bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
The “Silent” Global Burden of Congenital Cytomegalovirus
Authors: Manicklal Sheetal , Emery Vincent C. , Lazzarotto Tiziana , Boppana Suresh B. , Gupta Ravindra K. 
Published: January 2013

SUMMARYHuman cytomegalovirus (CMV) is a leading cause of congenital infections worldwide. In the developed world, following the virtual elimination of circulating rubella, it is the commonest nongenetic cause of childhood hearing loss and an important cause of neurodevelopmental delay. The seroprevalence of CMV in adults and the incidence of congenital CMV infection are highest in developing countries (1 to 5% of births) and are most likely driven by nonprimary maternal infections. However, reliable estimates of prevalence and outcome from developing countries are not available. This is largely due to the dogma that maternal preexisting seroimmunity virtually eliminates the risk for sequelae. However, recent data demonstrating similar rates of sequelae, especially hearing loss, following primary and nonprimary maternal infection have underscored the importance of congenital CMV infection in resource-poor settings. Although a significant proportion of congenital CMV infections are attributable to maternal primary infection in well-resourced settings, the absence of specific interventions for seronegative mothers and uncertainty about fetal prognosis have discouraged routine maternal antibody screening. Despite these challenges, encouraging results from prototype vaccines have been reported, and the first randomized phase III trials of prenatal interventions and prolonged postnatal antiviral therapy are under way. Successful implementation of strategies to prevent or reduce the burden of congenital CMV infection will require heightened global awareness among clinicians and the general population. In this review, we highlight the global epidemiology of congenital CMV and the implications of growing knowledge in areas of prevention, diagnosis, prognosis, and management for both low (50 to 70%)- and high (>70%)-seroprevalence settings.
Cryptosporidium Pathogenicity and Virulence
Authors: Bouzid Maha , Hunter Paul R. , Chalmers Rachel M. , Tyler Kevin M. 
Published: January 2013

SUMMARYCryptosporidiumis a protozoan parasite of medical and veterinary importance that causes gastroenteritis in a variety of vertebrate hosts. Several studies have reported different degrees of pathogenicity and virulence amongCryptosporidiumspecies and isolates of the same species as well as evidence of variation in host susceptibility to infection. The identification and validation ofCryptosporidiumvirulence factors have been hindered by the renowned difficulties pertaining to thein vitroculture and genetic manipulation of this parasite. Nevertheless, substantial progress has been made in identifying putative virulence factors forCryptosporidium. This progress has been accelerated since the publication of theCryptosporidium parvumandC. hominisgenomes, with the characterization of over 25 putative virulence factors identified by using a variety of immunological and molecular techniques and which are proposed to be involved in aspects of host-pathogen interactions from adhesion and locomotion to invasion and proliferation. Progress has also been made in the contribution of host factors that are associated with variations in both the severity and risk of infection. Here we provide a review comprised of the current state of knowledge onCryptosporidiuminfectivity, pathogenesis, and transmissibility in light of our contemporary understanding of microbial virulence.
The K1 Capsular Polysaccharide from Acinetobacter baumannii Is a Potential Therapeutic Target via Passive Immunization
Authors: Russo Thomas A. , Beanan Janet M. , Olson Ruth , MacDonald Ulrike , Cox Andrew D. , St. Michael Frank , Vinogradov Evgeny V. , Spellberg Brad , Luke-Marshall Nicole R. , Campagnari Anthony A. 
Published: January 2013

ABSTRACT

The emergence of extremely resistant and panresistant Gram-negative bacilli, such as
Acinetobacter baumannii
, requires consideration of nonantimicrobial therapeutic approaches. The goal of this report was to evaluate the K1 capsular polysaccharide from
A. baumannii
as a passive immunization target. Its structure was determined by a combination of mass spectrometric and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) techniques. Molecular mimics that might raise the concern for autoimmune disease were not identified. Immunization of CD1 mice demonstrated that the K1 capsule is immunogenic. The monoclonal antibody (MAb) 13D6, which is directed against the K1 capsule from
A. baumannii
, was used to determine the seroprevalence of the K1 capsule in a collection of 100
A. baumannii
strains. Thirteen percent of the
A. baumannii
isolates from this collection were seroreactive to MAb 13D6. Opsonization of K1-positive strains, but not K1-negative strains, with MAb 13D6 significantly increased neutrophil-mediated bactericidal activity
in vitro
(
P
< 0.05). Lastly, treatment with MAb 13D6 3 and 24 h after bacterial challenge in a rat soft tissue infection model resulted in a significant decrease in the growth/survival of a K1-positive strain compared to that of a K1-negative strain or to treatment with a vehicle control (
P
< 0.0001). These data support the proof of principle that the K1 capsule is a potential therapeutic target via passive immunization. Other serotypes require assessment, and pragmatic challenges exist, such as the need to serotype infecting strains and utilize serotype-specific therapy. Nonetheless, this approach may become an important therapeutic option with increasing antimicrobial resistance and a diminishing number of active antimicrobials.
Implication of Glycerol and Phospholipid Transporters in Mycoplasma pneumoniae Growth and Virulence
Authors: Großhennig Stephanie , Schmidl Sebastian R. , Schmeisky G. , Busse Julia , Stülke Jörg 
Published: January 2013

ABSTRACT

Mycoplasma pneumoniae
, the causative agent of atypical pneumonia, is one of the bacteria with the smallest genomes that are nonetheless capable of independent life. Because of their longstanding close association with their human host, the bacteria have undergone reductive evolution and lost most biosynthetic abilities. Therefore, they depend on nutrients provided by the host that have to be taken up by the cell. Indeed,
M. pneumoniae
has a large set of hitherto unexplored transporters and lipoproteins that may be implicated in transport processes. Together, these proteins account for about 17% of the protein complement of
M. pneumoniae
. In the natural habitat of
M. pneumoniae
, human lung epithelial surfaces, phospholipids are the major available carbon source. Thus, the uptake and utilization of glycerol and glycerophosphodiesters that are generated by the activity of lipases are important for the nutrition of
M. pneumoniae
in its common habitat. In this study, we have investigated the roles of several potential transport proteins and lipoproteins in the utilization of glycerol and glycerophosphodiesters. On the basis of experiments with the corresponding mutant strains, our results demonstrate that the newly identified GlpU transport protein (MPN421) is responsible for the uptake of the glycerophosphodiester glycerophosphocholine, which is then intracellularly cleaved to glycerol-3-phosphate and choline. In addition, the proteins MPN076 and MPN077 are accessory factors in glycerophosphocholine uptake. Moreover, the lipoproteins MPN133 and MPN284 are essential for the uptake of glycerol. Our data suggest that they may act as binding proteins for glycerol and deliver glycerol molecules to the glycerol facilitator GlpF.
Intestinal Epithelial CD98 Directly Modulates the Innate Host Response to Enteric Bacterial Pathogens
Authors: Charania Moiz A. , Laroui Hamed , Liu Hongchun , Viennois Emilie , Ayyadurai Saravanan , Xiao Bo , Ingersoll Sarah A. , Kalman Daniel , Merlin Didier 
Published: January 2013

ABSTRACT

CD98 is a type II transmembrane glycoprotein whose expression increases in intestinal epithelial cells (IECs) during intestinal inflammation. Enteropathogenic
Escherichia coli
(EPEC) is a food-borne human pathogen that attaches to IECs and injects effector proteins directly into the host cells, thus provoking an inflammatory response. In the present study, we investigated CD98 and EPEC interactions
in vitro
and
ex vivo
and examined FVB wild-type (WT) and villin-CD98 transgenic mice overexpressing human CD98 in IECs (hCD98 Tg mice) and infected with
Citrobacter rodentium
as an
in vivo
model.
In vivo
studies indicated that CD98 overexpression, localized to the apical domain of colonic cells, increased the attachment of
C. rodentium
in mouse colons and resulted in increased expression of proinflammatory markers and decreased expression of anti-inflammatory markers. The proliferative markers Ki-67 and cyclin D1 were significantly increased in the colonic tissue of
C. rodentium
-infected hCD98 Tg mice compared to that of WT mice.
Ex vivo
studies correlate with the
in vivo
data. Small interfering RNA (siRNA) studies with Caco2-BBE cells showed a decrease in adherence of EPEC to Caco2 cells in which CD98 expression was knocked down.
In vitro
surface plasmon resonance (SPR) experiments showed direct binding between recombinant hCD98 and EPEC/
C. rodentium
proteins. We also demonstrated that the partial extracellular loop of hCD98 was sufficient for direct binding to EPEC/
C. rodentium
. These findings demonstrate the importance of the extracellular loop of CD98 in the innate host defense response to intestinal infection by attaching and effacing (A/E) pathogens.
EfaR Is a Major Regulator of Enterococcus faecalis Manganese Transporters and Influences Processes Involved in Host Colonization and Infection
Authors: Abrantes M. C. , Kok J. , Lopes M. de F. 
Published: January 2013

ABSTRACT

Metal ions, in particular manganese, are important modulators of bacterial pathogenicity. However, little is known about the role of manganese-dependent proteins in the nosocomial pathogen
Enterococcus faecalis
, a major cause of bacterial endocarditis. The present study demonstrates that the DtxR/MntR family metalloregulator EfaR of
E. faecalis
controls the expression of several of its regulon members in a manganese-dependent way. We also show that
efaR
inactivation impairs the ability of
E. faecalis
to form biofilms, to survive inside macrophages, and to tolerate oxidative stress. Our results reveal that EfaR is an important modulator of
E. faecalis
virulence and link manganese homeostasis to enterococcal pathogenicity.
BRIDGING THE GAP BETWEEN ARTIFICIAL MARKET SIMULATIONS AND QUALITATIVE RESEARCH IN DIFFUSION OF INNOVATION
Authors: ZENOBIA BRENT A. , WEBER CHARLES M. 
Published: January 2013

Artificial markets are an emerging form of agent-based simulation in which agents represent individual industries, firms, or consumers interacting under simulated market conditions. While artificial markets demonstrate considerable potential for advancing innovation research, the validity of the method depends on the ability of researchers to construct agents that faithfully capture the key behavior of targeted entities. To date, few such methods have been documented in the academic literature. This article describes a novel method for combining qualitative innovation research (case studies, grounded theory, and sequence analysis) with software engineering techniques to synthesize simulation-ready theories of adoption behavior. A step-by-step example is provided from the transportation domain. The result was a theory of adoption behavior that is sufficiently precise and formal to be expressed in Unified Modeling Language (UML). The article concludes with a discussion of the limitations of the method and recommendations future applications to the study of diffusion of innovation.
People, sensors, decisions
Authors: Hoey Jesse , Boutilier Craig , Poupart Pascal , Olivier Patrick , Monk Andrew , Mihailidis Alex 
Published: January 2013

The ratio of healthcare professionals to care recipients is dropping at an alarming rate, particularly for the older population. It is estimated that the number of persons with Alzheimer's disease, for example, will top 100 million worldwide by the year 2050 [Alzheimer's Disease International 2009]. It will become harder and harder to provide needed health services to this population of older adults. Further, patients are becoming more aware and involved in their own healthcare decisions. This is creating a void in which technology has an increasingly important role to play as a tool to connect providers with recipients. Examples of interactive technologies range from telecare for remote regions to computer games promoting fitness in the home. Currently, such technologies are developed for specific applications and are difficult to modify to suit individual user needs. The future potential economic and social impact of technology in the healthcare field therefore lies in our ability to make intelligent devices that are customizable by healthcare professionals and their clients, that are adaptive to users over time, and that generalize across tasks and environments.A wide application area for technology in healthcare is for assistance and monitoring in the home. As the population ages, it becomes increasingly dependent on chronic healthcare, such as assistance for tasks of everyday life (washing, cooking, dressing), medication taking, nutrition, and fitness. This article will present a summary of work over the past decade on the development of intelligent systems that provide assistance to persons with cognitive disabilities. These systems are unique in that they are all built using a common framework, a decision-theoretic model for general-purpose assistance in the home. In this article, we will show how this type of general model can be applied to a range of assistance tasks, including prompting for activities of daily living, assistance for art therapists, and stroke rehabilitation. This model is a Partially Observable Markov Decision Process (POMDP) that can be customized by end-users, that can integrate complex sensor information, and that can adapt over time. These three characteristics of the POMDP model will allow for increasing uptake and long-term efficiency and robustness of technology for assistance.
“I”-Tunes: Multiple Subjectivities and Narrative Method in Computer
Music
Authors: Hoffman Elizabeth 
Published: January 2013

Abstract
Representational aspects of a computer music composition may forge a perspectival conduit into the music, partly through conceptual boundary structures described here as “frames.” The perspectival conduit includes the illusion of subjectivities inside the music and is called here the work's “point of view.” These internal subjectivities shape a listener's sense of self, including role, location, and identity. Where and how does the given sound world let the listener in, conceptually, to interact with the work's point of view? This essay considers musical discourse that draws on literary theories of narrative, but it also examines techniques that derive directly from computer music's distinctive features and capabilities.
Salvaging Nature: The Akan Religio-Cultural Perspective
Authors: Awuah-Nyamekye Samuel 
Published: January 2013

AbstractThe way many Ghanaians relate to the environment now is not the best; they just do not care about how to handle the environment in a sustainable way. They have forgotten that life is environment and environment is life due to rapid cultural change, population explosion etc. There is indiscriminate logging, annual bushfires, illegal surface mining, bad farming practices, dumping of human and industrial wastes into our water bodies and the like. It is estimated that over 90 percent of Ghana's high forest has been logged since the late 1940s. The sanitation situation is growing from bad to worst as the records show. All efforts to salvage the situation over the years have failed to yield the needed results. It is for this reason that this paper argues strongly for the inclusion of indigenous Ghanaian religion and culture in this fight, for they have proven to be eco-biased religion and culture due to the environmentally beneficial mechanisms inherent in them. Specifically, the traditional Akan use their conception of land, taboos, totemism, sacred groves and sasa to ensure the conservation of nature. Therefore, this paper believe, the time has come for us to forge a common ground in our efforts to find a lasting solution to our environmental problems from both the perspectives of science and that of Indigenous Spiritualities and Culture.
Broken Bodies of God: The Christian Eucharist as a Locus for Ecological Reflection
Authors: Galbraith Kyle 
Published: January 2013

AbstractThe recent Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Fourth Assessment Report attests to the reality of a warming global climate and describes potential ecosystem changes that may be devastating to communities—both human and non-human—across the globe. I contend that the Christian practice of sharing the Eucharist meal provides an opportune moment for Christians to engage in ecological reflection. To defend this claim I draw upon Christian theologian Sallie McFague's metaphorical understanding of the world as God's body in order to connect environmental plight to the Eucharist meal and to show why that plight should be a concern for Christian communities. Next, I turn to the work of anthropologist Claude Fischler in order to make a connection between sharing the Eucharist and communal and individual identity formation. Finally, I draw upon the Slow Food movement in order to provide specific suggestions for adapting the Eucharist to make it more conducive to ecological reflection. I also briefly discuss the growing green sisters movement and suggest that this movement provides a model of ecological-awareness and practice for other religious communities, and for North American Christian churches in particular.
What Is Wrong with Degenerate Souls in the Republic?
Authors: Gavrielides Era 
Published: January 2013

AbstractThe Republic splits the soul into three parts: the logistikon (reason), the thumoeides (spirit) and the epithumetikon (appetite). In a virtuous soul all the parts do their own work and the logistikon is ruling. In what follows I argue that a non-question-begging account of why the logistikon should rule must take into account the psychological complexity of virtuous and non-virtuous characters in the Republic. And while this is often accepted by those arguing that the unity of degenerate souls is unstable or fragile I will argue, in opposition, that what is actually wrong with degenerate souls is that they have the wrong kind of unity ‐ a unity by force ‐ which can be very stable but which is nonetheless a unity in tension. On the other hand the rule of the logistikon can provide unity by persuasion, a unity which is not only stable but also free from tension.
Images, Appearances, and Phantasia in Aristotle
Authors: Scheiter Krisanna M. 
Published: January 2013

Abstract
Aristotle’s account of phantasia in De Anima 3.3 is notoriously difficult to decipher. At one point he describes phantasia as a capacity for producing images, but then later in the same chapter it is clear phantasia is supposed to explain appearances, such as why the sun appears to be a foot wide. Many commentators argue that images cannot explain appearances, and so they claim that Aristotle is using phantasia in two different ways. In this paper I argue that images actually explain perceptual appearances for Aristotle, and so phantasia always refers to images. I take a new approach to interpreting DA 3.3, reading it alongside Plato’s Theaetetus and Sophist. In the Theaetetus, Socrates explains how memory gives rise to perceptual appearance. I claim that Aristotle adopts Socrates’ account of perceptual appearance, but what Socrates calls memory, Aristotle calls phantasia.
Appetite, Reason, and Education in Socrates’ ‘City of Pigs’
Authors: Jonas Mark E. , Nakazawa Yoshiaki M. , Braun James 
Published: January 2013

Abstract
In Book II of the Republic (370c-372d), Socrates briefly depicts a city where each inhabitant contributes to the welfare of all by performing the role for which he or she is naturally suited. Socrates calls this city the ‘true city’ and the ‘healthy one’. Nearly all commentators have argued that Socrates’ praise of the city cannot be taken at face value, claiming that it does not represent Socrates’ preferred community. The point of this paper is to argue otherwise. The claim is that Socrates genuinely believes the city is a healthy and desirable city, and that he believes that the First City (the so-called ‘city of pigs’) is in fact superior to the Kallipolis.
Evangelical Environmentalism: Oxymoron or Opportunity?
Authors: Simmons J. Aaron 
Published: January 2013

AbstractOften defined by affiliation with conservative politics and a limited range of moral issues concerning “family values,” evangelical Christianity in the United States might seem like an odd place to look for a substantial environmental ethic. However, over the past few years many evangelicals have been working very hard to change this public face of their community and are becoming increasingly active in environmental issues. In this essay, I provide an overview of this trend by articulating the major tenants of evangelical environmentalism, outlining the major events in its history, and suggesting four primary obstacles to continued participation in this area. I contend that evangelical environmentalism is not an oxymoronic conception, but instead represents an opportunity for substantial progress as the engagement between religion and ecology becomes increasingly important to contemporary scholarly debates and public policy.
Reading the Book of Nature: A Hermeneutical Account of Nature for Philosophical Theology
Authors: Clingerman Forrest 
Published: January 2013

AbstractHow can we read nature as a revelatory text? This essay argues for a re-opening of the Book of Nature for philosophical theology. I first will summarize the traditional use of the metaphor of the Book of Nature. But this “book” was closed when science discarded the metaphor of divine authorship as unnecessary. We can re-open nature as a text by discovering the textuality of nature, which in turn presents a reemergence of text itself. From this, we can point to a revelatory nature of nature. The import of the text of nature comes from a reflexive, meditative reading, which sees the way in which the world of the text—and simultaneously the world as text—interacts with/as the world of the reader. The world that we encounter through reading is the very world of our existence—we are encountering the world that forms the foundation of the world from which we read.
Ethics-Based Environmentalism in Practice: Religious-Environmental Organizations in the United States
Authors: Smith Angela , Pulver Simone 
Published: January 2013

AbstractDebates over the “death of environmentalism” juxtapose two approaches to environmental advocacy: an issues-based environmentalism that relies on technocratic, legal, scientific, policy-oriented and issue-specific advocacy activities and an ethics-based environmentalism that has as its primary focus the promotion of deep-seated changes in individual and societal values and behavior as they pertain to stewardship of the earth. The latter is presented both as a critique of the former and as a road map for a more effective environmental movement. This study documents the practice and challenges of ethics-based environmentalism through an analysis of the religious-environmental movement in the United States. Interviews with forty-two U.S.-based religious-environmental organizations revealed that the majority of these groups see themselves as engaged in an ethics-based environmentalism grounded in frameworks that tie God to nature and emphasize action, community, and justice. Groups also identified some of the challenges inherent in ethics-based environmental advocacy, including the need to confront societal norms, work on long time horizons, access funding, recruit support, and measure and document success.