bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Prediction of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade 2+ (CIN2+) using HPV DNA testing after a diagnosis of atypical squamous cell of undetermined significance (ASC-US) in Catalonia, Spain
Authors: Ibáñez Raquel , Moreno-Crespi Judit , Sardà Montserrat , Autonell Josefina , Fibla Montserrat , Gutiérrez Cristina , Lloveras Belen , Alejo María , Català Isabel , Alameda Francesc , Casas Miquel , Bosch F Xavier , de Sanjosé Silvia
Published: January 2012

Background

A protocol for cervical cancer screening among sexually active women 25 to 65 years of age was introduced in 2006 in Catalonia, Spain to increase coverage and to recommend a 3-year-interval between screening cytology. In addition, Human Papillomavirus (HPV) was offered as a triage test for women with a diagnosis of atypical squamous cells of undetermined significance (ASC-US). HPV testing was recommended within 3 months of ASC-US diagnosis. According to protocol, HPV negative women were referred to regular screening including a cytological exam every 3 years while HPV positive women were referred to colposcopy and closer follow-up. We evaluated the implementation of the protocol and the prediction of HPV testing as a triage tool for cervical intraepithelial lesions grade two or worse (CIN2+) in women with a cytological diagnosis of ASC-US.

Methods

During 2007-08 a total of 611 women from five reference laboratories in Catalonia with a novel diagnosis of ASC-US were referred for high risk HPV (hrHPV) triage using high risk Hybrid Capture version 2. Using routine record linkage data, women were followed for 3 years to evaluate hrHPV testing efficacy for predicting CIN2+ cases. Logistic regression analysis was used to estimate the odds ratio for CIN2 +.

Results

Among the 611 women diagnosed with ASC-US, 493 (80.7%) had at least one follow-up visit during the study period. hrHPV was detected in 48.3% of the women at study entry (mean age 35.2 years). hrHPV positivity decreased with increasing age from 72.6% among women younger than 25 years to 31.6% in women older than 54 years (p < 0.01).

At the end of the 3 years follow-up period, 37 women with a diagnosis of CIN2+ (18 CIN2, 16 CIN3, 2 cancers, and 1 with high squamous intraepithelial lesions -HSIL) were identified and all but one had a hrHPV positive test at study entry. Sensitivity to detect CIN2+ of hrHPV was 97.2% (95%confidence interval (CI) = 85.5-99.9) and specificity was 68.3% (95%CI = 63.1-73.2). The odds ratio for CIN2+ was 45.3 (95% CI: 6.2-333.0), when among ASC-US hrHPV positive women were compared to ASC-US hrHPV negative women.

Conclusions

Triage of ASC-US with hrHPV testing showed a high sensitivity for the detection of CIN2+ and a high negative predictive value after 3 years of follow-up. The results of this study are in line with the current guidelines for triage of women with ASC-US in the target age range of 25-65. Non adherence to guidelines will lead to unnecessary medical interventions. Further investigation is needed to improve specificity of ASC-US triage.
Multi-locus stepwise regression: a haplotype-based algorithm for finding genetic associations applied to atopic dermatitis
Authors: Knüppel Sven , Esparza-Gordillo Jorge , Marenholz Ingo , Holzhütter Hermann-Georg , Bauerfeind Anja , Ruether Andreas , Weidinger Stephan , Lee Young-Ae , Rohde Klaus
Published: January 2012

Background

Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) provide an increasing number of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) associated with diseases. Our aim is to exploit those closely spaced SNPs in candidate regions for a deeper analysis of association beyond single SNP analysis, combining the classical stepwise regression approach with haplotype analysis to identify risk haplotypes for complex diseases.

Methods

Our proposed multi-locus stepwise regression starts with an evaluation of all pair-wise SNP combinations and then extends each SNP combination stepwise by one SNP from the region, carrying out haplotype regression in each step. The best associated haplotype patterns are kept for the next step and must be corrected for multiple testing at the end. These haplotypes should also be replicated in an independent data set. We applied the method to a region of 259 SNPs from the epidermal differentiation complex (EDC) on chromosome 1q21 of a German GWAS using a case control set (1,914 individuals) and to 268 families with at least two affected children as replication.

Results

A 4-SNP haplotype pattern with high statistical significance in the case control set (p = 4.13 × 10-7 after Bonferroni correction) could be identified which remained significant in the family set after Bonferroni correction (p = 0.0398). Further analysis revealed that this pattern reflects mainly the effect of the well-known FLG gene; however, a FLG-independent haplotype in case control set (OR = 1.71, 95% CI: 1.32-2.23, p = 5.6 × 10-5) and family set (OR = 1.68, 95% CI: 1.18-2.38, p = 2.19 × 10-3) could be found in addition.

Conclusion

Our approach is a useful tool for finding allele combinations associated with diseases beyond single SNP analysis in chromosomal candidate regions.
Political and social determinants of life expectancy in less developed countries: a longitudinal study
Authors: Lin Ro-Ting , Chen Ya-Mei , Chien Lung-Chang , Chan Chang-Chuan
Published: January 2012

Background

This study aimed to examine the longitudinal contributions of four political and socioeconomic factors to the increase in life expectancy in less developed countries (LDCs) between 1970 and 2004.

Methods

We collected 35 years of annual data for 119 LDCs on life expectancy at birth and on four key socioeconomic indicators: economy, measured by log10 gross domestic product per capita at purchasing power parity; educational environment, measured by the literacy rate of the adult population aged 15 years and over; nutritional status, measured by the proportion of undernourished people in the population; and political regime, measured by the regime score from the Polity IV database. Using linear mixed models, we analyzed the longitudinal effects of these multiple factors on life expectancy at birth with a lag of 0-10 years, adjusting for both time and regional correlations.

Results

The LDCs' increases in life expectancy over time were associated with all four factors. Political regime had the least influence on increased life expectancy to begin with, but became significant starting in the 3rd year and continued to increase, while the impact of the other socioeconomic factors began strong but continually decreased over time. The combined effects of these four socioeconomic and political determinants contributed 54.74% - 98.16% of the life expectancy gains throughout the lag periods of 0-10 years.

Conclusions

Though the effect of democratic politics on increasing life expectancy was relatively small in the short term when compared to the effects of the other socioeconomic factors, the long-term impact of democracy should not be underestimated.
Hearing effects from intermittent and continuous noise exposure in a study of Korean factory workers and firefighters
Authors: Chung In-Sung , Chu Isabella M , Cullen Mark R
Published: January 2012

Background

South Korea and surrounding countries in East Asia are believed to have the highest proportion in the world of high frequency hearing loss due to occupational noise exposure, yet there has been limited information published in international journals, and limited information for control of noise in local workplaces beyond strategies from western countries. We exploit medical surveillance information from two worker groups to enhance local knowledge about noise-induced hearing loss and explore the possible importance of shift work to risk.

Methods

Four-years of hearing data were evaluated for 81 male farm machine factory workers and 371 male firefighters who had successfully completed a health examination and questionnaires for the duration of the study period. The averages of hearing thresholds at 2, 3, and 4 kHz were used as the primary end-point for comparison. Repeat measure analysis adjusted for age, exposure duration and smoking status was used to measure the difference in hearing threshold between the two groups.

Results

Noise levels were measured in the factory at a mean of 82 dBA, with a range of 66-97. No concurrent measurements were taken for the firefighters, but historic comparison values showed a wider range but a similar mean of 76-79 dBA. Although losses during follow-up were negligible, the factory workers had significantly (P < 0.0001) more hearing loss at the baseline of the study than the firefighters in both ears at 2, 3, and 4 kHz, adjusted for age, duration of employment and smoking status. Among those with 10 years of employment, mean losses at these frequencies among the factory workers fell into the impairment range (> 25 dB loss). Firefighters also showed increased losses associated with longer exposure duration, but these were significantly less marked. Losses at lower frequencies (< or = 1 kHz) were negligible in both groups.

Conclusions

Korean work environments with continuous noise exposure in the measured range should consider implementation of a hearing conservation program. Further evaluation of hearing loss in workers exposed to irregular or intermittent high noise levels, such as firefighters, is also warranted.
Hyponatraemia in imported malaria: the pathophysiological role of vasopressin
Authors: Hoorn Ewout J , van Wolfswinkel Marlies E , Hesselink Dennis A , de Rijke Yolanda B , Koelewijn Rob , van Hellemond Jaap J , van Genderen Perry JJ
Published: January 2012

Background

In the pathophysiology of hyponatraemia in malaria, the relative contribution of appropriate and inappropriate arginine vasopressin (AVP) release is unknown; the trigger for inappropriate AVP release is also unknown.

Methods

Serum copeptin, a stable and sensitive marker for AVP release, was analysed in a large cohort of patients with imported malaria (204 patients) and in a small prospective substudy (23 patients) in which urine sodium and osmolality were also available. Hyponatraemia was classified as mild (serum sodium 131-134 mmol/l) and moderate-to-severe (< 131 mmol/l).

Results

Serum copeptin on admission was higher in patients with moderate-to-severe hyponatraemia (median 18.5 pmol/L) compared with normonatraemic patients (12.7 pmol/L, p < 0.05). Despite prompt fluid resuscitation, the time to normalization of serum sodium was longer in patients with moderate-to-severe hyponatraemia (median 2.9 days) than in patients with mild hyponatraemia (median 1.7 days, p < 0.001). A poor correlation was found between serum sodium and copeptin levels on admission (rs = -0.17, p = 0.017). Stronger correlations were identified between serum C-reactive protein and copeptin (rs = -0.36, p < 0.0001) and between serum C-reactive protein and sodium (rs = 0.33, p < 0.0001). Data from the sub-study suggested inappropriate AVP release in seven of 13 hyponatraemic malaria patients; these patients had significantly higher body temperatures on admission.

Conclusions

In hyponatraemic patients with imported malaria, AVP release was uniformly increased and was either appropriate or inappropriate. Although the exact trigger for inappropriate AVP release remains unknown, the higher body temperatures, correlations with C-reactive protein and long normalization times of serum sodium, suggest an important role of the host inflammatory response to the invading malaria parasite.
Prognostic effects of 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels in gastric cancer
Authors: Ren Chao , Qiu Miao-zhen , Wang De-shen , Luo Hui-yan , Zhang Dong-sheng , Wang Zhi-qiang , Wang Feng-hua , Li Yu-hong , Zhou Zhi-wei , Xu Rui-hua
Published: January 2012

Background

Results from large epidemiologic studies on the association between vitamin D and gastric cancer are controversial. Vitamin D significantly promotes apoptosis in the undifferentiated gastric cancer cell, but the prognostic effects of its levels are unknown.

Methods

197 gastric carcinoma patients who received treatment in the cancer centre of Sun Yat-sen University from January 2002 to January 2006 were involved in the study. The stored blood drawn before any treatment was assayed for 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels. The clinicopathologic data were collected to examine the prognostic effects of vitamin D.

Results

The mean vitamin D levels of the 197 gastric patients was 49.85 ± 23.68 nmol/L, among whom 114(57.9%) were deficient in Vitamin D(< 50 nmol/L), 67(34%) were insufficient (50-75 nmol/L) and 16(8.1%) were sufficient (> 75 nmol/L). Clinical stage (P = 0.004) and lymph node metastasis classification (P = 0.009) were inversely associated with vitamin D levels. The patients with high vitamin D levels group (≥ 50 nmol/L) had a higher overall survival compared with the low vitamin D levels group (< 50 nmol/L)(P = 0.018). Multivariate analysis indicated that vitamin D levels were an independent prognostic factor of gastric cancer (P = 0.019).

Conclusions

Vitamin D deficiency may be associated with poor prognosis in gastric cancer.
Application and removal of polyanionic microbicide compounds enhances subsequent infection by HIV-1
Authors: Pirrone Vanessa , Passic Shendra , Wigdahl Brian , Krebs Fred C
Published: January 2012

Background

Continued efforts are being directed toward the development of microbicides that will be used to reduce or eliminate the risk of HIV-1 sexual transmission. Unfortunately, clinical trials involving polyanion-containing microbicide formulations, including Carraguard (λ-carrageenan [LC]) and Ushercell (cellulose sulfate [CS]) demonstrated that these products were ineffective and may have, in some circumstances, increased the risk of HIV-1 infection. These findings prompted reassessments of the in vitro activities of these agents to determine whether variables that can affect agent safety and efficacy had been overlooked during preclinical testing. One such variable is product retention and loss following topical application.

Results

In the present studies involving an HIV-1-susceptible cell line and primary human immune cells, product loss was mimicked by introducing and then removing polyanionic compounds prior to HIV-1 infection. In these in vitro "washout" experiments, LC and CS significantly enhanced HIV-1 infection, despite potent antiviral activity when introduced simultaneously with the virus. The presence and magnitude of this effect were dependent on compound identity and concentration; target cell; interval between compound removal and virus challenge; and coreceptor usage. Levels of enhancement (relative to controls) were considerable, exceeding a 200% increase (CS) in P4-R5 MAGI cells and a 300% increase (LC) in human peripheral blood mononuclear cells.

Conclusions

These studies, which demonstrate significant increases in HIV-1 infection subsequent to application and removal of LC and CS, support plausible explanations for the failures of microbicides formulated from these compounds. Detailed studies are now underway to determine the mechanism responsible for this enhancement effect and to assess the potential contribution of this effect to the clinical failures of these agents.
Experience on healthcare utilization in seven administrative regions of Tanzania
Authors: Kayombo Edmund J , Uiso Febronia C , Mahunnah Rogasian LA
Published: January 2012

Health care utilization in many developing countries, Tanzania included, is mainly through the use of traditional medicine (TRM) and its practitioners despite the presence of the conventional medicine. This article presents findings on the study that aimed to get an experience of health care utilization from both urban and rural areas of seven administrative regions in Tanzania. A total of 33 health facility managers were interviewed on health care provision and availability of supplies including drugs, in their respective areas. The findings revealed that the health facilities were overburden with higher population to serve than it was planned. Consequently essential drugs and other health supplies were available only in the first two weeks of the month. Conventional health practitioners considered traditional health practitioners to be more competent in mental health management, and overall, they were considered to handle more HIV/AIDS cases knowingly or unknowingly due to shear need of healthcare by this group. In general conventional health practitioners were positive towards traditional medicine utilization; and some of them admitted using traditional medicines. Traditional medicines like other medical health systems worldwide have side effects and some contentious ethical issues that need serious consideration and policy direction. Since many people will continue using traditional/alternative medicine, there is an urgent need to collaborate with traditional/alternative health practitioners through the institutionalization of basic training including hygiene in order to improved healthcare in the community and attain the Millennium Development Goals by 2015.
MRL and SuperFine+MRL: new supertree methods
Authors: Nguyen Nam , Mirarab Siavash , Warnow Tandy
Published: January 2012

Background

Supertree methods combine trees on subsets of the full taxon set together to produce a tree on the entire set of taxa. Of the many supertree methods, the most popular is MRP (Matrix Representation with Parsimony), a method that operates by first encoding the input set of source trees by a large matrix (the "MRP matrix") over {0,1, ?}, and then running maximum parsimony heuristics on the MRP matrix. Experimental studies evaluating MRP in comparison to other supertree methods have established that for large datasets, MRP generally produces trees of equal or greater accuracy than other methods, and can run on larger datasets. A recent development in supertree methods is SuperFine+MRP, a method that combines MRP with a divide-and-conquer approach, and produces more accurate trees in less time than MRP. In this paper we consider a new approach for supertree estimation, called MRL (Matrix Representation with Likelihood). MRL begins with the same MRP matrix, but then analyzes the MRP matrix using heuristics (such as RAxML) for 2-state Maximum Likelihood.

Results

We compared MRP and SuperFine+MRP with MRL and SuperFine+MRL on simulated and biological datasets. We examined the MRP and MRL scores of each method on a wide range of datasets, as well as the resulting topological accuracy of the trees. Our experimental results show that MRL, coupled with a very good ML heuristic such as RAxML, produced more accurate trees than MRP, and MRL scores were more strongly correlated with topological accuracy than MRP scores.

Conclusions

SuperFine+MRP, when based upon a good MP heuristic, such as TNT, produces among the best scores for both MRP and MRL, and is generally faster and more topologically accurate than other supertree methods we tested.
Preferential expression of mutant ABCD1 allele is common in adrenoleukodystrophy female carriers but unrelated to clinical symptoms
Authors: Salsano Ettore , Tabano Silvia , Sirchia Silvia M , Colapietro Patrizia , Castellotti Barbara , Gellera Cinzia , Rimoldi Marco , Pensato Viviana , Mariotti Caterina , Pareyson Davide , Miozzo Monica , Uziel Graziella
Published: January 2012

Background

Approximately 20% of adrenoleukodystrophy (X-ALD) female carriers may develop clinical manifestations, typically consisting of progressive spastic gait, sensory deficits and bladder dysfunctions. A skewing in X Chromosome Inactivation (XCI), leading to the preferential expression of the X chromosome carrying the mutant ABCD1 allele, has been proposed as a mechanism influencing X-linked adrenoleukodystrophy (X-ALD) carrier phenotype, but reported data so far are conflicting.

Methods

To shed light into this topic we assessed the XCI pattern in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) of 30 X-ALD carriers. Since a frequent problem with XCI studies is the underestimation of skewing due to an incomplete sample digestion by restriction enzymes, leading to variable results, we developed a pyrosequencing assay to identify samples completely digested, on which to perform the XCI assay. Pyrosequencing was also used to quantify ABCD1 allele-specific expression. Moreover, very long-chain fatty acid (VLCFA) levels were determined in the same patients.

Results

We found severely (≥90:10) or moderately (≥75:25) skewed XCI in 23 out of 30 (77%) X-ALD carriers and proved that preferential XCI is mainly associated with the preferential expression of the mutant ABCD1 allele, irrespective of the manifestation of symptoms. The expression of mutant ABCD1 allele also correlates with plasma VLCFA concentrations.

Conclusions

Our results indicate that preferential XCI leads to the favored expression of the mutant ABCD1 allele. This emerges as a general phenomenon in X-ALD carriers not related to the presence of symptoms. Our data support the postulated growth advantage of cells with the preferential expression of the mutant ABCD1 allele, but argue against the use of XCI pattern, ABCD1 allele-specific expression pattern and VLCFA plasma concentration as biomarkers to predict the development of symptoms in X-ALD carriers.
Haematological parameters, natural regulatory CD4 + CD25 + FOXP3+ T cells and γδ T cells among two sympatric ethnic groups having different susceptibility to malaria in Burkina Faso
Authors: Sanou Guillaume S , Tiendrebeogo Régis W , Ouédraogo André L , Diarra Amidou , Ouédraogo Alphonse , Yaro Jean-Baptiste , Ouédraogo Espérance , Verra Federica , Behr Charlotte , Troye-Blomberg Marita , Modiano David , Dolo Amagana , Torcia Maria G , Traoré Yves , Sirima Sodiomon B , Nébié Issa
Published: January 2012

Background

Fulani ethnic group individuals are less susceptible than sympatric Mossi ethnic group, in term of malaria infection severity, and differ in antibody production against malaria antigens. The differences in susceptibility to malaria between Fulani and Mossi ethnic groups are thought to be regulated by different genetic backgrounds and offer the opportunity to compare haematological parameters, Tregs and γδT cell profiles in seasonal and stable malaria transmission settings in Burkina Faso. The study was conducted at two different time points i.e. during the high and low malaria transmission period.

Results

Two cross-sectional surveys were undertaken in adults above 20 years belonging either to the Fulani or the Mossi ethnic groups 1) at the peak of the malaria transmission season and 2) during the middle of the low malaria transmission season. Full blood counts, proportions of Tregs and γδ T cells were measured at both time-points.

As previously shown the Fulani and Mossi ethnic groups showed a consistent difference inP. falciparuminfection rates and parasite load. Differential white blood cell counts showed that the absolute lymphocyte counts were higher in the Mossi than in the Fulani ethnic group at both time points. While the proportion of CD4+CD25highwas higher in the Fulani ethnic group at the peak of malaria transmission season (p= 0.03), no clear pattern emerged for T regulatory cells expressing FoxP3+and CD127low. However CD3+γδ+subpopulations were found to be higher in the Fulani compared to the Mossi ethnic group, and this difference was statistically significant at both time-points (p= 0.004 at low transmission season andp= 0.04 at peak of transmission).

Conclusion

Our findings on regulatory T cell phenotypes suggest an interesting role for immune regulatory mechanisms in response to malaria. The study also suggests that TCRγδ + cells might contribute to the protection against malaria in the Fulani ethnic group involving their reported parasite inhibitory activities.
A genome triplication associated with early diversification of the core eudicots
Authors: Jiao Yuannian , Leebens-Mack Jim , Ayyampalayam Saravanaraj , Bowers John E , McKain Michael R , McNeal Joel , Rolf Megan , Ruzicka Daniel R , Wafula Eric , Wickett Norman J , Wu Xiaolei , Zhang Yong , Wang Jun , Zhang Yeting , Carpenter Eric J , Deyholos Michael K , Kutchan Toni M , Chanderbali Andre S , Soltis Pamela S , Stevenson Dennis W , McCombie Richard , Pires J Chris , Wong Gane Ka-Shu , Soltis Douglas E , dePamphilis Claude W
Published: January 2012

Background

Although it is agreed that a major polyploidy event, gamma, occurred within the eudicots, the phylogenetic placement of the event remains unclear.

Results

To determine when this polyploidization occurred relative to speciation events in angiosperm history, we employed a phylogenomic approach to investigate the timing of gene set duplications located on syntenic gamma blocks. We populated 769 putative gene families with large sets of homologs obtained from public transcriptomes of basal angiosperms, magnoliids, asterids, and more than 91.8 gigabases of new next-generation transcriptome sequences of non-grass monocots and basal eudicots. The overwhelming majority (95%) of well-resolved gamma duplications was placed before the separation of rosids and asterids and after the split of monocots and eudicots, providing strong evidence that the gamma polyploidy event occurred early in eudicot evolution. Further, the majority of gene duplications was placed after the divergence of the Ranunculales and core eudicots, indicating that the gamma appears to be restricted to core eudicots. Molecular dating estimates indicate that the duplication events were intensely concentrated around 117 million years ago.

Conclusions

The rapid radiation of core eudicot lineages that gave rise to nearly 75% of angiosperm species appears to have occurred coincidentally or shortly following the gamma triplication event. Reconciliation of gene trees with a species phylogeny can elucidate the timing of major events in genome evolution, even when genome sequences are only available for a subset of species represented in the gene trees. Comprehensive transcriptome datasets are valuable complements to genome sequences for high-resolution phylogenomic analysis.
Vertical and horizontal components of the electric background field at the sea bottom
Authors: Håland Endre , Flekkøy Eirik G. , Måløy Knut Jørgen
Published: January 2012

The natural E-field variations measured at the sea bottom, and the magnitude of the different field components compared in the light of the theory for induction caused by ocean surface waves. At shallow sea depths of 107–122 meters only the vertical component carries an observable effect of ocean waves, whereas the horizontal field is dominated by the larger magnetotelluric noise. This agrees well with theoretical predictions.
Joint inversion of seismic traveltimes and gravity data on unstructured grids with application to mineral exploration
Authors: Lelièvre Peter G. , Farquharson Colin G. , Hurich Charles A.
Published: January 2012

Seismic methods continue to receive interest for use in mineral exploration due to the much higher resolution potential of seismic data compared to the techniques traditionally used, namely, gravity, magnetics, resistivity, and electromagnetics. However, the complicated geology often encountered in hard-rock exploration can make data processing and interpretation difficult. Inverting seismic data jointly with a complementary data set can help overcome these difficulties and facilitate the construction of a common earth model. We considered the joint inversion of seismic first-arrival traveltimes and gravity data to recover causative slowness and density distributions. Our joint inversion algorithm differs from previous work by (1) incorporating a large suite of measures for coupling the two physical property models, (2) slowly increasing the effect of the coupling to help avoid potential convergence issues, and (3) automatically adjusting two Tikhonov tradeoff parameters to achieve a desired fit to both data sets. The coupling measures used are both compositional and structural in nature and allow the inclusion of explicitly known or implicitly assumed empirical relationships, physical property distribution information, and cross-gradient structural coupling. For any particular exploration scenario, the combination of coupling measures used should be guided by the geologic knowledge available. We performed our inversions on unstructured grids comprised of triangular cells in 2D, or tetrahedral cells in 3D, but the joint inversion methods are equally applicable to rectilinear grids. We tested our joint inversion methodology on scenarios based on the Voisey’s Bay massive sulfide deposit in Labrador, Canada. These scenarios present a challenge to the inversion of first-arrival traveltimes and we show how joint inversion with gravity data can improve recovery of the subsurface features.
Strecker-Type Reaction of Nitrones Using Cyanohydrin
Authors: Sakai Takahiro , Soeta Takahiro , Inomata Katsuhiko , Ukaji Yutaka
Published: January 2012

Strecker-type reaction of nitrones using acetone cyanohydrin as a cyanide source was developed. By treating nitrones with acetone cyanohydrin in the presence of n-BuMgCl, transcyanation from the cyanohydrin to the nitrones smoothly proceeded in THF at 35 °C. The amount of n-BuMgCl could be reduced to 0.2 equiv to give the corresponding α-cyanohydroxylamines in up to 98% yields.
Ru/Ag-Catalyzed Oxidative Alkenylation of Benzamides and Phenylazoles through Regioselective C–H Bond Cleavage
Authors: Hashimoto Yuto , Ortloff Timon , Hirano Koji , Satoh Tetsuya , Bolm Carsten , Miura Masahiro
Published: January 2012

Oxidative alkenylation of N,N-disubstituted benzamides with alkenes accompanied by regioselective C–H bond cleavage proceeds efficiently in the presence of a Ru/Ag catalyst system together with a copper oxidant. The procedure is also applicable to phenylazoles.
Outcome of road traffic injuries received in the emergency room of a teaching hospital, Southeast Nigeria
Authors: Omoke N I , Chukwu C O O , Madubueze C C , Oyakhiolme O P
Published: January 2012

Road traffic injuries (RTI) are a rapidly growing public health problem in developing countries. This study was aimed at assessing the early outcome of RTIs received in our hospital emergency room. Understanding this will help to achieve optimum injury outcome. A prospective study was conducted on all patients presenting with RTIs to the emergency room of the Ebonyi University Teaching Hospital, Abakaliki, from 1 March 2007 to 29 February 2008. Out of 363 patients: 72.45% were treated in the emergency unit and discharged; 12.7% left against medical advice; 10.9% were admitted to the ward; and 4.7% died. Self-discharge against medical advice was significantly related to the type of injury (78.3% had fracture/dislocation) and gender ( P = 0.001). The patronage of traditional bone setters, because of cultural belief that they have supernatural ability to treat fractures, was the major reason given by those who left against medical advice. The morbidity and mortality rate was significantly related to the road type ( P = 0.005 – a higher rate was observed for RTIs received on intercity roads than intracity ones) and the type of crash ( P = 0.03 – more than half from head on collisions). Although the mortality rate was within the expected range, the preventable death rate was high, and the majority of deaths occurred within the ‘golden hour’ . Improvement in pre-hospital and emergency room care of patients with RTIs, as well as public awareness of the availability and efficacy of orthodox orthopaedic trauma care, are needed in the developing countries.
Primary cutaneous actinomycosis of upper extremity masquerading as soft tissue neoplasm: a case report
Authors: Gupta Veena , Jain Promil , Gupta Gopal , Gupta Sumiti , Gill Meenu , Singh Sneh
Published: January 2012

Primary cutaneous actinomycosis of the extremity is extremely rare. It is usually misdiagnosed clinically as soft tissue tumour or soft tissue infection. We present the case of a 55-year-old woman with primary cutaneous actinomycosis of the right forearm that had been erroneously diagnosed as soft tissue tumour. It had probably occurred following direct inoculation of the micro-organism after a monkey bite. The patient was successfully treated with surgical excision followed by treatment with antibiotics.
Doxycycline-rifampin versus doxycycline-rifampin-gentamicin in treatment of human brucellosis
Authors: Mile Bosilkovski , Valerija Kirova , Krsto Grozdanovski , Ivan Vidinic , Ilir Demiri , Nikola Labacevski
Published: January 2012

This prospective, non-randomized trial, compared the efficacy and tolerance of a doxycycline-rifampin regimen, administered for 45 days, versus doxycycline-rifampin given for 45 days plus gentamicin for the first 7–10 days, in the treatment of human brucellosis. Of 238 patients that were initially included in the study, 181 were finally evaluated. Ninety-four were treated with the doxycycline-rifampin and 87 with the doxycycline-rifampin-gentamicin regimens. In the doxycycline-rifampin group: relapses were noted in 13 (13.8%) patients; therapeutic failures in five (5.3%); and mild adverse effects in 28 (29.8%). In the doxycycline-rifampin-gentamicin group: four (4.6%) relapsed; and five (5.7%) therapeutic failures were registered. Mild adverse effects were registered in 29 (33.3%) patients. The doxycycline-rifampin-gentamicin regimen demonstrated a significantly lower relapse rate compared to the doxycycline-rifampin combination ( P = 0.034). We conclude that adding gentamicin for the first 7–10 days to the standard oral doxycycline-rifampin regimen can decrease the rate of relapses.
Plasmodium vivax presenting as acute glomerulonephritis in a 3-year-old child
Authors: Bhatt Girish Chandra , Nandan Devki , Dewan Vivek , Dey Soumya
Published: January 2012

Although acute glomerulonephritis is a rare complication of Plasmodium falciparum malaria, it has not been reported in connection with Plasmodium vivax. We report a case of complicated P. vivax malaria presenting as acute glomerulonephritis. A three-year-old boy presented with high grade fever, a seven-day history of the progressive swelling of his body and a one-day history of vomiting. An examination revealed hypertension (>95th percentile), pallor and hepatosplenomegaly. Investigations showed a platelet count 80,000/mm3 with haematuria [20–30 red blood cells/high power field with more than 80% dysmorphic red blood cells]. A peripheral smear showed the presence of trophozoites of P. vivax. The patient was diagnosed as having P. vivax causing acute glomerulonephritis and was treated successfully with antimalarials and enalapril. With the changing epidemiological pattern of malaria, especially in endemic areas, unusual complications such as acute glomerulonephritis may sometimes present in cases of P. vivax malaria.
Managing water as a socio-technical system: the shift from ‘experts’ to ‘alliances’
Authors: Newman Richard , Ashley Richard , Molyneux-Hodgson Susan , Cashman Adrian
Published: January 2012

This paper argues that the management of flooding in England has shifted from a technocratic focus, in which engineering expertise was reified, to a more socially diffuse set of approaches seeking to disassemble the predominant institutional hegemony. Some explanation for this shift, commonly referred to as the transition from flood defence to flood risk management, can be found by situating changes historically: Food shortages after World War I prompted the Land Drainage Act (1930), generating a new financial structure linked to increased food productivity. The Act created a centralised funding mechanism for flood defences, enabling large-scale re-engineering of the countryside, but removed the guarantee of an individual's protection from flooding that had existed since the Sewers Act of 1532. Climate change and ongoing development of urban areas on flood plains present new challenges to flood risk management. Looking forward, this paper illustrates that the concept of learning alliances, which draw on Habermassian ideas of communicative action, provide an appropriate platform to facilitate the transition to effective flood risk management. Through reference to a current English case study, the Don Catchment learning alliance (situated within the wider Yorkshire and Humber learning alliance), this paper maps ongoing transitions.
An ‘engineer–client’ framework for participation in community-scale infrastructure projects
Authors: Mulligan Joe , Tompsett Anna L , Guthrie Peter M
Published: January 2012

The importance of community participation in projects in the developing and developed world is widely recognised, despite considerable debate regarding what participation means in practice. In the developing world context, there is a distinct debate on how participation can achieve its stated goals of creating ‘ownership’ among targeted beneficiaries without becoming susceptible to elite capture or excluding marginalised groups. Projects that involve engineering analysis present a further challenge: to incorporate external technical expertise in decision-making so that project outcomes are improved, without compromising the participative process. The paper sets out a practical framework that reconciles the critical importance of early, meaningful community involvement in decision-making with the active role of the engineer as a technical adviser and facilitator. It is targeted for application in community-scale infrastructure development projects, where the community is the primary targeted beneficiary. The framework draws a parallel with a traditional engineer–client relationship, in which the client's (in this case the community's) needs and preferences drive the design process and in which final design approval rests with the client, but where the engineer plays an active role in helping to understand and interpret the client's needs and develops engineering responses through an iterative, responsive design process.
Disentangling trophic relationships in a High Arctic tundra ecosystem through food web modeling
Authors: Legagneux P. , Gauthier G. , Berteaux D. , Bêty J. , Cadieux M.-C. , Bilodeau F. , Bolduc E. , McKinnon L. , Tarroux A. , Therrien J.-F. , Morissette L. , Krebs C. J.
Published: January 2012

Determining the manner in which food webs will respond to environmental changes is difficult because the relative importance of top‐down vs. bottom‐up forces in controlling ecosystems is still debated. This is especially true in the Arctic tundra where, despite relatively simple food webs, it is still unclear which forces dominate in this ecosystem. Our primary goal was to assess the extent to which a tundra food web was dominated by plant–herbivore or predator–prey interactions. Based on a 17‐year (1993–2009) study of terrestrial wildlife on Bylot Island, Nunavut, Canada, we developed trophic mass balance models to address this question. Snow Geese were the dominant herbivores in this ecosystem, followed by two sympatric lemming species (brown and collared lemmings). Arctic foxes, weasels, and several species of birds of prey were the dominant predators. Results of our trophic models encompassing 19 functional groups showed that <10% of the annual primary production was consumed by herbivores in most years despite the presence of a large Snow Goose colony, but that 20–100% of the annual herbivore production was consumed by predators. The impact of herbivores on vegetation has also weakened over time, probably due to an increase in primary production. The impact of predators was highest on lemmings, intermediate on passerines, and lowest on geese and shorebirds, but it varied with lemming abundance. Predation of collared lemmings exceeded production in most years and may explain why this species remained at low density. In contrast, the predation rate on brown lemmings varied with prey density and may have contributed to the high‐amplitude, periodic fluctuations in the abundance of this species. Our analysis provided little evidence that herbivores are limited by primary production on Bylot Island. In contrast, we measured strong predator–prey interactions, which supports the hypothesis that this food web is primarily controlled by top‐down forces. The presence of allochthonous resources subsidizing top predators and the absence of large herbivores may partly explain the predominant role of predation in this low‐productivity ecosystem.
Influence of fermentation temperature on the content of fatty acids in low energy milk-based kombucha products
Authors: Malbasa Radomir , Vitas Jasmina , Loncar Eva , Kravic Snezana
Published: January 2012

The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of fermentation
temperature on the fatty acids content in low energy milk-based products
obtained by kombucha inoculums with herbal teas. In this investigation low
energy milk-based kombucha products were produced from milk with 0.8% milk
fat using 10% (v/v) kombucha inoculums cultivated on winter savory,
peppermint, stinging nettle and wild thyme. The process of fermentation was
conducted at two temperatures: 40?C and 43?C. Fermentation was stopped after
the pH value of 4.5 was reached. Duration of the fermentation process was
shorter by applying higher fermentation temperature. Fatty acids content was
determined by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Predominant fatty acids
in all obtained products were saturated fatty acids, first of all the
monounsaturated ones. The higher temperature resulted in the formation of
lower amount of saturated fatty acids in the obtained milk-based kombucha
products.
Statistical analysis of the influence of wheat black point kernels on selected indicators of wheat flour quality
Authors: Petrov Verica , Filipovic Nada
Published: January 2012

The influence of wheat black point kernels on selected indicators of wheat
flour quality - farinograph and extensograph indicators, amylolytic activity,
wet gluten and flour ash content, were examined in this study. The
examinations were conducted on samples of wheat harvested in the years 2007
and 2008 from the area of Central Banat in four treatments-control (without
black point flour) and with 2, 4 and 10% of black point flour which was added
as a replacement for a part of the control sample. Statistically significant
differences between treatments were observed on the dough stability, falling
number and extensibility. The samples with 10% of black point flour had the
lowest dough stability and the highest amylolytic activity and extensibility.
There was a trend of the increasing 15 min drop and water absorption with the
increased share of black point flour. Extensograph area, resistance and ratio
resistance to extensibility decreased with the addition of black point flour,
but not properly. Mahalanobis distance indicates that the addition of 10%
black point flour had the greatest influence on the observed quality
indicators, thus proving that black point contributes to the technological
quality of wheat, i.e .flour.
Influence of pumpkin seed oil in continuous phase on droplet size and stability of water-in-oil emulsions
Authors: Nikolovski Branislava , Ilic Jelena , Sovilj Milan , Nikolic Milan , Milanovic Jadranka
Published: January 2012

The aim of this work was to contribute to the optimized production of
water-in-oil emulsions with pumpkin seed oil in the oil phase using a
high-speed homogenizer. Pumpkin seed oil is a valuable natural source of
essential fatty acids and biologically active micronutrients that contribute
to its nutritive value and medical uses, and reduce interfacial tension
between water and the oil phases. Therefore, pumpkin seed oil can be
considered as a prosperous oil phase whose use can possibly decrease the
amount of some emulsifier that is normally involved in every emulsification
process. A central composite rotatable experimental design was implemented to
analyze the impact of the contents of polyglycerol polyricinoleate and
pumpkin seed oil in the continuous phase, as well as water phase content in
the emulsion on droplet size distribution and the response surface
methodology was used to obtain optimal conditions for water-in-oil emulsion
preparation. Mean size diameter of water droplets was in a range from 400 to
850 nm, with mean peak width of 100 to 220 nm, respectively. The influence of
all three investigated factors on the emulsification was determined.
Additionally, the emulsions prepared with pumpkin seed oil showed a higher
stability during the storage time compared to the emulsions with sunflower
oil.
Utilization of maltose enriched spent grains liquor for xanthan production
Authors: Dodic Jelena , Vucurovic Damjan , Grahovac Jovana , Dodic Sinisa , Popov Stevan , Jokic Aleksandar
Published: January 2012

The present study examines xanthan production by Xanthomonas campestris under
aerobic conditions on spent grains liquor based cultivation media containing
four different amounts of maltose. All four experiments were performed
simultaneously, so that all stages of the biotechnological process would be
carried out under identical conditions. In addition to the cultivation
parameters (pH value, contents of dissolved oxygen, reducing sugars and
assimilable nitrogen, turbidity and trickling time), xanthan yield and sugar
conversion percentage were also determined. Based on the results of the
experiments maltose addition up to 5% to spent grains liquor does not hinder
the cultivation course. On the other hand, the conversion of sugars into
xanthan decreases with the increase of maltose content to 5% and a large
amount of sugars lags in the cultivation broth.
Interpreting the neural networkfor prediction of fermentation of thick juice from sugar beet processing
Authors: Jokic Aleksandar , Grahovac Jovana , Dodic Jelena , Zavargo Zoltan , Dodic Sinisa , Popov Stevan , Vucurovic Damjan
Published: January 2012

Methods that can provide adequate accuracy in the estimation of variables
from incomplete information are desirable for the prediction of fermentation
processes. A feed-forward back-propagation artificial neural network was used
for modelling of thick juice fermentation. Fermentation time and starting
sugar content were usedas input variables, i.e. nodes. Neural network had one
output node (ethanol content, yeast cell number or sugar content). The hidden
layer had nine neurons. Garson's algorithm and connection weights were used
for interpreting neural network. The inadequacy of Garson's algorithm can be
seen by comparing with the results of regression analysis, which indicates
that the influence of the fermentation time is higher. A better agreement of
the results was obtained using network connection weights, a method that can
be used to determine the relative importance of input variables.
Polyphenolic content and antioxidant activity of the four berry fruits pomace extracts
Authors: Vulic Jelena , Tumbas Vesna , Savatovic Sladjana , Djilas Sonja , Cetkovic Gordana , Canadanovic-Brunet Jasna
Published: January 2012

Four berry (bilberry, blackberry, strawberry and raspberry) fruits pomace, a
waste product coming from juice production, were extracted with 80% methanol
containing 0.05% acetic acid. The highest content of antioxidant components,
total polyphenols, flavonoids and anthocyanins, was found in the bilberry
pomace extract (1116.24, 1047.39 and 1279.49 mg/100g fresh pomace,
respectively). The antioxidant activity of the four berry pomace extracts
(BPE) was determined using DPPH free radical scavenging assay and reducing
power. There was a high linear correlation between the IC50 and content of
anthocyanins (r2=0.98) and polyphenols (r2=0.85). Also, a good correlation
was found between the IC50 and the content of flavonoids. The strawberry
pomace extract showed the highest (RP0.5=0.35 mg/ml), while the blackberry
pomace extract showed the lowest (RP0.5=0.57 mg/ml) reducing power. The
results showed that BPE can be a valuable source of natural ingrediences of
the products in the food, cosmetical and pharmaceutical industry.