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Mobilization
Kinds of Mobilization Terms modified by Mobilization Selected AbstractsRISING FOOD PRICES, SOCIAL MOBILIZATIONS, AND VIOLENCE: CONCEPTUAL ISSUES IN UNDERSTANDING AND RESPONDING TO THE CONNECTIONS LINKING HUNGER AND CONFLICTANNALS OF ANTHROPOLOGICAL PRACTICE, Issue 1 2009Ellen Messer In 2008, the world confronted food-insecurity situations that provoked political demonstrations in more than 50 countries. The alleged sources were production failures and spiking food prices because of bad weather and flawed food and development policies. But additional contributors were the legacies of food wars, armed conflicts in which one or both sides use food (or hunger) as a weapon and in which hunger persists as a consequence of conflict and its attendant social-economic disruptions. This article argues that UN and NGO international and national agencies responding to food insecurity challenges in particular places must consider food-and-conflict scenarios, and adopt conflict-concerned strategies, which are sensitive to the ways in which past foodwars have stymied increases in agricultural production, marketing, and livelihood diversification. Policy makers should also be attentive to political-geographic-ethnic-religious (PGER) divisions that can skew government distributions and access to aid and potentiate additional conflict. [source] Mobilization of pesticides on an agricultural landscape flooded by a torrential stormENVIRONMENTAL TOXICOLOGY & CHEMISTRY, Issue 1 2005David B. Donald Abstract Mobilization of pesticides into surface waters of flooded agricultural landscapes following extreme precipitation events has not been previously investigated. After receiving 96 mm of rain in the previous 45 d, the Vanguard area of southeastern Saskatchewan, Canada, was subjected to a torrential storm on July 3, 2000, that produced as much as 375 mm of rain in 8 h. The majority of herbicides, but no insecticides, would have been applied to crops in the Vanguard area during the four weeks preceding the storm. After the storm, 19 herbicides and insecticides were detected in flooded wetlands, with 14 of them detected in 50% or more of wetlands. Average concentrations ranged from 0.43 ng/L (endosulfan) to 362 ng/L (2,4-dichlorophenoxyacedic acid). The pesticides probably were from long-range transport, followed by deposition in rain, and from herbicides applied to crops within the area subjected to the storm (1,700 km2). In the following year, when only 62 mm of rain fell in the same 45 d, only five pesticides were detected in 50% or more of wetlands. We estimated that for the 1,700-km2 storm zone, 278 kg of herbicide were mobilized into rain and by runoff into surface waters, and 105 kg were removed from the Vanguard area by discharge into Notukeu Creek. Significant quantities of herbicides are mobilized to aquatic environments when prairie agricultural landscapes are subjected to torrential storms. In these circumstances, flooded wells and small municipal reservoirs used as sources of drinking water may be compromised by 10 or more pesticides, some at relatively high concentrations. [source] Mobilization of metals from uranium mine waste: the role of pyoverdines produced by Pseudomonas fluorescensGEOBIOLOGY, Issue 4 2010F. EDBERG Microorganisms produce chelating agents, such as siderophores and other ligands, which allow them to mobilize and scavenge essential elements from the environment when bioavailability is low. To better understand the effects of biologically mediated leaching of metals from mine waste, Pseudomonas fluorescens was cultivated in the presence of processed ore from the former uranium mine in Ranstad, southern Sweden. Light conditions, the concentration of the mineral source and oxygen availability were varied. The presence of ore in the culture flasks enhanced bacterial growth and raised the pH of the culture medium. Increasing the amount of ore or enhancing aeration of the medium further encouraged cell growth and pH rise. Bacteria mobilized Fe, Ni and Co from the ore. Fe-siderophore complexes were detected and estimated to be present at approximately 9 ,m. In the presence of bacteria and light, dissolved Fe and U concentrations were higher compared to dark conditions. Increasing the amount of ore resulted in higher dissolved Ni concentrations but lower dissolved Fe, most likely due to precipitate formation. Data from this study support siderophore production by bacteria that allowed mobilization of essential nutrients from the processed ore. However, the availability of potentially toxic metals like Ni and U may also be enhanced. Microbial-promoted mobilization could contribute to leaching of toxic metals in current and historic mining areas. This process should be considered during design and implementation of remediation projects where trace metals are of environmental concern. [source] Calcium/calcineurin signaling in primary cortical astrocyte cultures: Rcan1-4 and cyclooxygenase-2 as NFAT target genesGLIA, Issue 7 2008Andrea Canellada Abstract The calcineurin/nuclear factor of activated T cells (NFAT) signaling pathway mediates important cell responses to calcium, but its activity and function in astrocytes have remained unclear. We show that primary cortical astrocyte cultures express the regulatory and catalytic subunits of the phosphatase calcineurin as well as the calcium-regulated NFAT family members (NFATc1, c2, c3, and c4). NFATs are activated by calcium-mobilizing agents in astrocytes, and this activation is blocked by the calcineurin inhibitor cyclosporine A. Microarray screening identified cyclooxygenase-2 (Cox-2), which is implicated in brain injury, and Rcan 1-4, an endogenous calcineurin inhibitor, as genes up-regulated by calcineurin-dependent calcium signals in astrocytes. Mobilization of intracellular calcium with ionophore potently augments the promoter activity and mRNA and protein expression of Rcan 1-4 and Cox-2 induced by combined treatment with phorbol esters. Moreover, Rcan 1-4 expression is efficiently induced by calcium mobilization alone. For both the genes, the calcium signal component is dependent on calcineurin and is replicated by exogenous expression of a constitutively active NFAT, strongly suggesting that the calcium-induced gene activation is mediated by NFATs. Finally, we report that calcineurin-dependent expression of Cox-2 and Rcan 1-4 is induced by physiological calcium mobilizing agents, such as thrombin, agonists of purinergic and glutamate receptors, and L-type voltage-gated calcium channels. These findings provide insights into calcium-initiated gene transcription in astrocytes, and have implications for the regulation of calcium responses in astrocytes. © 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Strength of two structured soils in triaxial compressionINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL FOR NUMERICAL AND ANALYTICAL METHODS IN GEOMECHANICS, Issue 2 2001Ron C. K. Wong Abstract Oil sands are dense granular materials with interlocked structure and clay shales are heavily overconsolidated clays. They are classified as structured soil or weak rock, exhibiting high peak strength with severe softening and dilation, particularly at low confining stress. The triaxial compression test results indicate that both materials yield linear Mohr,Coulomb envelopes with an apparent cohesion for peak and residual strengths. However, the strength components mobilized from these two materials are very different. This paper investigates if these strength parameters are intrinsic properties or responses derived in triaxial compression conditions. Computer tomography scanning technique is used to aid in examining the micro-structural features of the sheared specimens such as shear banding pattern, shear band thickness, spatial porosity distributions inside and outside shear bands. These micro-structural features are used to explain the macro-deformation response observed in the triaxial compression tests. Mobilization of strength components derived from interlocked structure, cementation, dilation, rolling and critical state are analysed for pre-, post-peak softening and residual stages. It is found that the empirical correlation such as Mohr,Coulomb failure criterion based on triaxial compression test results does not necessarily reflect the intrinsic properties of the test materials. Testing conditions are embedded in the empirical correlation. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Departures from Everyday Resistance and Flexible Strategies of Domination: The Making and Unmaking of a Poor Peasant Mobilization in BangladeshJOURNAL OF AGRARIAN CHANGE, Issue 2 2007SHAPAN ADNAN James Scott's influential work has popularized the notion that everyday resistance among the peasantry takes covert and backstage forms, termed ,weapons of the weak'. This paper, however, provides a case study involving transformation of covert resistance and outward compliance of the poor into open dissent and confrontation with power-holders, though falling well short of the limiting conditions of rebellion or revolution. Such instances serve to dispel the notion that poor and weak groups adopt only covert forms of resistance in their everyday existence. The paper takes up the questions of why, and under what circumstances, such transformation of covert resistance into overt forms can come about. These issues are explored using evidence from a poor peasant mobilization in rural Bangladesh during the parliamentary election of 1986. The analysis shows that there were sequential shifts in the respective strategies of domination and resistance of the rich and the poor, which shaped each other interactively over a dynamic trajectory. Such adaptive and variable responses require an approach that can accommodate flexibility and substitution in the strategies adopted by the weak and the powerful. These also call for further exploration and analysis of the middle ground between everyday and exceptional forms of resistance. [source] Harvesting peripheral blood progenitor cells from healthy donors: retrospective comparison of filgrastim and lenograstimJOURNAL OF CLINICAL APHERESIS, Issue 3 2005Massimo Martino Abstract Mobilization of CD34+ into peripheral blood is attained by either glycosylated (lenograstim) or non-glycosylated recombinant G-CSF (filgrastim). 101 donors, 57 males, median age 42 years (range 16,63) entered this retrospective study. Group I (55 cases) received filgrastim and group II lenograstim subcutaneously for 5,6 days. The peak number of CD34+ cells/,l blood observed on day 4 and 5 was not significantly different in the two groups. No differences were shown in terms of both circulating CFU-GM at the time of harvesting and CD34+ target of collection. The most frequent side effects were bone pain (18.2% grade I; 36.4% grade II, 7.3% grade III), headache (18.2%), nausea (9.1%), fever (5.5%) and a mild splenomegaly (>2cm) (5.5%) in filgrastim group, and bone pain (37.0% grade I, 26.1% grade II, 2.2% grade III), headache (17.4%), nausea (15.2%), fever (4.4%) and a mild splenomegaly (4.3%) in lenograstim group, respectively. CD34+ collection was associated with thrombocytopenia, which was not significantly different between the two groups. No donor in either group developed long-term adverse effects. We conclude that both G-CSFs are comparable in terms of CD34+ cell collection, safety and tolerability. J. Clin. Apheresis © 2005 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] "The Logic of the River": A Spatial Approach to Ethnic-Territorial Mobilization in the Colombian Pacific RegionJOURNAL OF LATIN AMERICAN & CARIBBEAN ANTHROPOLOGY, Issue 2 2002Ulrich OslenderArticle first published online: 28 JUN 200 Este artículo sostiene que planteamientos espaciales no han recibido suficiente atención en las teorías establecidas sobre movimientos sociales y la constructión de identidades. A partir de la Constitución de 1991, la movilización entre comunidades negras en la región de la costa Pacífica colombiana ha tendido hacia formas de organizaciones étnico-territoriales que defienden sus derechos a una diferencia cultural como intrínsicamente vinculados a un control territorial en esta región. Un aspecto importante en este desarrollo es el "espacio acu´tico" en las tierras bajas del Pacífico como un conjunto particular de relaciones sociales espacializadas a lo largo de las cuencas ribereñas que ha sido importante en las estructuras organizativas de las comunidades negras rurales. Este estudio de la región de la costa Pacffica ejemplifica estos procesos y examina cómo los intereses capitalistas y del Estado los median, cre´ndose así interacciones complejas entre movimientos étnicos, el Estado, y el capital. [source] ,-Synuclein modulation of Ca2+ signaling in human neuroblastoma (SH-SY5Y) cellsJOURNAL OF NEUROCHEMISTRY, Issue 5 2009Nishani T. Hettiarachchi Abstract Parkinson's disease (PD) is characterized in part by the presence of ,-synuclein (,-syn) rich intracellular inclusions (Lewy bodies). Mutations and multiplication of the ,-synuclein gene (SNCA) are associated with familial PD. Since Ca2+ dyshomeostasis may play an important role in the pathogenesis of PD, we used fluorimetry in fura-2 loaded SH-SY5Y cells to monitor Ca2+ homeostasis in cells stably transfected with either wild-type ,-syn, the A53T mutant form, the S129D phosphomimetic mutant or with empty vector (which served as control). Voltage-gated Ca2+ influx evoked by exposure of cells to 50 mM K+ was enhanced in cells expressing all three forms of ,-syn, an effect which was due specifically to increased Ca2+ entry via L-type Ca2+ channels. Mobilization of Ca2+ by muscarine was not strikingly modified by any of the ,-syn forms, but they all reduced capacitative Ca2+ entry following store depletion caused either by muscarine or thapsigargin. Emptying of stores with cyclopiazonic acid caused similar rises of [Ca2+]i in all cells tested (with the exception of the S129D mutant), and mitochondrial Ca2+ content was unaffected by any form of ,-synuclein. However, only WT ,-syn transfected cells displayed significantly impaired viability. Our findings suggest that ,-syn regulates Ca2+ entry pathways and, consequently, that abnormal ,-syn levels may promote neuronal damage through dysregulation of Ca2+ homeostasis. [source] Mobilization of CD133+CD34, cells in healthy individuals following whole-body acupuncture for spinal cord injuries,JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE RESEARCH, Issue 8 2010Sonja Moldenhauer Abstract Acupuncture can alleviate symptoms of spinal cord injuries (SCI). The underlying mechanism, however, is unknown. We hypothesized that stem cells could be mobilized by acupuncture. Therefore, we enrolled 14 healthy study participants using acupuncture points for the treatment of SCI. The frequency of CD133 and CD34 cells in peripheral blood and the serum concentrations of matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-9, brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), nerve growth factor (NGF), and interleukin-6 were determined before and after acupuncture (<1 hr, 24 hr, and 48 hr). CD133+34, cells were doubled 48 hr after acupuncture, with concomitant decreases in BDNF and MMP-9 levels. Interleukin-6 remained below detectable levels, eliminating a stress-induced cell release. Individuals acupunctured on control counterpoints showed no changes in CD133+ cells. Our results indicate that acupuncture for SCI can mobilize human CD133+34, cells. © 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Effect of Repeated Doses of Ethanol on Hepatic Mg2+ Homeostasis and MobilizationALCOHOLISM, Issue 7 2007Andrew Young The acute administration of a first dose of ethanol (EtOH) to rat liver cells reduces the amount of Mg2+ extruded by a second dose of EtOH or the subsequent addition of adrenergic agonists. In contrast, the Mg2+ extrusion normally elicited by the ,1 -adrenergic or , -adrenergic agonist does not impair the Mg2+ mobilization induced by the subsequent addition of EtOH. Inhibition of EtOH metabolism by 4-methylpyrazole abolishes almost completely the Mg2+ extrusion induced by the first dose of EtOH, and partially enlarges that elicited by the second dose of alcohol or the subsequent adrenergic stimulation. Ethanol-treated liver cells stimulated by the adrenergic agonist show a reduced level of membrane-bound G,s as well as a reduced cellular cAMP content. Analysis of cellular Mg2+ distribution indicates that EtOH administration decreases the Mg2+ content of the cytoplasm, mitochondria, and endoplasmic reticulum to a comparable extent. These data indicate that acute EtOH administration directly impairs cellular Mg2+ homeostasis and also prevents a further Mg2+ mobilization by additional doses of alcohol or ,1 -adrenoceptor and , -adrenoceptor agonist by decreasing cytosolic and intraorganelle Mg2+ content and by affecting G-protein membrane distribution/signaling. [source] Backlash Reconsidered: Neoliberalism and Popular Mobilization in BoliviaLATIN AMERICAN POLITICS AND SOCIETY, Issue 4 2009Håvard Haarstad ABSTRACT This article argues that the common narrative of a Bolivian backlash against neoliberalism should be reconsidered in light of the continuities and mutual constraints between popular mobilization and neoliberal policy reforms. The study draws on literature that conceptualizes neoliberalism as a particular construction of state and social forms; but unlike those works, it includes an analysis of International Monetary Fund policy shifts to understand how popular mobilization constrains policy implementation. Responding to popular mobilization between 1985 and 2006, the IMF came to accept divergence from orthodox policy in order to encourage political stability. The government of Evo Morales and the IMF are mutually constrained by concern for the investment climate. This study further advocates that analysts probe beyond simple binary divisions between "neoliberalism" and "alternatives" and look more seriously for pragmatic strategies for negotiating neoliberal spaces. [source] Indictments, Myths, and Citizen Mobilization in Argentina: A Discourse AnalysisLATIN AMERICAN POLITICS AND SOCIETY, Issue 4 2005Ariel C. Armony ABSTRACT Most accounts of the turmoil that shook Argentina in 2001,2 focused on the harmful impact of the financial environment, imprudent policymaking, and institutional weaknesses. These explanations paid little attention to the cultural frames and cognitive patterns that underlie the connection between civil society and political society. Based on a discourse analysis of Internet forums and presidential speeches, this article argues that the Argentine crisis cannot be fully grasped without considering the link between collective behavior and ingrained conceptions of national identity. The analysis finds that national myths and definitional questions of national purpose are key factors in the way citizens behave in the context of an economic and political crisis. [source] Legal Mobilization and the Politics of Reform: Lessons From School Finance Litigation in Kentucky, 1984-1995LAW & SOCIAL INQUIRY, Issue 3 2001Michael Paris This article is about legal mobilization by claimant groups seeking left-liberal reform in the United States. Drawing on a growing body of work in political science and legal studies, it takes an interpretive, legal-mobilization approach to one litigation-based reform effort: school finance litigation and education reform in Kentucky. In turn, this case study provides leverage for theorizing about legal mobilization and the role of law and courts in social reform. The article argues that current theoretical approaches either overlook or neglect the implications of important dimensions of legal mobilization by would-be reformers. Specifically, it highlights and explicates the meaning of two related themes: (1) legal translation, taken up here as legal framing and legal construction, and (2) the degree of coherence or fit between the legal and political components of reform projects that include both legal mobilization and extrajudicial strategies and tactics. This article suggests that the "degree of coherence" may have an important but underappreciated relationship to the overall success or failure of such reform projects. [source] Human Rights in an Era of Neoliberal Globalization: The Alien Tort Claims Act and Grassroots Mobilization in Doe v. UnocalLAW & SOCIETY REVIEW, Issue 2 2009Cheryl Holzmeyer This article examines a widely publicized corporate accountability and human rights case filed by Burmese plaintiffs and human rights litigators in 1996 under the Alien Tort Claims Act in U.S. courts, Doe v. Unocal, in conjunction with the three main theoretical approaches to analyzing how law may matter for broader social change efforts: (1) legal realism, (2) Critical Legal Studies (CLS), and (3) legal mobilization. The article discusses interactions between Doe v. Unocal and grassroots Burmese human rights activism in the San Francisco Bay Area, including intersections with corporate accountability activism. It argues that a transnationally attuned legal mobilization framework, rather than legal realist or CLS approaches, is most appropriate to analyze the political opportunities and indirect effects of Doe v. Unocal and similar litigation in the context of neoliberal globalization. Further, this article argues that human rights discourse may serve as a common vocabulary and counterhegemonic resource for activists and litigators in cases such as Doe v. Unocal, contrary to overarching critiques of such discourse that emphasize only its hegemonic potentials in global governance regimes. [source] The Impact of Legal Mobilization and Judicial Decisions: The Case of Official Minority-Language Education Policy in Canada for Francophones Outside QuebecLAW & SOCIETY REVIEW, Issue 3 2004Troy Q. Riddell The article investigates the impact of legal mobilization and judicial decisions on official minority-language education (OMLE) policy in the Canadian provinces outside Quebec, using the "factor-oriented" and "dispute-centered" theories of judicial impact developed by U.S. scholars. The Canadian Supreme Court's decision in Mahé v. Alberta (1990), which broadly interpreted Section 23 of the Charter of Rights to include management and control of OMLE programs and schools, along with federal funding to the provinces to implement OMLE policy, are important to explaining OMLE policy change as predicted by the factor-oriented approach. The dispute-centered approach, on the other hand, helps us understand how the Charter of Rights and judicial decisions shaped the goals and discourse of Francophone groups in the policy process and, more instrumentally, provided opportunity structures that Francophone groups exploited effectively. The article concludes that both approaches to explaining judicial impact could be accommodated within an institutional model of judicial impact that construes institutions as state actors, as sets of rules, and as frameworks of meaning and interpretation. Such an approach would allow for the development of a more comparative model of judicial impact. [source] Against the Wall: Anarchist Mobilization in the Israeli,Palestinian ConflictPEACE & CHANGE, Issue 3 2010Uri Gordon Anarchists Against the Wall is an Israeli action group supporting the popular Palestinian struggle against segregation and land confiscation in the West Bank. Incorporating participant observation and recent theories of social movements and anarchism, this article offers a thick cultural account of the group's mobilization dynamics, and assesses the achievements and limitations of the joint struggle. Three dimensions,direct action, bi-nationalism, and leadership,highlight the significance of anarchist practices and discourses to an informed assessment of the group's politics of nonviolent resistance. The effectiveness of the campaign is then examined, calling attention to the distinction among immediate, medium-term, and revolutionary goals. [source] High CD8+ lymphocyte dose in the autograft predicts early absolute lymphocyte count recovery after peripheral hematopoietic stem cell transplantationAMERICAN JOURNAL OF HEMATOLOGY, Issue 1 2009Elias Hallack Atta Early lymphocyte recovery (ELR) after autologous peripheral hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (ASCT) is an independent predictor for survival in patients with hematological and non-hematological cancers. Sixty-five ASCT for hematological cancers were retrospectively analyzed to identify the factors associated with ELR and to assess the impact of different mobilization regimens on the pre-collection absolute lymphocyte count (ALC). The CD8+ lymphocyte dose in the autograft and the pre-mobilization ALC were independently associated with ELR (P < 0.001 and P = 0.008, respectively). CD8+ lymphocyte doses higher than 0.1 × 109/kg were strongly associated with ELR [P < 0.001, odds ratio 25.22, 95% confidence interval (CI) 4.98,127.69] and this cutoff may be used to predict ELR (P = 0.001, area under the curve 0.75, 95% CI 0.62,0.88). Mobilization with granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) alone, the pre-collection ALC and the number of apheresis sessions were independently associated with the CD8+ lymphocyte dose (P = 0.04, P = 0.001, and P < 0.001, respectively). The number of aphereses was the variable with the strongest correlation to the CD8+ lymphocyte dose (rs = 0.68, P < 0.001). Median pre-mobilization ALC was higher than pre-collection ALC in the subgroup of patients without ELR mobilized with chemotherapy followed by G-CSF (1090 vs. 758 lymphocytes/,L; P < 0.001). This reduction was not significant in the subgroup with ELR mobilized with chemotherapy plus G-CSF (1920 vs. 1539/,L, respectively; P = 0.23). These results suggest that the CD8+ lymphocyte dose in the autograft is critical for ELR after ASCT and also demonstrates that mobilization with chemotherapy followed by G-CSF significantly decreases the pre-collection ALC, especially in patients with low pre-mobilization ALC. Am. J. Hematol, 2009. © 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] I'll Take the High Road: Two Pathways to Altruistic Political Mobilization Against Regime Repression in ArgentinaPOLITICAL PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 3 2001Kristina E. Thalhammer What led Argentine human rights activists to risk challenging state repression in the late 1970s? Chi-square analyses of 78 interviews with early activists and nonactivists suggested few commonalities among activists but revealed two distinct and inverse routes to high-risk other-centered political activism. Activists directly affected by regime violence tended to be relatively inexperienced politically, to have little experience with fear, and to see groups as comprising individuals rather than as monolithic wholes. An inverse pattern characterized activists not directly affected by regime violence: Their activism was preceded by experience in politics and survival of previous fear-evoking episodes. [source] The Gun and the Sword: Hemingway, Fitzgerald, Faulkner, and the Fiction of Mobilization by Keith GandalTHE F. SCOTT FITZGERALD REVIEW, Issue 1 2009JAMES H. MEREDITH No abstract is available for this article. [source] War and Society in the American Revolution: Mobilization and Home Fronts , Edited by John Resch and Walter SargentTHE HISTORIAN, Issue 1 2009Lawrence A. Peskin No abstract is available for this article. [source] Early mobilization after total knee replacement reduces the incidence of deep venous thrombosisANZ JOURNAL OF SURGERY, Issue 7-8 2009Sivashankar Chandrasekaran Abstract Both chemical and mechanical methods of prophylaxis have reduced the incidence of thromboembolic complications following total knee replacement (TKR). Only a few studies have shown that mobilization on the first post-operative day further reduces the incidence of thromboembolic phenomena. We conducted a prospective study to verify not only if early mobilization but also whether the distance mobilized on the first post-operative day after TKR reduced the incidence of thromboembolic complications. The incidence of deep venous thrombosis and pulmonary embolism were compared in 50 consecutive patients who underwent TKR from July 2006 following a change in the mobilization protocol with 50 consecutive patients who underwent TKR before the protocol was instigated. The mobilization protocol changed from strict bed rest the first post-operative day to mobilization on the first post-operative day. Mobilization was defined as sitting out of bed or walking for at least 15,30 min twice a day. The distance mobilized was accurately recorded by the physiotherapists. All patients underwent duplex scans of both lower limbs on the fourth post-operative day. There was a significant reduction in the incidence of thromboembolic complications in the mobilization group (seven in total) compared with the control group (16 in total) (P= 0.03). Furthermore, in the mobilization group the odds of developing a thromboemobloic complication was significantly reduced the greater the distance the patient mobilized (Chi-squared linear trend = 8.009, P= 0.0047). Early mobilization in the first 24 h after TKR is a cheap and effective way to reduce the incidence of post-operative deep venous thrombosis. [source] Minimally invasive straight laparoscopic total proctocolectomy for ulcerative colitisASIAN JOURNAL OF ENDOSCOPIC SURGERY, Issue 1 2010H. Ozawa Abstract Introduction: We have performed straight laparoscopic total proctocolectomy for ulcerative colitis, in which all procedures, including transection of the rectum and anastomosis, were performed in the abdominal cavity. The primary objective of this study was to evaluate whether straight laparoscopic total proctocolectomy is technically feasible and safe. Methods: A retrospective database identified 22 consecutive patients who underwent straight laparoscopic total proctocolectomy for ulcerative colitis between March 1998 and September 2007. Patients were excluded if they required emergency surgery. First, to create a stoma site, a mini-laparotomy to insert a 15 mm trocar was performed. Seven other trocars, 5 mm in diameter, were then inserted. Mobilization and dissection of the colorectum and anastmosis were performed completely intracorporeally under laparoscopic guidance. Anastomosis of an ileal J-pouch to the anal canal was performed using the double-stapling technique. Results: Nineteen patients were underwent ileal pouch anal canal anastomosis; two underwent ileorectal anastomosis; and one underwent abdominoperineal resection. The median operation time was 355 min (range 255,605); the median blood loss was 50 g (range 0,800); and the median postoperative hospital stay was 24.5 d. Postoperative complications occurred in eight patients, including three (13.6%) with bowel obstruction, two (9.1%) with portal vein thrombosis, one (4.5%) with anastomotic leakage, and one (4.5%) with postoperative hemorrhage. The morbidity rate was 36.4%. There were no intraoperative complications or conversions to conventional surgery. Conclusion: In the context of this study, we have shown that straight laparoscopic total proctocolectomy is technically feasible and safe in patients with ulcerative colitis. [source] Exploring the Sources of Institutional Trust in China: Culture, Mobilization, or Performance?ASIAN POLITICS AND POLICY, Issue 3 2010Qing Yang While democratic countries have been concerned about a "trust crisis" since the 1960s, China surprisingly displays a very high level of public trust in institutions. Why do people trust institutions and to what extent does institutional trust in China differ from that in democracies? Using the 2004 China Values and Ethics Survey, this article explores three different dimensions of institutional trust in China: trust in administrative institutions, trust in legal institutions, and trust in societal institutions. The analysis shows that institutional trust is more than a product of traditional values in China. Rather, it is more of an individual rational choice based heavily on the evaluations of the institutional performance, and it is also a result of government-controlled politicization. Trust in administrative institutions, in particular, mainly comes from satisfactory institutional performance. Institutional trust has a great impact on the development of democracy and legal participation in China. [source] Union Mobilization: A Consideration of the Factors Affecting the Willingness of Union Members to Take Industrial ActionBRITISH JOURNAL OF INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS, Issue 2 2008Donna M. Buttigieg Drawing on mobilization theory, this article seeks to identify the factors that shape the willingness of union members to take industrial action. The study utilized data from a large-scale survey (N = 1,111) carried out in a financial services union during the renegotiation of a collective bargaining contract. The results suggested that individuals were more willing to engage in industrial action when they experienced a sense of injustice or unfairness in the employment relationship and when they held a collectivist orientation to work. Moreover, their propensity to take industrial action was greater when they considered that their union was an effective instrument of power. Workplace representatives were also important, particularly when they were seen as being responsive to their members' needs in situations of perceived injustice. The implications for mobilization theory and for union strategy are discussed. [source] Mobilization of endothelial progenitor cells into the circulation in burned patients,BRITISH JOURNAL OF SURGERY (NOW INCLUDES EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF SURGERY), Issue 2 2008A. Fox Background: Bone marrow-derived endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) have been detected in the peripheral blood of patients following thermal injury. EPCs migrate to sites of active neovascularization in response to mediators released after trauma, contributing to wound healing. The aim was to characterize levels and kinetics of EPCs in burned patients, then relate these to key mobilizing factors, vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and the chemokine (C-X-C motif) ligand 12 (CXCL 12), and compare them with those in healthy subjects. Methods: The study included 19 adult patients with superficial or full-thickness burns and 50 blood donor volunteer controls. EPCs, identified by cell surface markers CD45dim/,, CD133+, CD144+ and VEGF receptor 2, were quantified by four-colour flow cytometry. Plasma VEGF and CXCL12 were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Results: Burned patients showed a rapid rise in EPC levels within 24 h, a ninefold increase compared with controls, returning to basal levels by 72 h. Body surface area burned correlated strongly with the degree of mobilization. EPC levels correlated significantly with rises in plasma VEGF and CXCL12. Conclusion: Thermal injury induced a rapid rise in EPCs that was proportional to the extent of the burn and significantly correlated with levels of angiogenic cytokines. Such cytokines may be used to stimulate EPCs as a future therapeutic target in burned patients. Copyright © 2007 British Journal of Surgery Society Ltd. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Clinical significance of suprascapular nerve mobilizationCLINICAL ANATOMY, Issue 8 2005Kale D. Bodily Abstract The anatomy of the suprascapular nerve is important to surgeons when focal nerve lesions necessitate surgical repair. Recent experience with a patient who had a complete suprascapular nerve lesion in the retroclavicular region (combined with axillary and musculocutaneous nerve lesions) is presented to illustrate that successful direct nerve repair is possible despite resection of a neuroma. Specifically, we found that neurolysis and mobilization of the suprascapular nerve and release of the superior transverse scapular ligament provided the necessary nerve length to achieve direct nerve repair after the neuroma was removed. A combined supraclavicular and infraclavicular approach to the suprascapular nerve provided excellent visualization, especially in the retroclavicular region. Postoperatively, the patient recovered complete shoulder abduction and external rotation with the direct repair, an outcome uncommonly achieved with interpositional grafting. Based on our operative experience, we set out to quantify the length that the suprascapular nerve could be mobilized with neurolysis. Mobilization of the nerve and release of the superior transverse scapular ligament generated an average of 1.6 cm and 0.7 cm of extra nerve length respectively, totaling 2.3 cm of additional usable nerve length overall. The ability to expose the suprascapular nerve in the retroclavicular/infraclavicular region and to mobilize the suprascapular nerve for possible direct repair has not been previously emphasized and is clinically important. This surgical approach and technique permits direct nerve repair after resection of a focal neuroma in the retroclavicular or infraclavicular region, thus avoiding interpositional grafting, and improving outcomes. Clin. Anat. 18:573,579, 2005. © 2005 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Combined effect of IL-17 and blockade of nitric oxide biosynthesis on haematopoiesis in miceACTA PHYSIOLOGICA, Issue 1 2010A. Krsti Abstract Aim:, The study was undertaken to extend our investigation concerning both the in vivo activity of interleukin (IL)-17 and the specific role of nitric oxide (NO) in IL-17-induced effects in the process of haematopoiesis. Methods:, CBA mice were simultaneously treated with IL-17 and/or nitric oxide synthase (NOS) inhibitor, l -NAME, for 5 days and changes within various haematopoietic cell lineages in bone marrow, spleen and peripheral blood were analysed. Results:, Findings showed that administration of both IL-17 and l -NAME stimulated increase in net haematopoiesis in normal mice. IL-17-enhanced myelopoiesis was characterized by stimulation of both femoral and splenic haematopoietic progenitor cells and morphologically recognizable granulocytes. Additionally, IL-17 induced alterations in the frequency of erythroid progenitor cells in both bone marrow and spleen, accompanied with their mobilization to the peripheral blood. As a consequence of these changes in the erythroid cell compartments, significant reticulocytosis was observed, which evidenced that in IL-17-treated mice effective erythropoiesis occurred. Exposure of mice to NOS inhibitor also increased the number of both granulocyte-macrophage and erythroid progenitors in bone marrow and spleens, and these alterations were followed by the mobilization of erythroid progenitors and elevated content of reticulocytes in peripheral blood. The specific role of NO in IL-17-induced haematopoiesis was demonstrated only in the IL-17-reducing effect on bone marrow late stage erythroid progenitors, CFU-E. Conclusion:, The results demonstrated the involvement of both IL-17 and NO in the regulation of haematopoietic cell activity in various haematopoietic compartments. They further suggest that IL-17 effects are differentially mediated depending on the haematopoietic microenvironments. [source] Roles of the actin-binding proteins in intracellular Ca2+ signallingACTA PHYSIOLOGICA, Issue 1 2009J. T. Chun Abstract Starfish oocytes undergo massive intracellular Ca2+ signalling during meiotic maturation and fertilization. Although the igniting stimulus of Ca2+ mobilization may differ in different cell contexts, its final leverage is usually the Ca2+ -releasing second messengers such as InsP3, cADPr and NAADP. The general scheme of intracellular Ca2+ release is that the corresponding receptors for these molecules serve as ion channels to release free Ca2+ from its internal stores such as the lumen of the endoplasmic reticulum. However, a growing body of evidence has suggested that intracellular Ca2+ release can be strongly modulated by the actin cytoskeleton. Although it is known that Ca2+ contributes to remodelling of the actin cytoskeleton, whether the actin cytoskeleton modulates Ca2+ signalling in return has not been much explored. An emerging candidate to answer to this reciprocal causality of Ca2+ and the actin cytoskeleton may be actin-binding proteins. In this review, we discuss how the actin cytoskeleton may fit into the known mechanisms of intracellular Ca2+ release, and propose two models to explain the experimental data. [source] Calcium handling in afferent arteriolesACTA PHYSIOLOGICA, Issue 4 2004M. Salomonsson Abstract The cytosolic intracellular calcium concentration ([Ca2+]i) is a major determining factor in the vascular smooth muscle tone. In the afferent arteriole it has been shown that agonists utilizing G-protein coupled receptors recruit Ca2+ via release from intracellular stores and entry via pathways in the plasma membrane. The relative importances of entry vs. mobilization seem to differ between different agonists, species and preparations. The entry pathway might include different types of voltage sensitive Ca2+ channels located in the plasmalemma such as dihydropyridine sensitive L-type channels, T-type channels and P/Q channels. A role for non-voltage sensitive entry pathways has also been suggested. The importance of voltage sensitive Ca2+ channels in the control of the tone of the afferent arteriole (and thus in the control of renal function and whole body control of extracellular fluid volume and blood pressure) sheds light on the control of the membrane potential of afferent arteriolar smooth muscle cells. Thus, K+ and Cl, channels are of importance in their role as major determinants of membrane potential. Some studies suggest a role for calcium-activated chloride (ClCa) channels in the renal vasoconstriction elicited by agonists. Other investigators have found evidence for several types of K+ channels in the regulation of the afferent arteriolar tone. The available literature in this field regarding afferent arterioles is, however, relatively sparse and not conclusive. This review is an attempt to summarize the results obtained by others and ourselves in the field of agonist induced afferent arteriolar Ca2+ recruitment, with special emphasis on the control of voltage sensitive Ca2+ entry. Outline of the Manuscript: This manuscript is structured as follows: it begins with an introduction where the general role for [Ca2+]i as a key factor in the regulation of the tone of vascular smooth muscles (VSMC) is detailed. In this section there is an emphasis is on observations that could be attributed to afferent arteriolar function. We then investigate the literature and describe our results regarding the relative roles for Ca2+ entry and intracellular release in afferent arterioles in response to vasoactive agents, with the focus on noradrenalin (NA) and angiotensin II (Ang II). Finally, we examine the role of ion channels (i.e. K+ and Cl, channels) for the membrane potential, and thus activation of voltage sensitive Ca2+ channels. 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