bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Phylogenetic patterns and disjunct distribution in Ligularia hodgsonii Hook. (Asteraceae)
Authors: Wang Jin‐Feng , Gong Xun , Chiang Yu‐Chung , Kuroda Chiaki 
Published: April 2013

AbstractAimThe objectives of this study were to elucidate the phylogenetic origins and phylogeographical history of Ligularia hodgsonii, which exhibits a disjunct distribution between south‐western–central China and Japan.LocationChina and Japan.MethodsThree chloroplast DNA (cpDNA) spacer regions (trnQ–5′rps16, trnL–rpl32 and psbA–trnH) were sequenced in 280 individuals of L. hodgsonii isolated from 29 natural populations, including 23 from China and 6 from Japan. Phylogenetic inference was performed using MrBayes and beast analyses. Statistical dispersal–vicariance analysis (S‐DIVA) was utilized to resolve the biogeographical events in L. hodgsonii, and to clarify the origin of the species’ disjunct distribution.ResultsGenetic variation in cpDNA revealed 19 unique haplotypes among populations. A high degree of genetic diversity (HT = 0.913) and a significant level of differentiation (GST = 0.933, NST = 0.989) were detected. Different haplotypes from continental and island populations were analysed, and the degree of genetic diversity observed within each of the two regions was similar. S‐DIVA analysis supported the occurrence of a vicariance event between the continental and island areas.Main conclusionsBased on S‐DIVA analysis, the non‐overlapping cpDNA haplotypes and similar genetic diversity levels in continental and island populations, we conclude that the disjunct distribution of L. hodgsonii is the result of vicariance. Molecular dating suggests that the separation between populations on the islands of Japan (northern Honshu and Hokkaido) and mainland Asia occurred during the middle to late Pleistocene. Following divergence, L. hodgsonii populations probably underwent severe range contraction into multiple isolated refugia during the Last Glacial Maximum, when conditions were colder and drier than at present.
Enhanced periodontal tissue regeneration by periodontal cell implantation
Authors: Yu Na , Oortgiesen Daniel A. W. , Bronckers Antonius L. J. J. , Yang Fang , Walboomers X. Frank , Jansen John A. 
Published: April 2013

AbstractAimDue to a lack of regenerative potential, current treatments for periodontal defects do not always provide satisfactory clinical results. Previously, the implantation of a biomaterial scaffold‐cell construct has been suggested as a clinically achievable approach. In this study, it was aimed to investigate the contribution of implanted periodontal ligament (PDL) cells to periodontal tissue regeneration.Materials & MethodsGelatin sponges were seeded with green fluorescent protein (GFP) transfected PDL or gingival fibroblasts (GF) cells, and implanted into a surgically created rat intrabony periodontal defect model. After six weeks, decalcified maxillae were used for histomorphometrical and immunohistochemical analyses.ResultsAfter six weeks, animals that had received the PDL cells exhibited significantly more functional bone and ligament. Furthermore, there were remarkable differences in the distribution of the transplanted cells. Periodontal ligament cells were always located directly lining the newly regenerated areas. In contrast, GF cells dispersed over the whole defect area, and did not provide a favourable effect on the regeneration of the periodontal tissues.ConclusionWe concluded that PDL cells transplanted into a periodontal defect survive and favour regeneration of periodontium, possibly in a paracrine manner.
A Dinoflagellate Amylax triacantha with Plastids of the Cryptophyte Origin: Phylogeny, Feeding Mechanism, and Growth and Grazing Responses
Authors: Park Myung Gil , Kim Miran , Kang Misun 
Published: April 2013

AbstractThe gonyaulacalean dinoflagellates Amylax spp. were recently found to contain plastids of the cryptophyte origin, more specifically of Teleaulax amphioxeia. However, not only how the dinoflagellates get the plastids of the cryptophyte origin is unknown but also their ecophysiology, including growth and feeding responses as functions of both light and prey concentration, remain unknown. Here, we report the establishment of Amylax triacantha in culture, its feeding mechanism, and its growth rate using the ciliate prey Mesodinium rubrum (= Myrionecta rubra) in light and dark, and growth and grazing responses to prey concentration and light intensity. The strain established in culture in this study was assigned to A. triacantha, based on morphological characteristics (particularly, a prominent apical horn and three antapical spines) and nuclear SSU and LSU rDNA sequences. Amylax triacantha grew well in laboratory culture when supplied with the marine mixotrophic ciliate M. rubrum as prey, reaching densities of over 7.5 × 103 cells/ml. Amylax triacantha captured its prey using a tow filament, and then ingested the whole prey by direct engulfment through the sulcus. The dinoflagellate was able to grow heterotrophically in the dark, but the growth rate was approximately two times lower than in the light. Although mixotrophic growth rates of A. triacantha increased sharply with mean prey concentrations, with maximum growth rate being 0.68/d, phototrophic growth (i.e. growth in the absence of prey) was −0.08/d. The maximum ingestion rate was 2.54 ng C/Amylax/d (5.9 cells/Amylax/d). Growth rate also increased with increasing light intensity, but the effect was evident only when prey was supplied. Increased growth with increasing light intensity was accompanied by a corresponding increase in ingestion. In mixed cultures of two predators, A. triacantha and Dinophysis acuminata, with M. rubrum as prey, A. triacantha outgrew D. acuminata due to its approximately three times higher growth rate, suggesting that it can outcompete D. acuminata. Our results would help better understand the ecophysiology of dinoflagellates retaining foreign plastids.
Severity of non‐alcoholic steatohepatitis is associated with substitution of adipose tissue in skeletal muscle
Authors: Kitajima Yoichiro , Hyogo Hideyuki , Sumida Yoshio , Eguchi Yuichiro , Ono Naofumi , Kuwashiro Takuya , Tanaka Kenichi , Takahashi Hirokazu , Mizuta Toshihiko , Ozaki Iwata , Eguchi Takahisa , Kimura Yuki , Fujimoto Kazuma , Anzai Keizo ,   Japan Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease Study Group (JSG‐NAFLD)
Published: April 2013

AbstractBackground and AimsThe pathogenesis of non‐alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is now focusing on its organ cross‐talk with not only adipose tissue but also systemic skeletal muscle. Cross‐sectional and longitudinal studies were conducted to determine the role of intramuscular adipose tissue content (IMAC) measured by computed tomography on the severity of NAFLD/non‐alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH).MethodsTwo hundred eight Japanese patients with NAFLD/NASH diagnosed by liver biopsy were enrolled into a cross‐sectional study. Twenty‐one patients were enrolled in a longitudinal study and received a programmed diet and exercise intervention, in some cases the combination of pharmacotherapy. We measured IMAC in the multifidus muscle and biochemical parameters, and conducted liver histology to assess NAFLD/NASH status.ResultsHistopathological stage in terms of simple steatosis and Brunt's classification was significantly correlated with IMAC (P < 0.01). Multivariate logistic regression analysis indicated that risk factors associated with the severity of NASH were IMAC and aging (IMAC: odds ratio = 2.444, P < 0.05; Age: odds ratio = 2.355, P < 0.05). The interventions improved histopathological changes in 11 patients with NASH as well as IMAC.ConclusionThese results suggest that skeletal muscle fat accumulation may have been linked to the pathogenesis and severity of NASH.
Dependence of the measured size of the objects on the parameters of the transmitted light source in video measurement microscopy
Authors: LIU L. , QU Y. 
Published: April 2013

SummaryParameter adjustment of the transmitted light source yields a good‐quality image for video measurement microscopy. However, a disadvantage is that the measured size of the objects changes simultaneously while the parameters of the transmitted light source are adjusted, which directly affects the measurement accuracy adversely. Furthermore, the variation of the objects’ measured size leads to the magnification variation as well. In order to analyse how the measured size of the objects varies with the parameters, we apply a photometric method and an operator algebra method to derive a unified mathematical model that correlates the parameters of the transmitted light source with the measured size of the objects. Theoretical results show that factors including the illumination intensity, the diameter of the aperture stop and the field stop and the object thickness are important to the measured size of the objects. The simulation results have been verified thoroughly using a wide variety of internal and external diameter measurement experiments. The proposed method has proved to be suitable to determine how these parameters affect measured size of the objects.
The inflammatory biomarker YKL‐40 at admission is a strong predictor of overall mortality
Authors: Mygind N. D. , Iversen K. , Køber L. , Goetze J. P. , Nielsen H. , Boesgaard S. , Bay M. , Johansen J. S. , Nielsen O. W. , Kirk V. , Kastrup J. 
Published: April 2013

AbstractObjectivesYKL‐40 is an inflammatory biomarker associated with disease activity and mortality in patients with diseases characterized by inflammation and tissue remodelling. The aim of this study was to describe the prognostic value of YKL‐40 in an unselected patient population.DesignIn consecutive patients admitted to hospital during a 1‐year period, blood was collected and information regarding final diagnosis and mortality was collected. Median follow‐up time was 11.5 years.SettingDistrict hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark.PatientsA total of 1407 patients >40 years of age were admitted acutely.Main outcome measureAll‐cause mortality.ResultsMedian YKL‐40 was increased in patients (157 μg L−1, range 13–7704 μg L−1) compared to healthy controls (40 μg L−1, range 29–58 μg L−1; P < 0.001). Patients with YKL‐40 in the highest quartile had a hazard ratio (HR) of 7.1 [95% confidence interval (CI) 4.2–12.0] for all‐cause mortality in the first year and 3.4 (95% CI 2.8–4.2) in the total study period, compared to those in the lowest quartile (HR = 1). The HR for death for all patients with YKL‐40 above the normal age‐corrected 95th percentile was 2.1 (95% CI 1.6–2.7) after 1 year and 1.5 (95% CI 1.3–1.7) during the total study period, compared to patients with YKL‐40 below the age‐corrected 95th percentile. The results of multivariable analysis showed that YKL‐40 was an independent biomarker of mortality; this was most significant in the first year. YKL‐40 was a marker of prognosis in all disease categories. The HR for death was increased in patients with YKL‐40 above the normal age‐corrected 95th percentile in healthy subjects independent of type of disease (all P < 0.001).ConclusionThe level of YKL‐40 at admission is a strong predictor of overall mortality, independent of diagnosis and could be useful as a biomarker in the acute evaluation of all patients.
Class 3 semaphorins: physiological vascular normalizing agents for anti‐cancer therapy
Authors: Serini G. , Bussolino F. , Maione F. , Giraudo E. 
Published: April 2013

AbstractFindings from preclinical and clinical studies show that vascular normalization represents a novel strategy to enhance the efficacy of and overcome the acquired resistance to anti‐angiogenic therapies in cancer. Several mechanisms of tumour vessel normalization have been revealed. Amongst them, secreted class 3 semaphorins (Sema3), which regulate axon guidance and angiogenesis, have been recently identified as novel vascular normalizing agents that inhibit metastatic dissemination by restoring vascular function. Here, we discuss the different biological functions and mechanisms of action of Sema3 in the context of tumour vascular normalization, and their impact on the different cellular components of the tumour microenvironment.
An MRI‐based index to measure the severity of Alzheimer's disease‐like structural pattern in subjects with mild cognitive impairment
Authors: Spulber G. , Simmons A. , Muehlboeck J.‐S. , Mecocci P. , Vellas B. , Tsolaki M. , Kłoszewska I. , Soininen H. , Spenger C. , Lovestone S. , Wahlund L.‐O. , Westman E. ,   for the AddNeuroMed consortium and for the Alzheimer Disease Neuroimaging Initiative
Published: April 2013

AbstractBackgroundStructural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is sensitive to neurodegeneration and can be used to estimate the risk of converting to Alzheimer's disease (AD) in individuals with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Brain changes in AD and prodromal AD involve a pattern of widespread atrophy. The use of multivariate analysis algorithms could enable the development of diagnostic tools based on structural MRI data. In this study, we investigated the possibility of combining multiple MRI features in the form of a severity index.MethodsWe used baseline MRI scans from two large multicentre cohorts (AddNeuroMed and ADNI). On the basis of volumetric and cortical thickness measures at baseline with AD cases and healthy control (CTL) subjects as training sets, we generated an MRI‐based severity index using the method of orthogonal projection to latent structures (OPLS). The severity index tends to be close to 1 for AD patients and 0 for CTL subjects. Values above 0.5 indicate a more AD‐like pattern. The index was then estimated for subjects with MCI, and the accuracy of classification was investigated.ResultsBased on the data at follow‐up, 173 subjects converted to AD, of whom 112 (64.7%) were classified as AD‐like and 61 (35.3%) as CTL‐like.ConclusionWe found that joint evaluation of multiple brain regions provided accurate discrimination between progressive and stable MCI, with better performance than hippocampal volume alone, or a limited set of features. A major challenge is still to determine optimal cut‐off points for such parameters and to compare their relative reliability.
Shortening the ‘short‐course’ therapy– insights into host immunity may contribute to new treatment strategies for tuberculosis
Authors: Schön T. , Lerm M. , Stendahl O. 
Published: April 2013

AbstractAchieving global control of tuberculosis (TB) is a great challenge considering the current increase in multidrug resistance and mortality rate. Considerable efforts are therefore being made to develop new effective vaccines, more effective and rapid diagnostic tools as well as new drugs. Shortening the duration of TB treatment with revised regimens and modes of delivery of existing drugs, as well as development of new antimicrobial agents and optimization of the host response with adjuvant immunotherapy could have a profound impact on TB cure rates. Recent data show that chronic worm infection and deficiencies in micronutrients such as vitamin D and arginine are potential areas of intervention to optimize host immunity. Nutritional supplementation to enhance nitric oxide production and vitamin D‐mediated effector functions as well as the treatment of worm infection to reduce immunosuppressive effects of regulatory T (Treg) lymphocytes may be more suitable and accessible strategies for highly endemic areas than adjuvant cytokine therapy. In this review, we focus mainly on immune control of human TB, and discuss how current treatment strategies, including immunotherapy and nutritional supplementation, could be optimized to enhance the host response leading to more effective treatment.
Sitagliptin improves beta‐cell function in patients with acute coronary syndromes and newly diagnosed glucose abnormalities–the BEGAMI study
Authors: Hage C. , Brismar K. , Efendic S. , Lundman P. , Rydén L. , Mellbin L. 
Published: April 2013

AbstractBackgroundNewly detected impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) or type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) are common in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS; i.e. unstable angina/myocardial infarction) and related to disturbed beta‐cell function. The aim of this study is to test the hypothesis that treatment with a dipeptidyl peptidase‐4 inhibitor initiated soon after a coronary event improves beta‐cell function.MethodsAcute coronary syndromeACS patients with IGT or T2DM (n = 71), screened by oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) 4–23 days (median 6 days) after hospital admission, were randomly assigned to sitagliptin 100 mg (n = 34) or placebo (n = 37) and treated for a duration of 12 weeks. All patients received lifestyle advice but no glucose‐lowering agents other than the study drug. The study end‐point was beta‐cell function assessed using the insulinogenic index (IGI = ΔInsulin30/ΔGlucose30), derived from an OGTT, and acute insulin response to glucose (AIRg) assessed by a frequently sampled intravenous glucose tolerance test.ResultsThe IGI and AIRg did not differ at baseline between the sitagliptin and placebo groups (69.9 vs. 66.4 pmol mmol−1 and 1394 vs. 1106 pmol L−1 min−1 respectively). After 12 weeks, the IGI was 85.0 in the sitagliptin and 58.1 pmol/mmol in the placebo group (P = 0.013) and AIRg was 1909 and 1043 pmol L−1 min−1 (P < 0.0001) in the sitagliptin and placebo groups respectively. Fasting glucose at baseline was 6.1 mmol L−1 in sitagliptin‐treated patients and 6.0 mmol L−1 in those who received placebo compared with 5.8 and 5.9 mmol L−1 respectively, after 12 weeks of treatment. Post load glucose metabolism improved in significantly more sitagliptin‐treated patients compared with the placebo group (P = 0.003). Sitagliptin was well tolerated.ConclusionSitagliptin improved beta‐cell function and glucose perturbations in patients with ACS and newly diagnosed glucose disturbances.
Classification and prediction of clinical diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease based on MRI and plasma measures of α‐/γ‐tocotrienols and γ‐tocopherol
Authors: Mangialasche F. , Westman E. , Kivipelto M. , Muehlboeck J.‐S. , Cecchetti R. , Baglioni M. , Tarducci R. , Gobbi G. , Floridi P. , Soininen H. , Kłoszewska I. , Tsolaki M. , Vellas B. , Spenger C. , Lovestone S. , Wahlund L.‐O. , Simmons A. , Mecocci P. ,   The AddNeuroMed consortium
Published: April 2013

AbstractBackgroundThe aim of this study was to evaluate the accuracy of combined structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) measures and plasma levels of vitamin E forms, including all eight natural vitamin E congeners (four tocopherols and four tocotrienols) and markers of vitamin E oxidative/nitrosative damage, in differentiating individuals with Alzheimer's disease (AD) and mild cognitive impairment (MCI) from cognitively intact control (CTL) subjects.MethodsOverall, 81 patients with AD, 86 with MCI and 86 CTL individuals were enrolled from the longitudinal multicentre AddNeuroMed study. MRI and plasma vitamin E data were acquired at baseline. MRI scans were analysed using Freesurfer, an automated segmentation scheme which generates regional volume and cortical thickness measures. Orthogonal partial least squares to latent structures (OPLS), a multivariate data analysis technique, was used to analyse MRI and vitamin E measures in relation to AD and MCI diagnosis.ResultsThe joint evaluation of MRI and plasma vitamin E measures enhanced the accuracy of differentiating individuals with AD and MCI from CTL subjects: 98.2% (sensitivity 98.8%, specificity 97.7%) for AD versus CTL, and 90.7% (sensitivity 91.8%, specificity 89.5%) for MCI versus CTL. This combination of measures also identified 85% of individuals with MCI who converted to clinical AD at follow‐up after 1 year.ConclusionsPlasma levels of tocopherols and tocotrienols together with automated MRI measures can help to differentiate AD and MCI patients from CTL subjects, and to prospectively predict MCI conversion into AD. Our results suggest the potential role of nutritional biomarkers detected in plasma–tocopherols and tocotrienols–as indirect indicators of AD pathology, and the utility of a multimodality approach.
Methodology and mental illness: resistance and restorying
Authors: Fisher P. , Freshwater D. 
Published: April 2013

Accessible summary
This paper compares two post‐modern methodological approaches, post‐structuralist and narrative, and considers their usefulness in relation to emancipatory research in mental health.
The paper finds that post‐structural analyses can be useful in deconstructing oppressive practices and in indicating emerging forms of resistance.
Narrative approaches potentially offer greater emancipatory scope than post‐structuralism as they enable people with mental health problems to restore their lives and enact their own subjective transformation.
However, narrative templates may perpetuate injustice if they erase the complexity of people's stories. This raises ethical issues in relation to narrative interpretation.
AbstractConcerns with social justice have been traditionally associated with a modernist concept of the individual whose actions express an underlying, essential and unified self. This paper compares the usefulness of two methodologies (post‐structuralist and narrative) that are based on a rejection of identity of a unified self and compares their usefulness in relation to the development of a social justice paradigm within mental health. It considers how professional forms of knowledge may be deconstructed by post‐structural analyses, arguing that these have also been used by service users to articulate more enabling discursive alternatives. The notion of agency is central to our understanding of social justice. We question the commonly held assumption that although post‐structuralism deconstructs power and challenges its legitimacy, it is nevertheless unsuited to facilitating the necessary agency to put forward viable alternatives. The second half of the paper considers how narrative research offers greater emancipatory potential by enabling the research subject to author their stories and thereby brings about their own subjective transformation. Nevertheless, the interpretation of people's stories by researchers may result in the imposition of narrative templates that erase complexities and contribute to the perpetuation of oppression. This raises ethical implications in relation to how people's stories are interpreted.
Pediatric allergy and immunology in Brazil
Authors: Rosario‐Filho Nelson A. , Jacob Cristina M. , Sole Dirceu , Condino‐Neto Antonio , Arruda Luisa K. , Costa‐Carvalho Beatriz , Cocco Renata R. , Camelo‐Nunes Inês , Chong‐Neto Herberto J. , Wandalsen Gustavo F. , Castro Ana P. M. , Yang Ariana C. , Pastorino Antonio C. , Sarinho Emanuel S. 
Published: April 2013

AbstractThe subspecialty of pediatric allergy and immunology in Brazil is in its early years and progressing steadily. This review highlights the research developed in the past years aiming to show the characteristics of allergic and immunologic diseases in this vast country. Epidemiologic studies demonstrated the high prevalence of asthma in infants, children, and adolescents. Mortality rates and average annual variation of asthma hospitalization have reduced in all pediatric age groups. Indoor aeroallergen exposure is excessively high and contributes to the high rates of allergy sensitization. Prevalence of food allergy has increased to epidemic levels. Foods (35%), insect stings (30%), and drugs (23%) are the main etiological agents of anaphylaxis in children and adolescents. Molecular diagnosis of primary immunodeficiencies (PID) showed a high incidence of fungal infections including paracoccidioidomycosis in X‐linked hyper‐IgM syndrome, and the occurrence of BCG adverse reactions or other mycobacterial infections in patients with chronic granulomatous disease. Education in pediatric allergy and immunology is deficient for medical students, but residency programs are effective in training internists and pediatricians for the practice of allergy. The field of PID requires further training. Last, this review is a tribute to Prof. Dr. Charles Naspitz, one of the pioneers of our specialty in Brazil.