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Human skin consists of three compartments, each endowed with a particular structure and the presence of several immune and nonimmune cells that together comprise a protective shield and orchestrate multiple processes in the skin. Appropriate processing of human skin samples acquired from healthy volunteers or patients is essential for successful analysis in basic, translational, and clinical research to obtain accurate and reliable results, despite differences between individuals. From the wide range of available assays and methods, it is necessary to select the suitable method for separation of skin compartments, which will provide preservation or high viability of skin cells or whole structures that will be analyzed or further processed. In this paper, we review and discuss skin separation methods and compare their features such as processing time, cell viability, location of the basement membrane after detachment of the epidermis from the dermis, and their application. Furthermore, we visualize different cell populations and structures in epidermal and dermal sheets using confocal microscopy. It is aimed to provide an overview of the optimal processing of human skin samples and their possible application.

This article outlines the challenges and negative experiences athletes encounter during urine doping controls and how they can be dealt with. Negative experiences can be caused by physiological (e.g., inability to urinate) and psychological (e.g., feelings of embarrassment) factors relating to the control as well as to the way in which the doping control officer (DCO) conducts the procedure. Negative experiences can lead to short- and long-term effects on athletes' well-being and potentially also performance. The article outlines a number of strategies that can be applied to minimize negative experiences of urine doping controls. Furthermore, recommendations for how policy regarding urine doping tests could be changed are given.

Blood and lymphatic vessels provide nutrients for the skin and fulfill important homeostatic functions, such as the regulation of immunologic processes. In this study, we investigated the development of blood and lymphatic endothelial cells in prenatal human skin in situusing multicolor immunofluorescence and analyzed angiogenic molecules by protein arrays of lysates and cell culture supernatants. We found that at 8 to 10 weeks of estimated gestational age, CD144+vessels predominantly express the venous endothelial cell marker PAL-E, whereas CD144+PAL-E−vessels compatible with arteries only appear at the end of the first trimester. Lymphatic progenitor cells at 8 weeks of estimated gestational age express CD31, CD144, Prox1, and temporary PAL-E. At that developmental stage not all lymphatic progenitor cells express podoplanin or Lyve-1, which are acquired with advancing gestational age in a stepwise fashion. Already in second-trimester human skin, the phenotype of blood and lymphatic vessels roughly resembles the one in adult skin. The expression pattern of angiogenic molecules in lysates and cell culture supernatants of prenatal skin did not reveal the expected bent to proangiogenic molecules, indicating a complex regulation of angiogenesis during ontogeny. In summary, this study provides enticing new insights into the development and phenotypic characteristics of the vascular system in human prenatal skin.

This study reports the effects of a goal-setting intervention on fear of failure in young elite athletes. Using the hierarchical model of approach and avoidance motivation as a theoretical vantage point, a goal-setting intervention using mastery-approach goals and existing goalsetting recommendations was used as intervention. The goal-setting group (n = 33) attended 12 weekly, one-hour goal-setting sessions, while the control group (n = 16) did not. A Danish version of the short form of the Achievement Motives Scale-Sport was tested with a confirmatory factor analysis and showed good fit. It was used to measure fear of failure at baseline, at the end of intervention and at follow-up, 12 weeks after intervention had ended. Results showed that in the goal-setting group, fear of failure decreased significantly from baseline to end of intervention, but increased again from end of intervention to follow-up. This indicates that fear of failure is an achievement motive disposition that can be changed through certain achievement experiences. Implications for practice and future research are discussed.

The objective of this study was to examine the prevalence and patterns of antipsychotic use in children and adolescents at the time of admission and discharge from a tertiary care inpatient psychiatric facility. This retrospective analysis included all patients 18 years and younger, who were admitted and discharged from a child and adolescent tertiary care inpatient psychiatric facility between May 1, 2008 and December 31, 2009. Data for medications at admission were obtained using a province-wide network that links all pharmacies in British Columbia, Canada to a central set of data systems, whereas data for medications at discharge were obtained using the Department of Pharmacy’s (British Columbia Children’s Hospital, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada) inpatient computer database. Apart from antipsychotics, overall drug use included antidepressants, mood stabilizers, benzodiazepines, anticholinergics, stimulants, and sleep medications. Referral and discharge diagnoses were also examined. During the study period, 335 patients were admitted and discharged from the tertiary care inpatient psychiatric facility. Significantly, more patients were prescribed with an antipsychotic at the time of discharge from hospital compared with that of the time when they were admitted to hospital (51.6 vs 30.7; P< 0.0001). Antidepressants were most often coprescribed with an antipsychotic at admission and discharge (32.0 vs 42.2, respectively) followed by attention-deficithyperactivity disorder medications (22.3 vs 24.9 at admission and discharge, respectively) and anticonvulsants (19.4 vs 19.1 at admission and discharge, respectively). Whether the significant increase in antipsychotic use seen from the time of admission to discharge is solely attributed to clinical worsening or other variables requires further investigation.

Human Langerhans cell (LC) precursors populate the epidermis early during prenatal development and thereafter undergo massive proliferation. The prototypic antiproliferative cytokine TGF-β1 is required for LC differentiation from human CD34+ hematopoietic progenitor cells and blood monocytes in vitro. Similarly, TGF-β1 deficiency results in LC loss in vivo. However, immunohistology studies revealed that human LC niches in early prenatal epidermis and adult basal (germinal) keratinocyte layers lack detectable TGF-β1. Here we demonstrated that these LC niches express high levels of bone morphogenetic protein 7 (BMP7) and that Bmp7-deficient mice exhibit substantially diminished LC numbers, with the remaining cells appearing less dendritic. BMP7 induces LC differentiation and proliferation by activating the BMP type-I receptor ALK3 in the absence of canonical TGF-β1–ALK5 signaling. Conversely, TGF-β1–induced in vitro LC differentiation is mediated via ALK3; however, co-induction of ALK5 diminished TGF-β1–driven LC generation. Therefore, selective ALK3 signaling by BMP7 promotes high LC yields. Within epidermis, BMP7 shows an inverse expression pattern relative to TGF-β1, the latter induced in suprabasal layers and up-regulated in outer layers. We observed that TGF-β1 inhibits microbial activation of BMP7-generated LCs. Therefore, TGF-β1 in suprabasal/outer epidermal layers might inhibit LC activation, resulting in LC network maintenance.

Sport participation has been recognized as an important socializing agent; the sport environment is considered a suitable setting for the development of social and moral values, particularly for youth. Therefore, it can be argued that participation in sport may reinforce understanding and respect of cultural diversity and foster the integration of migrants. In this paper, we review the existing literature on the integrative role of sport among individuals and groups with differing cultural backgrounds. The existing findings support the role sport may have in promoting integration; nonetheless, some controversy exists. On the one side, there is evidence suggesting that sport can promote interaction among people from different cultures, while also helping individuals maintain ties with their own cultural groups, thus facilitating the maintenance of their cultural heritage. On the other side, there are also indications that sport participation may accentuate cultural differences, thus evoking tensions. Therefore, it appears that sport participation per se may not have the strength to achieve the anticipated integration; rather, sport would provide a common ground where integration can be cultivated. Future directions are discussed to encourage the development of research that enhances further our understanding on the integrative role of sport in multicultural societies.

Two major pathways of human myeloid dendritic cell (DC) subset differentiation have previously been delineated. Langerhans cells (LCs) reside in epithelia in the steady state, whereas monocytes can provide dendritic cells (DCs) on demand in response to inflammatory signals. Both DC subset pathways arise from shared CD14+ monocyte precursors, which in turn develop from myeloid committed progenitor cells. However, the underlying hematopoietic mechanisms still remain poorly defined. Here, we demonstrate that the vitamin D3 receptor (VDR) is induced by transforming growth factor β1 during LC lineage commitment and exerts a positive role during LC generation. In contrast, VDR is repressed during interleukin-4 (IL-4)–dependent monocyte-derived DC (moDC) differentiation. We identified GATA-1 as a repressor of VDR. GATA-1 is induced by IL-4 in moDCs. Forced inducible expression of GATA-1 mimics IL-4 in redirecting moDC differentiation and vice versa, GATA-1 knockdown arrests moDC differentiation at the monocyte stage. Moreover, ectopic GATA-1 expression stabilizes the moDC phenotype under monocyte-promoting conditions in the presence of vitamin D3 (VD3). In summary, human myeloid DC subset differentiation is inversely regulated by GATA-1 and VDR. GATA-1 mediates the repression of VDR and enables IL-4–dependent moDC differentiation. Conversely, VDR is induced downstream of transforming growth factor β1 and is functionally involved in promoting LC differentiation.

As the phenotype of adult dermal stem cells is still elusive, and the hematopoietic stem cell is one of the best‐characterized stem cells in the body, we tested dermal cell suspensions, sections, and wholemounts in newborn and adult mice for hematopoietic stem cell marker expression. Phenotypic analysis revealed that a small population of CD45+cells and a large population of CD45–cells expressed CD34, CD117, and stem cell antigen‐1 molecules. When cultivated in selected media supplemented with hematopoietic cytokines, total dermal cells, lineage–,and/or highly enriched phenotypically defined cell subsets produced hematopoietic and nonhematopoietic colonies. When injected into lethally irradiated recipient mice, a small percentage of newborn dermal cells was able to migrate into hematopoietic tissues and the skin and survived through the 11‐month monitoring period. Our ability to isolate a candidate autologous stem cell pool will make these cells ideal vehicles for genetic manipulation and gene therapy.

Zusammenfassung.In diesem Beitrag wird die Achievement Motives Scale-Sport (AMS-Sport) von Elbe (2002), ein adaptiertes Instrument zur Bestimmung des sportspezifischen Leistungsmotivs, auf seine Testgütekriterien hin überprüft. Des Weiteren wird untersucht, ob das sportspezifische Instrument AMS-Sport das tatsächliche Sportverhalten besser bestimmen kann als das allgemeine Instrument AMS (Göttert & Kuhl, 1980). Die Faktorenanalyse mit zusätzlicher Parallelanalyse ergab eine Zweifaktorenstruktur, welche der klassischen Unterscheidung von Hoffnung auf Erfolgund Furcht vor Misserfolgentspricht. Die interne Konsistenz erwies sich als sehr gut und auch die Analyse der Retestreliabilität zeigte akzeptable Werte. Die Validität konnte mittels zweier Verhaltensaußenkriterien (Handballwurfspiel und Golfspiel) entsprechend dem Risikowahl-Modell (Atkinson, 1957) durch Korrelationen mit dem deutschen Sport Orientation Questionnaire (Elbe, 2001, 2003) und dem deutschen Task und Ego Orientation Questionnaire (Rethorst & Wehrmann, 1998) entsprechend dem hierarchischen Modell zur Annähernden und Vermeidenden Leistungsmotivation (Elliot & Church, 1997) bestimmt werden. Des Weiteren konnte eine inkrementelle Validität von 21 % für die AMS-Sport zufriedenstellend nachgewiesen werden. Für die Bestimmung des leistungsmotivierten Sportverhaltens eignet sich der AMS-Sport besser als der allgemeine AMS. Darüber hinaus ist der AMS-Sport in der Lage zwischen LeistungssportlerInnen und Nicht-LeistungssportlerInnen zu unterscheiden.

Resident epidermal Langerhans cells (LC) in adult mice express ADPase, major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class II, and CD205 and CD207 molecules, while the first dendritic leukocytes that colonize the fetal and newborn epidermis are only ADPase+. In this study, we tested whether dendritic epidermal leukocytes (DEL) are end‐stage cells or represent LC precursors. In epidermal sheets of fetal and neonatal mice, we found no apoptotic leukocytes, suggesting that these cells do not die in situ. To address whether DEL can give rise to LC, sorted DEL from murine newborn skin were cultured with cytokines used to generate LC from human CD34+precursors. After 7–14 days, DEL proliferated and acquired the morphology and phenotype of cells reminiscent of LC. In concordance with this finding, we show that neonatal epidermis harbors 10–20 times the number of cycling MHC class II+leukocytes as adult tissue. To test whether LC can differentiate from skin precursors in vivo, we developed a transplantation model. As it was impossible to transplant fetal epidermis, whole fetal skin was grafted onto adult severe combined immunodeficient mice. As opposed to the uniform absence of donor LC at the time of transplantation, examination of the epidermis from the grafts after 2–4 weeks revealed MHC class II+donor cells, which had acquired CD205 and CD207, thus qualifying them as LC. Finally, we present evidence that endogenous LC persist in skin grafts for the observation period of 45 days. These studies show that hematopoietic precursors seed the skin during embryonic life and can give rise to LC.

OBJECTIVE: To report 5 cases of a moxifloxacin—warfarin drug interaction, all resulting in elevated international normalized ratios (INRs) and clinically significant hemorrhage in one case.CASE SUMMARIES: Between January 2002 and January 2004, 4 men and 1 woman (age range 63–92 y) were retrospectively identified as having significantly elevated INR results shortly after being prescribed moxifloxacin with concomitant warfarin therapy.DISCUSSION: This is the second series of case reports describing an interaction between warfarin and moxifloxacin. The current moxifloxacin product monograph indicates this drug has no significant effect on the pharmacokinetics of R- or S-warfarin or the prothrombin time (INR). A moxifloxacin—warfarin interaction probably led to prolonged hospitalization in 2 cases and significant gastrointestinal hemorrhage in one case. In 3 of the 5 cases, a moxifloxacin—warfarin interaction was assessed as probable, and in the remaining 2 cases, a moxifloxacin—warfarin interaction was assessed as possible by use of the Naranjo probability scale.CONCLUSIONS: Healthcare professionals should consider moxifloxacin for the potential to interact with warfarin. Routine, frequent INR monitoring for patients previously stabilized on warfarin during initiation and discontinuation of moxifloxacin may help detect this potential interaction.

AbstractThis paper examines the test‐control criteria of the Achievement Motives Scale‐Sport (Elbe, 2002), a new instrument for measuring the sport‐specific achievement motives. The theoretically based two‐factor structure (hope for success and fear of failure) can be proven in the German and almost completely in the English version. The internal consistencies are above .90 in both versions and reveal homogeneity for both scales. The retest reliability also shows acceptable values for the German version. The validity can be shown by means of a behavioral external criterion (team‐handball throwing game) based on Atkinson's risk‐taking model (1957; 1958). Results show that people with high net hope, who are primarily motivated by their hope for success, prefer realistic tasks with 50% probability of success; whereas people with low net hope, who are more motivated by their fear of failure, choose unrealistic or safe tasks. Validity is additionally shown by significant correlations with the Sport Orientation Questionnaire (Elbe, 2001; Gill & Deeter, 1988) as well as the German version of the Task and Ego Orientation in Sport Questionnaire (Rethorst & Wehrmann, 1998) as proposed by Elliot and Church's (1997) hierachical model of approach and avoidance achievement motivation. Furthermore, the AMS‐Sport is able to differentiate between competitive and noncompetitive athletes revealing further construct validity.

To test whether reduced immune responsiveness in early life may be related to the immaturity of neonatal antigen‐presenting cells, we comparatively assessed the phenotypic and functional characteristics of dendritic epidermal leukocytes (DEL) and epidermal Langerhans cells (LC) in newborn (NB) and adult mice, respectively. We report that purified, 3‐day‐culturedDEL do not acquire the morphology and phenotype typical of LC and are significantly weaker stimulators of naive, allogeneic CD4+and CD8+T cells than LC. Freshly isolated DEL are twice as efficient as LC in the uptake of fluorescein isothiocyanate‐conjugated tracers but are not able to present these to antigen‐specific T cell hybridomas. To clarify the underlying cause, cytokine expression of NB and adult epidermal cells (EC) was examined. We found that DEL express considerable amounts of interleukin (IL)‐10, that IL‐10 in NB EC supernatants partially inhibits LC maturation, and that DEL‐enriched EC from IL‐10−/−mice induce stronger primary T cell responses compared with those from IL‐10+/+mice. We conclude that IL‐10 is one of the factors preventing maturation and differentiation of DEL into immunocompetent LC in intrauterine life and is at least partly responsible for the poor immune responsiveness of neonates.

Zusammenfassung.Volition oder Selbstregulation ist ein für sportpraktisches Handeln wichtiges Persönlichkeitsmerkmal. Eine der Fragen, die sich in diesem Zusammenhang stellt, ist, welche Bedingungen die Entwicklung von Volition vermitteln und ob moderne leistungssportliche Verbundsysteme hierbei einen Beitrag leisten. Dazu werden zwei Studien1Ergebnisse des Forschungsprojekts “Persönlichkeits-und Leistungsentwicklung von Sportinternatsschülern in Potsdam“. Dieses Projekt wird durch Forschungsmittel des Bundesinstituts für Sportwissenschaft unter dem Geschäftszeichen VF 0407/1/01 2002 und das Brandenburgische Ministerium für Bildung, Jugend und Sport finanziert.vorgestellt, die die volitionale Entwicklung von Jugendlichen an einer Eliteschule des Sports untersuchen. Anhand des VCQ-II-Fragebogens von Kuhl und Fuhrmann (1997, 1998) werden die entsprechenden volitionalen Fertigkeiten gemessen und sowohl querschnittlich (Studie 1) als auch längsschnittlich (Studie 2) ausgewertet. Es zeigen sich bei den Jugendlichen der Eliteschule ausschließlich Entwicklungsvorteile im Vergleich zu einer Kontrollgruppe, die aus SchülerInnen einer Regelschule besteht. Bei den Sportschüler/-innen entwickeln sich diejenigen, die im Internat wohnen, insbesondere in der Einstiegsphase, günstiger als ihre zuhause wohnenden Mitschüler/-innen.

This Adelphi Paper argues that the AIDS pandemic is not only a health and development issue, but also a strategic one. Drawing on examples from Africa and Asia, it explores the impact of HIV/ AIDS on the armed forces and state stability of the worst affected countries, and anticipates the future implications this is likely to have for international security. It concludes by outlining how the security sector can make an important contribution to wider international efforts to reduce the spread of the illness.

This Adelphi Paper argues that the AIDS pandemic is not only a health and development issue, but also a strategic one. Drawing on examples from Africa and Asia, it explores the impact of HIV/ AIDS on the armed forces and state stability of the worst affected countries, and anticipates the future implications this is likely to have for international security. It concludes by outlining how the security sector can make an important contribution to wider international efforts to reduce the spread of the illness.

This Adelphi Paper argues that the AIDS pandemic is not only a health and development issue, but also a strategic one. Drawing on examples from Africa and Asia, it explores the impact of HIV/ AIDS on the armed forces and state stability of the worst affected countries, and anticipates the future implications this is likely to have for international security. It concludes by outlining how the security sector can make an important contribution to wider international efforts to reduce the spread of the illness.

This Adelphi Paper argues that the AIDS pandemic is not only a health and development issue, but also a strategic one. Drawing on examples from Africa and Asia, it explores the impact of HIV/ AIDS on the armed forces and state stability of the worst affected countries, and anticipates the future implications this is likely to have for international security. It concludes by outlining how the security sector can make an important contribution to wider international efforts to reduce the spread of the illness.

This Adelphi Paper argues that the AIDS pandemic is not only a health and development issue, but also a strategic one. Drawing on examples from Africa and Asia, it explores the impact of HIV/ AIDS on the armed forces and state stability of the worst affected countries, and anticipates the future implications this is likely to have for international security. It concludes by outlining how the security sector can make an important contribution to wider international efforts to reduce the spread of the illness.

This Adelphi Paper argues that the AIDS pandemic is not only a health and development issue, but also a strategic one. Drawing on examples from Africa and Asia, it explores the impact of HIV/ AIDS on the armed forces and state stability of the worst affected countries, and anticipates the future implications this is likely to have for international security. It concludes by outlining how the security sector can make an important contribution to wider international efforts to reduce the spread of the illness.

Both UV absorption and fluorescence maxima of 2-(2-methoxyaryl)-1,3,5-triazines show a marked bathochromic shift with increasing proton concentration. Well-defined isosbestic points establish an equilibrium between protonated and nonprotonated species for the ground state. ¹H and ¹³C NMR data unequivocally prove a rapid prototropic equilibrium (> 10²/s) between tautomers protonated at N-1, N-3, and N-5, respectively. The NMR data also show a substantial increase in charge transfer, upon protonation, from the phenyl, and even more from the alkoxy-substituted aryl rings into the triazine system already for the ground state. At higher proton concentrations, the twisted intramolecular charge transfer (TICT) fluorescence of the nonprotonated (2-methoxyaryl) triazines is gradually replaced by the much weaker fluorescence of the protonated species, which is shifted to still longer wavelengths. Because the electron-accepting capacity of triazines is enhanced in the excited state, their pKa values increase, upon photoexcitation, by 6.8−9 units; thence, the excited-state energy level of the protonated form (S1‘) is calculated to be lower by 37−51 kJ/mol than that of the respective nonprotonated species (S1). Protonation thus leads to static quenching of the fluorescence. Halide ions, in contrast, can act as external electron donors toward triazines only in their highly electron-affine excited state, and so effect merely dynamic fluorescence quenching, with a corresponding reduction in fluorescence quantum yield, for the (2-methoxyaryl) triazines. Photochemical stabilization by protonation, therefore, is more efficient than by electron transfer. For all systems investigated, the excited-state electron transfer is exergonic and hence may be considered as diffusion-controlled, in accordance with the Rehm−Weller equation.

Der Personalforschung in Deutschland werden Mängel vorgeworfen, wie z.B. eine ungenügende empirische Ausrichtung der Disziplin. In dem vorliegenden Artikel werden deshalb die Ergebnisse empirischer Personalforschung in West-Deutschland seit 1990, vor dem Hintergrund der eigenen Untersuchung der Autoren “Best Practices in Human Resource Management”, diskutiert. Es werden folgende Themen behandelt: Situation der Personalleiter, Bedeutung der Personalabteilung, Personalrekrutierung, Personalentwicklung, Leitstungsbeurteilung, Entlohnungspraktiken und Führung. Der Vergleich von 27 Studien führt zu folgenden Ergebnissen: Die Personalleiter erachten Führung, Personalentwicklung und Personalrekrutierung als die wichtigsten Zukunftsaufgaben. Die Notwendigkeit der Verknüpfung von Entgeltsystemen und individueller Leistung wird stark empfunden, doch findet dies in den praktizierten Entgeltsystemen kaum Niederschlag. Die Ziele der Personalbeurteilung bleiben in den meisten Unternehmen unklar. Obwohl die Personalleiter ihre Abteilungen als wichtig und effektiv einschätzen, erachten sie diese nicht als Schlüsselfaktoren für den Unternehmenserfolg. Eine stärkere Anbindung des Personalmanagements an die Unternehmensstrategien ist notwendig.

We have investigated normal-emission photoelectron spectra at various photon energies between ℏω=11.8eV and 29.8eV from W(110) covered with about one monolayer of dissociatively chemisorbed oxygen. As expected, O(2p)-derived bonding orbitals appear energetically below the substrate 5d-valence-band emission and these are observed at initial state energies Ei=(−5.1±0.1)eV, (−6.1±0.1)eV and (− 7.7±0.2)eV below the Fermi energy. In addition, however, drastic spectral changes are also induced in the W(5d) region and our interest is focused primarily on an understanding of the latter emission. All results clearly demonstrate its 2-dimensional character, with no detectable geometric reconstruction in the layers below. We give an interpretation in terms of emission from W(5d)–O(2p) strongly hybridized orbitals. These reside essentially in the outermost layer and are split off the bulk bands energetically by the action of the strongly oxygen-modified surface potential. By checking for intensity variations with ℏω the overlayer orbitals can be identified in terms of their parent bulk bands.

High performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) has found wide application for qualitative and quantitative analysis of plant pigments. HPLC methods developed for the analysis of carotenoids, chlorophylls, flavonoids and betalaines are summarized. Compared to other chromatographic techniques the methods are precise, sensitive and less time consuming.Sample preparation prior to chromatography is generally minimal and often a simple extraction step is sufficient. The high resolution capability of HPLC has made the separation of closely related pigments possible and has provided a means for major advances into the study of plant pigments.