bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Supramolecular assembling using synthons with NH—CO(S)—CS—NH and NH—CO—CO—NH functionalities: crystal structures of (S,S)-N,N′-monothiooxalyldileucine methyl ester and its dithio analogue
Authors: Kojić-Prodić Biserka , Perić Berislav , Štefanić Zoran , Meden Anton , Makarević Janja , Jokić Milan , Žinić Mladen
Published: January 2004

To compare the structural properties of oxalamide and thiooxalamide groups in the formation of hydrogen bonds suitable for supramolecular assemblies a series of retropeptides was studied. Some of them, having oxalamide bridges, are gelators of organic solvents and water. However, retropeptides with oxygen replaced by the sp
2 sulfur have not exhibited such properties. The crystal structures of the two title compounds are homostructural, i.e. they have similar packing arrangements. The monothio compound crystallizes in the orthorhombic space group P212121 with two molecules in the asymmetric unit arranged in a hydrogen-bond network with an approximate 41 axis along the crystallographic b axis. However, the dithio and dioxo analogues crystallize in the tetragonal space group P41 with similar packing patterns and hydrogen-bonding systems arranged in agreement with a crystallographic 41 axis. Thus, these two analogues are isostructural having closely related hydrogen-bonding patterns in spite of the different size and polarity of oxygen and sulfur which serve as the proton acceptors.
Financial auditors and environmental auditing in New Zealand
Authors: Chiang Christina , Lightbody Margaret
Published: January 2004

Despite the many international claims that accountants and auditors are positioned to play a pivotal role in the design and conduct of environmental audits, empirical studies have indicated that in the early 1990s few, if any, accounting professionals in New Zealand were actively involved in the conduct of independent external environmental audits. As the extent of environmental management practices adopted by organisations can be expected to have increased substantially since this time, there is reason to anticipate that the engagement of financial auditors with environmental audits may also have changed over the last decade. In order to examine the nature and extent of such potential changes, this article reviews the involvement of financial auditors in the conduct of environmental audits in New Zealand in 2001.
Business students' perception of the image of accounting
Authors: Allen Cheryl L.
Published: January 2004

The purpose of this study is to determine whether, in the presence of the 150‐hour requirement, the image of accounting continues to deter high‐quality students from choosing accounting as a major. This study uses the cognitive theory of planned behavior as the framework to investigate the factors that limit students' interest in a 150‐hour accounting major. According to the data, while the image of accounting continues to suffer in the presence of the 150‐hour requirement, the accounting major is attracting the type of student the profession desires. This finding suggests that the profession will have to explore additional means beyond the 150‐hour mandate by which to improve the image of accounting in order to achieve its goal of attracting high‐performing, otherwise non‐accounting, students to the accounting major. On the other hand, this finding is encouraging, given the profession's concern about losing access to high‐performing students.
Investigating the security controls of CAIS in an emerging economy
Authors: Abu‐Musa Ahmad A.
Published: January 2004

Computerized accounting information systems (CAIS) are becoming more readily available to all types and sizes of business. The increased growth in real‐time and online data processing in CAIS has made access to these systems more available and easier for many users. Therefore, implementing adequate security controls over organisations, CAIS and their related facilities has become a necessity. The main objective of this article is to investigate the adequacy security controls implemented in the Egyptian banking industry (EBI) to preserve the confidentiality, integrity and availability of the banks' data and their CAIS through a proposed security controls check‐list. The security controls check‐list of CAIS was developed based on the available literature and the empirical results of previous studies. It includes many security counter‐measures that are empirically tested here for the first time. The entire population of the EBI has been surveyed in this research. The significant differences between the two respondent groups had been investigated. The statistical results revealed that the vast majority of Egyptian banks had adequate CAIS security controls in place. The results also revealed that the heads of computer departments (HoCD) paid relatively more attention to technical problems of CAIS security controls. This study has provided invaluable empirical results regarding inadequacies of implemented CAIS security controls in the EBI. Accordingly some recommendations were suggested to strengthen the security controls in the Egyptian banking sector.
The unsung American (accounting?) hero: W. Morgan Shuster
Authors: Doost Roger K.
Published: January 2004

In this age of global terrorism, religious scandals, unbridled capitalism, corporate and accounting scandals, greed, wars, and selfishness, the one‐year adventure of a bull‐headed, uncompromising, honest, fearless, conscientious, hardworking, compassionate, and no‐nonsense American by the name of W. Morgan Shuster is a must read for those who are struggling with the questions of accounting, ethics, politics, and self‐interest. Shuster was a lawyer with expertise in governmental accounting and taxation who was commissioned and sent to Iran (known then as Persia) in 1911 to create a system of accounting control, audit, and responsibility accounting for the government of Iran. This is the condensed account of his adventures and what he accomplished in a span of less than eight months. This article is about Morgan Shuster but, more so, it is about the fundamentals of ethics and responsibility in business and governmental affairs. It provides an understanding of how accounting, accountability, and fiscal planning can be initiated from scratch. Shuster was a devout Christian and had decided that his conduct and his association with people should be reflective of the ideals of his faith as well as the ideals of his nation in pursuit of “life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness” for all God's children. Concludes that, perhaps, the so‐called “real world” should reconcile with the conduct and attitude of Morgan Shuster if the human race is to survive.
Thermal stability of human α‐crystallins sensed by amide hydrogen exchange
Authors: Hasan Azeem , Yu Jiong , Smith David L. , Smith Jean B.
Published: January 2004

The α‐crystallins, αA and αB, are major lens structural proteins with chaperone‐like activity and sequence homology to small heat‐shock proteins. As yet, their crystal structures have not been determined because of the large size and heterogeneity of the assemblies they form in solution. Because α‐crystallin chaperone activity increases with temperature, understanding structural changes of α‐crystallin as it is heated may help elucidate the mechanism of chaperone activity. Although a variety of techniques have been used to probe changes in heat‐stressed α‐crystallin, the results have not yet yielded a clear understanding of chaperone activity. We report examination of native assemblies of human lens α‐crystallin using hydrogen/deuterium exchange in conjunction with enzymatic digestion and analysis by mass spectrometry. This technique has the advantage of sensing structural changes along much of the protein backbone and being able to detect changes specific to αA and αB in the native assembly. The reactivity of the amide linkages to hydrogen/deuterium exchange was determined for 92% of the sequence of αA and 99% of αB. The behavior of αA and αB is remarkably similar. At low temperatures, there are regions at the beginning of the α‐crystallin domains in both αA and αB that have high protection to isotope exchange, whereas the C termini offer little protection. The N terminus of αA also has low protection. With increasing temperatures, both proteins show gradual unfolding. The maximum percent change in exposure with increasing temperatures was found in αA 72–75 and αB 76–79, two regions considered critical for chaperone activity.
Automated selection of positions determining functional specificity of proteins by comparative analysis of orthologous groups in protein families
Authors: Kalinina Olga V. , Mironov Andrey A. , Gelfand Mikhail S. , Rakhmaninova Aleksandra B.
Published: January 2004

The increasing volume of genomic data opens new possibilities for analysis of protein function. We introduce a method for automated selection of residues that determine the functional specificity of proteins with a common general function (the specificity‐determining positions [SDP] prediction method). Such residues are assumed to be conserved within groups of orthologs (that may be assumed to have the same specificity) and to vary between paralogs. Thus, considering a multiple sequence alignment of a protein family divided into orthologous groups, one can select positions where the distribution of amino acids correlates with this division. Unlike previously published techniques, the introduced method directly takes into account nonuniformity of amino acid substitution frequencies. In addition, it does not require setting arbitrary thresholds. Instead, a formal procedure for threshold selection using the Bernoulli estimator is implemented. We tested the SDP prediction method on the LacI family of bacterial transcription factors and a sample of bacterial water and glycerol transporters belonging to the major intrinsic protein (MIP) family. In both cases, the comparison with available experimental and structural data strongly supported our predictions.
Phylogenetic and evolutionary analysis of the PLUNC gene family
Authors: Bingle Colin D. , LeClair Elizabeth E. , Havard Suzanne , Bingle Lynne , Gillingham Paul , Craven C. Jeremy
Published: January 2004

The PLUNC family of human proteins are candidate host defense proteins expressed in the upper airways. The family subdivides into short (SPLUNC) and long (LPLUNC) proteins, which contain domains predicted to be structurally similar to one or both of the domains of bactericidal/permeability‐increasing protein (BPI), respectively. In this article we use analysis of the human, mouse, and rat genomes and other sequence data to examine the relationships between the PLUNC family proteins from humans and other species, and between these proteins and members of the BPI family. We show that PLUNC family clusters exist in the mouse and rat, with the most significant diversification in the locus occurring for the short PLUNC family proteins. Clear orthologous relationships are established for the majority of the proteins, and ambiguities are identified. Completion of the prediction of the LPLUNC4 proteins reveals that these proteins contain approximately a 150‐residue insertion encoded by an additional exon. This insertion, which is predicted to be largely unstructured, replaces the structure homologous to the 40s hairpin of BPI. We show that the exon encoding this region is anomalously variable in size across the LPLUNC proteins, suggesting that this region is key to functional specificity. We further show that the mouse and human PLUNC family orthologs are evolving rapidly, which supports the hypothesis that these proteins are involved in host defense. Intriguingly, this rapid evolution between the human and mouse sequences is replaced by intense purifying selection in a large portion of the N‐terminal domain of LPLUNC4. Our data provide a basis for future functional studies of this novel protein family.
Myoglobin cavities provide interior ligand pathway
Authors: Teeter Martha M.
Published: January 2004

The myoglobin protein binds oxygen and catalyzes NO oxidation. As a key model protein, its dynamics have been well studied by spectroscopy and by crystallography as well as by simulation. Nonetheless, visualization of the mechanism of movement of ligands within myoglobin has been difficult. Coordinates of the A1 and A3 taxonomic spectral states of myoglobin from the 1 Å crystal structure (1a6g) are generated as consistent sets of correlated clusters of residues with A or B crystal alternates. Analysis of cavities in these A1 and A3 conformations clarifies the pathway of ligand motion from distal entry through interior movement to the proximal side of the heme. Cavities opened up by buried alternate conformations link the distal to the proximal side of the heme. Structural conservation highlights the relevance of this pathway to human neuroglobin. Cavity migration via myoglobin crystal alternates provides a specific link of protein structure to protein dynamics and protein function and demonstrates the relevance of substates (discrete disorder) to function for all proteins.
Hydrogen/deuterium exchange studies of native rabbit MM‐CK dynamics
Authors: Mazon Hortense , Marcillat Olivier , Forest Eric , Vial Christian
Published: January 2004

Creatine kinase (CK) isoenzymes catalyse the reversible transfer of a phosphoryl group from ATP onto creatine. This reaction plays a very important role in the regulation of intracellular ATP concentrations in excitable tissues. CK isoenzymes are highly resistant to proteases in native conditions. To appreciate localized backbone dynamics, kinetics of amide hydrogen exchange with deuterium was measured by pulse‐labeling the dimeric cytosolic muscle CK isoenzyme. Upon exchange, the protein was digested with pepsin, and the deuterium content of the resulting peptides was determined by liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (MS). The deuteration kinetics of 47 peptides identified by MS/MS and covering 96% of the CK backbone were analyzed. Four deuteration patterns have been recognized: The less deuterated peptides are located in the saddle‐shaped core of CK, whereas most of the highly deuterated peptides are close to the surface and located around the entrance to the active site. Their exchange kinetics are discussed by comparison with the known secondary and tertiary structures of CK with the goal to reveal the conformational dynamics of the protein. Some of the observed dynamic motions may be linked to the conformational changes associated with substrate binding and catalytic mechanism.
Role of Phe283 in enzymatic reaction of cyclodextrin glycosyltransferase from alkalophilic Bacillus sp.1011: Substrate binding and arrangement of the catalytic site
Authors: Kanai Ryuta , Haga Keiko , Akiba Toshihiko , Yamane Kunio , Harata Kazuaki
Published: January 2004

Cyclodextrin glycosyltransferase (CGTase) belonging to the α‐amylase family mainly catalyzes transglycosylation and produces cyclodextrins from starch and related α‐1,4‐glucans. The catalytic site of CGTase specifically conserves four aromatic residues, Phe183, Tyr195, Phe259, and Phe283, which are not found in α‐amylase. To elucidate the structural role of Phe283, we determined the crystal structures of native and acarbose‐complexed mutant CGTases in which Phe283 was replaced with leucine (F283L) or tyrosine (F283Y). The temperature factors of the region 259–269 in native F283L increased >10 Å2 compared with the wild type. The complex formation with acarbose not only increased the temperature factors (>10 Å2) but also changed the structure of the region 257–267. This region is stabilized by interactions of Phe283 with Phe259 and Leu260 and plays an important role in the cyclodextrin binding. The conformation of the side‐chains of Glu257, Phe259, His327, and Asp328 in the catalytic site was altered by the mutation of Phe283 with leucine, and this indicates that Phe283 partly arranges the structure of the catalytic site through contacts with Glu257 and Phe259. The replacement of Phe283 with tyrosine decreased the enzymatic activity in the basic pH range. The hydroxyl group of Tyr283 forms hydrogen bonds with the carboxyl group of Glu257, and the pKa of Glu257 in F283Y may be lower than that in the wild type.
Analysis of forces that determine helix formation in α‐proteins
Authors: Kilosanidze Gelena T. , Kutsenko Alexey S. , Esipova Natalia G. , Tumanyan Vladimir G.
Published: January 2004

A model for prediction of α‐helical regions in amino acid sequences has been tested on the mainly‐α protein structure class. The modeling represents the construction of a continuous hypothetical α‐helical conformation for the whole protein chain, and was performed using molecular mechanics tools. The positive prediction of α‐helical and non‐α‐helical pentapeptide fragments of the proteins is 79%. The model considers only local interactions in the polypeptide chain without the influence of the tertiary structure. It was shown that the local interaction defines the α‐helical conformation for 85% of the native α‐helical regions. The relative energy contributions to the energy of the model were analyzed with the finding that the van der Waals component determines the formation of α‐helices. Hydrogen bonds remain at constant energy independently whether α‐helix or non‐α‐helix occurs in the native protein, and do not determine the location of helical regions. In contrast to existing methods, this approach additionally permits the prediction of conformations of side chains. The model suggests the correct values for ∼60% of all χ‐angles of α‐helical residues.
Question and Negative Polarity in the Disjunction Phrase
Authors: Amritavalli R.
Published: January 2004

Disjunction in natural language is argued to require polarity licensing. Building on Higginbotham's (1991) account of the conjunctive reading of disjunction, either is argued to be polarity sensitive in disjunction in both its conjunctive and disjunctive interpretations, just as in isolation. The Kannada disjunctive –oo is shown to be polarity sensitive; its distribution and properties overlap with English whether as well as either. The Neg particle illa in Kannada declarative disjunction is argued to be the overt counterpart of a Neg licensor for either in English.

Kannada –oo occurs without any interrogative meaning in phrases, but only as interrogative disjunction in clauses. In the latter instance, –oo adjoins to its Q licensor and thus precisely demarcates the scope of embedded questions. The default interpretation of Kannada –oo and English or in disjunctions with clausal scope corresponds to the strength of the wh–feature in these languages.
Overt Scope in Hungarian
Authors: Brody Michael , Szabolcsi Anna
Published: January 2004

The focus of this paper is the syntax of inverse scope in Hungarian, a language that largely disambiguates quantifier scope at Spell–Out. Inverse scope is attributed to alternate orderings of potentially large chunks of structure, but with appeal to base–generation, as opposed to non–feature–driven movement as in Kayne 1998. The proposal is developed within mirror theory and conforms to the assumption that structures are antisymmetrical. The paper also develops a matching notion of scope in terms of featural domination, as opposed to c–command, and applies it to otherwise problematic cases of pied piping. Finally, the interaction of different quantifier types is examined, and the patterns are explained invoking morphological considerations on one hand and A′–reconstruction on the other.
Knowledge of Variable Binding in VP–Ellipsis: Language Acquisition Research and Theory Converge
Authors: Foley Claire , Núñez del Prado Zelmira , Barbier Isabella , Lust Barbara
Published: January 2004

In this paper, we relate results from recent experimental study of young children's (3;0–7;11) comprehension of coordinate VP–ellipsis structures in English to a new theoretical proposal regarding their representation. Historically, theoretical treatments of these structures have been challenged by the nature of the ambiguity they involve, which includes both a “sloppy” interpretation (represented in terms of a bound variable) and a “strict” interpretation (represented as referential), at the same time that other interpretations are ruled out. Based on our study of language acquisition, we propose a solution capturing the ambiguity in the syntax, including two different types of operator–variable binding (local and long–distance) over a shared coordinate configuration. Pragmatic focus motivates the choice of the syntactic option for the long–distance strict interpretation. Empirical results reveal that, at all ages, (i) the sloppy interpretation is preferred, (ii) the strict interpretation is nevertheless in evidence, (iii) ungrammatical interpretations are ruled out, and (iv) choice of the strict reading is influenced by semantic/pragmatic factors.
Fontane's Aesthetics of the Slavic Race
Authors: Breggin Benjamin
Published: January 2004

Theodor Fontane was far from immune to turn‐of‐the‐century Europe's problematic fascination with race. In his Wanderungen durch die Mark Brandenburg he lays out a romantic and slanted conception of the Slavic race, which he goes on to employ in works of fiction, such as Cécile or Effi Briest, in which Slavs play a pivotal role in the novels’ development. Impractical, eccentric, pagan and sensual, the Slavic race is deeply implicated in the Polish Cécile's tragedy and in Effi's fall from grace, which occurs in a Slavic milieu and with a Slavic lover. Yet, whatever Fontane's conception of the Slavic race may have been, the casual, playful and artistic way in which he portrayed it reveals that his intentions were aesthetic rather than political. Rather than fetishes of hatred, as in the work of his more jingoist contemporaries, Fontane's Slavs are decorative figures evoking the aesthetics of decadence.
Ilse Langner's Amazonen and the Reception of J. J. Bachofen's Das Mutterrecht
Authors: Davies Peter
Published: January 2004

Ilse Langner's play Amazonen: Komödie was due to receive its première in April 1933, but became one of the early victims of Nazi theatrical censorship, attracting condemnation for its satirical feminist polemic and its radical reworking of the myth of the Greek victory over the Amazons. This paper explores Langner's play as a response to a highly‐charged debate over the legacy of Johann Jakob Bachofen's theory of ancient matriarchy, in which theorists and writers from all political camps fought over the uses of myth in the modern world. Langner's approach to Bachofen's theory and to this debate demonstrates that the terms ‘left’ and ‘right’, which are often applied to the debate on myth in the Weimar Republic, do not necessarily do justice to the complexity of pre‐1933 thinking on the place of myth in modernity.
Der Neue Historische Afrika‐Roman: Kolonialismus aus Postkolonialer Sicht
Authors: Göttsche Dirk
Published: January 2004

Im Rahmen des sprunghaft angestiegenen Interesses an Afrika in der deutschsprachigen Literatur der Jahrtausendwende sind seit Uwe Timms Morenga (1978) neue historische Afrika‐Romane entstanden, die die Erinnerung an den vergessenen deutschen Anteil am System des europäischen Kolonialismus und die Kritik des europäischen Afrika‐Diskurses mit dem Bemühen um eine differenzierende Darstellung afrikanischer Lebenswelten in ihrer eigenen Geschichtlichkeit und Gleichwertigkeit verbinden. Trotz der partiellen Fortschreibung von Projektionen des europäischen Exotismus tragen historische Romane wie Alex Capus’Munzinger Pascha (1997), Hermann Schulz’Auf dem Strom (1998), Jens Johannes Kramers Die Stadt unter den Steinen (2000) oder Hans Christoph Buchs Kain und Abel in Afrika (2001) – auf literarisch ganz unterschiedliche Weise – zur postkolonialen Neuvermessung des Kolonialismus und damit zur Neubegründung des Verhältnisses zwischen den Kulturräumen bei.
Martin Walser's Tod eines Kritikers and the Issue of Anti‐Semitism
Authors: Niven Bill
Published: January 2004

Martin Walser's latest novel Tod eines Kritikers has been the subject of intense debate in Germany, particularly prior to its publication in June 2002. For some, the novel is anti‐Semitic and signals Walser's arrival in the far right‐wing camp; for others, it is merely a largely harmless satire. The following article briefly examines the patterns of this debate, the course of which was influenced by a degree of scandalmongering. The main focus is on an analysis of Tod eines Kritikers. I explore the arguments for and against an anti‐Semitic reading, arguing that any interpretation of the text as anti‐Semitic overlooks its use of irony and distance.
Continuity and Changing Configurations of Migration to and from the Republic of South Africa
Authors: Adepoju Aderanti
Published: January 2004

This paper focuses on the transfixing configurations of migration dynamics in a new South Africa, while examining the context of migration and migration dynamics with an emphasis on the historical and institutional setting; the role of immigrants, including those doing the dirty and dangerous jobs, even when they are unwanted; the dynamics of replacement; and policy responses to fashion out appropriate migration regimes in the country.

In the early 1970s, Lesotho, Malawi, and Mozambique were the main suppliers of labour to apartheid South Africa. This pattern later changed, and the supply of workers from Lesotho increased steadily over the years to 50 per cent of the foreign labour in South Africa. The striking disparities in economic development and living standards between South Africa and other African countries, and the remarkable transition to post‐apartheid rule attracted migrants of all categories from Africa and beyond, despite the daunting problems of unemployment, crime, widespread poverty, and the spread of AIDS. It is estimated that nationals from some 100 countries now live in the Republic of South Africa (RSA). From West Africa came highly skilled professionals from Nigeria and Ghana to staff the universities and other professions, along with tradesmen from Senegal and Mali, including street vendors and small traders. These joined their counterparts from the Democratic Republic of Congo, then Zaire and Zimbabwe to swell the informal sector in contrast to the traditional immigrants from Lesotho, Swaziland, Botswana, Malawi, and Mozambique, whose nationals were mostly unskilled farm labourers and mine workers.
Upgrading, uneven development, and jobs in the North American apparel industry
Authors: Bair Jennifer , Gereffi Gary
Published: January 2004

In this article we examine the developmental consequences of globalization at multiple scales, using a commodity chains framework to investigate the case of the North American apparel industry. In the first section we outline the apparel commodity chain and offer a brief typology of its lead firms. In the second section we discuss the concept of industrial upgrading and describe several main export roles in the global apparel industry. In the third section we focus on the regional dynamics resulting from the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). We contrast the Mexican experience with that of countries in the Caribbean Basin to show the impact of distinct trade policies on export‐oriented development. We argue that NAFTA is creating upgrading opportunities for some Mexican firms to move from the low value‐added export‐oriented assembly (or maquila) model to full‐package production. In the fourth section we explore the unevenness of upgrading dynamics through a comparison of two blue jeans manufacturing clusters in the United States and Mexico: El Paso and Torreon. Our conclusions about upgrading and uneven development in the North American apparel industry emphasize the importance of local, national and regional institutional contexts in shaping inter‐firm networks and their development impact.
Searching the core of emergency medicine
Authors: Mørcke A. M. , Wichmann‐Hansen G. , Guldbrand‐Nielsen D. , Tønnesen E. , Eika B.
Published: January 2004

Background:  The purpose of this study was to test whether focus groups involving medical students, house officers, senior doctors, and nurses could identify an undergraduate emergency medicine core curriculum.

Method:  From May 2001 to January 2002, we interviewed 12 homogenous focus groups within all 88 participants. Three focus groups were composed of medical students; three of house officers, three of senior doctors, and three focus groups were composed of nurses. Each interview lasted 2 h. Interviews were recorded, transcribed, and analysed using qualitative methods.

Results:  The focus groups suggested and discussed in all 196 objectives. Students, physicians, and nurses agreed that newly graduated physicians should master history taking, 21 clinical disorders, 15 practical skills, interpretation of two diagnostic tests, two general diagnostic skills, and two leadership skills. Apart from these 43 core objectives, disagreement was substantial. Participants gave very different priorities to communication, knowledge about clinical disorders, practical clinical skills, leadership, and ‘the art of medicine’.

Conclusion:  In conclusion, focus groups could identify an emergency medicine core curriculum. However, participants had very different perspectives on the curriculum. Focus groups could be one very practicable part of seeking consensus on what is core and securing local roots and ownership to an undergraduate emergency medicine curriculum before and during implementation.
Treatment of neuropathic cancer pain with continuous intrathecal administration of S (+)‐ketamine
Authors: Vranken J. H. , Van Der Vegt M. H. , Kal J. E. , Kruis M. R.
Published: January 2004

The effective treatment of patients suffering from neuropathic cancer pain remains a clinical challenge. When patients experience either insufficient analgesia or problematic side‐effects after opioid administration, intrathecal administration of morphine and other medications such as bupivacaine and clonidine may offer significant advantages. Additionally, ketamine, a non‐competitive N‐methyl‐d‐Aspartate‐receptor antagonist is able to alter pain perception at the spinal level. Because of the potential neurotoxicity after neuraxial use of racemic ketamine, intrathecal administration of the preservative‐free active compound, S (+)‐ketamine may be a valuable alternative. In this paper, we present a patient with severe neuropathic cancer pain successfully treated by continuous intrathecal infusion of morphine, bupivacaine, clonidine and S (+)‐ketamine. Moreover, quality of life measurements before and 3 weeks after the start of spinal treatment revealed an improvement in pain relief and a higher overall quality of life. No clinical signs of neurologic deficit were observed during spinal treatment with S (+)‐ketamine. However, the continuous intrathecal administration of S (+)‐ketamine should be considered as the last resort because there are no preclinical safety data with relevant concentrations on intrathecal use of S (+)‐ketamine.
Pre‐anesthetic maternal separation increases pups' locomotor behavior during emergence from anesthesia in rats
Authors: Arai Y.‐C. P. , Ueda W. , Al‐Chaer E. D.
Published: January 2004

Background:  Problematic behavior at emergence from anesthesia in children, partly linked with maternal separation, is a major problem in pediatric anesthesia. In humans, as well as in many other mammalian species, such separation causes psychological and behavioral changes. This study was to investigate whether or not pre‐anesthetic maternal separation has a similar effect on rat pups.

Methods:  This study was conducted on 66 3‐week‐old Sprague–Dawley male rats. The rats were divided into two groups; pups housed with a dam (n = 33) and those housed without (n = 33). Pups were anesthetized with 1.2% halothane for 30 min. Afterwards we recorded their locomotor behavior at emergence from general anesthesia using a video tracking system.

Results:  Pre‐anesthetic maternal separation significantly increased the maximum velocity and the distance traveled by pups at the emergence.

Conclusion:  Pre‐anesthetic maternal separation influenced pups' locomotive behavior at emergence.
Mild hypothermia inhibits IL‐10 production in peripheral blood mononuclear cells
Authors: Matsui T. , Ishikawa T. , Takeuchi H. , Tsukahara M. , Maekawa T.
Published: January 2004

Background:  Hypothermia is often associated with compromised host defenses and infections. Deterioration of immune functions related to hypothermia have been investigated, but the involvement of cytokines in host defense mechanisms and in infection remains unclear. Therefore, we determined whether mild hypothermia affects the production of several types of cytokines in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs), and the balance between pro‐inflammatory and anti‐inflammatory states.

Methods:  PBMCs obtained from 12 healthy humans were cultured with phytohemagglutinin (PHA) in normothermic (37°C: control) or hypothermic (33°C) conditions for 24 h. The production levels of tumor necrosis factor (TNF)‐α, the interleukins (ILs) IL‐6, IL‐8 and IL‐10, and interferon (IFN)‐γ in the culture supernatants were measured by means of enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA).

Results:  Under hypothermic conditions (33°C), PHA‐induced production of IL‐10 and IFN‐γ in PBMCs was significantly lower, by 34% and 84%, respectively, when compared with controls, while production of TNF‐α, IL‐6 and IL‐8 did not change. The magnitude of reduction of IL‐10 in hypothermic conditions resulted in IL‐10/pro‐inflammatory cytokine ratios decreasing to approximately 30–45% of those of controls.

Conclusions:  The present study clearly demonstrates that mild hypothermia (33°C) inhibits IL‐10 and IFN‐γ production in cultured PBMCs. The profound inhibition of IL‐10 and the pro‐inflammatory reaction‐dominated state induced suggests that the host defense mechanism against secondary infection may be maintained rather than inhibited in hypothermia. Thus, the reduction of IL‐10 could be an important characteristic of immune responses in mild hypothermia.
Both lung recruitment maneuver and PEEP are needed to increase oxygenation and lung volume after cardiac surgery
Authors: Dyhr T. , Nygård E. , Laursen N. , Larsson A.
Published: January 2004

Background:  Patients ventilated after cardiac surgery commonly have impaired oxygenation, mainly due to lung collapse. We have previously found that PaO2 and end‐expiratory lung volume (EELV) were increased by a lung recruitment maneuver (LRM) followed by positive end‐expiratory pressure (PEEP). The aim of this study was to evaluate whether only PEEP or only a LRM could give similar effects.

Methods:  Thirty circulatory stable patients (aged 55–79 years) mechanically ventilated after cardiac surgery were randomized to receive LRM (four 10‐s insufflations to an airway pressure of 45 cmH2O) and zero end‐expiratory pressure (LRM‐group), PEEP 12 cmH2O (PEEP‐group) or LRM in combination with PEEP 12 cmH2O (LRM + PEEP‐group). The set end‐expiratory pressure was kept for 75 min. Before, during and after the intervention, EELV (SF6 washout technique) and blood gases were measured.

Results:  Initial EELV and PaO2 were similar in all groups. In the LRM‐group, PaO2 and EELV increased transiently (P < 0.0001), but returned at 5 min to the initial values. In the PEEP‐group, PaO2 did not change but EELV increased to 155 ± 27% of the initial value (P < 0.0001). In the LRM+PEEP‐group, PaO2 and EELV increased to 212 ± 66% and 178 ± 31% of the initial values (P < 0.0001), respectively, and were maintained during PEEP application.

Conclusion:  In patients ventilated after cardiac surgery: (1) PEEP increased lung volume but not PaO2, (2) a lung recruitment maneuver without subsequent PEEP had no sustained effect, and (3) both a lung recruitment maneuver and PEEP were needed to increase and maintain the increased lung volume and PaO2.
Infusion of hypertonic saline (7.5% NaCl) causes minor immunological changes in normovolaemic women
Authors: KØlsen‐Petersen J. A. , Nielsen J. O. D. , Bendtzen K. , Tonnesen E.
Published: January 2004

Background:  Haemorrhagic shock is treated effectively by infusion of hypertonic saline/colloid solutions. Furthermore, previous studies found hypertonicity to affect immune responses in animals and in human blood cell cultures. It is unknown, however, whether hypertonic saline infusion affects immune responses in humans.

Methods:  In a randomized double‐blind study, we infused 4 ml kg−1 of 7.5% NaCl or 0.9% NaCl over 10 min in 20 fasting women before hysterectomy. We collected peripheral blood at baseline, 30, and 120 min after start of the infusion and before surgery for the determination of leucocyte and differential count; lymphocyte subtypes; neutrophil chemotaxis; elastase concentration; and the cytokine's tumour necrosis factor‐alpha (TNFα), interleukin (IL)‐1β, IL‐6, IL‐8, IL‐1 receptor antagonist (IL‐1ra), and IL‐10. Phytohaemagglutinin (PHA)‐induced lymphocyte proliferation and natural killer cell cytotoxicity were measured before and 120 min after infusion.

Results:  Compared with normal saline, infusion of hypertonic saline temporarily increased the number of B cells in peripheral blood (P < 0.01); increased the concentration of plasma elastase, a marker of neutrophil degranulation (P < 0.05); and decreased the number of circulating neutrophils (P < 0.001). No other effects were detected in the measured immunological parameters.

Conclusion:  The immunological consequences of hypertonic saline infusion seem to be modest and are unlikely to cause any clinical effects, at least in normovolaemic women.
Medical and legal considerations of brain death
Authors: Randell T. T.
Published: January 2004

Brain death was first defined in 1968, and since then laws on determining death have been implemented in all countries with active organ transplantation programs. As a prerequisite, the aetiology of brain death has to be known, and all reversible causes of coma have to be excluded. The regulations for the diagnosis of brain death are most commonly given by the national medical associations, and they vary between countries. Thus, the guidelines given in the medical textbooks are not universally applicable. The diagnosis is based on clinical examination, but confirmatory tests, such as angiography or EEG, are allowed on most occasions. Brain death is followed by cardiovascular and hormonal changes, which have implications in the management of a potential organ donor. Spinal reflexes are preserved, and motor and haemodynamic responses are frequently observed in brain dead patients.
Time‐frequency balanced spectral entropy as a measure of anesthetic drug effect in central nervous system during sevoflurane, propofol, and thiopental anesthesia
Authors: Vakkuri A. , Yli‐Hankala A. , Talja P. , Mustola S. , Tolvanen‐Laakso H. , Sampson T. , Viertiö‐Oja H.
Published: January 2004

Background:  Time‐frequency balanced spectral entropy of electroencephalogram (EEG) and frontal electromyogram (FEMG) is a novel measure of hypnosis during anesthesia. Two Entropy parameters are described: Response entropy (RE) is calculated from EEG and FEMG; and State Entropy (SE) is calculated mainly from EEG. This study was performed to validate their performance during transition from consciousness to unconsciousness under different anesthetic agents.

Methods:  Response entropy, SE [S/5™ Entropy Module, M‐ENTROPY (later in text: Entropy), Datex‐Ohmeda Division, Instrumentarium Corp., Helsinki, Finland] and BIS (BIS XP, A‐2000, Aspect Medical Systems, Newton, MA) data were collected from 70 patients; 30 anesthetized with propofol 2 mg kg−1, 20 with sevoflurane inhalation, and 20 with thiopental 5 mg kg−1. Loss and regaining of consciousness (LOC, ROC) was tested every 10 s, and sensitivity, specificity, and prediction probability (Pk) were calculated. Behavior of the indices was studied.

Results:  Sensitivity, specificity, and Pk values for consciousness were high and similar for all indices. During regaining of consciousness after propofol bolus, RE, SE, and BIS values recovered by 81 ± 22%, 75 ± 26%, and 59 ± 18% (mean ± SD), respectively, from the minimum relative to their baseline. After thiopental bolus, RE, SE, and BIS values recovered by 86±21%, 88 ± 13%, and 63 ± 14%, respectively. The relative rise was higher in RE and SE compared with BIS (P < 0.01). During deep levels of hypnosis, RE and SE decreased monotonously as a function of burst suppression ratio, while BIS showed biphasic behavior. On average, RE indicated emergence from anesthesia 11 s earlier than SE, and 12.4 s earlier than BIS.

Conclusions:  All indices, RE, SE, and BIS, distinguished excellently between conscious and unconscious states during propofol, sevoflurane, and thiopental anesthesia. During burst suppression, Entropy parameters RE and SE, but not BIS, behave monotonously. During regaining of consciousness after a thiopental or propofol bolus, RE and SE values recovered significantly closer to their baseline values than did BIS. Response entropy indicates emergence from anesthesia earlier than SE or BIS.
Small Town Politics in Mid‐Victorian Britain
Authors: Jaggard Edwin
Published: January 2004

Electoral politics in the small towns of England and Wales between the First (1832) and Second (1867) Reform Acts have been dismissed by historians as corrupt or controlled by influential patrons. This article uses qualitative and quantitative data to reveal that voters in these small boroughs demonstrated a surprising degree of party loyalty, with the politics of influence less obvious that those of principle. The article concludes that these towns, which elected almost one‐third of the membership of the House of Commons, exhibited a far more vibrant political milieu than was previously thought.
‘Pig‐Sticking Princes’: Royal Hunting, Moral Outrage, and the Republican Opposition to Animal Abuse in Nineteenth‐and Early Twentieth‐Century Britain
Authors: Taylor Antony
Published: January 2004

This article locates monarchy in the debates arising out of the anti‐animal abuse campaigns of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Through a close examination of urban republican criticisms of monarchy, it seeks to question the role of royalty as the custodian of shared national values concerning animal welfare. It demonstrates that hostility to monarchy based on its role in encouraging and patronizing hunting belongs to a long tradition. Much hostility to royalty crystallized around the royal patronage of fox‐hunting and of pheasant‐shooting. The nineteenth‐century precedents for recent concerns about the visible presence of royal figures on the hunting‐field articulated many of the component elements of a republican position. For many urban radicals the connection of reigning monarchs with the hunt demonstrated the dysfunctional nature of royal existence, the limitations of royalty's attainments, and the perceived need by monarchs to satisfy the baser, more carnal urges arising from a life devoted to indolence and pleasure. This article shows that hunting, as a marker of a robust masculinity and of the opulence of royalty, brought the reform community into collision with supporters of the monarchy, and provided an example of royal ritual that failed to work in the interests of the throne. The article concludes by revealing the connections between the land debate, criticisms of the royal house, and animal welfare politics in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
John Peet (1915–1988): An Englishman in the GDR
Authors: Berger Stefan , Laporte Norman
Published: January 2004

John Peet was the most important interlocutor between Britain and the German Democratic Republic (GDR). Through his journal, Democratic German Report (DGR), which he edited between 1952 and 1975, Peet had considerable influence among left‐of‐centre public opinion in Britain. His positive portrayal of the GDR was among the GDR's most believable and powerful propaganda in Britain. This articles reassesses Peet's decision to live and work in the GDR and his subsequent disillusionment with ‘really existing socialism’ in eastern Europe. Making use of Peet's personal papers and the archival holdings about Peet located in various German archives, the article presents Peet as a ‘liberal communist’ who was deeply influenced in his political choices by his experiences in inter‐war Britain and by his fight against fascism in Spain. Although he came to dislike many things about the GDR, his loyalty to the ideals of communism always remained stronger than his desire to criticize the eastern European dictatorships.
Role of the major histocompatibility complex class II transmembrane region in antigen presentation and intracellular trafficking
Authors: Barabanova Yelena A. , Kang Hee‐Kap , Myoung Jinjong , Kang Bongsu , Bishop Gail A. , Kim Byung S.
Published: January 2004

While a sorting signal in the cytoplasmic tail of the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class II molecules is known to influence their endocytic transport, potential effects of the transmembrane (TM) domain of the MHC class II molecules on endocytic transport remain unclear. We have examined the role of the TM domain by comparing antigen‐presenting functions of the wildtype (WT) I‐Ab and mutant (MT) I‐Ab molecule substituted in the β‐chain TM with α chain TM. A20 cells transfected with WT I‐Ab were able to present antigen (hen egg lysozyme) better to some hybridomas, while those transfected with MT I‐Ab consistently outperformed WT for other hybridomas recognizing different epitopes. This difference in antigen processing and presentation is not caused by the differences in H‐2M (DM) requirement or association with Ii. The time required for processing of specific epitopes appears to be different, suggesting sequential involvement of various endocytic compartments in the antigen processing. Although both WT and MT molecules were found in the early endocytic (transferrin receptor‐rich) compartments, MT molecules accumulated in these compartments in higher quantities for longer time periods. Similarly, the MT molecule is retained for a longer time period than WT in late endocytic (LAMP‐1 associated) compartments. Together, our data indicate an important role of the TM domain of the MHC class II molecules in the intracellular trafficking and, consequently, antigen processing and presentation.
CD4+ CD25+ Treg: divide and rule?
Authors: Walker Lucy S. K.
Published: January 2004

Research on CD4+ CD25+ regulatory T cells (Treg) has gathered momentum over the last five years but many aspects of their fundamental biology remain elusive. Treg have been considered to be ‘naturally anergic’ based on their failure to proliferate in response to T‐cell receptor ligation in vitro. Several recent studies challenge this view and demonstrate a robust proliferative capacity for CD25+ cells. The significance of this finding for Treg homeostasis and function is considered below.
Non‐functional immunoglobulin G transcripts in a case of hyper‐immunoglobulin M syndrome similar to type 4
Authors: Darlow John M. , Farrell Alex M. , Stott David I.
Published: January 2004

86% of immunoglobulin G (IgG) heavy‐chain gene transcripts were found to be non‐functional in the peripheral blood B cells of a patient initially diagnosed with common variable immunodeficiency, who later developed raised IgM, whereas no non‐functionally rearranged transcripts were found in the cells of seven healthy control subjects. All the patient's IgM heavy‐chain and κ light‐chain transcripts were functional, suggesting that either non‐functional rearrangements were being selectively class‐switched to IgG, or that receptor editing was rendering genes non‐functional after class‐switching. The functional γ‐chain sequences showed a normal rate of somatic hypermutation while non‐functional sequences contained few somatic mutations, suggesting that most came from cells that had no functional gene and therefore were not receiving signals for hypermutation. However, apoptosis of peripheral blood lymphocytes was not impaired. No defects have been found in any of the genes currently known to be responsible for hyper‐IgM syndrome but the phenotype fits best to type 4.