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A prototype reusable large-volume (2mL) autoinjector (LVAI) was designed to compare injection performance of a novel 27 gauge ultra-thin wall (UTW) pre-filled syringe (PFS) cannula (8mm external cannula length, 14.4mm total needle length) against an existing 27 gauge special thin wall (STW) PFS cannula (12.7mm external cannula length, 19mm total needle length) across a range of injectate viscosities (2.3-30 cP) in a series of in vivo feasibility studies in swine. The UTW cannula had an approximately 30% greater cross-sectional lumen area than the STW cannula. The target exposed needle length was adjusted to ensure appropriate needle penetration depth and achieve injectate deposition in the subcutaneous (SC) tissue. Delivery time and volume, injection site leakage, injectate depot location, and local tissue effects were examined. The STW and UTW cannulae both provided effective SC delivery of contrast placebo solutions, and were able to accommodate injectate viscosity up to 30 cP without quantifiable leakage from the tissue and with minor tissue effects which resolved within 1-2 hours. Delivery times at each viscosity were significantly different between PFS types with the UTW PFS producing faster delivery times. In a histological substudy of the UTW cannula using injectate viscosities up to 50 cP, injection site reactions were rare and, when present, were of minimal severity. This series of studies demonstrates the feasibility of LVAI SC injection and informs autoinjector and PFS design considerations. Use of a UTW cannula may enable more rapid LVAI injections with minimal tissue effects, especially for higher viscosity formulations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

David Ruccio's blog, Occasional Links & Commentary, having grown out of postings created for his students at the University of Notre Dame, continues to focus on teaching its audience, putting information and trends into the context of a self-consciously Marxian understanding built from the concepts of class and surplus, understood not as a taxonomy but as process. From revealing the pretensions of neoclassical economics by examining the ongoing economic impacts of events, such as the Second Great Depression, to addressing theoretical controversies and misrepresentations, such as with Modern Monetary Theory, the blog not only examines policy choices and encourages readers to criticize and press for changes but also prods readers to consider more than the usual form of policy choices, beyond governments as actors and citizens as consumers of the consequences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Integrating information on nitrogen (N) mineralization potentials into a fertilization plan could lead to improved N use efficiency. A controlled incubation mineralization study examined microbial biomass dynamics and N mineralization rates for two soils receiving 56 and 168 kg N ha−1in a Panoche clay loam (Typic Haplocambid) and a Wasco sandy loam (Typic Torriorthent), incubated with and without cotton(Gossypium hirsutumL.)residues at 10 and 25°C for 203 days. Microbial biomass activity determined from mineralized carbon dioxide (CO2) was higher in the sandy loam than in clay loam independent of incubation temperature, cotton residue addition and N treatment. In the absence of added cotton residue, N mineralization rates were higher in the sandy loam. Residue additions increased N immobilization in both soils, but were greater in clay loam. Microbial biomass and mineralization were significantly affected by soil type, residue addition and temperature but not by N level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Starting from explicit materialist premises, this paper develops a general conceptualization of productive (P) and unproductive (U) activities. This distinction is implicit in the concept of a social surplus derived (often) through exploitation and redistributed (typically) through social mechanisms that channel portions of the surplus to reproduce U activities. But the P/U distinction for labor is inherently multidimensional, so a “topological” partitioning of the conceptual space is needed. Relevant “axes” of distinction are (1) capitalist versus noncapitalist labors, (2) production versus nonproduction labors, and (3) basic versus nonbasic labors. The meaning and relevance of each of these axes is explored, referring to the literature, and six conceptual viewpoints are distinguished. The theoretical and political implications of these different specifications are examined, with special focus on the status of the financial (FIRE) sector. It is argued that no single specification of the P/U distinction is adequate for considering all questions. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Conservation cropping systems are being developed for cotton (Gossypiumspp.) traditionally grown on raised beds with several soil-disturbing tillage passes in the San Joaquin Valley (SJV) of California, USA. Overhead (OH) irrigation and subsurface drip irrigation (SSDI) systems are water-conserving techniques being tested with reduced tillage in the SJV. However, crop growth, yield, microclimate, and pest population dynamics in these systems have not been documented. A field study was conducted in 2011 and 2012 at Five Points, Calif., to evaluate the difference between the two irrigation systems. Cotton cv. Phytogen 725 RF was no-till planted into wheat residue. In both years, the soil surfaces in the OH plots were 1° to 2°C cooler and 5% to 15% wetter than the SSDI plots. These differences had no effect on crop growth, development, yield, or quality, but weed densities and biomass were lower in the SSDI than in the OH in both years. However, the SSDI plots had more spider mites (Tetranychussp.) than the OH plots in 2011. The study showed that cotton could be successfully grown with conservation tillage, high residue systems, with either OH or SSDI systems in the SJV. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The molecular changes induced by alemtuzumab following binding of CD52 on B tumor cells were investigated. Alemtuzumab alone had no detectable impact on cell signaling but cross-linking of alemtuzumab on the surface of B tumor lines with anti-human Fc antibodies induced a transient Ca2 ++ flux followed by phosphorylation of several kinases involved in stress and survival pathways, and expression of associated proteins including TNF-α. Cross-linking of alemtuzumab also induced capping and caspase-dependent apoptosis of the tumor lines. When using primary cells from B-CLL patients, alemtuzumab alone was capable of inducing protein phosphorylation and apoptosis through the cross-linking of alemtuzumab by FcγRIIb receptors on B-CLL cells. Apoptosis was prevented by blocking of FcγRIIb receptors with anti-CD32 antibody. Overall, our results indicate that cross-linking of alemtuzumab on B tumor cells can occur naturally through Fc receptor interaction and leads to the activation of specific cellular pathways and induction of apoptosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper addresses exploitation in the context of commodity production by worker-controlled enterprises, arguing that cooperative/collective social relations within the firm don't suffice to guarantee absence of exploitation. Labor in worker-controlled enterprises is not formally subsumed to capital, but this doesn't preclude alternative forms of exploitative appropriation, including noncapitalist appropriation and other forms of capitalist appropriation beyond the 'capitalist mode of production' and its formal subsumption of labor. Marx noted the possibility of 'capitalist exploitation without the capitalist mode of production,' meaning workers empowered to direct their own labor process but enmeshed in financial relations allowing a formal but not a real capacity to (fully) appropriate their own surplus labor. Analysis should not assume that real appropriation follows automatically from the power to direct the labor process. Avoidance of exploitation in a commodity setting requires an institutional superstructure allowing collective determination of and consent to the basic 'rules' for the market sphere. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

At stake in the debates over value is the legitimacy of a theory that takes class exploitation as its object. The categories of value and surplus value are argued to be indispensable to that task since they permit analysis of revenue flows in capitalism as outcomes of a multilayered process that redistributes unpaid labor. Marxism requires a value theory capable of consistent theorization of the multiple mechanisms of surplus transfer/redistribution. Several contemporary approaches are briefly considered in the context of an argument for what some now call a 'single system' perspective: one that conceives the magnitude of capital (constant or variable) as the labor time equivalent paid for (rather than the labor embodied in) the commodities purchased as capital. On this basis, the ground for a consistent value theory is secure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Alemtuzumab is a recombinant humanized IgG1 monoclonal antibody directed against CD52, an antigen expressed on the surface of normal and malignant B and T lymphocytes. Alemtuzumab is approved for the treatment of B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia (B-CLL), but the exact mechanism by which the antibody depletes malignant lymphocytes in vivo is not clearly defined. To address this issue, the anti-tumor activity of alemtuzumab was studied in disseminated and subcutaneous xenograft tumor models. The density of CD52 target antigen on the surface of tumor cells appeared to correlate with the anti-tumor activity of alemtuzumab. Deglycosylation of alemtuzumab resulted in a loss of cytotoxicity in vitro and was found to abolish anti-tumor activity in vivo. Individual inactivation of effector mechanisms in tumor-bearing mice indicated that the protective activity of alemtuzumab in vivo was primarily dependent on ADCC mediated by neutrophils and to a lesser extent NK cells. Increasing the number of circulating neutrophils by treatment with G-CSF enhanced the anti-tumor activity of the antibody, thus providing further evidence for the involvement of neutrophils as effector cells in the activity of alemtuzumab. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. Cohen et al.'s (1990, 1999) concept of context has been employed to explain various schizophrenic cognitive deficits. Braver et al.'s (2001) modified definition allows us to link context to cognitive complexity and explain a range of our experimental findings. Method. Saccadic and manual responses to experimental paradigms involving familiar and unfamiliar versions of tasks varying in stimulus-response compatibility, response familiarity, and temporal factors were used. These include comparison of acoustic and visually driven saccades and antisaccades, manual and saccadic pattern reproduction, and colour (cognitively guided) saccades with two delay intervals. Results. In one experiment, schizophrenic participants, unlike controls, made fewer errors on the auditory compared to the visual antisaccade task, suggesting that prepotent responses are more easily inhibited when stimulus-response compatibility is reduced. In a second experiment in which a left-right response sequence is reproduced manually or saccadically, schizophrenic performance is impaired when the novel and thus more complex saccadic response is required. In the third experiment, a colour signal is interpreted to determine the correct direction of a saccade. With two different blocked delay intervals, shortening the delay results in schizophrenic performance decline, suggesting difficulty adjusting to temporal context changes. Conclusion. These results, together with our previous findings (Schooler et al., 1997a; Zahn et al., 1998) suggest schizophrenic context processing deficits become increasingly evident as contexts become more complex. These results may be due to microgaps in schizophrenic individuals' maintenance of context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose. To evaluate the chicken cornea as a model for coneal wound healing research. Methods. We conducted studies on normal chicken corneas and on corneas following mechanical debridement and photorefractive keratectomy (PRK). Results. The chicken cornea possesses six distinct layers that resemble the layers of the human cornea, including a substantial Bowman's layer measuring 5.2 ± 0.3 μm thick. Reepithelialization time was 44.8 ±1.1 hours with a sliding rate of 75.3 ± 3.2 μm/hour following mechanical debridement and 54.4 ± 2.8 hours with a sliding rate of 63.3 ±3.2 μm/hour for PRK-treated corneas, Biomicroscopic haze post-PRK peaked at 4-6 weeks and regressed until 20 weeks post-PRK. Histologic and clinical observations of wound healing strongly paralleled that noted in humans. Conclusion. The chicken cornea's morphology and wound healing response render it a useful model for corneal wound healing investigations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reciprocal ministry is an approach to ministry in which people know, care about, and give reciprocal support and help to one another in communities in addition to congregations. Empowering leadership enhances reciprocal ministry. Empowering leaders “walk-with” congregation members enabling them to contribute to others through their involvement in activities — allowing each parishioner to find ways to contribute that arc meaningful to their own life. Examples of an empowering style of leadership include an active working with people to help them (1) know others belter, (2) grow to care more about each other, (3) find ways to help and support others, and (4) ask others for help and support for themselves. These distress-reducing dimensions of reciprocal ministry can transform our visions of both help-giving and leadership. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

A social ecological approach to consultation was evaluated through a four-year primary prevention field research project with 10,000 people in 24 church congregations. Significantly lower levels of personal distress and alcohol abuse were found in experimental congregations exposed to intervention processes which encouraged an increase in heterogeneous settings and activities when compared to control congregations not exposed to the same intervention processes. Continuing reciprocal social support and mutual empowerment, defined as knowing how to give and receive support, caring for others, knowing others by name, and being asked to help others, were identified as the key process variables which minimized distress and abuse. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

PURPOSE. Isolation and culture of human trabecularmeshwork (TM) cells from primary open-angle glaucomatous (POAG) tissue hasproven difficult. The objective of this study was to directly compare theutility of two different isolation methods to obtain viable human TM cellsfrom POAG whole eye tissue. METHODS. Using a blunt dissection technique, human TM tissue was obtainedfrom four pairs of donor eyes (67, 77, 81 and 82 years) with a documentedhistory of POAG. TM tissue from one eye was explanted into tissue culture.TM from the contralateral eye was digested with a collagenase mixture andseeded onto culture plates. RESULTS. Primary cell isolates were obtained from all donors with bothtechniques. However, only cells obtained using the digestion method (3 of4 TMs) could be passaged for expansion and freeze-downs (3 × 107 secondpassage cells/donor). None of the cells obtained from explanted TMs couldbe passaged. Cells from successful isolations were of uniform size, possessedtypical TM morphology and had doubling times < 48 hours. CONCLUSION. These results demonstrate a clear advantage to digesting theextracellular matrix of glaucomatous TM tissue to obtain sufficient numbersof healthy cells for use in experiments. In contrast to cells obtained fromexplants, cells liberated from POAG TM tissue by digestion appear indistinguishablemorphologically and behaviorally from "normal" TM cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]