Editorial foreword: Angiogenesis: Cells, tissues and organs

On the occasion of his 90th birthday, this Special Issue is dedicated to Professor Robert Auerbach. Born 1929 in Berlin, Germany, he and his family escaped Nazi Germany in 1939 and emigrated to the United States, where he became a zoologist and ultimately Professor and Director of the Developmental Biology Training Program at the Department of Zoology, Madison, University of Wisconsin, USA. In Auerbach's laboratory, students and scientists of many different nations, including politically persecuted ones, harmoniously worked together on different aspects of angiogenesis. One of the hallmarks of Auerbach's career as a scientist was and is his generosity towards others, sharing his equipment and ideas freely, his integrity and his collegiality. His significant contributions to angiogenesis and tumour research include the finding that angiogenesis in tumours can occur even after their irradiation (Auerbach, Arensman, Kubai, & Folkman, 1975) and an explanation of organ selectivity in the spread of metastasizing cancer cells (Auerbach, 1988). Through his outstanding papers on in vitro methods in angiogenesis research, he also supported animal welfare (Alby & Auerbach, 1984; Auerbach, Lewis, Shinners, Kubai, & Akhtar, 2003; Gumkowski, Kaminska, Kaminski, Morrissey, & Auerbach, 1987; Obeso, Weber, & Auerbach, 1990)

Universal correlations along the BEC-BCS crossover

We show that the long-distance behavior of the two-body density correlation functions and the Cooper-pair probability density of a balanced mixture of a two-component Fermi gas at $T = 0$, is universal along the BEC-BCS crossover. Our result is demonstrated by numerically solving the mean-field BCS model for different finite short-range atomic interaction potentials. We find an analytic expression for the correlation length in terms of the chemical potential and the energy gap at zero momentum.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figure

Advanced Patient-Centered Communication for Health Behavior Change: Motivational Interviewing Workshops for Medical Learners

Introduction: Medical settings are critical access points for behavior change counseling, and lifestyle behavior change is considered a key component of chronic disease management. The Association of American Medical Colleges recommends that future physicians be competent in shared decision making and patient-centered behavioral guidance to prevent illness and improve patient self-management of chronic disease. Motivational interviewing (MI) is a patient-centered, directive method of communication to enhance behavior change. Specific teachable strategies underlie the collaborative MI communication style that aims to reduce discord and build motivation for change. Methods: We present our three-session 12-hour MI curriculum as an advanced form of patient-centered communication. Each session includes presession assignment, large-group interactive lecture, and small-group activities for practice. An interdisciplinary team consisting of medical educators and health behavior change research-educators who are also members of the Motivational Interviewing Network of Trainers created the submission. The purpose of this resource is to provide medical educators with a short curriculum that incorporates materials and learning activities to promote skill in MI. Results: In addition to positive feedback from student evaluations including the areas of relevance to training and self-rated skills improvement, preliminary pre- and posttraining scores from the medical students show significant improvement in expression of empathy and the ratio of reflections to questions. Discussion: Implementation of the curriculum allows learners the opportunity to practice evidence-based communication that promotes intrinsic motivation for health behavior change in patients, a key treatment focus in chronic disease management

A strategy for implementing non-perturbative renormalisation of heavy-light four-quark operators in the static approximation

We discuss the renormalisation properties of the complete set of $\Delta B = 2$ four-quark operators with the heavy quark treated in the static approximation. We elucidate the role of heavy quark symmetry and other symmetry transformations in constraining their mixing under renormalisation. By employing the Schroedinger functional, a set of non-perturbative renormalisation conditions can be defined in terms of suitable correlation functions. As a first step in a fully non-perturbative determination of the scale-dependent renormalisation factors, we evaluate these conditions in lattice perturbation theory at one loop. Thereby we verify the expected mixing patterns and determine the anomalous dimensions of the operators at NLO in the Schroedinger functional scheme. Finally, by employing twisted-mass QCD it is shown how finite subtractions arising from explicit chiral symmetry breaking can be avoided completely.Comment: 41 pages, 6 figure

Clinical features, pathophysiology, and treatment of levodopa-induced dyskinesias in Parkinson's disease

Dyskinetic disorders are characterized by excess of motor activity that may interfere with normal movement control. In patients with Parkinson's disease, the chronic levodopa treatment induces dyskinetic movements known as levodopa-induced dyskinesias (LID). This paper analyzed the pathophysiology, clinical manifestations, pharmacological treatments, and surgical procedures to treat hyperkinetic disorders. Surgery is currently the only treatment available for Parkinson's disease that may improve both parkinsonian motor syndrome and LID. However, this paper shows the different mechanisms involved are not well understood

Modelo hidrodinámico en el Sistema Lagunar Navachiste, Guasave, Sinaloa, México

The Navachiste Lagoon System is connected to the Gulf of California (GC) via 3 tidal channels. The system has an area of approximately 301 km2, with an average depth of 2.5 m and an average tide height of 1.5 m. In order to simulate tidal currents and the effect of wind, a numerical hydrodynamic model was applied, integrated in the vertical and in finite differences; to calibrate the model, lagrangean measurements were made and compared with simulated currents in the tidal channels of the system. The model simulates the hydrodynamic behavior of the lagoon system and has a correlation higher than 85% with the trajectories traced by the drift bodies and with the maximum Eulerian velocities measured in the internal channels and in the mouths of the system.El Sistema Lagunar Navachiste se encuentra conectado con el Golfo de California (GC) a través de 3 canales de marea. El sistema cuenta con un área de 301 km2 aproximadamente, con una profundidad promedio de 2,5 m y una altura de mareas promedio de 1,5 m. Para simular las corrientes de mareas y el efecto del viento se aplicó un modelo hidrodinámico numérico barótropico, integrado en la vertical y en diferencias finitas; para calibrar el modelo se hicieron mediciones lagrangeanas y se compararon con las corrientes simuladas en los canales de marea del sistema. El modelo simula el comportamiento hidrodinámico del sistema lagunar y presenta una correlación superior al 85% con las trayectorias trazadas por los cuerpos de deriva y con las velocidades máximas eulerianas medidas en los canales internos y en las bocas del sistema

Inter-hemispheric EEG coherence analysis in Parkinson's disease : Assessing brain activity during emotion processing

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is not only characterized by its prominent motor symptoms but also associated with disturbances in cognitive and emotional functioning. The objective of the present study was to investigate the influence of emotion processing on inter-hemispheric electroencephalography (EEG) coherence in PD. Multimodal emotional stimuli (happiness, sadness, fear, anger, surprise, and disgust) were presented to 20 PD patients and 30 age-, education level-, and gender-matched healthy controls (HC) while EEG was recorded. Inter-hemispheric coherence was computed from seven homologous EEG electrode pairs (AF3–AF4, F7–F8, F3–F4, FC5–FC6, T7–T8, P7–P8, and O1–O2) for delta, theta, alpha, beta, and gamma frequency bands. In addition, subjective ratings were obtained for a representative of emotional stimuli. Interhemispherically, PD patients showed significantly lower coherence in theta, alpha, beta, and gamma frequency bands than HC during emotion processing. No significant changes were found in the delta frequency band coherence. We also found that PD patients were more impaired in recognizing negative emotions (sadness, fear, anger, and disgust) than relatively positive emotions (happiness and surprise). Behaviorally, PD patients did not show impairment in emotion recognition as measured by subjective ratings. These findings suggest that PD patients may have an impairment of inter-hemispheric functional connectivity (i.e., a decline in cortical connectivity) during emotion processing. This study may increase the awareness of EEG emotional response studies in clinical practice to uncover potential neurophysiologic abnormalities

Trade-offs between vegetative growth and acorn production in Quercus lobata during a mast year: the relevance of crop size and hierarchical level within the canopy

The concept of trade-offs between reproduction and other fitness traits is a fundamental principle of life history theory. For many plant species, the cost of sexual reproduction affects vegetative growth in years of high seed production through the allocation of resources to reproduction at different hierarchical levels of canopy organization. We have examined these tradeoffs at the shoot and branch level in an endemic California oak, Quercus lobata, during a mast year. To determine whether acorn production caused a reduction in vegetative growth, we studied trees that were high and low acorn producers, respectively. We observed that in both low and high acorn producers, shoots without acorns located adjacent to reproductive shoots showed reduced vegetative growth but that reduced branch-level growth on acorn-bearing branches occurred only in low acorn producers. The availability of local resources, measured as previous year growth, was the main factor determining acorn biomass. These findings show that the costs of reproduction varied among hierarchical levels, suggesting some degree of physiological autonomy of shoots in terms of acorn production. Costs also differed among trees with different acorn crops, suggesting that trees with large acorn crops had more available resources to allocate for growth and acorn production and to compensate for immediate local costs of seed production. These findings provide new insight into the proximate mechanisms for mast-seeding as a reproductive strategy

Ecological implications of a flower size/number trade-off in tropical forest trees

Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Sex-Differential Herbivory in Androdioecious Mercurialis annua

Males of plants with separate sexes are often more prone to attack by herbivores than females. A common explanation for this pattern is that individuals with a greater male function suffer more from herbivory because they grow more quickly, drawing more heavily on resources for growth that might otherwise be allocated to defence. Here, we test this ‘faster-sex’ hypothesis in a species in which males in fact grow more slowly than hermaphrodites, the wind-pollinated annual herb Mercurialis annua. We expected greater herbivory in the faster-growing hermaphrodites. In contrast, we found that males, the slower sex, were significantly more heavily eaten by snails than hermaphrodites. Our results thus reject the faster-sex hypothesis and point to the importance of a trade-off between defence and reproduction rather than growth