bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Urinary C–peptide analysis in an intervention study: experience from the DEFEND–2 otelixizumab trial
Authors: Ambery P. , Donaldson J. , Parkin J. , Austin D. J. 
Published: February 2016

AbstractAimsTo demonstrate that analysis of urinary C–peptide across multiple study sites in the context of an intervention trial (DEFEND–2) is a viable alternative to mixed meal testing and delivers results that correlate to mixed meal testing estimation of endogenous insulin production.MethodsSecond morning void urine was collected for analysis and was available from 161 subjects at baseline (55 placebo, 106 otelixizumab), and 146 subjects (47 placebo, 99 otelixizumab) at month 12. Urinary C–peptide concentration was corrected for urinary creatinine [urinary C–peptide/creatinine ratio (UCPCR)] and serum C–peptide from the mixed meal tolerance test was calculated using area under the plasma concentration–time curve (AUC) normalized over 120 min. The correlation between mixed meal stimulated C–peptide AUC (mmol/l/min) and UCPCR (nmol/mmol), as well as the correlation between insulin use (IU/kg), and HbA1c (%) with UCPCR, was determined.ResultsUCPCR and mixed meal testing C–peptide AUC were correlated, with a correlation coefficient of 0.4172. UCPCR was not correlated with exogenous insulin use (r = –0.089) or with HbA1c (r = –0.032).ConclusionsUrinary C–peptide estimation should be considered as a measure of endogenous insulin production in future Type 1 diabetes mellitus outcome trials. A change in the timing for urine collection (to 120 min post standard meal) may provide a tighter correlation to C–peptide measured via a traditional mixed meal test.
Network burst dynamics under heterogeneous cholinergic modulation of neural firing properties and heterogeneous synaptic connectivity
Authors: Knudstrup Scott , Zochowski Michal , Booth Victoria 
Published: February 2016

AbstractThe characteristics of neural network activity depend on intrinsic neural properties and synaptic connectivity in the network. In brain networks, both of these properties are critically affected by the type and levels of neuromodulators present. The expression of many of the most powerful neuromodulators, including acetylcholine (ACh), varies tonically and phasically with behavioural state, leading to dynamic, heterogeneous changes in intrinsic neural properties and synaptic connectivity properties. Namely, ACh significantly alters neural firing properties as measured by the phase response curve in a manner that has been shown to alter the propensity for network synchronization. The aim of this simulation study was to build an understanding of how heterogeneity in cholinergic modulation of neural firing properties and heterogeneity in synaptic connectivity affect the initiation and maintenance of synchronous network bursting in excitatory networks. We show that cells that display different levels of ACh modulation have differential roles in generating network activity: weakly modulated cells are necessary for burst initiation and provide synchronizing drive to the rest of the network, whereas strongly modulated cells provide the overall activity level necessary to sustain burst firing. By applying several quantitative measures of network activity, we further show that the existence of network bursting and its characteristics, such as burst duration and intraburst synchrony, are dependent on the fraction of cell types providing the synaptic connections in the network. These results suggest mechanisms underlying ACh modulation of brain oscillations and the modulation of seizure activity during sleep states.
Patients' expectations and experiences of epilepsy surgery—A population‐based long‐term qualitative study
Authors: Ozanne Anneli , Graneheim Ulla H. , Ekstedt Gerd , Malmgren Kristina 
Published: February 2016

SummaryObjectiveThe aim of this prospective and population‐based longitudinal study was to explore patients' expectations before surgery and their experiences both short and long term after epilepsy surgery.MethodsA national sample of adult patients answered open‐ended questions preoperatively, 2 years after surgery and at a cross‐sectional long‐term follow‐up (mean 13 years, standard deviation [SD] 1.85). The answers were analyzed by qualitative content analysis.ResultsEighty patients participated in the study. Before surgery, patients experienced a belief in a “normal” life; they hoped for reduction of seizures and medication, a richer social life, and more self‐confidence. However, they also experienced anxiety of the unknown. They were afraid of the operation, of continued seizures, and of complications. At both postoperative follow‐ups patients experienced increased independence. They had symptom reduction, felt relief from worries and fears, and felt that they had a new life. However, some patients experienced that the operation had changed their life to the worse due to both psychological and neurologic adverse effects, regardless of whether they had obtained seizure freedom or improvement.SignificancePositive experiences of epilepsy surgery dominated, both in the short and long term. However, attention must be paid to negative expectations before and negative experiences after surgery in order to provide individual support and information. This should increase the possibility for patients to have realistic hopes before surgery and to find coping strategies in the new life situation after surgery.
Interacting effects of atmospheric CO2 enrichment and solar radiation on growth of the aquatic fern Azolla filiculoides
Authors: van Kempen Monique M. L. , Smolders Alfons J. P. , Bögemann Gerard M. , Lamers Leon P. M. , Roelofs Jan G. M. 
Published: February 2016

Summary

Azolla spp. rank among the fastest growing plants in the world. Increased atmospheric CO2 concentrations can be expected to have a strong impact on the biomass production of this fast growing floating fern, especially at northern latitudes.

We investigated the growth of the northernmost occurring species, A. filiculoides, under past (Eocene), present and predicted future CO2 levels. To study the interacting effects of temperature and solar radiation, we performed the atmospheric CO2 fertilisation experiments in spring, summer and autumn.

Azolla filiculoides grown at 1600 ppm CO2 produced twice as much biomass as when grown at 400 ppm CO2 in spring and autumn. However, high summer temperature and solar radiation seemed to significantly lower its maximum growth potential, presumably as a result of a metabolic shift as indicated by water loss.

Nutrient availability became more important at higher atmospheric CO2 concentration. In addition, high temperature and solar radiation affected the nitrogen concentrations in A. filiculoides, most likely by inducing photorespiration and photoinhibition.

Our results indicate that temperate Azolla may become more productive in temperate regions as a result of rising atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations. In addition, our results can help to explain the reported massive Azolla event in the Eocene.
Winter precipitation and snow accumulation drive the methane sink or source strength of Arctic tussock tundra
Authors: Blanc‐Betes Elena , Welker Jeffrey M. , Sturchio Neil C. , Chanton Jeffrey P. , Gonzalez‐Meler Miquel A. 
Published: February 2016

AbstractArctic winter precipitation is projected to increase with global warming, but some areas will experience decreases in snow accumulation. Although Arctic CH4 emissions may represent a significant climate forcing feedback, long‐term impacts of changes in snow accumulation on CH4 fluxes remain uncertain. We measured ecosystem CH4 fluxes and soil CH4 and CO2 concentrations and 13C composition to investigate the metabolic pathways and transport mechanisms driving moist acidic tundra CH4 flux over the growing season (Jun–Aug) after 18 years of experimental snow depth increases and decreases. Deeper snow increased soil wetness and warming, reducing soil %O2 levels and increasing thaw depth. Soil moisture, through changes in soil %O2 saturation, determined predominance of methanotrophy or methanogenesis, with soil temperature regulating the ecosystem CH4 sink or source strength. Reduced snow (RS) increased the fraction of oxidized CH4 (Fox) by 75–120% compared to Ambient, switching the system from a small source to a net CH4 sink (21 ± 2 and −31 ± 1 mg CH4 m−2 season−1 at Ambient and RS). Deeper snow reduced Fox by 35–40% and 90–100% in medium‐ (MS) and high‐ (HS) snow additions relative to Ambient, contributing to increasing the CH4 source strength of moist acidic tundra (464 ± 15 and 3561 ± 97 mg CH4 m−2 season−1 at MS and HS). Decreases in Fox with deeper snow were partly due to increases in plant‐mediated CH4 transport associated with the expansion of tall graminoids. Deeper snow enhanced CH4 production within newly thawed soils, responding mainly to soil warming rather than to increases in acetate fermentation expected from thaw‐induced increases in SOC availability. Our results suggest that increased winter precipitation will increase the CH4 source strength of Arctic tundra, but the resulting positive feedback on climate change will depend on the balance between areas with more or less snow accumulation than they are currently facing.
Alteplase vs. urokinase for occluded hemodialysis catheter: A randomized trial
Authors: Pollo Viviane , Dionízio Danielle , Bucuvic Edwa Maria , Castro João Henrique , Ponce Daniela 
Published: February 2016

AbstractIntroduction Thrombosis of tunneled central venous catheters (CVC) in hemodialysis (HD) patients is common and it can lead to the elimination of vascular sites. To compare the efficacy of alteplase vs. urokinase in reestablishing adequate blood flow through completely occluded vascular catheters. Methods In this randomized study, patients with completely occluded tunneled HD catheters received 40 minutes intracatheter dwell with alteplase (1 mg/mL) or urokinase (5000 IU/mL). Primary endpoint was the proportion of patients with occluded catheters achieving post‐thrombolytic blood flow of ≥250 mL/min. Safety endpoints included the incidence of hemorrhagic and infectious complications. Findings Eligible adult patients (n = 100) were treated with alteplase (n = 44) or urokinase (n = 56). The two groups were similar in gender (male: 51.8% vs. 56.8%, P = 0.35), age (60 ± 12 vs. 59 ± 13 years, P = 0.71), time on dialysis (678 ± 203 vs. 548 ± 189 days, P = 0.77), diabetes and cardiovascular disease (55.6% vs. 70.4%, P = 0.08 and 17.8% vs. 22.7%, P = 0.38, respectively), jugular vein as main vascular access (54.8% vs. 62.5%, P = 0.57), and time of CVC (278 ± 63 vs. 218 ± 59 days, P = 0.67). Primary success with alteplase and urokinase occurred in 42/44 (95%) vs. 46/56 (82%), P = 0.06. Success was not achieved after the second dose of alteplase and urokinase in 1 and 7 cases, respectively (2% vs. 12%, P = 0.075). Serious adverse effects were not observed in both groups. There was no difference between the two groups in infectious complications (P = 0.94). Discussion Alteplase and urokinase are effective thrombolytic agents for restoring HD catheter patency. Our study has revealed a likely slight superiority of alteplase over urokinase for unblocking central lines, but which has enrolled too few patients to be able to detect a difference of this size.
Three Tales of Obsession: Crosscutting Boundaries in Middle Eastern Film
Authors: Gordon Joel 
Published: February 2016

AbstractBy examining three classic neo‐realist films directed by three cineastes from three different countries between 1958 and 1970, I attempt to engage a dialogue across boundaries of Middle Eastern film. Each film has been discussed in contexts of national cinema traditions with references to Western and Third World film, but rarely if ever in the context of regional, multi‐lingual cinemas with which they share most in terms of theme and content. Representative of a national moment, the intersections of modernity and social dislocation, and centered on who loses his sanity, they constitute a not‐so‐accidental trilogy that blurs boundaries between realism and melodrama.
Vaccination, Fear and Historical Relevance
Authors: Boddice Rob 
Published: February 2016

AbstractFears about vaccination are tenacious, despite an overwhelming weight of evidence in favour of immunisation and despite the potentially dangerous consequences of falling rates of immunity against once common diseases. Drawing on recent developments in the history of emotions and an extensive historiography on the history of vaccination, this article argues that fear of vaccination has become culturally idiomatic and highly resistant to fact‐based education campaigns. A role is envisaged for historians to present, in accessible media, narratives of successful public‐health campaigns and, at the same time, to demonstrate the contextual underpinnings of social fear in order to allay such fears in the present.
Recent Approaches in Understanding Evangelization in New Spain
Authors: Christensen Mark 
Published: February 2016

AbstractThis article surveys scholarship on the evangelization of the natives of New Spain that challenge the myths and assumptions behind a “spiritual conquest.” Aided by native‐language sources and armed with a more critical reading of those Spanish, contemporary works debunk many myths associated with the spiritual conquest including those advocating a complete and finished conversion, the dominant role of the Spanish clergy, and a monolithic view of the Church, its institutions, and its implementation throughout New Spain. Recent scholars view conversion as a negotiated and fluid state that moved beyond syncretism and expose the major role native assistants played in evangelization. Furthermore, scholars increasingly illustrate the various versions of Catholicism, its apparatuses, and its participants as they continue to challenge a spiritual conquest.
Regulation of different human NFAT isoforms by neuronal activity
Authors: Vihma Hanna , Luhakooder Mirjam , Pruunsild Priit , Timmusk Tõnis 
Published: February 2016

AbstractNuclear factor of activated T‐cells (NFAT) is a family of transcription factors comprising four calcium‐regulated members: NFATc1, NFATc2, NFATc3, and NFATc4. Upon activation by the calcium‐dependent phosphatase calcineurin (CaN), NFATs translocate from cytosol to the nucleus and regulate their target genes, which in the nervous system are involved in axon growth, synaptic plasticity, and neuronal survival. We have shown previously that there are a number of different splice variants of NFAT genes expressed in the brain. Here, we studied the subcellular localizations and transactivation capacities of alternative human NFAT isoforms in rat primary cortical or hippocampal neurons in response to membrane depolarization and compared the induced transactivation levels in neurons to those obtained from HEK293 cells in response to calcium signaling. We confirm that in neurons the translocation to the nucleus of all NFAT isoforms is reliant on the activity of CaN. However, our results suggest that both the regulation of subcellular localization and transcriptional activity of NFAT proteins in neurons is isoform specific. We show that in primary hippocampal neurons NFATc2 isoforms have very fast translocation kinetics, whereas NFATc4 isoforms translocate relatively slowly to the nucleus. Moreover, we demonstrate that the strongest transcriptional activators in HEK293 cells are NFATc1 and NFATc3, but in neurons NFATc3 and NFATc4 lead to the highest induction, and NFATc2 and NFATc1 display isoform‐specific transcription activation capacities. Altogether, our results indicate that the effects of calcium signaling on the action of NFAT proteins are isoform‐specific and can differ between cell types.
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We show that the effects of calcium signaling on the action of NFAT proteins are isoform‐specific and differ between cell types. Although nuclear localization of all NFAT isoforms in neurons requires calcineurin, the subcellular distributions, neuronal activity‐induced nuclear translocation extent and kinetics, and transcription activation capacities of alternative NFAT proteins vary.
The contribution of alpha synuclein to neuronal survival and function – Implications for Parkinson's disease
Authors: Benskey Matthew J. , Perez Ruth G. , Manfredsson Fredric P. 
Published: February 2016

AbstractThe aggregation of alpha synuclein (α‐syn) is a neuropathological feature that defines a spectrum of disorders collectively termed synucleinopathies, and of these, Parkinson's disease (PD) is arguably the best characterized. Aggregated α‐syn is the primary component of Lewy bodies, the defining pathological feature ofPD, while mutations or multiplications in the α‐syn gene result in familialPD. The high correlation between α‐syn burden andPDhas led to the hypothesis that α‐syn aggregation produces toxicity through a gain‐of‐function mechanism. However, α‐syn has been implicated to function in a diverse range of essential cellular processes such as the regulation of neurotransmission and response to cellular stress. As such, an alternative hypothesis with equal explanatory power is that the aggregation of α‐syn results in toxicity because of a toxic loss of necessary α‐syn function, following sequestration of functional forms α‐syn into insoluble protein aggregates. Within this review, we will provide an overview of the literature linking α‐syn toPDand the knowledge gained from current α‐syn‐based animal models ofPD. We will then interpret these data from the viewpoint of the α‐syn loss‐of‐function hypothesis and provide a potential mechanistic model by which loss of α‐syn function could result in at least some of the neurodegeneration observed inPD. By providing an alternative perspective on the etiopathogenesis ofPDand synucleinopathies, this may reveal alternative avenues of research in order to identify potential novel therapeutic targets for disease modifying strategies.imageThe correlation between α‐synuclein burden and Parkinson's disease pathology has led to the hypothesis that α‐synuclein aggregation produces toxicity through a gain‐of‐function mechanism. However, in this review, we discuss data supporting the alternative hypothesis that the aggregation of α‐synuclein results in toxicity because of loss of necessary α‐synuclein function at the presynaptic terminal, following sequestration of functional forms of α‐synuclein into aggregates.
A Comparison of Intravascular Imaging Modalities for Detection of Stent Struts in Acute Coronary Syndrome
Authors: Hyeon Seong Hyeop , Lee Wang Soo , Kim Doo Il , Shin Eun Seok , Kim Ki Seok , Hong Young Joon , Lee Sung Yun , Won Hoyoun , Kim Tae Ho , Kim Sang‐Wook 
Published: February 2016

BackgroundWe used optical coherence tomography (OCT) and intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) to assess the struts of implanted stents in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS).MethodsA totle of 10,756 stent struts were analyzed with OCT in 42 patients of ACS. Of them, both of IVUS and OCT imaging were performed in 33 patients. Appearance of stent struts was classified as well apposed, buried, malapposed, and nondetectable, and the number of stent struts were counted by OCT and IVUS was compared.ResultsMost of stent struts were well apposed (78.1%, 8,407/10,756). However, malapposed struts were 5.6% (607/10,756), and 14.1% (1,514/10,756) of stent struts were buried by thrombus. The nondetectable struts were 2.11% (228/10,756) in ACS. 94.7% (216/228) of nondetectable stent struts were associated with red thrombus, and plaque prolapse was in 5.3% (12/228). The number of stent struts counted by OCT were larger than that of IVUS. The mean number of stent struts at the proximal and distal stent edges were 24 ± 6.57 in OCT, the stent struts IVUS counted were 20 ± 4.18 (P < 0.0001). Although the frequency of malapposed struts were similar 4.6% (376/8,248) in OCT versus 4.8% (369/7,674) in IVUS (P = 0.788). Stent struts were often buried by thrombus in ACS 15.2% (1,252/8,248) in OCT versus 9.7% (747/7,674) in IVUS; P = 0.006. The nondetectable struts were fewer in IVUS than OCT 0.2% (16/7,674) in IVUS versus 2.2% (187/8,248) in OCT; P < 0.0001.ConclusionStent struts are frequently buried and nondetectable due to thrombi burden in ACS patients. Adequate thrombus removal and proper selection of the imaging device is warranted in ACS. (J Interven Cardiol 2016;29:99–107)
Objective but not subjective sleep predicts memory in community‐dwelling older adults
Authors: Cavuoto Marina G. , Ong Ben , Pike Kerryn E. , Nicholas Christian L. , Bei Bei , Kinsella Glynda J. 
Published: February 2016

SummaryResearch on the relationship between habitual sleep patterns and memory performance in older adults is limited. No previous study has used objective and subjective memory measures in a large, older‐aged sample to examine the association between sleep and various domains of memory. The aim of this study was to examine the association between objective and subjective measures of sleep with memory performance in older adults, controlling for the effects of potential confounds. One‐hundred and seventy‐three community‐dwelling older adults aged 65–89 years in Victoria, Australia completed the study. Objective sleep quality and length were ascertained using the Actiwatch 2 Mini‐Mitter, while subjective sleep was measured using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index. Memory was indexed by tests of retrospective memory (Hopkins Verbal Learning Test – Revised), working memory (n‐back, 2‐back accuracy) and prospective memory (a habitual button pressing task). Compared with normative data, overall performance on retrospective memory function was within the average range. Hierarchical regression was used to determine whether objective or subjective measures of sleep predicted memory performances after controlling for demographics, health and mood. After controlling for confounds, actigraphic sleep indices (greater wake after sleep onset, longer sleep‐onset latency and longer total sleep time) predicted poorer retrospective (∆R2 = 0.05, P = 0.016) and working memory (∆R2 = 0.05, P = 0.047). In contrast, subjective sleep indices did not significantly predict memory performances. In community‐based older adults, objectively‐measured, habitual sleep indices predict poorer memory performances. It will be important to follow the sample longitudinally to determine trajectories of change over time.