bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
How Bureaucratic Writing Style Affects Source Credibility
Authors: Chartprasert Duangkamol
Published: December 2011

This study examines whether bureaucratic writing style affects readers' perception of source credibility. The experiment required 172 college students to read bureaucratic and simple writing and to rate their impressions of the author and the writing quality. Results indicate that the subjects rated the author of the bureaucratic style higher in expertise, but not significantly different from the author of the simple style in trustworthiness and open-mindedness. Source occupational status was not a necessary condition for the perceived differences in credibility. The differences in expertise ratings were significantly greater for readers with more years of schooling. However, the subjects consistently preferred the simple to the bureaucratic writing.
News Strategies and the Death of Huey Newton
Authors: Lule Jack
Published: December 2011

This study of news coverage of the death of Black Panther Huey Newton describes predominant portrayals of his life and death and explores the relationship of the coverage to perceived threats to the social order.
The Importance of Perspective in Parent-Child Interpretations of Family Communication Patterns
Authors: Austin Erica Weintraub
Published: December 2011

Parents and children surveyed make some different associations among family communication variables. Results support the hypothesis that involvement is more salient than other aspects of family communication for children, and that age-related changes in communication perceptions may reflect differences in what is relevant or salient about family communication for children as they mature. This has many implications for the study of mass communication uses and effects.
News Council Complainants: Who are They and What Do They Want?
Authors: Hermanson Louise Williams
Published: December 2011

This study explores alternative dispute resolution systems for holding media accountable for the power they wield in society. The study seeks to find a means of accountability that establishes dialogue between members of the public and media practitioners.
Unlicensed Broadcasting: Content and Conformity
Authors: Jones Steve
Published: December 2011

This paper examines the extent and content of pirate radio broadcasting in the United States. While it is assumed that unlicensed broadcasts provide an alternative to commercial radio broadcasts, such broadcasts do not offer a substantially alternative form of programming. They rely on popular music that is often programmed on licensed, commercial radio, and they rarely program music other than pop and rock ‘n’ roll. As a result, this study claims it is spectrum use and access the FCC seeks to control, and not content.
Effects of the News Media Environment on Citizen Knowledge of State Politics and Government
Authors: Carpini Michael X. Delli , Keeter Scott , Kennamer J. David
Published: December 2011

This multivariate analysis shows that residents in and near Richmond, Virginia, where the state capital is located, are significantly more knowledgeable about state politics than are residents living elsewhere in the state, especially in the northern Virginia – Washington, D.C. metro area. A newspaper content analysis demonstrates that Richmond-area residents are exposed to far more news of state politics and government than are residents of northern Virginia. The study suggests that the media environment is highly important in providing the opportunity for citizens to learn about politics.
How Effective are Codes of Ethics? A Look at Three Newsrooms
Authors: Boeyink David E.
Published: December 2011

Few changes in journalism ethics have been as dramatic as the proliferation of codes of ethics in newsrooms. Yet little has been done to assess how codes of ethics shape journalists' behavior when they are faced with real ethical problems. This study explores that question by looking at the role that codes have played in real cases in three separate newsrooms.
Source v. Content Effects on Judgments of News Believability
Authors: Austin Erica Weintraub , Dong Qingwen
Published: December 2011

A between-groups 3 × 3 factorial experiment (N=516) tests effects of message type and source reputation on judgments of news believability, judgments conceptualized as source credibility (judgments about the source), and assessments of apparent reality (judgments about the message content). Three indices combining measures of source credibility and message apparent reality emerge from a factor analysis, comprising judgments of (1) source truthfulness and message accuracy, (2) source expertise and message representativeness, and (3) source bias and personal perspective. The results show that a more innocuous message results in more positive judgments of believability, but the reputation of the source has no direct effect on believability judgments, nor does it interact with message type. It is concluded that at least some publics base judgments of news believability more on judgments of the apparent reality of message content rather than on the reputation of the media source.
Measurement Effects in Comparing Voter Learning from Television News and Campaign Advertisements
Authors: Zhao Xinshu , Bleske Glen L.
Published: December 2011

Studies of media effects on political knowledge have used exposure and attention to measure television watching and confidence and accuracy to measure knowledge. These studies have employed a variety of control strategies. Although measurements and control strategies are known to affect the magnitude of the resulting independent-dependent correlation, this study investigates whether they can affect research outcomes in any other way. The topic of substance, which we use as an example, is whether voters learn more from political advertisements than from television news. The results indicate that different methods can lead to different, or even opposite, conclusions.
Sex, Violence, and Consonance/Differentiation: An Analysis of Local TV News Values
Authors: Davie William R. , Lee Jung-Sook
Published: December 2011

This study of duplication and differentiation in local television news indicates that local producers show a preference for sensational stories that feature acts of sex and violence and are easy to explain. Local television news shows little differentiation in topical areas of these stories built of concrete fact, but it tends to differentiate more in soft news topics.
Impacts of Information Subsidies and Community Structure on Local Press Coverage of Environmental Contamination
Authors: Griffin Robert J. , Dunwoody Sharon
Published: December 2011

An analysis of 373 daily newspapers in the Midwest found that community structure and an information subsidy from an environmental group affected press coverage of a story about pollution from industrial toxins. A press kit the group sent to some newspapers appears to have influenced the papers to run a story on industrial toxic releases, but it primarily prompted editors to delegate local staff to cover the story. Results indicate that the press' function to report or raise issues concerning industrial toxic releases and related health risks is tempered by community structure and particularly by community reliance on manufacturing.
Constructing Public Opinion and Manipulating Symbols: China's Press Cover-age of the Student Movement in 1989
Authors: Zhang Guo-Qiang , Kraus Sidney
Published: December 2011

This content analysis of Chinese newspapers before and after the Tiananmen Square protest examines the symbolic representation of the Student Movement of 1989 in China. The study reveals that top leaders manipulated symbols given to the media and that these symbols rigorously highlighted the dominant ideology of the Chinese Communist Party and isolated the movement participants. Officials attempted to legitimize the military suppression of the movement. The press construction of public opinion echoed the hegemonic process created and maintained by the party structure.
Newspaper as Repeater: An Experiment on Defamation and Third-Person Effect
Authors: Mason Laurie
Published: December 2011

The Third-Person Effect - the tendency to see others as more influenced than self by a mass media message - is replicated with a jury sample and extended to interpersonal communication. The effect on perceived other is found to be exaggerated when a message is reported through a newspaper rather than delivered directly by the message source. This finding is discussed in regard to its implication for inflated libel awards.
The Vulnerable Image: Categories of Photos as Predictor of Digital Manipulation
Authors: Reaves Shiela
Published: December 2011

This study suggests that the tolerance of newspaper editors for computer manipulation depends on the category of photographs. Editors differ significantly in their tolerance level of computer manipulation of spot news, feature, and photo illustrations. In a survey experiment among 677 newspaper editors, results suggest that editors use a continuum of photo categories. Editors are intolerant of altering spot -news photos, but much more tolerant of altering soft-news photos such as feature photos and photo illustrations.
News of Hurricane Andrew: The Agenda of Sources and the Sources' Agendas
Authors: Salwen Michael B.
Published: December 2011

This study of quotations in newspaper coverage of Hurricane Andrew showed that individuals who were not affiliated with government or business were quoted most often. Most sources were quoted as experts, with individuals represented as suffering victims, providing the news media with human interest quotations. Further, most sources praised themselves and blamed others.
Pronouncements and Denunciations: An Analysis of State Press Association Ethics Codes from the 1920S
Authors: Cronin Mary M. , McPherson James B.
Published: December 2011

In light of the Associated Press Managing Editor's recent revision of its ethics code, the time seems right to examine journalism's original ethics codes, created in the 1920s, to discover what virtues and practices the codes' creators presented as industry standards. Four situational concerns - the rise of press agents, the fallout from World War I propaganda, sensationalism's resurgence, and editorial independence - contributed to a noticeable decline of the public's trust in the press. As a result, the codes consistently emphasized the watchdog ideal, public service, truthfulness, and honesty in advertising.
Word-Picture Juxtaposition, Schemata, and Defamation in Television News
Authors: Grimes Tom , Drechsel Robert
Published: December 2011

Defamation allegedly caused by misleading word-picture combinations has frequently led to libel actions, but the communication assumptions underlying such actions have rarely been examined empirically. Television news, with its combination of voice-over and video, is particularly vulnerable to claims that juxtaposition has created unintended defamatory meaning. This study finds that viewers' gender and race schemata can be used to help determine whether would-be libel plaintiffs can plausibly claim to have been identified and harmed by audio-video juxtaposition, even though nothing defamatory may have been communicated literally.
Influence Dealers: A Path Analysis Model of Agenda Building during Richard Nixon's War on Drugs
Authors: Johnson Thomas J. , Wanta Wayne , Boudreau Timothy , Blank-Libra Janet , Schaffer Killian , Turner Sally
Published: December 2011

This agenda-building study employed a path analysis model to examine the three-way relationship among the public, the media, and the president on the issue of drug abuse during the Nixon administration. The path model also measured the extent to which these actors were influenced by real-world conditions about the number of drug-related arrests in the United States. Past studies have suggested a cyclical relationship should exist among the president, the press, and the public. This study, however, found a linear relationship with issues moving first, from real world to the media and the public, then from the media to the public, and finally from the public to the president.
Journalists' Perceptions of How Newspaper and Broadcast News Competition Affects Newspaper Content
Authors: Coulson David C. , Lacy Stephen
Published: December 2011

In 1993, 423 journalists who had worked in both competitive- and single-daily cities were asked their perceptions of how newspaper competition affects content. A majority of journalists said competing dailies provide higher quality local news, a greater diversity of news, and a greater diversity of editorial opinions than noncompetitive dailies. A majority also said that competing dailies are less likely to become complacent but more likely to sensationalize news. In the same survey, one-third of 1,667 journalists in single-daily cities said broadcast news offers an acceptable local news alternative to the daily newspaper.
Assessing News Quality: A Comparison between Community and Student Daily Newspapers
Authors: Bodle John V.
Published: December 2011

This study quantitatively compares community (private-sector) daily newspapers to student dailies to determine the relative quality of the newswriting and news content. Findings indicate that in the areas considered — readability, interest level, and thoroughness — the news in community dailies was not significantly better than that produced by students.
Sampling Error and Selecting Intercoder Reliability Samples for Nominal Content Categories
Authors: Lacy Stephen , Riffe Daniel
Published: December 2011

This study views intercoder reliability as a sampling problem. It develops a formula for generating sample sizes needed to have valid reliability estimates. It also suggests steps for reporting reliability. The resulting sample sizes will permit a known degree of confidence that the agreement in a sample of items is representative of the pattern that would occur if all content items were coded by all coders.
The Persistent Problem of Media Taxation: First Amendment Protection in the 1990S
Authors: Packer Cathy , Gower Karla K.
Published: December 2011

This article examines U.S. Supreme Court decisions regarding the constitutionality of taxation of the mass media. It concludes that the Court's 1991 decision in Leathers v. Medlock does not represent a substantial change in the law governing taxation of the media but is one step in the evolution of two distinct lines of media taxation cases. The article also examines how the lower courts have applied Leathers in the six years since it was decided. The lower court decisions uniformly - although not explicitly - recognize the two lines. What is needed now is explicit recognition by both the Supreme Court and the lower courts.
The Ebb and Flow of the Liberalization of the Jordanian Press: 1985–1997
Authors: Najjar Orayb Aref
Published: December 2011

This study examines press liberalization in Jordan. It argues that Jordan's evolving relations with Palestinians, its peace agreement with Israel, and media globalization have changed the context within which the Jordanian media operate and have given the government some flexibility to liberalize the press starting in 1989. However, some of the same issues that have led to press restrictions in the past have precipitated the introduction of “The Temporary Law for the Year 1997” while the parliament was not in session. The study concludes that the presence of a a loose coalition of forces working for press freedom coupled with the January 1998 High Court decision declaring the temporary law unconstitutional suggest it is premature to read a eulogy for Jordanian press freedom.
Effects of Citation in Exemplifying Testimony on Issue Perception
Authors: Gibson Rhonda , Zillmann Dolf
Published: December 2011

Two sides of an issue were presented and exemplified with testimonials in a magazine-style news report. Testimony featured the interviewees' positions in citation or paraphrase. All combinations of citation-paraphrase were created and analyzed in factorial designs; i.e., position A (cited, paraphrased) was crossvaried with position B (cited, paraphrased). Issue perception was found to be greatly influenced by citation. Respondents adopted the cited position more than the paraphrased position. This effect was most pronounced when the opposing position was paraphrased. No presentation bias was detected, however.
Print Media and Public Reaction to the Controversy Over NEA Funding for Robert Mapplethorpe's “The Perfect Moment” Exhibit
Authors: McLeod Douglas M. , MacKenzie Jill A.
Published: December 2011

In 1989, Robert Mapplethorpe's photographic exhibit The Perfect Moment toured the country with the support of a $30,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Arts. The exhibit, which included several sado-masochistic and homo-erotic photographs, drew the ire of the Reverend Donald Wildmon, who turned to Senator Jesse Helms (R- NC). In the summer of 1989, Congress debated policy toward the funding practices of the NEA, sparking a major controversy in Congress and in the arts community. This study examines media coverage of the controversy and the reaction of the public in terms of museum attendance and the value of Mapplethorpe's art.
Journalists' and Public Relations Practitioners' News Values: Perceptions and Cross-Perceptions
Authors: Sallot Lynne M. , Steinfatt Thomas M. , Salwen Michael B.
Published: December 2011

Journalists and public relations practitioners in South Florida and metropolitan New York were surveyed regarding their perceptions and cross-perceptions of their own and each other's news values and influence of public relations on the news. The two groups report similar news values, although journalists report a greater lack of awareness of the similarity. The study also found that practitioners, expecting contributions of social good by public relations, perceive greater public relations' influence on news content than do journalists.
Structural Pluralism, Corporate Newspaper Structure, and News Source Perceptions: Another Test of the Editorial Vigor Hypothesis
Authors: Demers David K.
Published: December 2011

A recent content analysis of newspaper editorials and letters to the editor disputes the conventional wisdom that newspapers become less vigorous editorially as they acquire the characteristics of the corporate form of organization. However, many scholars remain skeptical. This study tested the editorial vigor hypothesis using an alternative methodology: a national probability survey of mainstream news sources (mayors and police chiefs). The data provide partial support for the corporate structure theory - the more structurally complex the newspaper, the more news sources perceived that paper as being critical of them and their institutions. Drawing on previous research and these findings, the author argues corporate newspapers are more critical because they are more likely to be located in pluralistic communities, which contain more social conflict and criticism of dominant groups and value systems, and because they are more insulated from local political pressures. From a broader perspective, the results may be interpreted as supporting theories which hold that the pace of social change quickens as social systems become more structurally pluralistic.
L'affaire Jake Powell: The Minority Press Goes to Bat against Segregated Baseball
Authors: Lamb Chris
Published: December 2011

During a radio interview on 29 July 1938, New York Yankee outfielder Jake Powell said he worked as a policeman in the off-season and kept in shape by cracking “niggers” over the head with his nightstick. Powell was immediately suspended for ten days. The “Jake Powell Incident” provided the catalyst to challenge segregation in baseball—mobilizing pressure from Black activists, journalists, and others who wanted to integrate baseball. This article examines how this story was covered by mainstream dailies; Black weeklies; and the Daily Worker, a Communist daily published in New York City.
Fairness and Balance in the Structural Characteristics of Newspaper Stories on the 1996 Presidential Election
Authors: Fico Frederick , Cote William
Published: December 2011

This content study of how Michigan's nine largest daily newspapers covered the 1996 presidential campaign focuses on structural characteristics of news stories that may influence readers to judge reporting as fair or biased. Specifically, the study examines institutional and newsroom influences on such characteristics. Results indicated that stories were significantly imbalanced structurally. Regardless of the candidate a reader might have supported, chances were nearly even that any encountered story was one sided, but two-sided stories were likely to be significantly imbalanced as well. Event coverage was the biggest predictor of imbalanced story structure.
Interactivity, Online Journalism, and English-Language Web Newspapers in Asia
Authors: Massey Brian L. , Levy Mark R.
Published: December 2011

English-language online newspapers in Asia were content analyzed using a five-dimensional conceptualization of interactivity. This study offers both an enlarged theoretical framework for studying Web newspapers and tests that framework in the cross-cultural context of Asian journalism. Although all of the online newspapers examined provided users with a relatively complex choice of news content, most did not rate highly on the remaining four dimensions of interactivity.
Auto Trade Policy and the Press: Auto Elite as a Source of the Media Agenda
Authors: Chang Kuang-Kuo
Published: December 2011

This study, based on content analysis, showed that the auto elite set the agenda for the New York Times and the Detroit News, both of which were inclined to have their news coverage of the auto trade conflicts between the United States and Japan biased toward fair trade, not free trade. Additionally, the News was more likely than the Times to be more biased, especially when the conflicts were mounting.
State Control of Television News in 1990s Lebanon
Authors: Kraidy Marwan M.
Published: December 2011

Since the official end of the war in 1990, Lebanese news media have been affected by several regulatory, political, and economic factors. This article analyzes state attempts to control television news and political programs in postwar Lebanon. Internal factors motivating control include media regulation and political struggles between the regime and its opponents, and between government branches. External factors include the strategic position of Lebanon's media in the Arab world, Lebanon's political and economic dependence on some Arab regimes, and the advent of pan-Arab satellite broadcasting. Direct and indirect forms of control are discussed.
Civic Duties: Newspaper Journalists' Views on Public Journalism
Authors: Voakes Paul S.
Published: December 2011

In a national survey of 1, 037 newspaper journalists, this study found strong support for four practices associated with civic journalism. In order to minimize respondents' preconceptions, the terms “civic journalism” or “public journalism” did notappearin the survey instrument. The study also found that journalists at smaller-sized papers, who accord importance to neighborhood news, who approve of top editors' and staff members' joining community organizations, and who feel their own paper is improving, are more likely to approve of civic journalism practices. The study seems to confirm preliminary findings from earlier research that a new conception of journalism's role in society may be emerging.
Relationship Between Learning Problems and Attention Deficit in Childhood
Authors: Pondé Milena Pereira , Cruz-Freire Antônio Carlos , Silveira André Almeida
Published: December 2011

Objective:

To assess the impact of attention deficit on learning problems in a sample of schoolchildren in the city of Salvador, Bahia, Brazil.

Method:

All students enrolled in selected elementary schools were included in this study, making a total of 774 children. Each child was assessed by his or her teacher using a standardized scale. The Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Scale–Teacher’s Version ( Benczic, 2000 ) was used to evaluate ADHD symptoms and learning problems.

Results:

A very strong association was found between attention deficit and learning problems (prevalence ratio [PR] = 31.7; 95% confidence interval = [16.1, 62.3]).

Conclusion:

Results suggest either that attention deficit leads to learning problems or that attention deficit and learning problems are comorbid conditions, in which case learning problems may also contribute to secondary symptoms in ADHD.
The contemporary Gothic: Literacy and childhood in unsettled times
Authors: Carrington Victoria
Published: December 2011

This paper argues that the revival of the Gothic as an expression of contemporary tensions and issues has significance for our views of childhood and, as a consequence, for literacy and literacy education. While the ways in which Gothic literature and other Gothic popular culture forms are used to speak to these tensions have shifted across time and place, they have, regardless, proved an enduring forum for the articulation of uncomfortable issues and anxieties. Constructions of childhood and the world in which children live are positioned within these larger social, economic and political currents and, more specifically, are cornerstones of perceptions of literacy, education and the literate citizen’s identity. It is from this stance that this paper examines the seepage of the Gothic into popular culture for children. The paper begins by acknowledging the significance of the contemporary Gothic and then moves on to consider how deeply the Gothic has seeped into popular culture, by examining a range of Gothic toys. If the contemporary Gothic revival is a marker of anxiety around identity, trust, authenticity and, to some extent, childhood itself, then how does this impact on the kinds of literate practices and moral economies associated with children? The paper explores this question.
Junior Scholars in Search of Equity for Women and Minorities
Authors: Rush Ramona R. , Oukrop Carol E. , Sarikakis Katharine , Andsager Julie , Wooten Billy , Daufin E-K
Published: December 2011

This paper reflects upon the 2002 report on the status of women in journalism and mass communications education that updated and expanded the 1972 study by senior authors Rush and Oukrop. Survey data from the 1972 and the 2002 studies are compared in a highlights section. The focus of this monograph is on the demographic group of “junior scholars” from the 2002 database. It argues that the majority of junior scholars perceive discrimination in several aspects of academic life, including the processes of hiring, promotion, and tenure. The major area of discrimination reported is salary, although rewards other than financial are also subject to unequal treatment. Furthermore, junior scholars are still confronted with centuries-old prejudices that define the role of women as caretakers and impose that role upon them, with effects on women's professional development. The working conditions in the academy are finally reflected in the research outcomes and knowledge produced.

The 2002 study report demonstrates that 30 years later women still perceive discrimination. Women and minorities have made great strides in the national organization, the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC), but discrimination remains a significant issue in the individual academic units of universities. This monograph argues that the Ratio of Recurrent and Reinforced Residuum (R3) consistently fits data about women in journalism and mass communication both in the academy and in media professions around the world.

This paper includes reflections and comments of younger scholars currently at different stages on the academic ladder and makes recommendations for short and long-term actions that new scholars, academic units, and communications organizations should take to help correct inequality.
Black Ink and the New Red Power: Native American Newspapers and Tribal Sovereignty
Authors: Loew Patty , Mella Kelly
Published: December 2011

This research explores the relationship between Native American newspapers and tribal sovereignty. By means of a content analysis of more than a thousand environmental stories in four tribal newspapers in Wisconsin, interviews with Native American journalists, and discussions with Indian focus groups, the study examines the themes and values tribal journalists and their readers attach to sovereignty. The research suggests that Native newspapers are an important source of information about sovereignty for Native Americans. It also finds that cultural values and themes that reinforce sovereignty emerge from Native news reports about the environment.

The United States Government has a unique legal relationship with Native American tribal governments as set forth in the Constitution of the United States, treaties, statutes, and court decisions. As executive departments and agencies undertake activities affecting Native American tribal rights or trust resources, such activities should be implemented in a knowledgeable, sensitive manner respectful of tribal sovereignty … to ensure that the Federal Government operates within a government-to-government relationship with federally recognized Native American tribes.
Moral Guardians and the Origins of the Right to Privacy
Authors: Smith Jeffery A.
Published: December 2011

The concept of a legal right to privacy existed long before 1890 when Samuel D. Warren and Louis D. Brandeis published their much-acclaimed Harvard Law Review article advocating tort liability for invasions of privacy by publication. A number of writers and public intellectuals had already dramatized a need for protecting people from the prying of the press. Their essays upheld Victorian social standards and typically assigned blame to commercial pressures on journalists to satisfy public appetites. Attempting to resolve a conflict between civility and civil liberties, they either endorsed as much self-regulation as possible or called for a legal remedy. Nineteenth-century privacy advocates raised issues of audience tastes and media ethics that remain contentious today.
Perceptions and Manifestations of Autonomy, Transparency and Harm among U.S. Newspaper Journalists
Authors: Plaisance Patrick Lee , Deppa Joan A.
Published: December 2011

The media ethics literature is filled both with calls to more clearly define the values that govern media practitioners and with claims about which values ought to drive good journalism. Yet virtually nowhere in the field has social psychology research into the nature of values been brought to bear on this discussion. Based on an analysis of a series of in-depth interviews with 15 newspaper journalists in California, New Jersey and North Carolina, this examination of how journalists perceive, articulate and seek to embody their personal values in their work suggests that, far from working in a moral vacuum, journalists bring to bear a number of morality-based and competency-based values on their everyday ethical decision-making. Drawing from the body of value-theory research in social psychology, the analysis suggests that 1) journalists may have an inadequate conceptualization of journalistic autonomy; 2) the field suffers from an excessively wide range in the degree to which journalists embrace the goal of transparent deliberation; and 3) the journalistic admonition to “minimize harm” requires clarification within the profession.
Spin generation during an oblique impact of a compliant ball on a non-compliant surface
Authors: Allen Tom , Ibbitson James , Haake Steve
Published: December 2011

Oblique impacts between a ball and surface are a key part of many sports. Previous work has shown that a ball can slide, over-spin or roll at the end of an impact, depending on impact conditions. Inbound spin ratio was analysed to determine if it could be used to identify what is likely to happen at the end of impact for all sports regardless of surface, ball type, impact velocity, angle and spin. A predictive model, in the form of a finite element model, of a tennis ball was validated against experimental data for oblique impacts with inbound spin ratios in the range of –1 to 1. Spin ratio is defined as the product of the ball’s angular velocity and radius divided by the centre of mass velocity tangential to the surface. The finite element model was then used to determine the effect of impact conditions and ball parameters on outbound spin ratio. The study showed that for constant inbound spin ratio, outbound spin ratio was dependent on inbound velocity and angle. For constant inbound velocity and angle, decreasing the mass and increasing the stiffness of the ball through a change in material properties resulted in an increase in the maximum outbound spin ratio. Inbound spin ratio can be used to predict how a ball will rebound from a surface; however, inbound velocity and angle must be constant. Spin ratio can therefore be used to compare the impact characteristics for different ball and surface scenarios.
Development, evaluation and application of 3D QSAR Pharmacophore model in the discovery of potential human renin inhibitors
Authors: John Shalini , Thangapandian Sundarapandian , Arooj Mahreen , Hong Jong Chan , Kim Kwang Dong , Lee Keun Woo
Published: December 2011

Background

Renin has become an attractive target in controlling hypertension because of the high specificity towards its only substrate, angiotensinogen. The conversion of angiotensinogen to angiotensin I is the first and rate-limiting step of renin-angiotensin system and thus designing inhibitors to block this step is focused in this study.

Methods

Ligand-based quantitative pharmacophore modeling methodology was used in identifying the important molecular chemical features present in the set of already known active compounds and the missing features from the set of inactive compounds. A training set containing 18 compounds including active and inactive compounds with a substantial degree of diversity was used in developing the pharmacophore models. A test set containing 93 compounds, Fischer randomization, and leave-one-out methods were used in the validation of the pharmacophore model. Database screening was performed using the best pharmacophore model as a 3D structural query. Molecular docking and density functional theory calculations were used to select the hit compounds with strong molecular interactions and favorable electronic features.

Results

The best quantitative pharmacophore model selected was made of one hydrophobic, one hydrogen bond donor, and two hydrogen bond acceptor features with high a correlation value of 0.944. Upon validation using an external test set of 93 compounds, Fischer randomization, and leave-one-out methods, this model was used in database screening to identify chemical compounds containing the identified pharmacophoric features. Molecular docking and density functional theory studies have confirmed that the identified hits possess the essential binding characteristics and electronic properties of potent inhibitors.

Conclusion

A quantitative pharmacophore model of predictive ability was developed with essential molecular features of a potent renin inhibitor. Using this pharmacophore model, two potential inhibitory leads were identified to be used in designing novel and future renin inhibitors as antihypertensive drugs.
Impact of sub-inhibitory antibiotics on fibronectin-mediated host cell adhesion and invasion by Staphylococcus aureus
Authors: Rasigade Jean Philippe , Moulay Abdelmalek , Lhoste Yannick , Tristan Anne , Bes Michele , Vandenesch François , Etienne Jerome , Lina Gerard , Laurent Frederic , Dumitrescu Oana
Published: December 2011

Background

Staphylococcus aureus is a well-armed pathogen prevalent in severe infections such as endocarditis and osteomyelitis. Fibronectin-binding proteins A and B, encoded by fnbA/B, are major pathogenesis determinants in these infections through their involvement in S. aureus adhesion to and invasion of host cells. Sub-minimum inhibitory concentrations (sub-MICs) of antibiotics, frequently occurring in vivo because of impaired drug diffusion at the infection site, can alter S. aureus phenotype. We therefore investigated their impact on S. aureus fibronectin-mediated adhesiveness and invasiveness.

Methods

After in vitro challenge of S. aureus 8325-4 and clinical isolates with sub-MICs of major anti-staphylococcal agents, we explored fnbA/B transcription levels, bacterial adhesiveness to immobilised human fibronectin and human osteoblasts in culture, and bacterial invasion of human osteoblasts.

Results

Oxacillin, moxifloxacin and linezolid led to the development of a hyper-adhesive phenotype in the fibronectin adhesion assay that was consistent with an increase in fnbA/B transcription. Conversely, rifampin treatment decreased fibronectin binding in all strains tested without affecting fnbA/B transcription. Gentamicin and vancomycin had no impact on fibronectin binding or fnbA/B transcription levels. Only oxacillin-treated S. aureus displayed a significantly increased adhesion to cultured osteoblasts, but its invasiveness did not differ from that of untreated controls.

Conclusion

Our findings demonstrate that several antibiotics at sub-MICs modulate fibronectin binding in S. aureus in a drug-specific fashion. However, hyper- and hypo- adhesive phenotypes observed in controlled in vitro conditions were not fully confirmed in whole cell infection assays. The relevance of adhesion modulation during in vivo infections is thus still uncertain and requires further investigations.
Encephalitis temporally associated with live attenuated Japanese encephalitis vaccine: four case reports
Authors: Jia Na , Zhao Qiu-Min , Guo Xiao-Fang , Cheng Jing-Xia , Wu Chao , Zuo Shu-Qing , Dai Pei-Fang , Zhao Jun-Ying , Zhang Jiu-Song
Published: December 2011

Background

Japanese encephalitis (JE) vaccination is the most effective measure for preventing JE disease. The live attenuated JE vaccine, which has shown good efficacy and safety, has been widely used in China.

Case presentations

We report four laboratory-confirmed JE cases detected in JE-endemic areas during the JE virus (JEV) transmission season, who all received a first dose of live attenuated JE vaccine within 2 weeks prior to the onset of illness. All cases presented with acute encephalitis and rapidly reduced consciousness. All cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples from the patients were positive for JEV-specific immunoglobulin M (IgM) antibodies, but viral isolation and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) detection of JEV were both negative.

Conclusions

It is difficult to identify a causal link between the disease and the vaccination, as the source of positive CSF JEV IgM antibodies might be natural JEV infection or possibly due to a traumatic lumbar puncture. Our observations highlight the need for public health officers and doctors to consider reasonable vaccination policies during the JE season. In addition, continued surveillance as well as thorough investigation of any events that occur after JE vaccination is necessary.
Enhanced upper genital tract pathologies by blocking Tim-3 and PD-L1 signaling pathways in mice intravaginally infected with Chlamydia muridarum
Authors: Peng Bo , Lu Chunxue , Tang Lingli , Yeh I-Tien , He Zhimin , Wu Yimou , Zhong Guangming
Published: December 2011

Background

Although Tim-3 & PD-L1 signaling pathways play important roles in negatively regulating immune responses, their roles in chlamydial infection have not been evaluated.

Methods

Neutralization antibodies targeting Tim-3 and PD-L1 were used to treat mice. Following an intravaginal infection with C. muridarum organisms, mice with or without the dual antibody treatment were compared for live chlamydial organism shedding from the lower genital tract and inflammatory pathology in the upper genital tract.

Results

Mice treated with anti-Tim-3 and anti-PD-L1 antibodies displayed a time course of live organism shedding similar to that of mice treated with equivalent amounts of isotype-matched IgG molecules. The combined antibody blocking failed to alter either the lower genital tract cytokine or systemic humoral and cellular adaptive responses to C. muridarum infection. However, the antibody blocking significantly enhanced C. muridarum-induced pathologies in the upper genital tract, including more significant hydrosalpinx and inflammatory infiltration in uterine horn and oviduct tissues.

Conclusions

The Tim-3 and PD-L1-mediated signaling can significantly reduce pathologies in the upper genital tract without suppressing immunity against chlamydial infection, suggesting that Tim-3 and PD-L1-mediated negative regulation may be manipulated to attenuate tubal pathologies in women persistently infected with C. trachomatis organisms.
Incidence of maternal Toxoplasma infections in pregnancy in Upper Austria, 2000-2007
Authors: Sagel Ulrich , Krämer Alexander , Mikolajczyk Rafael T
Published: December 2011

Background

Despite three decades of prenatal screening program for toxoplasmosis in Austria, population-based estimates for the incidence of maternal infections with Toxoplasma gondii during pregnancy are lacking. We studied the incidence of primary maternal infections during pregnancy in the Federal State of Upper Austria.

Methods

Screening tests for 63,416 women and over 90,000 pregnancies (more than 84.5% of pregnancies in the studied region) in the time period between 01.01.2000 and 31.12.2007 were analysed. The incidence of toxoplasmosis was estimated indirectly by binomial and directly by interval censored regression.

Results

During the studied period, 66 acute infections (risk of 0.07% per pregnancy) were detected, but only 29.8% of seronegative women were tested at least three times during their pregnancies. The seroprevalence of Toxoplasma antibodies among all tested women was 31%. Indirectly estimated incidence (from differences in prevalence by age) was 0.5% per pregnancy, while directly estimated incidence (interval censored regression) was 0.17% per pregnancy (95% confidence interval: 0.13-0.21%).

Conclusions

Calculating incidence from observed infections results in severe underreporting due to many missed tests and potential diagnostic problems. Using statistical modelling, we estimated primary toxoplasmosis to occur in 0.17% (0.13-0.21%) of all pregnancies in Upper Austria.
Measurement of gender inequality in neighbourhoods of Québec, Canada
Authors: Tamambang Lum , Auger Nathalie , Lo Ernest , Raynault Marie-France
Published: December 2011

Introduction

Few studies have measured gender inequality at levels lower than the country. We sought to develop neighbourhood indicators of gender inequality, and assess their ability to capture variability in gender inequality across Québec, Canada.

Methods

Aggregate 2001 census data for 11,564 neighbourhoods were obtained for men and women. Twelve indicators of gender inequality representing demographic/household characteristics, education, income, work/leisure, and political participation were selected. Neighbourhood-level gender inequality scores were computed for each indicator, and examined across parts of Québec (metropolitan areas, mid-sized cities, rural areas). Monte Carlo simulations were used to assess the ability of indicators to capture heterogeneity in gender inequality across neighbourhoods.

Results

Male-dominant neighbourhood-level gender inequality tended to be present for average employment income, labour force participation, employment rate, and employment in managerial positions. Female-dominant gender inequality tended to be present for divorce, single-headed households, and participation in unpaid housework, child and elderly care. Neighbourhood-level gender inequality tended to vary across metropolitan areas, mid-sized cities, and rural areas. Gender inequality scores also varied within these geographic areas. For example, there was greater income-related gender inequality in high than low income neighbourhoods. Monte Carlo simulations suggested that the variation in gender inequality across neighbourhoods was greater than expected with chance alone.

Conclusion

Neighbourhood-level gender inequality tended to be present in Québec, and varied across parts of the province. Greater awareness of and research on neighbourhood-level gender inequality may be warranted to inform gender policies in Québec and other nations.
Mucosal exposure to cockroach extract induces allergic sensitization and allergic airway inflammation
Authors: Arizmendi Narcy G , Abel Melanie , Puttagunta Lakshmi , Asaduzzaman Muhammad , Davidson Courtney , Karimi Khalil , Forsythe Paul , Vliagoftis Harissios
Published: December 2011

Background

Allergic sensitization to aeroallergens develops in response to mucosal exposure to these allergens. Allergic sensitization may lead to the development of asthma, which is characterized by chronic airway inflammation. The objective of this study is to describe in detail a model of mucosal exposure to cockroach allergens in the absence of an exogenous adjuvant.

Methods

Cockroach extract (CE) was administered to mice intranasally (i.n.) daily for 5 days, and 5 days later mice were challenged with CE for 4 consecutive days. A second group received CE i.n. for 3 weeks. Airway hyperresponsiveness (AHR) was assessed 24 h after the last allergen exposure. Allergic airway inflammation was assessed by BAL and lung histology 48 h after the last allergen exposure. Antigen-specific antibodies were assessed in serum. Lungs were excised from mice from measurement of cytokines and chemokines in whole lung lysate.

Results

Mucosal exposure of Balb/c mice to cockroach extract induced airway eosinophilic inflammation, AHR and cockroach-specific IgG1; however, AHR to methacholine was absent in the long term group. Lung histology showed patchy, multicentric damage with inflammatory infiltrates at the airways in both groups. Lungs from mice from the short term group showed increased IL-4, CCL11, CXCL1 and CCL2 protein levels. IL4 and CXCL1 were also increased in the BAL of cockroach-sensitized mice in the short-term protocol.

Conclusions

Mucosal exposure to cockroach extract in the absence of adjuvant induces allergic airway sensitization characterized by AHR, the presence of Th2 cytokines in the lung and eosinophils in the airways.
The infectivity and pathogenicity of a foot-and-mouth disease virus persistent infection strain from oesophageal-pharyngeal fluid of a Chinese cattle in 2010
Authors: Bao Hui-Fang , Li Dong , Sun Pu , Zhou Qiang , Hu Jun , Bai Xing-Wen , Fu Yuan-Fang , Lu Zeng-Jun , Liu Zai-Xin
Published: December 2011

Background

Foot-and mouth disease (FMD) is an acute, febrile, and contagious vesicular disease affecting cloven-hoofed animals. Some animals may become persistent infected carriers when they contact FMD virus (FMDV), and persistent infected animals are a dangerous factor to cause FMD outbreak.

Findings

300 OP (oesophageal-pharyngeal) fluid samples were collected from cattle without clinic symptom after one month FMD circulated in 2010 in China. A FMDV strain was isolated when a positive OP sample was passed in BHK21 cell line. The strain, named O/CHN/2010/33-OP, was detected to be O/Myanmar/1998 lineage with VP1 DNA sequence comparison. In order to testify its infectivity, two cattle were challenged with OP fluid and three pigs were put into the same pen for direct contact infection. The result showed that one of the cattle and one of the pigs appeared FMD clinic symptoms respectively. Furthermore, two cattle (three pigs were also put into the same pen for direct contact infection) and three pigs were inoculated with O/CHN/2010/33-OP cell passaged strain. The result showed that one of the challenged pigs appeared FMD clinic symptoms. Two cattle and three pigs in the same pen did not appeared FMD clinic symptoms, but the sera antibody and their OP fluid of two cattle were positive. Meanwhile, the spinal cords of three pigs in the same pen with two cattle were positive detected with multiplex- RT-PCR.

Conclusion

The persistent infection strain O/CHN/2010/33-OP has infectivity and pathogenicity to cattle and pigs, and infected cattle may transmit the virus to pigs although its virulence was lower than the circulated strain O/CHN/Mya98/2010.