bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Special Issue for GR2P: Africa's Responsibility to Protect Introduction
Authors: Sarkin Jeremy , Paterson Mark
Published: October 2010

The introduction sketches the recent development of the 'responsibility to protect' norm and emphasises its African roots, both in terms of its conceptualisation and implementation and with particular respect to two tragedies—the genocide in Rwanda in 1994 and the crisis in Darfur since 2003—that have lent urgency to the norm's formulation and widespread international adoption. The number and extent of R2P cases in Africa are outlined and the roles of the African Union and Africa's regional organisations in implementing the norm are briefly considered. The introduction acknowledges the importance of examining R2P through African perspectives. Referencing the justifications and primary principles for action upon which the norm is founded, the authors also assess the relative strengths of competing notions of sovereignty in Africa. The essay further considers how R2P has come to be seen as a mechanism that can bolster the capacity of weak states to fulfil their sovereign responsibilities to their own citizens, and how new international obligations imposed upon states, and particularly those adopted in Africa, have made significant inroads into the old concept of sovereignty as territorial integrity and freedom from external interventions.
The Effect of Trees on Crime in Portland, Oregon
Authors: Donovan Geoffrey H. , Prestemon Jeffrey P.
Published: October 2010

The authors estimate the relationship between trees and three crime aggregates (all crime, violent crime, and property crime) and two individual crimes (burglary and vandalism) in Portland, Oregon. During the study period (2005-2007), 431 crimes were reported at the 2,813 single-family homes in our sample. In general, the authors find that trees in the public right of way are associated with lower crime rates. The relationship between crime and trees on a house’s lot is mixed. Smaller, view-obstructing trees are associated with increased crime, whereas larger trees are associated with reduced crime. The authors speculate that trees may reduce crime by signaling to potential criminals that a house is better cared for and, therefore, subject to more effective authority than a comparable house with fewer trees.
Flame-retardant Polyamide 11 and 12 Nanocomposites: Processing, Morphology, and Mechanical Properties
Authors: Lao S.C. , Yong W. , Nguyen K. , Moon T.J. , Koo J.H. , Pilato L. , Wissler G.
Published: October 2010

The objective of this study is to develop improved polyamide (nylon) 11 (PA11) and 12 (PA12) polymers with enhanced flame retardancy, thermal, and mechanical properties for selective laser sintering rapid manufacturing. PA11 and PA12 were melt-blended, dispersing low concentrations of nanoparticles, namely nanoclays (NCs), carbon nanofibers (CNFs), and nanosilicas (NSs) via twin-screw extrusion. To enhance their thermal and flammability properties, an intumescent flame retardant (FR) was added to the mechanically superior NC and CNF PA11 formulations. NC or CNF additions to either PA11 or PA12 generally increased its tensile strength and modulus, but sharply reduced its elongation at rupture. FR additives reduced PA11’s properties considerably. This substitution, however, only exacerbated the already steep drop in elongation at rupture due to FR additives alone; while elongation dropped 58% with the addition of 30 wt% FR, it dropped 98% with the addition of 25 wt% FR/5 wt% CNF.
Ethanol‐Lock Therapy for the Prevention of Central Venous Access Device Infections in Pediatric Patients With Intestinal Failure
Authors: Cober M. Petrea , Kovacevich Debra S. , Teitelbaum Daniel H.
Published: October 2010

Background: Central venous access device (CVAD) infections are a major complication in pediatric patients receiving long‐term parenteral nutrition (PN) and are particularly prevalent in patients with intestinal failure. This study evaluated the outcomes of outpatient ethanol‐lock therapy (ELT) for the prevention of CVAD infections in children with intestinal failure. Methods: In this retrospective analysis, the primary outcome measure was the rate of bloodstream infection (BSI) due to CVAD infections per 1,000 catheter days, and secondary measures included type of organisms cultured and complications of ELT. Results: Over the course of 2 years, 15 patients received outpatient ELT. Sixty‐seven percent were male; patients had a mean ± standard deviation age at enrollment of 5.6 ± 6.9 years and body weight of 19.9 ± 15.4 kg. Mean duration of ELT was 263 ± 190 days. Mean BSI rate per 1,000 catheter days significantly decreased from 8.0 before ELT to 1.3 after ELT (P < .01). Seventy‐three percent of patients remained infection free throughout the entire study period. Adverse events potentially related to ELT included thrombosis (n = 1), difficulty withdrawing blood from the CVAD, requiring thrombolytic administration (n = 3), and repair of the CVAD for leakage/tear (n = 20). The rate of CVAD repair for leakage/tear with ELT was compared to prior rates per 1,000 catheter days and was found to be elevated after initiation of ELT (6.4 ± 10.0 vs 3.1 ± 5.2; P = .20). No signs and symptoms of ethanol intoxication were observed. Conclusions: ELT for the prevention of CVAD infections in pediatric intestinal failure patients significantly decreased BSI rates and may be used for extended periods of time in an outpatient setting.
Book Review: Iron Deficiency and Overload: From Basic Biology to Clinical Medicine
Authors: El‐Chammas Khalil
Published: October 2010

Yehuda S Mostofsky DI (editors). Iron Deficiency and Overload: From Basic Biology to Clinical Medicine. Totowa, NJ: Humana Press; 2010. Restruture page‐count as size[@units=“page”] 371 pp. ISBN 978‐1‐934115‐22‐0.
The Knowledge Economy and Labour Power in Late Capitalism
Authors: Kennedy Peter
Published: October 2010

This paper offers a Marxist critique of the prevailing view that the knowledge economy marks a decisive shift in capitalism away from the exploitation of labour and argues instead that the knowledge economy is part of the broader transition of value relations under late capitalism, which manifests most clearly in the increasing difficulties late capitalism experiences in containing the power of social labour. Drawing out this argument the paper considers the recent mass expansion of UK post-compulsory education. Contrary to the view that post compulsory education is a functional response to the needs of a knowledge economy, it is argued that the expansion is a function of the need to control through containment the power of social labour. Under conditions of late capitalism and the broader transitions underway in capitalist value relations, the economic function of education remains crucial, but is increasingly subordinate to its role in regulating free time as surplus labour to be controlled and manipulated within capitalism.
Do Green Products Make Us Better People?
Authors: Mazar Nina , Zhong Chen-Bo
Published: October 2010

Consumer choices reflect not only price and quality preferences but also social and moral values, as witnessed in the remarkable growth of the global market for organic and environmentally friendly products. Building on recent research on behavioral priming and moral regulation, we found that mere exposure to green products and the purchase of such products lead to markedly different behavioral consequences. In line with the halo associated with green consumerism, results showed that people act more altruistically after mere exposure to green products than after mere exposure to conventional products. However, people act less altruistically and are more likely to cheat and steal after purchasing green products than after purchasing conventional products. Together, our studies show that consumption is connected to social and ethical behaviors more broadly across domains than previously thought.
Benefits of Expressing Gratitude
Authors: Lambert Nathaniel M. , Clark Margaret S. , Durtschi Jared , Fincham Frank D. , Graham Steven M.
Published: October 2010

This research was conducted to examine the hypothesis that expressing gratitude to a relationship partner enhances one’s perception of the relationship’s communal strength. In Study 1 ( N = 137), a cross-sectional survey, expressing gratitude to a relationship partner was positively associated with the expresser’s perception of the communal strength of the relationship. In Study 2 ( N = 218), expressing gratitude predicted increases in the expresser’s perceptions of the communal strength of the relationship across time. In Study 3 ( N = 75), participants were randomly assigned to an experimental condition, in which they expressed gratitude to a friend, or to one of three control conditions, in which they thought grateful thoughts about a friend, thought about daily activities, or had positive interactions with a friend. At the end of the study, perceived communal strength was higher among participants in the expression-of-gratitude condition than among those in all three control conditions. We discuss the theoretical and applied implications of these findings and suggest directions for future research.
I’m No Longer Torn After Choice
Authors: Coppin Géraldine , Delplanque Sylvain , Cayeux Isabelle , Porcherot Christelle , Sander David
Published: October 2010

Several studies have shown that preferences can be strongly modulated by cognitive processes such as decision making and choices. However, it is still unclear whether choices can influence preferences of sensory stimuli implicitly. This question was addressed here by asking participants to evaluate odors, to choose their preferred odors within pairs, to reevaluate the odors, and to perform an unexpected memory test. Results revealed, for the first time in the study of olfaction, the existence of postchoice preference changes, in the sense of an overvaluation of chosen odors and a devaluation of rejected ones, even when choices were forgotten. These results suggest that chemosensory preferences can be modulated by explicit choices and that such modulation might rely on implicit mechanisms. This finding rules out any explanation of postchoice preference changes in terms of experimental demand and strongly challenges the classical cognitive-dissonance-reduction account of such preference changes.
Intention-Mediated Selective Helping in Infancy
Authors: Dunfield Kristen A. , Kuhlmeier Valerie A.
Published: October 2010

One way to maintain cooperation between unrelated individuals and decrease the chance of providing costly aid to those who will not reciprocate is by selectively helping on the basis of the content of previous interactions. In the present study, we sought to determine whether the earliest instances of human helping behavior show specificity. In three experiments, we found that infants preferred to help an individual who, in a previous interaction, intended to provide a toy over one who did not (Experiment 1) and that infants consider this positive intention even without a positive outcome (Experiment 2). Experiment 3 provided a more detailed examination of the basis of selection, suggesting that infants are not solely avoiding unwilling individuals, but also selectively helping those who have shown a willingness to provide. Taken together, these experiments indicate that early helping behaviors show characteristics of the rich reciprocal relationships observed in adult prosocial behavior.
Overimitation in Kalahari Bushman Children and the Origins of Human Cultural Cognition
Authors: Nielsen Mark , Tomaselli Keyan
Published: October 2010

Children are surrounded by objects that they must learn to use. One of the most efficient ways children do this is by imitation. Recent work has shown that, in contrast to nonhuman primates, human children focus more on reproducing the specific actions used than on achieving actual outcomes when learning by imitating. From 18 months of age, children will routinely copy even arbitrary and unnecessary actions. This puzzling behavior is called overimitation. By documenting similarities exhibited by children from a large, industrialized city and children from remote Bushman communities in southern Africa, we provide here the first indication that overimitation may be a universal human trait. We also show that overimitation is unaffected by the age of the child, differences in the testing environment, or familiarity with the demonstrating adult. Furthermore, we argue that, although seemingly maladaptive, overimitation reflects an evolutionary adaptation that is fundamental to the development and transmission of human culture.
Gestalt Factors Modulate Basic Spatial Vision
Authors: Sayim B. , Westheimer G. , Herzog M.H.
Published: October 2010

Human perception of a stimulus varies depending on the context in which the stimulus is presented. Such contextual modulation has often been explained by two basic neural mechanisms: lateral inhibition and spatial pooling. In the present study, we presented observers with a vernier stimulus flanked by single lines; observers’ ability to discriminate the offset direction of the vernier stimulus deteriorated in accordance with both explanations. However, when the flanking lines were part of a geometric shape (i.e., a good Gestalt), this deterioration strongly diminished. These findings cannot be explained by lateral inhibition or spatial pooling. It seems that Gestalt factors play an important role in contextual modulation. We propose that contextual modulation can be used as a quantitative measure to investigate the rules governing the grouping of elements into meaningful wholes.
Categorical Perception for Unfamiliar Faces
Authors: Kikutani M. , Roberson D. , Hanley J.R.
Published: October 2010

Robust findings show that categorical perception (CP) occurs in identification of familiar faces. CP has also been observed for unfamiliar morphed faces after sufficient learning of the original, unmorphed faces has taken place. We previously suggested that CP arises when the activation of inconsistent visual and verbal representations creates a conflict between perceptual and category information. In the present study, we conducted two experiments in which the endpoint faces of an unfamiliar morphed continuum were presented in either a covert training regime (famous vs. nonfamous judgments) or an overt training regime (previously seen vs. unseen judgments). In both experiments, participants’ reaction times to repeated targets decreased relative to reaction times to control items during training. After overt training, CP was observed for the previously unfamiliar faces. No CP was observed for covertly trained faces. We conclude that individual faces must be explicitly categorized before CP can be established for the morphed continuum between them.
Watching Film for the First Time
Authors: Schwan Stephan , Ildirar Sermin
Published: October 2010

Although film, television, and video play an important role in modern societies, the extent to which the similarities of cinematographic images to natural, unmediated conditions of visual experience contribute to viewers’ comprehension is largely an open question. To address this question, we compared 20 inexperienced adult viewers from southern Turkey with groups of medium- and high-experienced adult viewers from the same region. In individual sessions, each participant was shown a set of 14 film clips that included a number of perceptual discontinuities typical for film. The viewers’ interpretations were recorded and analyzed. The findings show that it is not the similarity to conditions of natural perception but the presence of a familiar line of action that determines the comprehensibility of films for inexperienced viewers. In the absence of such a line of action, extended prior experience is required for appropriate interpretation of cinematographic images such as those we investigated in this study.
Young Children Use Statistical Sampling to Infer the Preferences of Other People
Authors: Kushnir Tamar , Xu Fei , Wellman Henry M.
Published: October 2010

Psychological scientists use statistical information to determine the workings of human behavior. We argue that young children do so as well. Over the course of a few years, children progress from viewing human actions as intentional and goal directed to reasoning about the psychological causes underlying such actions. Here, we show that preschoolers and 20-month-old infants can use statistical information—namely, a violation of random sampling—to infer that an agent is expressing a preference for one type of toy instead of another type of toy. Children saw a person remove five toys of one type from a container of toys. Preschoolers and infants inferred that the person had a preference for that type of toy when there was a mismatch between the sampled toys and the population of toys in the box. Mere outcome consistency, time spent with the toys, and positive attention toward the toys did not lead children to infer a preference. These findings provide an important demonstration of how statistical learning could underpin the rapid acquisition of early psychological knowledge.
Moving the Eye of the Beholder
Authors: Topolinski Sascha
Published: October 2010

Perception entails not only sensory input (e.g., merely seeing), but also subsidiary motor processes (e.g., moving the eyes); such processes have been neglected in research on aesthetic preferences. To fill this gap, the present research manipulated the fluency of perceptual motor processes independently from sensory input and predicted that this increased fluency would result in increased aesthetic preference for stimulus movements that elicited the same motor movements as had been previously trained. Specifically, addressing the muscles that move the eyes, I trained participants to follow a stimulus movement without actually seeing it. Experiment 1 demonstrated that ocular-muscle training resulted in the predicted increase in preference for trained stimulus movements compared with untrained stimulus movements, although participants had not previously seen any of the movements. Experiments 2 and 3 showed that actual motor matching and not perceptual similarity drove this effect. Thus, beauty may be not only in the eye of the beholder, but also in the eyes’ movements.
Nonbelieved Memories
Authors: Mazzoni Giuliana , Scoboria Alan , Harvey Lucy
Published: October 2010

This is the first empirical study of vivid autobiographical memories for events that people no longer believe happened to them. Until now, this phenomenon has been the object of relatively rare, albeit intriguing, anecdotes, such as Jean Piaget’s description of his vivid memory of an attempted abduction that never happened. The results of our study show that nonbelieved memories are much more common than is expected. Approximately 20% of our initial sample reported having at least one nonbelieved autobiographical memory. Participants’ ratings indicate that nonbelieved memories share most recollective qualities of believed memories, but are characterized by more negative emotions. The results have important implications for the way autobiographical memory is conceptualized and for the false-memory debate.
Attention Affects Visual Perceptual Processing Near the Hand
Authors: Cosman Joshua D. , Vecera Shaun P.
Published: October 2010

Specialized, bimodal neural systems integrate visual and tactile information in the space near the hand. Here, we show that visuo-tactile representations allow attention to influence early perceptual processing, namely, figure-ground assignment. Regions that were reached toward were more likely than other regions to be assigned as foreground figures, and hand position competed with image-based information to bias figure-ground assignment. Our findings suggest that hand position allows attention to influence visual perceptual processing and that visual processes typically viewed as unimodal can be influenced by bimodal visuo-tactile representations.
Deconstructing Early Life Experiences
Authors: de Medeiros Cynthia B. , Rees Stephanie L. , Llinas Maheleth , Fleming Alison S. , Crews David
Published: October 2010

In rodents, a pup’s experiences in utero and during postnatal development shape its sexual behavior as an adult and how it is perceived by potential mates. We show that the male rat’s sexuality is primarily influenced by the postnatal sex ratio of its litter, but not by the litter’s prenatal intrauterine sex ratio or the behavior of its mother. Pups from litters with differing prenatal sex ratios were divided into litters with differing postnatal sex ratios. We found that males raised in a female-biased litter exhibited less mounting than males raised in either a male-biased litter or one with an equal sex ratio, and were less attractive to sexually receptive females, eliciting fewer soliciting behaviors, such as hop-darts, and fewer lordosis behaviors. However, the number of intromissions and ejaculations did not differ across groups, which suggests that males from female-biased litters mate as efficiently as males raised in other sex ratios, but do not require as many mounts to do so. The reported differences in sexual behavior did not vary with the quality of maternal behavior or with sexual experience in adulthood.
Relational Mobility Explains Between- and Within-Culture Differences in Self-Disclosure to Close Friends
Authors: Schug Joanna , Yuki Masaki , Maddux William
Published: October 2010

In the current research, we tested a novel explanation for previously demonstrated findings that East Asians disclose less personal information to other people than do Westerners. We propose that both between- and within-culture differences in self-disclosure to close friends may be explained by the construct of relational mobility, the general degree to which individuals in a society have opportunities to form new relationships and terminate old ones. In Study 1, we found that cross-cultural differences (Japan vs. United States) in self-disclosure to a close friend were mediated by individuals’ perceptions of relational mobility. In Study 2, two separate measures of relational mobility predicted self-disclosure within a single culture (Japan), and this relationship was mediated by the motivation to engage in self-disclosure to strengthen personal relationships. We conclude that societies and social contexts higher in relational mobility (in which relationships can be formed and dissolved relatively easily) produce stronger incentives for self-disclosure as a social-commitment device.
The Implicit “Go”
Authors: Gendolla Guido H.E. , Silvestrini Nicolas
Published: October 2010

In this study, we examined the hypothesis that masked general action and inaction cues that are processed during a cognitive task directly mobilize effort exerted during the task. Participants were randomly assigned to an action-prime condition, an inaction-prime condition, or a control condition and performed a Sternberg short-term memory task. The intensity of effort the participants exerted during the task was estimated by measuring their heart responses (cardiac preejection period, PEP) during task performance. As expected, exposure to masked action cues resulted in stronger PEP reactivity than exposure to masked inaction cues. PEP reactivity in the control group fell in between reactivity when action cues were used and reactivity when inaction cues were used. Participants’ task performance revealed a corresponding pattern: Reaction times were the shortest in the action-prime condition, increased in the control condition, and increased further in the inaction-prime condition. These results show that masked action cues and inaction cues directly influence the intensity of effort exerted in the performance of a task.
Dissociable Neural Systems Support Retrieval of How and Why Action Knowledge
Authors: Spunt Robert P. , Falk Emily B. , Lieberman Matthew D.
Published: October 2010

In everyday discourse, people typically represent actions in one of two ways: how they are performed or why they are performed. In the present study, we determined the neural systems that support these natural modes of representing actions. Participants underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging while identifying how and why people perform various familiar actions. Identifying how actions are performed produced activity in premotor areas that support the execution of actions and in higher-order visual areas that support the perception of action-related objects; this finding supports an embodied view of action knowledge. However, identifying why actions are performed preferentially engaged areas of the brain associated with representing and reasoning about mental states; these areas were right temporoparietal junction, precuneus, dorsomedial prefrontal cortex, and posterior superior temporal sulcus. Our results suggest that why action knowledge is not sufficiently constituted by information in motor and visual systems, but requires a system for representing states of mind, which do not have reliable motor correlates or visual appearance.
Atrial Fibrillation-The Final Frontier
Authors: Govindan Malini , Savelieva Irina , Catanchin Andrei , Camm A. John
Published: October 2010

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common sustained cardiac arrhythmia and represents a significant health care issue. The diagnosis and management of AF uses a significant proportion of the health care budget and is responsible for substantial morbidity and mortality. Restoration and maintenance of sinus rhythm is still an important treatment option for symptomatic AF. Anti-arrhythmic drugs (AADs) have had inconsistent results for the prevention of recurrent AF and have been hampered by significant adverse effects. Catheter ablation has rapidly evolved and is fast becoming an alternative for AF prevention. Although multiple treatment options exist, no single modality is effective for all patients. This review outlines best current practice for AF prevention and future perspectives, focusing on new and promising developments in antiarrhythmic drug therapy, strategies for ablation therapy, and forms of hybrid therapy that may offer improved outcomes in selected patients.
Predicting In-Home Respite Utilization by Family Caregivers of Older Adults: Results of a Community Study
Authors: Mensie Lauren C. , Steffen Ann M.
Published: October 2010

This longitudinal study applies the behavioral model of health services use (Andersen, 1995) to the prediction of in-home respite utilization within the naturalistic context of ongoing respite services. Participants ( N = 74) were family caregivers who provided informal care for a physically and/or cognitively impaired older adult. All participants resided in the Midwest and received in-home respite services managed by an Area Agency on Aging and funded through the National Family Caregiver Support Program. The primary significant predictor of 3-month in-home respite utilization was the caregiving dyad’s past in-home respite usage. Contrary to prior research, demographic predisposing variables (relationship type, household income) and objective need variables (behavioral dysfunction, functional impairment) were not associated with hours of respite use over 3 months, nor was level of caregiver depressive symptoms. Implications of these data for case management, the provision of in-home respite services, and future research are discussed.
Evolution of a Nursing Case Management Model for a Housing-First Population
Authors: Wideman Marilyn
Published: October 2010

Housing first (HF) is a nationally recognized model that provides permanent housing to the hardest to serve of homeless individuals, those with mental illness and/or substance abuse disorders. This vulnerable population faces many challenges in obtaining needed health care services. Access to adequate health care and addressing health issues is an essential part of the stabilization and self-sufficiency process for previously homeless individuals. This article will review the rationale for implementing a nursing case management approach within a HF program, explain the case management model implemented to address the population’s needs, present the outcomes, and go on to discuss further development of the model over a 4-year period with related results.
Breaking the lock: Addressing ‘disproportionate minority confinement’ in the United States using a human rights approach
Authors: Mooradian John K
Published: October 2010

• Summary: Injustice, oppression, and inequality affect human experience in all contexts. This article describes the problem of ‘disproportionate minority confinement’ in the United States juvenile justice system as one manifestation of such injustice. With specific focus on overrepresentation of African American males, the juvenile justice approach to this problem is contrasted with a critical social work perspective in the form of the human rights approach.

• Findings: Available data from all but one of the 50 United States indicate a disproportionate level of incarceration of youth classified as African American in juvenile justice facilities. Although the United States federal government enacted policy reforms in 1988 that require states which receive federal funds to decrease the proportion of minority youth who are incarcerated in secure facilities, few gains have been realized.

• Application: The author proposes that social workers employ a human rights approach to supplant the dominant juvenile justice paradigm. Application of human rights practice to disproportionate minority confinement suggests that social workers challenge the juvenile justice/social control discourse with a human rights/social change discourse; deconstruct the constructs of ‘disproportionate minority confinement’, ‘juvenile delinquency’, and ‘race’; challenge the expert/exclusionary problem-solving process with a dialogical/inclusionary process; challenge deficit-oriented activities with strength-based and asset-building activities; and introduce critical reflectivity into professional decision-making.
Improvising together
Authors: Grant Barbara M.
Published: October 2010

Graduate supervision is a pedagogy that remakes students into the disciplined subjects of scholars and researchers. While the supervision relation is structured by the fixed and asymmetrical institutional positions of supervisor and student, pedagogic interactions between the two can also have a dynamic, playful and more mutual character. At these times, supervisor and student interact over the compelling topic of the thesis. In this article, which draws on the work of Gurevitch (2001), such moments are characterized as improvisation. A supervision dialogue between a humanities supervisor and student pair is used to illustrate and explore the productive, if risky, possibilities that attend improvisation in supervision. Despite its riskiness, however, this creative mode of supervision may itself be in danger as institutional environments increasingly value timely completions, safe projects, and directive modes of supervision.
von Willebrand factor–mediated platelet adhesion is critical for deep vein thrombosis in mouse models
Authors: Brill Alexander , Fuchs Tobias A. , Chauhan Anil K. , Yang Janie J. , De Meyer Simon F. , Köllnberger Maria , Wakefield Thomas W. , Lämmle Bernhard , Massberg Steffen , Wagner Denisa D.
Published: October 2010

Deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and its complication, pulmonary embolism, are frequent causes of disability and mortality. Although blood flow disturbance is considered an important triggering factor, the mechanism of DVT initiation remains elusive. Here we show that 48-hour flow restriction in the inferior vena cava (IVC) results in the development of thrombi structurally similar to human deep vein thrombi. von Willebrand factor (VWF)–deficient mice were protected from thrombosis induced by complete (stasis) or partial (stenosis) flow restriction in the IVC. Mice with half normal VWF levels were also protected in the stenosis model. Besides promoting platelet adhesion, VWF carries Factor VIII. Repeated infusions of recombinant Factor VIII did not rescue thrombosis in VWF−/− mice, indicating that impaired coagulation was not the primary reason for the absence of DVT in VWF−/− mice. Infusion of GPG-290, a mutant glycoprotein Ibα-immunoglobulin chimera that specifically inhibits interaction of the VWF A1 domain with platelets, prevented thrombosis in wild-type mice. Intravital microscopy showed that platelet and leukocyte recruitment in the early stages of DVT was dramatically higher in wild-type than in VWF−/− IVC. Our results demonstrate a pathogenetic role for VWF-platelet interaction in flow disturbance-induced venous thrombosis.
Human functional genetic studies are biased against the medically most relevant primate-specific genes
Authors: Hao Lili , Ge Xiaomeng , Wan Haolei , Hu Songnian , Lercher Martin J , Yu Jun , Chen Wei-Hua
Published: October 2010

Background

Many functional, structural and evolutionary features of human genes have been observed to correlate with expression breadth and/or gene age. Here, we systematically explore these correlations.

Results

Gene age and expression breadth are strongly correlated, but contribute independently to the variation of functional, structural and evolutionary features, even when we take account of variation in mRNA expression level. Human genes without orthologs in distant species ('young' genes) tend to be tissue-specific in their expression. As computational inference of gene function often relies on the existence of homologs in other species, and experimental characterization is facilitated by broad and high expression, young, tissue-specific human genes are often the least characterized. At the same time, young genes are most likely to be medically relevant.

Conclusions

Our results indicate that functional characterization of human genes is biased against young, tissue-specific genes that are mostly medically relevant. The biases should not be taken lightly because they may pose serious obstacles to our understanding of the molecular basis of human diseases. Future studies should thus be designed to specifically explore the properties of primate-specific genes.
Gene expression in a paleopolyploid: a transcriptome resource for the ciliate Paramecium tetraurelia
Authors: Arnaiz Olivier , Goût Jean-François , Bétermier Mireille , Bouhouche Khaled , Cohen Jean , Duret Laurent , Kapusta Aurélie , Meyer Eric , Sperling Linda
Published: October 2010

Background

The genome ofParamecium tetraurelia, a unicellular model that belongs to the ciliate phylum, has been shaped by at least 3 successive whole genome duplications (WGD). These dramatic events, which have also been documented in plants, animals and fungi, are resolved over evolutionary time by the loss of one duplicate for the majority of genes. Thanks to a low rate of large scale genome rearrangement inParamecium, an unprecedented large number of gene duplicates of different ages have been identified, making this organism an outstanding model to investigate the evolutionary consequences of polyploidization. The most recent WGD, with 51% of pre-duplication genes still in 2 copies, provides a snapshot of a phase of rapid gene loss that is not accessible in more ancient polyploids such as yeast.

Results

We designed a custom oligonucleotide microarray platform forP. tetraureliagenome-wide expression profiling and used the platform to measure gene expression during 1) the sexual cycle of autogamy, 2) growth of new cilia in response to deciliation and 3) biogenesis of secretory granules after massive exocytosis. Genes that are differentially expressed during these time course experiments have expression patterns consistent with a very low rate of subfunctionalization (partition of ancestral functions between duplicated genes) in particular since the most recent polyploidization event.

Conclusions

A public transcriptome resource is now available forParameciumtetraurelia. The resource has been integrated into the ParameciumDB model organism database, providing searchable access to the data. The microarray platform, freely available through NimbleGen Systems, provides a robust, cost-effective approach for genome-wide expression profiling inP. tetraurelia. The expression data support previous studies showing that at short evolutionary times after a whole genome duplication, gene dosage balance constraints and not functional change are the major determinants of gene retention.
Transcriptome changes in grapevine (Vitis viniferaL.) cv. Malbec leaves induced by ultraviolet-B radiation
Authors: Pontin Mariela A , Piccoli Patricia N , Francisco Rita , Bottini Ruben , Martinez-Zapater Jose M , Lijavetzky Diego
Published: October 2010

Background

Ultraviolet-B radiation (UV-B, 280-315 nm) is a natural component of sunlight, which has numerous regulatory effects on plant physiology. The nature of the response to UV-B is dependent on fluence rate, dose, duration and wavelength of the UV-B treatment. Some reports have analyzed the changes in gene expression caused by UV-B light on several plant species using microarray technology. However, there is no information on the transcriptome response triggered by UV-B in grapevine. In this paper we investigate the gene expression responses of leaves from in vitro cultured Vitis vinifera cv. Malbec plants subjected to the same dose of biologically effective UV-B radiation (4.75 kJ m-2 d-1) administered at two different fluence rates (16 h at ≅ 8.25 μW cm-2, 4 h at ≅ 33 μW cm-2) using a new custom made GrapeGen Affymetrix GeneChip®.

Results

The number of genes modulated by high fluence rate UV-B doubled the number of genes modulated by low fluence UV-B. Their functional analyses revealed several functional categories commonly regulated by both UV-B treatments as well as categories more specifically modulated depending on UV-B fluence rate. General protective responses, namely the induction of pathways regulating synthesis of UV-B absorbing compounds such as the Phenylpropanoid pathway, the induction of different antioxidant defense systems and the activation of pathways commonly associated with pathogen defense and abiotic stress responses seem to play critical roles in grapevine responses against UV-B radiation. Furthermore, high fluence rate UV-B seemed to specifically modulate additional pathways and processes in order to protect grapevine plantlets against UV-B-induced oxidative stress, stop the cell cycle progression, and control protein degradation. On the other hand, low fluence rate UV-B regulated the expression of specific responses in the metabolism of auxin and abscisic acid as well as in the modification of cell walls that could be involved in UV-B acclimation-like processes.

Conclusion

Our results show the UV-B radiation effects on the leaf transcriptome of grapevine (Vitis vinifera cv. Malbec) plantlets. Functional categories commonly modulated under both UV-B treatments as well as transcripts specifically regulated in an UV-B-intensity dependent way were identified. While high fluence rate UV-B had regulatory effects mainly on defense or general multiple-stress responses pathways, low fluence rate UV-B promoted the expression of genes that could be involved in UV-B protection or the amelioration of the UV-B-induced damage. This study also provides an extensive list of genes regulating multiple metabolic pathways involved in the response of grapevine to UV-B that can be used for future researches.
Hepatitis B virus core protein with hot-spot mutations inhibit MxA gene transcription but has no effect on inhibition of virus replication by interferon α
Authors: Zhijian Yu , Zhen Huang , Fan Zhang , Jin Yang , Qiwen Deng , Zhongming Zeng
Published: October 2010

It has been reported that hepatitis B virus (HBV) core protein (HBc) can inhibit the transcription of human interferon-induced MxA gene. In this study, we investigated whether HBc protein mutations at hot spots (L60V, S87G and I97L) could still inhibit MxA transcription and the potential significance of this inhibition in virus replication in vitro. Our data indicated that the IFN-induced MxA mRNA expression level and MxA promoter activity was significantly down-regulated by mutant protein of HBc(I97L), compared to WT and the other two mutated HBc proteins(L60V or S87G). However, in Huh7 cells stably expressing WT or the mutated HBc proteins (L60V, S87G or I97L), IFN-α could inhibit the extra- and intracellular HBV DNA level and HBsAg secretion to a similar level compared to that in cells transfected with control plasmids. In conclusion, HBc protein with I97L mutation may play an especial role in suppressing the transcription of MxA gene. Moreover, the inhibitory effect on MxA gene transcription by the WT or mutated HBc proteins (L60V, S87G and I97L) has no impact on inhibition of HBV replication by IFN-α in Huh7 cells. The clinical significance of the inhibitory effect of MxA gene transcription by HBc protein requires further study.
Hypercalcemia and huge splenomegaly presenting in an elderly patient with B-cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma: a case report
Authors: Ghazi Ali AM , Attarian Hamid , Attarian Shirin , Abasahl Abolghasem , Daryani Ebrahim , Farasat Ebrahim , Pourafkari Marina , Tirgari Farrokh , Ghazi Siavash M , Kovacs Kalman
Published: October 2010

Introduction

Hypercalcemia is the major electrolyte abnormality in patients with malignant tumors. It can be due to localized osteolytic hypercalcemia or elaboration of humoral substances such as parathyroid hormone-related protein from tumoral cells. In hematological malignancies, a third mechanism of uncontrolled synthesis and secretion of 1-25(OH)2D3 from tumoral cells or neighboring macrophages may contribute to the problem. However, hypercalcemia is quite unusual in patients with B-cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

Case presentation

An 85-year-old Caucasian woman presented with low grade fever, anorexia, abdominal discomfort and fullness in her left abdomen for the last six months. She was mildly anemic and complained of fatigability. She had huge splenomegaly and was hypercalcemic. After correction of her hypercalcemia, she had a splenectomy. Microscopic evaluation revealed a malignant lymphoma. Her immunohistochemistry was positive for leukocyte common antigen, CD20 and parathyroid hormone-related peptide.

Conclusion

Immunopositivity for parathyroid hormone-related peptide clearly demonstrates that hypersecretion of a parathyroid hormone-like substance from the tumor had led to hypercalcemia in this case. High serum calcium is seen in only seven to eight percent of patients with B-cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, apparently due to different mechanisms. Evaluation of serum parathyroid hormone-related protein and 1-25(OH)2D3 can be helpful in diagnosis and management. It should be noted that presentation with hypercalcemia has a serious impact on prognosis and survival.
Attenuation of circulatory shock and cerebral ischemia injury in heat stroke by combination treatment with dexamethasone and hydroxyethyl starch
Authors: Yang Tsai-Hsiu , Shih Mei-Fen , Wen Yi-Szu , Ho Wen-Yueh , Leu Kuen-Lin , Wang Mei-Ying , Liu Chia-Chyuan
Published: October 2010

Background

Increased systemic cytokines and elevated brain levels of monoamines, and hydroxyl radical productions are thought to aggravate the conditions of cerebral ischemia and neuronal damage during heat stroke. Dexamethasone (DXM) is a known immunosuppressive drug used in controlling inflammation, and hydroxyethyl starch (HES) is used as a volume-expanding drug in cerebral ischemia and/or cerebral injury. Acute treatment with a combined therapeutic approach has been repeatedly advocated in cerebral ischemia experiments. The aim of this study is to investigate whether the combined agent (HES and DXM) has beneficial efficacy to improve the survival time (ST) and heat stroke-induced cerebral ischemia and neuronal damage in experimental heat stroke.

Methods

Urethane-anesthetized rats underwent instrumentation for the measurement of colonic temperature, mean arterial pressure (MAP), local striatal cerebral blood flow (CBF), heart rate, and neuronal damage score. The rats were exposed to an ambient temperature (43 degrees centigrade) to induce heat stroke. Concentrations of the ischemic and damage markers, dopamine, serotonin, and hydroxyl radical productions in corpus striatum, and the serum levels of interleukin-1 beta, tumor necrosis factor-alpha and malondialdehyde (MDA) were observed during heat stroke.

Results

After heat stroke, the rats displayed circulatory shock (arterial hypotension), decreased CBF, increased the serum levels of cytokines and MDA, increased cerebral striatal monoamines and hydroxyl radical productions release, and severe cerebral ischemia and neuronal damage compared with those of normothermic control rats. However, immediate treatment with the combined agent at the onset of heat stroke confers significant protection against heat stroke-induced circulatory shock, systemic inflammation; cerebral ischemia, cerebral monoamines and hydroxyl radical production overload, and improves neuronal damage and the ST in rats.

Conclusions

Our results suggest that the combination of a colloid substance with a volume-expanding effect and an anti-inflammatory agent may provide a better resuscitation solution for victims with heat stroke.
A caveat for T cell transfer studies: generation of cytotoxic anti-Thy1.2 antibodies in Thy1.1 congenic mice given Thy1.2+ tumors or T cells
Authors: McKenna Kyle C , Miguel Rodolfo D Vicetti , Beatty Kelly M , Bilonick Richard A
Published: October 2010

Thy1.1 congenic B6.PL mice were used to simultaneously monitor Thy1.2+ E.G7-OVA tumors transplanted in the a.c. of the eye and i.v.-transferred tumor-specific Thy1.2+ CTLs to determine mechanisms that inhibit the tumoricidal activity of CTL responses in mice with established ocular tumors. Transferred CTLs were systemically deleted in mice with established ocular tumors. However, this deletion was not a unique mechanism of immune evasion by ocular tumors. Rather, development of Thy1.2+ tumors in the eye or skin of B6.PL mice generated cytotoxic anti-Thy1.2 antibodies that eliminated a subsequent Thy1.2+ T cell transfer. Anti-Thy1.2 immune responses in B6.PL mice were influenced by the route of antigen administration, as the serum concentration of cytotoxic anti-Thy1.2 antibodies was 92-fold greater in mice with eye tumors in comparison with mice with skin tumors. In addition, anti-Thy1.2 immune responses were detected in B6.PL mice given naïve Thy1.2+ T cells i.p. but not i.v. Anti-Thy1.2 responses were augmented in B6.PL mice with ocular Thy1.2+ EL-4 tumors that did not express OVA, suggesting immunodominance of OVA antigen over Thy1.2. Thy1.1+ T cells given i.p. was not immunogenic in Thy1.2 congenic mice. These data reaffirm that the introduction of antigens in the a.c. induces robust antibody responses. Experimentation using allotypic differences in Thy1 between donor cells and recipient mice must consider cytotoxic anti-Thy1 antibody generation in the interpretation of results.
Adenosine deaminase potentiates the generation of effector, memory, and regulatory CD4+ T cells
Authors: Martinez-Navio José M , Casanova Víctor , Pacheco Rodrigo , Naval-Macabuhay Isaac , Climent Núria , Garcia Felipe , Gatell José M , Mallol Josefa , Gallart Teresa , Lluis Carme , Franco Rafael
Published: October 2010

By interacting with CD26 on the CD4+ T cell surface and with the AdoR A2B on the DC surface, ADA triggers a costimulatory signal for human T cells. The aim of this study was to know whether ADA-mediated costimulation plays a role in the differentiation of T cells. The results show that irrespective of its enzymatic activity and dependent on TNF-α, IFN-γ, and IL-6 action, ADA enhanced the differentiation of CD4+CD45RA+CD45RO– naïve T cells toward CD4+CD25+CD45RO+ Teffs and CD4+CD45RA–CD45RO+ memory T cells. Furthermore, ADA potentiated generation of CD4+CD25highFoxp3+ Tregs by a mechanism that seems to be mainly dependent on the enzymatic activity of ADA. Interestingly, an ADA-mediated increase on Teff, memory T cell, and Treg generation occurred, not only in cocultures from healthy individuals but also from HIV-infected patients. These data suggest that ADA is a relevant modulator of CD4+ T cell differentiation, even in cells from immunologically compromised individuals.