bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Colour Doppler Sonographic Diagnosis of Upper Limb Venous Thromboses
Authors: Kröger K. , Schelo C. , Gocke C. , Rudofsky G. 
Published: August 2015

1. Upper limb venous thromboses are considered to be a rare event, but in large hospitals with a lot of patients who receive aggressive intravenous therapy the number of thromboses seem to increase.
2. We have analysed all the cases of upper limb venous thrombosis which occurred at the Essen University Hospital between the years of 1992–1996. All patients were examined using colour Doppler sonography.
3. Out of 827 patients that were examined, a thrombosis was diagnosed in 334 cases. The subclavian vein was involved in 69% of all thromboses. Isolated jugular vein thrombosis was found in 17% of the thromboses, combined thromboses of the jugular and subclavian vein in 19%. In 182 cases the patients were treated for primarily a malignant illness. In 96 cases we found an association with venous port-systems or central venous catheters.
4. More than 40000 patients a year were treated at the university hospital. Considering this huge number of patients the thrombosis of the upper limb is still rare. The use of colour Doppler sonography allows an early and safe diagnosis of the thrombosis without straining the patient.
Effect of Topical Butyrate on Rectal Epithelial Kinetics and Mucosal Enzyme Activities
Authors: Gibson Peter R. , Kilias Diana , Rosella Ourania , Day Jenny M. , Abbott Margaret , Finch Caroline F. , Young Graeme P. 
Published: August 2015

1. This study aimed to determine the effect of luminal butyrate on proliferative kinetics, a differentiation marker (alkaline phosphatase), and a molecule that controls cell-substratum adhesion (urokinase) in histologically normal human rectal mucosa.
2. Ten subjects with a colonoscopically normal colon (seven had previous adenomas) were given either butyrate or saline enemas for 4 days in a double-blind cross-over manner. Rectal biopsies were taken before and after each course of enemas. Epithelial proliferative kinetics were measured immunohistochemically using antibodies to proliferating cell nuclear antigen. Urokinase and alkaline phosphatase activities were measured spectrophotometrically in biopsy homogenates.
3. Both saline and butyrate enemas were well tolerated and induced no histological change except for a significant increase in crypt length (P &lt; 0.05). The number of proliferating cells per crypt also increased significantly after butyrate (P = 0.018).
4. Compared with saline enemas, butyrate did not affect kinetic indices nor alkaline phosphatase activities. However, mucosal urokinase activities were significantly lower in butyrate-treated patients (9.5 ± 2.0 i.u./g) than in saline-treated patients (12.8 ± 2.0 i.u./g; P = 0.045).
5. Delivering of extra butyrate to the distal colon in healthy subjects may stabilize cell-substratum adhesion in surface epithelium and therefore offer a potential mechanism by which elevating distal colonic luminal butyrate concentrations might be beneficial in patients with colitis or hyperproliferative large bowel epithelium.
Role of T-cells in the development of arthritis
Authors: GASTON J. S. H. 
Published: August 2015

1.Arthritis can be induced in rodents by priming T-cells to respond to a foreign antigen and then challenging with antigen intra-articularly. This may be a model of the situation in human reactive arthritis in which T-cell responses are induced by antigens from organisms which trigger reactive arthritis (e.g. Chlamydia trachomatis) and antigen finds its way to the joint, most probably within macrophages. Priming by previous exposure to antigens similar to those of the triggering organism could also play a part in pathogenesis. Genetic factors determining the nature and control of the immune response affect the severity and duration of the arthritis.
2.T-cell-dependent arthritis can be induced in rodents by immunization with an antigen known to be expressed in the joint (e.g. Type II collagen). Whether this is an important mechanism in human arthritis is still unclear, even though diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis are conventionally thought of as ‘autoimmune'. No convincing candidate autoantigen has yet been identified in rheumatoid arthritis, and recent experiments in transgenic mice indicate that arthritis can be induced by an autoimmune T-cell response which does not target an antigen confined to the joint.
3.Adjuvant arthritis is a classical T-cell-dependent animal model of human arthritis; recently arthritis has been described as a rare complication in patients receiving adjuvant (intra-vesical live BCG organisms) for bladder cancer. Increasing attention is being paid to the role of adjuvants as ‘danger signals', which allow the immune system to determine whether an antigenic challenge poses a threat. Inappropriate attachment of danger signals to self antigens may result in T-cell-mediated immune responses, which could play a part in the pathogenesis of arthritis.
4.Animal studies indicate that autoimmune/inflammatory diseases can be produced by imbalances within T-cell populations, and that certain T-cells also have the capacity to regulate inflammatory responses. Among the latter are T-cells specific for conserved epitopes within heat shock protein 60. The extent to which T-cells of this kind operate in human disease has yet to be determined.
Na+/H+ exchanger activity and phosphorylation in temperature-sensitive immortalized proximal tubule cell lines derived from the spontaneously hypertensive rat
Authors: NG Leong L. , JENNINGS Sonja , DAVIES Joan E. , QUINN Paulene A. 
Published: August 2015

Freshly isolated proximal tubules from the spontaneously hypertensive rat (SHR) demonstrate elevated Na+/H+ exchanger (NHE) activity, but the underlying mechanism is unclear. Because of the difficulties in preparing sufficient numbers of proximal tubule cells for detailed biochemical studies, we have generated cell lines from SHR and Wistar–Kyoto rat (WKY) proximal tubule cells. Cell lines were obtained by transforming the cells with an origin-defective mutant of simian virus 40 encoding a heat-labile T antigen (tsA58 transformant). Such cells proliferate at the permissive temperature of 33 °C, but growth is abolished at the restrictive temperature of 39 °C. The predominant NHE isoform expressed was isoform 1, as determined by sensitivity to HOE-694 (3-methylsulphonyl-4-piperidinobenzoyl guanidine) and Western blotting using specific polyclonal antisera to NHE-1. NHE-3 protein was also present. Northern blots of poly(A) mRNA extracts of the cell lines revealed a low abundance of transcripts for NHE-2, -3 and -4, with no systematic difference between the lines. Although the intracellular pH was similar in the SHR and WKY lines, HOE-694-sensitive H+ efflux due to NHE-1 was substantially elevated in SHR lines compared with WKY lines (95.0±2.8 and 39.9±5.7 mmol·min-1·l-1 respectively; P < 0.001; n = 6). H+ efflux due to non-Na+-dependent mechanisms were similar in lines from the two strains. Western blotting revealed that NHE-1 density was also very similar in SHR and WKY lines, and subcellular fractionation of homogenates indicated that NHE-1 was localized predominantly to plasma membranes. Thus the turnover number of NHE-1 was increased. Immunoprecipitation of 32P-labelled phosphoproteins from these lines demonstrated an approximately 2-fold higher degree of phosphorylation of NHE-1 in SHR compared with WKY lines. These cell lines form a useful model for defining the biochemical mechanisms leading to the NHE-1 phenotype in the SHR kidney, in addition to investigations of other SHR phenotypic markers.
Short-term analysis of the relationship between blood pressure and urinary sodium excretion in normotensive subjects
Authors: CENTONZA Leonardo , CASTOLDI Giovanna , CHIANCA Roberto , BUSCA Giuseppe , GOLIN Raffaello , ZANCHETTI Alberto , STELLA Andrea 
Published: August 2015

The aim of this study was to investigate whether, in the short term, physiological blood pressure changes are coupled with changes in urinary sodium excretion in normotensive subjects, maintained at fixed sodium intake and under controlled postural and behavioural conditions. Twelve normotensive subjects were recruited. For each subject, seven urine samples were collected at fixed time intervals during an overall 26 h period: late afternoon (16.00–20.00 hours), evening (20.00–24.00 hours), night (24.00–06.00 hours), quiet wakefulness (06.00–09.00 hours), morning (09.00–12.00 hours), post-prandial (12.00–15.00 hours) and afternoon (15.00–18.00 hours). Blood pressure was monitored by an ambulatory blood pressure device during the whole 26 h period. Each urine sample was used to measure urinary sodium excretion and glomerular filtration rate (creatinine clearance). Blood pressure, heart rate, urinary sodium excretion and glomerular filtration rate recorded in the daytime were higher than those measured during the night-time. A significant positive correlation between mean blood pressure and urinary sodium excretion was found during the night, over the whole 26 h period, and during two subperiods of the daytime: quiet wakefulness and the post-prandial period. The coefficient of the pressure–natriuresis curve was significantly decreased by postural changes. We conclude that, in normotensive subjects, blood pressure and urinary sodium excretion are coupled in the short term. The assumption of an upright posture can mask this relationship, presumably by activating neurohumoral factors.
Perception of bronchoconstriction and bronchial hyper-responsiveness in asthma
Authors: OTTANELLI R. , ROSI E. , ROMAGNOLI I. , RONCHI M. C. , LANINI B. , GRAZZINI M. , FILIPPELLI M. , STENDARDI L. , DURANTI R. , SCANO G. 
Published: August 2015

The inter-relationship between the perception of bronchoconstriction, bronchial hyper-responsiveness and temporal adaptation in asthma is still a matter of debate. In a total of 52 stable asthmatic patients, 32 without airway obstruction [forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV1)/vital capacity (VC) 84.1% (S.D. 7.9%)], and 20 with airway obstruction [FEV1/VC 60% (4%)], we assessed the perception of bronchoconstriction during methacholine inhalation by using: (i) the slope and intercept of the Borg and VAS (Visual Analog Scale) scores against the decrease in FEV1, expressed as a percentage of the predicted value; and (ii) the Borg and VAS scores at a 20% decrease in FEV1 from the lowest post-saline level (PB20). Bronchial hyper-responsiveness was assessed as the provocative concentration of methacholine causing a 20% fall in FEV1 (PC20FEV1). The reduction in FEV1 was significantly related to the Borg and VAS scores, with values for the group mean slope and intercept of this relationship of 0.13 (S.D. 0.08) and -1.1 (3.02) for Borg, and 1.5 (1.19) and -12.01 (35) for VAS. PB20 was 3 (1.75) with Borg scores and 34.6 (20.5) with VAS scores. Compared with the subgroup without airway obstruction, the obstructed subgroup exhibited similar slopes, but lower Borg and VAS intercepts. For similar decreases in FEV1 (5–20% decreases from the lowest post-saline values), the Borg and VAS scores were lower in the non-obstructed than in the obstructed subgroup. PC20FEV1 was significantly related to both Borg PB20 and VAS PB20 when considering all patients. When assessing the subgroups, PC20FEV1 was related to Borg PB20 and VAS PB20 in the non-obstructed subjects, but not in the obstructed subjects. In neither subgroup was the log of the cumulative dose related to the Borg and VAS scores at the end of the test. We conclude that, unlike in previous studies, the ability to perceive acute bronchoconstriction may be reduced as background airflow obstruction increases in asthma. Bronchial hyper-responsiveness did not play a major role in perceived breathlessness in patients without airway obstruction, and even less of a role in patients with obstruction. The cumulative dose of agonist did not appear to influence the perception of bronchoconstriction.
Blood pressure and renal haemodynamic response to salt during the normal menstrual cycle
Authors: PECHÈRE-BERTSCHI Antoinette , MAILLARD Marc , STALDER Hans , BRUNNER Hans R. , BURNIER Michel 
Published: August 2015

The purpose of the present study was to evaluate prospectively blood pressure and the renal haemodynamic response to salt during the normal menstrual cycle. A total of 35 healthy normotensive young women not on oral contraceptives were enrolled; 17 were studied in the follicular phase and 18 in the luteal phase of the menstrual cycle. The women in each group were then randomly allocated to receive a low-sodium (40 mmol/day) or a high-sodium (250 mmol/day) diet for a 7-day period in two consecutive menstrual cycles. At the end of each dietary period, 24 h ambulatory blood pressure, urinary sodium excretion, plasma renin activity, plasma catecholamine levels and renal haemodynamics were measured. Our results show that the blood pressure response to salt is comparable during the luteal and the follicular phases of the normal menstrual cycle and is characterized by a salt-resistant pattern. In the kidney, effective renal plasma flow was significantly greater and the filtration fraction lower (P < 0.05) after salt loading in women studied in the luteal phase compared with women investigated in the follicular phase. This study thus demonstrates that the female hormone status does not affect the blood pressure response to sodium in young normotensive women. However, in contrast with systemic haemodynamics, the renal response to salt varies during the normal menstrual cycle, suggesting that female sex hormones play a role (direct or indirect) in the regulation of renal haemodynamics.
Characterization of an in vitro model for the study of the short and prolonged effects of myocardial ischaemia and reperfusion in man
Authors: ZHANG Jin-Gang , GHOSH Sudip , OCKLEFORD Colin D. , GALIÑANES Manuel 
Published: August 2015

The mechanisms underlying myocardial ischaemia and reperfusion-induced injury have been investigated, mainly by using animal experimental preparations in vitro and in vivo, but little is known of the process in human myocardium. The present studies characterize an in vitro model using human myocardium for the study of early and delayed effects of ischaemia and reperfusion. The right atrial appendage was manually sliced and incubated in buffer through which was bubbled O2/CO2 (19:1, v/v) for various time periods. Lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) leakage, 3-[4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl]-2,5 diphenyl-2H-tetrazolium bromide (MTT) reduction, oxygen consumption, nucleotide levels and tissue morphology were all investigated as markers of myocardial injury. The specimens remained stable and viable up to 24 h, but had significantly deteriorated by 48 h. The preparation responded to ischaemia in a time-related manner. Tissue viability was reduced by 25% after 30 min ischaemia, declined to 60% after 60 min ischaemia and to 75% after 120 min ischaemia. Interestingly, the tissue was more susceptible when ischaemia was induced after 24 h of aerobic incubation. The effects of the duration of reperfusion were investigated after a fixed 60 min ischaemic insult. The results of LDH leakage suggest that reperfusion injury is mainly sustained within the first 2 h of reperfusion. However, the results of MTT reduction show that there is a progressive decrease in tissue viability over the 24 h reperfusion period, possibly reflecting the occurrence of tissue necrosis and apoptosis at different reperfusion times. In conclusion, the data provide evidence that the incubation of human atrial tissue in vitro is stable, and slices are viable for at least 24 h, which permits the study of early and delayed consequences of ischaemia and reperfusion in the human myocardium.
Nitric oxide modulation of blood vessel tone identified by arterial waveform analysis
Authors: McVEIGH Gary E. , ALLEN Patrick B. , MORGAN David R. , HANRATTY Colm G. , SILKE Bernard 
Published: August 2015

Traditionally, nitric oxide-mediated alteration in blood vessel tone has been inferred from changes in flow in response to physical and pharmacological interventions using plethysmographic or ultrasonic techniques. We hypothesized that alteration in pulsatile arterial function may represent a more sensitive measure to detect and monitor nitric oxide-mediated modulation of arterial smooth muscle tone. Healthy male volunteers (n = 15) had radial artery pressure pulse waveforms recorded using a calibrated tonometer device. A computer-based assessment of the diastolic pressure decay was employed to quantify changes in arterial waveform morphology in terms of altered pulsatile (arterial compliance) and steady-state (peripheral resistance) haemodynamics. NG-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME), a stereospecific inhibitor of nitric oxide synthesis, was infused intravenously in incrementally increasing doses of 0.25, 0.5 and 0.75 mg/kg for 8 min each. Subjects then received either L-arginine or D-arginine (200 mg/kg over 15 min) intravenously in a blinded fashion. On a separate day, subjects had radial artery pressure pulse waveforms recorded before and after the sublingual administration of glyceryl trinitrate, an exogenous donor of nitric oxide. Cardiac output and heart rate decreased and mean arterial blood pressure increased significantly (P < 0.01 for all) in response to the incremental intravenous infusion of L-NAME. Small artery compliance decreased, whereas systemic vascular resistance increased in response to nitric oxide synthesis inhibition (P < 0.01 for both). The intravenous infusion of L-arginine restored the pulsatile and steady-state haemodynamic parameters to pre-treatment values, whereas D-arginine had no effect. Sublingual glyceryl trinitrate decreased systemic vascular resistance by 11%, whereas large artery- and small artery-compliance increased by 25% and 44% respectively. Pressure pulse contour analysis represents a sensitive and convenient technique capable of tracking changes in the pulsatile function of arteries accompanying nitric oxide-mediated alteration in arterial smooth muscle tone.
Relative affinity of angiotensin peptides and novel ligands at AT1 and AT2 receptors
Authors: Bosnyak Sanja , Jones Emma S. , Christopoulos Arthur , Aguilar Marie-Isabel , Thomas Walter G. , Widdop Robert E. 
Published: August 2015

AT1R (angiotensin type 1 receptor) and AT2R (angiotensin type 2 receptor) are well known to be involved in the complex cardiovascular actions of AngII (angiotensin II). However, shorter peptide fragments of AngII are thought to have biological activity in their own right and elicit effects that oppose those mediated by AngII. In the present study, we have used HEK (human embryonic kidney)-293 cells stably transfected with either AT1R or AT2R to perform a systematic analysis of binding affinities of all the major angiotensin peptides. Additionally, we tested the novel AT2R agonist Compound 21, as well as the MasR (Mas receptor) agonist and antagonist AVE0991 and A-779 respectively, for their ability to bind to AT1R or AT2R. Candesartan, CGP42214 and PD123319 were used as reference compounds. Binding studies using 125I-[Sar1Ile8]AngII on the AT1R-transfected HEK-293 cells revealed only AngII, AngIII [angiotensin III; angiotensin-(2–8)] and candesartan to have high affinity for AT1R. In the AT2R-transfected HEK-293 cells, competition for 125I-[Sar1Ile8]AngII binding was observed for all ligands except candesartan, AVE0991 and A-779, the latter two compounds having negligible affinity at either AT1R or AT2R. The rank order of affinity of ligands at AT2R was CGP42112&gt;AngII≥AngIII&gt;Compound 21≥PD123319≫AngIV [angiotensin IV; angiotensin-(3–8)]&gt;Ang-(1–7) [angiotensin-(1–7)]. Of note, although AngIV and Ang-(1–7) exhibited only modest affinity at AT2R compared with AngII, these two angiotensin peptides, together with AngIII, had substantial AT2R selectivity over AT1R. Collectively, our results suggest that shorter angiotensin peptides can act as endogenous ligands at AT2R.
Extraction and preconcentration of diclofenac through adsolubilisation process using magnetic nanoparticles adsorbent prior to its spectrophotometric determination
Authors: Ershad Sohrab , Razmara Akbar , Pourghazi Kamyar , Amoli‐Diva Mitra 
Published: August 2015

A novel, fast and sensitive method based on cetyltrimethyl ammonium bromide‐coated Fe3O4 nanoparticles as an efficient adsorbent was developed for solid‐phase extraction of diclofenac. The unique properties of magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) including high surface area and superparamagnetism give the method the advantages of high extraction capacity, fast separation and low consumption of the adsorbent. The main parameters affecting extraction and desorption efficiency, such as the amount of surfactant, pH of the sample solution, desorption conditions, breakthrough volume, amount of MNPs, extraction and desorption times, and ionic strength, were investigated and optimised. Under optimum conditions, the method was successfully applied to determine the analyte and good linearity in the range of 50–1400 ng mL−1 (r2 = 0.9998) was achieved with a low detection limit of 15 ng mL−1. The relative standard deviations of 2.76 and 1.73% (for a concentration of 50 and 500 ng mL−1, respectively) and a high enrichment factor of 98 were obtained. The method was successfully applied for the determination of diclofenac from spiked human plasma and urine samples and good recoveries in the range of 96–101% were obtained.
Application of graphite nanoplatelet‐based and nanoparticle composites to thermal interface materials
Authors: Chang Tien‐Chan , Fuh Yiin‐Kuen , Tu Sheng‐Xun , Lee Yueh‐Mu 
Published: August 2015

Thermal interface materials (TIMs) are of crucial importance in improving and enhancing heat transfer in electronic packages, particularly in high‐density electronics at regions of exceedingly high temperatures. Commercial TIMs are generally composed of highly conductive particle fillers such as highly thermally conductive graphite and a matrix so that efficient heat transfer and good compliance of the interface material can be achieved during application. Two types of TIMs are tested based on the hybridisation of graphite nanoplatelets (GNPs) and nanoparticles (NPs). The hybrid materials are fabricated via screen printing process to ensure conformal uniformity of NPs spreading on the GNPs. The performance of fabricated materials such as temperature, applied pressure, heat flux and TIM thickness are concurrently tested in the temperature range 40–80°C and the pressure range 0–5.6 kgf/cm2 using a standard TIM tester. The steady‐state heat flow technique of American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) D5470–06 is fully adopted. For a thickness of 160 μm composite with three‐layer GNPs and two‐layer NPs, thermal conductivity is measured at ∼0.2 W/m K. In addition, the measured trend in the change of specific thermal conductivity with pressure corresponds well with the data presented in the literature.
Discovery and molecular and biocatalytic properties of hydroxynitrile lyase from an invasive millipede,Chamberlinius hualienensis
Authors: Dadashipour Mohammad , Ishida Yuko , Yamamoto Kazunori , Asano Yasuhisa 
Published: August 2015

SignificanceHydroxynitrile lyase (HNL) has been isolated from plants and bacteria and is a valuable tool in the chiral-specific synthesis of cyanohydrins, which are important building blocks of fine chemicals and pharmaceuticals. To discover more efficient and stable HNLs, we focused on the invasive cyanogenic millipede as a bioresource. The HNL identified from the millipede showed not only the highest specific activity toward benzaldehyde among known HNLs, including the almond HNL in industrial use, along with wide temperature and pH stabilities, but also high enantioselectivity in the synthesis of various cyanohydrins. These properties make it suitable as an industrial biocatalyst. Arthropods are likely to be valuable sources of potential biocatalysts for the next generation of industrial biotechnology.