bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
In Vitro Comparison of the Cytotoxicity and Water Sorption of Two Different Denture Base Systems
Authors: Akin Hakan , Tugut Faik , Polat Zubeyde Akin
Published: June 2014

Purpose

Denture base resins have the potential to cause cytotoxicity in vivo, and the mechanical properties of resins are affected by water sorption. There is a correlation between residual monomer and water sorption. Thus, the purpose of this study was to evaluate water sorption and cytotoxicity of light‐activated urethane dimethacrylate (UDMA) denture base resin compared to a conventional heat‐activated polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) resin.

Materials and Methods

Two denture base resins, heat‐activated PMMA (Meliodent) and light‐activated UDMA (Eclipse), were used in this study. Cytotoxicity (5 × 1 mm2) and water sorption (1 × 1 mm2) specimens were made following the manufacturers’ instructions (n = 10). Cytotoxicity tests of denture base resins were performed according to ISO10993–5:1999, and water sorption was evaluated according to ISO 1567:1997. ANOVA tests were employed for evaluating data (α = 0.05).

Results

There was no cytotoxic effect in either the PMMA or UDMA group. In addition, contrary to short‐term water storage, a significantly lower water sorption value was shown for UDMA resins compared to PMMA resins in both 3‐ and 6‐month storage periods (p = 0.043 and p = 0.002, respectively).

Conclusion

The tested denture base materials adhered to the ISO standards for both cytotoxicity and water sorption. The cytotoxicity of the light‐activated UDMA resin tested was statistically similar to that of the heat‐activated PMMA resin; however, the UDMA resin exhibited decreased water sorption in long‐term water storage.
Examining Neighborhood Environment and Central Obesity in the YES Health Study
Authors: Rooks Ronica N. , Xu Yanmei , Williams David R.
Published: June 2014

We examined the relationship between neighborhood environment (e.g., objective neighborhood socioeconomic status [SES] and subjective neighborhood perceptions) and waist‐hip ratio (WHR) or central obesity using logistic regression and content analysis of respondents’ narratives on housing unfair treatment in the YES Health pilot study. Multivariate results showed significant relationships between low SES White, low SES Black, and middle SES Black versus middle SES White neighborhoods and total‐sample and women's obesity, in almost all neighborhood perception models. Significant relationships included: disliking neighborhood and total‐sample obesity; neighborhood informal monitoring/surveillance and total‐sample and women's obesity; social participation and total‐sample and women's obesity; and perceptions of families and total‐sample and women's obesity. Qualitative results partially corroborate our quantitative results that low SES neighborhood adults were more likely to experience neighborhood disorders and safety issues. Our findings highlight examining objective and subjective neighborhood environments related to central obesity, suggesting specific health targets for neighborhood intervention programs.
Is Religious Attendance Bottoming Out? An Examination of Current Trends Across Europe
Authors: Burkimsher Marion
Published: June 2014

The purpose of this research note is to summarize the available data on trends in religious attendance across 24 European countries to determine whether a base level has been reached in some countries. We focus on the changes observed in the period 1990–2012. After critically assessing the data quality of the recent European Social Survey (ESS) and European Values Study (EVS), we present four different methods of assessing current trends. First, we assess intercohort differentials, an indicator previously used extensively. We then look at trends in young people's rates of attendance, followed by trends of the postwar cohorts born in 1950–1981. We proceed to an appraisal of individual life‐course variations by looking at attendance as a child and young adult. A compilation of these indicators shows that they often do not fully agree on whether there is growth, decline, or stability. To generalize, the high‐attending Catholic countries are more likely to exhibit religious decline, whilst a few ex‐communist countries are seeing sustained growth. The most secular countries seem to be generally stabilizing in the 5–20 percent range for attendance rates of the postwar generations.
Perpetuating Stereotypes: A Study of Gender, Family, and Religious Life in Jewish Children's Books
Authors: Sigalow Emily , Fox Nicole S.
Published: June 2014

This paper examines award‐winning Jewish children's literature as a medium to explore how religiosity gets constructed differently for men and women. We analyze three decades of winners of the Sydney Taylor Jewish Book Award, a prestigious annual award given by the Association of Jewish Libraries to an outstanding Jewish children's book. We demonstrate how these award‐winning books produce and perpetuate gendered religious stereotypes that associate men with agency and women with communion. We also show how these books construct images of a “domestic Judaism” for women and a “public Judaism” for men and how women have been symbolically annihilated from the titles and central character roles in these books. Drawing on Cecilia Ridgeway's () gender‐framing perspective, we argue that the gender stereotypes evident in these books matter to society because they produce and enforce gender inequalities in religiousness.
Employment, Wages, and Religious Revivals in Postcommunist Countries
Authors: Minarik Pavol
Published: June 2014

The fall of communist regimes in Central and Eastern Europe has profoundly changed the religious landscape in many countries. Sociologists have studied the rise and decline of religious beliefs and participation in the post‐communist region, but economic approaches have been rare. This article suggests supplementing the dominant theories—the demand‐side explanation of secularization and the supply‐side explanation of religious revivals—with a model of individual time allocation. The model presented in the article predicts both the initial growth and the subsequent decline of religious participation in postcommunist countries. The empirical portion of the article focuses on six central European countries with different levels of religiosity. Data from the three waves of the ISSP survey support the model.
Church Attendance, Problems of Measurement, and Interpreting Indicators: A Study of Religious Practice in the United States, 1975–2010
Authors: Rossi Maurizio , Scappini Ettore
Published: June 2014

Church attendance is usually measured in surveys by asking a direct question about frequency of churchgoing over a preset period of time, which is typically a year. Different studies have cast doubt over the validity of this indicator as it tends to overestimate actual attendance to a significant degree. The aim of this article is to compare data on church attendance provided by two different types of research conducted in the United States between 1975 and 2010: survey data (GSS) and data obtained from time use surveys (ATUS). This comparison has three main objectives: (1) to confirm the hypothesis that survey data tend to overestimate actual attendance; (2) to show that this overestimation is not constant over time and space, but tends to vary in an erratic and unpredictable way; and (3) to demonstrate that data provided by time use surveys are more reliable than the frequencies of churchgoing provided by traditional surveys when the objective is to identify trends in religiosity in a population.
The Religious Context of Welfare Attitudes
Authors: VanHeuvelen Tom
Published: June 2014

This article examines the influence of three dimensions of religion—belonging (faith tradition membership), behaving (frequency of service attendance), and context (one's relationship to aggregate population characteristics)—on attitudes toward multiple forms of state‐provided social protection, or welfare attitudes. To do so, this article uses data from 17 countries surveyed in the 2006 “Role of Government” wave of the International Social Survey Program (ISSP). Results from mixed effects regression show that contextual effects are highly predictive of welfare attitudes. Nations that are more religiously heterogeneous are less supportive of state protection, while nations that are more homogeneous, particularly Catholic nations, are more supportive. Results hold net of fractionalization, political institutional measures, and economic characteristics. At the individual level, all three dimensions of religiosity are predictive of welfare attitudes. These patterns suggest that in rich Western democracies, religion continues to play an important role in structuring the moral economies.
Pretreatment with Andrographolide Pills® Attenuates Lipopolysaccharide‐Induced Pulmonary Microcirculatory Disturbance and Acute Lung Injury in Rats
Authors: Yang Ning , Liu Yu‐Ying , Pan Chun‐Shui , Sun Kai , Wei Xiao‐Hong , Mao Xiao‐Wei , Lin Fang , Li Xue‐Jun , Fan Jing‐Yu , Han Jing‐Yan
Published: June 2014

Objective

The purpose of this study was to explore the protective effect of AP on LPS‐induced PMD and ALI.

Methods

Male SD rats were continuously infused with LPS (5 mg/kg/h) for one hour to induce PMD and ALI. AP was administrated orally one hour before LPS exposure. Arterial blood pressure and HR were monitored. Blood gas analysis, histological observation, cytokines in plasma, leukocyte recruitment, pulmonary oxidative stress, microvessel permeability, edema, and related proteins were evaluated six hours after LPS challenge.

Results

Rats receiving LPS exhibited significant alterations, including hypotension, tachycardia, increase in cytokines, neutrophil adhesion and infiltration, oxidative stress, and microvessel hyperpermeability, resulting in pulmonary injury and dysfunction. AP (0.18 g/kg or 1.8 g/kg) improved rat survival rate, and significantly attenuated all aforementioned insults, and inhibited LPS‐induced increase in adhesion molecules, up‐regulation of Cav‐1 and Src kinase and NADPH oxidase subunits (p47phox and p67phox) membrane translocation in lung tissue, and preserved JAM‐1 and claudin‐5.

Conclusions

The results demonstrated the protective effect of AP on LPS‐induced PMD and ALI, suggesting the potential of AP as a prophylactic strategy for LPS‐induced ALI.
Long‐term results of pneumatic dilatation for relapsing symptoms of achalasia after Heller myotomy
Authors: Legros Ludivine , Ropert Alain , Brochard Charlène , Bouguen Guillaume , Pagenault Maël , Siproudhis Laurent , Bretagne Jean‐François
Published: June 2014

Background

The aim of this study was to assess the efficacy and safety of pneumatic dilatation (PD) to treat symptom recurrence after Heller myotomy (HM).

Methods

Consecutive patients receiving PD for relapsing symptoms following prior HM were included in this retrospective single‐center study. Eckardt score ≤3 and/or ∆ Eckardt (difference between Eckardt score before and after dilatation) ≥3 defined the success of initial dilatation. Patients who maintained response longer than 2 months after initial dilatation were defined as short‐term responders. Relapsers were offered further on‐demand dilatation. Remission was defined as an Eckardt score ≤3 at the study endpoint. Kaplan–Meier survival curves were used to determine relapse rates.

Key Results

Eighteen patients (11 women, seven men) were included from January 2004 to January 2013. Ten patients had type I achalasia, and seven had type III, according to the Chicago classification. Thirty‐nine PDs were performed (1.5 [1–2.25] per patient). All patients had short‐term responses. The remission rate at the endpoint, after a median follow‐up of 33 months, was 78%, but 44% were treated with on‐demand PD during the follow‐up interval. The proportions of patients without relapse and subsequent PD were 72% at 12 months, 65% at 24 and 36 months, and 49% at 48 months. No factors predictive of long‐term response, particularly the type of achalasia, could be identified in this series. There were no perforations.

Conclusions & Inferences

In treating symptom recurrence following HM, PD was safe and effective over the long term when combined with subsequent PD.
A nonRD receptor‐like kinase prevents nodule early senescence and defense‐like reactions during symbiosis
Authors: Berrabah Fathi , Bourcy Marie , Eschstruth Alexis , Cayrel Anne , Guefrachi Ibtissem , Mergaert Peter , Wen Jiangqi , Jean Viviane , Mysore Kirankumar S. , Gourion Benjamin , Ratet Pascal
Published: June 2014

Rhizobia and legumes establish symbiotic interactions leading to the production of root nodules, in which bacteria fix atmospheric nitrogen for the plant's benefit. This symbiosis is efficient because of the high rhizobia population within nodules. Here, we investigated how legumes accommodate such bacterial colonization.

We used a reverse genetic approach to identify a Medicago truncatula gene, SymCRK, which encodes a cysteine‐rich receptor‐like kinase that is required for rhizobia maintenance within the plant cells, and performed detailed phenotypic analyses of the corresponding mutant.

The Medicago truncatula symCRK mutant developed nonfunctional and necrotic nodules. A nonarginine asparate (nonRD) motif, typical of receptors involved in innate immunity, is present in the SymCRK kinase domain. Similar to the dnf2 mutant, bacteroid differentiation defect, defense‐like reactions and early senescence were observed in the symCRK nodules. However, the dnf2 and symCRK nodules differ by their degree of colonization, which is higher in symCRK. Furthermore, in contrast to dnf2, symCRK is not a conditional mutant.

These results suggest that in M. truncatula at least two genes are involved in the symbiotic control of immunity. Furthermore, phenotype differences between the two mutants suggest that two distinct molecular mechanisms control suppression of plant immunity during nodulation.
Magical mystery tour: MLO proteins in plant immunity and beyond
Authors: Acevedo‐Garcia Johanna , Kusch Stefan , Panstruga Ralph
Published: June 2014

Stable heritable restriction of the ubiquitous powdery mildew disease is a desirable trait for agri‐ and horticulture. In barley (Hordeum vulgare), loss‐of‐function mutant alleles of the Mildew resistance locus o (Mlo) gene confer broad‐spectrum resistance to almost all known isolates of the fungal barley powdery mildew pathogen, Blumeria graminis f.sp. hordei. Despite extensive cultivation of barley mlo genotypes, mlo resistance has been durable in the field. Mlo genes are present as small families in the genomes of all higher plant species. The presumed negative regulatory role of particular members in plant immunity is evolutionarily conserved, as powdery mildew resistant mlo mutants have also been described in Arabidopsis thaliana, tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) and pea (Pisum sativum). Barley Mlo encodes a plasma membrane‐localized seven‐transmembrane domain protein of unknown biochemical activity. Here, we review the known requirements for mlo‐mediated disease resistance in barley and Arabidopsis and reflect current views regarding Mlo function. We discuss additional mlo mutant phenotypes recently discovered in Arabidopsis and present a meta‐analysis of the phylogenetic relationships within the Mlo family. Finally, we consider the novel versatile tools for functional analysis and targeted genome modification that can be used to induce mlo‐based powdery mildew resistance in virtually any plant species.
Conradi–Hünermann–Happle Syndrome: A Novel Heterozygous Missense Mutation, c.204G>T (p.W68C)
Authors: Lambrecht Charlotte , Wouters Carine , Van Esch Hilde , Moens Pierre , Casteels Ingele , Morren Marie‐Anne
Published: June 2014

Conradi–Hünermann–Happle syndrome (X‐linked dominant chondrodysplasia punctata, CDPX2 [Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man 302960]) is a rare genodermatosis that presents with blaschkolinear ichthyosis, cicatricial alopecia, chondrodysplasia punctata, asymmetric shortening of the bones, and cataracts. In this case report we describe a child presenting with a patterned alopecia in which supplementary signs and clinical examination of the mother led to the suspicion of Conradi‐Hünermann‐Happle syndrome. Mutation analysis revealed a heterozygous novel missense mutation, c.204G>T (p.W68C), in exon 2.
Is Risk Analysis Scientific?
Authors: Hansson Sven Ove , Aven Terje
Published: June 2014

This article discusses to what extent risk analysis is scientific in view of a set of commonly used definitions and criteria. We consider scientific knowledge to be characterized by its subject matter, its success in developing the best available knowledge in its fields of study, and the epistemic norms and values that guide scientific investigations. We proceed to assess the field of risk analysis according to these criteria. For this purpose, we use a model for risk analysis in which science is used as a base for decision making on risks, which covers the five elements evidence, knowledge base, broad risk evaluation, managerial review and judgment, and the decision; and that relates these elements to the domains experts and decisionmakers, and to the domains fact‐based or value‐based. We conclude that risk analysis is a scientific field of study, when understood as consisting primarily of (i) knowledge about risk‐related phenomena, processes, events, etc., and (ii) concepts, theories, frameworks, approaches, principles, methods and models to understand, assess, characterize, communicate, and manage risk, in general and for specific applications (the instrumental part).
The Perennial Nature of the Catholic Worker Farms: A Reconsideration of Failure
Authors: Stock Paul V.
Published: June 2014

Contemporary challenges in rural and environmental politics hinge on understanding what success and failure mean. One avenue of studying success and failure of political and social change efforts is to study social movements and intentional communities often equated with how many years such efforts persisted. The Catholic Worker movement's combination of a vision of radical social change, religion, nonviolence, hospitality, activism, and agrarianism involve publications, urban houses, and farms that constitute a movement and a network of autonomous intentional communities. The Catholic Worker movement's communal farms began in 1933 and at various points those efforts were deemed failures. Thus, the story of the Catholic Worker farms is one of impermanence and struggle for a desired ideal. However, what we are missing in condemning the farms to failure is the utter success since the 1970s of a strong agrarian and environmental strain of the Catholic Worker movement based on farm activity, activism, and cooperative economics. This study reconceptualizes failure in the language of process and context. The Catholic Worker farms case study refigures failure such that we can articulate a politics of possibility related to the dramatic challenges not only of society but also of the environment.
Sincerity, Solidarity, and Deliberative Commitment
Authors: Kadlac Adam
Published: June 2014

Two challenges have lately been posed to the importance of sincerity for our public discourse. On the one hand, it has been suggested that because sincerity is so difficult to identify, a preoccupation with the inner lives of others distracts us from the substance of what people say. On the other hand, some worry that making sincere statements can sometimes undermine the very deliberation that advocates of sincerity are so concerned to protect. In light of these challenges, I attempt to analyze our interest in sincerity in terms of a concern for solidarity with our fellow citizens. I then argue that focusing on the sincerity of various assertions is not a good way to promote social cohesion and that this concern is better addressed by looking at the commitment that others have to the process of democratic deliberation.
The Incentives Argument Revisited: A Millean Account of Copyright
Authors: Falgoust Michael
Published: June 2014

The U.S. Constitution employs a utilitarian view in authorizing Congress to establish patents and copyrights. Let us refer to this way of justifying copyright as the Incentives Argument, or more extensively, the Incentives Argument for Intellectual Property Rights. While seemingly straightforward, the Incentives Argument has been widely criticized in philosophical literature on intellectual property. Scholars have come to prefer Neo‐Lockean labor‐desert accounts, grounding intellectual property rights in the author's natural ownership claims over his creations. Neo‐Lockean accounts are thought to avoid some of the problems classically associated with utilitarian arguments, such as vulnerability to empirical evidence and an inability to make sense of rights or duties morally prior to consequential considerations. Fortunately, many criticisms articulated by opponents of the Incentives Argument can be answered by a strategic retreat to the version of utilitarianism found in the work of John Stuart Mill. I argue that not only does a Millian account of the Incentives Argument prove less vulnerable to oft‐cited criticisms, but also allows for a more robust account of how the audience benefits from a proliferation of creative works. Mill's focus on the importance of critical self‐development allows for a deeper analysis of how creative works benefit members of the audience as individuals and as a community. Within a Millian framework, viewing the audience as mere passive consumers of media fails to take into account the impact of expressive acts on an individual's critical self‐development. Instead, one must see members of the audience as active participants in the creation of meaning and the common culture. Construing the community that receives creative works as an Active Audience alters the landscape of copyright, and the Incentives Argument, making balancing the desires of creators and the desires of audience members a key priority.
French Philosophy of Science, Structuralist Epistemology, and the Problem of the Subject
Authors: Eyers Tom
Published: June 2014

This article examines the multiple relations between the rationalist tradition of French philosophy of science exemplified by the work of Gaston Bachelard, and the rethinking of the relation between science and ideology undertaken by Louis Althusser and a young Alain Badiou in the 1960s. Both Bachelard and Althusser are interrogated for the philosophy of language that underpins their respective visions of scientificity; in turn, the problem of the subject is posed, in part through an investigation of Althusser's inheritance and transformation of Lacanian psychoanalysis.
Effect of endurance training on dental erosion, caries, and saliva
Authors: Frese C. , Frese F. , Kuhlmann S. , Saure D. , Reljic D. , Staehle H. J. , Wolff D.
Published: June 2014

The aim of this investigation was to give insights into the impact of endurance training on oral health, with regard to tooth erosion, caries, and salivary parameters. The study included 35 triathletes and 35 non‐exercising controls. The clinical investigation comprised oral examination, assessment of oral status with special regard to caries and erosion, saliva testing during inactivity, and a self‐administered questionnaire about eating, drinking, and oral hygiene behavior. In addition, athletes were asked about their training habits and intake of beverages and sports nutrition. For saliva assessment during exercise, a subsample of n = 15 athletes volunteered in an incremental running field test (IRFT). Athletes showed an increased risk for dental erosion (P = 0.001). No differences were observed with regard to caries prevalence and salivary parameters measured during inactivity between athletes and controls. Among athletes, a significant correlation was found between caries prevalence and the cumulative weekly training time (r = 0.347, P = 0.04). In athletes after IRFT and at maximum workload, saliva flow rates decreased (P = 0.001 stimulated; P = 0.01 unstimulated) and saliva pH increased significantly (P = 0.003). Higher risk for dental erosions, exercise‐dependent caries risk, and load‐dependent changes in saliva parameters point out the need for risk‐adapted preventive dental concepts in the field of sports dentistry.
Utilization of cross‐matched or HLA‐matched platelets for patients refractory to platelet transfusion
Authors: Rioux‐Massé Benjamin , Cohn Claudia , Lindgren Bruce , Pulkrabek Shelly , McCullough Jeffrey
Published: June 2014

Background

Use of cross matching or HLA matching for donor selection is the basis of managing patients refractory to platelet (PLT) transfusion. Because of changes in patient care, we evaluated the effect of cross matching and HLA matching in patients refractory to PLT transfusion.

Study Design and Methods

We identified all patients who received either HLA‐matched or cross‐matched PLTs during a 3‐year period at our medical center. Patient records were reviewed and laboratory data were collected. One‐ to 4‐hour corrected count increments (CCIs) were calculated for transfusions given up to 72 hours before receiving these specialized units and the HLA‐matched or cross‐matched units themselves.

Results

Thirty‐two patients were identified who received a total of 354 PLT transfusions. Of these, 161 were from unselected apheresis, 152 were cross matched, and 41 were HLA selected. The median CCI for random‐donor transfusions was 0 (range, 0 × 109‐10.5 × 109/L), for cross‐matched PLT transfusions 1.7 × 109/L (0 × 109‐5.1 × 109/L), and for HLA‐matched transfusions 1.2 × 109/L (0 × 109‐13.9 × 109/L). Only 25 and 30% of cross‐match–compatible or HLA‐selected units, respectively, gave 1‐ to 4‐hour CCIs of more than 5.0 × 109/L compared to 12% of the transfusions from random donors. There were no significant differences in the 1‐ to 4‐hour CCIs when comparing random units with HLA‐selected or cross‐match–compatible units. There was also no significant difference when comparing the HLA‐matched and cross‐match–compatible PLT units with each other.

Conclusions

The use of cross‐match–compatible or HLA‐matched units did not provide better increments in PLT count when compared to random nonselected units. Clinical factors may overpower immunologic matching.
Structure factor model for understanding the measured backscatter coefficients from concentrated cell pellet biophantoms
Authors: Franceschini Emilie , Guillermin Régine , Tourniaire Franck , Roffino Sandrine , Lamy Edouard , Landrier Jean-François
Published: June 2014

Ultrasonic backscatter coefficient (BSC) measurements were performed on K562 cell pellet biophantoms with cell concentrations ranging from 0.006 to 0.30 in the 10–42 MHz frequency bandwidth. Three scattering models, namely, the fluid-filled sphere model (FFSM), the particle model (PM), and the structure factor model (SFM), were compared for modeling the scattering from an ensemble of concentrated cells. A parameter estimation procedure was developed in order to estimate the scatterer size and relative impedance contrast that could explain the measured BSCs from all the studied cell concentrations. This procedure was applied to the BSC data from K562 cell pellet biophantoms in the 10–42 MHz frequency bandwidth and to the BSC data from Chinese hamster ovary cell pellet biophantoms in the 26–105 MHz frequency bandwidth given in Han, Abuhabsah, Blue, Sarwate, and O'Brien [J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 130, 4139–4147 (2011)]. The data fitting quality and the scatterer size estimates show that the SFM was more suitable than the PM and the FFSM for modeling the responses from concentrated cell pellet biophantoms. © 2014 Acoustical Society of America.
Team Perfectionism and Team Performance: A Prospective Study
Authors: Hill Andrew P. , Stoeber Joachim , Brown Anna , Appleton Paul R.
Published: June 2014

Perfectionism is a personality characteristic that has been found to predict sports performance in athletes. To date, however, research has exclusively examined this relationship at an individual level (i.e., athletes’ perfectionism predicting their personal performance). The current study extends this research to team sports by examining whether, when manifested at the team level, perfectionism predicts team performance. A sample of 231 competitive rowers from 36 boats completed measures of self-oriented, team-oriented, and team-prescribed perfectionism before competing against one another in a 4-day rowing competition. Strong within-boat similarities in the levels of team members’ team-oriented perfectionism supported the existence of collective team-oriented perfectionism at the boat level. Two-level latent growth curve modeling of day-by-day boat performance showed that team-oriented perfectionism positively predicted the position of the boat in midcompetition and the linear improvement in position. The findings suggest that imposing perfectionistic standards on team members may drive teams to greater levels of performance.
Bacteria Present in Carotid Arterial Plaques Are Found as Biofilm Deposits Which May Contribute to Enhanced Risk of Plaque Rupture
Authors: Lanter Bernard B. , Sauer Karin , Davies David G.
Published: June 2014

Atherosclerosis, a disease condition resulting from the buildup of fatty plaque deposits within arterial walls, is the major underlying cause of ischemia (restriction of the blood), leading to obstruction of peripheral arteries, congestive heart failure, heart attack, and stroke in humans. Emerging research indicates that factors including inflammation and infection may play a key role in the progression of atherosclerosis. In the current work, atherosclerotic carotid artery explants from 15 patients were all shown to test positive for the presence of eubacterial 16S rRNA genes. Density gradient gel electrophoresis of 5 of these samples revealed that each contained 10 or more distinct 16S rRNA gene sequences. Direct microscopic observation of transverse sections from 5 diseased carotid arteries analyzed with a eubacterium-specific peptide nucleic acid probe revealed these to have formed biofilm deposits, with from 1 to 6 deposits per thin section of plaque analyzed. A majority, 93%, of deposits was located proximal to the internal elastic lamina and associated with fibrous tissue. In 6 of the 15 plaques analyzed, 16S rRNA genes fromPseudomonasspp. were detected.Pseudomonas aeruginosabiofilms have been shown in our lab to undergo a dispersion response when challenged with free ironin vitro. Iron is known to be released into the blood by transferrin following interaction with catecholamine hormones, such as norepinephrine. Experiments performedin vitroshowed that addition of physiologically relevant levels of norepinephrine induced dispersion ofP. aeruginosabiofilms when grown under low iron conditions in the presence but not in the absence of physiological levels of transferrin.

IMPORTANCEThe association of bacteria with atherosclerosis has been only superficially studied, with little attention focused on the potential of bacteria to form biofilms within arterial plaques. In the current work, we show that bacteria form biofilm deposits within carotid arterial plaques, and we demonstrate that one species we have identified in plaques can be stimulatedin vitroto undergo a biofilm dispersion response when challenged with physiologically relevant levels of norepinephrine in the presence of transferrin. Biofilm dispersion is characterized by the release of bacterial enzymes into the surroundings of biofilm microcolonies, allowing bacteria to escape the biofilm matrix. We believe these enzymes may have the potential to damage surrounding tissues and facilitate plaque rupture if norepinephrine is able to stimulate biofilm dispersionin vivo. This research, therefore, suggests a potential mechanistic link between hormonal state and the potential for heart attack and stroke.
Acellular Pertussis Vaccines and Pertussis Resurgence: Revise or Replace?
Authors: Ausiello Clara Maria , Cassone Antonio
Published: June 2014

The resurgence of pertussis (whooping cough) in countries with high vaccination coverage is alarming and invites reconsideration of the use of current acellular pertussis (aP) vaccines, which have largely replaced the old, reactogenic, whole-cell pertussis (wP) vaccine. Some drawbacks of these vaccines in terms of limited antigenic composition and early waning of antibody levels could be anticipated by the results of in-trial or postlicensure human investigations of B- and T-cell responses in aP versus wP vaccine recipients or unvaccinated, infected children. Recent data in experimental models, including primates, suggest that generation of vaccines capable of a potent, though regulated, stimulation of innate immunity driving effective, persistent adaptive immune responses against
Bordetella pertussis
infection should be privileged. Adjuvants that skew Th1/Th17 responses or new wP (detoxified or attenuated) vaccines should be explored. Nonetheless, the high merits of the current aP vaccines in persuading people to resume vaccination against pertussis should not be forgotten.
New Clues to Understanding HIV Nonprogressors: Low Cholesterol Blocks HIV
Trans
Infection
Authors: Prasad Vinayaka R. , Bukrinsky Michael I.
Published: June 2014

A small percentage of HIV-infected subjects (2 to 15%) are able to control disease progression for many years without antiretroviral therapy. Years of intense studies of virologic and immunologic mechanisms of disease control in such individuals yielded a number of possible host genes that could be responsible for the preservation of immune functions, from immune surveillance genes, chemokines, or their receptors to anti-HIV restriction factors. A recent
mBio
paper by Rappocciolo et al. (G. Rappocciolo, M. Jais, P. Piazza, T. A. Reinhart, S. J. Berendam, L. Garcia-Exposito, P. Gupta, and C. R. Rinaldo, mBio 5:e01031-13, 2014) describes another potential factor controlling disease progression: cholesterol levels in antigen-presenting cells. In this commentary, we provide a brief background of the role of cholesterol in HIV infection, discuss the results of the study by Rappocciolo et al., and present the implications of their findings.
A rare benign odontogenic neoplasm: peripheral odontogenic fibroma
Authors: Reddy Sasidhar V , Medikonda Suresh Kumar , Konda Amarnath , Natta Sreelakshmi
Published: June 2014

The peripheral odontogenic fibroma is a relatively rare, benign, unencapsulated and gingival mass of fibrous connective tissue, considered to be the extraosseous counterpart of the central odontogenic fibroma. Peripheral odontogenic fibroma was earlier quite commonly confused with peripheral ossifying fibroma, until WHO classification (1992), classified it under odontogenic tumours. Peripheral odontogenic fibroma is seen so infrequently that little is known about this neoplasm; the largest series of cases have been that of Farman who found five cases in the literature and added another 10 cases. Through this case report we try to clarify the features of this condition and attempt to clear its distinction with other commonly occurring conditions.
Bilateral optic neuropathy associated with cryptococcal meningitis in an immunocompetent patient
Authors: Portelinha Joana , Passarinho Maria Picoto , Almeida Ana Catarina , Costa João Marques
Published: June 2014

Cryptococcal meningitis is associated with significant morbidity and is rare among immunocompetent patients. Clinical presentation as well as the course of disease is usually indolent which may delay the diagnosis. We present the case of a 52-year-old woman admitted with headaches, vomiting and fatigue for 3 weeks. She was diagnosed with cryptococcal meningitis and treated with antifungal therapy. She was referred for ophthalmological examination presenting with decreased vision in the left eye (OS; count fingers), left relative afferent pupillary defect and bilateral sixth nerve palsy. Funduscopy revealed florid bilateral papilloedema. Cranial MRI showed indirect signs of intracranial hypertension as well as multiple parenchymal lesions and optic nerve sheath enhancement after contrast administration. A ventriculoperitoneal shunt was placed. In spite of the control of intracranial pressure there was a decrease in vision in the right eye (OD) and deterioration of visual fields. Intravenous methylprednisolone was used to reverse optic neuropathy and to prevent OD visual loss.
Coronary spasm as the cause of myocardial ischaemia in a patient with anomalous origin of the left anterior descending artery from the proximal right coronary artery
Authors: Nakazato Jun , Hirata Kazuhito , Wake Minoru
Published: June 2014

A 49-year-old woman developed angina at rest. A CT of the coronary artery revealed that the left anterior descending artery arose from the right coronary artery, and traversed between the aorta and pulmonary trunk. An exercise stress myocardial scintigraphy did not reproduce myocardial ischaemia or anginal symptoms. A coronary angiography did not show any atherosclerotic changes. Finally, an ergotamine provocation test for vasospasm revealed diffuse severe spasm in the right coronary artery and the left anterior descending artery. Surgical correction of the anomaly was deferred and the patient was managed with medications to control spasm with good clinical outcome.
Longitudinal changes in adiposity during adolescence: a population-based cohort
Authors: Araújo Joana , Barros Henrique , Severo Milton , Lopes Carla , Ramos Elisabete
Published: June 2014

Objective

We aimed to assess the trends in body mass index (BMI) and body fat percentage (BF%) from the age of 13 to 17 years and to evaluate how sociodemographic and behavioural characteristics at the age of 13  impact changes in BMI and BF%.

Setting

Porto, Portugal.

Participants

We evaluated 1451 adolescents in a community-based cohort.

Outcome measures

BMI z-scores were calculated according to CDC references. BF% was assessed by bioelectrical impedance. Variables with a significant effect in adiposity changes were identified through linear regression models. In girls, estimates were controlled for duration of follow-up, parental education, baseline BMI z-score, age at menarche and the interaction term baseline BMI z-score×age at menarche; in boys, adjustments were performed for duration of follow-up, parental education, baseline BMI z-score and the interaction term baseline BMI z-score×duration of follow-up.

Results

On average, BMI z-score decreased from the age of 13 to 17 years (mean difference −0.20, 95% CI −0.23 to −0.16 among girls and −0.15, 95% CI −0.19 to −0.11 among boys). Accordingly, 12.4% of girls and 13% of boys moved to a lower BMI category and 2.2% of girls and 5.5% of boys to a higher category. There were sex differences in the significant determinants of adiposity trends. Among girls, BMI z-score significantly decreased with baseline BMI z-score (β=−0.163, 95% CI −0.204 to −0.122) and significantly increased with age at menarche (β=0.078, 95% CI 0.050 to 0.107). Results were similar for BF%. Among boys, BMI z-score significantly increased with higher parental BMI, and BF% decreased among those who wished to look larger at the age of 13 (β=−1.367, 95% CI −2.174 to −0.560), compared with those who were satisfied with their image.

Conclusions

In adolescents, ageing resulted in a decrease in BMI z-scores and BF%. BMI and BF% at the age of 13 were the major determinants of the observed trends. Our results suggest that adolescence is a possible specific time window for intervention.
The provision of spiritual and pastoral care following stillbirth in Ireland: a mixed methods study
Authors: Nuzum Daniel , Meaney Sarah , O'Donoghue Keelin
Published: June 2014

Background

The death of a baby is recognised as one of the most difficult bereavements with life-long impact for parents. How bereaved parents are cared for influences their grief journey. Optimal holistic care is provided when the physical, emotional, spiritual and social needs of parents are attended to. This study reviewed how spiritual care is provided to bereaved parents following stillbirth in maternity units in Ireland and the impact of stillbirth on healthcare chaplains.

Methods

This was a mixed methods study using semistructured qualitative interviews with hospital chaplains in Irish maternity units. Quantitative data about the provision of services to bereaved parents were collated from the interviews. Qualitative data were analysed thematically to identify key themes.

Results

20 chaplains from 17 units participated in the study (85% of Irish maternity units). 12 chaplains (60%) are formally accredited chaplains; only one has received specialist training in perinatal bereavement care. 11 chaplains (55%) provide follow-up bereavement care. Seven chaplains (35%) did not feel part of the multidisciplinary team. The main themes that emerged were the impact of stillbirth, suffering and the challenge to faith creating inner conflict and doubt.

Conclusions

The provision of spiritual care following stillbirth in Ireland is diverse. Spiritual care in this specialised area by chaplains who are not professionally trained and accredited potentially impacts quality and depth of care. Chaplains experience considerable impact and challenge to personal faith and belief as they provide care. Recommendations are made for ongoing education and greater support for chaplains.
Engagement with the TeenDrivingPlan and diversity of teens’ supervised practice driving: lessons for internet-based learner driver interventions
Authors: Winston Flaura K , Mirman Jessica H , Curry Allison E , Pfeiffer Melissa R , Elliott Michael R , Durbin Dennis R
Published: June 2014

Objective

Inexperienced, less-skilled driving characterises many newly licensed drivers and contributes to high crash rates. A randomised trial of TeenDrivingPlan (TDP), a new learner driver phase internet-based intervention, demonstrated effectiveness in improving safety relevant, on-road driving behaviour, primarily through greater driving practice diversity. To inform future learner driver interventions, this analysis examined TDP use and its association with practice diversity.

Design

Posthoc analysis of data from teen/parent dyads (n=107), enrolled early in learner phase and assigned to treatment arm in randomised trial.

Methods

Inserted software beacons captured TDP use data. Electronic surveys completed by parents and teens assessed diversity of practice driving and TDP usability ratings at 24 weeks (end of study period).

Results

Most families (84%) used TDP early in the learner period; however, the number of TDP sessions in the first week was three times higher among dyads who achieved greater practice diversity than those with less. By week five many families still engaged with TDP, but differences in TDP use could not be detected between families with high versus low practice diversity. Usability was not a major issue for this sample based on largely positive user ratings.

Conclusions

An engaging internet-based intervention, such as TDP, can support families in achieving high practice diversity. Future learner driver interventions should provide important information early in the learner period when engagement is greatest, encourage continued learning as part of logging practice drives, and incorporate monitoring software for further personalisation to meet family needs.

Trial registration

NCT01498575.
Trends in fall-related injuries among older adults treated in emergency departments in the USA
Authors: Orces Carlos H , Alamgir Hasanat
Published: June 2014

To examine national trends in fall-related injuries among older adults treated in emergency departments (ED) and project these injuries until the year 2030.

The Web-based Injury Statistics Query and Reporting System was used to generate data on fall-related injuries treated in ED. Joinpoint regression analysis was used to examine the average annual change in injury rates over time.

Fall-related injury and hospitalisation rates increased on average by 2% (95% CI 1.5% to 2.7%) and by 4% (95% CI 2.9% to 5.0%) per year, respectively. Assuming the increase in fall-related injury rates remains unchanged, the number of fall-related injuries may increase to 5.7 million by the year 2030.

Fall-related injuries among older adults treated in ED increased in the USA during the study period. Moreover, a marked increase in the number of these injuries may occur over the next decades.
Emerging infectious diseases: opportunities at the human‐animal‐environment interface
Authors: Dixon Matthew A. , Dar Osman A. , Heymann David L.
Published: June 2014

Infectious diseases pose a serious threat to the wellbeing of both human and animal populations. Here, in the fifth in Veterinary Record 's series of articles promoting One Health, Mathew Dixon, Osman Dar and David Heymann examine lessons learned from previous disease outbreaks; they also consider current threats and how a better understanding of underlying risk factors could stimulate a paradigm shift from treatment to prevention of zoonotic infectious diseases
Impact of 5-h phase advance on sleep architecture and physical performance in athletes
Authors: Petit Elisabeth , Mougin Fabienne , Bourdin Hubert , Tio Grégory , Haffen Emmanuel
Published: June 2014

Travel across time zones causes jet lag and is accompanied by deleterious effects on sleep and performance in athletes. These poor performances have been evaluated in field studies but not in laboratory conditions. The purpose of this study was to evaluate, in athletes, the impact of 5-h phase advance on the architecture of sleep and physical performances (Wingate test). In a sleep laboratory, 16 male athletes (age: 22.2 ± 1.7 years, height: 178.3 ± 5.6 cm, body mass: 73.6 ± 7.9 kg) spent 1 night in baseline condition and 2 nights, 1 week apart, in phase shift condition recorded by electroencephalography to calculate sleep architecture variables. For these last 2 nights, the clock was advanced by 5 h. Core body temperature rhythm was assessed continuously. The first night with phase advance decreased total sleep time, sleep efficiency, sleep onset latency, stage 2 of nonrapid eye movement (N2), and rapid eye movement (REM) sleep compared with baseline condition, whereas the second night decreased N2 and increased slow-wave sleep and REM, thus improving the quality of sleep. After phase advance, mean power improved, which resulted in higher lactatemia. Acrophase and bathyphase of temperature occurred earlier and amplitude decreased in phase advance but the period was not modified. These results suggest that a simulated phase shift contributed to the changes in sleep architecture, but did not significantly impair physical performances in relation with early phase adjustment of temperature to the new local time.
Beech bark disease: spatial patterns of thicket formation and disease spread in an aftermath forest in the northeastern United States
Authors: Giencke Lisa M. , Dovčiak Martin , Mountrakis Giorgos , Cale Jonathan A. , Mitchell Myron J.
Published: June 2014

Beech bark disease (BBD) has affected the composition, structure, and function of forests containing a significant proportion of American beech (Fagus grandifolia Ehrh.) across North America. BBD spread has been investigated at landscape and regional scales, but few studies have examined spatial patterns of disease severity and spread within stands where forest management mitigation measures can be implemented. We analyzed changes in forest composition between 1985 and 2009 and fine-scale spatial patterns of BBD between 2000 and 2009 in a ∼2 ha northern hardwood stand in the Adirondack Mountains of New York using location and disease severity of beech trees. A bivariate point pattern analysis was implemented to examine spatial patterns of beech thicket formation and BBD spread to beech saplings. Abundance of beech saplings increased near highly diseased canopy beech trees and around dead beech and sugar maple (Acer saccharum Marsh.). Disease severity of beech saplings was highest in close proximity to highly cankered canopy beech trees. Thus, BBD leads to the formation of beech thickets, and thickets are often located where saplings are most likely to become infected, increasing the likelihood that secondary killing fronts will develop and lead to heavy BBD-induced mortality in aftermath northern hardwood forests of North America.