bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Sitagliptin ameliorates the progression of atherosclerosis via down regulation of the inflammatory and oxidative pathways
Authors: Majeed Sahar A , Hadi Najah R , Al Mudhafar Ahmed M , Al-Janabi Hussein A 
Published: September 2013

Back ground: Atherosclerosis is the major cause of death. The most common risk factors are hyperlipidemia, diabetes, and other factors like chronic infection and inflammation. Objective: This study was undertaken to assess the effect of sitagliptin on atherosclerosis via interfering with inflammatory and oxidative pathways. Materials and Methods: A total of 18 local domestic male rabbits were included in this study. The animals were randomly divided into three groups (6 rabbits in each group): Group I normal were fed with chow (oxiod) diet for 12 weeks. Group II were fed with 1% cholesterol enriched diet for 12 weeks. Group III rabbits fed with cholesterol enriched diet for 6 weeks, and then continued on cholesterol enriched diet and treated with sitagliptin 125 mg/kg/day orally for the next 6 weeks. Blood samples were collected at the start of the study, at 6 weeks of the study and then at the end of treatment to measure serum lipids profile, hsCRP and TNFα. At end of the study, the aorta was removed for measurement of MDA, glutathione and, aortic intima-media thickness. Results: Sitagliptin results in a significant reduction (p < 0.05) in serum level of total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TG), high sensitive C-reactive protein (hsCRP) and TNFα with a significant increase (p < 0.05) in serum HDL level. There was a significant reduction (p < 0.05) in aortic MDA, in comparison to the untreated control group. Furthermore, sitagliptin causes significant increment (p < 0.05) in aortic GSH in comparison to induced untreated group. Regarding histopathological results, sitagliptin results in a significant reduction (p < 0.05) in atherosclerotic lesions in comparison to the induced untreated group and significant reduction in aortic intima-media thickness (p < 0.05). Conclusion: Sitagliptin reduced atherosclerosis progression in hyperlipidemic rabbit via its effect on lipid parameters and interfering with inflammatory and oxidative stress.
Placental blood transfusion in newborn babies reaches a plateau after 140 s: Further analysis of longitudinal survey of weight change
Authors: Law Graham R , Cattle Brian , Farrar Diane , Scott Eleanor M , Gilthorpe Mark S 
Published: September 2013

Objective: With the introduction of active management of the third stage of labour in the 1960s, it became usual practice to clamp and cut the umbilical cord immediately following birth. The timing of this cord clamping is controversial, as blood may beneficially be transferred to the baby if clamping of the cord is delayed slightly. There is no agreement, however, on how long the delay should be before clamping the cord. This study aimed to establish when blood ceased to flow in the umbilical cord to determine how long to delay clamping of the umbilical cord following delivery of the term newborn to maximise placental transfusion. Methods: This observational study collected longitudinal weight measurements set in a hospital labour ward. A total of 26 mothers at term and their singleton babies participated in the study. In this reanalysis, the velocity of weight change over the first minutes of life determined by functional data analysis was estimated. Results: We found that the flow velocity in the umbilical cord was on average 0 at 125 s after placing the baby on the scales, which was typically 140 s after birth. Conclusions: To maximise placental transfusion, cord clamping should be delayed for at least 140 s following birth of the baby.
T cells expressing CD123-specific chimeric antigen receptors exhibit specific cytolytic effector functions and antitumor effects against human acute myeloid leukemia
Authors: Mardiros Armen , Dos Santos Cedric , McDonald Tinisha , Brown Christine E. , Wang Xiuli , Budde L. Elizabeth , Hoffman Lauren , Aguilar Brenda , Chang Wen-Chung , Bretzlaff William , Chang Brenda , Jonnalagadda Mahesh , Starr Renate , Ostberg Julie R. , Jensen Michael C. , Bhatia Ravi , Forman Stephen J. 
Published: September 2013

Key PointsCD123 CAR T cells specifically target CD123+ AML cells. AML patient-derived T cells can be genetically modified to lyse autologous tumor cells.
Antithrombotic actions of statins involve PECAM-1 signaling
Authors: Moraes Leonardo A. , Vaiyapuri Sakthivel , Sasikumar Parvathy , Ali Marfoua S. , Kriek Neline , Sage Tanya , Gibbins Jonathan M. 
Published: September 2013

Key PointsThe inhibitory effect of platelet function by statins results, at least in part, in action on PECAM-1. Statins modulate Lyn activation and PECAM-1 tyrosine phosphorylation, resulting in the inhibition of downstream PI3K–dependent signaling.
Host programmed death ligand 1 is dominant over programmed death ligand 2 expression in regulating graft-versus-host disease lethality
Authors: Saha Asim , Aoyama Kazutoshi , Taylor Patricia A. , Koehn Brent H. , Veenstra Rachelle G. , Panoskaltsis-Mortari Angela , Munn David H. , Murphy William J. , Azuma Miyuki , Yagita Hideo , Fife Brian T. , Sayegh Mohammed H. , Najafian Nader , Socie Gerard , Ahmed Rafi , Freeman Gordon J. , Sharpe Arlene H. , Blazar Bruce R. 
Published: September 2013

Key PointsPD-L1 and PD-L2 expression were upregulated during GVHD, whereas PD-1/PD-L1 was more critical than PD-1/PD-L2 in downregulating GVHD. Our data provide new insight into the differential roles of host PD-L1 and PD-L2 and associated mechanisms in controlling GVHD.
Platelet-derived ERp57 mediates platelet incorporation into a growing thrombus by regulation of the αIIbβ3 integrin
Authors: Wang Lu , Wu Yi , Zhou Junsong , Ahmad Syed S. , Mutus Bulent , Garbi Natalio , Hämmerling Günter , Liu Junling , Essex David W. 
Published: September 2013

Key PointsPlatelet-derived ERp57 plays an important role in physiologic platelet function and thrombosis. ERp57 directly interacts with αIIbβ3 in regulating its function.
Transcriptome profiling reveals links between ParS/ParR, MexEF-OprN, and quorum sensing in the regulation of adaptation and virulence in Pseudomonas aeruginosa
Authors: Wang Dongping , Seeve Candace , Pierson Leland S , Pierson Elizabeth A 
Published: September 2013

Abstract

Background
The ParS/ParR two component regulatory system plays critical roles for multidrug resistance in Pseudomonas aeruginosa. It was demonstrated that in the presence of antimicrobials, ParR enhances bacterial survival by distinct mechanisms including activation of the mexXY efflux genes, enhancement of lipopolysaccharide modification through the arn operon, and reduction of the expression of oprD porin.

Results
In this study, we report on transcriptomic analyses of P. aeruginosa PAO1 wild type and parS and parR mutants growing in a defined minimal medium. Our transcriptomic analysis provides the first estimates of transcript abundance for the 5570 coding genes in P. aeruginosa PAO1. Comparative transcriptomics of P. aeruginosa PAO1 and par mutants identified a total of 464 genes regulated by ParS and ParR. Results also showed that mutations in the parS/parR system abolished expression of the mexEF-oprN operon by down-regulating the regulatory gene mexS. In addition to the known effects on drug resistance genes, transcript abundances of the quorum sensing genes (rhlIR and pqsABCDE-phnAB) were higher in both parS and parR mutants. In accordance with these results, a significant portion of the ParS/ParR regulated genes belonged to the MexEF-OprN and quorum sensing regulons. Deletion of the par genes also led to increased phenazine production and swarming motility, consistent with the up-regulation of the phenazine and rhamnolipid biosynthetic genes, respectively.

Conclusion
Our results link the ParS/ParR two component signal transduction system to MexEF-OprN and quorum sensing systems in P. aeruginosa. These results expand our understanding of the roles of the ParS/ParR system in the regulation of gene expression in P. aeruginosa, especially in the absence of antimicrobials.
Breastfeeding and pain relief in full-term neonates during immunization injections: a clinical randomized trial
Authors: Modarres Maryam , Jazayeri Azam , Rahnama Parvin , Montazeri Ali 
Published: September 2013

AbstractBackgroundThe aim of this study was to examine the effect of breastfeeding on pain relief in full-term neonates during injection of hepatitis B vaccine.MethodsThis was a randomized clinical trial. A sample of full-term neonates was randomly allocated into two groups: the experimental group and the control group. Neonates in the experimental group were breastfed two minutes before, during, and after the hepatitis B immunization and the control group were held in mothers’ arms but not fed. Pain was assessed using the Douleur Aiguë du Nouveau-né (DAN) scale measuring facial expressions, limb movements and vocal expressions. The assessments were carried out after hepatitis B immunization.ResultsOne hundred thirty healthy full-term neonates were studied (65 in the experimental group and 65 in the control group). Gestational age, birth weight, Apgar score and gender did not differ between the two groups. The mean total pain score as measured by the DAN scale was 3.52 (SD = 1.37) for the experimental group and it was 6.78 (SD = 1.69) for the controls indicating a significant lower pain score for the experimental group (P<0.001). Also, there were significant differences for the three measures of DAN scale that are facial expressions, limb movements and vocal expression, between the two study groups (P<0.001).ConclusionThe findings confirm that breastfeeding reduces pain and is effective way for pain relief during hepatitis B vaccine injection.Trial registrationIRCT201104166206N1
Food products qualifying for and carrying front-of-pack symbols: a cross-sectional study examining a manufacturer led and a non-profit organization led program
Authors: Emrich Teri E , Cohen Joanna E , Lou Wendy Y , L’Abbé Mary R 
Published: September 2013

Abstract

Background
Concern has been raised that the coexistence of multiple front-of-pack (FOP) nutrition rating systems in a marketplace may mislead consumers into believing that a specific food with a FOP is ‘healthier’ than foods without the symbol. Eleven summary indicator FOP systems are in use in Canada, including one non-profit developed system, the Heart and Stroke Foundation’s Health Check™, and ten manufacturer-developed systems, like Kraft’s Sensible Solutions™. This study evaluated FOP’s potential to mislead consumers by comparing the number of products qualifying to carry a given FOP symbol to the number of products that actually carry the symbol.

Methods
The nutritional criteria for the Health Check™ and the Sensible Solutions™ systems were applied to a 2010–2011 Canadian national database of packaged food products. The proportion of foods qualifying for a given FOP system was compared to the proportion carrying the symbol using McNemar’s test.

Results
Criteria were available to categorize 7503 and 3009 of the 10,487 foods in the database under Health Check™ and Sensible Solutions™, respectively. Overall 45% of the foods belonging to a Health Check™ category qualified for Health Check’s™ symbol, while only 7.5% of the foods carried the symbol. Up to 79.1% of the foods belonging to a Sensible Solutions™, category qualified for Sensible Solutions’s™ symbol while only 4.1% of the foods carried the symbol. The level of agreement between products qualifying for and carrying FOP systems was poor to moderate in the majority of food categories for both systems. More than 75% of the products in 24 of the 85 Health Check™ subcategories and 9 of 11 Sensible Solution™ categories/subcategories qualified for their respective symbols based on their nutritional composition.

Conclusions
FOP systems as they are currently applied are not, in most instances, a useful guide to identifying healthier food products in the supermarket as many more products qualify for these systems than the number of products actually displaying these symbols on FOP, and the level of agreement between qualifying and carrying products is poor to moderate. The adoption of a single, standardized FOP system would assure consumers that all products meeting certain nutritional standards are designated by the symbol.
Diabetic retinopathy risk prediction for fundus examination using sparse learning: a cross-sectional study
Authors: Oh Ein , Yoo Tae Keun , Park Eun-Cheol 
Published: September 2013

AbstractBackgroundBlindness due to diabetic retinopathy (DR) is the major disability in diabetic patients. Although early management has shown to prevent vision loss, diabetic patients have a low rate of routine ophthalmologic examination. Hence, we developed and validated sparse learning models with the aim of identifying the risk of DR in diabetic patients.MethodsHealth records from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (KNHANES) V-1 were used. The prediction models for DR were constructed using data from 327 diabetic patients, and were validated internally on 163 patients in the KNHANES V-1. External validation was performed using 562 diabetic patients in the KNHANES V-2. The learning models, including ridge, elastic net, and LASSO, were compared to the traditional indicators of DR.ResultsConsidering the Bayesian information criterion, LASSO predicted DR most efficiently. In the internal and external validation, LASSO was significantly superior to the traditional indicators by calculating the area under the curve (AUC) of the receiver operating characteristic. LASSO showed an AUC of 0.81 and an accuracy of 73.6% in the internal validation, and an AUC of 0.82 and an accuracy of 75.2% in the external validation.ConclusionThe sparse learning model using LASSO was effective in analyzing the epidemiological underlying patterns of DR. This is the first study to develop a machine learning model to predict DR risk using health records. LASSO can be an excellent choice when both discriminative power and variable selection are important in the analysis of high-dimensional electronic health records.
Association between aldehyde dehydrogenase 2 polymorphisms and the incidence of diabetic retinopathy among Japanese subjects with type 2 diabetes mellitus
Authors: Morita Kazunori , Saruwatari Junji , Miyagawa Haruna , Uchiyashiki Yoshihiro , Oniki Kentaro , Sakata Misaki , Kajiwara Ayami , Yoshida Akira , Jinnouchi Hideaki , Nakagawa Kazuko 
Published: September 2013

Abstract

Background
Mitochondrial aldehyde dehydrogenase 2 (ALDH2) detoxifies reactive aldehydes in the micro- and macrovasculature. These substrates, including methylglyoxal and 4-hydroxynonenal formed from glucose and lipids, cause protein carbonylation and mitochondrial dysfunction, forming advanced glycation end products (AGEs). The present study aimed to confirm the association between the inactive ALDH2*2 allele and diabetic retinopathy (DR).

Methods
A retrospective longitudinal analysis was conducted, among 234 Japanese patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM) (156 males and 78 females) who had no DR signs at baseline and were treated for more than half a year. The ALDH2*1/*2 alleles were determined using a real-time TaqMan allelic discrimination assay. Multivariate-adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidential intervals (CIs) for the cumulative incidence of the development of DR were examined using a Cox proportional hazard model, taking drinking habits and the serum γ-glutamyltransferase (GGT) level into consideration.

Results
The frequency of the ALDH2*2 allele was 22.3%. Fifty-two subjects cumulatively developed DR during the follow-up period of 5.5 ± 2.5 years. The ALDH2*2 allele carriers had a significantly higher incidence of DR than the non-carriers (HR: 1.92; P = 0.02). The incidence of DR was significantly higher in the drinkers with the ALDH2*2 allele than in those with the ALDH2*1/*1 genotype (HR: 2.61; P = 0.03), while the incidence of DR in the non-drinkers did not differ significantly between the ALDH2 genotype groups (P > 0.05). The incidence of DR was significantly higher in the ALDH2*2 allele carriers with a high GGT level than in the non-carriers with a high or low GGT level (HR: 2.45; P = 0.03; and HR: 2.63; P = 0.03, respectively).

Conclusions
To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of a significant association between the ALDH2*2 allele and the incidence of DR. These findings provide additional evidence that ALDH2 protects both microvasculature and macrovasculature against reactive aldehydes generated under conditions of sustained oxidative stress, although further investigations in larger cohorts are needed to verify the results.
Culture-adapted Plasmodium falciparum isolates from UK travellers: in vitro drug sensitivity, clonality and drug resistance markers
Authors: van Schalkwyk Donelly A , Burrow Rebekah , Henriques Gisela , Gadalla Nahla B , Beshir Khalid B , Hasford Christian , Wright Stephen G , Ding Xavier C , Chiodini Peter L , Sutherland Colin J 
Published: September 2013

Abstract

Background
The screening of lead compounds against in vitro parasite cultures is an essential step in the development of novel anti-malarial drugs, but currently relies on laboratory parasite lines established in vitro during the last century. This study sought to establish in continuous culture a series of recent Plasmodium falciparum isolates to represent the current parasite populations in Africa, all of which are now exposed to artemisinin combination therapy.

Methods
Pre-treatment P. falciparum isolates were obtained in EDTA, and placed into continuous culture after sampling of DNA. One post-treatment blood sample was also collected for each donor to monitor parasite clonality during clearance in vivo. IC50 estimates were obtained for 11 anti-malarial compounds for each established parasite line, clonal multiplicity measured in vivo and in vitro, and polymorphic sites implicated in parasite sensitivity to drugs were investigated at the pfmdr1, pfcrt, pfdhfr, pfdhps and pfap2mu loci before and after treatment, and in the cultured lines.

Results

Plasmodium falciparum isolates from seven malaria patients with recent travel to three West African and two East African countries were successfully established in long-term culture. One of these, HL1211, was from a patient with recrudescent parasitaemia 14 days after a full course of artemether-lumefantrine. All established culture lines were shown to be polyclonal, reflecting the in vivo isolates from which they were derived, and at least two lines reliably produce gametocytes in vitro. Two lines displayed high chloroquine IC50 estimates, and carried the CVIET haplotype at codons 72–76, whereas the remaining five lines carried the CVMNK haplotype and were sensitive in vitro. All were sensitive to the endoperoxides dihydroartemisinin and OZ277, but IC50 estimates for lumefantrine varied, with the least sensitive parasites carrying pfmdr1 alleles encoding Asn at codon 86.

Conclusions
This study describes the establishment in continuous culture, in vitro drug sensitivity testing and molecular characterization of a series of multiclonal P. falciparum isolates taken directly from UK malaria patients following recent travel to various malaria-endemic countries in Africa. These “HL” isolates are available as an open resource for studies of drug response, antigenic diversity and other aspects of parasite biology.
Effects of short-term fructooligosaccharide intake on equol production in Japanese postmenopausal women consuming soy isoflavone supplements: a pilot study
Authors: Tousen Yuko , Uehara Mariko , Abe Fumiko , Kimira Yoshifumi , Ishimi Yoshiko 
Published: September 2013

Abstract

Background
Recent studies suggest that some of the clinical effectiveness of soy or daidzein, which is a type of isoflavone, may be attributed to a person’s ability to produce equol from daidzein. Equol, which is a metabolite of one of the major soybean isoflavones called daidzein, is produced in the gastrointestinal tract by certain intestinal microbiota where present. Habitual dietary patterns may alter the intestinal bacterial profile, and influence the metabolism of isoflavones and the production of equol. Fructooligosaccharides (FOS) have a prebiotic activity as well as being a dietary fibre. The purpose of the present study was to determine whether FOS supplementation increases equol production in equol producers and stimulates equol production in equol non-producers in Japanese postmenopausal women.

Methods
A soy challenge was used to assess equol-producer status prior to the start of the study in healthy postmenopausal Japanese women. The study involved 4 separate groups in randomised crossover design. First, subjects were classified as equol producers (n = 25) or non-producers (n = 18), and then they were randomly assigned to the FOS or control group. All subjects received a daily dose of 37 mg isoflavone conjugates in the capsule (21 mg aglycone form) and either FOS (5g/day) or sucrose as control, in a randomised crossover study design. Equol -production was assessed by testing the serum and urine before and after the 2-week supplementation period.

Results
The analyses were conducted on 34 subjects completed the study, 21 (61.8%) were classified as equol producers, and 13 (38.2%) as non-producers. Significant differences were observed in the interaction effect of time × equol state after 1 week of intervention (p = 0.006). However there were no effects after 2 weeks of intervention (p = 0.516). Finally, in both equol producers and non-producers, FOS supplementation did not affect the serum equol concentration or the urinary equol to daidzein concentration ratios.

Conclusions
We have reported that FOS intervention (5 g/day for 2 weeks) does not significantly modulate the capacity of intestinal microbiota to produce equol in postmenopausal Japanese women, in either equol producers or non-producers in this pilot study. Further larger investigations that explore the roles of specific intestinal microbiota in equol production will enable the establishment of dietary conditions that are required to enhance equol production.
Applications of fixed point theory to extended Nash equilibriums of nonmonetized noncooperative games on posets
Authors: Xie Linsen , Li Jinlu , Wen Ching-Feng 
Published: September 2013

Abstract
We say that a noncooperative game is nonmonetized if the ranges of the utilities of the players are posets. In this paper, we examine some nonmonetized noncooperative games of which both the collection of strategies and the ranges of the utilities for the players are posets. Then we carry the concept of generalized Nash equilibriums of noncooperative games defined in (Li in J. Nonlinear Anal. Forum 18:1-11, 2013; Li and Park in Br. J. Econ. Manag. Trade 4(1), 2014) to extended Nash equilibriums of nonmonetized noncooperative games. By applying some fixed point theorems in posets and by using the order-preserving property of mappings, we prove an existence theorem of extended Nash equilibriums for nonmonetized noncooperative games.

MSC:46B42, 47H10, 58J20, 91A06, 91A10.