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Negative Ones (negative + ones)
Selected AbstractsInformed Decisions Conservation Corridors and the Spread of Infectious DiseaseCONSERVATION, Issue 2 2002Leslie Bienen Reconnecting habitat will have consequences, in many forms and on many scales. The trick is to recognize these consequences, the negative ones as well as the positive, and understand them ahead of time, and in doing so to insure that human-engineered reconnectivity does the least harm and the most good. [source] Ideological beliefs as determinants of discrimination in positive and negative outcome distributionsEUROPEAN JOURNAL OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 5 2005Catherine E. Amiot Social identity theory proposes that discrimination contributes favourably to group members' social identity. In minimal group paradigm (MGP) studies involving positive outcome distributions (e.g. money), discrimination is associated with a more positive social identity. But studies on the positive-negative asymmetry effect show that categorization leads to less discrimination when negative (salary cuts) than when positive outcomes (salary increases) are distributed. Using structural equation modelling, this study (N,=,279) tested whether discrimination involving negative outcome distributions could contribute as much to group members' positive social identity as discrimination on positive outcomes. The study also tested if ideological beliefs (i.e. social dominance orientation, authoritarianism), measured one month before the MGP experiment, could predict positive and negative outcome discrimination. While the fit of the hypothesized model was adequate, only social dominance orientation predicted both positive and negative outcome discrimination. Also, discrimination on positive outcomes but not on negative ones contributed to positive social identity. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] What makes biochemical networks tick?FEBS JOURNAL, Issue 19 2004A graphical tool for the identification of oscillophores In view of the increasing number of reported concentration oscillations in living cells, methods are needed that can identify the causes of these oscillations. These causes always derive from the influences that concentrations have on reaction rates. The influences reach over many molecular reaction steps and are defined by the detailed molecular topology of the network. So-called ,autoinfluence paths', which quantify the influence of one molecular species upon itself through a particular path through the network, can have positive or negative values. The former bring a tendency towards instability. In this molecular context a new graphical approach is presented that enables the classification of network topologies into oscillophoretic and nonoscillophoretic, i.e. into ones that can and ones that cannot induce concentration oscillations. The network topologies are formulated in terms of a set of uni-molecular and bi-molecular reactions, organized into branched cycles of directed reactions, and presented as graphs. Subgraphs of the network topologies are then classified as negative ones (which can) and positive ones (which cannot) give rise to oscillations. A subgraph is oscillophoretic (negative) when it contains more positive than negative autoinfluence paths. Whether the former generates oscillations depends on the values of the other subgraphs, which again depend on the kinetic parameters. An example shows how this can be established. By following the rules of our new approach, various oscillatory kinetic models can be constructed and analyzed, starting from the classified simplest topologies and then working towards desirable complications. Realistic biochemical examples are analyzed with the new method, illustrating two new main classes of oscillophore topologies. [source] Intraoperative labeling of sentinel lymph nodes with a combination of vital dye and radionuclide tracer , results in sentinel lymph node-positive patientsJOURNAL DER DEUTSCHEN DERMATOLOGISCHEN GESELLSCHAFT, Issue 3 2006Wolfgang Pfützner Sentinel-Lymphknoten; Melanom; Metastasierung; Diagnostik Summary Background: Sentinel lymph node biopsy enhances the accuracy of tumor staging in patients with malignant melanoma and can help select candidates for regional lymphadenectomy. There are two techniques for identifying the sentinel lymph node: intradermal injection of a radionuclide tracer or of a blue dye. We evaluated both methods to determine how they can be best utilized to locate a sentinel lymph node. Patients and methods: In a retrospective study, 323 patients with melanoma (tumor thickness , 0.75 mm) who underwent sentinel lymph node biopsy after both radionuclide and blue dye injection were evaluated. The labeling of lymph nodes showing micrometastasis by histopathological examination was determined. Results: 63 patients showed sentinel lymph nodes with micrometastasis. All of these nodes (100 %) were labeled with radionuclide tracer, but only 90 % with blue dye. In 5 patients, only radionuclide labeling identified the histopathologically-positive lymph node. In 36 patients, several sentinel lymph nodes were identified, with the histopathologically-positive nodes usually showing a higher radioactive signal intensity than the negative ones. Conclusion: Since in some patients histopathologically-positive lymph nodes are only labeled by radionuclide tracer, radionuclide labeling is indispensable for locating sentinel lymph nodes. In contrast, labeling with blue dye represents a supplementary method, which can simplify the recognition of the sentinel lymph node during surgery. Zusammenfassung Hintergrund: Die Entnahme des Sentinel-Lymphknotens erlaubt eine genauere Aussage über das Tumorstadium bei Patienten mit malignem Melanom und eine Auswahl der Patienten, bei denen eine therapeutische Dissektion der regionären Lymphknoten indiziert ist. Es existieren zwei Methoden,den Sentinel-Lymphknoten zu lokalisieren: Intradermale Injektion eines Radionuklidtracers oder eines blauen Farbstoffes. Wir prüften die Wertigkeit beider Methoden und stellten die Frage, welche Empfehlungen zum Einsatz dieser Verfahren beim Auffinden des Sentinel-Lymphknotens gegeben werden können. Patienten und Methodik: In eine retrospektiven Studie wurden 323 Patienten mit einem Melanom (Tumordicke , 0,75 mm) evaluiert, bei denen zur Entfernung des Sentinel-Lymphknotens sowohl eine Radionuklid- als auch eine Farb-stoffmarkierung erfolgte. Es wurde untersucht, welche Markierung die Lymph-knoten aufwiesen, bei denen sich in der histopathologischen Begutachtung Mikrometastasen fanden. Ergebnisse: 63 Patienten zeigten Sentinel-Lymphknoten mit Mikrometastasen, von denen alle (100 %) radionuklidmarkiert waren, jedoch nur 90 % auch eine Farbstoffmarkierung aufwiesen. Bei 5 Patienten wurde der histopathologisch positive Lymphknoten nur durch die Radionuklidmarkierung entdeckt. Mehrere Sentinel-Lymphknoten fanden sich bei 36 Patienten,wobei die histopatho-logisch positiven zumeist eine höhere radioaktive Impulsrate aufwiesen als die negativen Lymphknoten. Schlussfolgerung: Da bei bestimmten Personen histologisch positive Lymph-knoten ausschliesslich radioaktiv markiert sind, ist die Radionuklidmarkierung bei der Lokalisation des Sentinel-Lymphknoten unverzichtbar. Die Farbstofffärbung dagegen stellt eine ergänzende Methode dar, die das intraoperative Auffinden des Sentinel-Lymphknotens erleichtern kann. [source] Antibodies to SS-A/Ro-52kD and centromere in autoimmune liver disease: a clue to diagnosis and prognosis of primary biliary cirrhosisALIMENTARY PHARMACOLOGY & THERAPEUTICS, Issue 6 2007A. GRANITO Summary Background Primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) may be associated with various rheumatological disorders. Aim To investigate the frequency and significance of ,rheumatological' antinuclear antibodies in the field of autoimmune chronic liver disease, with special regard to PBC. Methods We studied 105 patients with PBC, 162 autoimmune liver disease controls (type 1 and 2 autoimmune hepatitis, primary sclerosing cholangitis), 30 systemic lupus erythematosus and 50 blood donors. Sera were tested for the presence of antibodies to extractable nuclear antigens (anti-ENA) by counterimmunoelectrophoresis, enzyme-linked and immunoblot (IB) assay, and for the presence of anti-centromere antibodies (ACA) by indirect immunofluorescence on HEp-2 cells and IB. Results The overall prevalence of IB-detected anti-ENA in PBC (30%) was higher than in type 1 autoimmune hepatitis (2.5%, P < 0.0001), type 2 autoimmune hepatitis (0%, P < 0.0001) and primary sclerosing cholangitis (11.5%, P = 0.006) and lower than in systemic lupus erythematosus (53%, P = 0.03). The most frequent anti-ENA reactivity in PBC was anti-SSA/Ro-52kD (28%). ACA were detected by IB in 21% PBC patients and never in the other subjects (P < 0.0001). Anti-SS-A/Ro/52kD positive PBC patients had at the time of diagnosis a more advanced histological stage (P = 0.01) and higher serum levels of bilirubin (P = 0.01) and IgM (P = 0.03) compared with negative ones. Conclusions In the autoimmune liver disease setting, anti-SS-A/Ro-52kD and ACA have a high specificity for PBC and can thus be of diagnostic relevance in anti-mitochondrial antibodies negative cases. If confirmed in further studies with adequate follow-up, anti-SS-A/Ro-52kD antibodies might identify PBC patients with a more advanced and active disease. [source] Structure and distribution of the benthic macrofauna on a Northwest African sandy beach close to a freshwater river dischargeMARINE ECOLOGY, Issue 2008Abdellatif Chaouti Abstract The effects of the freshwater discharge of the Oued Sebou River on the macroinfauna, was studied on the sandy beach of Mehdia through the analysis of the abiotic parameters and of the macrozoobenthos. In autumn 2002 and spring 2003, three beach sites, each with two transects, localized at 50, 3500 and 5720 m from the river mouth respectively, were studied. Positive correlations were recorded for beach slope and pH whereas negative ones were obtained for organic matter content and salinity at increasing distances from the river mouth. Significant differences between beach sites and seasons occurred for median grain size, organic matter content and pH. For each beach site, mean macroinfauna abundance varied between 30 and 100 ind.·m,2 and in spring there was a significant correlation between this parameter and the increasing distance from the river mouth. No significant correlation was instead found between species richness and the increasing distance, although the farthest beach site from the mouth had the highest number of species during both seasons. The results indicated the importance of organic matter content and salinity for the macrofaunal abundance whereas the diversity indices were more affected by beach slope and grain size. The results showed that there was no clear spatial trend in compound indices of the macrofauna across the sampled sites and the influence of the river discharge of Sebou River did not seem to be significant and consistent on the macrobenthos of this mesotidal shore. Comparison with microtidal shores revealed the influence of the tidal excursion and swell characteristics on the response of the benthic structures of sandy beaches to discharges of freshwater. [source] Does the presence of medical students affect quality in general practice consultations?MEDICAL EDUCATION, Issue 4 2008Richard Price Context, Previous studies have suggested that the patient's experience of a consultation with a doctor is not affected by the presence of medical students. However, no study has looked at the effect of student presence on conventional UK general practice consultations. Objectives, This study aimed to measure the quality of the consultation as experienced by patients when students are present, to explore patients' attitudes to the presence of medical students, and to look at the relationships between these factors. Methods, We conducted a cross-sectional questionnaire study in general practices in north-east England. General practitioners (GPs) from practices teaching fourth and final year students administered questionnaires to patients who were seen in either teaching or non-teaching consultations. The questionnaire comprised previously validated measures of empathy and enablement as measures of quality, attitudinal statements regarding the presence of students, a scale rating pertaining to the patient's degree of acquaintance with the doctor, and items on demographic data. Results, Results showed no significant differences in enablement scores between the 2 groups. Consultations with student presence last longer. Empathy scores were significantly lower in the ,student present' group, but the size of the difference was small. Attitudinal statements regarding the presence of students showed a high proportion of positive responses, and some groupings of negative ones. Further analysis demonstrated some significant links between attitudinal statements and enablement and empathy scores. Conclusions, The quality of general practice consultations was not adversely affected by medical student presence. However, significant numbers of patients who agreed to be seen with a student present were resistant to the student's presence. [source] Central nervous system infections by members of the Pseudallescheria boydii species complex in healthy and immunocompromised hosts: epidemiology, clinical characteristics and outcomeMYCOSES, Issue 4 2008A. Serda Kantarcioglu Summary Infections caused by members of the Pseudallescheria boydii species complex are currently among the most common mould infections. These fungi show a particular tropism for the central nervous system (CNS). We reviewed all the available reports on CNS infections, focusing on the geographical distribution, infection routes, immunity status of infected individuals, type and location of infections, clinical manifestations, treatment and outcome. A total of 99 case reports were identified, with similar percentage of healthy and immunocompromised patients (44% vs. 56%; P = 0.26). Main clinical types were brain abscess (69%), co-infection of brain tissue and/or spinal cord with meninges (10%) and meningitis (9%). The mortality rate was 74%, regardless of the patient's immune status, or the infection type and/or location. Cerebrospinal fluid culture was revealed as a not very important tool as the percentage of positive samples for P. boydii complex was not different from that of negative ones (67% vs. 33%; P = 0.10). In immunocompetent patients, CNS infection was preceded by near drowning or trauma. In these patients, the infection was characterised by localised involvement and a high fatality rate (76%). In contrast, CNS infection in immunocompromised patients was presented as rapidly progressive disseminated lesions at various degrees of evolution. Major risk factors for CNS infection were the aspiration of polluted water in near-drowning episodes in immunologically intact patients and medical immunosuppression in the remaining patient groups. As the therapeutic options were poor, the treatment was difficult in general and the prognosis was poor. [source] Size of environmental grain and resource matchingOIKOS, Issue 3 2000Esa Ranta For most animals their foraging environment consists of a patch network. In random environments there are no spatial autocorrelation at all, while in fine-grained systems positive autocorrelations flip to negative ones and back again against distance. With increasing grain size the turnover rate of spatial autocorrelation slows down. Using a cellular automaton with foragers having limited information about their feeding environment we examined how well consumer numbers matched resource availability, also known as the ideal free distribution. The match is the better the smaller the size of the environmental grain. This is somewhat contrary to the observation that in large-grained environments the spatial autocorrelation is high and positive over long distances. In such an environment foragers, by knowing a limited surrounding, should in fact know a much larger area because of the spatially autocorrelated resource pattern. Yet, when foragers have limited knowledge, we observed that the degree of undermatching (i.e., more individuals in less productive patches than expected) increases with increasing grain size. [source] Determinants of Mortality in Patients Undergoing Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy: Baseline Clinical, Echocardiographic, and Angioscintigraphic Evaluation Prior to ResynchronizationPACING AND CLINICAL ELECTROPHYSIOLOGY, Issue 12 2005ANTONIO DE SISTI Background: In dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) patients (pts) with cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) for ventricular dyssynchrony, long-term predictors of mortality and morbidity remain poorly investigated. Method and Results: We reviewed data of 102 pts, 68 ± 10 years, NYHA Class II,IV (14 Class II, 67 Class III, 21 Class IV), who benefited from CRT (69 CRT, 33 CRT-ICD). Fifty-two patients had an ischemic DCM, 36 a previously implanted conventional PM/ICD, 29 a permanent atrial fibrillation, and 19 needed dobutamine in the month preceding implant. QRS duration was 187 ± 35 ms, left ventricular end-diastolic diameter 72 ± 10 mm, mitral regurgitation severity 1.9 ± 0.8, echographic aorto-pulmonary electromechanical delay 61.5 ± 25 ms and septo-lateral left intraventricular delay 86 ± 56 ms, pulmonary artery pressure (PAP) 43 ± 11 mmHg, angioscintigraphic left ventricular ejection fraction (EF) 20 ± 9%, and right ventricular EF 30.5 ± 14%. Over a mean follow-up of 23 ± 20 months, 26 pts died (18 heart failures (HFs), 1 arrhythmic storm, 7 noncardiac deaths). Positive univariate predictors of death from any cause were NYHA Class IV (P < 0.001), and need for dobutamine the month preceding CRT (P < 0.008), while use of ,-blocking agents (P < 0.08) and left ventricular EF (P < 0.09) were negative ones. NYHA Class IV was the only independent predictor at multivariate analysis (P < 0.01). Survival at 24 months was 85% in Class II, 80% in Class III, and 37% in Class IV (II vs III, P = ns; III vs IV, P < 0.001). When using a composite endpoint of death from any cause and unplanned rehospitalization for a major cardiovascular event, there were 48 events (14 HF deaths, 3 noncardiac deaths, 26 HF rehospitalizations, 2 paroxysmal atrial fibrillation, 2 sustained ventricular tachycardia, 1 nonfatal pulmonary embolism). Predictors of death from any cause/unplanned rehospitalization for a major cardiovascular event in the follow-up were NYHA Class IV (P < 0.001), need for dobutamine during the month preceding CRT (P < 0.002), and PAP (<0.02). NYHA Class IV was the only independent predictor at multivariate analysis (P < 0.05). Event-free proportion at 24 months was 70% in Class II, 64% in Class III, and 37% in Class IV (II vs III, P = ns; III vs IV, P < 0.01). When considering determinants of mortality only in NYHA Class IV patients, no variable was significantly correlated to mortality. Need for dobutamine during the last month preceding CRT did not add an adjunctive mortality risk. Conclusion: Baseline NYHA Class IV at implantation appears as the most important determinant of a poor clinical outcome in terms of both mortality and morbidity. No predictive criteria seem available for NYHA Class IV patients, in order to discriminate who will die after CRT and who will not. NYHA Class IV strongly influences the clinical outcome, suggesting that, in future studies planned on mortality and rehospitalization as major endpoints, baseline NYHA Class IV should be separately taken into account. [source] The role of subjective time in identity regulationAPPLIED COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 8 2009Anne E. Wilson We explore the function of subjective perceptions of time in regulating personal identity. Events that reflect favourably on the self feel more recent than events that reflect negatively on the self. We propose that this systematic bias in subjective time judgment serves an identity regulation function: These biases allow people to maintain a favourable evaluation of current self. Recent events are likely to be judged as ,belonging' to the current self and thus incorporated into current identity. Distant events are more likely to be viewed as belonging to a former self who is quite distinct from the today's self. Therefore, by perceiving past positive experiences as more recent than negative ones, people are able to continue to take credit for former glories while reducing the threat of past failings on present identity. We discuss evidence for both the motivational account of subjective distancing and its role in regulating and maintaining a desired current identity. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] | ||||||||||||||||