bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Identification of bovine k‐casein C allele using allele‐specific polymerase chain reaction
Authors: Chrenek P. , Vašíček D. 
Published: March 2011

SummaryThe amplification of polymerase chain reaction (PCR)‐product for the k‐casein (k‐CN) C allele using a C‐allele specific primer was developed. This method was compared and controlled with the existing technique of restriction fragment length polymorphism. Analysis of the genomic DNA of a known k‐CN genotype using an allele‐specific primer for k‐CN C does not allow discrimination of the C heterozygous of homozygous forms, but discriminates C‐carriers and non‐C‐carriers. Blood and milk samples of Holstein, Slovak Pied, Slovak Pinzgauer and Brown Swiss cattle were analysed. The occurrence of the C allele was found only in three Brown Swiss cows in heterozygous forms (AC). Complete genotypes were identified by subsequent restriction endonuclease digestion. The results were in agreement with milk protein analysis on polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The allele specific (AS)–PCR method described is a useful screening method for the pre‐selection of C‐carriers for subsequent MaeII digestion. Therefore, financial benefit can be achieved.ZusammfassungEine allelspezifische Polymerase Kettenreaktion (PCR) zum Nachweis des k‐Casein (k‐CN) C Allels wurde mit Hilfe von C allel‐spezifischen Primern entwickelt. Diese Methode wurde mit der existierenden Restriktion Fragmentlängen‐Poly‐Morphismen (RFLP) Technik verglichen und kontrolliert. Die Analyse von genomischer DNA unter Anwendung von allelspezifischen Primern für das k‐CN C Allel ergab identische Resultate im Vergleich zur RFLP Methode. Die Anwendung von allelspezifischen Primer ermöglicht nicht die Unterscheidung von C Heterozygoten und CC Homozygoten, aber ermöglicht die Unterscheidung der Träger des C‐Alles von dem Nicht‐Trägern des C‐Allels. Blut‐ und Milchproben der Rassen Holstein, Slowakisches Fleckvieh, Slowakische Pinzgauer, und Brown Swiss wurden analysiert. Das Vorkommen des C Allels wurde nur bei drei Kühen der Rasse Brown Swiss in heterozygoter Form (AC) beobachtet. Diese Genotypen wurden durch Spaltung mit Restriktionsendonukleasen bestätigt und die Resultate stimmten mit der Analyse von Milchproteinen auf PAGE überein. Die beschriebene Allel‐Spezifischen (AS)–PCR Methode ist eine nützliche Suchmethode für die Vorselektion von C‐Trägern für die folgende MaeII Spaltung was einen ökonomischen Vorteil darstellt.
Practitioner's Trial on the Efficacy of Antihypertensive Treatment in Elderly Patients with Hypertension II (PATE‐Hypertension II study) in Japan
Authors: Ogihara Toshio , Matsuoka Hiroaki , Rakugi Hiromi 
Published: March 2011

Aim:  Reduction of elevated blood pressure (BP) has been an important treatment goal in elderly hypertensive patients. However, it has been reported that an excessive reduction of systolic BP to less than 120 mmHg might be harmful in such patients. We investigated whether this was the case in a study which assessed long‐term antihypertensive efficacy, tolerability and impact on cardiovascular/cerebrovascular (CV) morbidity/mortality in a large cohort of Japanese patients.Methods:  This study was performed at general practitioners' offices nationwide with a target sample size of 1500 patients. Hypertensive patients aged 60 years or more who achieved successful BP control with candesartan monotherapy, and who tolerated the treatment for at least 8 weeks, were enrolled into the study and followed for 3 years.Results:  BP was maintained below the target level of 140/90 mmHg over the 3‐year period. The incidence of CV events during the study period was 20.4/1000 person‐years. Investigation of the relationship between BP and the incidence of CV events revealed that patients with higher BP generally had a higher incidence of events. However, very elderly patients (≥75 years) with a systolic BP (SBP) of less than 120 mmHg also had a higher incidence of CV events compared with those with an SBP of 120–139 mmHg.Conclusion:  This study demonstrated that treatment with candesartan maintained long‐term control of BP in elderly hypertensive patients without serious adverse events. CV events demonstrated a J‐curve relationship with SBP in patients aged 75 years or older, which suggests that excessive BP reductions might be harmful for very elderly patients. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2011; 11: 414–421.
Diaphragmatic hernia during pregnancy: A case report with a review of the literature from the past 50 years
Authors: Chen Yue , Hou Qiannan , Zhang Zhu , Zhang Jian , Xi Mingrong 
Published: March 2011

AbstractDiaphragmatic hernia is a rare complication during pregnancy. Only 30 reports have been published on this subject in English between 1959 and 2009. Due to misdiagnoses and management delays, diaphragmatic hernia usually presents itself as a life‐threatening emergency. Here, we present a case report of a patient with a traumatic diaphragmatic hernia who became acutely symptomatic during pregnancy. The diaphragmatic hernia was managed successfully, and we describe the presentation, management and outcome of this case. We also present a review of all of the reported cases of diaphragmatic hernias complicating pregnancy that have been published in English during the past 50 years.
Prediction of exact delivery time in patients with preterm labor and intact membranes at admission by amniotic fluid interleukin‐8 level and preterm labor index
Authors: Yoneda Satoshi , Shiozaki Arihiro , Yoneda Noriko , Shima Tomoko , Ito Mika , Yamanaka Mikiko , Hidaka Takao , Sumi Shigeki , Saito Shigeru 
Published: March 2011

AbstractAim:  To examine whether delivery time for preterm labor can be predicted by clinical and biochemical markers at admission.Methods:  It has previously been reported that interleukin (IL)‐8 and glucose in the amniotic fluid, fetal fibronectin (fFN) in vaginal secretions and the preterm labor index (PLI) are independent risk factors for delivery before 34 weeks' gestation. Using these four markers, we developed an equation model to predict the remaining gestation period after amniocentesis by step‐wise multiple regression analysis in 126 preterm delivery cases (retrospective section of the study). We also evaluated whether this equation model could predict delivery time in 65 new preterm labor patients (prospective section of the study). Finally, we investigated the risk factors for delivery within three days after amniocentesis.Results:  The period from amniocentesis until delivery was calculated using the following equation by step‐wise multiple regression analysis: predicted period until delivery (days) = 77.1 − 15.8 × log (amniotic IL‐8 level [ng/mL]) − 9.2 × PLI (points). The calculated period until delivery correlated significantly with the actual period until delivery in the prospective study. When a high score of PLI (≥5 points) and a high level of vaginal fFN (≥90 ng/mL) or a high level of amniotic IL‐8 (≥25.5 ng/mL) were present, the positive predictive values were 88.2% and 80.9% in predicting delivery within three days, respectively.Conclusions:  Using markers reflecting inflammation in the uterus (amniotic IL‐8 or vaginal fFN) and clinical symptoms (PLI), we may be able to predict the exact delivery time in preterm labor patients with intact membranes.
Randomized controlled study comparing misoprostol moistened with normal saline and with acetic acid for second‐trimester pregnancy termination. Is it different?
Authors: Pongsatha Saipin , Tongsong Theera 
Published: March 2011

AbstractObjective:  To compare the efficacy and adverse effects of 400 µg intravaginal misoprostol for second‐trimester pregnancy termination in live fetuses between two groups: one in which misoprostol was moistened with normal saline solution (NSS) and the other in which misoprostol was moistened with acetic acid.Materials and Methods:  A total of 179 pregnant women between 14 and 28 weeks of gestation with live fetuses indicated for pregnancy termination were recruited. They were randomly allocated to receive 400 µg intravaginal misoprostol either moistened with NSS (n = 96) or moistened with acetic acid (n = 83). The same dosage was then repeated every 3 h if adequate uterine contractions were not achieved until 48 h after the initiation of misoprostol. The main outcomes were mean abortion time, success rate, and adverse effects.Results:  The mean abortion time was not significantly different between the groups (24.98 ± 16.42 h vs 25.89 ± 10.34 h, P > 0.05). The rates of abortion within 24 h and 48 h and the adverse effects were also comparable between the groups. Chills and fever were the most common adverse effects in this study.Conclusion:  Intravaginal misoprostol either moistened with NSS or acetic acid was comparable in terms of efficacy and adverse effects.
Equipment and monitoring – what is in the future to improve safety?
Authors: Campbell Shane , Wilson Graham , Engelhardt Thomas 
Published: March 2011

SummaryThere have been a number of recent developments in the practice of anesthesia and intensive care aimed at improving outcome in terms of reducing both morbidity and mortality, as well as other less‐defined factors, such as quality of service provision. Significant advances have been made in airway devices such as pediatric tracheal tube designs, Microcuff® tracheal tubes, and new laryngoscopes. Noninvasive monitoring devices, including continuous hemoglobin analysis and near infrared spectrometry, are being increasingly used in pediatric anesthesia. Other, ‘scaled‐down’ versions from adult anesthesia care, however, have not universally been shown to result in improved safety and outcomes in pediatric anesthesia.
Germline CAG repeat length of the androgen receptor and time to progression in patients with prostate cancer treated with androgen deprivation therapy
Authors: Misra Dipika , Xie Wanling , Regan Meredith M. , Ross Robert W. , Lee Gwo‐shu , Germain Doris , Kantoff Philip W. , Oh William K. 
Published: March 2011

Study Type – Prognosis (retrospective cohort)Level of Evidence 2bWhat’s known on the subject? and What does the study add?Germline CAG repeat polymorphisms in the androgen receptor (AR‐CAG) have been shown to influence the activity of the androgen receptor, but there has been conflicting data from small retrospective studies evaluating the effect of CAG repeat polymorphisms on response to ADT.This is the largest published study to date investigating the association of germline AR‐CAG repeat lengths and efficacy of ADT in prostate cancer. Germline AR‐CAG repeat lengths do not predict response to ADT.OBJECTIVES• Germline CAG repeat polymorphisms in the androgen receptor (AR‐CAG) have been shown to influence the activity of the AR.• The purpose of the present study was to determine if AR‐CAG repeat length correlates with time to progression on androgen deprivation therapy (ADT).PATIENTS AND METHODS• Germline AR‐CAG repeat lengths were determined in a cohort of 480 patients with recurrent or metastatic prostate cancer treated at a single tertiary care institution and correlated to time to progression (TTP) and overall survival.RESULTS• There was no significant correlation between differences in the AR‐CAG repeat lengths and TTP or overall survival in patients with prostate cancer receiving ADT.• AR‐CAG repeat lengths did not significantly correlate with age, prostate‐specific antigen (PSA), Gleason score or clinical stage at diagnosis.• In patients with metastatic disease, longer AR‐CAG repeat lengths (>23 vs ≤23) were associated with a longer TTP on ADT, but this finding was of borderline significance (median TTP 18.3 vs 15.5 months, P= 0.09; adjusted HR = 0.76, 95% confidence interval = 0.54–1.09).CONCLUSIONS• This is the largest published study to date investigating the association of germline AR‐CAG repeat lengths and efficacy of ADT in prostate cancer.• Germline AR‐CAG repeat lengths do not predict response to ADT.
A QUASI‐LOCALLY MOST POWERFUL TEST FOR CORRELATION IN THE CONDITIONAL VARIANCE OF POSITIVE DATA
Authors: McCabe Brendan P. M. , Martin Gael M. , Freeland Keith 
Published: March 2011

SummaryA test is derived for short‐memory correlation in the conditional variance of strictly positive, skewed data. The test is quasi‐locally most powerful (QLMP) under the assumption of conditionally gamma data. Analytical asymptotic relative efficiency calculations show that an alternative test, based on the first‐order autocorrelation coefficient of the squared data, has negligible relative power to detect correlation in the conditional variance. Finite‐sample simulation results confirm the poor performance of the squares‐based test for fixed alternatives, as well as demonstrating the poor performance of the test based on the first‐order autocorrelation coefficient of the raw (levels) data. The robustness of the QLMP test, both to misspecification of the conditional distribution and to misspecification of the dynamics, is also demonstrated using simulation. The test is illustrated using financial trade durations data.
PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION AS STORYTELLING
Authors: BEVIR MARK 
Published: March 2011

I’ll tell you a storyAbout Jack a Nory,And now my story's begun;I’ll tell you anotherOf Jack and his brother,And now my story is done.[Anon]

A great writer of fiction both creates a new, unique, individual world – through acts of imagination, through language that feels inevitable, through commanding forms – and responds to a world, the world the writer shares with other people but that is unknown or miss‐known by still more people, confined in their worlds. Call that history, society, what you will. The writers who matter most to us are those who enlarge our consciences and our sympathies and our knowledge.[Susan Sontag]
This paper elucidates the interpretive approach to public administration that Professor Rhodes and I have developed over the last ten years. It defends the importance of storytelling in governance. The early studies of governance often drew on modernist empiricism and policy network theory to argue that public sector reforms had created a differentiated polity. While this governance literature offered a compelling account of contemporary public administration, it rested on a modernist empiricism that proved vulnerable to questions such as those raised by rational choice theorists about its micro foundations. Professor Rhodes and I thus rejected modernist empiricism in favour of an emphasis on meanings and storytelling. Our interpretive approach rests on ‘meaning holism’. It replaces naÏve empiricism with an anthropological epistemology based on comparing rival accounts. It rejects reified ontologies for recognition of the constructed nature of social reality. It moves away from formal explanations towards historicism. It provides a defence of public administration as storytelling.
‘Ich kann nicht zwei Herren Dienen’: Conscientious Objectors and Nazi ‘Militärjustiz’. The Undocumented Cases of Three Brothers
Authors: Jackman Graham 
Published: March 2011

ABSTRACTThe treatment of conscientious objectors in the Third Reich has been extensively documented. Attention has focused primarily on the Jehovah's Witnesses, who formed the vast majority of those who were executed, and on a small number of individual Catholics and Lutherans. There remain, however, several objectors who died for their religious conviction but whose cases have hitherto not been made public. This essay helps to fill that gap by providing the available details of one such case, that of the Christadelphian Albert Merz. A peculiarity of his case is that he was one of three brothers who were all conscientious objectors, yet he alone suffered the death penalty. The differences in the fates of the three brothers reflect the way in which Nazi treatment of objectors changed with the coming of war. Accordingly, the ways in which Albert Merz's two brothers, Rudolf and August, were dealt with are also outlined here, and the three cases are seen in relation to the legal provisions which determined their differing fates.Die Behandlung von Kriegsdienstverweigerern im Dritten Reich ist bereits ausführlich untersucht worden. Im Mittelpunkt der Forschung standen verständlicherweise die Zeugen Jehovahs, die weitaus die Mehrheit der wegen Kriegsdienstverweigerung Hingerichteten bildeten; einige Einzelfälle, meist von Katholiken und Protestanten, sind auch dokumentiert worden. Über einige andere Hingerichtete jedoch, deren Verweigerung ebenfalls eine religiöse Überzeugung zugrunde lag, ist bisher nichts veröffentlicht worden. Dieser Aufsatz berichtet über einen solchen Fall, den Urchristen Albert Merz, und trägt so zur Füllung dieser Lücke bei. Eine Besonderheit dieses Falles ist, dass Albert Merz einer von drei Brüdern war, die alle den Kriegsdienst verweigert haben, und dennoch der einzige von ihnen war, der zu Tode verurteilt wurde. Die unterschiedlichen Schicksale der drei Brüder sind ein Indiz für den Wandel in der Behandlung von Kriegsdienstverweigerern, den der Anfang des Krieges mit sich brachte. Daher wird neben dem Fall von Albert Merz auch über die von seinen Brüdern Rudolf und August berichtet. Zum besseren Verständnis dieser Ereignisse werden auch die relevanten gesetzlichen Bestimmungen und Verwaltungsmaßnahmen kurz dargestellt.
A Fractured Transnational Diaspora: The Case of Zimbabweans in Britain
Authors: Pasura Dominic 
Published: March 2011

AbstractMillions of Zimbabweans living abroad have been described as an emerging diaspora. However, there has been little attempt to question their designation as a diaspora, or indeed, to engage with the more theoretically informed and conceptually rich literature on diaspora. The assumption in this categorisation relies heavily upon popular usage of the term diaspora among Zimbabweans themselves both abroad and in the homeland. However, instead of suppressing discussion by simply pronouncing them “a diaspora”, it is important to examine whether or not they constitute a diaspora. Drawing on the concepts of diaspora and transnationalism and on the author’s multi‐sited ethnographic research in the United Kingdom (hereafter, “Britain”), the article examines how the diaspora was dispersed, how it is constituted in the hostland and how it maintains connections with the homeland. What factors influenced people’s decisions to migrate into the diaspora and how can these phases be classified? What types of migration patterns characterise Zimbabweans’ migration to Britain? The study explores the origin, formation and articulation of the Zimbabwean diaspora in Britain, providing a conceptual and theoretical interpretation of the social formation vis‐à‐vis other accounts of global diasporas. The findings of this study suggest that Zimbabweans abroad are a fractured transnational diaspora. The scattering of Zimbabweans evinces some of the features commonly ascribed to a diaspora such as involuntary and voluntary dispersion of the population from the homeland; settlement in foreign territories and uneasy relationship with the hostland; strong attachment and connection to the original homeland; and the maintenance of diverse diasporic identities. The study represents a contribution to our knowledge of the Zimbabwean diaspora in particular and to the field of diaspora and transnational studies in general.
International Economic Assistance and Migration: The Case of Sub‐Saharan Countries
Authors: Belloc Filippo 
Published: March 2011

AbstractDevelopment aid is commonly advocated as one of the most effective instruments to reduce international migration. Nevertheless, empirical evidence shows that push factors do not automatically result in massive migrations and that aid policies systematically fail to meet their stated objectives. Recently, several contributions have argued that an increase in sending countries’ wealth may lead to a rise in migration, rather than to a reduction, because it enables people to assume the costs and risks of migrating. However, despite the growing number of studies on this phenomenon, the role played by Official Development Assistance (ODA) has not received attention yet. This paper aims at providing empirical evidence on this specific issue. In particular, we investigate the relation between ODA and international migration rates of sub‐Saharan countries. We argue that ODA may have a positive effect on migration decisions for two reasons. First, ODA improves workers’ ability to cover the costs of migration, by providing new job opportunities and in turn increasing incomes in the recipient country. Second, ODA, which is often associated with development programs in education, communication services, and business opportunities, may also stimulate mobility aspirations of potential migrants. We develop an econometric analysis in order to investigate this hypothesis. Specifically, we perform a three‐stage least square estimation on a sample of 48 sub‐Saharan countries. We build a two‐equation model, so as to allow for endogeneity of ODA, and find that ODA has a positive and statistically significant effect on migration outflows. Thus, as our main contribution, we argue that development aids are not substitute for migration and that the traditional aid policies (such as those of the European Union), aimed at curbing migration by providing international financial aids, might need to be reconsidered.
On the taxonomic status of Dugesia gonocephala and Dugesia subtentaculata (Turbellaria, Tricladida, Paludicola)
Authors: Vries Elizabeth J. De 
Published: March 2011

The taxonomic status of Dugesia (Dugesia) gonocephala (Dugès, 1830), the type‐species of the genus Dugesia Girard 1850, and the closely related species Dugesia (Dugesia) subtentaculata (Draparnaud, 1801) have never properly been assessed. Dugesia subtentaculata has usually been regarded as a synonym of D. gonocephala, especially for its asexual races.In order to assess the status of the two species, studies have been carried out on material from the surroundings of Montpellier, southern France, from which the type‐material of the two species originated. It is concluded that both are valid taxa and neotypes have been designated. Dugesia gonocephala is the common European species, whereas D. subtentaculata has a specifically Mediterranean distribution. Dugesia iberica Gourbault & Benazzi, 1979, originally described from Spain and Mallorca, is conspecific with this latter species.The morphological and karyological characteristics of the two species and of several fissiparous races belonging to the subgenus Dugesia are discussed.
Variation in winter flocking associations and dispersion patterns in the turnstone Arenaria interpres
Authors: Metcalfe N. B. 
Published: March 2011

Individual turnstones were found to maintain the same small foraging home ranges each winter, despite the interruptions of a migration to distant breeding grounds. Seasonal variations in fidelity to home ranges were possibly due to local sampling of food distributions in autumn and constraints on remaining with flocks in spring. The limited movements of birds on the wintering grounds resulted in little mixing of the population; multi‐dimensional scaling and cluster analyses showed that foraging birds regularly flocked with as few as 50 other individuals during the course of a winter, despite often roosting in flocks of several hundred. These associations between birds remained stable over long periods of time, although there were seasonal and tidal variations in the overall extent of association.Dominant birds, which kleptoparasitized those more subordinate, had smaller home ranges. They also tended to be in smaller flocks, and thus on average had weaker associations with other birds than did subordinates, possibly due to their being avoided by those more subordinate.