bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Neuroendocrine Carcinoma of the Nasopharynx in a Dog
Authors: Patnaik A. K. , Ludwig L. L. , Erlandson R. A.
Published: April 2003

Neuroendocrine carcinoma of the nasopharynx was diagnosed in a 9-year-old male Golden Retriever. The mass was identified by computed tomography of the nasal cavity and nasopharyngoscopy, and it was surgically excised. Histologic, cytochemical, and electromicroscopic examination of specimens confirmed the type of tumor. The dog was clincally improved for 150 days but was then reexamined because of respiratory difficulty and poor appetite. Thoracic radiographs revealed multiple nodules in all lung lobes, and ultrasonography revealed a mass in the spleen. The dog died the next day.
Eimeria Organisms Develop in the Epithelial Cells of Equine Small Intestine
Authors: Hirayama K. , Okamoto M. , Sako T. , Kihara K. , Okai K. , Taharaguchi S. , Yoshino T. , Taniyama H.
Published: April 2003

Histopathologic and immunohistochemical examinations were performed to determine the origin of host cells parasitized by Eimeria in the small intestines collected from five foals. Eimeria organisms at various stages (mainly microgametes and macrogametes) were frequently found in the cytoplasm of hypertrophied host cells in the lamina propria at the tips of villi of the jejunum and ileum. The cytoplasm of the host cell was immunohistochemically positive for cytokeratin AE1/AE3 and cytokeratin 13 and was negative for vimentin, desmin, α-smooth muscle actin, chromogranin A, neuron-specific enolase, and factor VIII. The host cells parasitized by Eimeria species had the immunostaining characteristics of epithelial cells but not of mesenchymal cells, endothelial cells of lacteals or capillaries, smooth muscle cells or neuroendocrine cells. These results suggest that the host cell of Eimeria species is possibly derived from intestinal epithelial cells and then displaced into the lamina propria of the small intestine.
Hepatosplenic T-cell Lymphoma in a Mare
Authors: Roccabianca P. , Paltrinieri S. , Gallo E. , Giuliani A.
Published: April 2003

A 21-year-old Dutch crossbred mare was presented with a 1-month history of weight loss and weakness. Clinical evaluation revealed severe anemia and thrombocytopenia with evidence of hepatic disease and muscular damage. Necropsy findings included diaphragmatic rupture with an extensive retroperitoneal hematoma and severe hepatosplenomegaly. Microscopic findings were characterized by hepatic sinusoidal and splenic red pulp infiltration by atypical CD3-positive lymphocytes. No other nodal or extranodal sites were affected. Hepatosplenic lymphoma with a probable T-cell origin was diagnosed based on gross and histologic findings.
Mutations in the Juxtamembrane Domain of c-KIT Are Associated with Higher Grade Mast Cell Tumors in Dogs
Authors: Zemke D. , Yamini B. , Yuzbasiyan-Gurkan V.
Published: April 2003

Mast cell tumors are among the most commonly seen tumors of the skin in dogs and are more highly aggressive than mast cell tumors of other species. Some breeds display a markedly higher incidence of mast cell tumor development than others and appear to have some genetic predisposition. Recently, mutations have been found in canine mast cell tumor tissues and cell lines within the juxtamembrane domain of the protooncogene c- KIT. In previous studies utilizing a small number of cases, no association between the presence of a mutation and the breed of dog or grade of the tumor could be identified. An expanded study with a larger sample set was performed to explore this possibility. The juxtamembrane domain of c- KIT was amplified using the polymerase chain reaction from genomic DNA preparations of 88 paraffin-embedded mast cell tumors from selected breeds. Mutations, consisting of duplications and deletions, were found in 12 of the tumors. A significant association was found between the presence of a mutation and a higher grade of tumor but not between breed and grade or between breed and the presence of a mutation.
Ultrastructural and Kinetic Studies of Copper Metabolism in Bedlington Terrier Dogs
Authors: Kawamura M. , Takahashi I. , Kaneko J. J.
Published: April 2003

The objectives of this study were to determine the time course of copper (Cu) absorption in the Bedlington Terrier (BT) dog after duodenal infusion of Cu and to determine the onset of Cu accumulation in BT puppies. At 80 minutes after infusion, Cu was present in the bile and liver at 26.1 and 2675 μg/g dry weight (dw), as compared with 598 and 224 μg/g dw, respectively, in the control. In the puppies, the mean liver Cu concentrations were 443 ± 216 μg/g dw as compared with 54 ± 34 μg/g dw in their controls. The BT puppies had large numbers of Cu granules in their hepatic lysosomes, with very few in the bile canaliculi. In contrast, the controls had few granules in their lysosomes and large numbers in their canaliculi. These results suggest that hepatic Cu accumulation occurs rapidly and in utero in the BT.
A Carcinoid Tumor in the Gallbladder of a Dog
Authors: Morrell C. N. , Volk M. V. , Mankowski J. L.
Published: April 2003

A cholecystectomy was performed on a 10-year-old spayed female mixed-breed dog with chronic weight loss, persistently increased liver enzyme activities, and cholecystomegaly identified by ultrasonographic examination. A subsequent diagnosis of a biliary carcinoid was made based on a neuroendocrine-type histologic pattern, cytoplasmic argyrophilia by Grimelius staining, immunopositivity for chromogranin A, and the ultrastructural finding of cytoplasmic secretory granules in neoplastic cells. Extrahepatic biliary carcinoid tumors are rare tumors of humans and have not been documented in domestic animals.
Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumors and Leiomyomas in the Dog: A Histopathologic, Immunohistochemical, and Molecular Genetic Study of 50 Cases
Authors: Frost D. , Lasota J. , Miettinen M.
Published: April 2003

Fifty canine gastrointestinal (GI) mesenchymal tumors were examined to determine the occurrence of leiomyomas (LM) and GI stromal tumors and to compare their clinicopathologic features. Twenty-one tumors (42%) were histologically reclassified as gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs) and 29 tumors (58%) as LMs on the basis of their histologic similarity with homologous human tumors. The GISTs occurred equally in males and females, with a mean age of 11 years (range 5–14 years). Five GISTs (24%) were associated with clinical signs and six (29%) had metastasis in liver or abdominal cavity. The GISTs occurred in large intestine (10, 48%), small bowel (six, 29%), stomach (four, 19%), and mesentery of small intestine (one, 5%). Histologically, they were highly cellular spindle, or less commonly epithelioid tumors with mitotic rates ranging from 0 to 19 per 10 HPF. Eleven tumors (52%) were positive for CD117 (KIT); seven (33%) were positive for smooth muscle actin but none for desmin and S-100 protein. Sequences of KIT exon 11, often mutated in human GISTs, were evaluated from four GISTs. Deletion of Try556-Lys557 coexisting with duplication of Gln555 in one case of GIST and T to C transition resulting in substitution of Pro for Leu575 in another were identified. The LMs occurred predominantly in males (82%) with a mean age of 11 years (range 8–17 years). Nine tumors (31%) had associated clinical signs. They occurred in the stomach (22, 76%), esophagus (four, 14%), and intestines (three, 10%); all were paucicellular, had no mitoses, and were composed of mature smooth muscle cells. Twenty-eight (97%) were positive for smooth muscle actin and 18(62%) for desmin but none for CD117 and S-100. Both GISTs and true LMs occur in the GI tract of dogs. Both tumors have distinctive pathologic features.
Bovine Adenovirus Type 3 Pneumonia in Dexamethasone-treated Calves
Authors: Narita M. , Yamada M. , Tsuboi T. , Kawashima K.
Published: April 2003

The effects of immunosuppression were examined in 1.5-month-old calves that were given dexamethasone (DM) before endobronchial inoculation with bovine adenovirus type 3 (BAV-3). Immunohistopathologically, severe necrotizing bronchiolitis with eosinophilic and basophilic intranuclear inclusion bodies was observed both in DM-treated 1.5-month-old infected calves and in non-DM-treated 7-day-old infected calves. These inclusion bodies were correlated with the detection of BAV-3 antigen and viral particles. The presence of inclusion bodies in the desquamated epithelial cells or of BAV-3 antigen, or both, correlated well with the isolated level of BAV-3 in bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid. Few immunoglobulin (IgG, IgM, and IgA)-containing B lymphocytes or CD8+ T lymphocytes infiltrated the pneumonic lesion in both the 7-day-old and the DM-treated 1.5-month-old infected calves. Thus, depletion of CD8+ T lymphocytes in calves might influence the clearance of BAV-3 from respiratory tissues.
Ehrlichia platys (Anaplasma platys) in Dogs from Maracaibo, Venezuela: An Ultrastructural Study of Experimental and Natural Infections
Authors: Arraga-Alvarado C. , Palmar M. , Parra O. , Salas P.
Published: April 2003

Since 1982 Ehrlichia platys, now emended as Anaplasma platys, has been diagnosed in dogs from Maracaibo, Venezuela, using buffy coat smears stained with Dip Quick. Three dogs were inoculated with an A. platys strain. When parasitemia reached 60–97%, blood samples obtained from the inoculated dogs and from two naturally infected dogs were centrifuged to obtain platelet-rich plasma, which was mixed with 0.1% glutaraldehyde at 37 C for 10 minutes. Platelet pellets were fixed in 3% glutaraldehyde for 72 hours and processed for conventional transmission electron microscopy. Platelets contained pleomorphic organisms with a distinct double membrane that was not observed when the bodies were in a determinate developmental stage. There were 1–15 individual bodies included in a host cell vacuole. The organisms had an electron-lucent inner area, whereas the internal surface of their inner plasma membranes exhibited an electron-dense rough substance. In naturally infected dogs, organisms with different ultrastructural features were found inside the same platelet. Some organisms contained central dense material surrounded by a pale zone, which was in turn surrounded by a moderately dense peripheral area. Other organisms contained an eccentrically electron-dense material. The intravacuolar space appeared fully electron-lucent. Each organism usually exhibited inner fine strands. Empty structures displaying junctions with the vacuolar membrane were observed. Our results indicate that distinct ultrastructural characteristics are associated with different stages of A. platys development and may differ among A. platys strains.
Dynamic Deformation Measurement of Woven Composite with Edge Cracks
Authors: Yao X.F. , Liu N. , Xu W. , Xu M.Q. , Arakawa K. , Takahashi K.
Published: April 2003

The dynamic tensile fracture behavior of woven‐fiber reinforced composites with different arrangements of edge cracks (see Figure for schematics of two types) was experimentally studied by dynamic optical‐fiber displacement measurements, whereby dynamic load and displacement were recorded. The evolution of dynamic macrostrain in the specimens was ascertained, and some nonlinear fracture mechanisms due to micromechanics of composites were observed.
Role of Deformation Twinning on Strain Hardening in Cubic and Hexagonal Polycrystalline Metals
Authors: Kalidindi S.R. , Salem A.A. , Doherty R.D.
Published: April 2003

Three effects define deformation‐twinning based metal strengthening: reduction of the free slip distance (Hall‐Petch effect), transformation of glissile to sessile dislocations (Basinski mechanism), and, additionally, textural softening due to reorientation of the material to a favourable orientation for slip. The relative contributions of these mechanisms govern the hardening process and provide a basis for its prediction in alloy design.
Hydrogenation of Low Molecular Weight Polymers in Ionic Liquids and the Effects of Added Salt
Authors: MacLeod S. , Rosso R. J.
Published: April 2003

The biphasic hydrogenations of a number of polymeric materials, polybutadiene (PBD), nitrile‐butadiene rubber (NBR) and styrene‐butadiene rubber (SBR), were investigated in a toluene/N,N′‐butylmethylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate, (BMI+BF4−) system with a water‐soluble analogue of Wilkinson's catalyst, RhCl(TPPTS)3 (TPPTS=triphenylphosphine, trisulfonated) at 100 °C and 3.1 MPa. The catalyst shows reasonable activity within ionic liquids with PBD although it was necessary in the case of NBR and SBR to add water as a co‐solvent to solubilize the catalyst within the ionic media. Both the extent of hydrogenation and the ratio of the internal 1,4‐olefins to vinyl 1,2‐olefins were monitored. A clear preference for the external olefins was observed even within NBR and SBR where functionalization on the polymer might enhance the degree of hydrogenation of the internal olefins. The effect of adding NaCl to the PBD system was also investigated. The addition of salt decreases the activity of the catalyst but has no effect on the preference for the hydrogenation of vinyl olefins.
The Pauson–Khand Reaction: the Catalytic Age Is Here!
Authors: Gibson (née Thomas) Susan E. , Stevenazzi Andrea
Published: April 2003

As a consequence of growing environmental awareness, it is now inappropriate to design a synthetic metal‐mediated transformation that involves a noncatalytic use of toxic and expensive transition‐metal species. One of the earliest examples of such a metal‐mediated transformation is the Pauson–Khand reaction, a [2+2+1] cyclocarbonylation that generates a cyclopentenone. Despite the early descriptions by Pauson and co‐workers of catalytic versions of the reaction with octacarbonyldicobalt(0), applications of the Pauson–Khand reaction have to date almost exclusively used approaches that involve stoichiometric quantities of cobalt–carbonyl complexes. In the last decade, and, most markedly, in the last two to three years, however, there have been many exciting and novel developments in the catalytic Pauson–Khand reaction. Furthermore, asymmetric catalysis of the Pauson–Khand reaction has been shown to be a viable process. In view of the impressive developments in Pauson–Khand catalysis in the last two to three years, we present a comprehensive and critical coverage of the catalytic Pauson–Khand reaction that is designed to facilitate its application and to point to exciting future developments.
Housing, hospitalization, and cost outcomes for homeless individuals with psychiatric disabilities participating in continuum of care and housing first programmes
Authors: Gulcur Leyla , Stefancic Ana , Shinn Marybeth , Tsemberis Sam , Fischer Sean N.
Published: April 2003

This article compares two approaches to housing chronically homeless individuals with psychiatric disabilities and often substance abuse. The experimental Housing First programme offered immediate access to independent housing without requiring psychiatric treatment or sobriety; the control Continuum of Care programmes made treatment and sobriety prerequisites for housing. A total of 225 participants were interviewed prior to random assignment and every 6‐months thereafter for 2 years. Data were analysed using repeated measures analysis of variance. Participants randomly assigned to the experimental condition spent significantly less time homeless and in psychiatric hospitals, and incurred fewer costs than controls. A sub‐sample recruited from psychiatric hospitals (n = 68) spent less time homeless and more time hospitalized, and incurred more costs than a sub‐sample (n = 157) recruited from the streets. Recruitment source by programme interactions showed that the experimental programme had greater effects on reducing hospitalization for the hospital sub‐sample and reducing homelessness for the street sub‐sample. Three‐way interactions including time indicated that in the experimental group, hospitalization and homelessness declined faster for the hospital and street sub‐samples, respectively, than for comparable controls. Overall results support the Housing First approach. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Use of restenting should be minimized with intracoronary radiation therapy for in‐stent restenosis
Authors: Cha Dong‐Hun , Malik Ishtiaq A. , Cheneau Edouard , Ajani Andrew E. , Leborgne Laurent , Wolfram Roswitha , Porrazzo Michael , Satler Lowell F. , Kent Kenneth M. , Pichard Augusto D. , Pinnow Ellen , Lindsay Joseph , Waksman Ron
Published: April 2003

Restenting at the time of intracoronary radiation therapy (IRT) for in‐stent restenosis (ISR) potentially increases the risk of late total occlusion (LTO) of the treated vessel. Prolonged antiplatelet therapy with clopidogrel (6 months) has been shown to be effective in reducing LTO risk. The purpose of this study was to assess the impact of restenting on clinical outcomes following IRT for ISR with 6 months of clopidogrel. We retrospectively evaluated 1,275 patients with 6‐months clinical follow‐up who were enrolled in radiation trials for ISR using γ‐ and β‐emitters conducted at Washington Hospital Center. Patients were analyzed according to whether additional stents were deployed at the time of IRT. The predominant indication for restenting was to optimize the final angiographic result in the event of tissue prolapse or to cover edge dissections. All patients received a minimum of 6 months of clopidogrel. Baseline clinical and angiographic characteristics were similar between the restented and nonrestented groups. Radiation was delivered successfully in all cases. At 6 months, patients treated with additional stents and IRT had a significantly higher rate of target vessel revascularization than patients without additional stents (24.6% vs. 18.7%; P = 0.011). Restenting caused more frequent late thrombosis, late total occlusion, and Q‐wave myocardial infarction than no restenting (4.0% vs. 2.2%, P = 0.09; 6.1% vs. 4.3%, P = 0.14; and 1.9% vs. 0.4%, P = 0.009, respectively). Restenting for the treatment of ISR is associated with increased adverse events and should be avoided after intracoronary radiation therapy for in‐stent restenosis, as restenting results in a higher recurrence rate and the potential for increased late total occlusion. Cathet Cardiovasc Intervent 2003;59:1–5. © 2003 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Comparative study on transradial approach vs. transfemoral approach in primary stent implantation for patients with acute myocardial infarction: Results of the test for myocardial infarction by prospective unicenter randomization for access sites (TEMPURA) trial
Authors: Saito Shigeru , Tanaka Shinji , Hiroe Yoshitaka , Miyashita Yusuke , Takahashi Saeko , Tanaka Kazushi , Satake Shutaro
Published: April 2003

Transradial coronary intervention (TRI) can be performed in elective patients with low incidence of access site complications. However, the feasibility of primary stent implantation by TRI is still not clear in patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI). We prospectively randomized 149 patients out of 213 patients with AMI within 12 hr from onset into two groups: 77 patients treated by TRI (TRI group) and 72 patients by transfemoral coronary intervention (TFI; TFI group). We compared the incidences of major adverse cardiac events (MACE; repeat MI, target lesion revascularization, and cardiac death) during the initial hospitalization and 9‐month follow‐up periods in both groups. There were one patient who crossed over to the opposite arm, and two patients with severe bleeding complications in the TFI group. Background characteristics of patients were similar between the two groups. The success rate of reperfusion and the incidence of in‐hospital MACE were similar in both groups (96.1% and 5.2% vs. 97.1% and 8.3% in TRI and TFI groups, respectively). In selected patients with AMI, primary stent implantation by TRI is feasible as compared to TFI. Cathet Cardiovasc Intervent 2003;59:26–33. © 2003 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Herstellung von Fettsäuremethylestern aus Rapsöl und Altfetten im kontinuierlichen Betrieb
Authors: Dittmar T. , Dimmig T. , Ondruschka B. , Heyn B. , Haupt J. , Lauterbach M.
Published: April 2003

No abstracts.
Cleavage of Aromatic Methyl Ethers by Chloroaluminate Ionic Liquid Reagents
Authors: Kemperman Gerardus J. , Roeters Theodorus A. , Hilberink Peter W.
Published: April 2003

We have discovered serendipitously that chloroaluminate ionic liquids can cleave aromatic methyl ethers under surprisingly mild conditions. Three ionic liquids, viz. [TMAH][Al2Cl7], [BMIM][Al2Cl7], and [EMIM][Al2Cl6I], and aluminum chloride were compared in the selective demethylation of 4,5‐dimethoxyindanone at the 4‐methoxy‐function. The ionic liquids exhibited a remarkably high selectivity (96:4) in comparison with aluminum chloride (70:30). In addition, the reaction time was drastically shortened when the ionic liquids were used. Interestingly, the three ionic liquids displayed the same reactivity in the demethylation of 4,5‐dimethoxyindanone. Considering the lower cost and the bulk availability of the precursors of [TMAH][Al2Cl7], we conclude that this is the most attractive ionic liquid from an industrial point of view. To make the large‐scale application of [TMAH][Al2Cl7] feasible, we have developed a safe upscalable method for its preparation. Furthermore, the scope of ether cleavage by the ionic liquid reagent [TMAH][Al2Cl7] was investigated and it was found that aromatic methyl‐, allyl‐, and benzyl‐ether cleavage is applicable to a variety of heterocyclic compounds. (© Wiley‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, 69451 Weinheim, Germany, 2003)
Synthesis of Novel Sugar Amino Acids by Curtius Rearrangement
Authors: van Well Renate M. , Overkleeft Herman S. , van Boom Jacques H. , Coop Andrew , Wang Jia Bei , Wang Hongyan , van der Marel Gijsbert A. , Overhand Mark
Published: April 2003

Sugar amino acids (SAAs) bearing an amine group on the anomeric position are a challenging class of SAAs to synthesize due to the inherent instability of glycosylamines. We developed a novel synthetic strategy towards both furanoid and pyranoid δ‐SAAs of this type, based on a Curtius rearrangement. The latter reaction, which is known to proceed with retention of configuration, was performed on carboxylic acids derived from the oxidation of glycosidic primary hydroxyls. Leu‐enkephalin analogs were prepared by replacing the Gly‐Gly moiety in the parent Leu‐enkephalin pentapeptide with the furanoid and pyranoid δ‐SAA. (© Wiley‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, 69451 Weinheim, Germany, 2003)
OPEP: A tool for the optimal partitioning of electric properties
Authors: Ángyán János G. , Chipot Christophe , Dehez François , Hättig Christof , Jansen Georg , Millot Claude
Published: April 2003

OPEP is a suite of FORTRAN programs targeted at the optimal partitioning of molecular electric properties. It includes an interactive module for the construction of Cartesian grids of points, on which either the molecular electrostatic potential or the induction energy is mapped. The generation of distributed multipoles and polarizabilities is achieved using either the formalism of the normal equations of the least‐squares problem, which restates the fitting procedure in terms of simple matrix operations, or a statistical approach, which provides a pictorial description of the distributed models of multipoles and polarizabilities, thereby allowing the pinpointing of pathological cases. Molecular symmetry is accounted for by means of local atomic frames, which are generated in an automated fashion. A Tcl/Tk graphical user interface wraps the suite of programs, thereby making OPEP a user‐friendly package for building models of distributed multipoles and polarizabilities. OPEP is an open‐source suite of programs distributed free of charge under the GNU general public license (GPL) athttp://www.lctn.uhp‐nancy.fr/Opep. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Comput Chem 24: 997–1008, 2003
Initial experiences with in vivo intravascular coronary vessel wall imaging
Authors: Botnar René M. , Bücker Arno , Kim W. Yong , Viohl Ingmar , Günther Rolf W. , Spuentrup Elmar
Published: April 2003

Purpose

To evaluate potential use of a loopless internal receiver coil for in vivo coronary artery vessel wall imaging in five domestic swine.

Materials and Methods

Intravascular free‐breathing black blood coronary vessel wall imaging was performed using a previously described double inversion fast spin echo technique after x‐ray guided placement of an internal receiver coil in or in close proximity to the target vessel (LAD, LCX).

Results

Image quality using the phased array coil was reproducible, while image quality with the internal receiver coil was heavily dependent on coil position with respect to the examined artery, and likely also dependent on blood flow and/or cardiac‐related coil motion. With internal coil placement in the left circumflex coronary artery, images of the left anterior descending vessel wall appeared similar or superior compared to commercially available phased array surface coil images. With coil placement in the target vessel itself, imaging was suboptimal because of the extremely high signal intensity (hotspot) in close proximity to the vessel wall, leading to low contrast between the vessel wall and the surrounding tissues and blood.

Conclusion

In this study, we demonstrate the feasibility of in vivo intravascular coronary vessel wall imaging. Continued research is necessary to minimize coil motion and optimize coil sensitivity algorithms. J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2003;17:615–619. © 2003 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Functional tumor imaging with dynamic contrast‐enhanced magnetic resonance imaging
Authors: Choyke Peter L. , Dwyer Andrew J. , Knopp Michael V.
Published: April 2003

Dynamic contrast‐enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (DCE‐MRI) is the acquisition of serial MRI images before, during, and after the administration of an MR contrast agent. Unlike conventional enhanced MRI, which simply provides a snapshot of enhancement at one point in time, DCE‐MRI permits a fuller depiction of the wash‐in and wash‐out contrast kinetics within tumors, and thus provides insight into the nature of the bulk tissue properties. Such data is readily amenable to two‐compartment pharmacokinetic modeling from which parameters based on the rates of exchange between the compartments can be generated. These parameters can be used to generate color‐encoded images that aid in the visual assessment of tumors. DCE‐MRI is used currently to characterize masses, stage tumors, and noninvasively monitor therapy. While DCE‐MRI is in clinical use, there are also a number of limitations, including overlap between malignant and benign inflammatory tissue, failure to resolve microscopic disease, and the inconsistent predictive value of enhancement pattern with regard to clinical outcome. Current research focuses on improving understanding of the meaning of DCE‐MRI at a molecular level, evaluating macromolecular and targeted contrast agents, and combining DCE‐MRI with other physiologic imaging techniques such as positron emission tomography. Efforts to standardize DCE‐MRI acquisition, analysis, and reporting methods will allow wider dissemination of this useful functional imaging technique. J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2003;17:509–520. Published 2003 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Yield response of wheat and barley to inoculation of plant growth promoting rhizobacteria at various levels of nitrogen fertilization
Authors: Ozturk Ali , Caglar Ozcan , Sahin Fikrettin
Published: April 2003

The yield response of a wheat (Kirik) and a barley (Tokak 157/37) cultivar to inoculation with Azospirillum brasilense Sp246 and Bacillus sp. OSU‐142 was studied in relation to three levels of N fertilization (0, 40, and 80 kg ha–1) under field conditions in Erzurum, Turkey, in 1999 and 2000. Seed inoculation with A. brasilense Sp246 significantly affected yield and yield components, both in wheat and barley. On average of years and N doses, inoculation with A. brasilense Sp246 increased spike number per m2, grain number per spike, grain yield, and crude protein content by 7.2, 5.9, 14.7, and 4.1 % in wheat and by 6.6, 8.1, 17.5, and 5.1 % in barley, respectively, as compared to control. Inoculation with Bacillus sp. OSU‐142 significantly increased kernel number per spike in wheat, but no significant effect was determined in the other characteristics. Grain yields and yield components were also higher at all levels of nitrogen fertilizer in the inoculated plots as compared to the control. However, these increases diminished at high fertilizer levels. These results suggest that application of the growth promoting bacteria A. brasilense Sp246 may have the potential to be used as a biofertilizer for spring wheat and barley cultivation in organic and low‐N input agriculture.
Effects of Diffusion‐Controlled Radical Reactions on RAFT Polymerization
Authors: Wang Aileen R. , Zhu Shiping
Published: April 2003

The ‘livingness’ of a controlled radical polymerization process such as reversible addition–fragmentation transfer polymerization (RAFT) depends on the rapid deactivation of propagating radicals (the radical addition reaction in RAFT) that suppresses radical termination reactions. However, at high monomer conversions when the polymerization system becomes viscous, polymer chains may experience diffusion limitations and the radical reactions (radical addition and termination) readily become diffusion controlled. The effects of the diffusion‐controlled reactions on the RAFT kinetics and molecular‐weight development are investigated in this work using a modeling approach. It is demonstrated that the diffusion‐controlled radical termination accelerates the polymerization rate and improves the control of polymer molecular weight, while the diffusion‐controlled radical addition also accelerates the rate but broadens the molecular‐weight distribution. This model elucidates the magnitudes and changes for various types of chains involved in the RAFT, i.e., propagating radical chain, adduct radical chain, dormant chain, and dead chain.

Polydispersity vs conversion of diffusion‐controlled radical termination (left) and diffusion‐controlled radical addition (right).

magnified image

Polydispersity vs conversion of diffusion‐controlled radical termination (left) and diffusion‐controlled radical addition (right).
A new device for investigating the hydro‐mechanical properties of rock joints
Authors: Hans J. , Boulon M.
Published: April 2003

A new experimental system composed of two devices is presented for studying the hydraulic conductivity of rock joints and other interfaces in relation with their mechanical loading. This system allows for investigations on the anisotropy of the hydraulic conductivity, as well as for its heterogeneity. The first device controls the injection of a fluid, regulated in pressure or discharge near the centre of the sample of rock joint, which produces a quasi‐radial flow within the joint. The output flow is measured in real time using a sectorized peripheral membrane for acquisition of data about the directionality or anisotropy of the flow. The second device allows for the measurement of the evolution of the morphology and of the void map of the rock joints during their mechanical loading (compression or shearing). It is a laser beam moved by an (x, y) frame. This frame is installed within the shear box at several stages of the loading, after temporarily moving one rock wall away from the other one, but without unmounting them from the shear box. After the presentation of the experimental system, and of its performances, we give some examples of test results of replicas of rock joints, loaded in compression and shearing. First, these results show that the change in global transmissivity of the samples is strongly correlated with the normal relative displacement of the rock walls. Several statistical analyses of the change in the void map, taking into account the damage of the asperities of the joint, are presented and compared with the results of the directional output flows. Today further studies involving a FEM as well as a finite volume modelling of the flow within the joints, based on the measured void map are in progress for a more precise comparison to the experimental results. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
The carbon clathrate hex‐C16
Authors: Benedek Giorgio , Bernasconi Marco , Gambirasio Alfredo
Published: April 2003

Diamond‐like clathrates ideally obtained from the coalescence of carbon cages form a wide class of hypothetical carbon crystals which can be designed from topological arguments. The structural and electronic properties of a novel hexagonal carbon clathrate with a full four‐fold coordination and only 16 atoms per unit cell are obtained from first‐principle density‐functional calculations and compared to those of other diamond‐like crystalline forms.
A meta‐analysis of studies on the association of the platelet PlA polymorphism of glycoprotein IIIa and risk of coronary heart disease
Authors: Burr Deborah , Doss Hani , Cooke Glen E. , Goldschmidt‐Clermont Pascal J.
Published: April 2003

The PlA2 polymorphism of the glycoprotein IIIa subunit of the fibrinogen receptor (GPIIb‐IIIa) has been reported by some studies to be associated with an increased risk of coronary thrombosis. Following the first paper on the subject in 1996, a large number of studies have investigated the relationship between this polymorphism and coronary thrombosis, either at the epidemiological or at the cellular and molecular levels. The cellular and molecular studies have shown in a consistent manner that this polymorphism increases platelet responsiveness. In contrast, epidemiological studies have generated inconsistent results regarding the clinical impact of PlA2. We consider 12 epidemiological studies that investigate the link between presence/absence of this polymorphism and presence/absence of coronary heart disease. Each is a case‐control study that reports an odds ratio. The studies are not directly comparable because they differ greatly in their patient pools and also in the way the data are analysed. We present several meta‐analyses of these 12 studies. The simplest one is based on a standard frequentist random effects model with a normal distribution for the study effects (the per‐study population log‐odds ratios). We also consider a Bayesian version of this model, with a diffuse prior for the mean and variance of the normal distribution of the study effects. The conclusions from both of these analyses is about the same, and is that there is evidence that the PlA2 polymorphism is associated with an increased risk of coronary heart disease. A look at the reported log‐odds ratios across studies suggests that the study effects do not come from a symmetric distribution. For this reason, we also consider semi‐parametric priors for the distribution of the study effects. These priors are specifically designed for this kind of meta‐analysis, and are based on a certain class of mixtures of Dirichlet priors. They can be designed to concentrate most of their mass around the family of normal distributions, but still allow for any other distribution. The semi‐parametric Bayesian model continues to give evidence of an association between the PlA2 polymorphism and the risk of coronary heart disease. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Modelling the random effects covariance matrix in longitudinal data
Authors: Daniels Michael J. , Zhao Yan D.
Published: April 2003

A common class of models for longitudinal data are random effects (mixed) models. In these models, the random effects covariance matrix is typically assumed constant across subject. However, in many situations this matrix may differ by measured covariates. In this paper, we propose an approach to model the random effects covariance matrix by using a special Cholesky decomposition of the matrix. In particular, we will allow the parameters that result from this decomposition to depend on subject‐specific covariates and also explore ways to parsimoniously model these parameters. An advantage of this parameterization is that there is no concern about the positive definiteness of the resulting estimator of the covariance matrix. In addition, the parameters resulting from this decomposition have a sensible interpretation. We propose fully Bayesian modelling for which a simple Gibbs sampler can be implemented to sample from the posterior distribution of the parameters. We illustrate these models on data from depression studies and examine the impact of heterogeneity in the covariance matrix on estimation of both fixed and random effects. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
A standard test for AGCMs including their physical parametrizations: I: the proposal
Authors: Neale R. B. , Hoskins B. J.
Published: April 2003

To assist model intercomparison and development of a set of eight numerical experiments is proposed as a test‐bed for the interaction of dynamics and physical parameterizations in atmospheric GCMs. The framework for the experiments is that of an aqua‐planet and the prescribed sea‐surface temperatures (SSTs) are highly idealized. Copyright © 2001 Royal Meteorological Society.
ETHREL STIMULATION OF INFLORESCENCE SAP FLOW IN TAPPED COCONUT (COCOS NUCIFERA) PALMS
Authors: RANASINGHE C. S. , WAIDYANATHA U. P. DE S.
Published: April 2003

The effect of Ethrel on the yield and sugar content of coconut (Cocos nucifera) inflorescence sap and sustainability of productivity was investigated on forty-year-old tall coconut palms (var. typica) at Bandirippuwa Estate, Lunuwila, Sri Lanka. Ethrel was applied at a concentration of 2.5% and the volume and sugar content of the sap were measured. Application of Ethrel consistently increased the yield per day, yield per spadix, yield per palm per annum and sugar content in the sap for a period of four years. The removal of carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium and magnesium with the sap was greater from Ethrel-treated than from untreated palms, and this was attributed mainly to the enhanced sap yields and sugar concentrations.
Altering the Default Setting: Re-envisaging the Early Transmission of the Jesus Tradition
Authors: DUNN JAMES D. G.
Published: April 2003

The literary mindset (‘default setting’) of modern Western culture prevents those trained in that culture from recognizing that oral cultures operate differently. The classic solution to the Synoptic problem, and the chief alternatives, have envisaged the relationships between the Gospel traditions in almost exclusively literary terms. But the earliest phase of transmission of the Jesus tradition was without doubt predominantly by word of mouth. And recent studies of oral cultures provide several characteristic features of oral tradition. Much of the Synoptic tradition, even in its present form, reflects in particular the combination of stability and flexibility so characteristic of the performances of oral tradition. Re-envisaging the early transmission of the Jesus tradition therefore requires us to recognize that the literary paradigm (including a clearly delineated Q document) is too restrictive in the range of possible explanations it offers for the diverse/divergent character of Synoptic parallels. Variation in detail may simply attest the character of oral performance rather than constituting evidence of literary redaction.
Liver transplantation for hepatocellular carcinoma: Comparison of the proposed UCSF criteria with the Milan criteria and the Pittsburgh modified TNM criteria
Authors: Yao Francis Y. , Ferrell Linda , Bass Nathan M. , Bacchetti Peter , Ascher Nancy L. , Roberts John P.
Published: April 2003

We previously proposed modified staging criteria for predicting acceptable outcome after orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT) for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). These were solitary tumor ≤6.5 cm, or three or fewer nodules with the largest lesion ≤4.5 cm and total tumor diameter ≤8 cm, without gross vascular invasion (University of California, San Francisco [UCSF] criteria). In this study, we further evaluated the performance of the Milan criteria (solitary tumor ≤5 cm, or three or fewer lesions none >3 cm), the UCSF criteria, and the Pittsburgh modified tumor-node-metastasis (TNM) criteria. Pathologic HCC staging according to each set of criteria was performed in 70 patients. The difference in survival when comparing 24 patients with HCC exceeding Milan criteria versus 46 patients meeting Milan criteria did not reach statistical significance (HR, 2.0; P = .12). Using our definition for acceptable 2-year survival to be ≥70%, the 14 patients (20%) meeting UCSF criteria but exceeding Milan criteria had a 2-year survival of 86% (95% CI, 54% to 96%). Survival for Pittsburgh stage I, II, and IIIA patients as a group was significantly better than for stages IIIB and IVA patients combined (HR, 4.2; P = .007), and similar to survival for patients meeting UCSF criteria. Advanced tumor exceeding UCSF criteria served reasonably well as a surrogate marker for poorly differentiated grade and microvascular invasion. In conclusion, our analyses suggest that UCSF criteria better predict acceptable posttransplant outcome than Milan criteria. UCSF criteria confer a different advantage over Pittsburgh criteria, which require information on microvascular invasion that is difficult to ascertain preoperatively without the attendant risk of biopsy.
EXTENDED WEYL–HEISENBERG ALGEBRA AND RUBAKOV–SPIRIDONOV SUPERALGEBRA: ANYONIC REALIZATIONS
Authors: DAOUD M. , DOUARI J.
Published: April 2003

We give the realizations of the extended Weyl–Heisenberg (WH) algebra and the Rubakov–Spiridonov (RS) superalgebra in terms of anyons, characterized by the statistical parameter ν ∈ [0,1], on two-dimensional lattice. The construction uses anyons defined from usual fermionic oscillators (Lerda–Sciuto construction). The anyonic realization of the superalgebra sl(1/1) is also presented.
SECOND VIRIAL COEFFICIENT FOR NONCOMMUTATIVE SPACE
Authors: JELLAL AHMED , GEYER HENDRIK B.
Published: April 2003

The second virial coefficient [Formula: see text] for non-interacting particles moving in a two-dimensional noncommutative space and in the presence of a uniform magnetic field B is presented. The noncommutativity parameter θ can be chosen such that the [Formula: see text] can be interpreted as the second virial coefficient for anyons of statistics α in the presence of B and living on the commuting plane. In particular in the high temperature limit β → 0, we establish a relation between the parameter θ and the statistics α. Moreover, [Formula: see text] can also be interpreted in terms of composite fermions.
CHARACTERIZING THE ABILITY OF PARALLEL ARRAY GENERATORS ON REVERSIBLE PARTITIONED CELLULAR AUTOMATA
Authors: MORITA KENICHI , UENO SATOSHI , IMAI KATSUNOBU
Published: April 2003

A PCAAG introduced by Morita and Ueno is a parallel array generator on a partitioned cellular automaton (PCA) that generates an array language (i.e. a set of symbol arrays). A "reversible" PCAAG (RPCAAG) is a backward deterministic PCAAG, and thus parsing of two-dimensional patterns can be performed without backtracking by an "inverse" system of the RPCAAG. Hence, a parallel pattern recognition mechanism on a deterministic cellular automaton can be directly obtained from a RPCAAG that generates the pattern set. In this paper, we investigate the generating ability of RPCAAGs and their subclass. It is shown that the ability of RPCAAGs is characterized by two-dimensional deterministic Turing machines, i.e. they are universal in their generating ability. We then investigate a monotonic RPCAAG (MRPCAAG), which is a special type of an RPCAAG that satisfies monotonic constraint. We show that the generating ability of MRPCAAGs is exactly characterized by two-dimensional deterministic linear-bounded automata.
FEATURE-BASED FACIAL EXPRESSION RECOGNITION: SENSITIVITY ANALYSIS AND EXPERIMENTS WITH A MULTILAYER PERCEPTRON
Authors: ZHANG ZHENGYOU
Published: April 2003

In this paper, we report our experiments on feature-based facial expression recognition within an architecture based on a two-layer perceptron. We investigate the use of two types of features extracted from face images: the geometric positions of a set of fiducial points on a face, and a set of multiscale and multiorientation Gabor wavelet coefficients at these points. They can be used either independently or jointly. The recognition performance with different types of features has been compared, which shows that Gabor wavelet coefficients are much more powerful than geometric positions. Furthermore, since the first layer of the perceptron actually performs a nonlinear reduction of the dimensionality of the feature space, we have also studied the desired number of hidden units, i.e. the appropriate dimension to represent a facial expression in order to achieve a good recognition rate. It turns out that five to seven hidden units are probably enough to represent the space of facial expressions. Then, we have investigated the importance of each individual fiducial point to facial expression recognition. Sensitivity analysis reveals that points on cheeks and on forehead carry little useful information. After discarding them, not only the computational efficiency increases, but also the generalization performance slightly improves. Finally, we have studied the significance of image scales. Experiments show that facial expression recognition is mainly a low frequency process, and a spatial resolution of 64 pixels × 64 pixels is probably enough.
A MULTISCALE AND MULTIORIENTATION RECOGNITION TECHNIQUE APPLIED TO DOCUMENT INTERPRETATION: APPLICATION TO THE FRENCH TELEPHONE NETWORK MAPS
Authors: CARIOU C. , OGIER J. M. , ADAM S. , MULLOT R. , LECOURTIER Y. , GARDES J.
Published: April 2003

In this paper, we propose an original methodology which allows the detection and the recognition of multioriented and multiscaled patterns. The supports on which the method is applied are technical documents representing the network of the French Telephone operator France Telecom, overlaid on urban maps. The adopted technique, based on the Fourier–Mellin transform (FMT) is integrated in a global strategy that solves ambiguous situations, through the providing of contextual information. The strategy, which is applied to solve the character and symbol classification problem, can be divided into two stages. The first one consists in constructing a set of invariant descriptors for each isolated pattern which is extracted from a characters layer given by the system approach. The second stage, based on a filtering scheme, consists in detecting and recognizing connected shapes. The results of the application of this technique are very encouraging since the classification rate reaches excellent scores in comparison with classical techniques.
Dose-dependent cigarette smoking-related inflammatory responses in healthy adults
Authors: Kuschner WG , D'Alessandro A , Wong H , Blanc PD
Published: April 2003

The aim of this study was to determine the dose-response relationship between cigarette smoke exposure and pulmonary cell and cytokine concentrations in bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL). BAL cells and BAL supernatant concentrations of tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNF alpha), interleukin (IL)-1 beta, IL-6, IL-8, and monocyte chemoattractant protein (MCP)-1 from 14 healthy smokers and 16 healthy nonsmokers were quantified. Statistically greater concentrations of neutrophils, macrophages, IL-1 beta, IL-6, IL-8 and MCP-1 were observed among smokers compared with nonsmokers (p < or = 0.0007 in all cases). Cigarette smoking, categorized ordinally as: less than one pack, one pack, or greater than one pack per day, was predictive of BAL macrophages (p < 0.0001), neutrophils (p = 0.015), IL-1 beta (p < 0.001) and IL-8 (p = 0.02). We conclude that concentrations of macrophages, neutrophils, IL-1 beta and IL-8 are elevated in the pulmonary microenvironment of smokers in a cigarette dose-dependent manner. Based on the present findings, we would caution against simple analyses that treat current smokers as a homogeneous group and which do not account for smoking intensity.