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Terms modified by Like Selected AbstractsTowards a platform for the metabonomic profiling of different strains of Drosophila melanogaster using liquid chromatography,Fourier transform mass spectrometryFEBS JOURNAL, Issue 22 2009Muhammad A. Kamleh A platform based on hydrophilic interaction chromatography in combination with Fourier transform mass spectrometry was developed in order to carry out metabonomics of Drosophila melanogaster strains. The method was able to detect , 230 metabolites, mainly in the positive ion mode, after checking to eliminate false positives caused by isotope peaks, adducts and fragment ions. Two wild-type strains, Canton S and Oregon R, were studied, plus two mutant strains, Maroon Like and Chocolate. In order to observe the differential expression of metabolites, liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry analyses of the different strains were compared using sieve 1.2 software to extract metabolic differences. The output from sieve was searched against a metabolite database using an Excel-based macro written in-house. Metabolic differences were observed between the wild-type strains, and also between both Chocolate and Maroon Like compared with Oregon R. It was established that a metabonomic approach could produce results leading to the generation of new hypotheses. In addition, the structure of a new class of lipid with a histidine head group, found in all of the strains of flies, but lower in Maroon Like, was elucidated. [source] A to G transitions at 260, 386 and 437 in DAZL gene are not associated with spermatogenic failure in Indian populationINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ANDROLOGY, Issue 5 2006K. Thangaraj Summary The autosomal DAZL (Deleted-in- Azoospermic- Like) gene, mapped to the short arm of the human chromosome 3, is the precursor for the Y-chromosomal DAZ cluster, which encodes for putative RNA-binding proteins. Mutations in the DAZL have been reported to be associated with spermatogenic failure in Taiwanese population but not in Caucasians. As there was no study on Indian populations, we have analysed the entire coding sequences of exons 2 and 3 of DAZL in a total of 1010 men from Indian subcontinent, including 660 infertile men with 598 non-obstructive azoospermia, 62 severe oligozoospermia and 350 normozoospermic fertile control men, to investigate whether mutation(s) in the DAZL is associated with male infertility. Interestingly, none of our samples (1010) showed A386G (T54A) mutation, which was found to be associated with spermatogenic failure in Taiwanese population. In contrast, A260G (T12A) mutation was observed in both infertile and normozoospermic fertile control men, without any significant association with infertile groups (,2 = 0.342; p = 0.556). Similarly, we have found a novel A437G (I71V) mutation, which is also present in both infertile and normozoospermic fertile control men without any significant difference (,2 = 0.476; p = 0.490). Our study clearly demonstrates the complete absence of the A386G (T54A) mutation in Indian subcontinent and the other two mutations , A260G (T12A) and A437G (I71V) , observed are polymorpic. Therefore, we conclude that these mutations in the DAZL gene are not associated with male infertility in Indian subcontinent. [source] A new bacteriophage, VHML, isolated from a toxin-producing strain of Vibrio harveyi in tropical AustraliaJOURNAL OF APPLIED MICROBIOLOGY, Issue 4 2000H.J. Oakey Some strains of Vibrio harveyi are known to be pathogenic for fish and many invertebrates including crustaceans. Despite their importance, their modes of virulence have yet to be fully elucidated. Here, we present a previously unreported bacteriophage extracted from a toxin-producing strain of V. harveyi isolated from moribund prawn larvae in tropical Australia. Classification into the family Myoviridae was based upon morphological characteristics (an icosahedral head, a neck/collar region and a sheathed rigid tail) and nucleic acid characteristics (double-stranded linear DNA). We have termed the bacteriophage VHML (Vibrio Harveyi Myovirus Like). VHML is a temperate bacteriophage that has a narrow host range and shows an apparent preference for V. harveyi above other vibrios (63 Vibrio isolates tested) and other genera (10 other genera were tested). The conventional methods for phage concentration and extraction of nucleic acids from phage particles were not efficient and the alternative methods that were used are discussed. [source] You Keep Coming Back Like A Song: Adult Audiences, Taste Panics, and the Idea of the StandardJOURNAL OF POPULAR MUSIC STUDIES, Issue 1 2001Keir Keightley [source] Some Like It Hot: Teaching Strategies for Managing Tactical Versus Genuine Anger in NegotiationsNEGOTIATION AND CONFLICT MANAGEMENT RESEARCH, Issue 4 2008Holly A. Schroth Abstract A critically important skill in any negotiation is the ability to manage the emotions that are inevitably evoked by conflict. Anger is one of the most widely studied emotions that occur in negotiation. The purpose of this article is to introduce strategies for managing tactical and genuine anger in negotiations. The difference between tactical and genuine anger is discussed along with different strategies for managing each of these types of anger. The article concludes with advice for instructors to help negotiation students acquire experience in managing both their own and the other party's anger. [source] Inter-Strain Variability of Insertion/Deletion Events in the Encephalitozoon cuniculi Genome: A Comparative KARD-PFGE AnalysisTHE JOURNAL OF EUKARYOTIC MICROBIOLOGY, Issue 2001JEAN-FRANCOIS BRUGERE ABSTRACT. We applied a two-dimensional pulsed-field gel electrophoresis procedure to the genomes of two karyotype variants assigned to two different strains of the microsporidian Encephalitozoon cuniculi, termed D (strain III) and F (strain II). Data obtained for BssHII and Mlul restriction fragment length polymorphisms in each chromosome are compiled and compared to the reference strain I variant A. Six Insertion/Deletion (InDels) are found in subterminal position, some of these being characteristic of either D or F. Like in strain I, the terminal fragments extending between each telomere and rDNA locus are conserved in length for each chromosome. They are however smaller than in reference variant. This size reduction is estimated to be 2.5 kbp for the strain III isolate and 3.5 kbp for the strain II isolate. We hypothesize that for the three E. cuniculi strains, all chromosome extremities are prone to a constant process of sequence homogenization through mitolic recombination between conserved regions. [source] One of These Things Is Not Like the Others: The Idea of Precedence in Health Technology Assessment and Coverage DecisionsTHE MILBANK QUARTERLY, Issue 2 2005MITA GIACOMINI Health plans often deliberate covering technologies with challenging purposes, effects, or costs. They must integrate quantitative evidence (e.g., how well a technology works) with qualitative, normative assessments (e.g., whether it works well enough for a worthwhile purpose). Arguments from analogy and precedent help integrate these criteria and establish standards for their policy application. Examples of arguments are described for three technologies (ICSI, genetic tests, and Viagra). Drawing lessons from law, ethics, philosophy, and the social sciences, a framework is developed for case-based evaluation of new technologies. The decision-making cycle includes (1) taking stock of past decisions and formulating precedents, (2) deciding new cases, and (3) assimilating decisions into the case history and evaluation framework. Each stage requires distinctive decision maker roles, information, and methods. [source] Exuberance, I Don't Know; Excess, I LikeARCHITECTURAL DESIGN, Issue 2 2010Hernan Diaz Alonso Abstract Hernan Diaz Alonso redefines ,excess' and ,exuberance' on his own terms. Fully au fait and comfortable with the excessive, he describes how in relation to his own work he views excess as more of a tendency or a logic, which sums up his approach; whereas he perceives the exuberant as removed from the design process and more like an ,adjective', an ,emerging quality' observed by others. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] End-of-Life Caregiving Often Like a Full-Time JobCA: A CANCER JOURNAL FOR CLINICIANS, Issue 3 2007Article first published online: 31 DEC 200 No abstract is available for this article. [source] Immersive Integration of Physical and Virtual EnvironmentsCOMPUTER GRAPHICS FORUM, Issue 3 2004Henry Fuchs We envision future work and play environments in which the user's computing interface is more closely integrated with the physical surroundings than today's conventional computer display screens and keyboards. We are working toward realizable versions of such environments, in which multiple video projectors and digital cameras enable every visible surface to be both measured in 3D and used for display. If the 3D surface positions were transmitted to a distant location, they may also enable distant collaborations to become more like working in adjacent offices connected by large windows. With collaborators at the University of Pennsylvania, Brown University, Advanced Network and Services, and the Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center, we at Chapel Hill have been working to bring these ideas to reality. In one system, depth maps are calculated from streams of video images and the resulting 3D surface points are displayed to the user in head-tracked stereo. Among the applications we are pursuing for this tele-presence technology, is advanced training for trauma surgeons by immersive replay of recorded procedures. Other applications display onto physical objects, to allow more natural interaction with them "painting" a dollhouse, for example. More generally, we hope to demonstrate that the principal interface of a future computing environment need not be limited to a screen the size of one or two sheets of paper. Just as a useful physical environment is all around us, so too can the increasingly ubiquitous computing environment be all around us -integrated seamlessly with our physical surroundings. [source] ,She looks just like one of we-all': British cinema culture and the origins of Woolf's OrlandoCRITICAL QUARTERLY, Issue 2 2006ANDREW SHAIL First page of article [source] Decentralization and Democracy in Indonesia: A Critique of Neo-Institutionalist PerspectivesDEVELOPMENT AND CHANGE, Issue 4 2004Vedi R. Hadiz This article assesses some of the major premises of neo-institutionalist explanations of decentralization policy and practices, but focuses especially on the relationship between decentralization and democracy, in the context of the recent and ongoing Indonesian experience with decentralization. In the last two decades ,decentralization' has become, along with ,civil society', ,social capital' and ,good governance', an integral part of the contemporary neo-institutionalist lexicon, especially that part which is intended to draw greater attention to ,social' development. The concern of this article is to demystify how, as a policy objective, decentralization has come to embody a barely acknowledged political, not just theoretical, agenda. It also suggests alternative ways of understanding why decentralization has often failed to achieve its stated aims in terms of promoting democracy, ,good governance', and the like. What is offered is an understanding of decentralization processes that more fully incorporates the factors of power, struggle and interests, which tend to be overlooked by neo-institutionalist perspectives. The current Indonesian experience clearly illustrates the way in which institutions can be hijacked by a wide range of interests that may sideline those that champion the worldview of ,technocratic rationality'. [source] Functional analysis of murine CBF1 during Drosophila developmentDEVELOPMENTAL DYNAMICS, Issue 4 2006Markus Kaspar Abstract Transcription factors of the CSL family are the main mediators of the Notch signalling pathway. The CSL factor in Drosophila is called Suppressor of Hairless (Su(H)) and it has been shown that it acts as a transcriptional repressor in the absence of a Notch signal and as a transcriptional activator in its presence in several developmental contexts. Furthermore, recent data suggest that Su(H) can also activate and maintain transcription of some target genes in a Notch-independent manner. However, although it has been shown that the mammalian CSL ortholog, CBF1, acts as a repressor of transcription in cell culture experiments, so far in vivo evidence for such a function has been lacking. Moreover, it is not known whether CBF1 can activate transcription in a Notch-independent manner, just like Su(H). Here we have investigated these questions by introducing murine CBF1 (mCBF1) and asked whether it can functionally replace Su(H) during Drosophila development. We found that this is indeed the case. We show that mCBF1 can act as a repressor of transcription and can activate and maintain the expression of some target genes in a Notch-independent manner. Our results, therefore, indicate that CBF1 can exert these functions also in its normal context, that is during mammalian development. Developmental Dynamics 235:918,927, 2006. © 2006 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Complexity and Educational Research: A critical reflectionEDUCATIONAL PHILOSOPHY AND THEORY, Issue 1 2008Lesley Kuhn Abstract Judgements concerning proper or appropriate educational endeavour, methods of investigation and philosophising about education necessarily implicate perspectives, values, assumptions and beliefs. In recent years ideas from the complexity sciences have been utilised in many domains including psychology, economics, architecture, social science and education. This paper addresses questions concerning the appropriateness of utilising complexity science in educational research as well as issues relating to the ways in which complexity might be engaged. I suggest that, just like all human endeavour, approaches to research emerge out of discursive communities and can be understood as self-organising, dynamic and emergent over time. In this formulation, complexity represents one such newly emergent approach. I argue that it is important that researchers partake in critical and reflective discourse about the nature of education and conceptual frameworks, as well as about impacts and legacies of utilising complexity, so as to participate in and influence the ongoing emergence of educational endeavour. I conclude by suggesting a series of caveats for researchers considering using complexity in educational research. [source] Conformational effects on the performance and selectivity of a polymeric pseudostationary phase in electrokinetic chromatographyELECTROPHORESIS, Issue 4-5 2005Jonathan P. McCarney Abstract The effect of the conformation of a polymeric pseudostationary phase on performance and selectivity in electrokinetic chromatography was studied using an amphiphilic pH-responsive polymer that forms compact intramolecular aggregates (unimer micelles) at low pH and a more open conformation at high pH. The change in conformation was found to affect the electrophoretic mobility, retention, selectivity, and separation efficiency. The low-pH conformer has higher electrophoretic mobility and greater affinity for most solutes. The unimer micelle conformation was also found to provide a solvation environment more like that of micelles and other amphiphilic self-associative polymers studied previously. It was not possible to fully characterize the effect of conformation on efficiency, but very hydrophobic solutes with long alkyl chains appeared to migrate with better efficiency when the unimer micelle conformation was employed. The results imply that polymers with a carefully optimized lipophilic-hydrophilic balance that allow self-association will perform better as pseudostationary phases. In addition, the results show that electrokinetic chromatography is a useful method for determining the changes in solvation environment provided by stimuli-responsive polymers with changes in the conditions. [source] Unexpected Tethering in the Synthesis of Methyl-Substituted Acetyl-1-oxaspiro[4.5]decanes: Novel Woody,Ambery Odorants with Improved Bioavailability,EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF ORGANIC CHEMISTRY, Issue 2 2008Philip Kraft Abstract To study the olfactory properties of spirocyclic analogs of Iso Gamma (3) with improved water solubility and bioavailability, it was envisaged to spiroannulate 1-acetyl-1,2-dimethylcyclohexanone at the 4-position with a 3,3-dimethyltetrahydrofuran-2-yl moiety that would mimic the polarity of the double bond by its ether function. 3,3-Dimethyl-4-methylenehex-5-en-1-ol (9) was prepared by copper(I)-mediated 1,4-conjugate addition of the Grignard reagent of chloroprene (7) to 3-methylbut-2-enal with subsequent LAH reduction. However, the Diels,Alder reaction of diene 9 with (E)-3-methylpent-3-en-2-one in the presence of Me2AlCl unexpectedly provided exclusively the undesired meta adduct 10, as was discovered after cyclization to 11 with MeSO3H. The wrong selectivity was due to a tethering effect of the Lewis acid, and this could be evaded by changing the carbonyl function of the dienophile to a hydroxy group. Thereby the (5,R*,7,S*,8,S*)-configured 1-(4,,4,,7,,8,-tetramethyl-1,-oxaspiro[4.5]decan-7,/8,-yl)ethan-1-ones 11 and 14, as well as the like -configured 1-(4,,4,,7,-trimethyl-1,-oxaspiro[4.5]decan-7,/8,-yl)ethan-1-ones 16 and 19, were prepared selectively and studied for their odor characters, threshold values, and octanol/water partition coefficients. (© Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, 69451 Weinheim, Germany, 2008) [source] On extrinsic information of good binary codes operating over Gaussian channelsEUROPEAN TRANSACTIONS ON TELECOMMUNICATIONS, Issue 2 2007M. Peleg We show that the extrinsic information about the coded bits of any good (capacity achieving) binary code operating over a Gaussian channel is zero when the channel capacity is lower than the code rate and unity when capacity exceeds the code rate, that is, the extrinsic information transfer (EXIT) chart is a step function of the signal to noise ratio and independent of the code. It follows that, for a common class of iterative receivers where the error correcting decoder must operate at first iteration at rate above capacity (such as in turbo equalization, iterative channel estimation, parallel and serial concatenated coding and the like), classical good codes which achieve capacity over the Additive White Gaussian Noise Channel are not effective and should be replaced by different new ones. Copyright © 2006 AEIT. [source] Evolutionary archeology: Current status and future prospectsEVOLUTIONARY ANTHROPOLOGY, Issue 1 2002Michael J. O'Brien Abstract Darwinian evolution can be defined minimally as "any net directional change or any cumulative change in the characteristics of , populations over many generations,in other words, descent with modification"1 (p. 5). In archeology the population comprises artifacts, which are conceived of as phenotypic.2,4 Extension of the human phenotype to include ceramic vessels, projectile points, and the like is based on the notion that artifacts are material expressions of behavior, which itself is phenotypic. Archeology's unique claim within the natural sciences is its access to past phenotypic characters. Thus, historical questions are the most obvious ones archeologists can ask, although admittedly this is hardly a strong warrant for asking them. But if the issue is evolution, then historical questions must be asked. Posing and answering historical questions is the goal of evolutionary archeology.5. [source] Targeting leukocyte trafficking to inflamed skin , still an attractive therapeutic approach?EXPERIMENTAL DERMATOLOGY, Issue 1 2007Thomas M. Zollner Abstract:, Research into leukocyte trafficking and its therapeutic exploitation appears to be a multistep process, just like the trafficking cascade itself. The initial euphoria evoked by an early understanding of the trafficking steps was followed by considerable disappointment following the clinical failure of the first selectin antagonist Cylexin (CY-1503), a sialyl LewisX mimetic. The research area recovered and identified additional attractive pharmacological targets such as chemokine receptors and integrins. However, after lack of efficacy in anti-chemokine trials and the fatalities associated with anti VLA-4 therapy (Tysabri), the question arose again whether targeting leukocyte trafficking is really promising or whether such a complex, multistep process with many redundant and/or functionally overlapping molecules is simply too challenging to deal with. In this article, we delineate some pros and cons of this approach followed by a brief update on where we stand in the field and where we might move in the future. [source] Bacteria as computers making computersFEMS MICROBIOLOGY REVIEWS, Issue 1 2009Antoine Danchin Abstract Various efforts to integrate biological knowledge into networks of interactions have produced a lively microbial systems biology. Putting molecular biology and computer sciences in perspective, we review another trend in systems biology, in which recursivity and information replace the usual concepts of differential equations, feedback and feedforward loops and the like. Noting that the processes of gene expression separate the genome from the cell machinery, we analyse the role of the separation between machine and program in computers. However, computers do not make computers. For cells to make cells requires a specific organization of the genetic program, which we investigate using available knowledge. Microbial genomes are organized into a paleome (the name emphasizes the role of the corresponding functions from the time of the origin of life), comprising a constructor and a replicator, and a cenome (emphasizing community-relevant genes), made up of genes that permit life in a particular context. The cell duplication process supposes rejuvenation of the machine and replication of the program. The paleome also possesses genes that enable information to accumulate in a ratchet-like process down the generations. The systems biology must include the dynamics of information creation in its future developments. [source] The archaeal Hjm helicase has recQ-like functions, and may be involved in repair of stalled replication forkGENES TO CELLS, Issue 2 2006Ryosuke Fujikane The archaeal Hjm is a structure-specific DNA helicase, which was originally identified in the hyperthermophilic archaeon, Pyrococcus furiosus, by in vitro screening for Holliday junction migration activity. Further biochemical analyses of the Hjm protein from P. furiosus showed that this protein preferably binds to fork-related Y-structured DNAs and unwinds their double-stranded regions in vitro, just like the E. coli RecQ protein. Furthermore, genetic analyses showed that Hjm produced in E. coli cells partially complemented the defect of functions of RecQ in a recQ mutant E. coli strain. These results suggest that Hjm may be a functional counterpart of RecQ in Archaea, in which it is necessary for the maintenance of genome integrity, although the amino acid sequences are not conserved. The functional interaction of Hjm with PCNA for its helicase activity further suggests that the Hjm works at stalled replication forks, as a member of the reconstituted replisomes to restart replication. [source] Neo-Liberalism as Creative DestructionGEOGRAFISKA ANNALER SERIES B: HUMAN GEOGRAPHY, Issue 2 2006David Harvey Abstract Neoliberalization has swept across the world like a vast tidal wave of institutional reform and discursive adjustment, entailing much destruction, not only of prior institutional frameworks and powers, but also of divisions of labor, social relations, welfare provisions, technological mixes, ways of life, attachments to the land, habits of the heart, ways of thought, and the like. To turn the neoliberal rhetoric against itself, we may reasonably ask: in whose particular interests is it that the state take a neoliberal stance and in what ways have these particular interests used neoliberalism to benefit themselves rather than, as is claimed, everyone, everywhere? Neoliberalism has spawned a swath of oppositional movements. The more clearly oppositional movements recognize that their central objective must be to confront the class power that has been so effectively restored under neoliberalization, the more they will likely themselves cohere. [source] The grobal in the sporting glocalGLOBAL NETWORKS, Issue 2 2007DAVID L. ANDREWS Abstract This article provides a counterpoint to analyses of contemporary sport culture that falsely polarize the global and the local, in a manner that tends to privilege, and indeed romanticize, expressions of the sporting local. Rather than treating them as mutually exclusive categories, this discussion seeks to further the understanding of the constitutive interdependence linking the (sporting) global and the (sporting) local. In looking to further the understanding of the contemporary sporting landscape, we offer an alternative approach that reinscribes the influence of the global in shaping structures, practices, and experiences of the sporting local. The processual and empirical continuum through which we conceptualize globalization is bounded by grobalization (the imperialistic ambitions of nations, corporations, organizations, and the like and their desire, indeed need, to impose themselves on various geographic areas) and glocalization (the interpenetration of the global and the local, resulting in unique outcomes in different geographic areas): the grobal and the glocal. We discuss four sport scenarios, and illustrate the manner in which they exhibit , in varying inflections and to varying intensities , the necessary, but never guaranteed, interpenetrative relationship between the grobal and the glocal. This is achieved by both problematizing the very possibility of the sporting local within conditions of intensive and extensive globalization (leading to the concept of the glocal), and simultaneously explicating the importance of the global (through the concept of the grobal) to the structure and experience of everyday sport cultures. [source] The impact of organizational climate and strategic fit on firm performanceHUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT, Issue 1 2004Richard M. Burton A firm's organizational climate,its degree of trust, morale, conflict, rewards equity, leader credibility, resistance to change, and scapegoating,helps determine its success. Likewise, organizational strategy,the firm's commitment to capital investment, innovation, quality, and the like,has also been found to be an important determinant of firm performance. However, prior work has most often explored the impact of climate and strategy separately, and not in tandem. In our study, we develop a measure of organizational climate comprised of tension, resistance to change, and conflict, and go on to show that at least for some pairings of a firm's climate and its strategy, there is a negative effect on return on assets (ROA). © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [source] Characterization of cells of the B lineage in the human adult greater omentumIMMUNOLOGY, Issue 1 2006Laurent Boursier Summary Peritoneal B cells and their omental precursors play an important role in the immune response of the peritoneal cavity and mucosal surfaces in mice. We have previously shown that peritoneal and mucosal B lineage cells are unlikely to be significantly linked in humans. However, the status of the omentum remains unknown. Here, using immunohistochemistry, we observed that sparse, quiescent B cells and occasional clusters of B cells were present in the omentum and that plasma cells, predominantly with cytoplasmic immunoglobulin G (IgG), were present. We analysed sequences of immunoglobulin genes amplified using reverse transcriptase,polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) from the normal human greater omentum, and describe the characteristics of variable region genes used by IgG, IgA and IgM. We focused on the properties of IgVH4 and IgVH5 families to allow comparisons of like with like between different Ig isotypes and cells from different immune compartments. We observed that the IgM genes were derived from a mixed population with mutated and unmutated immunoglobulin sequences. All IgVH4 and IgVH5 genes used by IgA and IgG from omental cells showed evidence of somatic hypermutation but the load of mutations was not significantly different to that seen in either the systemic or the mucosal compartments. The trends observed, including the dominance of IgG plasma cells, the IgA1/IgA2 ratio being biased towards IgA1, JH1 usage, and a moderate level of somatic mutations, link omental B lineage cells with the systemic compartment. These observations reinforce previous studies highlighting the difference between human and murine B-cell compartments and their relationship to the mucosal immune system. [source] Fides Quaerens Intellectum: Reflections towards an Explorative Theology1INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF SYSTEMATIC THEOLOGY, Issue 1 2006HANS G. ULRICH Further, the status of theological research, in which ,the discovery of new facts' or the like is at best ambiguous as an aim, must be under question. This article argues that the aim of theological research is to discover what life lived as if theological claims were true might look like. [source] Emigration from China: A Sending Country PerspectiveINTERNATIONAL MIGRATION, Issue 3 2003Xiang Biao This paper aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the policies pursued by the People's Republic of China (PRC) regarding the emigration of Chinese nationals. Most of the available literature on migration management has focused on receiving countries. With a few exceptions, little attention has been directed at migration management policies pursued in countries of origin. In the case of the PRC, policies regarding overseas Chinese have been fairly well documented and researched, but very little has been written about how the Chinese authorities manage ongoing emigration flows. This gap becomes particularly salient as the importance of the "partnership with the countries of origin" in devising migration policies is being increasingly acknowledged by receiving countries in Europe (Commission of the European Communities, 2000). Over the last 20 years, there have been significant changes in the Chinese Government's policies and perspectives on emigration. But, just like most other governments, the Chinese authorities do not have a single blanket policy covering all categories of emigrants. Emigration is normally managed on a case-by-case basis and the Government's attitude toward the same type of emigration may vary depending on different cases and circumstances. Because of this, this article examines China's major emigration-related policy spheres one by one. Specifically, six issues will be discussed: (1) exit control; (2) diaspora policy; (3) student migration; (4) labour export; (5) regulations on emigration agencies and, finally (6) the Government's response to human smuggling. This article shows both the coherence and the fragmentation in China's policies toward emigration. The coherence is due to the fact that all the policies are inherently linked to China's overall economic and social development strategy. The emigration management regime is sometimes fragmented partly because emigration consists of different streams and is handled by different Government departments, partly because some emigration issues (such as regulations on emigration agents) are very new for the Chinese Government and the authorities are still exploring them. Overall, the Chinese authorities increasingly see emigration as a means to enhance China's integration to the world and are keen to avoid conflicts with the international community over migration issues. At the same time, China's emigration policies need to be more balanced, in particular, the emigration of unskilled labour should be given more priority. [source] Membrane vesicles containing matrix metalloproteinase-9 and fibroblast growth factor-2 are released into the extracellular space from mouse mesoangioblast stem cells,JOURNAL OF CELLULAR PHYSIOLOGY, Issue 1 2010Maria Elena Candela Certain proteins, including fibroblast growth factor-2 (FGF-2) and matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9), have proved very effective in increasing the efficacy of mesoangioblast stem cell therapy in repairing damaged tissue. We provide the first evidence that mouse mesoangioblast stem cells release FGF-2 and MMP-9 in their active form through the production of membrane vesicles. These vesicles are produced and turned over continuously, but are stable for some time in the extracellular milieu. Mesoangioblasts shed membrane vesicles even under oxygen tensions that are lower than those typically used for cell culture and more like those of mouse tissues. These findings suggest that mesoangioblasts may themselves secrete paracrine signals and factors that make damaged tissues more amenable to cell therapy through the release of membrane vesicles. J. Cell. Physiol. 224:144,151, 2010 © 2010 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Patients' perceptions of the concept of the quality of care in the psychiatric setting: a phenomenographic studyJOURNAL OF CLINICAL NURSING, Issue 1 2006Agneta Schröder MSc Aim., The aim was to describe how patients perceived the concept of quality of care in psychiatric care. Background., It is important to include patients' experiences in defining quality of care and in the development of instruments measuring quality of psychiatric care, as patients have unique information. But only a limited number of studies have directly involved patients. Design., It was a qualitative interview study with 20 adult in and outpatients from psychiatric care. Method., A phenomenographic approach was used for the analysis of the interviews. Results., The results showed that quality of care was perceived as a positive concept, namely as ,good' quality of care. The normative component was striking. Five descriptive categories emerged: The patient's dignity is respected; The patient's sense of security with regard to care; The patient's participation in the care; The patient's recovery; and The patient's care environment. Two conceptions emerged that had not emerged explicitly in earlier studies of quality of care: Being helped to reduce the shame and Being looked upon as like anyone else. Conclusions., The findings emphasize the importance of the interpersonal relationship between patients and staff. There is a need for further exploration of central aspects of quality in psychiatric care. Relevance to clinical practice., It is important that the knowledge about how patients perceived the quality of care in psychiatric care is included in the planning and evaluation of care. The guidelines should designate quality of care from the patient perspective as the goal of interventions. [source] Amino Acid Absorption in Portal Blood After Duodenal Infusions of a Soy Protein Hydrolysate Prepared by a Novel Soybean Protease D3JOURNAL OF FOOD SCIENCE, Issue 7 2006Tomohiro Kodera ABSTRACT:, The intestinal absorption of amino acids from decapeptide was investigated in rats under unrestrained conditions. The soy protein hydrolysate utilized in the experiment was produced by a novel soybean protease D3. The enzymatic features of protease D3 showed high homology with cathepsin L and cathepsin K and the average molecular weight of D3 hydrolysate is approximately 1200. We compared the intestinal absorption of D3 hydrolysate in portal blood with that of an amino acids mixture and soy protein with the same amino acid composition by determining the concentration of individual amino acids after a single administration of a nitrogen source. The absorptive velocity and intensity of each amino acid were calculated from its rate of elevation in the portal blood. And in most cases, these were higher in the D3 hydrolysate than in amino acids mixture and protein. The proportion of the amount of each amino acid absorbed in portal blood from D3 hydrolysate was much more like the composition of the administrated amino acids than like that from the amino acids mixture. The result of in vitro digestion assay indicated that D3 hydrolysate was hydrolyzed easier than the hydrolysates produced by microbial proteases. This is the first report to demonstrate that the D3 hydrolysate, which contains decapeptide as a dominant fraction, was more rapidly utilized than the amino acids mixture and protein as is the case with di-, tripeptides. This suggested that this hydrolysate could be available for nutraceutical use as well as use in nutritious foods for athletes and patients. [source] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||