bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Interval shifts in basophil measures correlate with disease activity in chronic spontaneous urticaria
Authors: Oliver E. T. , Sterba P. M. , Saini S. S. 
Published: January 2015

AbstractChronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU) significantly impacts the quality of life of those affected through symptoms of pruritus and recurrent skin lesions. In active CSU disease, reduced IgE‐mediated basophil histamine release (HR) and basopenia are observed. We sought to examine the relationship between interval changes in basophil measures and shifts in patient‐reported disease impairment. Simultaneous symptom and basophil evaluations were completed at two sequential study visits, and interval changes in measures were compared between visits for each subject (n = 38). These measures included Skindex‐29, current itch and hives scores, total leukocyte histamine content (an indirect measure of blood basophil presence), and basophil HR in response to anti‐IgE and formyl‐methionine‐leucine‐phenylalanine. Overall, interval improvements in disease measures in CSU subjects were associated with increased basophil numbers (total leukocyte histamine content) and IgE‐mediated HR. This suggests these measures are potential biomarkers for CSU disease improvement and further implicates a role for basophils in CSU.
Morphological and proliferative studies on ex vivo cultured human anterior lens epithelial cells – relevance to capsular opacification
Authors: Andjelić Sofija , Drašlar Kazimir , Lumi Xhevat , Yan Xiaohe , Graw Joachim , Facskó Andrea , Hawlina Marko , Petrovski Goran 
Published: January 2015

AbstractPurposeTo determine the structural characteristics of lens epithelial cells (LECs) found on the anterior portion of the lens capsule and their pluripotency, proliferating and migrating potential when grown ex vivo with relevance to posterior capsular opacification (PCO) after cataract surgery.MethodsThe explants of anterior portion of the lens capsule consisting of monolayer of LECs were obtained from uneventful cataract surgery and were cultivated under adherent conditions. The size and shape of the outgrowing cells were recorded by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), while their migration and proliferation potential were followed using light microscopy. Positivity for proliferation (Ki‐67)‐ and pluripotency (Sox2)‐specific markers were tested by immunofluorescent staining.ResultsThe proliferation and migration of anterior portion of the lens capsule's LECs filling up the denuded and reverse side regions of the lens capsule as well as their growth on glass culture surfaces could be followed by light microscopy and SEM, while the distribution of LECs and their morphology could be analysed in detail by SEM. The expression of Ki‐67 and Sox2 in LECs growing adherently on human anterior portion of the lens capsule could also be detected.ConclusionsClassic light microscopy and SEM can be used to show that human anterior portion of the lens capsule harbours LECs that can proliferate and migrate, suggesting their pluripotency or putative stem cell nature. Similarly, morphological techniques can be used to study PCO and the effect different drugs or physical treatments have against PCO development.
Floods reduce the prevalence of exotic plant species within the riparian zone: evidence from natural floods
Authors: Greet Joe , Webb J. Angus , Cousens Roger D. 
Published: January 2015

AbstractQuestionsDoes flooding reduce the prevalence of exotic plant species and promote native riparian plant species?LocationField study, two regulated lowland rivers, SE Australia.MethodsWe used a large flood in spring to test predictions of vegetation response to flooding. We predicted that the species richness of exotic taxa (mostly terrestrial annual/biennial grasses and forbs in the study systems) would be reduced by flooding, while the richness of native riparian species adapted to fluvial disturbance would increase. We surveyed the riparian vegetation at three sites on each of two regulated rivers in the summers before and after a large flood in early spring that inundated all of the sites on one river, and one site on the other river; the remaining sites were not flooded. Overall, the study was a natural experiment with a before–after control–impact design.ResultsAs predicted, flooding dramatically reduced the richness of exotic taxa, particularly of terrestrial grasses. However, some invasive flood‐tolerant exotic taxa, such as blackberries and willows, were promoted by the floods. Flooding reduced the cover of most native taxa, but did not affect overall native taxon richness. In contrast, the richness and cover of native summer annuals increased following the flood.ConclusionsOur study provides evidence to support the use of managed floods to reduce the prevalence of terrestrial exotic taxa within the riparian zones of regulated rivers. The frequency and intensity of flow pulses necessary to keep terrestrial exotics at low levels requires further research.
Interleukin 35 may contribute to the loss of immunological self‐tolerance in patients with primary immune thrombocytopenia
Authors: Sun Tiantian , Zhang Donglei , Yang Yanhui , Zhang Xian , Lv Cuicui , Fu Rongfeng , Lv Mingen , Liu Wenjie , Chen Yunfei , Liu Wei , Huang Yueting , Xue Feng , Liu Xiaofan , Zhang Lei , Li Huiyuan , Yang Renchi 
Published: January 2015

SummaryPrimary immune thrombocytopenia (ITP) is an autoimmune disorder. Interleukin‐35 (IL35) can suppress T cell proliferation and elicit the development of inducible regulatory T cells (Tregs). Previous studies have shown decreased plasma IL35 levels and dysfunctional T cells in patients with ITP. In this study, we determined whether decreased IL35 levels correlate with T cell dysfunction in ITP patients. Plasma IL35 levels were found to be lower in ITP patients than in healthy controls, were positively correlated with platelet levels and the percentage of peripheral circulating Tregs, and negatively correlated with the levels of T helper‐1 cells in ITP patients. We also evaluated the effects of IL35 on cytokines contributing to T cell proliferation. IL35 promoted the secretion of interleukin 10 (IL10) and transforming growth factor–β1 but reduced the levels of interferon‐γ and IL17A (also termed IL17). Moreover, IL35 inhibited the proliferation of CD4+ and CD8+ T cells but induced the differentiation and proliferation of Tregs in ITP. In summary, IL35 appears to contribute to the loss of immunological self‐tolerance in ITP patients by modulating T cells and immunoregulatory cytokines.
Inhibition of prostate smooth muscle contraction and prostate stromal cell growth by the inhibitors of Rac, NSC23766 and EHT1864
Authors: Wang Y , Kunit T , Ciotkowska A , Rutz B , Schreiber A , Strittmatter F , Waidelich R , Liu C , Stief C G , Gratzke C , Hennenberg M 
Published: January 2015

Background and PurposeMedical therapy of lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) suggestive of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) targets smooth muscle contraction in the prostate, or prostate growth. However, current therapeutic options are insufficient. Here, we investigated the role of Rac in the control of smooth muscle tone in human prostates and growth of prostate stromal cells.Experimental ApproachExperiments were performed using human prostate tissues from radical prostatectomy and cultured stromal cells (WPMY‐1). Expression of Rac was examined by Western blot and fluorescence staining. Effects of Rac inhibitors (NSC23766 and EHT1864) on contractility were assessed in the organ bath. The effects of Rac inhibitors were assessed by pull‐down, cytotoxicity using a cell counting kit, cytoskeletal organization by phalloidin staining and cell growth using an 5‐ethynyl‐2′‐deoxyuridine assay.Key ResultsExpression of Rac1–3 was observed in prostate samples from each patient. Immunoreactivity for Rac1–3 was observed in the stroma, where it colocalized with the smooth muscle marker, calponin. NSC23766 and EHT1864 significantly reduced contractions of prostate strips induced by noradrenaline, phenylephrine or electrical field stimulation. NSC23766 and EHT1864 inhibited Rac activity in WPMY‐1 cells. Survival of WPMY‐1 cells ranged between 64 and 81% after incubation with NSC23766 (50 or 100 μM) or EHT1864 (25 μM) for 24 h. NSC23766 and EHT1864 induced cytoskeletal disorganization in WPMY‐1 cells. Both inhibitors impaired the growth of WPMY‐1 cells.Conclusions and ImplicationsRac may be a link connecting the control of prostate smooth muscle tone with proliferation of smooth muscle cells. Improvements in LUTS suggestive of BPH by Rac inhibitors appears possible.
Studying the evolutionary ecology of cognition in the wild: a review of practical and conceptual challenges
Authors: Morand‐Ferron Julie , Cole Ella F. , Quinn John L. 
Published: January 2015

ABSTRACTCognition is defined as the processes by which animals collect, retain and use information from their environment to guide their behaviour. Thus cognition is essential in a wide range of behaviours, including foraging, avoiding predators and mating. Despite this pivotal role, the evolutionary processes shaping variation in cognitive performance among individuals in wild populations remain very poorly understood. Selection experiments in captivity suggest that cognitive traits can have substantial heritability and can undergo rapid evolution. However only a handful of studies have attempted to explore how cognition influences life‐history variation and fitness in the wild, and direct evidence for the action of natural or sexual selection on cognition is still lacking, reasons for which are diverse. Here we review the current literature with a view to: (i) highlighting the key practical and conceptual challenges faced by the field; (ii) describing how to define and measure cognitive traits in natural populations, and suggesting which species, populations and cognitive traits might be examined to greatest effect; emphasis is placed on selecting traits that are linked to functional behaviour; (iii) discussing how to deal with confounding factors such as personality and motivation in field as well as captive studies; (iv) describing how to measure and interpret relationships between cognitive performance, functional behaviour and fitness, offering some suggestions as to when and what kind of selection might be predicted; and (v) showing how an evolutionary ecological framework, more generally, along with innovative technologies has the potential to revolutionise the study of cognition in the wild. We conclude that the evolutionary ecology of cognition in wild populations is a rapidly expanding interdisciplinary field providing many opportunities for advancing the understanding of how cognitive abilities have evolved.
Oxytocin, testosterone, and human social cognition
Authors: Crespi Bernard J. 
Published: January 2015

ABSTRACTI describe an integrative social‐evolutionary model for the adaptive significance of the human oxytocinergic system. The model is based on a role for this hormone in the generation and maintenance of social familiarity and affiliation across five homologous, functionally similar, and sequentially co‐opted contexts: mothers with offspring, female and male mates, kin groups, individuals with reciprocity partners, and individuals within cooperating and competing social groups defined by culture. In each situation, oxytocin motivates, mediates and rewards the cognitive and behavioural processes that underlie the formation and dynamics of a more or less stable social group, and promotes a relationship between two or more individuals. Such relationships may be positive (eliciting neurological reward, reducing anxiety and thus indicating fitness‐enhancing effects), or negative (increasing anxiety and distress, and thus motivating attempts to alleviate a problematic, fitness‐reducing social situation). I also present evidence that testosterone exhibits opposite effects from oxytocin on diverse aspects of cognition and behaviour, most generally by favouring self‐oriented, asocial and antisocial behaviours. I apply this model for effects of oxytocin and testosterone to understanding human psychological disorders centrally involving social behaviour. Reduced oxytocin and higher testosterone levels have been associated with under‐developed social cognition, especially in autism. By contrast, some combination of oxytocin increased above normal levels, and lower testosterone, has been reported in a notable number of studies of schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and depression, and, in some cases, higher oxytocin involves maladaptively ‘hyper‐developed’ social cognition in these conditions. This pattern of findings suggests that human social cognition and behaviour are structured, in part, by joint and opposing effects of oxytocin and testosterone, and that extremes of such joint effects partially mediate risks and phenotypes of autism and psychotic‐affective conditions. These considerations have direct implications for the development of therapies for alleviating disorders of social cognition, and for understanding how such disorders are associated with the evolution of human cognitive‐affective architecture.
Serum inflammatory factors and circulating immunosuppressive cells are predictive markers for efficacy of radiofrequency ablation in non-small-cell lung cancer
Authors: Schneider T , Sevko A , Heussel C P , Umansky L , Beckhove P , Dienemann H , Safi S , Utikal J , Hoffmann H , Umansky V 
Published: January 2015

Summary
In recent years, percutaneous radiofrequency ablation (RFA) has been developed as a new tool in the treatment of non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in non-surgical patients. There is growing evidence that RFA-mediated necrosis can modulate host immune responses. Here we analysed serum inflammatory factors as well as immunosuppressive cells in the peripheral blood to discover possible prognostic indicators. Peripheral blood and serum samples were collected before RFA and within 3 months after the treatment in a total of 12 patients. Inflammatory cytokines and growth factors were measured in serum by the Bio-Plex assay. Myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs) and regulatory T cells (Tregs) were evaluated in the peripheral blood via flow cytometry. In patients developing local or lymphogenic tumour relapse (n = 4), we found an early significant increase in the concentration of tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-α as well as chemokine (C-C motif) ligand (CCL)-2 and CCL-4 compared to patients without relapse (n = 4) and healthy donors (n = 5). These changes were associated with an elevated activity of circulating MDSC indicated by an increased nitric oxide (NO) production in these cells. Elevated serum levels of TNF-α, CCL-2 and CCL-4 associated with an increased NO production in circulating MDSCs might be an early indicator of the incomplete RFA and subsequently a potential tumour relapse in NSCLC.
Use of sonic instruments for implant biopsy retrieval
Authors: Ferri Mauro , Lang Niklaus P. , Angarita Alfonso Edwin Elías , Bedoya Quintero Iván Darío , Burgos Enrique Mejía , Botticelli Daniele 
Published: January 2015

AbstractObjectiveTo evaluate in vitro the quality of dental implant biopsies collected using trephines or a sonic instrument.MethodSixty implants, 4 mm long and 2.4 mm in diameter, were installed in twelve fresh bovine ribs. Biopsies were collected after using three different methods for retrieval, 20 biopsies representing each group: (A) A trephine used concentrically; (B) a trephine used eccentrically; and (C) a sonic device (Sonosurgery®). The time used for biopsy collection was recorded, and an evaluation of the quality of the biopsies obtained was performed. The specimens were subsequently prepared for ground sections, and tissue‐to‐implant contact percentages (TIC%) were evaluated in a stereomicroscope.ResultsTime needed for biopsy collection in Groups A and B was between 2 and 3 min, while in C, it amounted to 10–11 min. The differences between Group C and the other two groups were statistically significant (P < 0.00006). Group C showed significantly greater volumes of tissue around the apex of the implants compared with the other two groups (P < 0.027). Groups A and C showed biopsies with higher quality compared with Group B (P < 0.05). Group C presented a higher TIC% compared with the other two groups (P < 0.008).ConclusionCompared with the use of trephines, the use of a sonic device for harvesting biopsies resulted in higher‐quality biopsies and generated smaller residual defects. However, the harvesting was more time‐consuming and was limited to one aspect of the implants.
Leptin: A Potential Anxiolytic by Facilitation of Fear Extinction
Authors: Wang Wei , Liu Song‐Lin , Li Kuan , Chen Yu , Jiang Bo , Li Yan‐Kun , Xiao Jun‐Li , Yang Si , Chen Tao , Chen Jian‐Guo , Li Jia‐Geng , Wang Fang 
Published: January 2015

SummaryAimsAnxiety disorders are characterized by a deficient extinction of fear memory. Evidence is growing that leptin influences numerous neuronal functions. The aims of this study were to investigate the effects and the mechanism of leptin on fear extinction.Methods and resultsLeptin (1 mg/kg, i.p) was applied to evaluate the anxiolytic effect in rat behavioral tests. Field potentials recording were used to investigate the changes in synaptic transmission in the thalamic‐lateral amygadala (LA) pathway of rat. We found that leptin produced strong anxiolytic effects under basal condition and after acute stress. Systemic administration and intra‐LA infusions of leptin facilitated extinction of conditioned fear responses. The antagonist of NMDA receptor, MK‐801, blocked the effect of leptin on fear extinction completely. Furthermore, these effects of leptin on fear extinction were accompanied by a reversal of conditioning‐induced synaptic potentiation in the LA. Leptin facilitated NMDA receptor‐mediated synaptic transmission, and reversed amygdala long‐term potentiation (LTP) in a dose‐dependent manner in vitro, and this LTP depotentiation effect was mediated by NMDA receptor and MAPK signaling pathway.ConclusionsThese results identify a key role of leptin in dampening fear conditioning‐induced synaptic potentiation in the LA through NMDA receptor and indicate a new strategy for treating anxiety disorders.
The Company You Keep: The Effect of Other Large Shareholders in Family Firms
Authors: Sacristán‐Navarro María , Cabeza‐García Laura , Gómez‐Ansón Silvia 
Published: January 2015

AbstractManuscript TypeEmpiricalResearch Question/IssueUsing a panel of non‐financial listed firms over a seven‐year period, the authors analyse how the value of family firms is potentially affected by the existence of multiple shareholders, by other large shareholders’ voting rights in relation to the family's, by the final power distribution (that is, whether the family's voting rights exceed those of other shareholders), by the identity of the blockholders, and the existence of shareholder agreements.Research Findings/InsightsAfter controlling for possible self‐selection bias and for endogeneity issues, the results of a Heckman two‐stage method suggest that other large shareholders’ voting rights in relation to the family's do not affect family firm value. The results indicate that what seems to matter is who controls the company in terms of voting power, i.e., whether there is just one large shareholder or other major blockholders as well, and whether they have more or fewer voting rights than the largest owner. The market favors a firm that has multiple large shareholders provided that the family retains control by holding most of the voting rights. However, when there is just one family owner or when other blockholders have more voting power than the family, industry‐adjusted family firm value is negatively affected. The existence of shareholder agreements and families and non‐financial firms as other blockholders has no impact on company performance, while foreign shareholders tend to increase family firm value.Theoretical/Academic ImplicationsAcademics should take the presence of multiple large shareholders into account as this can affect family power. It is not a question of collusion or contestability per se. The market seems to value other large investors’ ability to balance family power only if families retain control by holding the majority of the votes. The preferred model therefore resembles that of a king amid nobility, a “primus inter pares”, with other large blockholders (nobility) providing a credible and strong but not overwhelming opposition that benefits minority owners.Practitioner/Policy ImplicationsWhen multiple large owners exist, firm value is increased if the family retains power. Ownership structure matters and the effect of other large shareholders’ voting rights on minority investors’ wealth has to be considered. New variables to describe particular situations in family firms are needed.
Acute response of peripheral CCr5 chemoreceptor and NK cells in individuals submitted to a single session of low‐intensity strength exercise with blood flow restriction
Authors: Dorneles Gilson Pires , Colato Alana Schraiber , Galvão Simone Lunelli , Ramis Thiago Rozales , Ribeiro Jerri Luiz , Romão Pedro Roosevelt , Peres Alessandra 
Published: January 2015

SummaryThe purpose of this study was to compare the peripheral expression of natural killers and CCR5 in a session of low‐intensity strength training with vascular occlusion and in high‐intensity training. Young males were randomized into session groups of a high‐intensity strength training (HI) and a session group of low‐intensity strength training with vascular occlusion (LI‐BFR). The exercise session consisted in knee extension and bicep curl in 80% 1RM (HI) and 30% 1RM (LI‐BFR) with equalized volumes. Blood collection was made before, immediately after and 24 h after each training session. Immunophenotyping was carried out through CD195+ (CCR5) e CD3‐CD16+CD56+ (NK) in peripheral blood and analysed by flow cytometry and presented in frequency (%). Peripheral frequency of NK cells showed no significant difference in LI‐BFR group in time effect, while a gradual reduction of NK cells was identified in HI group in before‐24 h postexercise and after‐24 h postexercise comparison. However, significant differences have been found in relative change of NK cells immediately after exercise between sessions. In addition, HI and LI‐BFR groups showed a significant reduction in the cells expressed CCR5 during 24 h postsession compared to the postsession, but CCR5 also differed when comparing before‐24 h after session in the HI group. No differences were observed amongst the groups. LIO induced CCR5 response similar to the HI session, while the NK cells remained in similar frequency during the studied moments in LI‐BFR, but not in HI group, suggesting that local hypoxia created by the blood flow restriction was able to prevent a change in the frequency of peripheral cells and a possible immunosuppression.