bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Splenic manifestations of chronic autoimmune disorder: a report of five cases with histiocytic necrotizing change in four cases
Authors: Auerbach Aaron , Summers Thomas A , Zhang Binxue , Aguilera Nadine S 
Published: March 2013

AimsAutoimmune diseases (AD) are associated with lymphadenopathy and splenomegaly. Changes in the spleen have not been characterized completely in AD; we describe splenectomy specimens from five patients with chronic AD, highlighting the presence of necrotizing histiocytosis.Methods and resultsOf the patients (three males and two females; mean 40 years), four had systemic lupus erythematosus; one had rheumatoid arthritis. All had moderate splenomegaly (213–803 g, mean 421 g). Four cases exhibited necrosis with apoptosis and karyorrhectic debris occurring in the white pulp and minimal acute inflammation; one showed florid follicular hyperplasia. Splenic involvement ranged from focal to extensive. Plasma cells were negative for IgG4. Haematoxylin bodies were not identified. Stains for infectious organisms were negative. Immunohistochemical studies showed that lymphocytes surrounding the necrosis were a mixture of CD4+ and CD8+ T cells; CD123‐positive plasmacytoid dendritic cells were not present, and staining for kappa and lambda light chains showed no clonality. 16S rDNA PCR was performed; no amplification was seen in three of four cases tested for bacteria specific rDNA. Epstein–Barr virus‐encoded RNA (EBER) in situ hybridization studies highlighted rare positive cells in four cases.ConclusionsSplenomegaly in AD is thought to be hyperplasic, but we present four cases showing histiocytic necrosis, a finding which should be considered part of the spectrum of AD in the spleen.
Biodiversity patterns in a macroinvertebrate community of a temporary pond network
Authors: Florencio Margarita , Díaz‐Paniagua Carmen , Gómez‐Rodríguez Carola , Serrano Laura 
Published: March 2013

Abstract
Macroinvertebrate assemblages of temporary ponds are ideal model systems to explore biodiversity patterns and metacommunity ecology. In addition, the study of the environmental variables driving such biodiversity patterns is essential in establishing proper guidelines for the conservation of the singular fauna of temporary ponds, especially since such ponds are vulnerable systems.
We analysed the macroinvertebrate assemblages and environmental characteristics of 80 ponds spread across the Doñana National Park, SW Spain to (i) analyse macroinvertebrate β‐diversity and metacommunity structure; and (ii) discern the main environmental and spatial drivers of these patterns.
The pond network was highly heterogeneous as temporary ponds were highly variable. Macroinvertebrate β‐diversity partitioning showed that species replacement made the greatest contribution to total β‐diversity while the contribution of nestedness was small. The macroinvertebrate community structure and β‐diversity were similarly driven by: electrical conductivity (and co‐variables alkalinity, pH, and ion concentrations), plant richness (and the co‐variable pond surface area), maximum depth, marsh, and coastal proximity as well as two spatial descriptors extracted from Moran's eigenvector maps. The spatial descriptors indicated that large interpond distances were involved, suggesting that species dispersal limitations only take place over long distances in the area.
Those taxa that departed from the general nested pattern, termed idiosyncratic, significantly contributed to the maintenance of high pond network diversity through the species replacement and occurred within particular environmental conditions in the pond network.
These results reveal that environmental heterogeneity and connectivity are key factors in the preservation of high macroinvertebrate diversity in nested pond networks with high numbers of idiosyncratic species.
Automated quantitation of fetomaternal hemorrhage by flow cytometry for HbF‐containing fetal red blood cells using probability state modeling
Authors: Wong L. , Hunsberger B. C. , Bruce Bagwell C. , Davis B. H. 
Published: March 2013

SummaryBackgroundFlow cytometric methods (FCMs) are the contemporary standard for fetal red blood cell (RBC) quantitation and fetomaternal hemorrhage (FMH) detection. FCM provides greater sensitivity and repeatability relative to manual microscopic Kleihauer–Betke methods. FCM assays are not totally objective, employing subjective manual gating of fetal RBCs with measureable interobserver imprecision. We investigated Probability State Modeling to automate analysis of fetal RBCs using an assay for hemoglobin F (HbF)–containing RBCs.MethodsTwo hundred human bloods were processed using the FMH QuikQuant™ assay (Trillium Diagnostics, Brewer, ME, USA). A Probability State Model (PSM) was designed to enumerate fetal RBCs by selecting the three RBCs subpopulation based on differences in intensity levels of several parameters. The GemStone™ program uses a PSM that requires no operator intervention. Routine manual analysis by experienced users was performed, along with replicate analyses for both methods.ResultsThe PSM by GemStone™ correlates strongly with the expert manual analysis, r2 = 0.9986. The mean absolute difference of the FMH results between GemStone™ and manual ‘expert’ analysis was 0.04% with no intermethod bias detected. Manual gating demonstrated coefficient of variations (CVs) of 10.6% for intra‐analyst replicates and 22.6% for interanalyst imprecision. The interanalyst agreement in GemStone™ is a perfect correlation, r2 = 1.00, and no imprecision with a 0.00% CV.ConclusionAutomated PSM analysis of fetal RBCs strongly correlates with expert traditional manual analysis. PSM enumerates fetal RBCs accurately with significantly greater objectivity and lower imprecision than the traditional manual gating method. Thus, PSM provides a means to markedly improve interlaboratory variance with FMH assays based upon subjective gating strategies.
Cerebral CT Perfusion in Patients with Perimesencephalic and Those with Aneurysmal Subarachnoid Hemorrhage
Authors: Cremers Charlotte H. P. , van der Schaaf Irene C. , Dankbaar Jan Willem , Velthuis Birgitta K. , Rinkel Gabriel J. E. 
Published: March 2013

Background The cause of perimesencephalic hemorrhage is unknown, but a venous source is suggested. If perimesencephalic hemorrhage is of venous origin, less elevation of the intracranial pressure and less perfusion deficits are expected than after aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage. Aims We compared perfusion in the acute stage after perimesencephalic hemorrhage and aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage. Methods We included 45 perimesencephalic hemorrhage patients and 45 aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage patients, who were matched on clinical condition at admission and underwent computerized tomographic scanning <72 h after subarachnoid hemorrhage. Cerebral blood flow was assessed in 12 predefined regions of interest. Differences in cerebral blood flow values with corresponding 95% confidence intervals were calculated. Sub-group analyses were performed stratified on comparable amounts of blood and location of blood (posterior circulation aneurysms and additionally in infratentorial and supratentorial aneurysms). Results Cerebral blood flow was higher in perimesencephalic hemorrhage patients (mean: 63·8) than in aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage patients (mean: 55·9; difference of means: −7·9 [95% confidence interval: −10·7 to −5·2]) and also in the sub-group with comparable amounts of blood (mean cerebral blood flow: 56·4; difference of means: −7·4 [95% confidence interval: −10·4 to −4·3]). Cerebral blood flow was comparable with perimesencephalic hemorrhage patients for the sub-group with posterior circulation aneurysms (difference of means: −0·7 [95% confidence interval: −5·2 to 3·8]); however, differences diverged after stratifying posterior circulation aneurysms into supratentorial (difference of means −3·9 [95% confidence interval: −9·3 to 1·4]) and infratentorial aneurysms (difference of means 3·0 [95% confidence interval: −2·8 to 8·8]). Conclusion Perimesencephalic hemorrhage patients have a higher cerebral blood flow than aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage patients. The findings of this study further support a venous origin of bleeding in perimesencephalic hemorrhage patients. Future studies should further elaborate on cerebral blood flow in posterior circulation aneurysms.
White Matter Disease and an Incomplete Circle of Willis
Authors: Ryan Daniel James , Byrne Susan , Dunne Ruth , Harmon Mark , Harbison Joseph 
Published: March 2013

Introduction White matter disease occurs as a consequence of small vessel disease; however, hypoperfusion may also play a role. We investigated whether patients with less cerebral vessel anastomosis may develop more white matter disease. Methods Magnetic resonance imaging (1.5t) with intracranial magnetic resonance angiography data was collected on a convenience sample between July 2008 and January 2009. All patients were independently assessed for circle of Willis variants by two researchers and categorized into two groups: those with a complete circle of Willis and those with an incomplete circle of Willis (absent vessels). The complete group was sub-divided into a classical group (entirely normal circle of Willis) and a hypoplastic group (hypoplasia but no absent vessels). White matter disease assessment was conducted for these groups, by two researchers blind to magnetic resonance angiography findings, on all patients over 50 years old. Results The circle of Willis was characterized in 163 patients, while 90 (>50 years) underwent white matter disease assessment. The kappa inter-rater reliability between both circle of Willis assessors and between both white matter disease assessors was 0·57 and 0·63, respectively. The prevalence of circle of Willis variants strongly correlated with the seminal paper by Riggs and Rupp. Independent of age and gender, those with an incomplete circle of Willis ( n = 68) exhibited 58% more white matter disease than those with a complete circle of Willis ( n = 22) (white matter disease score 6·52 vs. 4·11, respectively, P = 0·03). Patients with absent anterior vessels exhibited more frontal white matter disease than those with intact anterior vessels (3·7 vs. 1·72, P < 0·001). Patients with absent posterior vessels exhibited more occipital white matter disease than those with intact posterior vessels (2·52 vs. 1·34, P = 0·014). Conclusion These data suggest that congenital absence of anastomotic capacity correlates with incident white matter disease, thus alluding to a hypoperfusion mechanism in the development of white matter disease.
Effects of Policy Changes on Thai Migration to Iceland
Authors: Bissat Johanna Gisladottir 
Published: March 2013

AbstractIn this study, I use ethnographic, survey and Icelandic government data to examine the nexus of recent migration policy changes in Iceland and the increased use of marriage as a migration strategy. In the early 1980s, Thai women began coming to Iceland to either marry Icelandic men or “try out” a potential relationship with an Icelander before marriage. During that time, Iceland approved work permits for foreigners regardless of country of origin, allowing many Thais to immigrate independent of marriage. By 2006, however, Iceland's membership in the European Economic Area was making it almost impossible for Thais and other non‐European migrants to secure a work permit. There has been an increase in marriage‐based migrations among non‐European migrants to Iceland compared to all other types of legal migration since 2006. Iceland's policy changes may have stemmed the flow of non‐European labourers, but may also have opened the door to increased fraudulent marriages and abuse of foreign women by Icelandic husbands. These policy changes have only occurred in the past 5–7 years, and it remains for future research to investigate adjustments made by both Icelanders and Thais in response to the newest laws.
Migration, Policy, and Anthropology
Authors: Haines David 
Published: March 2013

AbstractIn reviewing the articles in this special issue on the migration/policy/anthropology nexus, my comments will be in three parts: first, presenting a rough framework by which we might look at public policy in a way that bridges the academic and the practical; second, considering the actual cases presented in this special issue; and third, considering more broadly what the anthropological contribution might be to this complex and often acrimonious issue of migration policy. Throughout, the attempt is to search for a way of looking at migration policy that balances the inevitable academic critiques of public policy with a recognition of what public policy can and inevitably must be as a tool of societal discussion, planning, and progress.
Trends in nursing research in France: a cross‐sectional analysis
Authors: Dupin C.M. , Chami K. , Petit dit Dariel O. , Debout C. , Rothan‐Tondeur M. 
Published: March 2013

AimTo examine the engagement of French registered nurses with the Ministry of Health's initiative to spur scientific inquiry in the community.BackgroundFrench nursing research has suffered from a lack of dedicated funding. Positive signs of change have recently appeared, with the launch of the first national public funding programme dedicated to nursing research. This initiative, begun in 2010, was launched by the French Ministry of Health. Through this initiative, 149 registered nurses, serving as principal investigators, and their teams submitted research proposals between 2010 and 2011. The administrative guidelines of the funding programme are clearly oriented towards producing quantitative and exogenous nursing research.MethodA cross‐sectional analysis of 149 nursing research projects submitted during the first and second years of a French national funding programme for hospital‐based nursing research was conducted. Research proposals were included in the analysis whether they received funding or not. Data collection took place in 2011. The categories used in the analysis were the following: (1) the socio‐demographic data on the registered nurse principal investigators, (2) the research teams and (3) the research proposals (methodologies, bibliography, focus of the research, output, the status of the research proposals).ResultsThis study highlights the presence of methodological homogeneity among the research proposals submitted for funding. Clear tendencies were towards interventional and quantitative studies and those with an exogenous factor research objective. Between 2010 and 2011, 25 projects were funded out of 149 submitted. They were mostly quantitative and/or focused on the exogenous factors in patient care.ConclusionThe socio‐political context of a funding programme designed to encourage nursing research has had an implicit influence on the type of research to which French nurses have committed themselves to and the scientific positions with which these nurse researchers align themselves.
Why Do People Stigmatise the Poor at a Time of Rapidly Increasing Inequality, and What Can Be Done About It?
Authors: Taylor‐Gooby Peter 
Published: March 2013

AbstractThis paper starts out from a puzzle. During the past thirty years, incomes have grown more unequal, a small group at the top has captured a much greater share of resources and poverty has increased. Despite this, most people are markedly less likely to want government to redistribute income or tackle poverty and are less sympathetic towards those without jobs. The greater insecurity of many people's lives in the current crisis renders the issue more perplexing. This paper describes trends in inequality, poverty and unemployment; presents new data on attitudes, media discussion and political platforms; discusses theoretical approaches from social psychologists, political scientists, sociologists and other commentators; and considers how a more generous welfare state might be pursued.
Whatever Happened to Greece?
Authors: Fouskas Vassilis K. 
Published: March 2013

AbstractThe sovereign debt crisis in Greece and other periphery countries is a yardstick for the viability of the European project: if Greece defaults and exits the Euro‐zone, then the entire European architecture will be questioned. This article examines the origins of the Greek debt crisis and argues that the key sources of the debt are the economic and political factions that have dominated Greek politics since the fall of the Colonels in summer 1974 amidst the Cyprus calamity. These factions (political parties, comprador economic interests etc.), whose policy actions and preferences are amalgamated with the interests of Euro‐Atlantic elites, are now being severely undermined, both politically and economically, as the prosperity of the Greek middle classes is eroded following two years of harsh austerity measures imposed on the Greek ruling factions by those Euro‐Atlantic elites. Furthermore, this article outlines ways out of the Greek debt crisis, putting into test some reasonable policy proposals that are being widely discussed in Greece and abroad.
The Second Time as Tragedy? Welfare Reform under Thatcher and the Coalition
Authors: Mabbett Deborah 
Published: March 2013

AbstractThe welfare reforms of the Coalition government are marked by the legacy of Thatcherism. Social security reforms in the 1980s reshaped the system towards reliance on means‐tested benefits. Negative policy feedback created by the opacity and perverse effects of means‐testing has made these benefits an easy target for the Coalition, at least so far as working age people are concerned. Different policy feedbacks affect policy towards old age pensions. The government is locked into promoting private pensions, and is extending this commitment with automatic enrolment. To make private pensions pay, it has to reverse the slide to means‐testing. The implication is that the pronounced bias against the working poor and in favour of older people in Coalition policy is not simply a matter of electoral preferences: rather, it reflects the political effects of previous policy decisions.
Beyond the Social Market: Rethinking Capitalism and Public Policy
Authors: Jacobs Michael 
Published: March 2013

AbstractDespite its worthy motives, social market philosophy provides neither a useful analytical framework for understanding modern capitalism, nor the policy tools to address our present economic and social predicament. The concept of ‘market failure’, with its underlying assumption of market equilibrium, does not capture the systemically adverse outcomes of collective market forces. A more sophisticated understanding of capitalist economies, and the societies in which they exist, would recognise that the market economy is a dynamic but not self‐regulating system. It is embedded in, and impacts on, four other economies – of the natural environment, of family and care, of voluntary association, and of the public sector – which operate under different motivations and allocative principles. The role of government is central, to balance the values created by different kinds of institutions and to constrain the dynamic impacts of market forces. A number of policy conclusions are offered arising from this framework.
Rational bubbles and expectation‐driven fluctuations
Authors: Bosi Stefano , Seegmuller Thomas 
Published: March 2013

AbstractIn this paper, we propose a unified approach to understand the fluctuations of a rational bubble. We focus on an overlapping generations exchange economy where each household makes a portfolio choice between money, held because of a liquidity constraint, and another asset with no fundamental value. We show the existence of equilibria where the second asset takes a positive value as a pure rational bubble. There may exist endogenous cycles and bubble fluctuations driven by the volatility of agents' expectations. An expansionary monetary policy can shelter the economy from these endogenous fluctuations, but this positive effect is counterbalanced by a welfare loss according to the Friedman critique: there is a trade‐off between the stability and the stationary welfare target. Eventually, we consider a temporary bubble on real balances as an alternative source of self‐fulfilling cycles.
On the timing and optimality of capital controls: Public expenditures, debt dynamics and welfare
Authors: Boucekkine Raouf , Pommeret Aude , Prieur Fabien 
Published: March 2013

AbstractThis paper solves a second‐best problem where a government has to choose whether to tax financial inflows (capital controls) or not, and when. A multi‐stage optimal control technique is used to this end. First, it is shown that it is optimal to switch in finite time from capital controls to full financial liberalization whenever a measure of total wealth is above a certain threshold. In particular, a too large initial debt makes financial liberalization sub‐optimal. Second, capital controls should be used countercyclically. Third, financial liberalization is not unaffordable only for poor countries, even wealthy countries might find it optimal to implement capital controls if they aim to keep a large amount of public expenditure.
A remark on the set of arbitrage‐free prices in a multi‐period model
Authors: Cornet Bernard , Ranjan Abhishek 
Published: March 2013

AbstractWe study the convexity property of the set of arbitrage‐free prices of a multi‐period financial structure . The set of arbitrage‐free prices is shown to be a convex cone under conditions on the financial structure that hold in particular for short‐lived assets. Furthermore, we provide examples of equivalent financial structures and such that is a convex cone, but is neither convex nor a cone.
Destabilizing balanced‐budget consumption taxes in multi‐sector economies
Authors: Nishimura Kazuo , Nourry Carine , Seegmuller Thomas , Venditti Alain 
Published: March 2013

AbstractWe examine the impact of balanced‐budget consumption taxes on the existence of expectations‐driven business cycles in two‐sector economies with infinitely lived households. We prove that, whatever the relative capital intensity difference across sectors, aggregate instability can occur if the consumption tax rate is not too low. Moreover, we show through a numerical exercise based on empirically plausible tax rates that endogenous business‐cycle fluctuations may be a source of instability for all OECD countries, including the US.
Small improving coalitions and small group effectiveness
Authors: Wooders Myrna 
Published: March 2013

AbstractWithin the context of transferable utility (TU) games derived from cooperative pregames, this paper demonstrates the equivalence of two properties:

Small group effectiveness – that all, or almost all gains to collective activities can be realized by cooperation only within relatively small groups of players.
Small group effectiveness of improvement – that all or almost all improvement can be realized by relatively small groupsof players.
With many players, small group effectiveness ensures that diverse economies, including those with local public goods, clubs, indivisibilities and non‐monotonicities are competitive; there exists price‐taking economic equilibrium and the outcomes in the core and of price‐taking equilibrium are equivalent and have the equal‐treatment property. The results of this paper thus show that small group effectiveness for improvement provides an alternative characterization of the conditions underlying perfect competition.