bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Recreational Physical Activity and Leisure-Time Sitting in Relation to Postmenopausal Breast Cancer Risk
Authors: Hildebrand Janet S. , Gapstur Susan M. , Campbell Peter T. , Gaudet Mia M. , Patel Alpa V. 
Published: October 2013

AbstractEpidemiologic evidence supports an inverse association between physical activity and postmenopausal breast cancer. Whether associations exist for moderate activities, such as walking, and whether associations differ by estrogen receptor (ER) status, body mass index (BMI, kg/m2), adult weight gain, or use of postmenopausal hormones (PMH) is unclear. The relation between time spent sitting and breast cancer also is unclear. Among 73,615 postmenopausal women in the American Cancer Society Cancer Prevention Study II Nutrition Cohort, 4,760 women were diagnosed with breast cancer between 1992 and 2009. Extended Cox regression was used to estimate multivariable-adjusted relative risks (RR) of breast cancer in relation to total recreational physical activity, walking, and leisure-time sitting. Differences in associations by ER status, BMI, weight gain, and PMH use were also evaluated. The most active women (those reporting &gt;42 MET-hours/week physical activity) experienced 25% lower risk of breast cancer than the least active [0–&lt;7 MET-hours/week; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.63–0.89; Ptrend = 0.01]. Forty-seven percent of women reported walking as their only recreational activity; among these women, a 14% lower risk was observed for ≥7 hours/week relative to ≤3 hours/week of walking (95% CI, 0.75–0.98). Associations did not differ by ER status, BMI, weight gain, or PMH use. Sitting time was not associated with risk. These results support an inverse association between physical activity and postmenopausal breast cancer that does not differ by ER status, BMI, weight gain, or PMH use. The finding of a lower risk associated with ≥7 hours/week of walking may be of public health interest. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev; 22(10); 1906–12. ©2013 AACR.
Plasma Lipoprotein(a) Concentration Predicts Future Coronary and Cardiovascular Events in Patients With Stable Coronary Heart Disease
Authors: Nestel Paul J. , Barnes Elizabeth H. , Tonkin Andrew M. , Simes John , Fournier Marion , White Harvey D. , Colquhoun David M. , Blankenberg Stefan , Sullivan David R. 
Published: October 2013

Objective—
Association between lipoprotein(a) (Lp(a)) level and a first-ever coronary (CHD) event is recognized. Less is evident in patients with overt CHD and stable symptoms in whom we investigated associations between Lp(a) and future events.

Approach and Results—

Relationships between Lp(a) concentration and CHD and cardiovascular disease outcomes during 6 years’ median follow-up were evaluated in the Long-Term Intervention with Pravastatin in Ischaemic Disease (LIPID) study. Lp(a) concentrations were measured in plasma from 7863 patients who had sustained a previous coronary event and been randomized to pravastatin or placebo. Lp(a) levels were categorized by lowest half, third quartile, 75th to 90th percentile, and highest decile. The prognostic value of Lp(a) on outcomes was assessed by fitting a Cox proportional-hazards model after adjustment for other risk factors and baseline cardiovascular disorders. The prognostic value of a change in Lp(a) at year 1 categorized by quartiles was assessed using Cox regression in a landmark model incorporating the above factors and baseline levels. Baseline Lp(a) concentration was associated with total CHD events (
P
<0.001), total cardiovascular disease events (
P
=0.002), and coronary events (
P
=0.03). Greatest risk occurred at >73 mg/dL, upper decile. For events after year 1, an increase in Lp(a) at 1 year was associated with adverse outcomes for total CHD events and total cardiovascular disease events (
P
=0.002 each).

Conclusions—
In the LIPID study, baseline Lp(a) was associated with future cardiovascular disease and CHD events. Increased Lp(a) concentrations after 1 year were also associated with future events, supporting measurement of Lp(a) for risk assessment of patients with known CHD.
A Direct Link between Feature Tracking and Height Assignment of Operational EUMETSAT Atmospheric Motion Vectors
Authors: Borde Régis , Doutriaux-Boucher Marie , Dew Greg , Carranza Manuel 
Published: October 2013

Abstract
Height assignment (HA) is currently the most challenging task in the operational atmospheric motion vectors’ (AMV) extraction scheme. Several sources of error are associated with the height assignment step, including the sensitivity of the HA methods to several atmospheric parameters. However, one of the main difficulties is to identify, for the HA calculation, the most significant image pixels used in the feature-tracking process. The most widely used method selects the coldest pixels in a representative target box (e.g., coldest 25%) to infer the height of the detected feature, irrespective of what was tracked. This paper presents a method based on a closer link between the pixels used for tracking and their HA. The individual contribution to the overall tracking cross-correlation coefficient is used to identify the most significant pixels contributing to the tracking. This approach has been implemented operationally at European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (EUMETSAT) to derive AMVs since September 2012. This paper details the method, gives specific examples, and provides a first glance at its performances and benefits for the operational AMV production.
Conservation of Mass and Preservation of Positivity with Ensemble-Type Kalman Filter Algorithms
Authors: Janjić Tijana , McLaughlin Dennis , Cohn Stephen E. , Verlaan Martin 
Published: October 2013

Abstract
This paper considers the incorporation of constraints to enforce physically based conservation laws in the ensemble Kalman filter. In particular, constraints are used to ensure that the ensemble members and the ensemble mean conserve mass and remain nonnegative through measurement updates. In certain situations filtering algorithms such as the ensemble Kalman filter (EnKF) and ensemble transform Kalman filter (ETKF) yield updated ensembles that conserve mass but are negative, even though the actual states must be nonnegative. In such situations if negative values are set to zero, or a log transform is introduced, the total mass will not be conserved. In this study, mass and positivity are both preserved by formulating the filter update as a set of quadratic programming problems that incorporate nonnegativity constraints. Simple numerical experiments indicate that this approach can have a significant positive impact on the posterior ensemble distribution, giving results that are more physically plausible both for individual ensemble members and for the ensemble mean. In two examples, an update that includes a nonnegativity constraint is able to properly describe the transport of a sharp feature (e.g., a triangle or cone). A number of implementation questions still need to be addressed, particularly the need to develop a computationally efficient quadratic programming update for large ensemble.
Performance improvement of ammonia/absorbent air source absorption heat pump in cold regions
Authors: Wu W , Wang BL , Shi WX , Li XT 
Published: October 2013

Air source absorption heat pump is promising in energy saving and emission reduction of heating and domestic hot water, but performs badly or even cannot work in cold climate. The ammonia/absorbent air source absorption heat pump with low-pressure boosting is proposed to solve the problem. The hybrid air source absorption heat pump + compressor system is modeled and the compression ratio is optimized to obtain maximum primary energy efficiency. The integrated system is simulated with air temperature ranging from −30℃ to 10℃ and hot water temperature from 30℃ to 60℃. Comparative simulations on three working fluids reveal that NH3–LiNO3 system has the lowest compression ratio and the highest primary energy efficiency value. By pressure boosting, the air source absorption heat pump can operate under air temperatures as low as −30℃. Primary energy efficiency of the hybrid system is about 15–50% higher than that of coal boiler, showing great potential for heat supply in cold regions. Practical application: Heating and domestic hot water consumes a large amount of energy every year. Air source absorption heat pump can be a potential alternative to the traditional boiler systems in the point view of primary energy efficiency. However, air source absorption heat pump performs badly or cannot work when the air temperature is low. This paper presents a hybrid air source absorption heat pump with pressure boosting to improve the performance of the air source absorption heat pump heating system, making it operate under lower outdoor air temperatures with higher primary energy efficiency. The novel heat supply system is expected to make contributions to building energy saving as well as pollution reduction.
Effects of Ureaplasma urealyticum lipid-associated membrane proteins on rheumatoid arthritis synovial fibroblasts
Authors: Fu Min , Chen Li Hui , Xia Guangtao , Zhang Yuanchao 
Published: October 2013

Objectives As an infectious agent might play a role in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) development, this study investigated effects of Ureaplasma urealyticum lipid-associated membrane proteins (UuLAMPs) on RA synovial fibroblast (RASF) proliferation, and tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-α and interleukin (IL)-1β production by THP-1 macrophages. Possible immunogenic proteins in UuLAMPs were identified. Methods RASFs were cultured from synovial tissue from donors with RA. Serum samples from donors with/without RA and with/without U. urealyticum infection were used for immunogenicity analyses. THP-1 macrophages served as a model for synovial macrophages. TNF-α and IL-1β mRNA levels were assessed using reverse transcription–polymerase chain reaction; protein levels were estimated using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. UuLAMPs underwent separation and Western blot analyses. Results UuLAMPs (0.025–0.4 µg/ml) stimulated RASF proliferation in a dose- and time-dependent manner, and increased TNF-α and IL-1β levels in THP-1 macrophages. Several immunogenic UuLAMPs were identified, but antibodies to a 25 kDa protein were only found in RA patients with U. urealyticum infection. Conclusions UuLAMPs might induce RASF proliferation and proinflammatory cytokine secretion in synovium from RA patients. A 25 kDa U. urealyticum protein might act as a cross-reactive antigen.
Genetically-engineered mesenchymal stem cells transfected with human HCN1 gene to create cardiac pacemaker cells
Authors: Zhou Ya-Feng , Yang Xiang-Jun , Li Hong-Xia , Han Lian-Huan , Jiang Wen-Ping 
Published: October 2013

Objective To test the proof-of-principle that genetically-engineered mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) transfected with the human hyperpolarization-activated cyclic nucleotide-gated channel 1 ( hHCN1) gene can be modified to become cardiac pacemaker cells. Methods MSCs were transfected with the hHCN1 gene using lentiviral-based transfection. The expressed pacemaker current ( If) in hHCN1-transfected MSCs was recorded using whole-cell patch-clamp analysis. The effect of the hHCN1-transfected MSCs on cardiomyocyte excitability was determined by coculturing the MSCs with neonatal rabbit ventricular myocytes (NRVM). The spontaneous action potentials of the NRVM were recorded by whole-cell current-clamp analysis. Results A high level time- and voltage-dependent inward hyperpolarization current that was inhibited by 4 mM caesium chloride was detected in hHCN1-transfected MSCs, suggesting that the HCN1 proteins acted as If channels in MSCs. The mean ± SE beating frequency in NRVMs cocultured with control MSCs transfected with the pcDNA3 plasmid control was 82 ± 8 beats/min ( n = 5) compared with 129 ± 11 beats/min ( n = 5) in NRVMs cocultured with hHCN1-transfected MSCs. Conclusions Genetically-engineered MSCs transfected with the hHCN1 gene can be modified to become cardiac pacemaker cells.
Pediatric-Onset Extracephalic Stabbing Pain
Authors: Kakisaka Yosuke , Kano Shinsuke , Hino-Fukuyo Naomi , Uematsu Mitsugu , Kure Shigeo 
Published: October 2013

Idiopathic stabbing headache is a primary headache defined as “transient stabs of pain in the head that occur spontaneously in the absence of underlying organic disease.” Although its variant form, stabbing pain with extracephalic distribution, has been reported in rare adult cases, pediatric presentation is extremely rare. We report an 8-year-old boy suffering from severe stabbing pain in the left side of the chest, right side of the abdomen, and right knee lasting 2 to 3 minutes with increasing frequency. He was completely normal between attacks. The attack was not accompanied with headache initially. Investigation showed no abnormality. A diagnosis of extracephalic stabbing pain was made. The patient’s symptoms were ameliorated by administration of valproic acid. This report illustrates that extracephalic stabbing pain can occur in pediatric patients. It is important to be aware of this peculiar condition because the pain is so severe, and it can be treatable with medication.
The development of genome-wide association studies and their application to complex diseases, including lupus
Authors: Bentham J , Vyse TJ 
Published: October 2013

In this review, we explain the motivation for carrying out genome-wide association studies (GWAS), contrasting the achievements of linkage-based experiments for Mendelian traits with the difficulties found when applying that type of experiment to complex diseases. We explain the technical and organizational developments that were required to make GWAS feasible, as well as some of the theoretical concerns that were raised during the design of these studies. We describe the impressive achievements of GWAS in lupus, and compare them with the experiences in three other genetically complex disorders: rheumatoid arthritis, type 1 diabetes and coronary heart disease. GWAS have been successful in identifying many new susceptibility loci for these four diseases, and have provided the motivation for novel immunological work. We conclude by describing preliminary steps that have been taken towards translating the results of GWAS into improvements in patient care, explaining some of the difficulties involved, as well as successes that have already been achieved.
Service characteristics as predictors of parents’ perceptions of child rehabilitation outcomes
Authors: Järvikoski Aila , Härkäpää Kristiina , Martin Marjatta , Vasari Pekka , Autti-Rämö Ilona 
Published: October 2013

Medical rehabilitation arranged by the Social Insurance Institution of Finland is provided for children with severe disabilities. The study aimed to find out which service characteristics were associated with perceived outcomes of rehabilitation. Parents whose children had participated in rehabilitation ( n = 496) responded to a mail questionnaire that included questions on service characteristics and possible outcomes. Based on factor analysis, four outcome variables were formed. Logistic regression analysis was used to identify the particular service characteristics that were associated with the perceived outcomes. The family’s participation in rehabilitation planning and the child’s willingness to participate in rehabilitation activities were associated with good outcomes. Having a contact person for the rehabilitation process predicted child and family empowerment outcomes. The results emphasize the significance of establishing a good partnership between the professionals and the family; of developing the contents of the rehabilitation program, so that they motivate the child, and of organizing service coordinators for each family.
The prognostic impact of variant histology in nodular lymphocyte-predominant Hodgkin lymphoma: a report from the German Hodgkin Study Group (GHSG)
Authors: Hartmann Sylvia , Eichenauer Dennis A. , Plütschow Annette , Mottok Anja , Bob Roshanak , Koch Karoline , Bernd Heinz-Wolfram , Cogliatti Sergio , Hummel Michael , Feller Alfred C. , Ott German , Möller Peter , Rosenwald Andreas , Stein Harald , Hansmann Martin-Leo , Engert Andreas , Klapper Wolfram 
Published: October 2013

Key PointsHistopathologic variants of nodular lymphocyte–predominant Hodgkin lymphoma are associated with advanced stage and increased relapse rate. A prognostic score combining histopathologic and clinical features can allocate patients to 3 defined risk groups.
Antiflammin-1 attenuates bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis in mice
Authors: Liu Wei , Wan Jing , Han Jian-Zhong , Li Chen , Feng Dan-Dan , Yue Shao-Jie , Huang Yan-Hong , Chen Yi , Cheng Qing-Mei , Li Yang , Luo Zi-Qiang 
Published: October 2013

Abstract

Background
Antiflammin-1 (AF-1), a derivative of uteroglobin (UG), is a synthetic nonapeptide with diverse biological functions. In the present study, we investigated whether AF-1 has a protective effect against bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis.

Methods
C57BL/6 mice were injected with bleomycin intratracheally to create an animal model of bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis. On Day 7 and Day 28, we examined the anti-inflammatory effect and antifibrotic effect, respectively, of AF-1 on the bleomycin-treated mice. The effects of AF-1 on the transforming growth factor-beta 1 (TGF-β1)-induced proliferation of murine lung fibroblasts (NIH3T3) were examined by a bromodeoxycytidine (BrdU) incorporation assay and cell cycle analysis.

Results
Severe lung inflammation and fibrosis were observed in the bleomycin-treated mice on Day 7 and Day 28, respectively. Administration of AF-1 significantly reduced the number of neutrophils in the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) and the levels of tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) and interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β) in the lung homogenates on Day 7. Histological examination revealed that AF-1 markedly reduced the number of infiltrating cells on Day 7 and attenuated the collagen deposition and destruction of lung architecture on Day 28. The hydroxyproline (HYP) content was significantly decreased in the AF-1-treated mice. In vitro, AF-1 inhibited the TGF-β1-induced proliferation of NIH3T3 cells, which was mediated by the UG receptor.

Conclusions
AF-1 has anti-inflammatory and antifibrotic actions in bleomycin-induced lung injury. We propose that the antifibrotic effect of AF-1 might be related to its suppression of fibroblast growth in bleomycin-treated lungs and that AF-1 has potential as a new therapeutic tool for pulmonary fibrosis.
Rare recessive loss-of-function methionyl-tRNA synthetase mutations presenting as a multi-organ phenotype
Authors: van Meel Eline , Wegner Daniel J , Cliften Paul , Willing Marcia C , White Frances V , Kornfeld Stuart , Cole F Sessions 
Published: October 2013

Abstract

Background
Methionyl-tRNA synthetase (MARS) catalyzes the ligation of methionine to its cognate transfer RNA and therefore plays an essential role in protein biosynthesis.

Methods
We used exome sequencing, aminoacylation assays, homology modeling, and immuno-isolation of transfected MARS to identify and characterize mutations in the methionyl-tRNA synthetase gene (MARS) in an infant with an unexplained multi-organ phenotype.

Results
We identified compound heterozygous mutations (F370L and I523T) in highly conserved regions of MARS. The parents were each heterozygous for one of the mutations. Aminoacylation assays documented that the F370L and I523T MARS mutants had 18 ± 6% and 16 ± 6%, respectively, of wild-type activity. Homology modeling of the human MARS sequence with the structure of E. coli MARS showed that the F370L and I523T mutations are in close proximity to each other, with residue I523 located in the methionine binding pocket. We found that the F370L and I523T mutations did not affect the association of MARS with the multisynthetase complex.

Conclusion
This infant expands the catalogue of inherited human diseases caused by mutations in aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase genes.
The long non-coding RNA HOTAIR indicates a poor prognosis and promotes metastasis in non-small cell lung cancer
Authors: Liu Xiang-hua , Liu Zhi-li , Sun Ming , Liu Jing , Wang Zhao-xia , De Wei 
Published: October 2013

Abstract

Background
The identification of cancer-associated long non-coding RNAs and the investigation of their molecular and biological functions are important for understanding the molecular biology and progression of cancer. HOTAIR (HOX transcript antisense intergenic RNA) has been implicated in several cancers; however, its role in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is unknown. The aim of the present study was to examine the expression pattern of HOTAIR in NSCLC and to evaluate its biological role and clinical significance in tumor progression.

Methods
Expression of HOTAIR was analyzed in 42 NSCLC tissues and four NSCLC cell lines by quantitative reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). Over-expression and RNA interference (RNAi) approaches were used to investigate the biological functions of HOTAIR. The effect of HOTAIR on proliferation was evaluated by MTT and colony formation assays, and cell migration and invasion were evaluated by transwell assays. Tail vein injection of cells was used to study metastasis in nude mice. Protein levels of HOTAIR targets were determined by western blot analysis. Differences between groups were tested for significance using Student’s t-test (two-tailed).

Results
HOTAIR was highly expressed both in NSCLC samples and cell lines compared with corresponding normal counterparts. HOTAIR upregulation was correlated with NSCLC advanced pathological stage and lymph-node metastasis. Moreover, patients with high levels of HOTAIR expression had a relatively poor prognosis. Inhibition of HOTAIR by RNAi decreased the migration and invasion of NSCLC cells in vitro and impeded cell metastasis in vivo. HOXA5 levels were affected by HOTAIR knockdown or over-expression in vitro.

Conclusions
Our findings indicate that HOTAIR is significantly up-regulated in NSCLC tissues, and regulates NSCLC cell invasion and metastasis, partially via the down-regulation of HOXA5. Thus, HOTAIR may represent a new marker of poor prognosis and is a potential therapeutic target for NSCLC intervention.
Site-specific growth and density control of carbon nanotubes by direct deposition of catalytic nanoparticles generated by spark discharge
Authors: Na Hyungjoo , Park Jae Hong , Hwang Jungho , Kim Jongbaeg 
Published: October 2013

Abstract
Catalytic iron nanoparticles generated by spark discharge were used to site-selectively grow carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and control their density. The generated aerosol nanoparticles were deposited on a cooled substrate by thermophoresis. The shadow mask on top of the cooled substrate enabled patterning of the catalytic nanoparticles and, thereby, patterning of CNTs synthesized by chemical vapor deposition. The density of CNTs could be controlled by varying the catalytic nanoparticle deposition time. It was also demonstrated that the density could be adjusted by changing the gap between the shadow mask and the substrate, taking advantage of the blurring effect of the deposited nanoparticles, for an identical deposition time. As all the processing steps for the patterned growth and density control of CNTs can be performed under dry conditions, we also demonstrated the integration of CNTs on fully processed, movable silicon microelectromechanical system (MEMS) structures.
Existence results for nonlinear fractional differential equations involving different Riemann-Liouville fractional derivatives
Authors: Wang Guotao , Liu Sanyang , Baleanu Dumitru , Zhang Lihong 
Published: October 2013

Abstract
By applying an iterative technique, a necessary and sufficient condition is obtained for the existence of the unique solution of nonlinear fractional differential equations involving two Riemann-Liouville derivatives of different fractional orders. Finally, an example is also given to illustrate the availability of our main results.