Mitoxantrone is superior to doxorubicin in a multiagent weekly regimen for patients older than 60 with high-grade lymphoma: results of a BNLI randomized trial of PAdriaCEBO versus PMitCEBO

A prospective, multicenter, randomized trial was undertaken to compare the efficacy and toxicity of adriamycin with mitoxantrone within a 6-drug combination chemotherapy regimen for elderly patients (older than 60 years) with high-grade non-Hodgkin lymphoma (HGL) given for a minimum of 8 weeks. A total of 516 previously untreated patients aged older than 60 years were randomized to receive 1 of 2 anthracycline-containing regimens: adriamycin, 35 mg/m2 intravenously (IV) on day 1 (n = 259), or mitoxantrone, 7 mg/m2 IV on day 1 (n = 257); with prednisolone, 50 mg orally on days 1 to 14; cyclophosphamide, 300 mg/m2 IV on day 1; etoposide, 150 mg/m2 IV on day 1; vincristine, 1.4 mg/m2 IV on day 8; and bleomycin, 10 mg/m2 IV on day 8. Each 2-week cycle was administered for a minimum of 8 weeks in the absence of progression. Forty-three patients were ineligible for analysis. The overall and complete remission rates were 78% and 60% for patients receiving PMitCEBO and 69% and 52% for patients receiving PAdriaCEBO (P = .05, P = .12, respectively). Overall survival was significantly better with PMitCEBO than PAdriaCEBO (P = .0067). However, relapse-free survival was not significantly different (P = .16). At 4 years, 28% of PAdriaCEBO patients and 50% of PMitCEBO patients were alive (P = .0001). Ann Arbor stage III/IV, World Health Organization performance status 2-4, and elevated lactate dehydrogenase negatively influenced overall survival from diagnosis. In conclusion, the PMitCEBO 8-week combination chemotherapy regimen offers high response rates, durable remissions, and acceptable toxicity in elderly patients with HGL

Analyzing Ideological Communities in Congressional Voting Networks

We here study the behavior of political party members aiming at identifying how ideological communities are created and evolve over time in diverse (fragmented and non-fragmented) party systems. Using public voting data of both Brazil and the US, we propose a methodology to identify and characterize ideological communities, their member polarization, and how such communities evolve over time, covering a 15-year period. Our results reveal very distinct patterns across the two case studies, in terms of both structural and dynamic properties

Party system closure and openness: conceptualization, operationalization and validation

The degree of closure of the governmental arena is a central aspect of the stabilization of party systems, and yet little systematic effort has been devoted to its operationalization. The article proposes a new index, examines its reliability and validity, and reports the ranking of 60 party systems. By redefining the units of measurement we suggest new indicators that are uniform and transparent in their logic of construction, can be applied both to specific government-changes and to time periods, and are sensitive to the degree of change. The article finds a hierarchy among the components of party system closure, dominated by coalition formula. While new and established democracies can both produced closed patterns, the analysis of inter-war European party systems shows that closed systems are less prone to authoritarian takeover. The article demonstrates the power of inertia: the completely closed configurations stand out as the most durable ones

It’s been mostly about money!: a multi-method research approach to the sources of institutionalization

Although much has been written about the process of party system insti- tutionalization in different regions, the reasons why some party systems institutionalize while others do not still remain a mystery. Seeking to fill this lacuna in the literature, and using a mixed-methods research approach, this article constitutes a first attempt to answer simultaneously the following three questions: (1) What specific factors help party systems to institutio- nalize (or not)? (2) What are the links (in terms of time and degree) as well as the causal mechanisms behind such relationships? and (3) how do they affect a particular party system? In order to do so, this article focuses on the study of party system development and institutionalization in 13 postcommunist democracies between 1990 and 2010. Methodologically, the article innovates in five respects. First, it continues the debate on the importance of ‘‘mixed methods’’ when trying to answer different research questions. Second, it adds to the as yet brief literature on the combination of process tracing and qualitative comparative analysis. Third, it constitutes the first attempt to date to use a most similar different outcome/most different same outcome pro- cedure in order to reduce causal complexity before undertaking a crisp-set qualitative comparative analysis. Third, it also shows the merits of combining both congruence and process tracing in the same comparative study. Finally, it also develops a novel ‘‘bipolar comparative method’’ to explain the extent to which opposite outcomes are determined by reverse conditions and conflicting intervening causal forces

The Impact of Weather on the Behavior and Ecology of Birds

Weather conditions affect animals in many different ways. Variation in temperature, rainfall, wind, and other environmental variables can have an impact at a range of temporal and spatial scales and at every level from individual behavior to species distributions. The interactions between these variables may be particularly important but are often overlooked. Hence, understanding how animals respond to weather conditions is a fundamental topic in evolution, ecology, and conservation, especially in a time of major environmental change.Birds are an ideal group in which to investigate these relationships because they occur in almost every ecosystem across the globe, exploit a wide variety of food resources and often move between vastly different environments during their annual life cycle. Most recent research has focused on the impact of climate change and extreme weather events, but even small-scale variation in weather conditions may influence avian behavior, life history, physiology, and morphology. Assessing how birds respond to variation in weather, and the fitness consequences this brings, therefore plays a crucial role in a number of active research areas, including:(1) identifying the selective pressures that may have led to trait evolution;(2) predicting how birds will respond to environmental change; and(3) developing successful conservation measures for threatened species.This timely Research Topic builds on the symposium The Effects of Weather on Birds held at the 2019 European Ornithologists’ Union Congress at Cluj-Napoca, Romania. It will bring together articles from a range of disciplines to offer valuable and synthesized insights into the relationship between weather and birds. In doing so, it will link together broader themes such as adaptation, phenotypic plasticity, life history evolution, population dynamics, and migration, while also increasing our knowledge on the potential impacts of climate change.We welcome contributions on any aspect of the weather and how it affects the behavior or ecology of birds. Articles may be original research papers, comparative analyses, reviews or perspectives

Decoration Increases the Conspicuousness of Raptor Nests

Avian nests are frequently concealed or camouflaged, but a number of species builds noticeable nests or use conspicuous materials for nest decoration. In most cases, nest decoration has a role in mate choice or provides thermoregulatory or antiparasitic benefits. In territorial species however, decorations may serve additional or complementary functions, such as extended phenotypic signaling of nest-site occupancy and social status to potential intruders. The latter may benefit both signaler and receiver by minimizing the risk of aggressive interactions, especially in organisms with dangerous weaponry. Support for this hypothesis was recently found in a population of black kites (Milvus migrans), a territorial raptor that decorates its nest with white artificial materials. However, the crucial assumption that nest decorations increased nest-site visibility to conspecifics was not assessed, a key aspect given that black kite nests may be well concealed within the canopy. Here, we used an unmanned aircraft system to take pictures of black kite nests, with and without an experimentally placed decoration, from different altitudes and distances simulating the perspective of a flying and approaching, prospecting intruder. The pictures were shown to human volunteers through a standardized routine to determine whether detection rates varied according the nest decoration status and distance. Decorated nests consistently showed a higher detection frequency and a lower detection-latency, compared to undecorated versions of the same nests. Our results confirm that nest decoration in this species may act as a signaling medium that enhances nest visibility for aerial receivers, even at large distances. This finding complements previous work on this communication system, which showed that nest decoration was a threat informing trespassing conspecifics on the social dominance, territory quality and fighting capabilities of the signaler

Use of anthropogenic material affects bird nest arthropod community structure: influence of urbanisation, and consequences for ectoparasites and fledging success

Nests are a critically important factor in determining the breeding success of many species of birds. Nevertheless, we have surprisingly little understanding of how local environment helps shape materials used in construction, how this differs among related species using similar nest sites, or if materials used directly or indirectly influence the numbers of offspring successfully reared. We also have little understanding of any potential links between nest construction and the assemblage of invertebrates which inhabit the nest and in particular, with ectoparasites. We addressed these questions by monitoring the success rates of nest-box using Blue Tits Cyanistes caeruleus and Great Tits Parus major, from rural, urban greenspace and urban garden settings. We collected used nests, identified arthropods present, and measured the proportions of highly processed anthropogenic materials used in their construction. Some 25% of Great Tit nest materials were of an anthropogenic source and this was consistent across habitats, while Blue Tits used little (1-2%) except in gardens (~16%), suggesting that Great Tits preferentially sought out these materials. In fledged nests, increasing use of anthropogenic material was associated with lower general arthropod diversity and ectoparasite predator abundance (Blue Tits only) but higher levels of Siphonapterans (fleas). Higher arthropod diversity was associated with lower flea numbers, suggesting that increased diversity played a role in limiting flea numbers. No direct link was found between breeding success and either anthropogenic material usage, or arthropod diversity and abundance. However, breeding success declined with increasing urbanisation in both species and increased with nest weight in Blue Tits. The interplay between urbanisation and bird ecology is complex; our work shows that subtle anthropogenic influences may have indirect and unexpected consequences for urban birds