bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
On the diverse outcome of communication partner training of significant others of people with aphasia: an experimental study of six cases
Authors: Eriksson Karin , Hartelius Lena , Saldert Charlotta 
Published: March 2016

AbstractBackgroundCommunication partner training (CPT) has been shown to improve the communicative environment of people with aphasia. Interaction‐focused training is one type of training that provides an individualized intervention to participants. Although shown to be effective, outcomes have mostly been evaluated in non‐experimental case studies.AimsThe aim of the controlled experimental intervention study was to evaluate an individualized approach in a CPT programme directed to significant others of people with aphasia. Specifically the effects on conversation partners’ ability to support the person with aphasia in conversation and on the individuals with aphasias’ perception of their functional communication were explored.Methods & ProceduresSix dyads consisting of a person with aphasia and a significant other were included in a replicated single‐subject design with multiple baselines across individuals. The intervention followed the interaction‐focused communication training programme included in Supporting Partners of People with Aphasia in Relationships and Conversation (SPARRC). The main elements of the training consisted of supervised viewing of the couples’ own video‐recorded natural interaction and the formulation of individual goals for the adaptation of particular communicative strategies. Outcome was measured via blinded ratings of filmed conversational interaction obtained once a week throughout the different phases of baseline, intervention and follow‐up. A rating scale to assess overall quality of conversation was used, taking into account both transfer of information and social aspects of conversation. Measures of perceived functional communication in the persons with aphasia were also collected from the individuals with aphasia and their conversation partners.Outcomes & ResultsThe results were mixed, with two of the six participants showing small improvements in ability to support their partner with aphasia in conversation. Half the participants with aphasia and half the significant others reported improvements on perceived functional communication in the person with aphasia after intervention, but no changes were statistically significant.Conclusions & ImplicationsThis study adds to the growing body of research concerning CPT by pinpointing the importance of careful consideration regarding set‐up of training, suitability of participants and evaluation of outcome.
The moral economy of austerity: analysing UK welfare reform
Authors: Morris Lydia 
Published: March 2016

AbstractThis paper notes the contemporary emergence of ‘morality’ in both sociological argument and political rhetoric, and analyses its significance in relation to ongoing UK welfare reforms. It revisits the idea of ‘moral economy’ and identifies two strands in its contemporary application; that all economies depend on an internal moral schema, and that some external moral evaluation is desirable. UK welfare reform is analysed as an example of the former, with reference to three distinct orientations advanced in the work of Freeden (), Laclau (), and Lockwood (). In this light, the paper then considers challenges to the reform agenda, drawn from third sector and other public sources. It outlines the forms of argument present in these challenges, based respectively on rationality, legality, and morality, which together provide a basis for evaluation of the welfare reforms and for an alternative ‘moral economy’.
Transaction Cost Thresholds in International Rice Markets
Authors: Jamora Nelissa , von Cramon‐Taubadel Stephan 
Published: March 2016

AbstractRecent episodes of high and volatile prices for grains such as rice have raised concerns about their implications for hunger and poverty. We model price relationships between international rice prices and 221 domestic prices in 47 developing countries that import rice. We use a threshold vector error correction model that accounts for transaction costs of trade in spatial price transmission, and an improved regularised Bayesian threshold estimator for threshold models. Our results show that threshold values are higher after 2008 than before, which suggests that transaction costs in international rice trade have increased in recent years. Threshold values are highest for Latin American countries followed by African and Asian countries, and higher for retail than for wholesale prices. Since 2008, price transmission is slower in countries that responded to high and volatile prices with domestic market‐based interventions such as price controls and faster in countries that responded by lowering tariffs and by implementing production support measures.
Post‐Transplant Lymphoproliferative Disorder in Kidney Transplant Recipients: A Single‐Center Experience in Japan
Authors: Ishihara Hiroki , Shimizu Tomokazu , Unagami Kohei , Hirai Toshihito , Toki Daisuke , Omoto Kazuya , Okumi Masayoshi , Imai Yoichi , Ishida Hideki , Tanabe Kazunari 
Published: March 2016

AbstractPost‐transplant lymphoproliferative disorder is a serious complication of solid organ transplantation; however, few large studies have been performed in Asian institutions. We review our single‐center experience with post‐transplant lymphoproliferative disorder patients in Japan. We retrospectively evaluated patients with post‐transplant lymphoproliferative disorder following kidney transplantation between January 1985 and December 2013. The patients were divided into early‐onset post‐transplant lymphoproliferative disorder (<1 year) and late‐onset post‐transplant lymphoproliferative disorder (≥1 year) groups. Thirteen patients had the disorder, an incidence rate of 0.75% (13/1730). Early‐onset post‐transplant lymphoproliferative disorder (N = 3) had not occurred for the last two decades. In the late‐onset group (N = 10), the median time of onset was 108.7 months. The Kaplan–Meier 10‐year overall survival rates were 76.9% and 95.4% in patients with and without the disorder, respectively (P = 0.0001). Post‐transplant lymphoproliferative disorder significantly affected transplant recipients' mortality. Late‐onset occurred even > 10 years after transplantation; therefore, long‐term monitoring of patients is needed.
Supporting Diverse Data Providers in the Open Water Data Initiative: Communicating Water Data Quality and Fitness of Use
Authors: Larsen Sara , Hamilton Stuart , Lucido Jessica , Garner Bradley , Young Dwane 
Published: March 2016

AbstractShared, trusted, timely data are essential elements for the cooperation needed to optimize economic, ecologic, and public safety concerns related to water. The Open Water Data Initiative (OWDI) will provide a fully scalable platform that can support a wide variety of data from many diverse providers. Many of these will be larger, well‐established, and trusted agencies with a history of providing well‐documented, standardized, and archive‐ready products. However, some potential partners may be smaller, distributed, and relatively unknown or untested as data providers. The data these partners will provide are valuable and can be used to fill in many data gaps, but can also be variable in quality or supplied in nonstandardized formats. They may also reflect the smaller partners' variable budgets and missions, be intermittent, or of unknown provenance. A challenge for the OWDI will be to convey the quality and the contextual “fitness” of data from providers other than the most trusted brands. This article reviews past and current methods for documenting data quality. Three case studies are provided that describe processes and pathways for effective data‐sharing and publication initiatives. They also illustrate how partners may work together to find a metadata reporting threshold that encourages participation while maintaining high data integrity. And lastly, potential governance is proposed that may assist smaller partners with short‐ and long‐term participation in the OWDI.
Early radiation‐induced liver toxicities are associated with poor survival in patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma
Authors: Lai Yo‐Liang , Kuo Yu‐Cheng , Lai Hsueh‐Chou , Peng Cheng‐Yuan , Wang Yao‐Ching , Liang Ji‐An , Chen Shang‐Wen 
Published: March 2016

AbstractAimLittle is known about the impact of radiotherapy associated early hepatic toxicities. This study is to investigate the risk factors and outcome of early radiation‐induced liver disease (early‐RILD) in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma.MethodsOne hundred patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma receiving hepatic radiotherapy were included in this retrospective analysis. All had no evidence of intrahepatic tumor progression within 3 months after initiating radiotherapy. The toxicities were graded according to the Common Terminology Criteria for adverse events version 4.0. Early‐RILD was defined as any detectable events of RILD occurring during or within 2 weeks after the ending of radiotherapy. Patient‐ and radiotherapy‐related data, and several staging/scoring parameters were retrieved for analysis. Logistic regression analysis was used to find risk factors for early‐RILD. Cox regression model was performed to explore prognosticators for survival.ResultsChild‐Turcotte‐Pugh (CTP) score >5 was the predictor for early‐RILD (odds ratio 5.38, P = 0.004). The incidence of early‐RILD in patients with CTP scores 6/7 and 5 was 34% and 13.2%, respectively. Early‐RILD and a Cancer of the Liver Italian Program (CLIP) score > 2 were the two prognostic factors associated with inferior overall survival (hazard ratio 2.79, P = 0.04; hazard ratio = 3.79, P = 0.04, respectively). The median overall survival for patients with early‐RILD was 3.5 months compared with 12.7 months in those without this event.ConclusionThe occurrence of early‐RILD is associated with high mortality. A CTP score >5 is the most informative factor predicting early‐RILD.
Identification and characterization of DC‐SIGN‐binding glycoproteins in allergenic foods
Authors: Kamalakannan M. , Chang L. M. , Grishina G. , Sampson H. A. , Masilamani M. 
Published: March 2016

AbstractBackgroundDC‐SIGN (dendritic cell‐specific intercellular adhesion molecule‐3‐grabbing nonintegrin) is a C‐type lectin receptor expressed on macrophages and dendritic cells. DC‐SIGN has high affinity for fucosylated glycans in several plant glycoproteins and pathogens. DC‐SIGN is thought to be crucial for the development of allergic sensitization. However, the precise role of DC‐SIGN in food allergy pathogenesis is not yet understood.ObjectiveWe sought to characterize DC‐SIGN‐binding glycoproteins in a panel of allergenic and non‐allergenic foods.MethodsFluorescent‐labeled peanut and soy extracts were used to test protein binding to human monocyte‐derived dendritic cells (DCs) by flow cytometry. DC‐SIGN‐blocking assays were performed by incubating DCs with food extracts followed by staining with anti‐DC‐SIGN antibody. Using a DC‐SIGN‐Fc chimera, food extracts were tested for binding by ELISA and autoradiography. IgE immunoblotting was performed with pooled sera from food‐allergic subjects. DC activation and maturation were assessed by flow cytometry.Results and ConclusionsWe demonstrate that peanut agglutinin, a minor peanut allergen, is a novel ligand for DC‐SIGN. Peanut agglutinin activates DCs to induce the expression of costimulatory molecules in vitro. We present a comprehensive report on the characterization of DC‐SIGN‐binding proteins in common allergenic foods such as peanut, soy, tree nuts, egg, and milk. Foods that rarely induce allergy, such as pine nuts, chickpea, and corn, showed no binding to DC‐SIGN. Several DC‐SIGN‐binding proteins show reactivity in serum IgE immunoblots. We have also identified novel non‐IgE‐binding proteins that interact with DC‐SIGN; these proteins may be important for regulating immune responses to these foods.
Challenges of kidney paired donation transplants involving multiple donor and recipient surgeons across Australia
Authors: Allen Richard D. M. , Pleass Henry C. C. , Woodroffe Claudia , Clayton Philip A. , Ferrari Paolo 
Published: March 2016

BackgroundThe Australian kidney paired donation program adopted the principles of within‐chain simultaneous live donor surgery and of organ transport, with the requirement of keeping cold ischemia time (CIT) to <12 h. Whether these principles could be adhered to and what impact on transplant outcome they might have is unknown.MethodsWe evaluated the logistic challenges and outcomes of the first 100 kidney transplants performed in the Australian kidney paired donation program.ResultsWithin 4 years, 17 donor surgeons at 12 centres were involved in 37 chain exchange surgeries. Sixteen kidneys were transplanted at the same hospital and 84 required transport to the recipient hospital. Mean (±SD) within chain anaesthetic induction time variability was 8 ± 18 min and mean individual surgeon operating time was 115 ± 44 min. In two cases, delays during donor surgery resulted in increased CIT by 1 h because of deferred transport. CIT was 2.6 ± 0.6 h for non‐shipped and 6.8 ± 2.8 h for shipped kidneys, four kidneys had CIT of 12–14 h. Immediate allograft function was observed in 85% of recipients, with no difference between shipped and non‐shipped kidneys. There were only two cases of delayed graft function requiring temporary dialysis; both had CIT <7 h. There was no difference in serum creatinine at 1 month between non‐shipped and shipped kidneys (105 ± 26 versus 112 ± 50 µmol/L) and allograft survival at 1 year was 97%.ConclusionThe study provided a favourable audit of kidney transplant activity, despite challenges of simultaneous surgery, organ transport coordination and prolonged CIT. The decision to ship donor kidneys rather than the donor was demonstrated to be feasible and safe.
Post‐transplantation cyclophosphamide versus conventional graft‐versus‐host disease prophylaxis in mismatched unrelated donor haematopoietic cell transplantation
Authors: Mehta Rohtesh S. , Saliba Rima M. , Chen Julianne , Rondon Gabriela , Hammerstrom Aimee E. , Alousi Amin , Qazilbash Muzaffar , Bashir Qaiser , Ahmed Sairah , Popat Uday , Hosing Chitra , Khouri Issa , Shpall Elizabeth J. , Champlin Richard E. , Ciurea Stefan O. 
Published: March 2016

SummaryPost‐transplantation cyclophosphamide (PTCy) is an effective strategy to prevent graft‐versus‐host disease (GVHD) after haploidentical haematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT). We determined the efficacy of PTCy‐based GVHD prophylaxis in human leucocyte antigen (HLA)‐mismatched unrelated donor (MMUD) HCT. We analysed 113 adult patients with high‐risk haematological malignancies who underwent one‐antigen MMUD transplantation between 2009 and 2013. Of these, 41 patients received PTCy, tacrolimus and mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) for GVHD prophylaxis; 72 patients received conventional prophylaxis with anti‐thymocyte globulin, tacrolimus and methotrexate. Graft source was primarily bone marrow (83% PTCy vs. 63% conventional group). Incidence of grade II–IV (37% vs. 36%, P = 0·8) and grade III–IV (17% vs. 12%, P = 0·5) acute GVHD was similar at day 100. However, the incidence of grade II‐IV acute GVHD by day 30 was significantly lower in the PTCy group (0% vs. 15%, P = 0·01). Median time to neutrophil (18 days vs. 12 days, P < 0·001) and platelet (25·5 days vs. 18 days, P = 0·05) engraftment was prolonged in PTCy group. Rates of graft failure, chronic GVHD, 2‐year non‐relapse mortality, relapse, progression‐free survival or overall survival were similar. Our results demonstrate that PTCy, tacrolimus and MMF for GVHD prophylaxis is safe and produced similar results as conventional prophylaxis in patients with one antigen HLA‐MMUD HCT.
PnPP‐19, a spider toxin peptide, induces peripheral antinociception through opioid and cannabinoid receptors and inhibition of neutral endopeptidase
Authors: Freitas A C N , Pacheco D F , Machado M F M , Carmona A K , Duarte I D G , de Lima M E 
Published: March 2016

Background and PurposeThe synthetic peptide PnPP‐19 has been studied as a new drug candidate to treat erectile dysfunction. However, PnTx2–6, the spider toxin from which the peptide was designed, induces hyperalgesia. Therefore, we intended to investigate the role of PnPP‐19 in the nociceptive pathway.Experimental ApproachNociceptive thresholds were measured by paw pressure test. PnPP‐19 was administered intraplantarly alone or with selective cannabinoid or opioid receptor antagonists. The hydrolysis of PnPP‐19 by neutral endopeptidase (NEP) (EC 3.4.24.11), an enzyme that cleaves enkephalin, was monitored by HPLC and the cleavage sites were deduced by LC–MS. Inhibition by PnPP‐19 and Leu‐enkephalin of NEP enzyme activity was determined spectrofluorimetrically.Key ResultsPnPP‐19 (5, 10 and 20 μg per paw) induced peripheral antinociception in rats. Specific antagonists of μ opioid receptors (clocinnamox), δ opioid receptors (naltrindole) and CB1 receptors (AM251) partly inhibited the antinociceptive effect of PnPP‐19. Inhibition of fatty acid amide hydrolase by MAFP or of anandamide uptake by VDM11 enhanced PnPP‐19‐induced antinociception. NEP cleaved PnPP‐19 only after a long incubation, and Ki values of 35.6 ± 1.4 and 14.6 ± 0.44 μmol·L−1 were determined for PnPP‐19 and Leu‐enkephalin respectively as inhibitors of NEP activity.Conclusions and ImplicationsAntinociception induced by PnPP‐19 appears to involve the inhibition of NEP and activation of CB1, μ and δ opioid receptors. Our data provide a greater understanding of the antinociceptive effects of PnPP‐19. This peptide could be useful as a new antinociceptive drug candidate.
Brain responses reveal that infants' face discrimination is guided by statistical learning from distributional information
Authors: Altvater‐Mackensen Nicole , Jessen Sarah , Grossmann Tobias 
Published: March 2016

AbstractInfants' perception of faces becomes attuned to the environment during the first year of life. However, the mechanisms that underpin perceptual narrowing for faces are only poorly understood. Considering the developmental similarities seen in perceptual narrowing for faces and speech and the role that statistical learning has been shown to play for speech, the current study examined whether and how learning from distributional information impacts face identity discrimination. We familiarized 6.5‐month‐old infants with exemplars of female faces taken from a morphed continuum going from one identity to another. Using event‐related brain potentials (ERPs), we show that only infants who were familiarized with a bimodal frequency distribution, but not infants familiarized with a unimodal frequency distribution, discriminated between identities. These results are the first to demonstrate the influence of probabilistic information on infants' face identity discrimination, suggesting that statistical learning contributes to perceptual attunement for both faces and language.
6‐hydroxydopamine‐induced Parkinson's disease‐like degeneration generates acute microgliosis and astrogliosis in the nigrostriatal system but no bioluminescence imaging‐detectable alteration in adult neurogenesis
Authors: Fricke Inga B. , Viel Thomas , Worlitzer Maik M. , Collmann Franziska M. , Vrachimis Alexis , Faust Andreas , Wachsmuth Lydia , Faber Cornelius , Dollé Frédéric , Kuhlmann Michael T. , Schäfers Klaus , Hermann Sven , Schwamborn Jens C. , Jacobs Andreas H. 
Published: March 2016

AbstractParkinson's disease is a slowly progressing neurodegenerative disorder caused by loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra (SN), leading to severe impairment in motor and non‐motor functions. Endogenous subventricular zone (SVZ) neural stem cells constantly give birth to new cells that might serve as a possible source for regeneration in the adult brain. However, neurodegeneration is accompanied by neuroinflammation and dopamine depletion, potentially compromising regeneration. We therefore employed in vivo imaging methods to study striatal deafferentation (N‐ω‐fluoropropyl‐2β‐carbomethoxy‐3β‐(4‐[123I]iodophenyl)nortropane single photon emission computed tomography, DaTscan™) and neuroinflammation in the SN and striatum (N,N‐diethyl‐2‐(2‐(4‐(2‐[18F]fluoroethoxy)phenyl)‐5,7‐dimethylpyrazolo[1,5‐a]pyrimidin‐3‐yl)acetamide positron emission tomography, [18F]DPA‐714 PET) in the intranigral 6‐hydroxydopamine Parkinson's disease mouse model. Additionally, we transduced cells in the SVZ with a lentivirus encoding firefly luciferase and followed migration of progenitor cells in the SVZ–olfactory bulb axis via bioluminescence imaging under disease and control conditions. We found that activation of microglia in the SN is an acute process accompanying the degeneration of dopaminergic cell bodies in the SN. Dopaminergic deafferentation of the striatum does not influence the generation of doublecortin‐positive neuroblasts in the SVZ, but generates chronic astrogliosis in the nigrostriatal system.
Genetic effects on sleep/wake variation of seizures
Authors: Winawer Melodie R. , Shih Jerry , Beck Erin S. , Hunter Jessica E. , Epstein Michael P. ,   the EPGP Investigators
Published: March 2016

SummaryObjectiveThere is a complex bidirectional relationship between sleep and epilepsy. Sleep/wake timing of seizures has been investigated for several individual seizure types and syndromes, but few large‐scale studies of the timing of seizures exist in people with varied epilepsy types. In addition, the genetic contributions to seizure timing have not been well studied.MethodsSleep/wake timing of seizures was determined for 1,395 subjects in 546 families enrolled in the Epilepsy Phenome/Genome Project (EPGP). We examined seizure timing among subjects with different epilepsy types, seizure types, epilepsy syndromes, and localization. We also examined the familial aggregation of sleep/wake occurrence of seizures.ResultsSeizures in nonacquired focal epilepsy (NAFE) were more likely to occur during sleep than seizures in generalized epilepsy (GE), for both convulsive (odds ratio [OR] 5.2, 95% confidence interval [CI] 3.59–7.52) and nonconvulsive seizures (OR 4.2, 95% CI 2.48–7.21). Seizures occurring within 1 h of awakening were more likely to occur in patients with GE than with NAFE for both convulsive (OR 2.3, 95% CI 1.54–3.39) and nonconvulsive (OR 1.7, 95% CI 1.04–2.66) seizures. Frontal onset seizures were more likely than temporal onset seizures to occur during sleep. Sleep/wake timing of seizures in first‐degree relatives predicted timing of seizures in the proband.SignificanceWe found that sleep/wake timing of seizures is associated with both epilepsy syndrome and seizure type. In addition, we provide the first evidence for a genetic contribution to sleep/wake timing of seizures in a large group of individuals with common epilepsy syndromes.