bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A pre-induction sporulation gene from Aspergillus nidulans
Authors: Lewis Craig , Champe Sewell P.
Published: June 2009

Asexual sporulation in Aspergillus nidulans is an inducible developmental process controlled by genes that act before and after the inductive stimulus is applied. Genes that act before induction (pre-induction genes) potentially represent functions required for response to induction. This report describes the isolation and characterization of the acoB pre-induction gene which was cloned by complementation of a thermosensitive aconidial mutant followed by gene rescue. Genetic analysis and gene disruption confirmed the identity of the cloned gene. The mRNA of the acoB gene was present in uninduced vegetative hyphae, induced conidiating cultures and in both conidiospores and ascospores. An ORF in the nucleotide sequence of the acoB cDNA specifies a 327-residue protein unrelated to any known peptide sequence. Sequence analysis of the thermosensitive mutant allele, acoB202, revealed that the mutant phenotype is due to a frame-shift mutation that severely truncates the putative ACOB protein. Disruption of the acoB gene also produced a strain that was thermosensitive for conidiation. These properties suggest that acoB may be a gene that is required for sporulation only at elevated temperatures. Hybridization of acoB DNA with DNA from a variety of Aspergillus species showed that homology to this gene is largely restricted to sexually sporulating species that belong to the nidulans group.
Attenuated typhoid vaccine Salmonella typhi Ty21a: fingerprinting and quality control
Authors: McKenna Alison J. , Bygraves Jane A. , Maiden Martin C. J. , Feavers Ian M.
Published: June 2009

Live attenuated vaccines, developed with molecular genetical techniques, require new approaches for their quality control. To develop novel quality control tests that enhanced and extended existing procedures, the attenuated vaccine strain Salmonella typhi Ty21a and its parent strain Ty2 were characterized by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) and direct nucleotide sequence analysis. Mutant and parent strains were distinguished using fingerprints generated by the resolution on PFGE of chromosomal DNA digested with each of the enzymes Sfil, Spel or Xbal. These fingerprints were stable through multiple in vitro passages of the vaccine strain and were identical from one batch of vaccine to another. It was also possible to distinguish between the mutant and parent strains by direct nucleotide sequence analysis of the galE gene. This analysis identified two base changes in the gene from strain Ty21a: a single base deletion causing a frameshift that would result in a truncated gene product, accounting for the galE phenotype; and a transition that eliminated an Alul restriction site. The consequent change in the Alul fingerprint of the galE gene in strain Ty21a provided a rapid, PCR-based alternative to the use of differential media or biochemical assays for the identification of the vaccine strain.
Molecular analysis of an operon in Bacillus subtilis encoding a novel ABC transporter with a role in exoprotein production, sporulation and competence
Authors: Leskelä Soile , Kontinen Vesa P. , Sarvas Matti
Published: June 2009

The levels of exoamylase and other exoenzymes of Bacillus subtilis are pleiotropically decreased by the ecs-26 (prs-26) and ecs-13 (prs-13) mutations. These mutations also cause a competence- and sporulation-deficient phenotype. In the present work, the ecs locus, which has been defined by the ecs-26 and ecs-13 mutations, was cloned and sequenced. Sequence analysis revealed a putative operon of three ORFs (ecsA, ecsB and ecsC). ecsA can encode a putative polypeptide of 248 amino acid residues containing an ATP-binding site. The polypeptide shows about 30% sequence similarity with the ATP-binding components of numerous membrane transporters of the ABC-type (ATP-binding cassette transporters or traffic ATPases). The ecs-26 mutation was found to result from a transition of one base pair changing the glycine164 of EcsA to a glutamic acid residue in the vicinity of the putative ATP-binding pocket. ecsB was predicted to encode a hydrophobic protein with six membrane-spanning helices in a pattern found in other hydrophobic components of ABC transporters. The properties deduced for the ecsA and ecsB gene products are consistent with the interpretation that ecs encodes a novel ABC-type membrane transporter of B. subtilis. The third ORF, ecsC, can encode a putative polypeptide of 237 amino acid residues. The polypeptide does not resemble components of ABC transporters.
The defective phosphoribosyl diphosphate synthase in a temperature-sensitive prs-2 mutant of Escherichia coli is compensated by increased enzyme synthesis
Authors: Post David A. , Switzer Robert L. , Hove-Jensen Bjarne
Published: June 2009

Summary: An Escherichia coli strain which is temperature-sensitive for growth due to a mutation(prs-2)causing a defective phosphoribosyl diphosphate(PRPP)synthase has been characterized. The temperature-sensitive mutation was mapped to a 276 bp HindIII-BssHII DNA fragment located within the open reading frame specifying the PRPP synthase polypeptide. Cloning and sequencing of the mutant allele revealed two mutations. One, a G→A transition, located in the ninth codon, was responsible for the temperature-conditional phenotype and resulted in a serine residue at this position. The wild-type codon at this position specified a glycine residue that is conserved among PRPP synthases across a broad phylogenetic range. Cells harbouring the glycine-to-serine alteration specified by a plasmid contained approximately 50% of the PRPP synthase activity of cells harbouring a plasmid-borne wildtype allele, both grown at 25°C. The mutant enzyme had nearly normal heat stability, as long as it was synthesized at 25°C. In contrast, there was hardly any PRPP synthase activity or anti-PRPP synthase antibody cross-reactive material present in cells harbouring the glycine to serine alteration following temperature shift to 42°C. The other mutation was aC→T transition located 39 bp upstream of the G→A mutation, i.e. outside the coding sequence and close to the Shine-Dalgarno sequence. Cells harbouring only the C→T mutation in a plasmid contained approximately three times as much PRPP synthase activity as a strain harbouring a plasmid-borne wild-type prs allele. In cells harbouring both mutations, the C→T mutation appeared to compensate for the G→A mutation by increasing the amount of a partially defective enzyme at the permissive temperature.
An Essential Role for actA in Acid Tolerance of Rhizobium Melilotix
Authors: Tiwari Ravi P. , Reeve Wayne G. , Dilworthan Michael J. , Glenn Andrew R.
Published: June 2009

The actA gene, which is disrupted by Tn5 in the acid-sensitive mutant of Rhizobium meliloti TG2-6, was cloned and sequenced. It encodes a protein of 541 amino acids with a calculated molecular mass of 57963 Da and an estimated pI of 9.0. The ActA protein sequence has 30% identity, and much higher similarity (69%), with the CutE protein of Escherichia coli. Like the cutE mutant of E. coli TG2-6 is sensitive to copper. The reconstructed wild-type actA gene complemented the low pH- and copper-sensitive phenotype of TG2-6. Studies with an actA-lacZ gene fusion showed that actA is constitutively expressed at pH 5.8 and 7.0. The actA gene appears to be chromosomal and is present in all seven strains of R. meliloti tested.
Asparagine degradation in Rhizobium etli
Authors: Huerta-Zepeda Alejandra , Durán Socorro , Du Pont Gisela , Calderón Jorge
Published: June 2009

The degradation of asparagine by Rhizobium etli involves asparaginase and aspartate ammonia-lyase (L-aspartase). The two enzymes were shown to be positively regulated by asparagine and negatively regulated by the carbon source. Asparaginase activity was not regulated by oxygen concentration or by nitrogen catabolite repression. Induction of both enzymes by asparagine enables R. etli to utilize asparagine as carbon source. Asparaginase may also be involved in maintaining the optimal balance between asparagine and aspartate. Aspartase was not involved in the utilization of aspartate or glutamate as carbon source. The presence of high levels of the two enzymes in R. etli bacteroids suggests that they may have a role in symbiosis between R. etli and Phaseolus vulgaris.
Reactions of the Escherichia coli flavohaemoglobin (Hmp) with NADH and near-micromolar oxygen: oxygen affinity of NADH oxidase activity
Authors: Poole Robert K. , Ioannidis Nikolaos , Orii Yutaka
Published: June 2009

The soluble flavohaemoglobin (Hmp) of Escherichia coli, product of the hmp gene, contains haem B and FAD in a single polypeptide of molecular mass 44 kDa. The function of this protein (and of the similar proteins identified in several bacteria and yeast) is unknown, but the observation that the binding of oxygen to haem modulates the reduction level of FAD has suggested that Hmp could act as an oxygen sensor. Here, stopped-flow, rapid-scan spectroscopy has shown that the oxidized protein reacts rapidly with NADH to form an oxygenated species, even when efforts are made to reduce oxygen concentrations to sub-micromolar levels, suggesting a high affinity for this ligand. As is the case at high oxygen concentrations (130 μM), oxygenated species formation was kinetically and spectrally heterogeneous. Between 12 ms and 1 s after mixing, following transient formation of the deoxy form and its reaction with dioxygen, a steady-state level of the oxygenated species was attained. During the oxygenated steady state, the flavin remained largely oxidized, as observed previously at 130 μM oxygen. Hmp is an NADH oxidase; on exhaustion of oxygen by reduction (in < 10 s under these conditions), the oxygenated species disappeared to generate the deoxy Fe(II) haem, whereupon the flavin was reduced. The affinity for oxygen during NADH oxidation was measured by continuous dual-wavelength monitoring of the deoxygenation of oxymyoglobin. The K
m for oxygen was 2.6 μM, much higher than the K
m values determined, using the same method, for the membrane-bound terminal oxidases cytochromes bo’ and bd. These results show that the oxidase activity of Hmp, but not necessarily oxygen binding, would be minimal at oxygen concentrations that limit terminal oxidase function.
What Not to Wear? Girls, Clothing and ‘Showing’ the Body
Authors: Pilcher Jane
Published: June 2009

Consumption practices of children in contemporary Western societies are implicated in the reconstruction of childhood, according to both popular debate and to those academic perspectives stressing the individualisation of identities within the life course of late modern consumer societies. Yet, little is known about the meanings children themselves give to their own consumption. Drawing from an ethnographic study of children aged 6–11 years and their families, the paper presents girls’ constructions of fashion in relation to their own bodies and to those of others. It is shown that although girls may both desire and actually ‘dress up’ in fashionable clothing, they present a range of contingent and contradictory meanings for doing so. For some girls, ‘dressing up’ in certain clothes may be a way of ‘ageing up’ toward feminine adulthood, albeit in restricted contexts and after negotiations between themselves and their parents as to what can be worn and where. Nonetheless, girls in the study also showed anxieties and disapproval of ‘showing the body’ through ‘revealing’ clothing. The article concludes by considering the implication of these findings for debates about gendered childhoods, and intergenerational relations in late modern consumer society.
Speed of onset of ‘corner pocket supraclavicular’ and infraclavicular ultrasound guided brachial plexus block: a randomised observer‐blinded comparison
Authors: Fredrickson M. J. , Patel A. , Young S. , Chinchanwala S.
Published: June 2009

This prospective, randomised, observer blinded study compared the onset time of brachial plexus block using 2% lidocaine 25–30 ml with adrenaline 5 μg.ml−1 into the ‘corner pocket’ inferolateral/lateral to the subclavian artery (supraclavicular, n = 30) or to a triple point injection around the axillary artery (infraclavicular, n = 30). Mean (SD) onset time for complete pinprick sensory blockade assessed by a blinded observer in all four distal nerves was similar in both groups: supraclavicular = 22 (9.4) min, infraclavicular = 21 (7.1) min, p = 0.59. Complete sensory blockade in all four nerve territories at 30 min was achieved in 57% in group supraclavicular and 70% in group infraclavicular (p = 0.28). Painless surgery without the requirement for block supplementation was higher in group infraclavicular (28/30, 93%) compared with group supraclavicular (19/30, 67%; p = 0.01). Of the 11 failures in group supraclavicular, nine were due to incomplete ulnar nerve territory anaesthesia. These results do not support the concept of rapid onset successful supraclavicular block via a simple ultrasound‐guided local anaesthetic injection inferolateral to the subclavian artery.
Women’s experiences of recovery from childbirth: Focus on pelvis problems that extend beyond the puerperium
Authors: O’Reilly Rebecca , Peters Kath , Beale Barbara , Jackson Debra
Published: June 2009

Aims.  This study aimed to build understandings of women’s recovery experiences in the presence of continued pelvic problems extending beyond the puerperium to provide nurses and other health care professionals with information to enhance current practice.

Background.  Trauma to the pelvic floor during childbirth is a relatively common occurrence and can include damage to structures and nerves. A significant number of women will experience ongoing physical pelvic problems resulting from childbirth that extend past the puerperium; however, little is known about the experiential aspects of recovery for these women.

Design.  A qualitative, phenomenological study.

Method.  Narrative data were collected during conversational interviews with 10 mothers who had sustained pelvic injury during the birth process that persisted past the puerperium. Recruitment was via media releases and brochures distributed through childcare facilities. The data was analysed using Van Manen’s thematic analysis.

Results.  The themes that arose from the analysis were: ‘fearing intimacy’, ‘managing an unpredictable body’, ‘being resigned’ and ‘feeling devalued and dismissed’.

Conclusions.  Pelvic injuries that extend beyond the postpartum period are distressing for women. They negatively affect women’s views of themselves and have an impact on various aspects of life including intimate relationships and social activities.

Relevance to clinical practice.  Currently, postpartum care may have a focus on baby rather than mother and this focus may impede women making full disclosures of ongoing health needs arising from their delivery. Findings of this study suggest that women may have specific needs that extend beyond the puerperium, indicating a need for continued holistic assessments and extending practice to identify and support women experiencing persistent pelvic postpartum complications.
A systematic review of counselling for HIV testing of pregnant women
Authors: Minnie Karin S , Van Der Walt SJ Christa , Klopper Hester C
Published: June 2009

Background.  Evidence‐based strategies have made it possible to limit mother‐to‐child transmission of the HI‐virus to a large extent and enable HIV‐positive women to stay healthy for longer, provided their HIV status is known. Although voluntary counselling and testing for HIV is part of routine antenatal care in South Africa, the uptake of testing varies and a large number of pregnant women’s HIV status is not known at the time of birth.

Aim.  The aim of the study was to establish research evidence regarding factors influencing counselling for HIV testing during pregnancy by means of systematic review, forming part of a larger study using a variety of evidence to develop best practice guidelines.

Design.  Systematic review.

Methods.  The question steering the review was: ‘What factors influence counselling for HIV testing during pregnancy?’. A multi‐stage search of relevant research studies was undertaken using a variety of sources. A total of 33 studies were retrieved and critically appraised. Data were extracted from the studies and assessed according to its applicability in the South African context.

Results.  The results are presented according to the following themes: effects of counselling, quality of counselling, group vs. individual counselling, ways of offering HIV testing, rapid testing, counselling and testing during labour, couple counselling and testing, counsellor and organisational factors.

Conclusions.  According to research evidence, factors such as whether counselling is presented in a group or individually, different ways to present HIV testing as well as counsellor and organisational factors can influence counselling for HIV testing during pregnancy. When developing best practice guidelines for settings very dissimilar from where the research was done, research evidence must be contextualised.

Relevance to clinical practice.  Implementation of the best practice guidelines may lead to the increased uptake of HIV testing in pregnancy in developing countries like South Africa and thus to an increase in the number of women whose status is known when their babies are born.
Learning spaces, learning environments and the dis‘placement’ of learning
Authors: Thomas Herbert
Published: June 2009

Traditionally, at least according to popular wisdom, learning took place in venues that were custom‐designed for the purpose. The purpose, given the evidence of the artefacts with which we are confronted, seems to have been the educational equivalent of the production line that so succinctly characterised the industrialisation of society. One consequence of this design logic, however, is that learning is defined as something that is married to a ‘place’. This paper will argue that the conceptual ‘slippage’ that characterises the disappearing differences between ‘learning spaces’ and ‘learning environments’, coupled with the further ‘displacement’ of the learner (turned avatar) in virtual spaces such as Facebook and Second Life, serves to ‘displace’ learning itself. The paper argues further that we have failed to recognise the primacy of ‘physical situatedness’ to our conceptions of learning itself. In short, our difficulty in understanding and articulating the nature of learning is partly brought about by our inability to articulate where learning takes place—in a world characterised by virtual space and electronic selves. If we are to articulate the nature of learning in our age, then we need to articulate the nature of the real and virtual spaces and bodies that we inhabit.
Use of paleontological and molecular data in supertrees for comparative studies: the example of lissamphibian femoral microanatomy
Authors: Laurin Michel , Canoville Aurore , Quilhac Alexandra
Published: June 2009

A new method to assemble time‐calibrated supertrees is able to incorporate paleontological and molecular dates. This method, along with new branch length transformations, is implemented in the Stratigraphic Tools for Mesquite. It was used here to analyse a dataset on bone microanatomy, body size and habitat of 46 species of lissamphibians through a variety of methods (Felsenstein independent contrasts, variance partition with phylogenetic eigenvector regression, discriminant analyses and simple regressions). Our analyses showed that the new methods can produce adequate standardization for several characters on a tree whose branch lengths can represent evolutionary time. The analyses confirmed previous conclusions about the presence of an ecological signal in bone microanatomical data.
Interpersonal communication apprehension, topic avoidance, and the experience of irritable bowel syndrome
Authors: BEVAN JENNIFER L.
Published: June 2009

Through the lens of the theory of inhibition and confrontation (Pennebaker, 1989), this study explored the relationships that interpersonal communication apprehension and topic avoidance in one's closest relationship share with the experience of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). Specifically, an online survey that studied U.S. IBS‐diagnosed and non‐IBS subsamples examined person–partner communication apprehension, amount of overall topic avoidance, and reasons for topic avoidance in relation to four IBS experience variables. Communication apprehension displayed a particularly strong relationship with multiple aspects of the IBS experience, and a number of the communication avoidance variables varied according to IBS diagnosis. Implications for the theoretical understanding of interpersonal communication processes in the specific context of IBS and general chronic health conditions are discussed.
Features and consequences of untreated type 1 autoimmune hepatitis
Authors: Czaja Albert J.
Published: June 2009

Background/Aim: The existence of a mild form of autoimmune hepatitis that does not require treatment remains controversial. The aim of this study was to determine the existence, characteristics and outcome of this form.

Methods: Untreated patients with type 1 autoimmune hepatitis who did not satisfy pre‐established criteria for severe disease were identified retrospectively and compared with treated patients.

Results: Twenty‐one of 282 patients (7%) who were evaluated during a 32‐year period did not receive corticosteroid treatment. These asymptomatic patients constituted 15% of 137 patients who satisfied similar criteria for mild disease. Untreated patients with mild disease were indistinguishable from 116 treated patients with mild disease, and they differed from 145 treated patients with severe disease only by the pre‐established features that defined disease severity. The eight untreated patients with follow‐up assessments satisfied remission criteria less commonly than treated patients with mild or severe disease during 77±31 months of observation (12 vs 63%, P=0.006), and they had a lower 10‐year survival (67 vs 98%, P=0.01). Four patients did improve spontaneously albeit short of remission criteria and remained well for 28±15 months (range, 5–73 months). Four patients worsened during 125±51 months of observation (range, 32–239 months), including two of three patients with cirrhosis who died of liver failure.

Conclusions: Mild type 1 autoimmune hepatitis does exist, and it may be as frequent as severe disease. Untreated patients with mild disease can improve spontaneously, but there are no confident indices by which to identify this subgroup and justify withholding treatment.
Genetic variants in immunoregulatory genes and risk for childhood lymphomas
Authors: Andrie Elisabeth , Michos Athanasios , Kalampoki Vassiliki , Pourtsidis Apostolos , Moschovi Maria , Polychronopoulou Sophia , Athanasiadou‐Piperopoulou Fani , Kalmanti Maria , Hatzakis Angelos , Paraskevis Dimitrios , Nieters Alexandra , Petridou Eleni Th
Published: June 2009

To investigate whether single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in key cytokine and innate immunity genes influence risk for childhood lymphomas, we genotyped 37 children with Hodgkin’s (HL) and 48 with non‐Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL), aged (1 month–14 yr), along with their 85 age‐ and gender‐matched controls suffering from mild medical conditions. Genotypic analysis was performed for 10 SNPs from nine genes with important role in immunoregulatory pathways (IL4, IL4R, IL6, IL10, IL12, IL18, TNFα, IFNγ, CD14). Analysis of SNPs genotypes revealed that the CD14 −159 C>T polymorphism was associated with significantly increased risk for HL regarding both the CC and CT genotypes (ORCC: 5.36; 95% CI, 1.30–22.14; P = 0.02, ORCT: 3.76; 95% CI, 1.00–14.16; P = 0.05). An indicative association between IL18−137 G>C polymorphism with the CC genotype and NHL did not reach, however, statistical significance (ORCC, 3.78; 95% CI, 0.87–16.38; P = 0.08). In conclusion, our findings suggest that genetic variation in the CD14–159 loci may be associated with childhood HL risk; these preliminary findings need to be further confirmed in sizeable multi‐centre studies along with determination of cytokines, which could provide an insight on the biologic basis underlying these findings.
DO INTERNATIONAL MONETARY FUND PROGRAMS IMPACT ON THE SACRIFICE RATIO?
Authors: MOORE Winston R.
Published: June 2009

From time to time, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) makes resources available to member states for short‐term balance‐of‐payments support under an agreed arrangement know as a program. Most IMF programs include quantitative performance criteria for key macroeconomic variables, which borrowers must meet to obtain Fund resources. Standard open economy models predict that if policymakers are able to credibly commit to reducing inflation, rational economic agents will lower their expectations of inflation and, therefore, the trade‐off between inflation and output will fall. The present study tests whether IMF programs, by lending credibility to a country's adjustment program, influence the inflation–output trade‐off. The results from the study suggest that IMF programs do not significantly influence the inflation–output trade‐off. This finding is robust to changes in the estimation approach, the method used to obtain the output gap estimates and outliers.
Effect of EDTA, HCl, and Citric Acid on Ca Salt Removal from Asian (Silver) Carp Scales Prior to Gelatin Extraction
Authors: Wang Yan , Regenstein Joe M.
Published: June 2009

ABSTRACT:  Pretreatments with different chemicals at different concentrations to remove Ca compounds were studied to determine their effects on gelatin extraction from silver carp (Hypophthalmichthys molitrix) scales. During Ca removal with HCl, citric acid, and EDTA, all 3 chemicals were able to decalcify (>90%) scales; however, protein losses with EDTA were lower than with HCl and citric acid (P < 0.05), and protein losses with citric acid were lower than with HCl (P < 0.05). Ca removal with HCl yielded a solution where 4% to 5% of the protein was Hyp, with estimated gelatin losses from 0.9% to 2.5%. After 0.20 mol/L HCl was used for Ca removal, the extracted gelatin solution was 15.4% of the initial scales weight and gave a gel strength of 128 g. After using 1.2 g/L citric acid for Ca removal, the extracted gelatin solution was only 9% of the scales and the gel strength was 97 g. Using 0.20 mol/L EDTA for Ca removal gave a yield of 22% and a gel strength of 152 g. These data suggest that EDTA at 0.20 mol/L provides the best Ca removal with minimal collagen/gelatin removal (estimated gelatin loss was less than 0.013%) during the Ca removal step, and subsequently gave a high gelatin yield and gel strength. Fish gelatin has generally been extracted from fish skins and occasionally fish bones. This article focuses on removing the Ca compounds in fish scales and then producing fish gelatin with a good gel strength and yield. With further studies, this study may help the fish industry to have a new source of fish gelatin for food and pharmaceutical applications.
Fluoride Ingestion Is Related to Fluid Consumption Patterns
Authors: Sohn Woosung , Noh Hiejin , Burt Brian A.
Published: June 2009

Objectives: There have been few reports regarding variations of fluoride intake by fluid consumption patterns. The purpose of this study was to estimate fluoride intake among children in the United States based on their fluid consumption patterns. Methods: Fluid intakes of children aged 1‐10 years from plain water, beverages, and water from foods were assessed in a 24‐hour recall diet survey as a part of the third National Health and Nutritional Examination Survey (NHANES III, 1988‐1994). The amount of fluoride ingested from fluids in NHANES III was estimated from several assumptions about the concentration of fluoride in drinking water and beverages. Logistic regression analysis was conducted using SAS
®
and SUDAAN
®
. Results: Children at the 75th percentile or higher of F intake from fluids (not including water used in cooking) ingested 0.05 mg F/kg/day or more, and children at the 90th percentile or higher ingested 0.07 mg F/kg/day or more. This finding held across all age groups. There was substantial variation in the estimated amount of fluoride ingestion depending on the children's fluid consumption patterns as well as age, gender, and race/ethnicity. African‐American children ingested significantly more fluoride than White children in bivariate analysis. This association remained significant after accounting for fluid consumption pattern and other confounding factors in the model. Conclusion: Our results raise concerns that some children are ingesting significantly more fluoride than others depending on sociodemographic factors and fluid consumption patterns. Additional research is warranted to investigate the variation in the amounts of fluoride ingestion by these factors and its impact on fluorosis prevalence in different population groups.
Alterations of intraretinal layers in acute central serous chorioretinopathy
Authors: Ahlers Christian , Geitzenauer Wolfgang , Stock Geraldine , Golbaz Isabelle , Schmidt‐Erfurth Ursula , Prünte Christian
Published: June 2009

Purpose:  Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is restricted by its low scanning speed and limited resolution. High‐definition raster‐scanning OCT (HD‐OCT) was used to evaluate changes in retinal microstructure in patients with acute central serous chorioretinopathy (CSCR) and to find new morphological features.

Methods:  Eighteen patients with subretinal fluid accumulation caused by acute CSCR were imaged in a cross‐sectional study design. High‐speed frequency‐domain HD‐OCT was used to image an area of 6 × 6 mm in the macular retina. Three‐dimensional analyses were performed using en‐face imaging and section analysis of single HD‐OCT scans.

Results:  Detailed information about fluid accumulation can be obtained in all compartments. Discrete changes in reflectivity are visualized within the outer nuclear or plexiform layers in > 90% of patients. Subretinal fluid appears as a dome‐shaped pool of fluid and is not associated with a loss of photoreceptor layer integrity. Deposits are demarcated beneath the outer cone segments. Multiple small pigment epithelial detachments are present in > 60% of patients.

Conclusions:  High‐definition OCT provides extensive information regarding precise topographic and layer‐specific localization of discrete morphological changes. Along with well‐known changes in the retinal microstructure, hyper‐reflectivity can be imaged in the outer nuclear or plexiform layers and may represent intraretinal changes indicating the presence of subretinal pathologies or retinal maladjustment caused by the underlying pathology.
Crystal deposits on the lens capsules in Bietti crystalline corneoretinal dystrophy associated with a mutation in the CYP4V2 gene
Authors: Yokoi Yumiko , Nakazawa Mitsuru , Mizukoshi Sayuri , Sato Kota , Usui Tomoaki , Takeuchi Kimio
Published: June 2009

Purpose:  We report a patient (Case 1) with Bietti crystalline corneoretinal dystrophy (BCD) associated with previously unknown findings of crystal‐like deposits on the anterior and posterior lens capsules. This patient is one of four (Cases 1–4) in whom we have found BCD associated with the same mutation in the CYP4V2 gene.

Methods:  We present a case report with molecular diagnosis. A 45‐year‐old man (Case 1) was referred to our clinic with complaints of gradual progression of visual disturbances and night blindness. His visual acuity was limited to hand movement bilaterally. Slit‐lamp biomicroscopy disclosed glistening, crystal‐like deposits on the anterior and posterior lens capsules, as well as on the corneal stroma near the corneoscleral limbus. No such deposit was found in the lens stroma. Fundus examination disclosed profound chorioretinal atrophy with scarce crystal deposits. Full‐field electroretinography showed extinguished responses of isolated rods, isolated cones, and mixed rods and cones.

Results:  Molecular genetic analysis revealed that the subject had a homozygous mutation in the CYP4V2 gene (IVS6–8delTCATACAGGTCATCGCG/insGC), which is most commonly found in Japanese patients with BCD. Three other cases (Cases 2–4) of BCD associated with the same mutation did not show such crystal‐like deposits on the lens surface.

Conclusions:  Although their exact origin remains unknown, crystal‐like deposits may appear on the lens capsule of patients with BCD associated with a mutation in the CYP4V2 gene.
INTERVAL METHODS IN KNOWLEDGE REPRESENTATION
Authors: Kreinovich Vladik
Published: June 2009

This section is maintained by Vladik Kreinovich. Please send your abstracts (or copies of papers that you want to see reviewed here) to vladik@utep.edu, or by regular mail to: Vladik Kreinovich, Department of Computer Science, University of Texas at El Paso, El Paso, TX 79968, USA.
Temporal and mutation-specific alterations in Ca2+ homeostasis differentially determine the progression of cTnT-related cardiomyopathies in murine models
Authors: Guinto Pia J. , Haim Todd E. , Dowell-Martino Candice C. , Sibinga Nathaniel , Tardiff Jil C.
Published: June 2009

Naturally occurring mutations in cardiac troponin T (cTnT) result in a clinical subset of familial hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. To determine the mechanistic links between thin-filament mutations and cardiovascular phenotypes, we have generated and characterized several transgenic mouse models carrying cTnT mutations. We address two central questions regarding the previously observed changes in myocellular mechanics and Ca2+ homeostasis: 1) are they characteristic of all severe cTnT mutations, and 2) are they primary (early) or secondary (late) components of the myocellular response? Adult left ventricular myocytes were isolated from 2- and 6-mo-old transgenic mice carrying missense mutations at residue 92, flanking the TNT1 NH2-terminal tail domain. Results from R92L and R92W myocytes showed mutation-specific alterations in contraction and relaxation indexes at 2 mo with improvements by 6 mo. Alterations in Ca2+ kinetics remained consistent with mechanical data in which R92L and R92W exhibited severe diastolic impairments at the early time point that improved with increasing age. A normal regulation of Ca2+ kinetics in the context of an altered baseline cTnI phosphorylation suggested a pathogenic mechanism at the myofilament level taking precedence for R92L. The quantitation of Ca2+-handling proteins in R92W mice revealed a synergistic compensatory mechanism involving an increased Ser16 and Thr17 phosphorylation of phospholamban, contributing to the temporal onset of improved cellular mechanics and Ca2+ homeostasis. Therefore, independent cTnT mutations in the TNT1 domain result in primary mutation-specific effects and a differential temporal onset of altered myocellular mechanics, Ca2+ kinetics, and Ca2+ homeostasis, complex mechanisms which may contribute to the clinical variability in cTnT-related familial hypertrophic cardiomyopathy mutations.
Injecting, Sexual Risk Behaviors and HIV Infection in Young Cocaine and Heroin Users in Spain
Authors: Brugal M. Teresa , Pulido José , Toro Carlos , de la Fuente Luis , Bravo María J. , Ballesta Rosario , Soriano Vicente , Barrio Gregorio , Vallejo Fernando , Domingo-Salvany Antonia , Castellano Yolanda
Published: June 2009

Aim: To evaluate differences between young cocaine users and heroin users (HUs) regarding the prevalence of sexual and injection risk behavior, and HIV, HCV and HBV infection. Methods: Two community cohorts were recruited in Madrid, Barcelona and Seville; 720 cocaine users, of whom 586 had never used heroin (CUs), and 991 HUs were interviewed. Dried blood spot samples were tested. Results: CUs were less marginalized socially than HUs. Only 0.9% had ever injected versus 64.3%; none had ever injected with borrowed syringes versus 25%; 2.2% had an injecting steady partner in the last 12 months versus 24.9%; 4.8% had ever traded sex versus 16.0%. However, 31.0 versus 12.7% had unprotected sex with more than two occasional partners in the last 12 months; 45.0 versus 21.9% had sniffed through tubes used by more than 10 persons. Only 32.3% knew their HIV status versus 80.3%; 0.4 versus 18.1% were HIV positive; 0.9 versus 51.9% were HCV positive, and 1.5 versus 17.0% were HBV positive. Conclusions: The intense cocaine epidemic has hitherto had little impact on either HIV, HBV or HCV in Spain. However, surveillance should be intensified given the high percentage of CUs having unprotected sex with occasional partners.
Pretransplant Positivity for Circulating Thyroid Antibodies and Graft Survival in Patients Undergoing Kidney Transplant
Authors: Rotondi Mario , Leporati Paola , Lodigiani Sara , Netti Giuseppe Stefano , Precerutti Sara , Magri Flavia , Rosati Alberto , Pradella Fabio , Salvadori Maurizio , Serio Mario , Romagnani Paola , Chiovato Luca
Published: June 2009

Background: Thyroid disturbances are common in kidney graft recipients and they may influence graft function. CXC chemokine ligand 10 plays a role in both autoimmune thyroiditis and graft rejection. Thyroid antibody (Ab) positivity has been regarded as a marker of imbalance of the immune system. Aim: To relate pretransplant positivity for antithyroperoxidase (TPO) Ab and antithyroglobulin (Tg) Ab with kidney graft outcome. Methods: Pretransplant thyroid antibodies were measured in 211 kidney graft recipients. Results: The 5-year death-censored graft survival rate was 91.5%. Pretransplant circulating Tg Ab and TPO Ab were detected in 12 (5.7%) and 13 (6.2%) patients, respectively. Lifetime analysis showed similar 5-year graft survival rates in patients negative or positive for Tg Ab and TPO Ab (91.5 vs. 91.7% for Tg Ab and 91.9 vs. 84.6% for TPO Ab). However, patients with pretransplant positivity for TPO Ab showed a significantly lower 5-year graft survival when early graft loss (12 months after transplant) was excluded (84.6 and 96.8% for TPO Ab+ and TPO Ab– patients, respectively; p < 0.05). Occurrence of acute rejection and chronic allograft nephropathy was unrelated to thyroid Ab positivity. Serum CXC chemokine ligand10 levels were similar independent of Tg Ab and TPO Ab positivity. Conclusion: Pretransplant positivity for TPO Ab may affect long-term graft survival in kidney graft recipients independent of occurrence of acute rejections and chronic allograft nephropathy.
Arterial Compliance in Multiple Sclerosis: A Pilot Study
Authors: Fjeldstad Cecilie , Frederiksen Christine , Fjeldstad Anette S. , Bemben Michael , Pardo Gabriel
Published: June 2009

A reduction in arterial compliance in patients with autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and systemic lupus erythematosus has been previously reported. It is caused by the effect that systemic inflammation has on the cardiovascular system. Multiple sclerosis (MS), an immune-mediated disease that exclusively affects the central nervous system (CNS), has a significant inflammatory component that is limited to that compartment. The potential effects of its inflammatory mediators in the cardiovascular system are largely unknown. Purpose: To examine large (C1) and small arterial compliance (C2) in patients with MS and compare them with healthy age-matched controls. To also determine whether any differences in C1 and C2 indices between participants diagnosed with relapsing remitting MS (RR-MS), secondary progressive MS (SP-MS), and controls exist. Methods: A total of 26 men and women between the ages of 18 and 64 diagnosed with MS and 25 healthy controls volunteered for this study. Arterial compliance was measured by using pulse contour analysis (PCA), which records and analyzes the blood pressure waveform data from the Arterial Pulse Wave Sensors. Results: Significant differences in C1 and C2 were found between young RR-MS and healthy young controls (P < .05), with the MS group showing lower arterial C1 and C2 compliance. No significant differences (P > .05) were seen for C1 or C2 values between older RR-MS, SP-MS, and healthy controls. Conclusion: Arterial compliance is significantly compromised in young individuals with MS, compared with age-matched controls, but not for older individuals, suggesting a systemic effect of an inflammatory process that predominantly affects the CNS.
Health geographies I: complexity theory and human health
Authors: Curtis Sarah , Riva Mylène
Published: June 2009

This paper is the first of two linked progress reports on the application of ideas from complexity theory to health geography. In this paper we focus especially on research which seeks to explain variations in human health from a geographical perspective. We mainly discuss selected studies of geographies of human health which illustrate how ideas from complexity theory are applied empirically. In order to interpret more effectively the dynamic and recursive networks of relationships anticipated by complexity theory, future research will be required to go further in breaking down the divisions that are often assumed between research using different types of empirical methods. We comment on the potential to do this by means of advanced approaches to statistical and spatial modelling and by giving greater attention to the complementarity between these methods and qualitative techniques. We also discuss the emphasis in these examples on research which adopts an interdisciplinary strategy. Our conclusions refer forward to our companion report, which focuses more on studies of geographies of health care and health policy, emphasizing that complexity theory applied to health systems underlines the connections between health, health care and health policy.
Serious infections in British patients with systemic lupus erythematosus: hospitalisations and mortality
Authors: Goldblatt F , Chambers S , Rahman A , Isenberg DA
Published: June 2009

This retrospective study determined the prevalence and nature of hospitalisations secondary to infection, and examined the mortality from infection in our large British cohort of patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Casenote and database information of 104 consecutive patients attending the UCLH specialised SLE clinic were reviewed for the number of hospitalisations due to infection and the clinical and serological features of affected patients. Cohort mortality data were examined to identify deaths secondary to infectious diseases. Infection serious enough to result in hospitalisation occurred in 15% of the patients in the selected sample of our whole cohort. Six patients had more than one admission due to infection, with pneumonia being the most frequent. Typical bacterial pathogens were most commonly identified. A significant association between admissions for infection and nephritis ( P < 0.05 by Chi-square) was identified; however, the use of high dose prednisolone or other immunosuppressants did not increase the risk for infection requiring hospitalisation ( P > 0.5 by Chi-square) in our study. Between 1978 and 2007, 17 of 67 (25%) deaths in our SLE cohort of 470 patients were because of infection. Patients who died from infectious causes were more likely to have existing or previous renal disease than those who died from non-infectious causes ( P < 0.01 by Chi-square). The majority who died from infection were on high dose prednisolone plus at least one other immunosuppressive agent and had serologically active disease. The study highlights the significant problem of infection in British patients with SLE. Early recognition and treatment of infectious diseases in these patients together with considered use of immunosuppressant medications and vaccinations may help to reduce the impact of these complications.
Genetic polymorphism in milk fat globule-EGF factor 8 (MFG-E8) is associated with systemic lupus erythematosus in human
Authors: Hu CY , Wu CS , Tsai HF , Chang SK , Tsai WI , Hsu PN
Published: June 2009

Milk fat globule-EGF factor 8 (MFG-E8) is a molecule implicated in phagocytic clearance of apoptotic cells by bridging between macrophages and apoptotic cells. Defects in MFG-E8 cause lupus-like disease in murine models. The aim of our study is to determine whether genetic variation in MFG-E8 predisposes human to systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). A case-control study of MFG-E8 genetic polymorphism was performed on 147 SLE patients and 146 non-lupus control subjects. Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the coding sequence of human MFG-E8 gene were investigated. SNPs on MFG-E8 residues 3 (3Arg or Ser) and 76 (76Leu or Met) did not show genetic linkage. Genetic polymorphism on MFG-E8 residue 76 correlated significantly to SLE. The MFG-E8-76Met allele predisposed subjects to SLE in a recessive mode (odds ratio: 2.1, P = 0.020), while carriage of MFG-E8-76Leu were negatively associated with SLE. The MFG-E8 genotypic combinations with 3Ser and 76Leu showed the most pronounced protective effect on SLE when compared to the most predisposing genotype 3Arg/Arg-76Met/Met (OR: 0.29, P = 0.007). According to our result, MFG-E8 is associated with SLE predisposition in Taiwanese. Our study implicates that the impairment of phagocytic clearance of apoptotic cells through phosphotidylserine-dependent MFG-E8 system may lead to the development of human SLE.
Response to ODN-CpG by B Cells from patients with systemic lupus erythematosus correlates with disease activity
Authors: Zorro S , Arias M , Riaño F , Paris S , Ramírez LA , Uribe O , García LF , Vásquez G
Published: June 2009

Different immunological alterations may condition systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) activity. However, it is not known whether alterations in the phenotype of circulating antigen-presenting cells (APCs) and in the response to CpG oligodeoxynucleotides (ODN-CpG) correlate with disease activity. APC expression of HLA-DR, costimulatory molecules, and TLR9 expression was determined in patients with SLE, other autoimmune diseases, and healthy controls. Monocyte and B cell response to synthetic ODN-CpG sequences was also evaluated. Monocytes from patients with moderate SLE activity had higher expression of CD40 and CD86. Decreased numbers of CD19+CD80+ and BDCA-3+CD40+ cells were found in patients with severe SLE activity. In patients with moderate SLE activity, non-adherent and enriched B cell response to ODN-CpG was similar to healthy controls. Adherent and enriched B cells from patients with severe SLE activity did not increase costimulatory molecule expression or cytokine production after ODN-CpG stimulation. APCs from patients with SLE, regardless of disease activity, displayed higher percentage of TLR9+ cells, as well as increased expression of TLR9, compared to healthy controls. Results suggest that the B cell response to ODN-CpG correlates with the SLE activity, independently of TLR9 expression, indicating that alterations in B cell response in severe activity SLE may be caused by events down-stream to TLR9.
Fcγ receptor IIB and IIIB polymorphisms and susceptibility to systemic lupus erythematosus and lupus nephritis: a meta-analysis
Authors: Lee YH , Ji JD , Song GG
Published: June 2009

The aim of this study was to explore whether polymorphisms of the Fcγ receptors ( FcγRs) IIB T/I232 and FcγRIIIB NA1/NA2, confer susceptibility to systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and lupus nephritis (LN). The authors conducted a meta-analysis on associations between the FcγRIIB T/I232 and FcγRIIIB NA1/NA2 polymorphisms and SLE and LN susceptibility as determined using 1) allele contrast, 2) recessive, 3) dominant models and 4) contrast of homozygotes. A total of 16 separate comparisons were considered, consisting of 2887 SLE patients and 3105 controls. Meta-analysis of the FcγRIIB T/I232 polymorphism showed a significant association between the FcγRIIB T allele and the risk of developing SLE compared with the FcγRIIB I allele (OR = 1.207, 95% CI = 1.061–1.373, P = 0.004). In subjects of Asian descent, a significant association was observed between the FcγRIIB T allele and SLE (OR = 1.332, 95% CI 1.138–1.558, P < 0.001). However, in Europeans no such association was found. In contrast, no association was found between SLE or LN and the Fc γRIIIB NA1/NA2 polymorphism in all subjects, or in European and Asian populations. This meta-analysis shows that the FcγRIIB T/I232 polymorphism confers susceptibility to SLE, especially in Asian-derived populations.