bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Airway reflux as a cause of respiratory disease
Authors: Morice Alyn H. 
Published: July 2013

SummaryReflux is the cause of much respiratory disease. More commonly still, it is the unrecognised agent provoking the symptoms of respiratory disease. That the reflux entering the airways from the gastrointestinal tract is central to the diagnosis, therapy and understanding of respiratory pathology has been missed because the paradigm of peptic disease has been applied. Airway reflux is however unlike gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (GORD). GORD is liquid acid reflux causing heartburn and indigestion. Airway reflux consists of a mainly gaseous non-acid mist which, when deposited in the upper and lower airways leads to inflammation, fibrosis, bronchoconstriction and cough. Here, the hypothesis that airway reflux is responsible for chronic “idiopathic” cough, late onset asthma, exacerbations of COPD, ‘idiopathic’ pulmonary fibrosis and even the lung disease of cystic fibrosis is outlined. The exclusive focus of clinicians on the extrinsic origins of these conditions and the rejection of an obvious intrinsic aetiology causes millions of patients to be denied an explanation for their symptoms and simple, effective, treatments. In many cases idiopathic should be no longer considered idiopathic.
Emergency oxygen therapy: from guideline to implementation
Authors: Kane Binita , Decalmer Samantha , Ronan O'Driscoll B. 
Published: July 2013

Educational aimsTo help readers understand the best way to use oxygen when they care for patients with medical emergencies.To encourage best practice in the use of emergency oxygen therapy.To raise awareness of the British Thoracic Society (BTS) guideline for emergency oxygen use.SummaryOxygen is the most commonly used drug in emergency medicine and when used judiciously in the treatment of hypoxaemia it undoubtedly saves life. However, oxygen is often used inappropriately and the dangers of over-oxygenation are unappreciated.In 2008, the first formal guidance on emergency oxygen use was produced by the British Thoracic Society. The guideline is objective, evidence based and peer reviewed, advocating safe use of oxygen by encouraging target saturation levels to be prescribed for each patient, based on a combination of what is believed to be safe and normal or near-normal. In the majority of patients a target saturation range of 94–98% is advised. The importance of recognition of patients at risk of type 2 respiratory failure is highlighted and, in such patients, a target saturation range of 88–92% is recommended.
The molecular basis for recognition of bacterial ligands at equine TLR2, TLR1 and TLR6
Authors: Irvine Katherine Lucy , Hopkins Lee Jason , Gangloff Monique , Bryant Clare Elizabeth 
Published: July 2013

Abstract
TLR2 recognises bacterial lipopeptides and lipoteichoic acid, and forms heterodimers with TLR1 or TLR6. TLR2 is relatively well characterised in mice and humans, with published crystal structures of human TLR2/1/Pam3CSK4 and murine TLR2/6/Pam2CSK4. Equine TLR4 is activated by a different panel of ligands to human and murine TLR4, but less is known about species differences at TLR2. We therefore cloned equine TLR2, TLR1 and TLR6, which showed over 80% sequence identity with these receptors from other mammals, and performed a structure-function analysis. TLR2/1 and TLR2/6 from both horses and humans dose-dependently responded to lipoteichoic acid from Staphylococcus aureus, with no significant species difference in EC50 at either receptor pair. The EC50 of Pam2CSK4 was the same for equine and human TLR2/6, indicating amino acid differences between the two species’ TLRs do not significantly affect ligand recognition. Species differences were seen between the responses to Pam2CSK4 and Pam3CSK4 at TLR2/1. Human TLR2/1, as expected, responded to Pam3CSK4 with greater potency and efficacy than Pam2CSK4. At equine TLR2/1, however, Pam3CSK4 was less potent than Pam2CSK4, with both ligands having similar efficacies. Molecular modelling indicates that the majority of non-conserved ligand-interacting residues are at the periphery of the TLR2 binding pocket and in the ligand peptide-interacting regions, which may cause subtle effects on ligand positioning. These results suggest that there are potentially important species differences in recognition of lipopeptides by TLR2/1, which may affect how the horse deals with bacterial infections.
The Saccharomyces cerevisiae transcriptome as a mirror of phytochemical variation in complex extracts of Equisetum arvense from America, China, Europe and India
Authors: Cook Rebekah , Hennell James R , Lee Samiuela , Khoo Cheang S , Carles Maria C , Higgins Vincent J , Govindaraghavan Suresh , Sucher Nikolaus J 
Published: July 2013

Abstract

Background
Pattern-oriented chemical profiling is increasingly being used to characterize the phytochemical composition of herbal medicines for quality control purposes. Ideally, a fingerprint of the biological effects should complement the chemical fingerprint. For ethical and practical reasons it is not possible to test each herbal extract in laboratory animals or humans. What is needed is a test system consisting of an organism with relevant biology and complexity that can serve as a surrogate in vitro system. The purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that the Saccharomyces cerevisiae transcriptome might be used as an indicator of phytochemical variation of closely-related yet distinctly different extracts prepared from a single species of a phytogeographically widely distributed medicinal plant. We combined phytochemical profiling using chromatographic methods (HPTLC, HPLC-PDA-MS/MS) and gene expression studies using Affymetrix Yeast 2.0 gene chip with principal component analysis and k-nearest neighbor clustering analysis to test this hypothesis using extracts prepared from the phytogeographically widely distributed medicinal plant Equisetum arvense as a test case.

Results
We found that the Equisetum arvense extracts exhibited qualitative and quantitative differences in their phytochemical composition grouped along their phytogeographical origin. Exposure of yeast to the extracts led to changes in gene expression that reflected both the similarities and differences in the phytochemical composition of the extracts. The Equisetum arvense extracts elicited changes in the expression of genes involved in mRNA translation, drug transport, metabolism of energy reserves, phospholipid metabolism, and the cellular stress response.

Conclusions
Our data show that functional genomics in S. cerevisiae may be developed as a sensitive bioassay for the scientific investigation of the interplay between phytochemical composition and transcriptional effects of complex mixtures of chemical compounds. S. cerevisiae transcriptomics may also be developed for testing of mixtures of conventional drugs (“polypills”) to discover novel antagonistic or synergistic effects of those drug combinations.
Different evolutionary histories of two cation/proton exchanger gene families in plants
Authors: Pires Inês S , Negrão Sónia , Pentony Melissa M , Abreu Isabel A , Oliveira Margarida M , Purugganan Michael D 
Published: July 2013

Abstract

Background
Gene duplication events have been proposed to be involved in the adaptation of plants to stress conditions; precisely how is unclear. To address this question, we studied the evolution of two families of antiporters. Cation/proton exchangers are important for normal cell function and in plants, Na+,K+/H+ antiporters have also been implicated in salt tolerance. Two well-known plant cation/proton antiporters are NHX1 and SOS1, which perform Na+ and K+ compartmentalization into the vacuole and Na+ efflux from the cell, respectively. However, our knowledge about the evolution of NHX and SOS1 stress responsive gene families is still limited.

Results
In this study we performed a comprehensive molecular evolutionary analysis of the NHX and SOS1 families. Using available sequences from a total of 33 plant species, we estimated gene family phylogenies and gene duplication histories, as well as examined heterogeneous selection pressure on amino acid sites. Our results show that, while the NHX family expanded and specialized, the SOS1 family remained a low copy gene family that appears to have undergone neofunctionalization during its evolutionary history. Additionally, we found that both families are under purifying selection although SOS1 is less constrained.

Conclusions
We propose that the different evolution histories are related with the proteins’ function and localization, and that the NHX and SOS1 families are examples of two different evolutionary paths through which duplication events may result in adaptive evolution of stress tolerance.
The UmuC subunit of the E. coli DNA polymerase V shows a unique interaction with the β-clamp processivity factor
Authors: Patoli Atif A , Winter Jody A , Bunting Karen A 
Published: July 2013

Abstract

Background
Strict regulation of replisome components is essential to ensure the accurate transmission of the genome to the next generation. The sliding clamp processivity factors play a central role in this regulation, interacting with both DNA polymerases and multiple DNA processing and repair proteins. Clamp binding partners share a common peptide binding motif, the nature of which is essentially conserved from phage through to humans. Given the degree of conservation of these motifs, much research effort has focussed on understanding how the temporal and spatial regulation of multiple clamp binding partners is managed. The bacterial sliding clamps have come under scrutiny as potential targets for rational drug design and comprehensive understanding of the structural basis of their interactions is crucial for success.

Results
In this study we describe the crystal structure of a complex of the E. coli β-clamp with a 12-mer peptide from the UmuC protein. UmuC is the catalytic subunit of the translesion DNA polymerase, Pol V (UmuD’2C). Due to its potentially mutagenic action, Pol V is tightly regulated in the cell to limit access to the replication fork. Atypically for the translesion polymerases, both bacterial and eukaryotic, Pol V is heterotrimeric and its β-clamp binding motif (357 QLNLF 361) is internal to the protein, rather than at the more usual C-terminal position. Our structure shows that the UmuC peptide follows the overall disposition of previously characterised structures with respect to the highly conserved glutamine residue. Despite good agreement with the consensus β-clamp binding motif, distinct variation is shown within the hydrophobic binding pocket. While UmuC Leu-360 interacts as noted in other structures, Phe-361 does not penetrate the pocket at all, sitting above the surface.

Conclusion
Although the β-clamp binding motif of UmuC conforms to the consensus sequence, variation in its mode of clamp binding is observed compared to related structures, presumably dictated by the proximal aspartate residues that act as linker to the poorly characterised, unique C-terminal domain of UmuC. Additionally, interactions between Asn-359 of UmuC and Arg-152 on the clamp surface may compensate for the reduced interaction of Phe-361.
Experience-based virtual training system for knee arthroscopic inspection
Authors: Lyu Shaw-Ruey , Lin Yen-Kun , Huang Shian-Tang , Yau Hong-Tzong 
Published: July 2013

AbstractBackgroundArthroscopic surgical training is inherently difficult due to limited visibility, reduced motion freedom and non-intuitive hand-eye coordination. Traditional training methods as well as virtual reality approach lack the direct guidance of an experienced physician.MethodsThis paper presents an experience-based arthroscopic training simulator that integrates motion tracking with a haptic device to record and reproduce the complex trajectory of an arthroscopic inspection procedure. Optimal arthroscopic operations depend on much practice because the knee joint space is narrow and the anatomic structures are complex. The trajectory of the arthroscope from the experienced surgeon can be captured during the clinical treatment. Then a haptic device is used to guide the trainees in the virtual environment to follow the trajectory.ResultsIn this paper, an experiment for the eight subjects’ performance of arthroscopic inspection on the same simulator was done with and without the force guidance. The experiment reveals that most subjects’ performances are better after they repeated the same inspection five times. Furthermore, most subjects’ performances with the force guidance are better than those without the force guidance. In the experiment, the average error with the force guidance is 33.01% lower than that without the force guidance. The operation time with the force guidance is 14.95% less than that without the force guidance.ConclusionsWe develop a novel virtual knee arthroscopic training system with virtual and haptic guidance. Compared to traditional VR training system that only has a single play-script based on a virtual model, the proposed system can track and reproduce real-life arthroscopic procedures and create a useful training database. From our experiment, the force guidance can efficiently shorten the learning curve of novice trainees. Through such system, novice trainees can efficiently develop required surgical skills by the virtual and haptic guidance from an experienced surgeon.
Developing a tool to measure satisfaction among health professionals in sub-Saharan Africa
Authors: Faye Adama , Fournier Pierre , Diop Idrissa , Philibert Aline , Morestin Florence , Dumont Alexandre 
Published: July 2013

Abstract

Background
In sub-Saharan Africa, lack of motivation and job dissatisfaction have been cited as causes of poor healthcare quality and outcomes. Measurement of health workers’ satisfaction adapted to sub-Saharan African working conditions and cultures is a challenge. The objective of this study was to develop a valid and reliable instrument to measure satisfaction among health professionals in the sub-Saharan African context.

Methods
A survey was conducted in Senegal and Mali in 2011 among 962 care providers (doctors, midwives, nurses and technicians) practicing in 46 hospitals (capital, regional and district). The participation rate was very high: 97% (937/962). After exploratory factor analysis (EFA), construct validity was assessed through confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). The discriminant validity of our subscales was evaluated by comparing the average variance extracted (AVE) for each of the constructs with the squared interconstruct correlation (SIC), and finally for criterion validity, each subscale was tested with two hypotheses. Two dimensions of reliability were assessed: internal consistency with Cronbach’s alpha subscales and stability over time using a test-retest process.

Results
Eight dimensions of satisfaction encompassing 24 items were identified and validated using a process that combined psychometric analyses and expert opinions: continuing education, salary and benefits, management style, tasks, work environment, workload, moral satisfaction and job stability. All eight dimensions demonstrated significant discriminant validity. The final model showed good performance, with a root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) of 0.0508 (90% CI: 0.0448 to 0.0569) and a comparative fit index (CFI) of 0.9415. The concurrent criterion validity of the eight dimensions was good. Reliability was assessed based on internal consistency, which was good for all dimensions but one (moral satisfaction < 0.70). Test-retest showed satisfactory temporal stability (intra class coefficient range: 0.60 to 0.91).

Conclusions
Job satisfaction is a complex construct; this study provides a multidimensional instrument whose content, construct and criterion validities were verified to ensure its suitability for the sub-Saharan African context. When using these subscales in further studies, the variability of the reliability of the subscales should be taken in to account for calculating the sample sizes. The instrument will be useful in evaluative studies which will help guide interventions aimed at improving both the quality of care and its effectiveness.
A novel multimedia device ability matching technique for ubiquitous computing environments
Authors: Zhang Jianwei , Deng Pan , Wan Jiafu , Yan Biying , Rong Xiaohui , Chen Feng 
Published: July 2013

Abstract
In wireless multimedia sensor networks (WMSNs), wirelessly interconnected devices are able to ubiquitously retrieve multimedia contents such as video and audio streams from the environment. However, since WMSN applications are large-scale, dynamic and highly concurrent, how to achieve both effective multimedia device resource management and collaborative task scheduling simultaneously becomes a serious problem. In this paper, using the hierarchical modeling technique, we first propose a device ability model including spatial information. In order to solve the problem of insufficient capacity of single devices, we then give a composite device ability model and relevant calculation formulae. Next, we introduce a novel device resource matching technique based on the proposed model. Compared with previous works, experimental results show that our technique achieves better recall and precision and meets WMSN application needs more effectively. Furthermore, our proposed approach greatly reduces the design complexity as well as the workload of application designers.
Kinetic and temporospatial parameters in male and female cats walking over a pressure sensing walkway
Authors: Verdugo Mirela R , Rahal Sheila C , Agostinho Felipe S , Govoni Verônica M , Mamprim Maria J , Monteiro Frederico OB 
Published: July 2013

AbstractBackgroundSeveral factors may influence kinetic data measurements, including body conformation and body mass. In addition, gender differences in gait pattern have been observed in healthy humans. Therefore, the aim of this study was to compare the kinetic and temporospatial parameters in clinically healthy male and female cats using a pressure-sensitive walkway. Eighteen crossbreed adult cats were divided into two groups: G1 had ten male cats (nine neutered) aged from 1 to 4 years and body mass 3.1-6.8 kg; G2 had eight spayed female cats, aged from 1 to 6 years and body mass 3.3-4.75 kg. The data from the first five valid trials were collected for each cat. A trial was considered valid if the cat maintained a velocity between 0.54-0.74 m/s and acceleration from -0.20 to 0.20 m/s2. The peak vertical force (PVF), vertical impulse (VI), gait cycle time, stance time, swing time, stride length, and percentage body weight distribution among the four limbs were determined. In addition, the lengths of each forelimb and each hind limb were measured using a tape with the animal standing.ResultsNo significant differences were observed in each group in either the forelimbs or the hind limbs or between the left and right sides for any of the variables. For both groups, the PVF (%BW), the VI, and the percentage body weight distribution were higher at the forelimbs than the hind limbs. The stride length was larger for males; however, the other kinetic and temporospatial variables did not show any statistically significant differences between the groups. The lengths of the forelimbs and hind limbs were larger in the male cats. There was a significant moderate positive correlation between the stride length and the length of the limbs.ConclusionsIn conclusion, the only difference observed between male and female cats was the stride length, and this was due to the greater body size of male cats. This difference did not affect other temporospatial or kinetics variables.
An atypical presentation of sporadic ovarian Burkitt’s lymphoma: case report and review of the literature
Authors: Bianchi Paola , Torcia Francesco , Vitali Marta , Cozza Giuliana , Matteoli Marco , Giovanale Valentina 
Published: July 2013

Abstract
Primary non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma of the ovary is a rare occurrence. An ovarian involvement by non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) may include one of the four subtypes of lymphoma: diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, Burkitt’s lymphoma (BL), lymphoblastic lymphoma or anaplastic large cell lymphoma. Burkitt’s lymphoma is a rare entity with a specific poorly differentiated pattern.
Most women experience an ovarian BL with abdominal pelvic pain, abnormal vaginal bleeding, bowel obstruction, urinary frequency, incontinence and abdominal mass. Sometimes these warning signs may be absent, causing a late and more difficult diagnosis.
Here we report a case of a primary ovarian Burkitt’s lymphoma with bilateral involvement in a 57 year old patient. She firstly presented neurological symptoms in the upper limbs and she was treated with surgery and combined chemotherapy. The diagnosis of malignant lymphoma was established after bilateral adnexectomy and histological study of the excised tissue.
Evidence based herbal drug standardization approach in coping with challenges of holistic management of diabetes: a dreadful lifestyle disorder of 21st century
Authors: Chawla Raman , Thakur Pallavi , Chowdhry Ayush , Jaiswal Sarita , Sharma Anamika , Goel Rajeev , Sharma Jyoti , Priyadarshi Smruti Sagar , Kumar Vinod , Sharma Rakesh Kumar , Arora Rajesh 
Published: July 2013

AbstractPlants by virtue of its composition of containing multiple constituents developed during its growth under various environmental stresses providing a plethora of chemical families with medicinal utility. Researchers are exploring this wealth and trying to decode its utility for enhancing health standards of human beings. Diabetes is dreadful lifestyle disorder of 21st century caused due to lack of insulin production or insulin physiological unresponsiveness. The chronic impact of untreated diabetes significantly affects vital organs. The allopathic medicines have five classes of drugs, or otherwise insulin in Type I diabetes, targeting insulin secretion, decreasing effect of glucagon, sensitization of receptors for enhanced glucose uptake etc. In addition, diet management, increased food fiber intake, Resistant Starch intake and routine exercise aid in managing such dangerous metabolic disorder. One of the key factors that limit commercial utility of herbal drugs is standardization. Standardization poses numerous challenges related to marker identification, active principle(s), lack of defined regulations, non-availability of universally acceptable technical standards for testing and implementation of quality control/safety standard (toxicological testing). The present study proposed an integrated herbal drug development & standardization model which is an amalgamation of Classical Approach of Ayurvedic Therapeutics, Reverse Pharmacological Approach based on Observational Therapeutics, Technical Standards for complete product cycle, Chemi-informatics, Herbal Qualitative Structure Activity Relationship and Pharmacophore modeling and, Post-Launch Market Analysis. Further studies are warranted to ensure that an effective herbal drug standardization methodology will be developed, backed by a regulatory standard guide the future research endeavors in more focused manner.