bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Empirical Risk Analysis of Pension Insurance: The Case of Germany
Authors: Gerke Wolfgang , Mager Ferdinand , Reinschmidt Timo , Schmieder Christian 
Published: August 2008

AbstractThe book reserve system is the most widespread method of financing occupational pension plans in Germany. The pension liabilities are mutually insured by the Pensions‐Sicherungs‐Verein VVaG (PSVaG) against bankruptcy. The PSVaG recently stated that the insurance system needed to be reformed. In the future, risk‐adjusted premiums as foreseen for the newly established Pension Protection Fund in the United Kingdom could become feasible. We perform a credit portfolio analysis to determine the risk profile of the PSVaG. The magnitude of a tail risk event suggests that under the current financing system it can only be smoothed out over decades. Under an expected loss pricing plan insurance premiums would vary greatly. In a marginal risk contribution approach the variation of the premiums would be less pronounced.
In vitro analysis of integrin expression in stem cells from bone marrow and cord blood during chondrogenic differentiation
Authors: Goessler Ulrich Reinhart , Bugert Peter , Bieback Karen , Stern‐Straeter Jens , Bran Gregor , Sadick Haneen , Hbrmann Karl , Riedel Frank 
Published: August 2008

AbstractThe use of adult mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) in cartilage tissue engineering has been implemented in the field of regenerative medicine and offers new perspectives in the generation of transplants for reconstructive surgery. The extracellular matrix (ECM) plays a key role in modulating function and phenotype of the embedded cells and contains the integrins as adhesion receptors mediating cell–cell and cell–matrix interactions. In our study, characteristic changes in integrin expression during the course of chondrogenic differentiation of MSC from bone marrow and foetal cord blood were compared. MSC were isolated from bone marrow biopsies and cord blood. During cell culture, chondrogenic differentiation was performed. The expression of integrins and their signalling components were analysed with microarray and immunohistochemistry in freshly isolated MSC and after chondrogenic differentiation. The fibronectin‐receptor (integrin a5b1) was expressed by undifferentiated MSC, expression rose during chondrogenic differentiation in both types of MSC. The components of the vitronectin/osteopontin‐receptors (avb5) were not expressed by freshly isolated MSC, expression rose with ongoing differentiation. Receptors for collagens (a1b1, a2b1, a3b1) were weakly expressed by undifferentiated MSC and were activated during differentiation. As intracellular signalling components integrin linked kinase (ILK) and CD47 showed increasing expression with ongoing differentiation. For all integrins, no significant differences could be found in the two types of MSC. Integrin‐mediated signalling seems to play an important role in the generation and maintenance of the chondrocytic phenotype during chondrogenic differentiation. Especially the receptors for fibronectin, vitronectin, osteopontin and collagens might be involved in the generation of the ECM. Intracellularly, their signals might be transduced by ILK and CD47. To fully harness the potential of these cells, future studies should be directed to ascertain their cellular and molecular characteristics for optimal identification, isolation and expansion.
Loss of asymmetry in D2 receptors of putamen in unaffected family members at increased genetic risk for schizophrenia
Authors: Lee K. J. , Lee J. S. , Kim S. J. , Correll C. U. , Wee H. , Yoo S. Y. , Jeong J. M. , Lee D. S. , Lee S. I. , Kwon J. S. 
Published: August 2008

Objective:  Dopamine dysregulation has been implicated in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia. The present study was performed to examine whether unaffected relatives at high genetic risk of schizophrenia have dopamine dysregulation in comparison with healthy controls.Method:  Eleven unaffected relatives from families with two or more first‐ or second‐degree relatives with schizophrenia (n = 9) or with a monozygotic schizophrenic twin (n = 2) and 11 age‐ and sex‐matched controls were examined using positron emission tomography (PET) with [11C] raclopride. Subjects also underwent extensive neuropsychological testing.Results:  Subjects with high genetic risk showed a loss of asymmetry of D2 receptors in the putamen in comparison with healthy controls. In addition, they showed significantly poorer performance on neuropsychological tests than controls.Conclusion:  Our results suggest that dopamine dysregulation and neuropsychological dysfunction may be present in subjects at high genetic risk of schizophrenia. However, further studies are required to confirm these findings.
Cutaneous lymphocyte antigen expression in benign and neoplastic cutaneous B‐ and T‐cell lymphoid infiltrates
Authors: Magro Cynthia M. , Dyrsen Molly E. 
Published: August 2008

Background:  Cutaneous lymphocyte‐associated antigen (CLA) is expressed in resident cutaneous T lymphocytes, high endothelial venules, peripheral monocytes, granulocytes and a small percentage of memory B cells. It has been postulated to be an important factor in homing of lymphocytes to the skin because of its function as a ligand for E‐selectin expressed on cutaneous endothelial cells.Design:  We investigated the expression of CLA using the HECA‐452 antibody on paraffin‐embedded, formalin‐fixed tissue in a variety of reactive, neoplastic and preneoplastic cutaneous lymphoid infiltrates of T‐ and B‐cell derivation.Results:  CLA was expressed at high levels in various types of inflammatory dermatoses with the exception of lupus erythematosus. High levels of CLA expression were seen in epidermotropic T‐cell dyscrasias and epidermotropic T‐cell lymphomas including mycosis fungoides (MF) and adult T‐cell leukemia/lymphoma (ATCLL). A loss of CLA in tumors normally positive for CLA was a feature of disease progression best exemplified by tumor‐stage MF and acute ATCLL. There was a lack of CLA expression in those lymphocytic infiltrates manifesting subcutaneous localization including lupus profundus, panniculitis‐like T‐cell lymphoma and atypical lymphocytic lobular panniculitis. CLA expression was not only observed in primary cutaneous anaplastic large cell lymphoma but also seen in cases of nodal anaplastic large cell lymphoma secondarily involving the skin and was negative in cases of nodal anaplastic large cell lymphoma without any established skin involvement. An oligodot pattern defined a novel reaction pattern in those aggressive systemic dyscrasias with a proclivity to involve the skin. CLA was negative in the majority of B‐cell lymphomas.Conclusions:  CLA plays a role in the pattern of T‐cell lymphocyte migration in the skin and subcutis in both reactive and neoplastic states. An alteration in the expression of this marker, whether it is in the context of the acquisition of expression in a cell that is normally CLA negative or its loss of expression, may define a key event in determining cutaneous and extracutaneous hematopoietic cell distribution.
Effect of an Educational Intervention on Attitudes Toward and Implementation of Evidence‐Based Practice
Authors: Varnell Gayle , Haas Barbara , Duke Gloria , Hudson Kathy 
Published: August 2008

ABSTRACT Purpose: Transitioning to an evidence‐based practice (EBP) environment is a new and often overwhelming challenge for many organisations. The most effective strategies to implement EBP have yet to be determined. In this study an accelerated development EBP program, which was administered to nurses from five hospitals was evaluated. At each hospital, nurses were selected as an “EBP champion” whose role would be to help facilitate the transition within that organisation. Aims: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of an accelerated educational program on the attitudes toward and implementation of EBP among nurses employed in acute‐care facilities. Methods: Forty‐nine nurses from five acute‐care facilities participated in an 8‐week program to develop into EBP champions. Participants attended a 2‐hour class each week conducted by four faculty members of a local university. Pre‐ and post‐test mean scores of the EBP barriers (EBPB) and EBP implementation (EBPI) scales were compared using paired t tests to determine the effect of the accelerated development program. Results: Respondents reported higher scores on both the beliefs and implementation scales at the end of the program. Paired t tests indicated a significant difference in means for both the EBPB (p < .01) and EBPI (p < .01). Conclusions: Nurses who attend an accelerated educational program have the potential to significantly improve beliefs and attitudes about EBP. Administrative support and collaboration between academia and service are essential for successful intervention.
Homologous Comparisons of Photosynthetic System I Genes among Cyanobacteria and Chloroplasts
Authors: Yu Jie , Ma Pei‐Jun , Shi Ding‐Ji , Li Shi‐Ming , Wang Chang‐Lu 
Published: August 2008

Abstract It has now believed that chloroplasts arose from cyanobacteria, however, during endosymbiosis, the photosynthetic genes in chloroplasts have been reduced. How these changes occurred during plant evolution was the focus of the present study. Beginning with photosystem I (PSI) genes, a homologous comparison of amino acid sequences of 18 subunits of PSI from 10 species of cyanobacteria, chloroplasts in 12 species of eucaryotic algae, and 28 species of plants (including bryophytes, pteridophytes, gymnospermae, dicotyledon and monocotyledon) was undertaken. The data showed that 18 genes of PSI can be divided into two groups: Part I including seven genes (psaA, psaB, psaC, psaI, psaJ, ycf3 and ycf4) shared both by cyanobacteria and plant chloroplasts; Part II containing another 11 genes (psaD, psaE, psaF, psaK, psaL, psaM, btpA, ycf37, psaG, psaH and psaN) appeared to have diversified in different plant groups. Among Part I genes, psaC, psaA and psaB had higher homology in all species of cyanobacteria and chloroplasts. Among Part II genes, only psaG, psaH and psaN emerged in seed plants.
Increased Maleness at Flowering Stage and Femaleness at Fruiting Stage with Size in an Andromonoecious Perennial,Veratrum nigrum
Authors: Liao Wan‐Jin , Zhang Da‐Yong 
Published: August 2008

AbstractTheory predicts that cosexual plants should adjust their resource investment in male and female functions according to their size if female and male fitness are differentially affected by size. However, few empirical studies have been carried out at both the flowering and fruiting stages to adequately address size‐dependent sex allocation in cosexual plants. In this paper, we investigated resource investment between female and male reproduction, and their size‐dependence in a perennial andromonoecious herb,Veratrum nigrumL. We sampled 192 flowering plants, estimated their standardized phenotypic gender, and assessed the resource investment in male and female functions in terms of absolute dry biomass. At the flowering stage, male investment increased with plant size more rapidly than female investment, and the standardized phenotypic femaleness (ranging from 0.267 to 0.776) was negatively correlated with plant size. By contrast, female biased allocation was found at the fruiting stage, although both flower biomass and fruit biomass were positively correlated with plant size. We propose that increased maleness with plant size at the flowering stage may represent an adaptive strategy for andromonoecious plants, because male flowers promote both male and female fertility by increasing pollinator attraction without aggravating pollen discounting.
Resistance of stored bean varieties to Acanthoscelides obtectus (Coleoptera: Bruchidae)
Authors: Baldin Edson L.L. , Lara Fernando M. 
Published: August 2008

AbstractDuring bean seed storage, yield can be lost due to infestations of Acanthoscelides obtectus Say, the bean weevil. The use of resistant varieties has shown promising results in fighting these insects, reducing infestation levels and eliminating chemical residues from the beans. The expression of resistance to A. obtectus in bean varieties is frequently attributed to the presence of phytohemagglutinins, protease inhibitors and alpha‐amylase, and especially to variants of the protein arcelin, which reduce the larval viability of these insects. To evaluate the effect of bean seed storage time on the resistance expression of bean varieties to A. obtectus, tests with seeds of three ages (freshly‐harvested, 4‐month‐old, and 8‐month‐old) were conducted in the laboratory, using four commercial varieties: Carioca Pitoco, Ipa 6, Porrillo 70, ônix; four improved varieties containing arcelin protein: Arc.1, Arc.2, Arc. 3, Arc.4; and three wild varieties also containing arcelin protein: Arc.1S, Arc.3S, and Arc. 5S. The Arc.5S, Arc.1S, and Arc.2 varieties expressed high antibiosis levels against the weevil; Arc.1 and Arcs expressed the same mechanism, but at lower levels. The occurrence of oviposition non‐preference was also observed in Arc.5S and Arc.1S. The Arc.3 and Arc. 4 varieties expressed low feeding non‐preference levels against A. obtectus. The expression of resistance in arcelin‐bearing, wild or improved varieties was affected during the storage of seeds, and was high under some parameters but low in others. The results showed that addition of chemical resistance factors such as protein arcelin via genetic breeding may be beneficial in improving the performance of bean crops.
Divergence in the ovipositional behavior of the Papilio glaucus group
Authors: Mercader Rodrigo J. , Scriber J. Mark 
Published: August 2008

AbstractThis study contrasts the ovipositional profiles of four members of the Papilio glaucus group, P. glaucus, P. multicaudatus, P. canadensis, and P. rutulus. We used seven choice oviposition bioassays containing leaves from hosts in seven plant families utilized by members of the P. glaucus group. Specifically, we contrast the overall ovipositional profiles of these species and their acceptance of a host in a novel plant family (Populus tremuloides: Salicaceae) and a host in a putatively ancestral host plant family (Liriodendron tulipifera: Magnoliaceae). Significant differences were observed between the ovipositional profiles of P. glaucus and P. multicaudatus relative to each other and to P. canadensis and P. rutulus. In contrast, no significant differences were observed between the ovipositional profiles of P. canadensis and P. rutulus, which were also the only species that accepted P. tremuloides. Unlike the acceptance of P. tremuloides, the acceptance of L. tulipifera was present throughout the group despite the inability of the larvae of most species in the group to utilize this host. These results support the prediction of the “hierarchical threshold model” that ancestral host plants are likely to be retained in the ovipositional hierarchy while novel hosts should only be accepted by derived populations.
Large-scale modulation of star formation in void walls
Authors: Ceccarelli L. , Padilla N. , Lambas D. G. 
Published: August 2008

Abstract
We perform a statistical study of the characteristics of galaxies in voids and void walls in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey and 2dF Galaxy Redshift Survey catalogues. We investigate dependencies of the distribution of galaxy spectral types and colours as a function position to void centres for different luminosity and local density ranges. We find a trend towards bluer, star-forming galaxies in void walls beyond the local density dependence. These results indicate that luminosity and local density do not entirely determine the distribution of galaxy properties such as colours and spectral types, and point towards a large-scale modulation of star formation. We argue that this effect is due to the lower accretion rate and merger histories of galaxies that arriving at void walls from the emptier inner void regions.
Text as It Happens: Literary Geography
Authors: Hones Sheila 
Published: August 2008

AbstractThis article reviews the current situation in geographical work with fiction in the context of an explicitly spatial view of the writing–reading nexus as a contextualized and always emerging geographical event. It argues that this way of conceptualizing the text events of both narrative fiction and academic knowledge production provides a way of understanding and dealing with incompatible literary interpretations and also with irreconcilable approaches to literary geography. This openness to multiplicity develops from the point that text events are not only relational by nature and generated within social contexts in the initial encounter of author, text, and reader, but also only become publicly accessible when subsequently articulated within the mediating context of a particular social situation. The article proposes that literary geography as a collective endeavor can be developed and consolidated through an appreciation of the varying contexts within which geographically oriented work with fiction is performed and articulated.
Epidemiological study of influenza virus infections in young adult outpatients from Buenos Aires, Argentina
Authors: Santamaría Cecilia , Urueña Analía , Videla Cristina , Suarez Ariel , Ganduglia Cecilia , Carballal Guadalupe , Bonvehi Pablo , Echavarría Marcela 
Published: August 2008

Background  Influenza virus is the most common cause of influenza‐like illness (ILI) in adults. In Argentina, studies on influenza and other respiratory viruses were performed mostly in pediatric populations.Objectives  To determine: (1) the frequency of influenza virus and other common respiratory viruses in adult outpatients with ILI, (2) whether the signs and symptoms predict viral etiology, (3) whether viral diagnosis changes clinical management or infection control measures and (4) to characterize the influenza strains circulating in the community.Population and methods  Nasal and pharyngeal swabs from adult outpatients with ILI attending the emergency room during the winter seasons of 2004 and 2005 in Argentina were evaluated by immunofluorescence and RT‐PCR.Results  Of 151 samples analyzed, 39 (26%) were influenza A positive, 5 (3·3%) influenza B positive and 4 (2·6%) respiratory syncytial virus positive by immunofluorescence. Two samples (1·3%) were human metapneumovirus positive by RT PCR. Cell culture detected six additional influenza viruses and one adenovirus positive sample. The sensitivity of immunofluorescence for influenza compared with culture was 70%. Symptoms did not predict etiology.Conclusions  In this study, 40% of the patients with ILI had a specific viral infection and 83% were influenza viruses. Viral detection was necessary to determine the etiology as signs and symptoms were not different between patients with or without viral infection. Viral diagnosis was important to implement infectious control measures. Circulating influenza strains in this study were similar to the correspondent vaccine strains selected for the Southern hemisphere.
Public or Private Management? A Comparative Analysis of Social Policies in Europe
Authors: Gran Brian 
Published: August 2008

AbstractAcross the world, political leaders and policy experts frequently use the labels ‘public’ and ‘private’ to organize social policies. A line seemingly separates public from private efforts, with social policies publicly organized in some countries and privately organized in others. According to this perspective, a public social policy is undertaken by government or deals with a public matter. When a social policy is private, non‐public actors and institutions, like employers, undertake it or it deals with a private matter, like body control. This article examines whether public or private approaches to managing social policies are currently emphasized in European countries. I begin by defining social policy and then provide an overview of the public–private dichotomy in managing social policy. I review predominant typological frameworks of public–private organization of social policies and examine three welfare social policies and three social policies dealing with body control by comparing public–private organization of these six policy areas across 21 European countries. I conclude by discussing the limited diversity of public–private organizations of social policies in Europe.
The burden of fatal and non-fatal injury in rural India
Authors: Cardona M , Joshi R , Ivers R Q , Iyengar S , Chow C K , Colman S , Ramakrishna G , Dandona R , Stevenson M R , Neal B C 
Published: August 2008

Background:Little is known about the burden or causes of injury in rural villages in India.Objective:To examine injury-related mortality and morbidity in villages in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India.Methods:A verbal-autopsy-based mortality surveillance study was used to collect mortality data on all ages from residents in 45 villages in 2003–2004. In early 2005, a morbidity survey in adults was carried out using stratified random sampling in 20 villages. Participants were asked about injuries sustained in the preceding 12 months. Both fatal and non-fatal injuries were coded using classification methods derived from ICD-10.Results:Response rates for the mortality surveillance and morbidity survey were 98% and 81%, respectively. Injury was the second leading cause of death for all ages, responsible for 13% (95% CI 11% to 15%) of all deaths. The leading causes of fatal injury were self-harm (36%), falls (20%), and road traffic crashes (13%). Non-fatal injury was reported by 6.7% of survey participants, with the leading causes of injury being falls (38%), road traffic crashes (25%), and mechanical forces (16.1%). Falls were more common in women, with most (72.3%) attributable to slipping and tripping. Road traffic injuries were sustained mainly by men and were primarily the result of motorcycle crashes (48.8%).Discussion:Injury is an important contributor to disease burden in rural India. The leading causes of injury—falls, road traffic crashes, and suicides—are all preventable. It is important that effective interventions are developed and implemented to minimize the impact of injury in this region.