bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Subcutaneous Botulinum Toxin for Chronic Post‐Thoracotomy Pain
Authors: Fabregat Gustavo , Asensio‐Samper Juan M. , Palmisani Stefano , Villanueva‐Pérez Vicente L. , De Andrés José 
Published: June 2012

AbstractObjective:  Botulinum toxin is a neurotoxin that has been widely used in chronic pain for the treatment of multiple conditions with a component of localized muscle spasm. Recent studies suggest that botulinum toxin is effective in the treatment of neuropathic pain syndromes such as post‐herpetic neuralgia.Case Report:  We report the case of a 67‐year‐old man who underwent atypical segmentectomy of a right lower lobe lung nodule. The patient was referred to our pain management department with a of 2‐year history persistent pain along the thoracotomy scar having a predominantly neuropathic component, refractory to standard treatments. He was successfully treated with subcutaneous botulinum toxin type A.Discussion:  On the basics of our own experience and on the analysis of the reports published in the literature, fractioned subcutaneous injections of botulinum toxin may be useful for the treatment of various chronic localized pain conditions including chronic post‐thoracotomy pain.
Taking Contraband Seriously: Practicing “Legitimate Work” at the Mexico‐Guatemala Border
Authors: Galemba Rebecca 
Published: June 2012

AbstractThis article details the work experiences of small‐scale smugglers at the Mexico‐Guatemala border and how they give meaning to their work by redefining contraband as legitimate “business.” Through their daily practices, border residents distinguish between the “legal” flows of the everyday goods they smuggle and “illicit” flows of drugs, arms, and migrants. I apply a practice theory perspective to illustrate how everyday work practices deemed illegitimate by statist ideologies can lead to a reevaluation of hegemonic notions of “work.” Through their daily extralegal activities, border residents challenge conventional assessments of work and redefine neoliberal market logics that otherwise exclude them. Furthermore, I argue that a reflexive engagement with the ethnographic process provides insight into our own work principles and praxis. I reflect on my experience as an American female working among mostly male smugglers, leading to a critical reformulation not only of dominant definitions of legality, but of the politics and ethics of what is considered legitimate and worthwhile work.
A Desire to Formalize Work? Comparing Trade Union Strategies in Bolivia and Argentina
Authors: Lazar Sian 
Published: June 2012

AbstractThis article examines understandings of work within trade unions of street vendors in El Alto, Bolivia, and state employees in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The particular emphasis is on the distinction between formality and informality in both spheres, and the boundary between formal and informal is analyzed both as a way to organize the description of work (as employment) and as an object of union activism understood as a form of political work. The unions deal with that boundary differently in the two countries, and it is more salient for informants in Argentina than in Bolivia. Further, as an object of the political work of a trade union, it is also managed differently by each of the two Argentine pubic sector unions discussed here.
Elite Preferences in a Consolidating Democracy: The Brazilian Legislative Surveys, 1990–2009
Authors: Power Timothy J. , Zucco Cesar 
Published: June 2012

AbstractThis article examines key ideological, economic, and institutional preferences of the Brazilian political elite in the first 25 years of the country's present democratic regime. Introducing the unified dataset of the Brazilian Legislative Surveys, it examines several crucial dimensions of politicians' attitudes, including elite placement on a traditional left-right scale, preferences concerning the fundamental economic model, direct comparisons of the recent Cardoso and Lula governments, and orientations toward Brazil's global and regional projection. On many of the central issues, attitudes have remained stable, but on the dimensions that have seen notable change, nearly all the change has been in the direction of decreasing polarization. In contrast to the experience of some neighboring countries, the Brazilian case demonstrates that the sustained practice of democracy can lead to attitudinal convergence and macro-political stability, even when the initial political and socioeconomic conditions appear daunting.
Effect of Silver Ion‐Exchange on the Precipitation of Lead Sulfide Quantum Dots in Glasses
Authors: Xu Kai , Heo Jong 
Published: June 2012

This article reports the effect of Ag+ ion‐exchange on the precipitation of PbS quantum dots (QDs) in silicate glasses. The glasses were subjected to ion‐exchange in AgNO3 salt melts at 260°C for 60 s. Ag nanoparticles (NPs) and PbS QDs precipitated after heat treatment at temperatures of 440°C–460°C for 10 h. Photoluminescence wavelength λPL of PbS QDs was longer (~1525 ≤ λPL ≤ ~1580 nm) in Ag+ ion‐exchanged regions than in Ag+‐free regions (~1030 ≤ λPL ≤ ~1200 nm). Average diameter D of PbS QDs estimated by calculation and TEM images was larger in Ag+ ion‐exchanged regions (~5.2 ≤ D ≤ ~5.5 nm) than in Ag+‐free regions (~2.4 ≤ D ≤ ~3.3 nm). Ag NPs that formed during heat treatment provided the sites for heterogeneous nucleation of PbS QDs and promoted the precipitation of PbS QDs in glasses.
Hydrothermal Alteration of Glass to Chrysotile
Authors: Bloise A. , Belluso E. , Catalano M. , Barrese E. , Miriello D. , Apollaro C. 
Published: June 2012

Chrysotile fibers were synthesized from glass in hydrothermal conditions. The starting materials were first held at 1650°C and then rapidly quenched down to room temperature. The resulting glass, after the addition of mineralizing agents, was hydrothermically altered in the following conditions: temperature 300°C–400°C; pressure 100–200 MPa; time 48–480 h. X‐ray powder diffraction, scanning and transmission electron microscopy were used to examine/study the starting materials and products. Cylindrical fiber morphology was prevalent, but proto‐chrysotile was also detected, not entirely showing well‐defined crystallinity, as revealed by electron diffraction patterns of selected areas. The mineralizing agent and chemical composition of the glass play an important role in the yield of chrysotile fibers. The effect of growth parameters on the size and abundance of chrysotile fibers is also discussed, in the light of possible recrystallization of glass obtained by thermal treatment of chrysotile‐asbestos‐containing materials.
Bronchial reactivity and fractional exhaled NO in Crohn’s disease in the era of immunomodulating treatment
Authors: Livnat Galit , Lerner Aaron , Hakim Fahed , Eshach‐Adiv Orly , Berkowitz Drora , Bentur Lea 
Published: June 2012

AbstractAim:  Our aim was to determine bronchial hyper‐responsiveness (BHR) and fractional exhaled NO (FeNO) in a cohort followed and treated for Crohn’s disease (CD) in a Pediatric Gastroenterology Unit.Methods:  Consecutive children with CD were referred to the Pediatric Pulmonary Unit. Each patient completed a questionnaire, followed by spirometry, methacholine challenge test (MCT) and determination of FeNO. The control group included patients evaluated for functional cough who had negative MCT.Results:  Twenty‐three children and young adults (mean age, 17.39 ± 2.96 years) with CD were compared to 24 healthy controls. 20/23 patients received immunomodulating treatment. Forced expiratory volume in 1 sec (FEV1) was significantly lower prior to (93.74 ± 10.81%, p = 0.009) and at the end of (78.91 ± 18.39%, p = 0.001) the MCT in the CD group compared with the control group (102.2 ± 10.477% and 95.33 ± 11.075%, respectively). Bronchial hyper‐responsiveness was observed in 30.4% of patients with CD. FeNO levels were 15.37 ± 24.17 in CD and 11.38 ± 5.42 in the control group (p = 0.21). Neither the response to MCT nor FeNO levels were affected by the disease duration or activity index.Conclusion:  In our series, BHR is less frequent than previously described in children with CD. We hypothesize that our finding could result from immunomodulating treatments or lower disease activity.
Antibiotic prescribing for upper respiratory infections: European primary paediatricians’ knowledge, attitudes and practice
Authors: Grossman Zachi , del Torso Stefano , Hadjipanayis Adamos , van Esso Diego , Drabik Anna , Sharland Mike 
Published: June 2012

AbstractAim:  Young children are the highest receivers of antibiotics in the European Union, with the majority of antibiotics given for children with minor upper respiratory infections (URIs). The study aims to examine paediatricians’ reported views influencing community antibiotic prescribing.Methods:  European primary care paediatricians and participants of the European Academy of Paediatrics Research in Ambulatory Setting Network were asked to complete a Web‐based survey on knowledge, attitudes and practice of antibiotic prescribing for URIs.Results:  The survey was completed by 685 respondents from 21 countries, 397 network participants (response rate 65%) and 288 paediatricians. Overall, 43.5% of respondents overestimated the risks associated with not prescribing antibiotics and the clinical benefit of antibiotics in otitis media and tonsillitis (strong believers in the benefits of antibiotics phenotype). Strong believers are also more likely to be high prescribers of antibiotics. Paediatricians from a low or medium European Surveillance of Antimicrobial Consumption country category prescribe less antibiotics than those from a higher category.Conclusion:  There is a clear need for an educational intervention focused on European primary care paediatricians based on the risk‐benefit analysis associated with the antibiotic prescribing for minor URIs, to reduce inappropriate prescribing.
Role of Clinician's Experience and Implant Design on Implant Stability. An Ex Vivo Study in Artificial Soft Bones
Authors: Romanos Georgios E. , Basha‐Hijazi Abdulaziz , Gupta Bhumija , Ren Yan‐Fang , Malmstrom Hans 
Published: June 2012

ABSTRACTObjectives: Clinical experience in implant placement is important in order to prevent implant failures. However, the implant design affects the primary implant stability (PS) especially in poor quality bones. Therefore, the aim of this study was to compare the effect of clinician surgical experience on PS, when placing different type of implant designs.Methods: A total of 180 implants (90 parallel walled‐P and 90 tapered‐T) were placed in freshly slaughtered cow ribs. Bone quality was evaluated by two examiners during surgery and considered as ‘type IV’ bone. Implants (ø 5 mm, length: 15 mm, Osseotite, BIOMET 3i, Palm Beach Gardens, FL, USA) were placed by three different clinicians (master/I, good/II, non‐experienced/III, under direct supervision of a manufacturer representative; 30 implants/group). An independent observer assessed the accuracy of placement by resonance frequency analysis (RFA) with implant stability quotient (ISQ) values. Two‐way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Tukey's post hoc test were used to detect the surgical experience of the clinicians and their interaction and effects of implant design on the PS.Results: All implants were mechanically stable. The mean ISQ values were: 49.57(± 18.49) for the P‐implants and 67.07(± 8.79) for the T‐implants. The two‐way ANOVA showed significant effects of implant design (p < .0001), clinician (p < .0001), and their interaction (p < .0001). The Tukey's multiple comparison test showed significant differences in RFA for the clinician group I/II (p = .015) and highly significant (p < .0001) between I/III and II/III. The P‐implants presented (for I, II, and III) mean ISQ values 31.25/49.18/68.17 and the T‐implants showed higher ISQ values, 70.15/62.08/68.98, respectively. Clinicians I and II did not show extreme differences for T‐implants (p = .016). In contrast, clinician III achieved high ISQ values using P‐ and T‐implants following the exact surgical protocol based on the manufacturer guidelines. T‐implants provided high stability for experienced clinicians compared with P‐implants.Conclusion: T‐implants achieved greater PS than the P‐implants. All clinicians consistently achieved PS; however, experienced clinicians achieved higher ISQ values with T‐implants in poor quality bone.
Human butyrylcholinesterase produced in insect cells: huprine‐based affinity purification and crystal structure
Authors: Brazzolotto Xavier , Wandhammer Marielle , Ronco Cyril , Trovaslet Marie , Jean Ludovic , Lockridge Oksana , Renard Pierre‐Yves , Nachon Florian 
Published: June 2012

Butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) is a serine hydrolase that is present in all mammalian tissues. It can accommodate larger substrates or inhibitors than acetylcholinesterase (AChE), the enzyme responsible for hydrolysis of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine in the central nervous system and neuromuscular junctions. AChE is the specific target of organophosphorous pesticides and warfare nerve agents, and BChE is a stoichiometric bioscavenger. Conversion of BChE into a catalytic bioscavenger by rational design or designing reactivators specific to BChE required structural data obtained using a recombinant low‐glycosylated human BChE expressed in Chinese hamster ovary cells. This expression system yields ∼ 1 mg of pure enzyme per litre of cell culture. Here, we report an improved expression system using insect cells with a fourfold higher yield for truncated human BChE with all glycosylation sites present. We developed a fast purification protocol for the recombinant protein using huprine‐based affinity chromatography, which is superior to the classical procainamide‐based affinity. The purified BChE crystallized under different conditions and space group than the recombinant low‐glycosylated protein produced in Chinese hamster ovary cells. The crystals diffracted to 2.5 Å. The overall monomer structure is similar to the low‐glycosylated structure except for the presence of the additional glycans. Remarkably, the carboxylic acid molecule systematically bound to the catalytic serine in the low‐glycosylated structure is also present in this new structure, despite the different expression system, purification protocol and crystallization conditions.Database
Structural data have been submitted to the Protein Data Bank under accession number pdb 4AQD. DNA sequence data for the synthetic gene have been submitted to GenBank under accession number JQ941878.Structured digital abstract
BChE and BChE bind by x‐raycrystallography (View interaction)
Synthesis and Characterization of Silver Indium Diselenide Thin Films Prepared via the Sol‐Gel Assisted Process
Authors: Lu Chung‐Hsin , Chien Szu‐Chia , Lin Shin‐Hom 
Published: June 2012

Single‐phased AgInSe2 thin films were successfully prepared via depositing sol‐gel derived precursors, followed by a selenization process. The pure‐phased AgInSe2 thin films were obtained at a selenization temperature as low as 400°C via adding the excess amount of In3+ ions. Adjusting the In3+/Ag+ molar ratios can effectively prevent the formation of impurities Ag2Se and AgIn5Se8 in thin films. A Raman spectrum indicated that the obtained films belonged to chalcopyrite structure. The optical absorption revealed that the obtained AgInSe2 had the band gap of 1.23 eV. According to the GIXD analysis of the prepared films, the formation mechanism of AgInSe2 thin films is proposed. Se vapor reacts with Ag to produce Ag2Se at first, and then Se vapor subsequently reacts with In2O3 and Ag2Se to form AgInSe2. The sol‐gel assisted route with a selenization process was demonstrated to be a potential way for preparing AgInSe2 thin films with densified microstructures.
Spatial Variation in Army Ant Swarm Raiding and its Potential Effect on Biodiversity
Authors: Peters Marcell K. , Fischer Georg , Hita Garcia Francisco , Lung Tobias , Wägele Johann Wolfgang 
Published: June 2012

AbstractInvertebrate communities of the tropical rain forest floor are highly diverse, characterized by patchy species distribution patterns and high variation in species density. Spatial variation in the foraging activity of swarm raiding army ants, prime invertebrate predators in tropical rain forests, is discussed as a mechanism contributing to these patterns, but highly resolved long‐term data on army ant raiding on the local and landscape scale are hitherto lacking. In this study, 196 positions in 11 study sites in a tropical rain forest in western Kenya were continuously monitored over ~4 mo for the occurrence of swarm raids of army ants. Using population simulation analyses, the consequences of army ant raiding for prey communities were assessed. We found an unexpectedly high variation in raid rates at the study site and landscape scale. The weekly chance of communities to become raided by army ants was on average 0.11, but ranged from 0 to 0.50 among the 196 positions. Simulating population developments of two Lotka–Volterra species—showing slight trade‐offs between competitive strength and resistance to army ant raids—in the real raiding landscapes showed that the observed spatial variation in raid rates may produce high prey diversity at larger spatial scales (due to high β‐diversity) and strong variation in species density. Our results indicate that high spatial variation in army ant swarm raiding is a mechanism capable of generating patchy species distribution patterns and maintaining the high biodiversity of invertebrate communities of the tropical rain forest floor.
Fruit Supplementation Affects Birds but not Arthropod Predation by Birds in Costa Rican Agroforestry Systems
Authors: Peters Valerie E. , Greenberg Russell 
Published: June 2012

AbstractAs the global demand for the reliable provision of virtually all ecosystem services increases, it is imperative to conduct experimental research that tests specific mechanisms or drivers of the ecological processes that link to services, and whether these management actions can affect biodiversity and processes synergistically. Agroforestry systems are ideal for such experiments due to their increased uniformity and the relative ease with which factors can be manipulated and isolated. Manipulating the availability of food resources, we carried out an experimental test of this potential driver on bird diversity measures and the predatory services provided by birds in coffee agroforests. We constructed exclosures over coffee plants to measure arthropod removal intensity by birds comparing coffee agroforests with and without food resource (fruit) enrichment (the driver). Fruit enrichment agroforests had significantly greater bird species density (50%), overall abundance (55%), and abundance of understory insectivore specialists (89%) compared with control agroforests. Although 48 percent more arthropods were aspirated from coffee plants inside exclosures compared to coffee plants outside exclosures, fruit resource enrichment did not influence predatory activity by birds in the agroforests. The results of this study highlight the difficulties associated with managing lands for ecosystem services in complex ecosystems‐ management actions aimed at increasing numbers of the organisms involved in the interactions of ecological processes is not always equivalent to managing for an increase in the process itself.
Reading Sociology into Scholarship on School‐Based Sex Education: Interaction and Culture
Authors: Smith Sarah H. 
Published: June 2012

AbstractSchool‐based sex education (SBSE), an institutional attempt to interrupt and correct the sexual socialization of young people, operates at the levels of structure, interaction, and culture. At the structural level SBSE has been found to endorse a particular set of cultural messages about sex and sexuality that reinforce patterns of inequality. This is often the case regardless of program type (e.g., abstinence versus comprehensive). However, there is little empirical focus on the actual classroom practices and other social interactions that constitute SBSE in the United States. In this paper, I will provide an overview of the field of SBSE research, reading the findings at the interactional level. In particular, I will review findings on curricula, stakeholder perspectives, and effects in a discussion of the importance of both interaction and culture in SBSE practices. Finally, I will use criticisms raised in existing SBSE scholarship to pose opportunities for sociological research into the topic.
For a Social Psychology of Prayer
Authors: Sharp Shane 
Published: June 2012

AbstractPrayer is one of the most common religious activities practiced by Americans. In this review, I make the argument that prayer is a social psychological phenomenon that scholars should treat as such. After a discussion of the use of prayer as a proxy for overall religiosity and a brief excursus on current typologies of prayer, I provide three main arguments for the claim that prayer is a social psychological phenomenon. First, I review evidence that prayer is a legitimate social interaction with “imagined others” that shares many characteristics with and involves the same cognitive and interactional processes as human‐human interactions. Second, I review evidence that shows that individuals’ social positions influence the frequency of prayer. Third, I review evidence that prayer influences social action through psychological and interactional processes.
Women’s Advantage in Higher Education: Towards Understanding A Global Phenomenon
Authors: McDaniel Anne 
Published: June 2012

AbstractThis article reviews prior and emerging research on the gender gap in higher education using a comparative lens. The article outlines historical trends in the gender gap in higher education, focusing on areas where women are advantaged and disadvantaged. It then reviews prior explanations for women’s increasing enrollment in college and continued sex segregation in fields of study. It suggests three fruitful areas for future research to understand the cross‐national female advantage in the completion of college and university degrees: (1) the female advantage in schooling; (2) male vulnerability to growing up in resource‐deprived homes; and (3) changing incentives for men and women to complete higher education.