Demonstrating distinction at ‘the lowest edge of the black-coated class’: the family expenditures of Edwardian railway clerks

Families at the bottom end of the Edwardian white-collar income spectrum demonstrated middle-class status through observable consumption, at the cost of squeezing other expenditures, including ‘necessities’. This had negative economic impacts, lowering living standards due to inefficiently high budget shares for positional goods. Drawing on the work of Pierre Bourdieu, we examine how railway clerks sought to demonstrate ‘distinction’ from manual workers through certain conspicuous expenditures and how this strategy was progressively undermined by falling real incomes over the Edwardian period.

Sexual distinction between 5th instar nymphs of six species of Triatominae (Hemiptera, Reduviidae)

The aim of this paper is to present the analysis of sexual morphological differences observed in 5th instar nymphs of the following species: Panstrongylus megistus; Rhodnius neglectus; Triatoma brasiliensis; T. infestans; T. matogrosensis and T. tibiamaculata. Male and female nymphs were examined and photographed with a Scanning Electron Microscope. The 9th segment dimensions of dorsal and ventral faces were determined through a Profile Projector. Results and statistical analysis showed significant differences: the 9th sternite is significantly broader in male than female nymphs, while in five species; tergites in female nymphs are broad and in male are narrow.

Pericentric inversion events in karyotypic distinction of Brazilian lizards of genus Phyllopezus (Squamata, Gekkonidae) detected by chromosomal banding patterns

Cytogenetic investigations based on conventional and differential staining analysis (C-and replication R-banding and Ag-staining) were carried out on eight specimens of Phyllopezus periosus, 17 of P. pollicaris pollicaris, and one of P. pollicaris przewalskii collected from different localities of Brazil. P. periosus and P. p. pollicaris share the same diploid number of 2n = 40 chromosomes, and their karyotypes are very distinctive regarding to the number of biarmed and uniarmed chromosomes. After careful side-by-side comparison of R-banded chromosomes in both taxa, pronounced homology between, at least, eight pairs was revealed. The R-banding patterns allowed us to postulate that karyotype differentiation could be due to pericentric inversion events. P. p. przewalskii (2n = 38) exhibited a very similar karyotype to that found in P. p. pollicaris, except for the presence of one metacentric pair, which probably resulted from a Robertsonian rearrangement. Single and multiple pairs of NOR-bearing chromosomes, showing variation in number and location, were detected among the three forms of Phyllopezus. Similar C-banding patterns were found in P. periosus and P. p. pollicaris. Sex chromosomes were not positively identified.

SEXUAL DISTINCTION BETWEEN 5TH INSTAR NYMPHS OF 6 SPECIES OF TRIATOMINAE (HEMIPTERA, REDUVIIDAE)

The aim of this paper is to present the analysis of sexual morphological differences observed in 5th instar nymphs of the following species: Panstrongylus megistus; Rhodnius neglectus; Triatoma brasiliensis; T. infestans; T. matogrossensis and T. tibiamaculata. Male and female nymphs were examined and photographed with a Scanning Electron Microscope. The 9th segment dimensions of dorsal and ventral faces were determined through a Profile Projector. Results and statistical analysis showed significant differences: the 9th sternite is significantly broader in male than in female nymphs, while in five species, tergites in female nymphs are broad and in male are narrow.

Behavior of the Amazonian damselfly Chalcopteryx scintillans McLachlan (Zygoptera: Polythoridae) and comments on its morphological distinction from C. rutilans (Rambur)

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Cytogenic Evidence for the Specific Distinction of an Alaskan Marmot, Marmota broweri Hall and Gilmore (Mammalia: Sciuridae)

Cytogenetic studies based upon somatic cells (bone marrow) have disclosed that the marmot hitherto designated Marmota caligata broweri Hall and Gilmore, occurring in the Brooks Range of Arctic Alaska, differs from M. c. caligata (Eschscholtz) in number of chromosomes (2n=36 as compared with 2n=42 in M. caligata) and in proportions of chromosomal types. Typical karyograms for the two species are presented. It is concluded that the Brooks Range marmot is specifically distinct from M. caligata, the applicable name being Marmota broweri Hall and Gilmore. Also determined were diploid chromosome numbers for two other Nearctic species of marmots, M. flaviventris (Audubon and Bachman), with 42, and M. olympus (Merriam), with 40. It is suggested that M. broweri survived the last (Wisconsin) glaciations in the amphi-Beringian refugium, and that its closest affinities may be with one of the Eurasian species of Marmota.

Smoothelin is a specific and robust marker for distinction of muscularis propria and muscularis mucosae in the gastrointestinal tract

As tumour specimens and biopsy specimens become smaller, recognition of anatomical structures relevant for staging is increasingly challenging. So far no marker is known that reliably discriminates between muscularis propria (MP) and muscularis mucosae (MM) of the gastrointestinal tract. Recently, smoothelin expression has been shown to differ in MP and MM of the urinary bladder. We aimed to analyse the expression of smoothelin in the gastrointestinal tract in MP and MM in order to define a novel diagnostic tool to identify MM bundles.

Myocardial contrast echocardiography for the distinction of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy from athlete's heart and hypertensive heart disease

BACKGROUND: Myocardial contrast echocardiography (MCE) is able to measure in vivo relative blood volume (rBV, i.e., capillary density), and its exchange frequency b, the constituents of myo-cardial blood flow (MBF, ml min-1 g-1). This study aimed to assess, by MCE, whether left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) can be differentiated from LVH in triathletes (athlete's heart, AH) or from hypertensive heart disease patients (HHD). METHODS: Sixty individuals, matched for age (33 +/- 10 years) and gender, and subdivided into four groups (n = 15) were examined: HCM, AH, HHD and a group of sedentary individuals without LVH (S). rBV (ml ml-1), b (min-1) and MBF, at rest and during adenosine-induced hyperaemia, were derived by MCE in mid septal, lateral and inferior regions. The ratio of MBF during hyperaemia and MBF at rest yielded myocardial blood flow reserve (MBFR). RESULTS: Septal wall rBV at rest was lower in HCM (0.084 +/- 0.023 ml ml-1) than in AH (0.151 +/- 0.024 ml ml-1, p <0.01) and in S (0.129 +/- 0.026 ml ml-1, p <0.01), but was similar to HHD (0.097 +/- 0.016 ml ml-1). Conversely, MBFR was lowest in HCM (1.67 +/- 0.93), followed by HHD (2.8 +/- 0.93, p <0.01), by S (3.36 +/- 1.03, p <0.001) and by AH (4.74 +/- 1.46, p <0.0001). At rest, rBV <0.11 ml ml-1 accurately distinguished between HCM and AH (sensitivity 99%, specificity 99%), similarly MBFR < or =1.8 helped to distinguish between HCM and HHD (sensitivity 100%, specificity 77%). CONCLUSIONS: rBV at rest, most accurately distinguishes between pathological LVH due to HCM and physiological, endurance-exercise induced LVH.