bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Effective services to support children in special circumstances
Authors: Statham J. 
Published: November 2004

AbstractBackground  Children living in special circumstances, defined as those who are at risk of achieving poorer outcomes than their peers, have a particular need of good quality, accessible services to promote their health and well‐being, yet may be least likely to receive them.Aims  This review considers the evidence for effective services to support children living in five kinds of special circumstances: (1) those at risk of offending; (2) teenage parents; (3) children whose parents have drug, alcohol or mental health problems; (4) children living with domestic violence; and (5) children who have been abused or neglected. In practice, there is often considerable overlap between these groups, and many children face multiple disadvantage. The review also aims to identify effective strategies for making support services more accessible to hard‐to‐reach groups.Methods  Relevant literature was identified through searches of databases and websites, and consultation with experts. Given the broad scope of the topic, the aim was to provide an overview of best evidence rather than to undertake a systematic review.Results Similar themes underpin the most promising approaches to supporting children in special circumstances. These include: (1) a holistic, multi‐agency approach addressing the needs of the whole child rather than compartmentalising children's social, educational, health and care needs; (2) the importance of links between adults’ and children's services so that children who are in need because of their parents’ circumstances can be identified and supported; and (3) the value of providing children in special circumstances with intensive, targeted support within a framework of universal provision.Conclusions  Overall, there is a lack of well‐designed evaluations of the effectiveness of UK services and programmes for children in special circumstances. The existing evidence base would be strengthened by the development of better outcome measures, by exploring the characteristics of effective services from the perspective of different stakeholders (including children and young people themselves) and by extending the current problem‐oriented approach to consider the factors that promote resilience and coping.
Infant well‐being at 2 years of age in the Growth Restriction Intervention Trial (GRIT): multicentred randomized controlled trial
Authors: Reading Richard 
Published: November 2004

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(
2004
)

,
364
,
513
–
520
.
Background  Although delivery is widely used for preterm babies failing to thrive in utero, the effect of altering delivery timing has never been assessed in a randomized controlled trial. We aimed to compare the effect of delivering early with delaying birth for as long as possible.Methods  Five hundred and forty‐eight pregnant women were recruited by 69 hospitals in 13 European countries. Participants had fetal compromise between 24 and 36 weeks, an umbilical‐artery Doppler waveform recorded, and clinical uncertainty about whether immediate delivery was indicated. Before birth, 588 babies were randomly assigned to immediate delivery (n = 296) or delayed delivery until the obstetrician was no longer uncertain (n = 292). The main outcome was death or disability at or beyond 2 years of age. Disability was defined as a Griffiths developmental quotient of 70 or less or the presence of motor or perceptual severe disability. Analysis was by intention‐to‐treat. This trial has been assigned the International Standard Randomized Controlled Trial Number ISRCTN41358726.Findings  Primary outcomes were available on 290 (98%) immediate and 283 (97%) deferred deliveries. Overall rate of death or severe disability at 2 years was 55 (19%) of 290 immediate births, and 44 (16%) of 283 delayed births. With adjustment for gestational age and umbilical‐artery Doppler category, the odds ratio (95% CrI) was 1.1 (0.7–1.8). Most of the observed difference was in disability in babies younger than 31 weeks of gestation at randomization: 14 (13%) immediate vs. five (5%) delayed deliveries. No important differences in the median Griffiths developmental quotient in survivors was seen.Interpretation  The lack of difference in mortality suggests that obstetricians are delivering sick preterm babies at about the correct moment to minimize mortality. However, they could be delivering too early to minimize brain damage. These results do not lend support to the idea that obstetricians can deliver before terminal hypoxaemia to improve brain development.
Information needs of Hong Kong Chinese patients undergoing surgery
Authors: Henderson Amanda , Chien Wai‐Tong 
Published: November 2004

Background.  The provision of information to patients is an important aspect of contemporary health care. Limitations in health resources necessitates that the provision of information is carefully planned and culturally specific to maximize the benefits to patients from the resources available.Aim and objectives.  The purposes of the study were to recognize Chinese surgical patients’ information needs on admission and ascertain why the information is important to assist in understanding how it is used and, therefore, its potential impact.Methods.  A descriptive study design was used. A convenience sample of 83 surgical patients took part comprising 51 men and 32 women. An eight‐item questionnaire based on the right of patients to information as listed in the Patients’ Charter in Hong Kong using a 5‐point Likert scale and one open‐ended question to comment on why the information was important to them was completed by patients on the day of admission.Results.  Patients rated highly the need for all types of information. They rated most highly the need for information about the signs and symptoms indicating postoperative complications and when to seek medical help. Patients did not rate as highly, information regarding why the doctor believes the surgery is important, treatment alternatives and explanation of the procedure.Conclusions.  These findings indicate that Chinese patients are desirous of a range of relevant information.Relevance to practice.  Nursing staff, in particular, need to consider the ‘timeliness’ of information and the cultural appropriateness of how information is delivered.
Ecohydrology and Environmental Change to Lake Albacutya and Wyperfeld Park in North‐Western Victoria, Australia
Authors: BREN LEON , SANDELL PETER 
Published: November 2004

AbstractLake Albacutya is a well‐known intermittent lake in north‐western Victoria. The lake is near the termination of the Wimmera River. From time‐to‐time the lake fills and flow passes down Outlet Creek into Wyperfeld National Park. The wetlands associated with the lake have a high biodiversity value and are named in international treaties. This paper examines the hydrologic factors associated with lake filling and flow into Wyperfeld. The lake has filled approximately six times since 1880 and has partially filled on other occasions. Examination of rainfall data from 1875 at Horsham gave no indication of long term rainfall decline, and showed that rainfall at Horsham can be viewed as representative of rainfall in the Wimmera River catchment. However a double‐mass analysis showed that the relationship between the Wimmera River flow and rainfall has varied from 1890 to the present. Examination of data associated with six fillings of Lake Albacutya suggested that filling is a two‐year event requiring at least 550 GL of flow passing Horsham over the two years immediately associated with the flood. A simple model based on rainfall and this threshold reproduced observed characteristics of the data reasonably well. This suggested that the flooding frequency of Lake Albacutya has dropped from about one in 25 years in the natural state to a substantially lower frequency under current river conditions. The results also suggested that because of changes in the Wimmera River the last filling and flood into Wyperfeld in 1976 was far smaller than it would otherwise have been. This is consistent with field mapping of the flood in relation to River Red Gum (Eucalyptus camaldulensis Dehnh.) stands. Analysis of the health of these stands showed major dieback with the severity of this being roughly proportional to the distance from the 1976 flood boundaries. An examination of values associated with the lake and adjoining Wyperfeld National Park suggested that biodiversity and economic values are and will be compromised by the reduction in flooding. In particular, an internationally‐known provenance of Red Gum is at risk, and bird‐breeding opportunities have diminished.
Tropical Cyclones in the Great Barrier Reef, Australia, 1910–1999: a First Step Towards Characterising the Disturbance Regime
Authors: PUOTINEN M.L. 
Published: November 2004

AbstractThe proximity of a reef to a tropical cyclone path is the simplest means of estimating the potential for disturbance (that is, physical damage from waves) at that reef. Calculated for cyclones that tracked across a sample of reefs spanning much of the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) from 1910 to 1999, such proximities provide a preliminary history of cyclone disturbance in that region for which spatial and temporal trends can be examined. As the long‐term dynamics of cyclone disturbance affect the structure and function of coral reef communities, the disturbance regime can be used to consider whether the current state of coral communities (as measured in 1999) represents that which was present over the entire time series, and whether the frequency of cyclone disturbance across the GBR is high (limited recovery time between events) or intermediate (variable recovery time between events) in nature. This analysis reveals that for more than half of the GBR, the latest major disturbance occurred less recently than normal for the time series (current communities had more time for recovery than usual) and that these disturbances are generally intermediate in frequency. However, because many factors other than distance affect the potential for disturbance, these results represent a first step towards characterising the nature of cyclone disturbance across the GBR.
Thinking about Affirmative Action: Arguments Supporting Preferential Policies
Authors: Massey Garth 
Published: November 2004

AbstractDespite a history of legal discrimination and practices of racial and ethnic exclusion, there is widespread doubt about the fairness and applicability of affirmative action policies. Opponents range from the most socially and politically conservative to moderates who find it difficult to justify preferential policies. The current debate over affirmative action in higher education has temporarily shifted to arguments concerning the value of diversity and avoids questions about the fundamental justification for affirmative action throughout society. There are several reasons to provide affirmative action policies. Three of these, commonly heard in popular discourse, are weak arguments that are not compelling in the current climate of opinion. Three other arguments, though seldom heard, are strong and provide the basis for affirmative action to be recognized as both a logical and moral imperative. These are based on rational choice, Rawls's theory of justice, and the consideration of a desirable future. The strong arguments can move the discourse concerning this important issue of public policy in the direction favoring preferential treatment of persons likely to experience discrimination or ascriptive barriers to equity and equal opportunity.
A Lingering Question of Priorities: Athletic Budgets and Academic Performance Revisited1
Authors: Meier Kenneth J. , Eller Warren S. , Marchbanks Miner P. , Robinson Scott , Polinard J. L. , Wrinkle Robert D. 
Published: November 2004

AbstractMany organization theories suggest that divergent goals can hamper an organization's pursuit of its primary mission. An earlier version of this article analyzed the effect of the pursuit of divergent goals on American public schools. This is an update of the original article that adds two years of data to the original study. Using an educational production function, this article assesses the relationships between athletic budgets and various aggregate measures of academic performance. Controlling for various known components of academic performance, athletic budgets have a significant negative relationship with academic performance. Schools that devote a large amount of resources to athletic budgets have lower levels of academic achievement. A focus on athletics seems to institutionalize goals that conflict with the schools’ academic missions.
Innovating Science Policy: Restructuring S&T Policy for the Twenty‐first Century1
Authors: Richardson James J. , Matson Whitney B. , Peters Robert J. 
Published: November 2004

AbstractOver the next twenty years, accelerating scientific and technical developments will spawn immense changes to society that can be both crucially beneficial and tragically destructive. This trend, principally occurring outside of government control, is both helping the United States to improve defense and economic security and producing threats to national security. To deal with these increasingly technical issues, the nation's leadership needs to be armed with considerable scientific and technological acumen. Hence, the United States should explore the creation of a national security science and technology (S&T) strategy that improves: (1) scientific analysis available to decision makers; (2) understanding of the S&T needed to maintain national security; (3) coordination and collaboration among S&T providers; (4) control of dangerous technologies; (5) technology prioritization and acquisition processes; and (6) the dialog on enhancing the application of the products of private sector and foreign research for American national security purposes. Policies that address these issues will have to achieve the difficult balance between government and scientists’ influence over research and development (R&D). This article explores how to better deliver technical advice to high‐level decision makers, as a means to better deal with emerging threats that are enabled by the rapid innovation and proliferation of scientific knowledge throughout the world.
Serologic and Molecular Characterization of
Vibrio parahaemolyticus
Strains Isolated from Seawater and Fish Products of the Gulf of Mexico
Authors: Cabrera-García María Eugenia , Vázquez-Salinas Carlos , Quiñones-Ramírez Elsa Irma 
Published: November 2004

ABSTRACT

The thermostable direct hemolysin (TDH) and TDH-related hemolysin (TRH) are the main virulence factors of
Vibrio parahaemolyticus
. We isolated
V. parahaemolyticus
from seawater, fish, and oysters obtained from the Pueblo Viejo Lagoon in Veracruz, determined the serogroups, phenotypically and genotypically characterized TDH and TRH, and investigated the presence of the
toxR
gene. A total of 46
V. parahaemolyticus
strains were isolated, and all of them amplified the 368-bp
toxR
gene fragment. The
trh
gene was not identified in any of the strains; 4 of the 46 strains were Kanagawa phenomenon (KP) positive and amplified the 251-bp
tdh
gene fragment. The most frequent serogroup was serogroup O3. This is the first report of the presence of KP-positive
tdh
-positive environmental
V. parahaemolyticus
strains in Mexico.
Diversity and Distribution of
Frankia
Strains Symbiotic with
Ceanothus
in California
Authors: Oakley Brian , North Malcolm , Franklin Jerry F. , Hedlund Brian P. , Staley James T. 
Published: November 2004

ABSTRACT

Frankia
strains symbiotic with
Ceanothus
present an interesting opportunity to study the patterns and causes of
Frankia
diversity and distribution within a particular host infectivity group. We intensively sampled
Frankia
from nodules on
Ceanothus
plants along an elevational gradient in the southern Sierra Nevada of California, and we also collected nodules from a wider host taxonomic and geographic range throughout California. The two sampling scales comprised 36 samples from eight species of
Ceanothus
representing six of the seven major biogeographic regions in and around California. The primary objective of this study was to use a quantitative model to test the relative importance of geographic separation, host specificity, and environment in influencing the identity of
Ceanothus Frankia
symbionts as determined by ribosomal DNA sequence data. At both sampling scales,
Frankia
strains symbiotic with
Ceanothus
exhibited a high degree of genetic similarity.
Frankia
strains symbiotic with
Chamaebatia
(
Rosaceae
) were within the same clade as several
Ceanothus
symbionts. Results from a classification and regression tree model used to quantitatively explain
Frankia
phylogenetic groupings demonstrated that the only significant variable in distinguishing between phylogenetic groups at the more local sampling scale was host species. At the regional scale,
Frankia
phylogenetic groupings were explained by host species and the biogeographic province of sample collection. We did not find any significant correspondence between
Frankia
and
Ceanothus
phylogenies indicative of coevolution, but we concluded that the identity of
Frankia
strains inhabiting
Ceanothus
nodules may involve interactions between host species specificity and geographic isolation.
No Significant Contribution of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi to Transfer of Radiocesium from Soil to Plants
Authors: Joner E. J. , Roos P. , Jansa J. , Frossard E. , Leyval C. , Jakobsen I. 
Published: November 2004

ABSTRACT

The diffuse pollution by fission and activation products following nuclear accidents and weapons testing is of major public concern. Among the nuclides that pose a serious risk if they enter the human food chain are the cesium isotopes
137
Cs and
134
Cs (with half-lives of 30 and 2 years, respectively). The biogeochemical cycling of these isotopes in forest ecosystems is strongly affected by their preferential absorption in a range of ectomycorrhiza-forming basidiomycetes. An even more widely distributed group of symbiotic fungi are the arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi, which colonize most herbaceous plants, including many agricultural crops. These fungi are known to be more efficient than ectomycorrhizas in transporting mineral elements from soil to plants. Their role in the biogeochemical cycling of Cs is poorly known, in spite of the consequences that fungal Cs transport may have for transfer of Cs into the human food chain. This report presents the first data on transport of Cs by these fungi by use of radiotracers and compartmented growth systems where uptake by roots and mycorrhizal hyphae is distinguished. Independent experiments in three laboratories that used different combinations of fungi and host plants all demonstrated that these fungi do not contribute significantly to plant uptake of Cs. The implications of these findings for the bioavailability of radiocesium in different terrestrial ecosystems are discussed.
Glutamine, Glutamate, and α-Glucosylglycerate Are the Major Osmotic Solutes Accumulated by
Erwinia chrysanthemi
Strain 3937
Authors: Goude Renan , Renaud Stéphanie , Bonnassie Sylvie , Bernard Théophile , Blanco Carlos 
Published: November 2004

ABSTRACT

Erwinia chrysanthemi
is a phytopathogenic soil enterobacterium closely related to
Escherichia coli
. Both species respond to hyperosmotic pressure and to external added osmoprotectants in a similar way. Unexpectedly, the pools of endogenous osmolytes show different compositions. Instead of the commonly accumulated glutamate and trehalose,
E. chrysanthemi
strain 3937 promotes the accumulation of glutamine and α-glucosylglycerate, which is a new osmolyte for enterobacteria, together with glutamine. The amounts of the three osmolytes increased with medium osmolarity and were reduced when betaine was provided in the growth medium. Both glutamine and glutamate showed a high rate of turnover, whereas glucosylglycerate stayed stable. In addition, the balance between the osmolytes depended on the osmolality of the medium. Glucosylglycerate and glutamate were the major intracellular compounds in low salt concentrations, whereas glutamine predominated at higher concentrations. Interestingly, the ammonium content of the medium also influenced the pool of osmolytes. During bacterial growth with 1 mM ammonium in stressing conditions, more glucosylglycerate accumulated by far than the other organic solutes. Glucosylglycerate synthesis has been described in some halophilic archaea and bacteria but not as a dominant osmolyte, and its role as an osmolyte in
Erwinia chrysanthemi
3937 shows that nonhalophilic bacteria can also use ionic osmolytes.
Representative Freshwater Bacterioplankton Isolated from Crater Lake, Oregon
Authors: Page Kathleen A. , Connon Stephanie A. , Giovannoni Stephen J. 
Published: November 2004

ABSTRACT

High-throughput culturing (HTC) methods that rely on dilution to extinction in very-low-nutrient media were used to obtain bacterial isolates from Crater Lake, Oregon. 16S rRNA sequence determination and phylogenetic reconstruction were used to determine the potential ecological significance of isolated bacteria, both in Crater Lake and globally. Fifty-five Crater Lake isolates yielded 16 different 16S rRNA gene sequences. Thirty of 55 (55%) Crater Lake isolates had 16S rRNA gene sequences with 97% or greater similarity to sequences recovered previously from Crater Lake 16S rRNA gene clone libraries. Furthermore, 36 of 55 (65%) Crater Lake isolates were found to be members of widely distributed freshwater groups. These results confirm that HTC is a significant improvement over traditional isolation techniques that tend to enrich for microorganisms that do not predominate in their environment and rarely correlate with 16S rRNA gene clone library sequences. Although all isolates were obtained under dark, heterotrophic growth conditions, 2 of the 16 different groups showed evidence of photosynthetic capability as assessed by the presence of
puf
operon sequences, suggesting that photoheterotrophy may be a significant process in this oligotrophic, freshwater habitat.
Differentiation of
Micromonospora
Isolates from a Coastal Sediment in Wales on the Basis of Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy, 16S rRNA Sequence Analysis, and the Amplified Fragment Length Polymorphism Technique
Authors: Zhao Hongjuan , Kassama Yankuba , Young Michael , Kell Douglas B. , Goodacre Royston 
Published: November 2004

ABSTRACT

A number of actinomycetes isolates were recovered from coastal sediments in Aberystwyth (Wales, United Kingdom) with standard isolation techniques. Most of them were putatively assigned to the genera
Streptomyces
and
Micromonospora
on the basis of their morphological characteristics, and there appeared to be no difference whether the isolation media contained distilled water or seawater. A group of 20
Micromonospora
isolates was selected to undergo further polyphasic taxonomic investigation. Three approaches were used to analyze the diversity of these isolates, 16S rDNA sequencing, fluorescent amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP), and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR). The 16S rDNA sequence analysis confirmed that all of these isolates should be classified to the genus
Micromonospora
, and they were analyzed with a group of other
Micromonospora
16S rDNA sequences available from the Ribosomal Database Project. The relationships of the 20 isolates were observed after hierarchical clustering, and almost identical clusters were obtained with these three techniques. This has obvious implications for high-throughput screening for novel actinomycetes because FT-IR spectroscopy, which is a rapid and reliable whole-organism fingerprinting method, can be applied as a very useful dereplication tool to indicate which environmental isolates have been cultured previously.