Search

John Widdicombe has made substantial contributions to respiratory physiology and to the field of cough particularly. He was one of the first to characterise Ad-myelinated fibres in the airways that could mediate cough and increased breathing. Later on, he initiated the series of international London Cough Symposia that gathered researchers and clinicians on a two-yearly basis to discuss recent results and concepts regarding cough. John Widdicombe was interested in all aspects of cough from the definition to potential new antitussives. This article will focus on his contributions and on his generous personality through reminiscences from three friends. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Chieftainship in Lesotho was defined by the aspirations of the Chiefs, the Paramount Chief, and the colonial authorities in Lesotho from 1884-1940s. During the twentieth century contradictory interests caused increasing friction that culminated in the "medicine murder" crisis of the 1940s. Motsoene Molapo, born of an arranged marriage orchestrated by his great-grandfather Moshoeshoe, destined to be the King who would unite the houses of the founders two eldest sons, would rather spend most of his life being shunned by both. Motsoene would find himself a pawn of both the Paramount Chiefs and the Chiefs of Leribe in many succession disputes. After his death in 1937 both his brother and the colonial government disregarded his wishes and sought to place a less assertive grandson as Chief of Leribe. These disputes illustrate how Basotho actors and the colonial government manipulated succession to achieve their goals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

After the Second World War, the International Tracing Service's Child Search Branch (CSB) responded to inquiries for missing children and, until 1950 when funding was stopped, searched for children 'in the field'. As the Cold War set in, the US military authorities restricted the opportunities for such children, mostly Eastern European, to be removed from their German foster parents and returned to their countries of origin. In the spring of 1948, when tensions between the CSB fieldworkers and the military authorities were at their height, ITS appointed an experienced fieldworker, Charlotte Babinski, to investigate cases of children in German foster homes with a view to streamlining policy regarding child removal. Despite her findings, as monetary and geopolitical pressures increased, the CSB had to accept that many children of Eastern European origin would remain in Germany. Children were thus a battleground in the early Cold War, in which politics triumphed over ethics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This essay brings postal history and postcolonial theory into an encounter, considering the history of the Post Office in South Africa, stretching from its emergence under Dutch rule at the Cape. Turning to postal history reread under the sway of postcolonial theory may enable a rethinking of apartheid, what apartheid carried from the systems of government and administration that preceded it, and - though this remains at the edge of the essay, largely undeveloped but certainly there - what, in turn, of apartheid has been carried into post-apartheid South Africa. The essay forms part of an ongoing project that considers the relation between social institutions and subjectivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Focuses on the Da Vinci Society which is dedicated to the study of the airway circulation. Venue of its bi-annual scientific meetings; Highlights of its 8th International Meeting in Nimes, France.

People that the journal "Lung" would like to thank for their reviews in the 2008 issue are mentioned.

Using the refining optics of postcolonial hermeneutics, this paper is an attempt to show how missionary legacies, in the form of musical texts, have been and remain a talisman of imperialistic endeavors. They reflect, as it were, the superiority of the colonizing culture and religion while at the same time demonizing and promoting negative stereotypes about Africans (Mosotho) and their world. Specifically, this paper represents a reconstruction of the image of a colonial African (Mosotho) savage as depicted by the missionaries in their musical texts as contained in the Lifela tsa Sione and Lifela tsa Bakriste, in order to justify the necessity of Christianity as a superior form of life. The flipside of this reconstructive endeavor is the creation of space for the emergence of a voice that had been drowned out by Eurocentric ideological hegemony. The release of this voice provides an opportunity to re-label and re-define a Mosotho Christian's identity through word and song. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

New Findings What is the topic of this review? This review concerns the history of baroreflex control of blood pressure in animals and man. It deals mainly with mechanisms at a subcortical level and so complements the earlier review by Coote ()., What advances does it highlight? New studies now confirm that the arterial baroreflex does control long-term level of blood pressure through mechanisms which involve electrolyte and water excretion via nervous control of the kidney. The review also describes recent data on human blood pressure control using implanted devices to unilaterally stimulate the carotid baroreceptors, effective over several years with minimal complications. Music therapy is also discussed., Although drug treatment of human hypertension has greatly improved, there is renewed interest in non-drug methods of blood pressure reduction. Animal experiments have now shown that arterial baroreflexes do control long-term blood pressure levels, particularly by nervously mediated renal excretion of sodium and water. This Paton Lecture provides a review of the historical development of knowledge of peripheral circulatory control in order to supplement prior Paton Lectures concerned with cerebral cortical and other areas of influence. I also discuss how improved understanding of nervous control of the circulation has led to current methods of non-drug blood pressure control in man by implanted carotid baroreceptor pacemakers or by renal denervation. Finally, the role of other therapy, particularly listening to music, is reviewed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Altitude-related cough is a troublesome condition of uncertain aetiology that affects many visitors to high altitude. The traditionally held belief that it was due solely to the inspiration of cold, dry air was refuted by observations and experiments in long duration hypobaric chamber studies. It is likely that altitude-related cough is a symptom of a number of possible perturbations in the cough reflex arc that may exist independently or together. These include loss of water from the respiratory tract; respiratory tract infections and sub-clinical high altitude pulmonary oedema. The published work on altitude-related cough is reviewed and possible aetiologies for the condition are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is an overwhelming body of evidence to support the existence of higher brain circuitries involved in the sensory detection of airways irritation and the motor control of coughing. The concept that cough is purely a reflex response to airways irritation is now superseded by the recognition that perception of an urge-to-cough and altered behavioral modification of coughing are key elements of cough disorders associated with airways disease. Understanding the pathways by which airway sensory nerves ascend into the brain and the patterns of neural activation associated with airways irritation will undoubtedly provide new insights into disordered coughing. This brief review aims to explore our current understanding of higher order cough networks by summarizing data from recent neuroanatomical and functional studies in animals and humans. We provide evidence for the existence of distinct higher order network components involved in the discrimination of signals arising from the airways and the motor control of coughing. The identification of these network components provides a blueprint for future research and the development of targeted managements for cough and the urge-to-cough. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A case study is presented on the mechanization of the marquetry process in the U.S. and British furniture industries in the 19th century. The author discusses the machine methods used to produce this decorative woodworking technique, analyzes how the social shaping of technology (SST) has impacted the direction and rate of inventions, and explores social, economic, and cultural aspects of design and technology.

People that the editor in chief would like to thank for help in reviewing articles are mentioned.

Forecasting austral summer rainfall in southern Africa is hampered by a lack of long-term instrumental data. This paper extends the historical record for the subcontinent by presenting the first extensive 19th century climate history for Lesotho derived from documentary evidence. The data sources included unpublished English-, French- and Sesotho-language materials archived in Lesotho, South Africa and the UK. These included letters, journals and reports written by missionaries and colonial authorities, which were supplemented by newspapers, diaries, travelogues and other historical sources. Each source was read in chronological order, with any climate information recorded verbatim. Observations were classified into five categories (Very Wet, Relatively Wet, ‘Normal’, Relatively Dry, and Very Dry) based upon the predominant documented climate during each ‘rain-year’ (July to June). The latter portion of the chronology was then compared for accuracy against available instrumental precipitation records from Maseru (1886–1900). The results yield a semi-continuous record of climate information from 1824 to 1900. Data are restricted to lowland areas, but reveal drought episodes in 1833–34, 1841–42, 1845–47, 1848–51, 1858–63, 1865–69, 1876–80, 1882–85 and 1895–99 (the most severe drought years being 1850–51 and 1862–63) and wet periods or floods in 1835–36, 1838–41, 1847–48, 1854–56, 1863–65, 1873–75, 1880–81, 1885–86 and 1890–94. The rainfall chronology is compared with similar records for South Africa, Botswana and Zimbabwe. Linkages to possible forcing mechanisms, including ENSO teleconnections and historical coral-derived southwest Indian Ocean sea surface temperature variations are also explored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

People who the author would like to thank for their assistance in the creation of the journal "Respiration" are mentioned.

Our understanding of the role of the brain in respiratory rhythm generation and regulation began the early nineteenth century. Over the next 150 years the neuronal groups in the medulla oblongata and pons that were involved in eupnoea and in gasping were identified by techniques involving the lesioning of areas of the lower brainstem, several transections across the brainstem and focal electrical stimulation. An incomplete picture emerged that stressed the importance of the ventral medulla. Subsequent electrophysiological studies in in vivo, in situ and in vitro preparations have revealed the importance of restricted groups of neurones in this area, within the Bötzinger and pre-Bötzinger nuclei, that are the essential kernel for rhythm generation. The outputs to the spinal motoneurones responsible for the patterning of inspiratory and expiratory discharge are shaped by inputs from these neurones and others within the respiratory complex that determine the activity of respiratory bulbospinal neurones. It is clear that the developmental stage of the preparation is often critical for the pattern of respiratory activity that is generated and that these patterns have important physiological consequences. The models that are currently considered to explain rhythmogenesis are critically evaluated. The respiratory network is subject to regulation from peripheral and central chemoreceptors, amongst other afferent inputs, which act to ensure respiratory homeostasis. The roles of peripheral chemoreceptors as primarily O2 sensors are considered, and the evolution of ideas surrounding their roles is described. New insights into the transduction mechanisms of chemoreception in the carotid body and chemosensitive areas of the ventral medullary surface, specifically in monitoring CO2 levels, are reviewed. As new experimental tools, both genetic and cellular, are emerging, it can be expected that the detailed network architecture and synaptic interactions that pattern respiratory activity in relation to behavioural activity will be revealed over the next years. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Historical aspects of respiratory reflexes from the lungs and airways are reviewed, up until about 10 yr ago. For most of the 19th century, the possible reflex inputs into the ‘respiratory center,’ the position of which had been identified, were very speculative. There was little concept of reflex control of the pattern of breathing. Then, in 1868, Breuer published his paper on ‘The self-steering of respiration via the Nervus Vagus.’ For the first time this established the role of vagal inflation and deflation reflexes in determining the pattern of breathing. Head later extended Breuer's work, and Kratschmer laid a similar basis for reflexes from the nose and larynx. Then, 50–60 yr later, the development of the thermionic valve and the oscilloscope allowed recording action potentials from single nerve fibers in the vagus. In 1933, Adrian showed that slowly adapting pulmonary stretch receptors were responsible for the inflation reflex. Later, Knowlton and Larrabee described rapidly adapting receptors and showed that they mediated deep augmented breaths and the deflation reflex. Still later, it was established that rapidly adapting receptors were, at least in part, responsible for cough. In 1954, Paintal began his study of C-fiber receptors (J receptors), work greatly extended by the Coleridges. Since ∼10 yr ago, when the field of this review stops, there has been an explosion of research on lung and airway receptors, many aspects of which are dealt with in other papers in this series. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We studied the modulation of oscillatory resistance (Ros) by viewing and imagery of affective pictures. Thirty nonasthmatic participants viewed 36 affective slides precategorized as positive, neutral, and negative in valence. Each picture was presented for 15 s, followed by an imagery epoch of 15 s. Ros facial EMGs, respiration, skin conductance response, heart period, and respiratory sinus arrhythmia were measured throughout the session, as well as viewing time and ratings of pleasure, arousal, and interest. Increases of Ros were observed for negative pictures, and little changes for positive or neutral pictures. Other physiological parameters did not mirror this response pattern, leaving no clear indication for a ventilatory or vagal origin of Ros changes. Overall differences between behavioral contexts of visual processing and imagery revealed evidence for a coupling of cardiac and respiratory responses, which included changes in Ros. The findings in Ros are discussed in the light of earlier discrepant findings on the affective modulation of airway resistance and cardiac activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Examines the effects of ozone exposure on the permeability of the tracheal mucosa to horseradish peroxidase (HRP) using an isolated tracheal segment in vivo. Review of literature; Methodology of the study; Discussion of results.

The article lists the reviewers for the 2007 issue of "Respiration" including Scott K. Aberegg, Henri Colt, and Matteo Sofia.

A thoracic duct cyst was excised from the mediastinum of an 86 year old man. It had caused acute respiratory failure through compression of the trachea. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Introduction William Eppes (2) Cormack is celebrated for his walk across the interior of the island of Newfoundland in 1822, and for his involvement with the Beothuk: his collection of [...]

INTRODUCTION William Richardson is known to researchers of Labrador history for his account of a 1771 voyage along the coast of southern Labrador. In a re-examination of the William Richardson [...]

The image of God as father is deeply entrenched in Jewish and Christian scriptures. God frequently calls Israel God's son (Hos 1:10) or God's firstborn son (Exod 4:22). God is [...]