bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
El sistema de salud de China: entre la privatización y los servicios de salud pública
Authors: Darimont Barbara , Liu Dongmei 
Published: March 2013

ResumenEn los últimos años la política del sistema de salud de China ha sido objeto de numerosas reformas que han conducido con frecuencia a nuevos desafíos, poniendo de relieve la necesidad de una reforma ulterior. Las reformas más recientes tienen por objeto hallar un término medio entre los servicios de salud pública y los seguros privados comerciales. De este modo, China está siguiendo los pasos de los países que reforzaron inicialmente el papel de la privatización en la década de 1990 y a principios del siglo xxi, pero que ahora se están reorientando hacia los servicios de salud pública. Sin embargo, este proceso de reforma constante ha conducido a una falta de transparencia en el funcionamiento del sistema de salud, lo que ha provocado una pérdida de confianza pública. Persiste un grado considerable de incertidumbre con respecto al modo en que evolucionará la situación en China. No obstante, aún podría materializarse un enfoque de financiación dual de los servicios de salud que utilice tanto los recursos financieros provenientes de los impuestos como los seguros sociales; dicho enfoque ofrecería un posible modelo que serviría de orientación para los avances en otros países.
CONSUMPTION, MONEY, INTRATEMPORAL SUBSTITUTION, AND CROSS‐SECTIONAL ASSET RETURNS
Authors: Gu Li , Huang Dayong 
Published: March 2013

AbstractWhen utility is specified recursively as a function of both consumption and money, real money growth becomes a common factor in addition to the market excess return and consumption growth. The risk premium on the money factor is negative because money complements consumption and is positively related to the stochastic discount factor. Growth portfolios, short‐term loser portfolios, and long‐term winner portfolios tend to have higher loadings on the money factor and, thus, earn lower premiums on money.
China between Economic Growth and Mass Immigration
Authors: Bruni Michele 
Published: March 2013

AbstractIn order to continue along its path of sustained economic growth, China will need, probably in just a few years, certainly after 2030, an extremely high number of immigrants. This conclusion, which contrasts with a recent World Bank scenario suggesting that the decline in labor supply due to demographic trends can be faced with sustained growth in productivity, is based upon a demand‐driven model of migration. Moreover, according to the same model, the decline in fertility (and the one child policy that has been partially responsible for it) will end up provoking immigration flows above replacement level. The working age population and the total population will continue to increase, and China will remain the most populous country on the planet. The last part of the paper surveys the policies that China could adopt to reduce its structural need for foreign labor.
Neural steroid sensitivity and aggression: comparing individuals of two songbird subspecies
Authors: Bergeon Burns C. M. , Rosvall K. A. , Ketterson E. D. 
Published: March 2013

AbstractHormones coordinate the expression of complex phenotypes and thus may play important roles in evolutionary processes. When populations diverge in hormone‐mediated phenotypes, differences may arise via changes in circulating hormones, sensitivity to hormones or both. Determining the relative importance of signal and sensitivity requires consideration of both inter‐ and intrapopulation variation in hormone levels, hormone sensitivity and phenotype, but such studies are rare, particularly among closely related taxa. We compared males of two subspecies of the dark‐eyed junco (Junco hyemalis) for territorial aggression and associations among behaviour, circulating testosterone (T), and gene expression of androgen receptor (AR), aromatase (AROM) and oestrogen receptor α in three behaviourally relevant brain regions. Thus, we examined the degree to which evolution may shape behaviour via changes in plasma T as compared with key sex steroid binding/converting molecules. We found that the white‐winged junco (J. h. aikeni) was more aggressive than the smaller, less ornamented Carolina junco (J. h. carolinensis). The subspecies did not differ in circulating testosterone, but did differ significantly in the abundance of AR and AROM mRNA in key areas of the brain. Within populations, both gene expression and circulating T co‐varied significantly with individual differences in aggression. Notably, the differences identified between populations were opposite to those predicted by the patterns among individuals within populations. These findings suggest that hormone–phenotype relationships may evolve via multiple pathways, and that changes that have occurred over evolutionary time do not necessarily reflect standing physiological variation on which current evolutionary processes may act.
A multicomponent lifestyle intervention produces favourable changes in diet quality and cardiometabolic risk indices in hypercholesterolaemic adults
Authors: Petrogianni M. , Kanellakis S. , Kallianioti K. , Argyropoulou D. , Pitsavos C. , Manios Y. 
Published: March 2013

AbstractBackgroundTo date, there are no dietary intervention studies available jointly examining the changes produced in cardiometabolic risk indices and diet quality assessed with the Healthy Eating Index 2005 (HEI‐2005). The present study aimed to evaluate the effect of a 3‐month multicomponent lifestyle intervention on several cardiometabolic risk indices, physical activity levels and diet quality.MethodsA total sample of 108 hypercholesterolaemic adults (40–60 years old) were randomised to two intervention groups provided with and instructed to consume daily: (i) plain milk (n = 37) or (ii) enriched milk (n = 40) respectively; both groups were attending a 3‐month dietary counselling programme. For the needs of the present study both intervention groups were analysed together IG: n = 77) and were compared against a control group following usual diet (CG: n = 31).ResultsRegarding diet quality HEI scores for ‘milk’ (P = 0.021), ‘dark green/orange vegetables and legumes’ (P = 0.050) and ‘total HEI score’ (P = 0.045) were improved in the IG compared to the CG. The IG also improved ‘whole grains’ and ‘calories from solid fats, alcoholic beverages and added sugars’ scores compared to their baseline values. Both groups improved the ‘total vegetable’ HEI score. Regarding physical activity levels and cardiometabolic risk indices, the IG significantly increased the daily number of steps (P = 0.005) and decreased body weight (P = 0.021), body mass index (P = 0.019) and waist circumference (P = 0.027) to a higher extent compared to the changes observed in the CG. Moreover, the IG significantly decreased systolic (P = 0.001) and diastolic blood pressure (P = 0.050) compared to baseline values.ConclusionsThe present study revealed that this 3‐month lifestyle and nutrition counselling intervention programme appears to have favourable effects on diet quality, physical activity levels, anthropometric and certain cardiometabolic risk indices.
Isolation, characterization and the multi‐lineage differentiation potential of rabbit bone marrow‐derived mesenchymal stem cells
Authors: Tan Sik‐Loo , Ahmad Tunku Sara , Selvaratnam Lakshmi , Kamarul Tunku 
Published: March 2013

AbstractMesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are recognized by their plastic adherent ability, fibroblastic‐like appearance, expression of specific surface protein markers, and are defined by their ability to undergo multi‐lineage differentiation. Although rabbit bone marrow‐derived MSCs (rbMSCs) have been used extensively in previous studies especially in translational research, these cells have neither been defined morphologically and ultrastructurally, nor been compared with their counterparts in humans in their multi‐lineage differentiation ability. A study was therefore conducted to define the morphology, surface marker proteins, ultrastructure and multi‐lineage differentiation ability of rbMSCs. Herein, the primary rbMSC cultures of three adult New Zealand white rabbits (at least 4 months old) were used for three independent experiments. rbMSCs were isolated using the gradient‐centrifugation method, an established technique for human MSCs (hMSCs) isolation. Cells were characterized by phase contrast microscopy observation, transmission electron microscopy analysis, reverse transcriptase‐polymerase chain reaction (PCR) analysis, immunocytochemistry staining, flow cytometry, alamarBlue® assay, histological staining and quantitative (q)PCR analysis. The isolated plastic adherent cells were in fibroblastic spindle‐shape and possessed eccentric, irregular‐shaped nuclei as well as rich inner cytoplasmic zones similar to that of hMSCs. The rbMSCs expressed CD29, CD44, CD73, CD81, CD90 and CD166, but were negative (or dim positive) for CD34, CD45, CD117 and HLD‐DR. Despite having similar morphology and phenotypic expression, rbMSCs possessed significantly larger cell size but had a lower proliferation rate as compared with hMSCs. Using established protocols to differentiate hMSCs, rbMSCs underwent osteogenic, adipogenic and chondrogenic differentiation. Interestingly, differentiated rbMSCs demonstrated higher levels of osteogenic (Runx2) and chondrogenic (Sox9) gene expressions than that of hMSCs (P < 0.05). There was, however, no difference in the adipogenic (Pparγ) expressions between these cell types (P > 0.05). rbMSCs possess similar morphological characteristics to hMSCs, but have a higher potential for osteogenic and chondrogenic differentiation, despite having a lower cell proliferation rate than hMSCs. The characteristics reported here may be used as a comprehensive set of criteria to define or characterize rbMSCs.
Do pregnant women with depression have a pro‐inflammatory profile?
Authors: Haeri Sina , Baker Arthur M. , Ruano Rodrigo 
Published: March 2013

AbstractAimWe tested the hypothesis that maternal depression is associated with a pro‐inflammatory state in pregnancy.Material and MethodsIn this nested case–control study, pro‐inflammatory cytokine levels were compared between women with depression in pregnancy (n = 100) and a computer‐generated referent group of healthy women known not to be depressed (n = 100). We only included cases with a documented Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders depression diagnosis in the current pregnancy. Serum samples drawn at 11–14 weeks of gestation were analyzed for levels of tumor necrosis factor‐alpha and interleukin‐6 using high‐sensitivity immunoassays.ResultsMaternal demographics were similar between the groups except for older age (34.1 vs 32.7 years, P = .05), and lower body mass index (27.3 vs 28.9 kg/m2, P = 0.03) among the depressed subjects. Compared to control women, tumor necrosis factor‐alpha (5.8 ± 3.4 vs 3.2 ± 2.8 pg/ml, P < 0.0001) and interleukin‐6 (2.4 ± 3.8 vs 1.5 ± 1.4 pg/ml, P = 0.03) levels were higher among women with depression. The higher rate of inflammatory cytokines remained significant after controlling for potential confounders, including maternal age and body mass index.ConclusionWomen with depression may have higher levels of inflammatory markers in early pregnancy. Our findings support the hypothesis that inflammation may be a mediator in the association between maternal depression and adverse perinatal outcomes.
Evaluating the risk factors for developing resistance to parenteral therapy for tubo‐ovarian abscess: A case–control study
Authors: Mizushima Taichi , Yoshida Hiroshi , Ohi Yuka , Ishikawa Masahiko , Hirahara Fumiki 
Published: March 2013

AbstractAimThe aim of this study was to identify factors that can predict the resistance to parenteral therapy in patients with tubo‐ovarian abscesses (TOA).Material and MethodsWe conducted a case–control study involving 55 admitted patients with TOA. The subjects eligible for this study included 28 patients who failed antibiotic therapy and required surgery (surgical cases) and 27 patients who were conservatively cured (control cases). The clinical characteristics of the patients on admission were reviewed. Logistic regression analysis was performed after univariate analysis to identify potentially important variables and to calculate odds ratios with 95% confidence intervals.ResultsAs per the univariate analysis, compared to the control cases, the surgical cases were older (40.4 vs 31.5 years), had higher white blood cell counts (14000 vs 11828 cells/mm3), higher C‐reactive protein levels (16.1 vs 7.6 mg/dL), and a larger abscess diameter (6.6 vs 3.9 cm). There were no significant differences in gravidity, parity, body temperature, rate of endometrial cyst formation, and Chlamydia trachomatis infection rates between the groups. Multiple logistic regression analysis indicated that the only statistically significant risk factor predicting parenteral antibiotic therapy failure was the abscess diameter >5 cm (odds ratio = 69.6; 95% confidence interval = 9.3–527, P < 0.0001).ConclusionAn abscess diameter >5 cm is an important factor for predicting the failure of antibiotic therapy in patients with TOA. Moreover, it is useful for determining whether patients with TOA should be surgically treated.
From Taken‐for‐Granted to Explicit Commitment: The Rise ofCSRin a Corporatist Country
Authors: Höllerer Markus A. 
Published: March 2013

AbstractThis article contributes to a thriving line of research that examines issue interpretation and social accounts in order to study the adoption and diffusion of organizational concepts and management practices. It employs the empirical example of the rise of corporate social responsibility (CSR) inAustria between 1990 and 2005 to investigate the complex role institutional pressures and social positions of actors play in the local adoption of globally theorized ideas. More specifically, the study reveals distinct patterns in rhetoricalCSRadoption that illustrate the initial hesitation and reluctance of an established elite in theAustrian business community towards theAnglo‐American notion of ‘explicit’CSR, while non‐elite actors who were less favourably positioned in the social order readily embraced the concept. It is in such a sense thatCSRis nevertheless instrumentalized to challenge, reinterpret, or explicitly evoke the autochthonous idea of institutionalized social solidarity. Conceptually, this research takes into account social structure, actors' positions in the social order, and resulting divergent adoption motivations – i.e. the individual, yet socially derived, relevance systems of actors – and relates these to mechanisms and processes of institutional change.
Genetic factors in evolution of sleep length – a longitudinal twin study in Finnish adults
Authors: Hublin Christer , Partinen Markku , Koskenvuo Markku , Kaprio Jaakko 
Published: March 2013

SummaryGenetic factors affect many aspects of sleep, such as sleep length. We investigated the contribution of genetic factors to stability and change of sleep length among adults over a 15‐year period. In this representative follow‐up study we used the Finnish Twin Cohort as the study population. Questionnaire surveys were performed in 1975 (response rate 89%, 11 041 twin pairs; age ≥18 years), 1981 (84%, 9323; ≥24 years) and 1990 (77%, 4507; 33–60 years). Sleep was categorized as short (<7 h), average or long (>8 h). Pairwise similarity in monozygotic and dizygotic pairs was examined at each survey by age group and sex. Quantitative genetic modelling was used to estimate cross‐sectional and longitudinal genetic effects. The proportion of variance in sleep length at one point in time that was accounted for by genetic effects was very stable over the study period, being 0.31 in 1975, 0.32 in 1981 and 0.30 in 1990. Longitudinal genetic modelling indicated that the correlations of genetic effects between the three measurement points were high: 0.85 between 1975 and 1981; 0.93 between 1981 and 1990; and 0.76 between 1975 and 1990. Despite a high contribution of environmental effects, their correlations over time were modest: 0.31 between 1975 and 1981; 0.33 between 1981 and 1990; and 0.18 between 1975 and 1990. In conclusion, genetic factors have a modest but stable effect on the evolution of sleep length over a long time span in adults. Multiple measures are a more robust basis for genetic analyses than a single cross‐sectional measure.
Phylogenetic Analysis of Feline Coronavirus Strains in an Epizootic Outbreak of Feline Infectious Peritonitis
Authors: Barker E.N. , Tasker S. , Gruffydd‐Jones T.J. , Tuplin C.K. , Burton K. , Porter E. , Day M.J. , Harley R. , Fews D. , Helps C.R. , Siddell S.G. 
Published: March 2013

BackgroundFeline coronavirus (FCoV) infection is common. In a small percentage of cats, FCoV infection is associated with the fatal disease feline infectious peritonitis (FIP). Genetically distinct virulent and avirulent strains of FCoV might coexist within a cat population.ObjectivesTo determine whether the strains of FCoV in FIP‐affected cats are closely related or genetically distinct from the fecally derived strains of FCoV in contemporary‐asymptomatic cats during an epizootic outbreak of FIP.AnimalsFour cats euthanized because of FIP and 16 asymptomatic cats.MethodsThis prospective outbreak investigation was initiated during an outbreak of FIP in cats within or rehomed from a rescue/rehoming center. Postmortem samples were collected from cats with FIP and contemporaneous fecal samples from asymptomatic cats. RNA was purified from tissue and fecal samples, FCoV gene fragments were reverse transcribed, PCR‐amplified using novel primers, and sequenced. Sequences were aligned with ClustalW and compared with published FCoV sequences.ResultsFCoV RNA was detected in all 4 FIP cat postmortem samples and in 9 of the 16 fecal samples from contemporary‐asymptomatic cats. Novel primers successfully amplified fragments from 4 regions of the genome for all FCoV‐positive samples. Phylogenetic analysis showed that the FIP‐associated strains of FCoV from the outbreak were very closely related to the fecally derived strains of FCoV from contemporary‐asymptomatic cats.Conclusions and Clinical ImportanceSequence analysis provided no evidence that genetically distinct virulent and avirulent strains of FCoV were present during this FIP outbreak.
The curious case of Hermodice carunculata (Annelida: Amphinomidae): evidence for genetic homogeneity throughout the Atlantic Ocean and adjacent basins
Authors: Ahrens Joseph B. , Borda Elizabeth , Barroso Rômulo , Paiva Paulo C. , Campbell Alexandra M. , Wolf Alexander , Nugues Maggy M. , Rouse Greg W. , Schulze Anja 
Published: March 2013

AbstractOver the last few decades, advances in molecular techniques have led to the detection of strong geographic population structure and cryptic speciation in many benthic marine taxa, even those with long‐lived pelagic larval stages. Polychaete annelids, in particular, generally show a high degree of population divergence, especially in mitochondrial genes. Rarely have molecular studies confirmed the presence of ‘cosmopolitan’ species. The amphinomid polychaete Hermodice carunculata was long considered the sole species within its genus, with a reported distribution throughout the Atlantic and adjacent basins. However, recent studies have indicated morphological differences, primarily in the number of branchial filaments, between the East and West Atlantic populations; these differences were invoked to re‐instate Hermodice nigrolineata, formerly considered a junior synonym of H. carunculata. We utilized sequence data from two mitochondrial (cytochrome c oxidase subunit I, 16S rDNA) markers and one nuclear (internal transcribed spacer) marker to examine the genetic diversity of Hermodice throughout its distribution range in the Atlantic Ocean, including the Mediterranean Sea, the Caribbean Sea, the Gulf of Mexico and the Gulf of Guinea. Our analyses revealed generally low genetic divergences among collecting localities and between the East and West Atlantic, although phylogenetic trees based on mitochondrial data indicate the presence of a private lineage in the Mediterranean Sea. A re‐evaluation of the number of branchial filaments confirmed differences between East and West Atlantic populations; however, the differences were not diagnostic and did not reflect the observed genetic population structure. Rather, we suspect that the number of branchial filaments is a function of oxygen saturation in the environment. Our results do not support the distinction between H. carunculata in the West Atlantic and H. nigrolineata in the East Atlantic. Instead, they re‐affirm the older notion that H. carunculata is a cohesive species with a broad distribution across the Atlantic Ocean.
Recognition of bacterial plant pathogens: local, systemic and transgenerational immunity
Authors: Henry Elizabeth , Yadeta Koste A. , Coaker Gitta 
Published: March 2013

SummaryBacterial pathogens can cause multiple plant diseases and plants rely on their innate immune system to recognize and actively respond to these microbes. The plant innate immune system comprises extracellular pattern recognition receptors that recognize conserved microbial patterns and intracellular nucleotide binding leucine‐rich repeat (NLR) proteins that recognize specific bacterial effectors delivered into host cells. Plants lack the adaptive immune branch present in animals, but still afford flexibility to pathogen attack through systemic and transgenerational resistance. Here, we focus on current research in plant immune responses against bacterial pathogens. Recent studies shed light onto the activation and inactivation of pattern recognition receptors and systemic acquired resistance. New research has also uncovered additional layers of complexity surrounding NLR immune receptor activation, cooperation and sub‐cellular localizations. Taken together, these recent advances bring us closer to understanding the web of molecular interactions responsible for coordinating defense responses and ultimately resistance.
Probabilistic Causality and Detecting Collections of Interdependence Patterns
Authors: Ramsahai Roland R. 
Published: March 2013

SummaryInterdependent effects are usually distinguished from statistical interaction by using the sufficient causes framework. This almost always involves expressing probability distributions as deterministic logic functions, where certain conditions invariably produce or prevent an outcome. Using an idea from the philosophy literature, that a cause is defined as an event which increases the probability of an outcome, a probabilistic sufficient causes framework is developed here. It expresses distributions with probabilistic logic functions and is used to define interdependence without determinism. The connections, between probabilistic logic and the inequalities which define convex polytopes in the space of the distribution parameters, are given. Interdependence is defined for the response behaviour of individuals, defined by latent variables, and is not directly observable. It is shown that the formulation of the models as geometric objects enables the use of algebraic tools to compute observable constraints for detecting interdependence. Novel constraints are derived for detecting causal interdependence patterns and the corresponding statistical tests are described.