bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Detection and evaluation of an early divergence problem in northern Fennoscandian tree‐ring data
Authors: Schneider Lea , Esper Jan , Timonen Mauri , Büntgen Ulf 
Published: December 2013

Although not yet fully understood, reduced sensitivity of tree growth to temperature at high northern latitudes during the last ˜ 40 years is often linked to concurrent anthropogenic changes of atmospheric composition and global warming. The idea that a temporal localization of the problem could improve its understanding initiated a search for erratic growth‐patterns in earlier periods of high quality dendrochronological archives.An extensive network of maximum latewood density (MXD) measurements from northern Fennoscandia likely represents one of the most reliable regional summer‐temperature reconstructions. The strong coherence between proxy and instrumental data is, however, interrupted by a short, but significant correlation decrease from ˜ 1900 till 1925, a period of distinct summer‐temperature warming. Here we analyze this early 20th century divergence period (EDP). We therefore use long instrumental station records and tree‐ring density chronologies including 878 Pinus sylvestris and 126 Picea abies samples. Our results indicate that EDP was accompanied by a simultaneous decline of inter‐site and inter‐station correlations. This could be ascribed to substantially reduced inter‐annual summer temperature variability from 1905–1919. Stable correlations of the MXD network with high‐pass filtered sea level pressure and precipitation records imply tree‐growth to be additionally controlled by other factors, e.g. light conditions, in periods of low summer temperature variability. Within the scope of this study, the causes for EDP could be confined to a limited area and a short period. Calibration of proxy data and reconstruction skills thus remain unaffected in this case of divergence.
Microstructure and Thermal Conductivity of Silicon Carbide with Yttria and Scandia
Authors: Kim Young‐Wook , Lim Kwang‐Young , Seo Won‐Seon 
Published: December 2013

A fully dense SiC ceramic with high thermal conductivity was obtained by conventional hot pressing, with 1 vol% Y2O3–Sc2O3 additives. The ceramic had a bimodal microstructure consisting of large and small equiaxed SiC grains. Observation with high‐resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) showed two kinds of homophase (SiC/SiC) boundaries, that is crystallized and clean boundaries, and a fully crystallized junction phase. The thermal conductivity of the SiC ceramic was 234 W (m·K)−1 at room temperature. The high thermal conductivity was attributed to a clean SiC lattice and good contiguity between SiC grains.
Dispersal capacity of Monochamus galloprovincialis, the European vector of the pine wood nematode, on flight mills
Authors: David G. , Giffard B. , Piou D. , Jactel H. 
Published: December 2013

AbstractThe pine wood nematode (Bursaphelenchus xylophilus), which causes the symptoms of pine wilt disease, is recognized worldwide as a major forest pest. It was introduced into Portugal in 1999. It is transmitted between trees almost exclusively by longhorn beetles of the genus Monochamus, including, in particular, M. galloprovincialis (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) in maritime pine forests. Accurate estimates of the flight capacity of this insect vector are required if we are to understand and predict the spread of pine wilt disease in Europe. Using computer‐linked flight mills, we evaluated the distance flown, the flight probability and speed of M. galloprovincialis throughout adulthood and investigated the effects of age, sex and body weight on these flight performances, which are proxies for dispersal capacity. The within‐population variability of flight performance in M. galloprovincialis was high, with a mean distance of 16 km flown over the lifetime of the beetle. Age and body weight had a significant positive effect on flight capacity, but there was no difference in performance between males and females. These findings have important implications for managing the spread of the pine wood nematode in European forests.
The Relationship Between Emergency Department Crowding and Patient Outcomes: A Systematic Review
Authors: Carter Eileen J. , Pouch Stephanie M. , Larson Elaine L. 
Published: December 2013

AbstractPurposeEmergency department (ED) crowding is a significant patient safety concern associated with poor quality of care. The purpose of this systematic review is to assess the relationship between ED crowding and patient outcomes.DesignWe searched the Medline search engine and relevant emergency medicine and nursing journals for studies published in the past decade that pertained to ED crowding and the following patient outcome measures: mortality, morbidity, patient satisfaction, and leaving the ED without being seen. All articles were appraised for study quality.FindingsA total of 196 abstracts were screened and 11 articles met inclusion criteria. Three of the eleven studies reported a significant positive relationship between ED crowding and mortality either among patients admitted to the hospital or discharged home. Five studies reported that ED crowding is associated with higher rates of patients leaving the ED without being seen. Measures of ED crowding varied across studies.ConclusionsED crowding is a major patient safety concern associated with poor patient outcomes. Interventions and policies are needed to address this significant problem.Clinical RelevanceThis review details the negative patient outcomes associated with ED crowding. Study results are relevant to medical professionals and those that seek care in the ED.
BEYOND GDP: AN OVERVIEW OF MEASUREMENT ISSUES IN REDEFINING ‘WEALTH’
Authors: Munda Giuseppe 
Published: December 2013

AbstractIn the last decades, a growing quantity of literature has been written about concepts such as quality of life and well‐being as a proxy for evaluating societal prosperity and progress. This paper analyses the theoretical foundations and the empirical validity of multi‐dimensional technical tools that can be used for well‐being measurement. There is no doubt that there is a lot of complexity and fuzziness inherent in multi‐dimensional concepts such as well‐being. A possible reduction of this complexity, a pre‐condition for policy‐making, introduces the problem of the descriptors used: indicators and indexes. In a multi‐dimensional framework, multi‐criteria evaluation is a consistent approach for the construction of so‐called composite indicators. Often, some individual indicators improve while others deteriorate. This is the classical conflictual situation dealt with in multi‐criteria evaluation; in particular non‐compensatory methods are quite relevant, since compensability implies complete substitutability between different types of capital. Uncertainty and sensitivity analysis can estimate the robustness of the results obtained and help the framing of the debate around the conceptual framework used, that is, which representation of reality (and thus which societal values and interests) has been considered.
Effect of composition in the development of carbamazepine hot-melt extruded solid dispersions by application of mixture experimental design
Authors: Djuris Jelena , Ioannis Nikolakakis , Ibric Svetlana , Djuric Zorica , Kachrimanis Kyriakos 
Published: December 2013

Abstract

Objectives
This study investigates the application of hot-melt extrusion for the formulation of carbamazepine (CBZ) solid dispersions, using polyethyleneglycol-polyvinyl caprolactam-polyvinyl acetate grafted copolymer (Soluplus, BASF, Germany) and polyoxyethylene–polyoxypropylene block copolymer (Poloxamer 407). In agreement with the current Quality by Design principle, formulations of solid dispersions were prepared according to a D-optimal mixture experimental design, and the influence of formulation composition on the properties of the dispersions (CBZ heat of fusion and release rate) was estimated.

Methods
Prepared solid dispersions were characterized using differential scanning calorimetry, attenuated total reflectance infrared spectroscopy and hot stage microscopy, as well as by determination of the dissolution rate of CBZ from the hot-melt extrudates.

Key findings
Solid dispersions of CBZ can be successfully prepared using the novel copolymer Soluplus. Inclusion of Poloxamer 407 as a plasticizer facilitated the processing and decreased the hardness of hot-melt extrudates. Regardless of their composition, all hot-melt extrudates displayed an improvement in the release rate compared to the pure CBZ, with formulations having the ratio of CBZ : Poloxamer 407 = 1 : 1 showing the highest increase in CBZ release rate.

Conclusions
Interactions between the mixture components (CBZ and polymers), or quadratic effects of the components, play a significant role in overall influence on the CBZ release rate.
Phenylephrine eye drops in pediatric patients undergoing ophthalmic surgery: incidence, presentation, and management of complications during general anesthesia
Authors: Sbaraglia Fabio , Mores Nadia , Garra Rossella , Giuratrabocchetta Giuseppe , Lepore Domenico , Molle Fernando , Savino Gustavo , Piastra Marco , Pulitano' Silvia , Sammartino Maria 
Published: December 2013

SummaryBackgroundPhenylephrine eye drops are widely used as mydriatic agent to reach the posterior segment of the eye. In literature, many reports suggest a systemic absorption of this agent as a source of severe adverse drug reactions. Hence, we reviewed our experience with topical phenylephrine in ophthalmic surgery.MethodsIn May 2006, following US guidelines publication, a standard operating procedure was issued in our operating rooms to standardize the use of phenylephrine eye drops in our practice. Two years later, after the occurrence of a cluster of serious adverse drug reactions in infants undergoing surgery, a review of phenylephrine safety and systemic complications incidence was performed.ResultsWe observed 451 pediatric patients, and 187 met the inclusions criteria: Among them, 4 experienced hemodynamic complications due to phenylephrine eye drops. The incidence of major complications was 2.1%.ConclusionsTwo different patterns of side effects occurred. The first one was a cardiovascular derangement with severe hypertension and heart rate alterations; the other one involved exclusively pulmonary circuit causing early edema. These clinical manifestations, their duration, and treatment responses are all explainable by alfa1‐adrenergic action of phenylephrine. This hypothetic pathogenesis has been confirmed also by the usefulness of direct vasodilators (anesthetic agents) and by the negative outcome occurred in the past with the use of beta‐blockers.
Working memory impairment and cardiovascular hyperarousal in young primary insomniacs
Authors: Cellini Nicola , de Zambotti Massimiliano , Covassin Naima , Sarlo Michela , Stegagno Luciano 
Published: December 2013

AbstractWe investigated memory performance and cardiovascular activity in 13 primary insomniacs (PI) compared to 13 good sleepers (GS). Cardiovascular and hemodynamic measures, including heart rate, pre‐ejection period, and blood pressure, were continuously recorded at rest and during two memory tasks. PI showed working memory impairment under high cognitive load, but performed as well as GS in an easy memory task. In addition, PI exhibited markers of hyperarousal both at rest and during the execution of the two tasks. However, we failed to find a clear‐cut relationship between cardiovascular hyperarousal and cognitive performance in insomniacs. Our data provide further evidence of both cognitive impairment and cardiovascular hyperarousal in primary insomnia, while not supporting the hypothesis of hyperarousal as a compensatory mechanism to overcome cognitive challenges.
Ichnofabric characterization of a deep‐marine clastic system: a subsurface study of the Middle Eocene Ainsa System, Spanish Pyrenees
Authors: Heard Thomas G. , Pickering Kevin T. , Clark Julian D. 
Published: December 2013

AbstractThis paper documents a subsurface trace fossil and ichnofabric study of the proximal parts of a structurally confined and channelized sand‐rich, lower slope and proximal basin‐floor deep‐marine system in the Middle Eocene Ainsa basin, Spanish Pyrenees. Five depositional environments are recognized based on sedimentary facies associations, depositional architecture and stratigraphic context (channel axis, channel off‐axis, channel margin, leveé‐overbank and interfan), as well as a channel abandonment phase. Each environment is characterized by distinct and recurring ichnofabrics. Ichnological measurements and observations were recorded from six cores recovered from six wells drilled at a spacing of between 400 m and 500 m at outcrop, and totalling 1213 m in length. From channel axis to levée‐overbank environments, there is a trend of increasing bioturbation intensity and ichnodiversity. Ichnofabrics in channel axis and channel off‐axis environments are characterized by low bioturbation intensity and low ichnodiversity. Thalassinoides‐dominated firmground ichnofabrics associated with erosive sediment gravity flows are common in these environments. In contrast, channel margin and levée‐overbank environments are characterized by ichnofabrics associated with high bioturbation intensity and ichnodiversity. Sediments of the interfan are characterized by the highest bioturbation intensity, associated with burrow mottling and an absence of primary sedimentary structures. This paper demonstrates that in core‐based studies, ichnofabric analysis is an important and valuable tool in discriminating between different environments in channelized deep‐marine siliciclastic systems. The results of this study should find wide applicability in reservoir characterization studies in the petroleum industry, in field‐based analogue ichnofabric studies and other core‐based studies in deep‐water siliciclastic systems worldwide such as the Integrated Ocean Drilling Program.
HLA frequencies and associations in cystic fibrosis
Authors: Adriaanse M. P. M. , Vreugdenhil A. C. E. , Groeneweg M. , Brüggenwirth H. T. , Castelijns S. J. A. M. , van der Ent C. K. , Voorter C. E. M. , Tilanus M. G. J. 
Published: December 2013

AbstractCystic fibrosis (CF) is classically attributed to the dysfunction of the single CF transmembrane conductance regulator gene. The incidence of human leukocyte antigen (HLA) polymorphisms in different CF‐associated diseases raises the question of an unequal distribution of HLA genotypes in CF. This study aimed to evaluate HLA gene frequencies and possible associations in CF patients compared with a control population. Frequencies of HLA‐DRB1, HLA‐DQA1 and HLA‐DQB1, performed by intermediate resolution typing using Luminex sequence‐specific oligonucleotide, and epitope counts were similar in 340 CF patients when compared with 400 control subjects. In conclusion, HLA‐DRB1, ‐DQA1 and ‐DQB1 do not seem to influence susceptibility to CF. Whether HLA plays a role in the severity of CF disease needs to be investigated.
Neisseria meningitidis Native Outer Membrane Vesicles Containing Different Lipopolysaccharide Glycoforms as Adjuvants for Meningococcal and Nonmeningococcal Antigens
Authors: Nagaputra Jerry C. , Rollier Christine S. , Sadarangani Manish , Hoe J. Claire , Mehta Ojas Hrakesh , Norheim Gunnstein , Saleem Muhammad , Chan Hannah , Derrick Jeremy P. , Feavers Ian , Pollard Andrew J. , Moxon E. Richard 
Published: December 2013

ABSTRACTWe evaluated the adjuvant effect of a modified glycoform of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) (LgtB-LpxL1) compared to that of the nonmodified glycoform Lpxl1 serogroup B meningococcal H44/76 native outer membrane vesicles (nOMVs) on immune responses to vaccination with the recombinant meningococcal protein, rPorA, tetanus toxoid, or meningococcal serogroup C capsular polysaccharide. We used LgtB-LpxL1 LPS because the disruption of thelgtBgene, which results in the exposure ofN-acetylglucosamine-galactose-glucose residues in the LPS outer core, has been shown to enhance the activation of human dendritic cellsin vitro. The responses were compared to those of a monophosphoryl lipid A (MPL)-based adjuvant and to an aluminum hydroxide suspension. The nOMVs induced blood serum IgG responses against each of the three antigens comparable to those obtained with MPL or aluminum salt. However, nOMVs elicited (i) a lower IgG1/IgG2a ratio against rPorA and (ii) serum bactericidal antibody titers superior to those achieved with aluminum salt, reaching similar titers to those obtained with MPL. Similarly, bactericidal antibody titers induced by immunization with meningococcal serogroup C polysaccharide and nOMVs were similar to those obtained using MPL but were better than those with aluminum salt. Immunization with tetanus toxoid and nOMVs resulted in tetanus toxoid-specific IgG responses similar to those obtained when adjuvanted with aluminum salt. These results highlight the potential utility of meningococcal LpxL1 LPS-containing nOMVs as an adjuvant for recombinant meningococcal protein vaccines and suggest their possible use with a variety of other antigens.
Automated versus Manual Sample Inoculations in Routine Clinical Microbiology: a Performance Evaluation of the Fully Automated InoqulA Instrument
Authors: Froment P. , Marchandin H. , Vande Perre P. , Lamy B. 
Published: December 2013

ABSTRACT

The process of plate streaking has been automated to improve the culture readings, isolation quality, and workflow of microbiology laboratories. However, instruments have not been well evaluated under routine conditions. We aimed to evaluate the performance of the fully automated InoqulA instrument (BD Kiestra B.V., The Netherlands) in the automated seeding of liquid specimens and samples collected using swabs with transport medium. We compared manual and automated methods according to the (i) within-run reproducibility using
Escherichia coli
-calibrated suspensions, (ii) intersample contamination using a series of alternating sterile broths and broths with >10
5
CFU/ml of either
E. coli
or
Proteus mirabilis
, (iii) isolation quality with standardized mixed bacterial suspensions of diverse complexity and a 4-category standardized scale (very poor, poor, fair to good, or excellent), and (iv) agreement of the results obtained from 244 clinical specimens. By involving 15 technicians in the latter part of the comparative study, we estimated the variability in the culture quality at the level of the laboratory team. The instrument produced satisfactory reproducibility with no sample cross-contamination, and it performed better than the manual method, with more colony types recovered and isolated (up to 11% and 17%, respectively). Finally, we showed that the instrument did not shorten the seeding time over short periods of work compared to that for the manual method. Altogether, the instrument improved the quality and standardization of the isolation, thereby contributing to a better overall workflow, shortened the time to results, and provided more accurate results for polymicrobial specimens.
Comparison of Illumigene, Simplexa, and AmpliVue Clostridium difficile Molecular Assays for Diagnosis of C. difficile Infection
Authors: Deak E. , Miller S. A. , Humphries R. M. 
Published: December 2013

ABSTRACT

We compared the performance of the Simplexa Universal Direct (Focus Diagnostics) and AmpliVue (Quidel Corporation) assays to that of the Illumigene assay (Meridian Bioscience, Inc.) for the diagnosis of
Clostridium difficile
infection. Two hundred deidentified remnant diarrheal stool specimens were tested by the Simplexa, AmpliVue, and Illumigene methods. Specimens with discrepant results among the three assays and a representative number of concordant specimens were further evaluated by toxigenic culture. The sensitivity and specificity were 98 and 100% and 96 and 100% for the Simplexa Universal Direct and AmpliVue assays, respectively. Both assays are easy to perform, with rapid turn-around-times, supporting their utility in the clinical laboratory as routine diagnostic platforms.
PhyloFlu, a DNA Microarray for Determining the Phylogenetic Origin of Influenza A Virus Gene Segments and the Genomic Fingerprint of Viral Strains
Authors: Paulin Luis F. , Soto-Del Río María de los D. , Sánchez Iván , Hernández Jesús , Gutiérrez-Ríos Rosa M. , López-Martínez Irma , Wong-Chew Rosa M. , Parissi-Crivelli Aurora , Isa P. , López Susana , Arias Carlos F. 
Published: December 2013

ABSTRACT
Recent evidence suggests that most influenza A virus gene segments can contribute to the pathogenicity of the virus. In this regard, the hemagglutinin (HA) subtype of the circulating strains has been closely surveyed, but the reassortment of internal gene segments is usually not monitored as a potential source of an increased pathogenicity. In this work, an oligonucleotide DNA microarray (PhyloFlu) designed to determine the phylogenetic origins of the eight segments of the influenza virus genome was constructed and validated. Clades were defined for each segment and also for the 16 HA and 9 neuraminidase (NA) subtypes. Viral genetic material was amplified by reverse transcription-PCR (RT-PCR) with primers specific to the conserved 5′ and 3′ ends of the influenza A virus genes, followed by PCR amplification with random primers and Cy3 labeling. The microarray unambiguously determined the clades for all eight influenza virus genes in 74% (28/38) of the samples. The microarray was validated with reference strains from different animal origins, as well as from human, swine, and avian viruses from field or clinical samples. In most cases, the phylogenetic clade of each segment defined its animal host of origin. The genomic fingerprint deduced by the combined information of the individual clades allowed for the determination of the time and place that strains with the same genomic pattern were previously reported. PhyloFlu is useful for characterizing and surveying the genetic diversity and variation of animal viruses circulating in different environmental niches and for obtaining a more detailed surveillance and follow up of reassortant events that can potentially modify virus pathogenicity.