CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY, Issue 4 2009
JULIE LIVINGSTON
ABSTRACT This essay considers new forms of investment, risk, and self-determination, among Botswana's middle and aspirant classes, as well as the loneliness and rage that are at stake when they fail. In it, I use specific instances and more widespread talk of suicides and murder,suicides contemplated, attempted, and accomplished as a vehicle for pondering the social dimensions of investment, and the perils of secrecy and the loneliness that shadow it. Amid a new regime of risk, investment, and self-determination brought by discontinuities of economic boom and widespread AIDS death over the past decade, Batswana are facing new questions about how to invest in relationships, selves, and futures. The essay concludes with a radically different context, a cancer ward, where Batswana seek to exile suicide and nihilism from the beds, minds, and hearts of patients through processes of socialization and paternalism that deny self-determination, while at the same time questing for and demanding investment in high-tech biomedicine. [source]

MENGZI AND LÉVINAS: THE HEART AND SENSIBILITY

JOURNAL OF CHINESE PHILOSOPHY, Issue 4 2008
WU XIAOMING
[source]

Moral judgment in high-functioning pervasive developmental disorders

PSYCHIATRY AND CLINICAL NEUROSCIENCES, Issue 4 2007
TOSHINOBU TAKEDA md
Abstract Individuals with pervasive developmental disorder (PDD) are characterized by deficits in socialization. To date, moral judgment, which may have a considerable influence on socialization, has not been fully investigated in high-functioning PDD (HFPDD), particularly from a viewpoint of practical adjustment with peers. Human External Action and its internal Reasoning Type (HEART), a standardized test for evaluating moral judgment in school children developed in Japan, was used to compare various aspects of moral judgment between 23 students with HFPDD (6,14 years old) and 23 students with typical development matched for age, intelligence, and socioeconomic status. Students with HFPDD scored significantly lower on Internal Moral Reasoning than control students. As for the level of Internal Moral Reasoning, while both groups reached a conventional (third) level in almost all items, fewer students with HFPDD achieved an autonomous (fourth) level and more students with HFPDD remained at a heteronomous (second) level than did control students. In the HFPDD group there were significant positive correlations between some items of Internal Moral Reasoning and verbal ability-related items of Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-III. A comparatively lower score in students with HFPDD may relate to difficulty in socialization. [source]

PHILOSOPHY, THE RESTLESS HEART AND THE MEANING OF THEISM

RATIO, Issue 4 2006
John Haldane
There is a common philosophical challenge that asks how things would be different if some supposed reality did not exist. Conceived in one way this can amount to trial by sensory verification. Even if that challenge is dismissible, however, the question of the relation of the purported reality to experience remains. Writing here in connection with the central claims, and human significance, of theism; and drawing on ideas suggested by C. S. Pierce, C. S. Lewis, Augustine of Hippo and Thomas Aquinas, I aim to turn the tables and argue that the broad structure and basic features of human cognitive and affective experience indicate their fulfilment in God. [source]

ENDOPLASMIC RETICULUM STRESS INVOLVED IN HEART AND LIVER INJURY IN IRON-LOADED RATS

CLINICAL AND EXPERIMENTAL PHARMACOLOGY AND PHYSIOLOGY, Issue 7 2009
Li-Xia Lou
SUMMARY 1Iron overload contributes to the pathogenesis of various diseases and directly induces tissue injury. In the present study, we investigated the relationship between heart and liver injury induced by iron overload and cellular endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress to explore the molecular mechanism of iron overload-induced cellular injury. 2Iron overload in rats was generated by intraperitoneal injection of iron,dextran chronically (30 mg/kg per day for 9 weeks) or acutely (300 mg/kg once). Tissue injury was assessed by determining serum lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) activity, as well as malondialdehyde (MDA) content in the heart and liver. The ER stress response was analysed by expression of glucose-response protein 78 (GRP78) and activation of caspase 12. 3In chronic iron-loaded rats, iron levels in the heart and liver were higher, by approximately 2-and 7.8-fold, respectively (P < 0.01), compared with control. Serum LDH, ALT and AST activity, as well as MDA content, GRP78 expression and caspase 12 activity in the heart and liver, were upregulated in chronically iron-loaded rats. In acute iron-loaded rats, iron content in the heart and liver was 51% and 63% higher than in controls (both P < 0.01). Serum LDH, ALT and AST activity, MDA content in the heart and liver and levels of ER stress markers were all increased in acute iron-loaded rats. N -Acetylcysteine (150 mg/kg, s.c.) lowered the levels of these parameters in acute iron-loaded rats. 4The results of the present study indicate that ER stress may play an important role in iron-induced tissue injury and that reactive oxygen species may mediate the ER stress response in the pathogenesis of iron-overload cellular injury. [source]

HUMAN HEART ,-ADRENOCEPTORS: ,1 -ADRENOCEPTOR DIVERSIFICATION THROUGH ,AFFINITY STATES' AND POLYMORPHISM

CLINICAL AND EXPERIMENTAL PHARMACOLOGY AND PHYSIOLOGY, Issue 10 2007
P Molenaar
SUMMARY 1In atrium and ventricle from failing and non-failing human hearts, activation of ,1 - or ,2 -adrenoceptors causes increases in contractile force, hastening of relaxation, protein kinase A-catalysed phosphorylation of proteins implicated in the hastening of relaxation, phospholamban, troponin I and C-protein, consistent with coupling of both ,1 - and ,2 -adrenoceptors to stimulatory Gsa -protein but not inhibitory Gia -protein. 2Two ,affinity states', namely ,1H and ,1L, of the ,1 -adrenoceptor exist. In human heart, noradrenaline elicits powerful increases in contractile force and hastening of relaxation. These effects are blocked with high affinity by ,-adenoceptor antagonists, including propranolol, (,)-pindolol, (,)-CGP 12177 and carvedilol. Some beta-blockers, typified by (,)-pindolol and (,)-CGP 12177, not only block the receptor, but also activate it, albeit at much higher concentrations (approximately 2 log units) than those required to antagonize the effects of catecholamines. In human heart, both (,)-CGP 12177 and (,)-pindolol increase contractile force and hasten relaxation. However, the involvement of the ,1 -adrenoceptor was not immediately obvious because (,)-pindolol- and (,)-CGP 12177-evoked responses were relatively resistant to blockade by (,)-propranolol. Abrogation of cardiostimulant effects of (,)-CGP 12177 in ,1 -/,2 -adrenoceptor double-knockout mice, but not ,2 -adrenoceptor-knockout mice, revealed an obligatory role of the ,1 -adrenoceptor. On the basis of these results, two ,affinity states' have been designated, the ,1H - and ,1L -adrenoceptor, where the ,1H -adrenoceptor is activated by noradrenaline and blocked with high affinity by beta-blockers and the ,1L -adrenoceptor is activated by drugs such as (,)-CGP 12177 and (,)-pindolol and blocked with low affinity by beta-blockers such as (,)-propranolol. The ,1H - and ,1L -adrenoceptor states are consistent with high- and low-affinity binding sites for (,)-[3H]-CGP 12177 radioligand binding found in cardiac muscle and recombinant ,1 -adrenoceptors. 3There are two common polymorphic locations of the ,1 -adrenoceptor, at amino acids 49 (Ser/Gly) and 389 (Arg/Gly). Their existence has raised several questions, including their role in determining the effectiveness of heart failure treatment with beta-blockers. We have investigated the effect of long-term maximally tolerated carvedilol administration (> 1 year) on left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) in patients with non-ischaemic cardiomyopathy (mean left ventricular ejection fraction 23 ± 7%; n = 135 patients). The administration of carvedilol improved LVEF to 37 ± 13% (P < 0.005); however, the improvement was variable, with 32% of patients showing £ 5% improvement. Upon segregation of patients into Arg389Gly-,1 -adrenoceptors, it was found that carvedilol caused a greater increase in left ventricular ejection faction in patients carrying the Arg389 allele with Arg389Arg > Arg389Gly > Gly389Gly. [source]

AUTONOMIC and RESPIRATORY RESPONSES TO MICROINJECTION OF ATP INTO THE INTERMEDIATE OR CAUDAL NUCLEUS TRACTUS SOLITARIUS IN THE WORKING HEART,BRAINSTEM PREPARATION OF THE RAT

CLINICAL AND EXPERIMENTAL PHARMACOLOGY AND PHYSIOLOGY, Issue 5-6 2005
Vagner R Antunes
SUMMARY 1.,Activation of peripheral chemoreceptors with KCN in the working heart,brainstem preparation from young male Wistar rats (70,90 g) increases phrenic (PNA; +105 ± 18%) and thoracic (tSNA; +44 ± 6%) sympathetic nerve activity compared with baseline and reduces heart rate (HR; from 377 ± 27 to 83 ± 6 b.p.m.). 2.,Microinjections of increasing doses of ATP (1, 5, 25, 100 and 500 mmol/L; n = 7) into the intermediate nucleus tractus solitarius (NTS) produced a dose-dependent reduction in PNA (from ,6 ± 3 to ,82 ± 1%) and in HR (from ,12 ± 4 to ,179 ± 47 b.p.m.). Microinjections of ATP into the intermediate NTS also produced a reduction in tSNA (from ,3 ± 3 to ,26 ± 5%), which was not dose dependent. 3.,Microinjections of ATP into the caudal NTS (n = 5) produced a dose-dependent increase in PNA (from 0.2 ± 3 to 115 ± 27%) and minor changes in HR and tSNA, which were not dose dependent. 4.,The data show that microinjection of ATP into distinct subregions of the NTS produces different respiratory and autonomic responses and suggest that ATP in the caudal NTS is involved in the respiratory but not in the sympathoexcitatory component of the chemoreflex. [source]

,,AND THEIR HEARTS AND MINDS WILL FOLLOW,?

IDS BULLETIN, Issue 3 2002
Authority, Legitimacy in Democratic South Africa, Tax Collection
First page of article [source]

OUT OF THE GOODNESS OF THEIR HEARTS?

JOURNAL OF URBAN AFFAIRS, Issue 1 2008
REGULATORY AND REGIONAL IMPACTS ON BANK INVESTMENT IN HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT IN THE UNITED STATES
ABSTRACT:,Banks are considered key actors in affordable housing and community development in the United States. Their involvement in such activities may be due partly to their dependence on economic rents generated from development. In the United States, however, banks are encouraged to support such activities by the federal 1977 Community Reinvestment Act (CRA). I examine how different factors explain the CRA-qualified investments by banks. Qualified investments are essentially nondebt financial resources provided as an equity investment or grant with a community development purpose. I find that the identity of the regulator (the United States has four banking regulators) has a major impact on the level of qualified investments. Other things equal, a difference in regulators can cause a bank's qualified investments to more than double. Besides suggesting that some regulators may be enforcing a major portion of CRA regulations more vigorously than others, this also suggests that the CRA plays a major role in bank investment in community development. This has policy implications not just in the United States but also in other countries that might consider replicating the CRA. [source]

RISK MEASURES ON ORLICZ HEARTS

MATHEMATICAL FINANCE, Issue 2 2009
Patrick Cheridito
Coherent, convex, and monetary risk measures were introduced in a setup where uncertain outcomes are modeled by bounded random variables. In this paper, we study such risk measures on Orlicz hearts. This includes coherent, convex, and monetary risk measures on Lp -spaces for 1 ,p < , and covers a wide range of interesting examples. Moreover, it allows for an elegant duality theory. We prove that every coherent or convex monetary risk measure on an Orlicz heart which is real-valued on a set with non-empty algebraic interior is real-valued on the whole space and admits a robust representation as maximal penalized expectation with respect to different probability measures. We also show that penalty functions of such risk measures have to satisfy a certain growth condition and that our risk measures are Luxemburg-norm Lipschitz-continuous in the coherent case and locally Luxemburg-norm Lipschitz-continuous in the convex monetary case. In the second part of the paper we investigate cash-additive hulls of transformed Luxemburg-norms and expected transformed losses. They provide two general classes of coherent and convex monetary risk measures that include many of the currently known examples as special cases. Explicit formulas for their robust representations and the maximizing probability measures are given. [source]

Persistence of Left Supracardinal Vein in an Adult Patient with Heart,Hand Syndrome and Cardiac Pacemaker

CONGENITAL HEART DISEASE, Issue 3 2008
Jan Nemec MD
ABSTRACT A patient with a sporadic heart,hand syndrome, which includes thumb hypoplasia, septum primum atrial septal defect, and cleft mitral valve is described. During attempted placement of a pacemaker lead, persistence of left superior and inferior vena cava was found in addition to the right-sided caval veins. This corresponds to persistence of left-sided supracardinal vein present during fetal development. [source]

Hydrogels as a Platform for Stem Cell Delivery to the Heart

CONGESTIVE HEART FAILURE, Issue 3 2010
Mazen Kurdi PhD
Stem cell therapy offers great promise to repair the injured or failing heart. The outcomes of clinical trials to date, however, have shown that the actual benefit realized falls far short of the promise. A number of factors may explain why that is the case, but poor stem cell retention and engraftment in the hostile environment of the injured heart would seem to be a major factor. Improving stem cell retention and longevity once delivered would seem a logical means to enhance their reparative function. One way to accomplish this goal may be injectable hydrogels, which would serve to fix stem cells in place while providing a sheltering environment. Hydrogels also provide a means to allow for the paracrine factors produced by encapsulated stem cells to diffuse into the injured myocardium. Alternatively, hydrogels themselves can be used for the sustained delivery of reparative factors. Here the authors discuss chitosan-based hydrogels. Congest Heart Fail. 2010;16:132,135. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [source]

Heart in a Hard Cage: Startling Calcific Constrictive Pericarditis

CONGESTIVE HEART FAILURE, Issue 3 2008
Nandakumar Srinivasan MD
"My heart is turned to stone; I strike it and it hurts my hand.",Shakespeare, from Othello. [source]

Myocardial Perfusion As Assessed by Positron Emission Tomography During Long-Term Mechanical Circulatory Support

CONGESTIVE HEART FAILURE, Issue 2 2006
George V. Letsou MD
Although mechanical circulatory support (MCS) can improve myocardial function in patients with advanced heart failure, its effects on relative myocardial perfusion are unclear. Using positron emission tomographic imaging techniques, the authors assessed relative myocardial perfusion in patients with ischemic or idiopathic cardiomyopathy who were receiving chronic MCS with a left ventricular assist device (pulsatile HeartMate [n=2] [Thoratec Corporation, Pleasanton, CA] or nonpulsatile Jarvik 2000 [n=4] [Jarvik Heart, Inc., New York, NY]). Relative myocardial perfusion was compared at lower and higher levels of MCS (50 vs. 100,110 ejections/min for the HeartMate and 8000 vs. 12,000 rpm for the Jarvik 2000). The size and severity of perfusion defects at rest and after dipyridamole stress were measured objectively and subjectively by computer algorithms and visual inspection, respectively. Relative myocardial perfusion increased >5% from baseline in only one of six patients when MCS was increased. No change in relative myocardial perfusion of >5% was seen in any of the other five patients, even after subsequent dipyridamole stress positron emission tomographic imaging. These pilot study findings suggest that the decreased metabolic requirements induced by ventricular unloading correspondingly decreased blood flow requirements to physiologically inactive myocardium. [source]

Impact of substance use on the physical health of patients with bipolar disorder

ACTA PSYCHIATRICA SCANDINAVICA, Issue 6 2010
M. P. Garcia-Portilla
Garcia-Portilla MP, Saiz PA, Benabarre A, Florez G, Bascaran MT, Díaz EM, Bousoño M, Bobes J. Impact of substance use on the physical health of patients with bipolar disorder. Objective:, To describe the impact of tobacco, alcohol and cannabis on metabolic profile and cardiovascular risk in bipolar patients. Method:, Naturalistic, cross-sectional, multicenter Spanish study. Current use of tobacco, alcohol and cannabis was determined based on patient self-reports. Metabolic syndrome was defined using the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 1999,2000 and the American Heart Association/National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute criteria, and cardiovascular risk using the Framingham and the Systematic Coronary Risk Evaluation functions. Results:, Mean age was 46.6 years, 49% were male. Substance use: 51% tobacco, 13% alcohol and 12.5% cannabis. Patients who reported consuming any substance were significantly younger and a higher proportion was male. After controlling for confounding factors, tobacco was a risk factor for coronary heart disease (CHD) (unstandardized linear regression coefficient 3.47, 95% confidence interval 1.85,5.10). Conclusion:, Substance use, mainly tobacco, was common in bipolar patients. Tobacco use negatively impacted CHD risk. [source]

Prevalence of undiagnosed Type 2 diabetes and impaired fasting glucose in older B ritish men and women

DIABETIC MEDICINE, Issue 6 2005
M. C. Thomas
Abstract Aim To estimate the prevalence of undiagnosed diabetes and impaired fasting glucose in older British men and women, using the 1999 World Health Organization (WHO) thresholds based on fasting glucose measurements. Methods Participants in the British Regional Heart Study and the British Women's Heart and Health Study were selected from one socially representative general practice in 24 British towns. Included in this analysis were 3736 men and 3642 women aged 60,79 years (predominantly white), who provided a single fasting blood sample at a clinical examination between 1998 and 2001, and who had no previous diagnosis of diabetes. Results Two hundred and eleven men (5.7%) and 190 women (5.2%) had a fasting blood glucose level consistent with the WHO threshold for a diagnosis of diabetes (, 7.0 mmol/l), whilst a further 667 men (17.9%) and 642 women (17.6%) had impaired fasting glucose levels (6.1 , 7 mmol/l). When analyses were restricted to subjects who had fasted for at least 8 h, and whose blood sample was taken before 12.00 h, the predicted prevalence of undiagnosed diabetes (based on two separate measurements) was 6.7% in men and 6.0% in women. The predicted prevalence of impaired fasting glucose (based on two separate measurements) was approximately 20% in both sexes. Conclusions More than one-fifth of older white British men and women have either undiagnosed diabetes or impaired fasting glucose according to new WHO criteria. Strategies for the primary and secondary prevention of Type 2 diabetes among older individuals are urgently needed. [source]

Sin and the Broken Heart

DIALOG, Issue 2 2000
Susan Nelson
[source]

"Machiavelli with a Heart": The Johnson Administration's Food for Peace Program in India, 1965,1966*

DIPLOMATIC HISTORY, Issue 4 2007
Kristin L. Ahlberg
First page of article [source]

Athletes' Heart and Echocardiography: Athletes' Heart

ECHOCARDIOGRAPHY, Issue 7 2008
B.Sc., Martin Stout M.Sc.
Sudden death of competitive athletes is rare. However, they continue to have an impact on both the lay and medical communities. These deaths challenge the perception that trained athletes represent the healthiest segment of modern society. There is an increasing frequency of such reported deaths worldwide and the visibility of this issue is underlined by the high-profile nature of each case. Differential diagnosis between pathological and the physiologic (nonpathological) responses to high levels of physical training has become clinically more important. The purpose of this review is to highlight the main echocardiograph characteristics related to different types of training/sports participation and to highlight already recognized and newer concepts in their clinical assessment. [source]

Evidence of Robust Coupling of Atrioventricular Mechanical Function of the Right Side of the Heart: Insights from M-Mode Analysis of Annular Motion

ECHOCARDIOGRAPHY, Issue 6 2008
Raveen Bazaz M.D.
Background: Extensive data exist regarding annular descent and ventricular function. We have already demonstrated significant differences in amplitude and timing of events between maximal mitral (MAPSE) and tricuspid (TAPSE) annular plane systolic excursion as well as described quantitative temporal differences in annular ascent (AA) between the right and left sides of the heart. However, whether any relationship exists between annular ascent and descent components remains uninvestigated. Methods: Left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), right ventricular fractional area change (RVFAC), MAPSE, TAPSE, MV, and TV AA as well as pulsed tissue Doppler of the lateral MV and TV annuli were recorded from 53 patients. Results: In this population (age 55 ± 17 years) mean LVEF was 55 ± 19%, mean RVFAC was 47 ± 20%, mean MAPSE was 2.11 ± 0.72 cm, mean TAPSE was 1.48 ± 0.44 cm, mean MV AA was 0.52 ± 0.17 cm, TV AA was 0.96 ± 0.47, MV A-wave 0.10 ± 0.04 cm/s, and TV A-wave was 0.13 ± 0.05 cm/s. A more robust correlation was seen between TV AA and RVFAC than between MV AA and LVEF and also between TV AA and pulsed TDI TV A-wave velocity than between MV AA and pulsed TDI MV A-wave. Conclusion: Our data reveal that mechanical systolic functions of the atria and the ventricles are more closely coupled on the right than on the left side of the heart. Whether this is a result of anatomic linking or chamber geometry will require further study. [source]

The Prevalence of Valvular Abnormalities in Patients Who Were Referred for Echocardiographic Examination With a Primary Diagnosis of "Heart Murmur"

ECHOCARDIOGRAPHY, Issue 5 2007
Mohammad-Reza Movahed M.D., Ph.D.
Introduction: The prevalence of valvular abnormality and innocent murmur in patients who are referred for echocardiographic evaluation with the diagnosis of "murmur" is not known. The goal of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of valvular abnormalities in such patients. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the echocardiograms that were referred with the primary ordering diagnosis of "murmur," for the presence of valvular abnormalities. For comparison, we used other documented primary reasons for echocardiographic referral, such as chest pain, shortness of breath, etc. Results: In this cohort, 7,684 echocardiogram reports documented primary diagnostic reasons for echocardiographic referral. A total of 3,460 echocardiogram reports (45%) were coded "murmur" as the primary reason for the study referral. There was a higher prevalence of female patient referrals for heart murmur evaluation (61.8% vs. 38.2%). Although, patients with murmur had a higher prevalence of valvular abnormalities, compared to other reasons for echocardiographic examination, the prevalence of valvular abnormality was less than 50% (48.6% vs. 35.5%) in both groups. Despite the higher number of female patients referred with the diagnosis of murmur, the percentage of abnormal valves was lower in women (45.6% vs. 53.4% in men). Conclusion: The prevalence of valvular abnormalities in patients who were referred with the diagnosis of murmur for echocardiographic examination was less than 50%, with a lesser degree found in women. Routine utilization of echocardiography for evaluation of all murmurs may be unwarranted. [source]

Close Physical Contact of the Heart with Diaphragm Causes Pseudo-Asynergy of Left Ventricular Inferior Wall in Normal Subjects

ECHOCARDIOGRAPHY, Issue 7 2004
Susumu Sakurai Ph.D.
Paradoxical outward movement of left ventricular (LV) inferior wall in systole is occasionally recognized in normal subjects and clinically important in terms of the differential diagnosis between physiological pseudo-asynergy and pathological asynergy. In this study, the potential mechanisms by which pseudo-asynergy of LV inferior wall (PLI) is observed in normal subjects were investigated. PLI was defined as the outward movement of LV inferior wall observed during more than 50% of systole. The incidence of PLI was evaluated in 7843 consecutive subjects in routine echocardiography. The effects of body position and artificial gravity on the manifestation of PLI were also examined. PLI was observed in 0.11% (9/7842) of subjects on left lateral position. Measurement of the angle formed by LV long-axis and the long-axis of the body on frontal plane revealed that hearts in subjects with PLI were in relatively horizontal position. PLI was observed on sitting position in 43% (40/92) of subjects without PLI on left lateral position. The subjects with sitting position-induced PLI exhibited significantly higher obesity index. PLI was also induced by artificial gravity in 67% (14/21) of healthy volunteers on supine position, and the degree of PLI correlated with the intensity of gravity. Although the incidence of PLI in routine echocardiography is relatively low, PLI can be induced in normal subjects by any condition that causes close contact of LV inferior wall to diaphragm. Thus, PLI should be taken into consideration in the differential diagnosis of abnormal LV inferior wall motion, especially when performing exercise echocardiography. [source]

Heart and carotid artery disease in stroke patients with intermittent claudication

EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF NEUROLOGY, Issue 5 2000
X. F. Liu
Much has been published on the natural history of intermittent claudication (IC), but little is known about the clinical features of stroke patients with IC. The purpose of this study was to examine clinical features and risk factors in stroke patients with or without IC, including heart disease and carotid artery disease. A hospital-based study was conducted of 3901 stroke patients, who were prospectively coded and entered into a computerized databank. Of these patients, 219 had symptoms of IC. Patients were subdivided by age into 10-year categories. There were at least 12 times more non-IC than IC patients in each category. An age-matched random sample was obtained containing 12 non-IC cases for each IC case, resulting in 219 cases of IC and 2628 non-IC cases. The prevalence of IC in the total stroke population was 5.6%. IC prevalence increased sharply with age until about 70 years. Cardiac ischaemia and internal carotid artery (ICA) disease were significantly more frequent in stroke with IC than without IC. IC patients also exhibited a higher prevalence of atherosclerotic disease as well as other risk factors such as smoking, hypercholesterolaemia, elevated haematocrit, and family history of stroke. Ischaemic heart disease and ICA disease are especially common in stroke with IC. IC, large artery disease and stroke share similar risk factors. IC symptoms in stroke patients may indicate extensive generalized atherosclerosis. [source]

Physiological Society Symposium , the Athlete's Heart

EXPERIMENTAL PHYSIOLOGY, Issue 5 2003
Equine athletes, racing success, the equine athlete's heart
Our recent data have confirmed that maximum oxygen delivery in racing Thoroughbreds is positively correlated to left ventricular mass measured by echocardiography. A similar, but weaker relationship also exists between left ventricular mass and Timeform performance rating in commercial racehorses. The relationship of the Thoroughbred heart to racing success and the special problems that selective breeding for aerobic capacity have had in this species are reviewed in this article. [source]

Physiological Society Symposium , the Athlete's Heart

EXPERIMENTAL PHYSIOLOGY, Issue 5 2003
Athlete's heart, effect of age, ethnicity, sporting discipline
Regular physical training is associated with several physiological and biochemical adaptations which enable an increase in cardiac output and widening of the systemic arterio-venous oxygen difference. An increase in cardiac chamber size is fundamental to the generation of a sustained increase in cardiac output for prolonged periods. Echocardiographic studies have shown that the vast majority of athletes have modest cardiac enlargement although a small proportion exhibit substantial increases in heart size. Recognised determinants of cardiac size include age, sex, ethnicity and type of sport. Cardiac dimensions vary considerably amongst athletes, even when allowances are made for these variables, suggesting that genetic, endocrine and biochemical factors also influence heart size. This review discusses the effects of age, sex, ethnicity and sporting discipline on cardiac dimensions in athletic individuals. [source]

Effects of Direct Sympathetic and Vagus Nerve Stimulation on the Physiology of the Whole Heart , A Novel Model of Isolated Langendorff Perfused Rabbit Heart with Intact Dual Autonomic Innervation

EXPERIMENTAL PHYSIOLOGY, Issue 3 2001
G. André Ng
A novel isolated Langendorff perfused rabbit heart preparation with intact dual autonomic innervation is described. This preparation allows the study of the effects of direct sympathetic and vagus nerve stimulation on the physiology of the whole heart. These hearts (n= 10) had baseline heart rates of 146 ± 2 beats min,1 which could be increased to 240 ±11 beats min,1 by sympathetic stimulation (15 Hz) and decreased to 74 ± 11 beats min,1 by stimulation of the vagus nerve (right vagus, 7 Hz). This model has the advantage of isolated preparations, with the absence of influence from circulating hormones and haemodynamic reflexes, and also that of in vivo preparations where direct nerve stimulation is possible without the need to use pharmacological agents. Data are presented characterising the preparation with respect to the effects of autonomic nerve stimulation on intrinsic heart rate and atrioventricular conduction at different stimulation frequencies. We show that stimulation of the right and left vagus nerve have differential effects on heart rate and atrioventricular conduction. [source]

Kinetics of Thyroxine (T4) and Triiodothyronine (T3) Transport in the Isolated Rat Heart

EXPERIMENTAL PHYSIOLOGY, Issue 1 2001
Mirko A. Rosic
The dynamics and kinetics of thyroid hormone transport in the isolated rat heart were examined using the modified unidirectional paired tracer dilution method. The uptake of 125I-thyroxine (125I-T4) and 125I-triiodothyronine (125I-T3) from the extracellular space into heart cells was measured relative to the extracellular space marker 3H-mannitol. The thyroid hormone maximal uptake was 54.4% for 125I-T4 and 52.15% for 125I-T3. The thyroid hormone net uptake was 25.69% for 125I-T4 and 25.49% for 125I-T3. Backflux from the intracellular space was 53.17% for 125I-T4 and 61.59% for 125I-T3. In the presence of unlabelled thyroid hormones, 125I-T4 and 125I-T3 maximal uptakes were reduced from 10.1 to 59.74% and from 34.6 to 65.3%, respectively, depending on the concentration of the unlabelled hormone, suggesting a saturable mechanism of the thyroid hormone uptake by the heart cells, with Km(T4)= 105.46 ,M and the maximal rate of 125I-thyroid hormone flux from the extracellular space to heart cells (Vmax(T4)) = 177.84 nM min,1 for 125I-T4 uptake, and Km(T3)= 80.0 ,M and Vmax(T3)= 118.5 nM min,1 for 125I-T3 uptake. [source]

Heat Shock Protein Expression is Increased in Cardiac and Skeletal Muscles of Fischer 344 Rats After Endurance Training

EXPERIMENTAL PHYSIOLOGY, Issue 1 2000
T. R. Samelman
Heat shock proteins (HSPs) are expressed when cells are exposed to various types of stress and they may provide protection against cellular insult. Previous data have shown increases in HSP expression following acute exhaustive exercise in rats (Locke et al. 1990, 1995; Salo et al. 1991) and humans (Liu et al. 1999); however, it is not known if chronic exercise will increase resting levels of HSPs. The purpose of this study was to determine if basal protein levels of HSP 72/73 and HSP 60 are increased in cardiac and skeletal muscle of endurance trained Fischer 344 rats. Heart, soleus (SOL) and lateral gastrocnemius (LG) muscles were removed and hearts were sectioned into left ventricle (LV), right ventricle (RV) and atria (AT). Endurance training improved myocardial citrate synthase activity by 88, 90 and 77% and cytochrome c oxidase activity by 58, 51 and 89% in LV, RV and AT, respectively. LV and RV oxidative enzyme activities were greater when compared to AT for both trained and untrained rats (P < 0.05). HSP 72/73 expression was significantly greater (P < 0.05) in LV, RV and SOL from endurance trained versus from control rats (26, 45 and 67%, respectively). HSP 60 was also increased (P < 0.05) in LV, RV and SOL in trained relative to untrained rats. HSP 72/73 and HSP 60 were unchanged in AT and LG after training. These results indicate that endurance training increases the basal expression of stress proteins and this observation is consistent with the hypothesis that endurance training may activate a protective mechanism to stress. [source]

Testing the Biobehavioral Family Model in Pediatric Asthma: Pathways of Effect

FAMILY PROCESS, Issue 1 2008
BEATRICE L. WOOD PH.D.
This study uses a laboratory-based multiinformant, multimethod approach to test the hypothesis that a negative family emotional climate (NFEC) contributes to asthma disease severity by way of child depressive symptoms, and that parent-child relational insecurity mediates the effect. Children with asthma (n=199; aged 7,17; 55% male) reported parental conflict, parent-child relational security, and depressive symptoms. Parent(s) reported demographics, asthma history, and symptoms. Asthma diagnosis was confirmed by clinical evaluation and pulmonary function tests, with disease severity rated by an asthma clinician according to NHLBI guidelines. Family interactions were evoked using the Family Process Assessment Protocol, and rated using the Iowa Family Interaction Rating Scales. Path analysis indicated a good fit of data to the hypothesized model (,2[1]=.11, p=.74, NFI=.99, RMSEA=.00). Observed NFEC predicted child depression (,=.19, p<.01), which predicted asthma disease severity (,=.23, p<.01). Relational security inversely predicted depressive symptoms (,=,.40, p<.001), and was not a mediator as predicted, but rather an independent contributor. The findings are consistent with the Biobehavioral Family Model, which suggests a psychobiologic influence of specific family relational processes on asthma disease severity by way of child depressive symptoms. RESUMEN Prueba del Biobehavioral Family Model (Modelo familiar de biocomportamiento) en asma pediátrica: Factores desencadenantes Objetivo: Este estudio utiliza un método de laboratorio con varios informantes y distintos enfoques para probar la hipótesis de que un ambiente familiar negativo agrava la enfermedad del asma a través de síntomas de depresión infantil, y que la inseguridad en la relación entre padres e hijos influye en su efecto. Sujetos y métodos: Una serie de niños que padecen asma (n=199; edades entre 7 y 17; 55% varones) informaron sobre conflictos de pareja de sus padres, la seguridad en la relación con sus padres y síntomas de depresión. Los padres, por su parte, aportaron datos demográficos, antecedentes de asma e información acerca de los síntomas. El diagnóstico de asma fue confirmado por examen clínico y pruebas de pulmón, y un experto en asma determinó la gravedad de la enfermedad de acuerdo con las pautas del NHLBI (National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute). La interacción en familia fue simulada mediante el método Family Process Assessment Protocol (protocolo de evaluación de dinámicas familiares) y estimada mediante el Iowa Family Interaction Rating Scales (escala Iowa de interacciones familiares). Resultados: El análisis de camino demostró que los datos encajaron bien con el modelo de la hipótesis (,2[1]=.11, p=.74, NFI=.99, RMSEA=.00). En las familias en las que se observó un ambiente emocional negativo se predijo la depresión del niño o de la niña (,=.19, p<.01), lo que, a su vez, predijo un agravamiento del asma (,=.23, p<.01). Por otra parte, las relaciones positivas predijeron síntomas de depresión de manera inversa (,=.40, p<.001), y no resultaron ser un mediador, como se había predicho, sino un contribuidor independiente. Conclusión: Las averiguaciones coinciden con el Biobehavioral Family Model (modelo familiar de biocomportamiento), que sugiere la existencia de una influencia psicobiológica de procesos de relaciones familiares específicos en la gravedad de la enfermedad del asma a través de síntomas de depresión infantil. [source]

Currents: Books in Brief

GLOBAL BUSINESS AND ORGANIZATIONAL EXCELLENCE, Issue 3 2001
LaRoi Lawton
The Roots and Future of Management Theory Profit From the Core: Growth Strategy in an Era of Turbulence 90 Days to Launch: Internet Projects on Time and on Budget The Six Sigma Revolution: How General Electric and Others Turned Process into Profits In Good Company Evolve! Succeeding in the Digital Culture of Tomorrow Lessons from the Heart of American Business: A Roadmap for Managers in the 21st Century The Passion Plan at Work: A Step-by-Step Guide to Building a Passion-Driven Organization The Inner Work of Leaders: Leadership as a Habit of Mind Corporate Sin: Leaderless Leadership and Dissonant Workers The HR Scorecard Place to Space: Migrating to Ebusiness Models Building the Integrated Company Protecting Your Company's Intellectual Property: A Practical Guide to Trademarks, Copyrights, Patents, & Trade Secrets Gaming the System: Stop Playing the Organizational Game [source]