bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Leader–member exchange, organizational identification and the mediating role of job involvement for nurses
Authors: Katrinli Alev , Atabay Gulem , Gunay Gonca , Guneri Burcu 
Published: September 2008

AbstractTitle.  Leader‐member exchange, organizational identification and the mediating role of job involvement for nurses. Aim.  This paper is a report of a study to explore the relationship between leader–member exchange quality and organizational identification and the mediating role of job involvement in this relationship.Background.  As a result of the fast‐changing structures and increasing competition, healthcare organizations increasingly demand highly qualified nurses who also have positive work attitudes towards the job and the organization. Among these positive work attitudes, organizational identification affects nurses’ job performance and, in turn, the quality of care and patient satisfaction. The quality of the relationship between nurse supervisors and nurses, which is examined in the leader–member exchange context, can be an important determinant for organizational identification. This relationship is also affected by nurses’ job involvement.Method.  The sample consisted of 148 nurses working in a private general hospital. Questionnaires, which included measures for organizational identification, level of leader–member exchange quality, job involvement and questions about the demographic characteristics of the sample, were distributed in 2007. The response rate was 87%.Results.  A statistically significant and positive relationship was found between leader–member exchange quality and organizational identification. The results also reveal that job involvement mediates the positive effects of leader–member exchange quality on organizational identification.Conclusion.  If nurse supervisors increase their awareness of the effects of their behaviours towards their nurses, they can increase the nurses’ performance and achieve desired results through increasing job involvement and organizational identification.
Concept analysis of self‐mutilation
Authors: Hicks K. Madalyn , Hinck Susan M. 
Published: September 2008

AbstractTitle.  Concept analysis of self‐mutilation. Aim.  This paper is a report of a concept analysis to define and describe self‐mutilation.Background.  Although there has been an increased interest in self‐mutilation, as evidenced by recent publication of opinion literature, anecdotal reports and a few clinical studies, the concept has not been well developed to guide nursing research and interventions.Method.  Definitions and uses of self‐mutilation were obtained in a comprehensive review of the health, psychology and education literature up to April 2007 to identify the defining attributes, antecedents and consequences. Walker and Avant’s concept analysis strategy was the organizing framework.Findings.  Self‐mutilation is the intentional act of tissue destruction with the purpose of shifting overwhelming emotional pain to a more acceptable physical pain. Antecedents of self‐mutilation are impaired coping skills and an unhealthy response to situations that cause unbearable emotional stress. Limited research suggests that risk factors for self‐mutilation may be White race, adolescent age, female sex and history of sexual abuse as a child. Although self‐mutilation allows the individual to gain control over emotions and provides a diversion from emotional pain, a release of endorphins after the physical damage that contributes to the feeling of relief supports an addictive maladaptive coping cycle of pain, relief, shame and self‐hate.Conclusion.  The theoretical definition of the concept of self‐mutilation offers the basis for nurses to develop interventions to provide competent care when discovering injuries that are self‐inflicted.
Seasonal variation of zebra mussel susceptibility to molluscicidal agents
Authors: Costa R. , Aldridge D. C. , Moggridge G. D. 
Published: September 2008

Summary

The zebra mussel Dreissena polymorpha is a well‐known biofouler, having potentially serious impacts on freshwater‐dependent industries. Chemical treatment is the most popular approach to control this pest. The identification of potential peaks of increased susceptibility of the species to molluscicidal agents may provide environmental and economic benefits, allowing control to be achieved through lower toxin load.
In this study, the seasonal pattern of the tolerance of zebra mussels to three reference toxicants with distinct modes of action was recorded by conducting static bioassays. The annual profiles of dry tissue weight of a reference individual and mussels’ filtration rate were also followed.
The tolerance of the species to toxicants was found to follow a pronounced annual cycle, increasing up to 22 times between early summer and winter.
The role of temperature and filtration rate as predictors of the mussels’ susceptibility was confirmed, but there was no relation between this and the animals’ body condition. Indeed, this study contradicts the common belief that physiologically exhausted adult zebra mussels are more susceptible to chemical control measures.
Synthesis and applications. The results presented here enlarge the body of knowledge of D. polymorpha biology and may have practical implications at three levels. First, they reinforce the importance of judicious sampling while testing molluscicides against zebra mussels as well as the specification of the specimens’ collection date in toxicological studies. Secondly, they provide information that may be useful to the design of reactive chemical control strategies. In particular, they suggest that the dosage scheme in periodic treatment may be optimized to take advantage of the significant variation of a mussel's susceptibility between late spring and autumn. Finally, the outcome of this study highlights the need of taking into account the seasonality of bivalve responses in ecological risk assessment and the regulation of the discharge of chemicals into surface waters.
Aluminum‐activated citrate and malate transporters from the MATE and ALMT families function independently to confer Arabidopsis aluminum tolerance
Authors: Liu Jiping , Magalhaes Jurandir V. , Shaff Jon , Kochian Leon V. 
Published: September 2008

SummaryAluminum‐activated root malate and citrate exudation play an important role in plant Al tolerance. This paper characterizes AtMATE, a homolog of the recently discovered sorghum and barley Al‐tolerance genes, shown here to encode an Al‐activated citrate transporter in Arabidopsis. Together with the previously characterized Al‐activated malate transporter, AtALMT1, this discovery allowed us to examine the relationship in the same species between members of the two gene families for which Al‐tolerance genes have been identified. AtMATE is expressed primarily in roots and is induced by Al. An AtMATE T‐DNA knockdown line exhibited very low AtMATE expression and Al‐activated root citrate exudation was abolished. The AtALMT1 AtMATE double mutant lacked both Al‐activated root malate and citrate exudation and showed greater Al sensitivity than the AtALMT1 mutant. Therefore, although AtALMT1 is a major contributor to Arabidopsis Al tolerance, AtMATE also makes a significant but smaller contribution. The expression patterns of AtALMT1 and AtMATE and the profiles of Al‐activated root citrate and malate exudation are not affected by the presence or absence of the other gene. These results suggest that AtALMT1‐mediated malate exudation and AtMATE‐mediated citrate exudation evolved independently to confer Al tolerance in Arabidopsis. However, a link between regulation of expression of the two transporters in response to Al was identified through work on STOP1, a transcription factor that was previously shown to be necessary for AtALMT1 expression. Here we show that STOP1 is also required for AtMATE expression and Al‐activated citrate exudation.
TaASY1 promotes homologous chromosome interactions and is affected by deletion of Ph1
Authors: Boden Scott A. , Langridge Peter , Spangenberg German , Able Jason A. 
Published: September 2008

SummaryDuring meiosis, chromosomes are sorted into homologous pairs as a preface to their intimate association via recombination and synapsis. However, little is known about the mechanism used to distinguish homologous chromosomes from other chromosomes present in the nucleus. Studies in wheat (Triticum aestivum) have shown that the Pairing homoeologous 1 (Ph1) locus is required to suppress interactions between genetically similar homoeologous chromosomes. Here we show that absence of Ph1 causes increased transcription of Asynapsis 1 (ASY1), a gene that encodes an axial‐element‐associated protein that is essential for synapsis and cross‐over formation in Arabidopsis and rice. Localisation of ASY1 during meiosis is also affected by deletion of Ph1. In addition, transgenic wheat mutants with decreased activity of TaASY1 display reduced synapsis during prophase I and exhibit pairing between homoeologous chromosomes at metaphase I. These results suggest that ASY1 is required to promote interactions between homologous chromosomes in bread wheat, and that Ph1 has a gene regulatory role, which is consistent with its suggested genetic identity as a Cdk‐like gene. Broader implications of this research suggest that we could use the Taasy1 mutants to assess their efficacy in alien chromatin introgression studies, as seen with the ph1b mutant.
Diurnal temperature range as a novel risk factor for COPD death
Authors: SONG Guixiang , CHEN Guohai , JIANG Lili , ZHANG Yunhui , ZHAO Naiqing , CHEN Bingheng , KAN Haidong 
Published: September 2008

Background and objective:  Although the relationship between day‐to‐day temperature changes and COPD mortality is well established, it is not known whether temperature variation within one day, that is diurnal temperature range (DTR), is a risk factor for acute COPD death, independent of the absolute temperature level.Methods:  In a time‐series study, the relationship between DTR and daily COPD mortality between 2001 and 2004 in Shanghai, China was assessed. A semi‐parametric generalized additive model was used to allow for long‐term and seasonable trends in COPD mortality, as well as variation in air pollution and weather.Results:  There was a significant association between DTR and daily COPD mortality. A 1°C increase in the 4‐day moving average for DTR corresponded to a 1.25% (95% confidence interval: 0.35–2.15) increase in COPD mortality.Conclusion:  These findings suggest that DTR is a novel risk factor for acute COPD death.
Bile acids induce CCN2 production through p38 MAP kinase activation in human bronchial epithelial cells: A factor contributing to airway fibrosis
Authors: PERNG Diahn‐Warng , WU Yu‐Chung , TSAI Cheng‐Chien , SU Kang‐Cheng , LIU Lung‐Yu , HSU Wen‐Hu , LEE Yu‐Chin 
Published: September 2008

Background and objective:  Bile acid aspiration occurs in a variety of acute and chronic airway disorders. The consequence of bile acid aspiration and lung disease remains unclear. It was hypothesized that airway epithelium exposure to bile acids would induce fibrosis via production of connective tissue growth factor (CCN2), CCN2 is essential for transforming growth factor‐β (TGF‐β)‐induced fibrogenesis and functions as a downstream mediator of TGF‐β action on fibroblasts.Methods:  Human bronchial epithelial cells were grown on air–liquid interface culture inserts. Cells were stimulated with the major components of bile acids, chenodeoxycholic acid (CD) and glycochenodeoxycholic acid (GCD). RT‐PCR and real‐time quantitative PCR were used to detect mRNA expression. ELISA and western blotting were used to measure protein.Results:  CD‐stimulated airway epithelial cells produce CCN2 at both mRNA and protein levels in a dose‐dependent manner. GCD failed to increase CCN2 production. CCN2 expression occurred via activation of p38 mitogen‐activated protein (MAP) kinase and the downstream transcription factor ATF‐2. Dexamethasone and the selective p38 MAP kinase inhibitor SB203580 successfully inhibited p38 MAP kinase, ATF‐2 phosphorylation and subsequent CCN2 production. CD induced TGF‐β1 release from airway epithelium via the same signalling pathway. TGF‐β1 therefore enhanced CCN2 production in an autocrine manner.Conclusion:  Early intervention to stop these processes may be useful in preventing fibrogenesis in chronic airway diseases associated with bile acid exposure.
Antiviral therapy for respiratory tract infections
Authors: WONG Samson S.Y. , YUEN Kwok‐Yung 
Published: September 2008

Abstract:Viruses are important pathogens causing respiratory tract infections both in the community and health‐care facility settings. They are extremely common causes of morbidity in the competent hosts and some are associated with significant mortality in the compromised individuals. With wider application of molecular techniques, novel viruses are being described and old viruses are found to have new significance in different epidemiological and clinical settings. Some of these emerging pathogens may have the potential to cause pandemics or global spread of a severe disease, as exemplified by severe acute respiratory syndrome and avian influenza. Antiviral therapy of viral respiratory infections is often unnecessary in the competent hosts because most of them are self‐limiting and effective agents are not always available. In the immunocompromised individuals or for infections caused by highly pathogenic viruses, such as avian influenza viruses (AIV), antiviral treatment is highly desirable, despite the fact that many of the agents may not have undergone stringent clinical trials. In immunocompetent hosts, antiviral therapy can be stopped early because adaptive immune response can usually be mounted within 5–14 days. However, the duration of antiviral therapy in immunosuppressed hosts depends on clinical and radiological resolution, the degree and duration of immunosuppression, and therefore maintenance therapy is sometimes needed after the initial response. Immunotherapy and immunoprophylaxis appear to be promising directions for future research. Appropriate and targeted immunomodulation may play an important adjunctive role in some of these infections by limiting the extent of end‐organ damage and multi‐organ failure in some fulminant infections.
The use of agricultural, open and forest habitats by juvenile Mauritius Kestrels Falco punctatus
Authors: BURGESS MALCOLM D. , BLACK RICHARD A. , NICOLL MALCOLM A. C. , JONES CARL G. , NORRIS KEN 
Published: September 2008

Knowledge of tropical raptor habitat use is limited and yet a thorough understanding is vital when trying to conserve endangered species. We used a well studied, reintroduced population of the vulnerable Mauritius Kestrel Falco punctatus to investigate habitat preferences in a modified landscape. We constructed a high resolution digital habitat map and radiotracked 13 juvenile Kestrels to quantify habitat preferences. We distinguished seven habitat types in our study area and tracked Kestrels from 71 to 130 days old during which they dispersed from their natal territory and settled within a home‐range after reaching independence. Mean home‐range size was 0.95 km2 characterized by a bimodal pattern of intensity around the natal site and post‐independence home‐range. Compositional analysis showed that home‐ranges were located non‐randomly with respect to habitat but there was no evidence to suggest differential use of habitats within home‐ranges. Native and semi‐invaded forest and grassland were consistently preferred, whereas agriculture was used significantly less than other habitats. No difference was found between the available length of edge dividing native forest and grassland within a home‐range when compared to that available within a 2.35‐km buffer around their nest‐site, based on the maximum distance a juvenile was found to disperse. Repeating the analysis in three dimensions gave very similar results. Our results suggest that Mauritius Kestrels are not obligate forest dwellers as was once thought but can also exploit open habitats such as grassland. Kestrels may be using isolated mature trees within grassland as vantage points for hunting in the same way as they use the natural stratified forest structure. We suggest that the avoidance of agriculture is partly due to a lack of such vantage points. The conservation importance of forest degradation and agricultural encroachment is highlighted and comparisons with the habitat preferences of other tropical falcons are discussed.
A SKULL OF THE GIANT BONY‐TOOTHED BIRDDASORNIS(AVES: PELAGORNITHIDAE) FROM THE LOWER EOCENE OF THE ISLE OF SHEPPEY
Authors: MAYR GERALD 
Published: September 2008

Abstract: The first substantial skull of a very large Paleogene bony‐toothed bird (Pelagornithidae) is described from the Lower Eocene London Clay of the Isle of Sheppey in England. The specimen is assigned toDasornis emuinus(Bowerbank), based on a taxonomic revision of the large London Clay Pelagornithidae. Very large bony‐toothed birds from the London Clay were known previously from fragmentary remains of non‐comparable skeletal elements only, andDasornis londinensisOwen,Argillornis emuinus(Bowerbank),A. longipennisOwen, andNeptuniavis mirandaHarrison and Walker are considered junior synonyms ofD. emuinus. The new specimen allows a definitive assignment ofDasornisto the Pelagornithidae and documents that this taxon closely resembles other bony‐toothed birds in cranial morphology. It is hypothesized that giant size (i.e. a wingspan above 4 m) evolved only once within Pelagornithidae and thatDasornis emuinusis the sister taxon of the giant Neogene bony‐toothed birds, which share a derived wing morphology.
A new species of Acynodon (Crocodylia) from the upper cretaceous (Santonian–Campanian) of Villaggio del Pescatore, Italy
Authors: DELFINO MASSIMO , MARTIN JEREMY E. , BUFFETAUT ERIC 
Published: September 2008

Abstract:  The new species Acynodon adriaticus is described on the basis of remains from the Santonian–Campanian of Villaggio del Pescatore (Trieste, NE Italy). This species differs in several cranial features from Acynodon iberoccitanus, the only other Acynodon species whose cranial osteology is known in detail. The absence of maxillary and dentary caniniform teeth coupled with the presence of enlarged molariform teeth suggests that Acynodon probably fed on slowly moving hard‐shelled prey. Moreover, the new materials reveal for the first time the morphology of some postcranial elements of Acynodon: in particular, medial‐most paravertebral osteoderms that are characterized by two keels. A new cladistic phylogenetic analysis resolves the previously reported polytomy among the basal Globidonta: Acynodon is recognized as the most primitive globidontan. This genus may represent the geologically oldest known globidontan. The fact that Acynodon has been found only in Europe and that the outgroup of Globidonta, the Diplocynodontinae, is mainly known from Europe, suggests that globidontans may have originated in Europe and not in North America as previously supposed.
Political Opposition in Civil Society: An Analysis of the Interactions of Secular and Religious Associations in Algeria and Jordan
Authors: Cavatorta Francesco , Elananza Azzam 
Published: September 2008

AbstractThe lack of effective political parties is one of the dominant characteristics of modern Arab polities. The role of opposition to the authoritarian regimes is therefore left to a number of civil society organizations. This study examines the interactions among such groups in the context of the traditional transition paradigm and it analyses specifically how religious and secular organizations operate and interact. The empirical evidence shows that such groups, far from attempting any serious coalition-building to make common demands for democracy on the regime, have a competitive relationship because of their ideological differences and conflicting policy preferences. This strengthens authoritarian rule even in the absence of popular legitimacy. The article focuses its attention on Algeria and Jordan.
Trends in the prevalence of low birth weight in Okinawa, Japan: a public health perspective
Authors: Hokama T , Binns C 
Published: September 2008

AbstractAim: To review the trends in low birth weight (LBW) in Japan and Okinawa and to discuss the public health implications of the trend.Methods: The statistical records of Japan and the Okinawa prefecture were reviewed to observe secular trends of LBW incidence rate and other health indicators. Literature researches were undertaken of English and Japanese language publications to complete the review.Results: The LBW rate in Japan declined until the 1970s, reaching a low point for the whole country in 1978–1979 when it was 5.2% (7.2% in Okinawa). In Okinawa the proportion of LBW declined from 8.1% in 1973 to 7.2 in 1978. Since 1980 the LBW rate has steadily increased to its current level of 9.3% in Japan and 10.9% in Okinawa. During this period, the prematurity rate has not increased and other indicators of child health have continued to improve.Conclusion: Japan is unique among developed countries in that the LBW rate has almost doubled in the past three decades and the rate in Okinawa is 20% greater than the mainland. The health costs of this trend include the neonatal care of LBW infants and the increased risk of chronic disease in later life.
Fractional derivative approach to the self-gravitation equation
Authors: Pedraza Juan F. , Ramos-Caro Javier F. , González Guillermo A. 
Published: September 2008

Abstract
A new formalism is presented for finding the equilibrium distribution functions for axisymmetric systems. The formalism, obtained by using the concept of fractional derivatives, generalizes the methods of Fricke, Kalnajs and Jiang & Ossipkov, and has the advantage that can be applied to a wide variety of models. We found that this approach can be applied to both tridimensional systems and flat systems, without the necessity of dealing with a pseudo-volume mass density. As an application, we obtain the distribution functions of the Binney's logarithmic model, the Mestel disc and the stellar dynamical tori introduced by Ciotti et al. in 2004.
Mitochondrial DNA sequence analyses in Bornean sucker fishes (Balitoridae: Teleostei: Gastromyzontinae)
Authors: SULAIMAN Zohrah Haji , HUI Tan Heok , LIM Kelvin K.P. , NG Peter K.L. 
Published: September 2008

AbstractPhylogenetic relationships among Bornean sucker fishes (Teleostei: Balitoridae: Gastromyzontinae) were investigated by comparing cytochrome b gene sequences from eight species. The results were in general agreement with previous morphology‐based studies. It was found that the genera Gastromyzon and Neogastromyzon are both monophyletic and that the Chinese homalopterid Crossostoma lacustre (Homalopterinae) is not related to the Bornean species. This molecular‐level study of cytochrome b gene variation in Bornean gastromyzontins will undoubtedly help to shed light on the molecular systematics of this unique freshwater fish.