Rethinking Apology in Tort Litigation

Apologies are assumed to be an effective pathway to the restoration of victims of torts. Accordingly, initiatives to facilitate their provision in legal contexts are currently being advocated. A crucial question, however, is whether the apologies that perpetrators provide in these contexts may live up to such expectations. Do perpetrators’ apologies in response to torts convey the content that victims desire, and howmay this affect their remedial effectiveness? The present research examined what content victims desire, and perpetrators provide in apology in response to personal injury incidents. In two studies, we demonstrate that (a) perpetrators provide less comprehensive apologies than victims desire, and (b) their apologies thereby are less effective at restoring them. These differenceswere explained by their differing perception of torts, such that perpetrators regard their transgressions as less severe and intentional, and themselves as less blameworthy than victims do, and consequently offer less comprehensive apologies than victims desire. Therefore, subjectiveness in victims’ and perpetrators’ perception of torts may undermine the remedial effectiveness of legal apology

Copper-free click reactions with polar bicyclononyne derivatives for modulation of cellular imaging.

Contains fulltext : 137694.pdf (publisher's version ) (Closed access)The ability of cells to incorporate azidosugars metabolically is a useful tool for extracellular glycan labelling. The exposed azide moiety can covalently react with alkynes, such as bicyclo[6.1.0]nonyne (BCN), by strain-promoted alkyne-azide cycloaddition (SPAAC). However, the use of SPAAC can be hampered by low specificity of the cycloalkyne. In this article we describe the synthesis of more polar BCN derivatives and their properties for selective cellular glycan labelling. The new polar derivatives [amino-BCN, glutarylamino-BCN and bis(hydroxymethyl)-BCN] display reaction rates similar to those of BCN and are less cell-permeable. The labelling specificity in HEK293 cells is greater than that of BCN, as determined by confocal microscopy and flow cytometry. Interestingly, amino-BCN appears to be highly specific for the Golgi apparatus. In addition, the polar BCN derivatives label the N-glycan of the membrane calcium channel TRPV5 in HEK293 cells with significantly enhanced signal-to-noise ratios

Peritoneal dialysis in patients with congestive heart failure

BACKGROUND: Peritoneal dialysis (PD) may be a useful technique in the treatment of patients with congestive heart failure, both with and without primary end-stage renal disease (ESRD). METHODS: In the treatment of patients with ESRD and congestive heart failure (CHF), PD has theoretical advantages compared with haemodialysis (HD), such as the absence of an arteriovenous fistula and the more gradual fluid removal. In cohort studies, the incidence of heart failure was less as compared with HD, however, randomized studies on this aspect are lacking. RESULTS: As an acute rescue treatment of patients with treatment refractory heart failure, functional improvement has been observed with the use of PD. However, fluid removal is less predictable compared with continuous haemofiltration therapies. CONCLUSIONS: As a long-term option for patients with treatment refractory CHF without ESRD, various case series showed improved functional performance and a reduction in hospitalization with the use of PD. However, also with the use of PD, median survival is still limited in these patients. Randomized studies are needed to establish the potential role of PD for this indicatio

Spatial inhomogeneity of common carotid artery intima media is increased in dialysis patients and is independently related to antibodies to oxidized-LDL and serum fetuin-A concentration

Background. Structural abnormalities of the common carotid artery (CCA), as assessed by ultrasound techniques, are related to cardiovascular outcome in dialysis patients. An increased intima media thickness (IMT) of the CCA may both represent a reaction to a haemodynamic burden as well as atherosclerosis. With a new ultrasound technique CCA-IMT and IMT-inhomogeneity, a novel parameter of spatial variance of the IMT, were measured and related to traditional and non-traditional risk factors. Methods. In a cross-sectional study, we included 134 dialysis patients, aged 61 +/- 13 years (103 on haemodialysis, 31 on peritoneal dialysis) and 41 controls, aged 60 +/- 8 years. Age, sex, pulse pressure, diabetes, prevalent cardiovascular disease (CVD) and height were included in the basic multiregression analysis. Ultrasound examination of the CCA was performed. We also measured serum fetuin-A, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP), antibodies to oxidized low density lipoproteins (anti-oxLDL antibodies), calcium, phosphate, albumin and parathyroid hormone. Results. Compared with controls, dialysis patients had a greater CCA-IMT (670 mu m vs 590 +/- 10 mu m; P = 0.002) and a greater CCA-IMT inhomogeneity (11.0 vs 8.1%; P = 0.013). Dialysis patients with CVD had a greater CCA-IMT (734 mu m vs 631 mu m; P = 0.001) and IMT-inhomogeneity (13.2 vs 9.7; P = 0.008) compared with patients without CVD. IMT-inhomogeneity strongly correlated with IMT (R = 0.65, P <0.0001). In multiregression analysis, serum fetuin-A and anti-oxLDL antibodies correlated with IMT-inhomogeneity but not with IMT. HsCRP neither correlated with IMT-inhomogeneity nor with IMT. Conclusion. The present study shows that CCA-IMT and IMT-inhomogeneity were increased in dialysis patients compared with controls. Although CCA-IMT and IMT-inhomogeneity are related, the different associations between both measurements and non-traditional risk factors show that they are distinct entities

A Comprehensive Overview of the Vertebrate p24 Family: Identification of a Novel Tissue-Specifically Expressed Member

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