bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
4 Democratic Deliberation: Empowering Cultural Communities
Authors: Deveaux Monique 
Published: February 2007

AbstractThis chapter argues that deliberative democracy theory is an invaluable resource for thinking about how liberal democracies and minority cultural groups might mediate conflicts of culture. However, it needs to be amended in important ways if it is to respond to the needs of minority cultural communities. This chapter makes the case for a deliberative democratic approach to resolving tensions between gender equality and cultural recognition, grounding it in principle of political inclusion and democratic legitimacy. This conception of democratic deliberation is open-ended with respect to outcomes, and takes its cue from an agonistic account of power and dialogue rather than the reasoned deliberation usually urged by proponents of discourse ethics, such as Jürgen Habermas, Joshua Cohen, and Seyla Benhabib. This approach to negotiating conflicts, which emphasizes negotiation and compromise, can also help to empower vulnerable members of cultural groups who dissent from prevailing cultural roles and arrangements in their communities.
The Worldview of Personalism
Authors: Bengtsson Jan Olof 
Published: February 2007

Abstract
The book challenges the current view that personalism is primarily an early 20th-century phenomenon. The established definitions of personalism, mainly in terms of the American school of B. P. Bowne, are shown to fit broadly the positions of much earlier continental European and Scandinavian philosophers and theologians. The beginnings of specifically personalistic thought are traced to F. H. Jacobi’s criticism of pantheism, first set forth in the 1780s, and the work of the later F. W. J. Schelling. Its development is then identified in the work of selected, representative thinkers who, throughout the 19th century, build on or develop further positions established by Jacobi and Schelling, primarily the thinkers belonging to the broad current of so-called ‘speculative theism’ in Germany and in Sweden. The development of idealistic personalism in Britain by A. S. Pringle-Pattison, J. R. Illingworth, C. C. J. Webb and others is shown to be parallel to the emergence of the American school. It is argued that these should be seen as a continuation of the earlier European movement. Both the American and the British schools drew on the work of H. Lotze, but the book points to the neglected continental European background to Lotze, the current of personalistic, partly idealistic, and theistic philosophy of which Lotze’s work was only one, late variation. Discerning the central themes of the emerging worldview of personalism, the book establishes that they developed consistently in a broad, unitary movement with a distinct historical profile from the late 18th to the early 20th centuries, the nature and importance of which has heretofore been neglected in the history of philosophy and in historical theology.
4 Personal unity‐in‐diversity
Authors: Bengtsson Jan Olof 
Published: February 2007

Abstract
This chapter presents a broader picture of the whole of the worldview that results from the themes introduced in earlier chapters: reality is conceived as a system of related personalities, of God and finite persons, the dynamic principle and living content of which is determined, more or less, by the reciprocity of the I-Thou-relation. The view of the society of persons is also shown to have consequences for the understanding of the moral order as personal and impersonal ethics are distinguished, and, with a terminological shift in the later personalists, for the questions of the relation of ‘values’ to the person.
De novo SVM classification of precursor microRNAs from genomic pseudo hairpins using global and intrinsic folding measures
Authors: Ng Kwang Loong Stanley , Mishra Santosh K. 
Published: February 2007

AbstractMotivation: MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small ncRNAs participating in diverse cellular and physiological processes through the post-transcriptional gene regulatory pathway. Critically associated with the miRNAs biogenesis, the hairpin structure is a necessary feature for the computational classification of novel precursor miRNAs (pre-miRs). Though many of the abundant genomic inverted repeats (pseudo hairpins) can be filtered computationally, novel species-specific pre-miRs are likely to remain elusive.Results: miPred is a de novo Support Vector Machine (SVM) classifier for identifying pre-miRs without relying on phylogenetic conservation. To achieve significantly higher sensitivity and specificity than existing (quasi) de novo predictors, it employs a Gaussian Radial Basis Function kernel (RBF) as a similarity measure for 29 global and intrinsic hairpin folding attributes. They characterize a pre-miR at the dinucleotide sequence, hairpin folding, non-linear statistical thermodynamics and topological levels. Trained on 200 human pre-miRs and 400 pseudo hairpins, miPred achieves 93.50% (5-fold cross-validation accuracy) and 0.9833 (ROC score). Tested on the remaining 123 human pre-miRs and 246 pseudo hairpins, it reports 84.55% (sensitivity), 97.97% (specificity) and 93.50% (accuracy). Validated onto 1918 pre-miRs across 40 non-human species and 3836 pseudo hairpins, it yields 87.65% (92.08%), 97.75% (97.42%) and 94.38% (95.64%) for the mean (overall) sensitivity, specificity and accuracy. Notably, A.mellifera, A.geoffroyi, C.familiaris, E.Barr, H.Simplex virus, H.cytomegalovirus, O.aries, P.patens, R.lymphocryptovirus, Simian virus and Z.mays are unambiguously classified with 100.00% (sensitivity) and &gt;93.75% (specificity).Availability: Data sets, raw statistical results and source codes are available at http://web.bii.a-star.edu.sg/~stanley/PublicationsContact: stanley@bii.a-star.edu.sg; santosh@bii.a-star.edu.sgSupplementary information: Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
RETRACTED: Spike protein of SARS‐CoV stimulates cyclooxygenase‐2 expression via both calcium‐dependent and calcium‐independent protein kinase C pathways
Authors: Liu Mo , Yang Yongbo , Gu Chunfang , Yue Yinpu , Wu Kenneth K. , Wu Jianguo , Zhu Ying 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTWe have previously shown that the nucleocapsid protein of SARS‐associated coronavirus (SARS‐CoV) activated cyclooxygenase‐2 (COX‐2) expression (1). In this study, we identified another viral protein, the spike of SARS‐CoV, which played an important role in virus‐stimulated COX‐2 expression after screening all genes from the SARS‐CoV genome. We found that an upstream calcium‐dependent PKC isozyme PKCα that modulates the downstream ERK/ NF‐κB pathway through an influx of extracellular Ca2+ is induced by the spike protein of SARS‐CoV. The ERK/NF‐κB was identified to be involved in the activation of COX‐2 promoter and production of COX‐2 protein in HEK293T cells. We also demonstrated that another unusual pathway, the calcium‐independent PI3K/PKCε/JNK/CREB pathway, functioned in cooperation with the calcium‐dependent pathway to induce COX‐2 expression upon stimulation by spike protein. This pathway can be blocked by PKCε‐specific, small interfering RNA, PI3K/JNK kinase‐specific inhibitors as well as dominant negative JNK. PKCε‐specific siRNA also attenuated the phosphorylation of JNK. Our results provide evidence that helps us understand the function of SRAS‐CoV spike protein in SARS pathogenesis.—Liu, M., Yang, Y., Gu, C., Yue, Y., Wu, K. K., Wu, J., Zhu, Y. Spike protein of SARS‐CoV stimulates cyclo‐oxygenase‐2 expression via both calcium‐dependent and calcium‐independent protein kinase C pathways. FASEB J. 21, 1586–1596 (2007)
Efficacy of Radiologic Screening for Distant Metastases and Second Primaries in Newly Diagnosed Patients With Head and Neck Cancer
Authors: Jäckel Martin C. , Reischl Andrea , Huppert Peter 
Published: February 2007

AbstractObjectives: Detection of distant metastases and second primary tumors in newly diagnosed patients with head and neck cancer has usually a major effect on prognosis but does not always influence clinical management. This must be considered when radiologic screening investigations are used. The present study particularly evaluates how often additional neoplastic lesions detected by screening had an impact on therapy.Study Design: The authors conducted a single‐institution retrospective analysis.Methods: The medical records of 260 patients with newly diagnosed squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck treated between 1999 and 2002 were retrospectively analyzed. Before therapy, all patients had undergone screening by computed tomography scan of the chest, abdominal ultrasound, and bone scintigraphy.Results: Screening investigations identified 16 patients (6.2%) with distant metastases and six patients (2.3%) with simultaneous second primaries. Chest computed tomography scan detected 20 neoplastic lesions; abdominal ultrasound and bone scintigraphy each detected 2. Three findings of distant metastases proved to be false‐positive during follow up. Of the 22 patients with positive screening results, clinical management was affected in 13 (59.1%). Twelve were originally scheduled for curative surgery and 10 had chest abnormalities.Conclusion: Chest computed tomography scan was the most effective screening investigation, which should be routinely used whenever curative surgery of head and neck cancer is planned. Abdominal ultrasound and bone scintigraphy may sometimes be valuable before extensive surgical treatment of far advanced disease. In patients scheduled for primary radiotherapy, radiologic screening had hardly any consequence and should be confined to conventional x‐ray of the chest.
Identification of Viruses in Patients With Postviral Olfactory Dysfunction
Authors: Suzuki Motohiko , Saito Koichi , Min Wei‐Ping , Vladau Costin , Toida Kazunori , Itoh Hirotaka , Murakami Shingo 
Published: February 2007

AbstractObjective: Causative viruses of postviral olfactory dysfunction (PVOD) have not yet been identified. The aim of this study was to investigate causative viruses in patients with PVOD.Study Design and Methods: Nasal discharge was collected from 24 patients with PVOD. We investigated the presence of 10 viruses in nasal discharge and examined the time course, with regard to changes in olfactory dysfunction and nasal obstruction in patients with PVOD, using questionnaires, acoustic rhinometry, and olfactory tests.Results: Rhinoviruses were detected in 10 patients by electrophoresis. Rhinoviruses were also confirmed in four patients by nucleotide sequences. Viral serotypes were identified to be human rhinovirus (HRV)‐40, HRV‐75, HRV‐78, and HRV‐80. One of the four patients complained of anosmia, whereas another complained of dysosmia. Olfactory testing did not show significant improvement at 4, 8, 11, and 24 weeks after the first visit in the four patients, although results of acoustic rhinometry significantly improved. Two of the four patients complained of olfactory dysfunction even 6 months after the first visit. Coronavirus and parainfluenza virus were detected in one patient each, and Epstein‐Barr viruses were detected in three patients.Conclusions: This study for the first time detected rhinovirus, coronavirus, parainfluenza virus, and Epstein‐Barr virus in nasal discharge of patients with PVOD. Furthermore, the present study suggests that rhinoviruses can cause olfactory dysfunction through mechanisms other than nasal obstruction and that rhinoviruses can induce various severities and different time courses of olfactory dysfunction.
Anatomic Continuity of Longitudinal Pharyngeal and Esophageal Muscles
Authors: Wang Qin , Xu Shengchun , Tu Lili , Liu Yehai , Zhang Ming 
Published: February 2007

AbstractObjectives: The pharyngeal and esophageal shortenings during deglutition are attributable to longitudinal muscle contraction. The two shortenings may be independent events because the longitudinal pharyngeal and esophageal muscular insertions are believed to be separated from each other. The aim of this study was to investigate the superior attachments of the longitudinal esophageal muscle.Study Design: Prospective.Methods: With use of dissection, sectional anatomy, and confocal microscopy, 30 adult cadavers were examined in this study.Results: We found that the longitudinal esophageal muscle fibers had multiple superior insertions. Some of the fibers were continuous with the longitudinal pharyngeal muscles and merged with a membrane‐like fascia that anchored the pharyngoesophageal wall to the thyroid cartilage.Conclusions: This study demonstrates that the longitudinal pharyngeal and esophageal muscle fibers are continuous with each other and are integrated with fibrous and cartilaginous structures. Such anatomic integrity at the pharyngoesophageal junction is important for the function of the upper esophageal sphincter.
Configuration, Column Construction, and Column Packing for a Capillary Liquid Chromatography System
Authors: Moritz Robert L. 
Published: February 2007

INTRODUCTIONCapillary or microcolumn (<0.5-mm internal diameter, I.D.) high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) is an extremely powerful technique for separating small quantities of proteins and peptides. This protocol describes a procedure for adapting conventional HPLC systems to provide accurate low-flow rates (0.4-4 μl/min) and gradients required to operate slurry-packed capillary columns. A key component of this system is a commercial axial-beam longitudinal flow cell that can be fitted to several commercial UV detectors. Procedures are described for the fabrication of 0.32-mm I.D. polyimide-coated fused-silica columns, slurry-packed with reversed-phase chromatographic supports.
Purification of Bovine Lens and Bacterially Expressed Human Vimentin
Authors: Kuczmarski Edward R. , Goldman Robert D. 
Published: February 2007

INTRODUCTIONIntermediate filaments (IF) are major cytoskeletal systems of vertebrate and many nonvertebrate cells whose expression is cell-type specific and developmentally regulated. This protocol describes a method for purifying one type of IF, vimentin, from bovine lens tissue. Purification of human vimentin expressed in Escherichia coli is also described. These methods are useful in the preparation of other IF protein subunits for microinjection studies as well.
Quantitative GUS Activity Assay in Intact Plant Tissue
Authors: Blázquez Miguel 
Published: February 2007

INTRODUCTIONThe activity of β-glucuronidase (GUS) can be accurately determined in intact plant tissue using 4-methylumbelliferyl β-D-glucuronide (4-MUG) as a substrate. Upon hydrolysis by GUS, the fluorochrome 4-methyl umbelliferone (4-MU) is produced. This method is based on the permeability of both 4-MUG and 4-MU through plant tissue. It consists of incubation of the tissue with the reagent and quantification of the fluorescence emitted by 4-MU in the solution. GUS activity in each sample can be normalized per unit tissue weight, per unit protein (if it is determined in the tissue after the incubation with 4-MUG), or per sample. The latter is particularly useful if GUS is expressed only in a subset of cells within the tissue assayed. The advantage of this method is that since many samples can be assayed with relatively little effort, it is particularly appropriate for large-scale screens. The following protocol has been adapted for the use of 96-well microtiter plates (200-μl wells).
Continuous treatment of bestatin induces anti‐angiogenic property in endothelial cells
Authors: Mishima Yuji , Terui Yasuhito , Sugimura Natsuhiko , Matsumoto‐Mishima Yuko , Rokudai Akiko , Kuniyoshi Ryoko , Hatake Kiyohiko 
Published: February 2007

CD13/aminopeptidase‐N (CD13/APN) is an important regulator of angiogenesis where its expression on activated blood vessels is induced by angiogenic signals. A previous study demonstrated that angiogenesis is suppressed under the presence of high concentrations of aminopeptidase antagonists. However, the mechanisms underlying the inhibition of morphogenesis by aminopeptidase antagonists have not been elucidated. In this study, we have for the first time examined the effects of continuous treatment of therapeutic dose of aminopeptidase antagonists on vascular endothelial capillary‐like tube formation. In the antagonists tested, only bestatin significantly interfered in the capillary tube formation of primary endothelial cells (EC) after treatment for 72 h. Aminopeptidase analysis revealed that inhibitory activity of bestatin was not specific for CD13/APN, and the other inhibitors lacking anti‐angiogenic properties also inhibit cell‐surface aminopeptidase activity as well or more potently than bestatin, suggesting that the angiogenesis‐inhibitory effect of bestatin was not due to inhibition of CD13/APN activity at this concentration. To elucidate the influence of continuous treatment of bestatin on endothelial cells, we performed microarray analysis and revealed that 72‐h treatment of a pharmacokinetic dose of bestatin modulated the several angiogenesis‐related genes including vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). Northern blot analysis indicated that modulation of the VEGF gene became obvious after 48 h of treatment. Furthermore, knockdown of the VEGF gene by siRNA remarkably suppressed capillary tube formation and required a higher concentration of exogenous VEGF to reverse the capillary formation ability. These data suggested that bestatin decreases a reactivity of EC to angiogenesis stimuli, and it can be achieved by the regulation of angiogenesis‐related gene expression. (Cancer Sci 2007; 98: 364–372)
Promoter methylation status of the Cyclin D2 gene is associated with poor prognosis in human epithelial ovarian cancer
Authors: Sakuma Michiko , Akahira Jun‐ichi , Ito Kiyoshi , Niikura Hitoshi , Moriya Takuya , Okamura Kunihiro , Sasano Hironobu , Yaegashi Nobuo 
Published: February 2007

Gene silencing associated with aberrant DNA methylation of promoter CpG islands is one mechanism through which several genes may be inactivated in human cancers. Cyclin D2, a member of the D‐type cyclins, implicated in cell cycle regulation, differentiation and malignant transformation, is inactivated due to aberrant DNA methylation in several human cancers. In the present study, we examined the promoter methylation status and expression of Cyclin D2 in human epithelial ovarian cancer, and then determined the relationship between methylation status and various clinicopathological variables. Twelve ovarian cancer cell lines and 71 surgical specimens were examined by methylation‐specific polymerase chain reaction and quantitative reverse transcription–polymerase chain reaction to evaluate the methylation status and expression of the Cyclin D2 gene. The relationship between methylation status and various clinicopathological variables was evaluated using statistical analysis. Aberrant methylation of Cyclin D2 was present in five of 12 ovarian cancer cell lines and 16 of 71 primary ovarian cancer tissues. In five cell lines with methylation, expression of the Cyclin D2 gene tended to be lower than in cell lines without methylation. In ovarian cancer tissues, methylation bands were detected in 16 of 71 cases. The methylation status of Cyclin D2 was associated with advanced stage and a residual tumor size (>2 cm) (P = 0.027 and P = 0.031, respectively). Based on univariate analysis, patients with aberrant methylation of the Cyclin D2 promoter had a significantly worse chance of disease‐free survival than those without methylation (P = 0.021). Our results suggest that aberrant promoter methylation of the Cyclin D2 gene is significantly associated with patient prognosis in epithelial ovarian cancer. (Cancer Sci 2007; 98: 380 –386)
Factors influencing nurses’ attitudes towards the use of computerized health information systems in Kuwaiti hospitals
Authors: Alquraini Habib , Alhashem Abdul Majeed , Shah Makhdoom A. , Chowdhury Rafiqul I. 
Published: February 2007

Abstract Title. Factors influencing nurses’ attitudes towards the use of computerized health information systems in Kuwaiti hospitals Aim.  This paper reports a survey of nurses’ attitudes towards computerized health information systems, the characteristics that influence these attitudes and the level of nurses’ skills in computer use.Background.  The use of such systems in developed countries and in some developing countries has already become a reality. However, nurses as a group of care providers have been found to resist computerization, seeing computerized health information systems as dehumanizing, confusing and uncaring. Nurses with more computer experience tend to have more positive views; education and training positively influence attitudes; and younger and less experienced nurses may have more positive attitudes.Methods.  A structured questionnaire was used to measure the attitudes of nurses working in Kuwait towards computerization. A random sample of 574 nurses working in Ministry of Health hospitals were sent a questionnaire, and 530 replies were received (response rate 92·3%). The data were collected from November 2002 to January 2003.Findings.  Respondents generally had positive attitudes toward computerized health information systems. Analysis of variance revealed statistically significant differences in attitudes in relation to nationality, level of education, previous experience in computer use, and computer skills (P < 0·05). Multiple regression analysis showed that gender, nationality, education levels, and duration of computer use were statistically significant predictors of attitudes toward computerized health information systems (P < 0·05).Conclusion.  With adequate computerized health information system training, the implementation of computerized health information systems could be effective for nurses in providing quality health care, as found in other studies.
Making nursing work: breaking through the role confusion of advanced practice nursing
Authors: Gardner Glenn , Chang Anne , Duffield Christine 
Published: February 2007

Abstract Title. Making nursing work: breaking through the role confusion of advanced practice nursing Aim.  This paper reports a study to develop a research‐informed model of the service parameters and an analysis framework for advanced practice nursing roles.Background.  Changing patterns of health care are forcing service planners to examine new service delivery models. Apparent is the call for nursing service that incorporates expanded levels of autonomy, skill and decision‐making. A number of nursing roles conform to this description under the generic title of advanced practice nurse. However, there is confusion in the health service community internationally about nomenclature, role and scope for advanced practice nursing roles. An emerging priority in response to recent developments in the nurse practitioner role is to establish service parameters for advanced practice nursing and to differentiate operationally between advanced practice and practitioner nursing roles.Methods.  We conducted an interpretive, qualitative examination of the practice of a random sample of nine advanced practice nurses working in three acute care hospitals in south east Queensland, Australia in 2006. Data collection involved individual in‐depth interviews, which were deductively analysed and tested against published advanced practice nursing models.Results.  The data most comprehensively supported the Strong Model of Advanced Practice as representing the practice experiences of the research participants. This model supports definition of the service parameters and the design of an operational framework for implementation and evaluation of advanced practice nursing roles.Conclusion.  The findings differentiate advanced practice nurse and nurse practitioner roles, and offer an operational framework to identify, establish and evaluate advanced and extended nursing positions. Subject to further validation, this outcome can provide operational information for implementing innovative nursing roles appropriate to consumer needs and specific health service models.