors: Legaz A. , Vandemeulebrouck J. , Revil A. , Kemna A. , Hurst A. W. , Reeves R. , Papasin R.
Published: June 2009

Inferno Crater Lake, Waimangu, one of the largest hot springs in New Zealand, displays vigorous cyclic behavior in lake level and temperature. It provides a natural small‐scale laboratory for investigating the geo‐electrical signature of fluid flows. We measured self‐potential and electrical resistivity to see whether the huge variations of fluid volume, approximately 60,000 m3 during a mean cycle period of 40 days, could be detected. Electrical resistivity measurements revealed spectacular changes over time, with the medium becoming more conductive as the lake receded. This result is consistent with analog models, where the vapor phase is replaced by liquid at recession. The self‐potential survey did not detect temporal changes related to fluid movements. This can be explained by the pH of the pore water (∼2.3), which is close to the point of zero charge of silica.
Latitudinal dependence of the variability of the micrometeor altitude distribution
Authors: Sparks J. J. , Janches D.
Published: June 2009

We present a study of the diurnal behavior of the observed meteor altitude distribution at different seasons and latitudes. The meteor altitude distribution provides an indication of where the meteoric mass deposition occurs in the mesosphere and lower thermosphere (MLT). This can be utilized to model the input of metallic constituents into the MLT and accurately understand the chemistry of this region. We show that the observed altitude distributions have distinct variability at each location: at high latitudes there is a weak diurnal and strong seasonal variability while at tropical latitudes the opposite behavior is observed. We explain these results by correlating them with the astronomical and physical properties of the meteoric flux. Finally, we discussed the potential influences that these results have on the metal chemistry and aeronomy of this atmospheric region.
Modeling of Doppler‐shifted terrestrial VLF transmitter signals observed by DEMETER
Authors: Starks M. J. , Bell T. F. , Quinn R. A. , Inan U. S. , Piddyachiy D. , Parrot M.
Published: June 2009

Observations of signals from a terrestrial very low frequency (VLF) transmitter made by the DEMETER spacecraft inside the plasmasphere are modeled using a three‐dimensional wave propagation code. The simulation results agree well with the satellite measurements, predicting both the incidence and frequency offset of Doppler‐shifted signals resulting from non‐ducted interhemispheric propagation paths through the plasmasphere. The observed Doppler shifts are similar to those which can result from linear mode coupling as VLF transmitter signals scatter from small‐scale plasma density irregularities. Thus care must be taken to differentiate the two effects when studying the power loss of VLF waves through the ionosphere. The agreement shown between predictions and observation demonstrates the utility of the models used for understanding the wave energy distribution in the plasmasphere from terrestrial transmitters.
Constraining cloud droplet number concentration in GCMs suppresses the aerosol indirect effect
Authors: Hoose C. , Kristjánsson J. E. , Iversen T. , Kirkevåg A. , Seland Ø. , Gettelman A.
Published: June 2009

Global aerosol‐climate models with prognostic treatment of cloud droplet number concentration (CDNC) often prescribe lower bounds for CDNC or aerosol concentrations. Here we demonstrate that this possibly unphysical constraint reduces the simulated aerosol indirect effect by up to 80%, caused by extensively uniform CDNCs. In present‐day conditions, the impact of the prescribed lower bound for CDNC is mainly visible over oceans, while with preindustrial emissions, large parts of both land and ocean areas are influenced. We furthermore show that imposing the same constraints on aerosol instead of on CDNC reduces the aerosol indirect effect to a lesser extent.
Lunar backscatter and neutralization of the solar wind: First observations of neutral atoms from the Moon
Authors: McComas D. J. , Allegrini F. , Bochsler P. , Frisch P. , Funsten H. O. , Gruntman M. , Janzen P. H. , Kucharek H. , Möbius E. , Reisenfeld D. B. , Schwadron N. A.
Published: June 2009

The solar wind continuously flows out from the Sun, filling interplanetary space and impinging directly on the lunar regolith. While most solar wind ions are implanted into the lunar dust, a significant fraction is expected to scatter back and be emitted as energetic neutral atoms (ENAs). However, this population has never been observed, let alone characterized. Here we show the first observations of backscattered neutral atoms from the Moon and determine that the efficiency for this process, the lunar ENA albedo, is ∼10%. This indicates that the Moon emits ∼150 metric tons of hydrogen per year. Our observations are important for understanding the universal processes of backscattering and neutralization from complex surfaces, which occur wherever space plasmas interact with dust and other small bodies throughout our solar system as well as in exoplanetary systems throughout the galaxy and beyond.
A robust method for tropopause altitude identification using GPS radio occultation data
Authors: Lewis H. W.
Published: June 2009

A robust method to determine the tropopause altitude directly from GPS Radio Occultation (RO) measurements of bending angle is presented. An objective covariance transform method is applied to identify transitions in a bending angle profile. The tropopause is identified by the maximum in the convolution of the natural logarithm of an observed bending angle profile with a gradient window function. Identification of the tropopause from bending angles is of particular value since they are directly derived from climate benchmark observations. This method avoids additional RO data processing and assumptions to derive parameters such as dry temperature, and use of subjective tropopause identification criteria. The RO tropopause altitude is compared with lapse rate and cold point criteria using dry temperatures and radiosonde temperature profiles. A longer‐term tropopause altitude analysis for May to November 2008 using the RO bending angle method shows good agreement with tropopause altitudes computed from dry temperature parameters.
Auroral electrojet AL index and polar magnetic disturbances in two hemispheres
Authors: Lyatskaya Sonya , Lyatsky W. , Khazanov G. V.
Published: June 2009

Earlier we found that the auroral electrojet AL index, indicating substorm activity in the northern hemisphere, in local summer months correlates much better with geomagnetic activity not in the nearby polar cap but in the opposite polar cap; we explained this effect as a result of interhemispheric field‐aligned currents, which suppress substorm field‐aligned currents in the summer hemisphere but increase these currents in the winter hemisphere. In the present paper, we took into account this effect and examined a method for reliably monitoring the substorm auroral electrojet, measured with the auroral electrojet AL index, by using hourly averages of geomagnetic field from two polar observatories (Thule and Vostok) in two hemispheres. We tested this method for 3 years. The correlation between the predicted and actual AL indices for these years was stable and very high, and it showed no significant dependence on season and a relatively weak UT variation. The correlation coefficient between the predicted and actual AL indices for these three years was about 0.89. The proposed method, based on using magnetic field data from two polar geomagnetic observatories in two hemispheres, not only significantly improves the reliability of monitoring the westward auroral electrojet in the northern hemisphere but it may also be used for monitoring the westward auroral electrojet in the southern hemisphere where no AL index is available because a significant portion of the southern auroral zone is located over the oceans. The results of this paper show that measurements of geomagnetic field in two hemispheres are of high importance for reliably monitoring the geomagnetic activity and related events in each hemisphere.
Decursin Inhibits VEGF-Mediated Inner Blood—Retinal Barrier Breakdown by Suppression of VEGFR-2 Activation
Authors: Kim Jin Hyoung , Kim Jeong Hun , Lee You Mie , Ahn Eun-Mi , Kim Kyu-Won , Yu Young Suk
Published: June 2009

The blood—retinal barrier (BRB) is essential for the normal structural and functional integrity of the retina, whose breakdown could cause the serious vision loss. Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), as a permeable factor, induces alteration of tight junction proteins to result in BRB breakdown. Herein, we demonstrated that decursin inhibits VEGF-mediated inner BRB breakdown through suppression of VEGFR-2 signaling pathway. In retinal endothelial cells, decursin inhibited VEGF-mediated hyperpermeability. Decursin prevented VEGF-mediated loss of tight junction proteins including zonula occludens-1 (ZO-1), ZO-2, and occludin in retinal endothelial cells, which was also supported by restoration of tight junction proteins in intercellular junction. In addition, decursin significantly inhibited VEGF-mediated vascular leakage from retinal vessels, which was accompanied by prevention of loss of tight junction proteins in retinal vessels. Decursin significantly suppressed VEGF-induced VEGFR-2 phosphrylation that consequently led to inhibition of extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) 1/2 activation. Moreover, decursin induced no cytotoxicity to retinal endothelial cells and no retinal toxicity under therapeutic concentrations. Therefore, our results suggest that decursin prevents VEGF-mediated BRB breakdown through blocking of loss of tight junction proteins, which might be regulated by suppression of VEGFR-2 activation. As a novel inhibitor to BRB breakdown, decursin could be applied to variable retinopathies with BRB breakdown.
Model criticism based on likelihood-free inference, with an application to protein network evolution
Authors: Ratmann Oliver , Andrieu Christophe , Wiuf Carsten , Richardson Sylvia
Published: June 2009

Mathematical models are an important tool to explain and comprehend complex phenomena, and unparalleled computational advances enable us to easily explore them without any or little understanding of their global properties. In fact, the likelihood of the data under complex stochastic models is often analytically or numerically intractable in many areas of sciences. This makes it even more important to simultaneously investigate the adequacy of these models—in absolute terms, against the data, rather than relative to the performance of other models—but no such procedure has been formally discussed when the likelihood is intractable. We provide a statistical interpretation to current developments in likelihood-free Bayesian inference that explicitly accounts for discrepancies between the model and the data, termedApproximateBayesianComputation undermodeluncertainty (ABCμ). We augment the likelihood of the data with unknown error terms that correspond to freely chosen checking functions, and provide Monte Carlo strategies for sampling from the associated joint posterior distribution without the need of evaluating the likelihood. We discuss the benefit of incorporating model diagnostics within an ABC framework, and demonstrate how this method diagnoses model mismatch and guides model refinement by contrasting three qualitative models of protein network evolution to the protein interaction datasets ofHelicobacter pyloriandTreponema pallidum. Our results make a number of model deficiencies explicit, and suggest that theT. pallidumnetwork topology is inconsistent with evolution dominated by link turnover or lateral gene transfer alone.
Adiabatic coarse-graining and simulations of stochastic biochemical networks
Authors: Sinitsyn N. A. , Hengartner Nicolas , Nemenman Ilya
Published: June 2009

We propose a universal approach for analysis and fast simulations of stiff stochastic biochemical networks, which rests on elimination of fast chemical species without a loss of information about mesoscopic, non-Poissonian fluctuations of the slow ones. Our approach is similar to the Born–Oppenheimer approximation in quantum mechanics and follows from the stochastic path integral representation of the cumulant generating function of reaction events. In applications with a small number of chemical reactions, it produces analytical expressions for cumulants of chemical fluxes between the slow variables. This allows for a low-dimensional, interpretable representation and can be used for high-accuracy, low-complexity coarse-grained numerical simulations. As an example, we derive the coarse-grained description for a chain of biochemical reactions and show that the coarse-grained and the microscopic simulations agree, but the former is 3 orders of magnitude faster.
Melting and crystallization of colloidal hard-sphere suspensions under shear
Authors: Wu Yu Ling , Derks Didi , van Blaaderen Alfons , Imhof Arnout
Published: June 2009

Shear-induced melting and crystallization were investigated by confocal microscopy in concentrated colloidal suspensions of hard-sphere-like particles. Both silica and polymethylmethacrylate suspensions were sheared with a constant rate in either a countertranslating parallel plate shear cell or a counterrotating cone-plate shear cell. These instruments make it possible to track particles undergoing shear for extended periods of time in a plane of zero velocity. Although on large scales, the flow profile deviated from linearity, the crystal flowed in an aligned sliding layer structure at low shear rates. Higher shear rates caused the crystal to shear melt, but, contrary to expectations, the transition was not sudden. Instead, although the overall order decreased with shear rate, this was due to an increase in the nucleation of localized domains that temporarily lost and regained their ordered structure. Even at shear rates that were considered to have melted the crystal as a whole, ordered regions kept showing up at times, giving rise to very large fluctuations in 2D bond-orientational order parameters. Low shear rates induced initially disordered suspensions to crystallize. This time, the order parameter increased gradually in time without large fluctuations, indicating that shear-induced crystallization of hard spheres does not proceed via a nucleation and growth mechanism. We conclude that the dynamics of melting and crystallization under shear differ dramatically from their counterparts in quiescent suspensions.
Inactivation of CDK2 is synthetically lethal to MYCN over-expressing cancer cells
Authors: Molenaar Jan J. , Ebus Marli E. , Geerts Dirk , Koster Jan , Lamers Fieke , Valentijn Linda J. , Westerhout Ellen M. , Versteeg Rogier , Caron Huib N.
Published: June 2009

Two genes have a synthetically lethal relationship when the silencing or inhibiting of 1 gene is only lethal in the context of a mutation or activation of the second gene. This situation offers an attractive therapeutic strategy, as inhibition of such a gene will only trigger cell death in tumor cells with an activated second oncogene but spare normal cells without activation of the second oncogene. Here we present evidence that CDK2 is synthetically lethal to neuroblastoma cells with MYCN amplification and over-expression. Neuroblastomas are childhood tumors with an often lethal outcome. Twenty percent of the tumors have MYCN amplification, and these tumors are ultimately refractory to any therapy. Targeted silencing of CDK2 by 3 RNA interference techniques induced apoptosis in MYCN-amplified neuroblastoma cell lines, but not in MYCN single copy cells. Silencing of MYCN abrogated this apoptotic response in MYCN-amplified cells. Inversely, silencing of CDK2 in MYCN single copy cells did not trigger apoptosis, unless a MYCN transgene was activated. The MYCN induced apoptosis after CDK2 silencing was accompanied by nuclear stabilization of P53, and mRNA profiling showed up-regulation of P53 target genes. Silencing of P53 rescued the cells from MYCN-driven apoptosis. The synthetic lethality of CDK2 silencing in MYCN activated neuroblastoma cells can also be triggered by inhibition of CDK2 with a small molecule drug. Treatment of neuroblastoma cells with roscovitine, a CDK inhibitor, at clinically achievable concentrations induced MYCN-dependent apoptosis. The synthetically lethal relationship between CDK2 and MYCN indicates CDK2 inhibitors as potential MYCN-selective cancer therapeutics.
Cellular immune response to cryptic epitopes during therapeutic gene transfer
Authors: Li Chengwen , Goudy Kevin , Hirsch Matt , Asokan Aravind , Fan Yun , Alexander Jeff , Sun Junjiang , Monahan Paul , Seiber David , Sidney John , Sette Alessandro , Tisch Roland , Frelinger Jeff , Samulski R. Jude
Published: June 2009

The immune response has been implicated as a critical factor in determining the success or failure of clinical gene therapy trials. Generally, such a response is elicited by the desired transgene product or, in some cases, the delivery system. In the current study, we report the previously uncharacterized finding that a therapeutic cassette currently being used for human investigation displays alternative reading frames (ARFs) that generate unwanted protein products to induce a cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) response. In particular, we tested the hypothesis that antigenic epitopes derived from an ARF in coagulation factor IX (F9) cDNA can induce CTL reactivity, subsequently killing F9-expressing hepatocytes. One peptide (p18) of 3 candidates from an ARF of the F9 transgene induced CD8
+
T cell reactivity in mice expressing the human MHC class I molecule B0702. Subsequently, upon systemic administration of adeno-associated virus (AAV) serotype 2 vectors packaged with the F9 transgene (AAV2/F9), a robust CD8
+
CTL response was elicited against peptide p18. Of particular importance is that the ARF epitope-specific CTLs eliminated AAV2/F9-transduced hepatocytes but not AAV2/F9 codon-optimized (AAV2/F9-opt)-transduced liver cells in which p18 epitope was deleted. These results demonstrate a previously undiscovered mechanism by which CTL responses can be elicited by cryptic epitopes generated from a therapeutic transgene and have significant implications for all gene therapy modalities. Such unforeseen epitope generation warrants careful analysis of transgene sequences for ARFs to reduce the potential for adverse events arising from immune responses during clinical gene therapy protocols.
FGF21 induces PGC-1α and regulates carbohydrate and fatty acid metabolism during the adaptive starvation response
Authors: Potthoff Matthew J. , Inagaki Takeshi , Satapati Santhosh , Ding Xunshan , He Tianteng , Goetz Regina , Mohammadi Moosa , Finck Brian N. , Mangelsdorf David J. , Kliewer Steven A. , Burgess Shawn C.
Published: June 2009

The liver plays a crucial role in mobilizing energy during nutritional deprivation. During the early stages of fasting, hepatic glycogenolysis is a primary energy source. As fasting progresses and glycogen stores are depleted, hepatic gluconeogenesis and ketogenesis become major energy sources. Here, we show that fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21), a hormone that is induced in liver by fasting, induces hepatic expression of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ coactivator protein-1α (PGC-1α), a key transcriptional regulator of energy homeostasis, and causes corresponding increases in fatty acid oxidation, tricarboxylic acid cycle flux, and gluconeogenesis without increasing glycogenolysis. Mice lacking FGF21 fail to fully induce PGC-1α expression in response to a prolonged fast and have impaired gluconeogenesis and ketogenesis. These results reveal an unexpected relationship between FGF21 and PGC-1α and demonstrate an important role for FGF21 in coordinately regulating carbohydrate and fatty acid metabolism during the progression from fasting to starvation.
O
2
reduction by a functional heme/nonheme bis-iron NOR model complex
Authors: Collman James P. , Dey Abhishek , Yang Ying , Ghosh Somdatta , Decréau Richard A.
Published: June 2009

O
2
reactivity of a functional NOR model is investigated by using electrochemistry and spectroscopy. The electrochemical measurements using interdigitated electrodes show very high selectivity for 4e O
2
reduction with minimal production of partially reduced oxygen species (PROS) under both fast and slow electron flux. Intermediates trapped at cryogenic temperatures and characterized by using resonance Raman spectroscopy under single-turnover conditions indicate that an initial bridging peroxide intermediate undergoes homolytic O

O bond cleavage generating a
trans
heme/nonheme bis-ferryl intermediate. This bis ferryl species can oxygenate 2 equivalents of a reactive substrate.
Book reviews
Authors: SMART Pippa
Published: June 2009

Write Effectively
Tim Albert Oxford, Radcliffe Press, 2008, 140 pp. ISBN 978 1 84619 135 0, £21.95, pbk