bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Lipid raft-mediated Fas/CD95 apoptotic signaling in leukemic cells and normal leukocytes and therapeutic implications
Authors: Gajate Consuelo , Mollinedo Faustino 
Published: August 2015

AbstractPlasma membrane is now recognized to contain tightly packed cholesterol/sphingolipid-rich domains, known as lipid or membrane rafts, which are more ordered than the surrounding lipid bilayer. Lipid rafts are crucial for the compartmentalization of signaling processes in the membrane, mostly involved in cell survival and immune response. However, in the last 15 years, a large body of evidence has also identified raft platforms as scaffolds for the recruitment and clustering of death receptor Fas/CD95 and downstream signaling molecules, leading to the concept of death-promoting lipid rafts. This raft-Fas/CD95 coclustering was first described at the early 2000s as the underlying mechanism for the proapoptotic action of the alkylphospholipid analog edelfosine in leukemic cells, hence facilitating protein–protein interactions and conveying apoptotic signals independently of Fas/CD95 ligand. Edelfosine induces apoptosis in hematologic cancer cells and activated T-lymphocytes. Fas/CD95 raft coclustering is also promoted by Fas/CD95 ligand, agonistic Fas/CD95 antibodies, and additional antitumor drugs. Thus, death receptor recruitment in rafts is a physiologic process leading to cell demise that can be pharmacologically modulated. This redistribution and local accumulation of apoptotic molecules in membrane rafts, which are usually accompanied by displacement of survival signaling molecules, highlight how alterations in the apoptosis/survival signaling balance in specialized membrane regions modulate cell fate. Membrane rafts might also modulate apoptotic and nonapoptotic death receptor signaling. Here, we discuss the role of lipid rafts in Fas/CD95-mediated apoptotic cell signaling in hematologic cancer cells and normal leukocytes, with a special emphasis on their involvement as putative therapeutic targets in cancer and autoimmune diseases.
Understanding the direct and indirect costs of patients with schizophrenia
Authors: Tajima-Pozo Kazuhiro , de Castro Oller María Jesús , Lewczuk Adrian , Montañes-Rada Francisco 
Published: August 2015

Background: Schizophrenia is a disabling mental disorder with high prevalence and that usually requires long-term follow-up and expensive lifelong treatment. The cost of schizophrenia treatment consumes a significant amount of the health services' budget in western countries.Objective: The aim of the study was to find out about the costs related to schizophrenia across different european countries and compare them.Results: Schizophrenia treatment costs an estimated 18 billion euros annually worldwide. The direct costs associated with medical help are only part of the total expenditure. The indirect costs are an equally (or even more)important part of the total cost. These expenses are related to the lack of productivity of schizophrenic patients and the cost that relatives have to bear as a result of taking care of their affected relatives.Conclusions: Although data on the cost of schizophrenia may vary slightly between different european countries, the general conclusion that can be drawn is that schizophrenia is a very costly disorder. Not only because of direct costs related to medical procedures, but also due to the non-medical (indirect) costs. Together this suggests the need to investigate cost-efficient strategies that could provide a better outcome for schizophrenic patients, as well as the people who care for them.
Heterogeneity of Forest Harvest Residue from Eastern Ontario Biomass Harvests
Authors: Acquah Gifty Ewurama , Krigstin Sally , Wetzel Suzanne , Cooper Paul , Cormier Denis 
Published: August 2015

Abstract
The environmental and economic problems associated with the use of fossil-based fuels have encouraged a shift to abundant renewable resources, such as forest residues. However, before forest residues can be used as an industrial resource, their properties must be known. This study determined the physical (moisture content, bulk density, and wood/bark ratio) and thermal (elemental composition, thermal reactivity, and energy value) properties of heterogeneous residues generated during commercial harvesting on two forest sites within the Great Lakes St. Lawrence forest of southeastern Ontario. Other factors that can affect these properties, such as duration of storage and location in a storgae pile, were also evaluated. A physical fractionation treatment was also investigated as a means of value addition to forest residues. Long-term storage in an uncovered pile resulted in the forest biomass on the surface losing moisture (19.3%) and the biomass on the inside gaining moisture (73.1%). In addition, storage caused an increase in bulk density and a reduction in chloride content. The higher heating value of the forest harvest residues averaged 19.0 MJ/kg (standard deviation [SD] = 0.3 MJ/kg), with an average energy density of 1,991 MJ/m3 (SD = 628 MJ/m3 ). This study also found that size fractionation resulted in fractions with more uniform properties.
Influence of Wood Surface Color on the Performance of Luminescent Pigments
Authors: Kaestner Dominik , Petutschnigg Alexander , Schnabel Thomas , Illy Andreas , Taylor Adam 
Published: August 2015

Abstract
Luminescent pigments can be incorporated into coatings for various applications, including safety signage, that provide illuminated directions when lighting systems fail. The influence of the brightness of a solid wood substrate on the persistence performance of luminescent pigments was analyzed. Three species were tested: maple (Acer pseudoplatanus; a brightly colored wood), steamed beech (Fagus sylvatica; a medium-colored wood), and walnut heartwood (Juglans regia; a dark-colored wood). The results show that the surface color has a major influence on the performance of the pigments, when applied in a clear coating. Other significant factors for the afterglowing effect are the amount of pigment and the time and intensity of light during the charging process.
(Dys)functional art
Authors: Priglinger Sabine , Sever Hande , Schmechel Ben 
Published: August 2015

Abstract
This article aims to explore the binary of art as a functional cultural tool and as a dysfunctional sociopolitical catalyst. The authors, Hande Sever, Sabine Priglinger and Ben Schmechel, will propose dysfunctional art as a generator of an emancipatory, intentional space of enquiry, a valuable alternative to the more functional notions of art. They will stress that dysfunctional works of art span a range of artistic production and reception as they occur in both commercial gallery and community or public space. Instances that embody elements of the functional and the dysfunctional approach will be marked out through an interrogation of artworks, arranged in an atemporal, ahistorical constellation.
From awww to awe factor: UK audience meaning-making of the 2012 Paralympics as mediated spectacle
Authors: Hodges Caroline E. M. , Scullion Richard , Jackson Daniel 
Published: August 2015

Abstract
This article considers UK audiences’ meaning-making of television coverage of the London 2012 Paralympic Games. As an elite sporting event, the Paralympics has been categorized alongside other high-profile media spectacles. Yet, an analysis of the ‘spectacle’ has further significance here in relation to what Mitchell and Snyder conceptualize as ‘fascination with spectacles of difference’, which encourages audiences to view the disabled person through their impairment, rather than as a human being. Inspirational ‘supercrip’ stories that glorify ‘special achievement’ fuel perceptions that disabled athletes have extraordinary, heroic qualities, and coverage of the 2012 Paralympics was no different. The spectacle is created through everyday talk. Therefore, we utilize in-depth interviews supported by netnography-inspired methods to consider to what extent media representations appropriated disability into ‘spectacle’, consequently perpetuating ablest discourses, whilst also addressing the intended social agenda by facilitating greater understanding. Our findings suggest an unexpected emotional engagement with the (mostly) sporting spectacle, with audience narratives moving from ‘awww’ to ‘awe’ as sporting achievement was celebrated. The disabled sporting ‘hero’ as ‘superhero’ is, we argue, further evidence of the influence of discourses that attempt to transform a stigmatized identity, i.e. disability, into a revered one – athleticism, thus reinforcing existing hierarchies of ability/disability.
Is New Zealand ready for more diversity on-screen?
Authors: Patston Philip , Pike Barbara 
Published: August 2015

Abstract
The aim of the ‘More Diversity on-Screen’ campaign and survey was to raise public awareness of the under-representation of disability on-screen in New Zealand, as well as to explore New Zealanders’ views about the inclusion of disabled actors and characters in media. The study took an ‘action research’ approach, producing and broadcasting a 30-second TV commercial that encouraged viewers to participate in an online survey aiming to capture attitudes and opinions around the inclusion of more diversity on-screen. Results of the survey showed clear support for the idea of more diversity on-screen, but it also became clear that the task of getting more representation of disability in media is a complex task, requiring a much longer time frame than originally anticipated. We conclude that the onus for change may fall on the disability community, not the media industry, if disability is ever to be portrayed in a truly authentic way on-screen.
The redox switch that regulates molecular chaperones
Authors: Conway Myra E. , Lee Christopher 
Published: August 2015

AbstractModification of reactive cysteine residues plays an integral role in redox-regulated reactions. Oxidation of thiolate anions to sulphenic acid can result in disulphide bond formation, or overoxidation to sulphonic acid, representing reversible and irreversible endpoints of cysteine oxidation, respectively. The antioxidant systems of the cell, including the thioredoxin and glutaredoxin systems, aim to prevent these higher and irreversible oxidation states. This is important as these redox transitions have numerous roles in regulating the structure/function relationship of proteins. Proteins with redox-active switches as described for peroxiredoxin (Prx) and protein disulphide isomerase (PDI) can undergo dynamic structural rearrangement resulting in a gain of function. For Prx, transition from cysteine sulphenic acid to sulphinic acid is described as an adaptive response during increased cellular stress causing Prx to form higher molecular weight aggregates, switching its role from antioxidant to molecular chaperone. Evidence in support of PDI as a redox-regulated chaperone is also gaining impetus, where oxidation of the redox-active CXXC regions causes a structural change, exposing its hydrophobic region, facilitating polypeptide folding. In this review, we will focus on these two chaperones that are directly regulated through thiol-disulphide exchange and detail how these redox-induced switches allow for dual activity. Moreover, we will introduce a new role for a metabolic protein, the branched-chain aminotransferase, and discuss how it shares common mechanistic features with these well-documented chaperones. Together, the physiological importance of the redox regulation of these proteins under pathological conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis will be discussed to illustrate the impact and importance of correct folding and chaperone-mediated activity.
Immunomodulatory activity of methanol leaf extracts of Cameroonian medicinal plants
Authors: Djafoua Yves Marcel , Mouokeu Raymond Simplice , Tume Christopher , Kamtchueng Monique Odette , Kuiate Jules-Roger 
Published: August 2015

Abstract

Background: Medicinal plants have been used for centuries and have become part of complementary medicine worldwide because of their health benefits. Some have been successfully used directly in the treatment and prevention of infectious diseases or indirectly by stimulating the immune system. In the present study, the immunomodulatory activity of the methanol extracts of Adenocarpus mannii, Caucalis melanantha, Ocimum gratissimum, Asystasia intrusa and Clematis chinensis leaves was investigated.

Methods: The extracts were prepared by maceration of dry leaves’ powder in methanol. Phytochemical analysis was carried out by chemical reaction methods. The activity of plant extracts was evaluated in in vitro cell cultures by measuring their effect on nitric oxide production by peritoneal macrophages, the proliferation of lymphocytes and the cytotoxic effect on macrophages. The A. mannii extract was further evaluated at 50 and 100 mg/kg body weight in mice for the stimulation of delayed-type hypersensitivity (DTH) reactions and the ability to reverse the myelosuppression induced by cyclophosphamide.

Results: All the extract inhibited nitric oxide production by peritoneal macrophages, the highest activity was achieved with C. chinensis extract. However, these extracts did not significantly affect the viability of macrophages. A. mannii, A. intrusa and C. chinensis extracts exhibited stimulatory activity on peripheral blood lymphocytes, whereas C. melanantha and O. gratissimum extracts displayed inhibitory activity. In vivo, the A. mannii extract significantly increased the DTH reaction in mice from 50 mg/kg. This extract also showed a significant increase in the white blood cells and relative weight of the spleen and liver.

Conclusions: These results suggest that the A. mannii, C. melanantha, O. gratissimum, A. intrusa and C. chinensis methanol extracts possess immunomodulatory activity. This constitutes additional data on the well-known biological properties of these plants.
The Political Culture; Politicial Socialization and Acculturation
Authors: Iovan Martian 
Published: August 2015

Abstract
In this article, the author, after having comparatively analyzed senses and significations of the concept of politic culture, as stated by several renowned authors in the world of science, proceeds to a differentiation of general political culture from those political cultures that are integrated into the lives of contemporary political agents (subcultures, political countercultures, marginal cultures, political cultures of public policy makers etc.) which coexist on the territory of a state.
Using praxeological and systemic approaches, the author discusses the place and role of contemporary ideologies in their quality as a directional and dynamogenic factor in political practices, as well as political socialization and acculturation as methods of reproducing and developing political culture in accordance with the necessities imposed by the global development of society and by its subsystems. The formation of a solid political culture, through education and communication in general, both at individual and at social level, conditions the maturation of democracy, and the launching of public policies likely to solve individual and community issues.
Analysis of the Nonlinear Elastic Response of Rubber Membrane with Embedded Circular Rigid Inclusion
Authors: Jianbing Sang , Sufang Xing , Ling Wang , Jingyuan Wang , Jing Zhou 
Published: August 2015

AbstractRubber membranes exhibit a particular nonlinear elastic behaviour known as hyper elasticity. Analysis has been proposed by utilizing the modified strain energy function from Gao’s constitutive model, in order to reveal the mechanical property of rubber membrane containing circular rigid inclusion. Rubber membrane is taken into incompressible materials under axisymmetric stretch, based on finite deformations theory. Stress distribution of different constitutive parameters has been analyzed by deducing the basic governing equation. The effects on membrane deformation by different parameters and the failure reasons of rubber membrane have been discussed, which provides reasonable reference for the design of rubber membrane.
Interrogating History: Promoting Student Activism using Children’s Literature and the Full Circling Process
Authors: Long Trisha Wies 
Published: August 2015

Abstract
Adolescents are often disengaged in the learning process, being more focused on social media and self-interest than classroom content. Full circling is a process that can be used to help students collaboratively engage in learning and actively reflect on historical events – especially those that are under reported in history books. In the present article, the author uses her full circling process within a fifth grade urban classroom using the topic of segregation during the Civil Rights Movement as the central focus. The article outlines the steps of the full circling process and gives a narrative account of how the process was used in this classroom.
Colloidal Plasmonic Titanium Nitride Nanoparticles: Properties and Applications
Authors: Guler Urcan , Suslov Sergey , Kildishev Alexander V. , Boltasseva Alexandra , Shalaev Vladimir M. 
Published: August 2015

AbstractOptical properties of colloidal plasmonic titanium nitride nanoparticles are examined with an eye on their photothermal and photocatalytic applications via transmission electron microscopy and optical transmittance measurements. Single crystal titanium nitride cubic nanoparticles with an average size of 50 nm, which was found to be the optimum size for cellular uptake with gold nanoparticles [1], exhibit plasmon resonance in the biological transparency window and demonstrate a high absorption efficiency. A self-passivating native oxide at the surface of the nanoparticles provides an additional degree of freedom for surface functionalization. The titanium oxide shell surrounding the plasmonic core can create new opportunities for photocatalytic applications.
Unravelling the Body/Mind Reverberations of Secrets Woven into Charlotte Brontë’s Villette
Authors: Cortés Vieco Francisco José 
Published: August 2015

Abstract
The pervasive psychological realism of Charlotte Brontë’s Villette (1853) challenges scholarly assumptions based on her biography or her indoctrination to Victorian medical discourses, as it explores dysfunctional body/mind interrelations, particularly those evidencing patriarchal pressures and prejudices against women. Under the guise of her heroine Lucy, the author becomes both the physician and the patient suffering from a female malady of unnamed origin. This article intends to prove that, instead of narratively unravelling her creature’s past trauma with healing purposes, the author conceals its nature to protect her intimacy and she focuses on the periphery of her crisis aftermath to demonstrate its severity by means of the psychosomatic disorders that persistently haunt her life: depression, anorexia nervosa and suicidal behavior. Brontë’s literary guerrilla of secrecy aims, simultaneously, to veil and unveil the core of Lucy’s clinical case with an unequivocal diagnosis: a harmful, mysterious event from her childhood/adolescence, whose reverberations repeatedly erupt during her adulthood and endanger her survival. Unreliable but “lucid”, this heroine becomes the daguerreotype of her creator to portray life as a sad, exhausting journey, where professional self-realisation - not love or marriage - turns into the ultimate recovery therapy from past ordeals, never successfully confirmed in the case of Lucy, who epitomises a paradigm of femininity in Victorian England: the impoverished, solitary, middle-class woman
From One Master of Horror to Another: Tracing Poe’s Influence in Stephen King’s The Shining
Authors: Buday Maroš 
Published: August 2015

Abstract
This article deals with the work of two of the most prominent horror fiction writers in American history, namely Edgar Allan Poe and Stephen King. The focus of this study is put on the comparative approach while tracing the influence of Poe’s several chosen narratives in King’s novel called The Shining (1977). The chosen approach has uncovered that King’s novel embodies numerous characteristics, tendencies, and other signs of inspiration by Poe’s narratives. The Shining encompasses Poe’s tales such as “The Masque of the Red Death”, “The Fall of the House of Usher”, and “The Black Cat” which are shown to be pivotal aspects of King’s novel. The analysis has shown that the aforementioned King’s novel exhibits Shakespearean elements intertwined with Poe’s “Masque of the Red Death”, the Overlook Hotel to be a composite consisting of various Poesque references, and that The Shining’s protagonist is a reflection of autobiographical references to specific aspects of the lives of Poe and King themselves.
Landscapes of History in the Novels of Lawrence Norfolk
Authors: Nagy Ladislav 
Published: August 2015

Abstract
This article deals with novels by Lawrence Norfolk which are read with a focus on their visual quality and the way they depict history. It is argued that Norfolk’s historical novels are unique in their portrayal of “landscapes of history”, large canvases in which individual characters play marginal, or a rather insignificant role. This approach distinguishes Norfolk from much of contemporary historical fiction, albeit at times this strategy might not be wholly satisfactory from a critical perspective. However, the article claims that Norfolk’s novels are intellectually inspiring since, similar to landscape, they invite a certain gaze, yet deny us the possibility of naming, of conceptualising. They provide readers with impressive vistas on history, which is seen as something too large to understand and penetrate. In this the novels are anti-humanistic. Individual characters (and their actions) are insignificant, or significant only to such an extent that they subscribe to some mythical framework, as Norfolk shows in, arguably, his best novel, In the Shape of a Boar (2000).
The usefulness of the Mannheim Peritonitis index score in assessing the condition of patients treated for peritonitis
Authors: Budzyński Piotr , Dworak Jadwiga , Natkaniec Michał , Pędziwiatr Michał , Major Piotr , Migaczewski Marcin , Matłok Maciej , Budzyński Andrzej 
Published: August 2015

AbstractThe aim of the study was to verify the Mannheim Peritonitis Index (MPI) suitability to determine the probability of death among patients in Polish population operated due to peritonitis and to assess the possibility of using the Index to determine the risk of postoperative complications, relaparotomy and need for postoperative hospitalization in intensive care unit.Material and methods. Retrospective analysis covered 168 patients (M: F = 83: 85, mean age = 48.45 years, SD ± 22.2) treated for peritonitis. The MPI score was calculated for each patient. According to MPI results, patients were divided to the appropriate groups (<21, 21‑29, > 29) and within analyzed. The statistical analysis used Chi-square, Mann Withney U and Kolmogorov-Smirnov test. The best cut-off point for MPI was calculated on the basis of ROC analisys.Results. Mortality in the study group was 13.1%. In groups <21, 21‑29 and > 29 points according to MPI mortality was 1.75%, 28.13% and 50% respectively, the difference was statistically significant (p = 0.0124). Significant differences were observed in mortality depending on the diagnosis. Based on the ROC curve the cut-off point was identified as 32 with an accuracy of 85.9% and AUC = 81%. There has been a significant correlation between the MPI count and and the occurrence of: cardio-respiratory failure, acidosis, electrolyte imbalance, surgical wound complications, the need for treatment in the intensive care unit after surgery.Conclusions. The MPI is a simple and effective predictor of death among patients operated due to peritonitis. It can also provide assistance in assessing the risk of postoperative complications and the need for treatment in the intensive care unit.