bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
LETTER TO THE EDITOR: Pomegranate Juice Intake and Cardiovascular Health
Authors: Notara Venetia , Panagiotakos Demosthenes B. 
Published: November 2013

The public health burden of cardiovascular diseases
(CVDs) is substantial. According to the World Health Organization
report “The Global Burden of Disease” 2013 Update,
heart diseases are expected to take the second place in
the rank order of disease and injury burden by the year 2030
[1]. More than 50% reduction of CVD mortality is attributable
to favourable changes in risk factors, while 43% to new
medical and surgical treatment [2,3]. Extended research data
has indicated that diet is one of the modifiable risk factors
that has been substantially related to CVD prevention,
through several serum antioxidant and antithrombotic
mechanisms. Emphasis has been given to the daily consumption
of fruits and vegetables due to the high source, among
others, of phenolic acids and flavonoids that are known for
their antioxidant properties [4]. In the most recent years,
laboratory and clinical studies have examined the health
benefits of pomegranate juice consumption, which have
demonstrated its protective effect against the progression of
atherosclerosis [5]. Pomegranate fruit has very high levels of
antioxidants- mainly polyphenols- as well as tannins and
anthocyanins, which seem to improve vascular function and
modulation of inflammation. In a recent study conducted in a
sample of people with hypertension, it has been observed
that pomegranate juice can significantly lower blood pressure
even in a 2-week intake of fresh juice [6]. Polyphenolic
flavonoids are powerful antioxidants which can inhibit the
harmful oxidation effect of low-density LDL and consequently
restrain atherosclerosis development [7]. Pomegranate
seed oil consumption seems to be associated with an improvement
in insulin sensitivity, posing an additional protective
effect in the development of type 2 diabetes [8]. However,
in the same study the CVD – related risk did not
change, while other studies did not show a decrease in the
type 2 diabetes risk or a reduction in the lipid peroxidation
among healthy controls, too [5,9]. It should also be mentioned,
that pomegranate seed oil does not have polyhpenols.
Despite the fact that dietary flavonoids seem to have a
potential effect on the reduction of CVD risk, the question of
whether isolated polyphenols are the responsible compounds
for vascular health still remains unanswered. Long-term
clinical studies exploring the bioactive compounds of various
types of fruits are required to determine the potential synergistic
effects of polyphenols and the dose-response relationships
[10]. Additionally, the impact of pomegranate polyphenol
extracts among healthy and high CVD risk subjects
needs further investigation.
LETTER TO THE EDITOR: Do we Need Functional Foods for the Treatment of Hypertension?
Authors: Mitsiou Evdoxia K. 
Published: November 2013

I read with interest the Editorial by Dr. Tziomalos et al
[1]. The use of "alternative" treatments or functional
foods/beverages for the treatment of arterial hypertension is
getting increasingly prevalent. The paper is in this direction,
supporting this trend. However, there are some issues that
might be related to the use of such treatment modalities.

First, is it possible that the use of pomegranate juice (PJ),
a functional beverage, will reduce the adherence of hypertensive
to the antihypertensive drug treatment that they might
need for the effective control of their blood pressure? It has
been shown that the use of functional foods or dietary supplements
may offer opportunities to reduce health risk factors
and risk of diseases, both as monotherapy and in combination
with prescription drugs. Nevertheless, the potential
caveats or false claims of these products should not be overlooked
[2]. Should we jeopardize the necessary drug treatment
for a functional food?

Second, authors mention that one of the mechanisms of
action of PJ is angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibition.
In a short term (4 weeks) study, results showed that PJ
reduced blood pressure (BP), however the fall in BP was not
paralleled by changes in concentration of serum ACE [3].
Third, in the case that PJ indeed reduces ACE activity,
would PJ administration be equally effective if coadministered
with an ACE inhibitor or should we avoid such
a co-administration?

Fourth, do authors consider that the use of PJ indeed improved
CV health of hypertensives that they use it and if yes
why?

It would be interesting and useful if these issues were
sorted out.
LETTER TO THE EDITOR: The Effects of Nutraceuticals in Patients with or without Chronic Kidney Disease: Classification Matters
Authors: Nikolaidou B. , Katsiki N. , Lazaridis A. , Reklou A. , Grammatiki M. , Doumas M. 
Published: November 2013

DEAR EDITOR

We have read with great interest the study by Cicero and
colleagues [1], reporting the long-term effects of lipidlowering
nutraceuticals on Low Density Lipoprotein - Cholesterol
(LDL-C) levels and arterial stiffness. The impressive
reduction of LDL-C combined with the excellent safety profile
points towards further research in this field and calls for
a wider use of nutraceuticals in everyday clinical practice.
Furthermore, the beneficial effects of nutraceuticals in patients
with chronic kidney disease (CKD) are of clinical importance,
since this group of patients is highly susceptible to
atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease is their primary
cause of death [2-4].
However, a closer look at the demographic data of participating
patients in the Cicero et al. study [1] raises a question:
whether patients included in the non-CKD group were
actually free of renal disease. As depicted in Table 1 [1], the
mean estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) levels in
the non-CKD group were 67.7 ml/min/1.73m2. According to
the 2002 K/DOQI clinical practice guidelines [5] that were
recently updated by the KDIGO 2012 clinical practice guidelines
[6], stage I and II CKD have eGFR levels over 60
ml/min/1.73m2, when other indices of renal damage are present.
Therefore, we would be really grateful to the authors if
they could clarify this issue.
In addition, it would be interesting to know how many
patients had stage I, II, IIIa and IIIb CKD. Moreover, it would be important to know whether nutraceuticals were
equally effective in all stages of CKD, although we acknowledge
that the small number of study participants would
probably not allow for statistical comparisons.
In conclusion, we would like to congratulate the authors
for their interesting study with significant findings, and
thank them in advance for their clarifications.
Tourism policy and territorial imbalances in Spain
Authors: García Fernando Almeida 
Published: November 2013

AbstractThis paper aims to analyse Spanish tourism policy and its relation to a series of facts. The research combines an extensive review of the existing studies into the aspects of tourism policy linked to government, geography and economy with an examination of statistical sources. The main issues and findings analysed in this study are highlighted below. Firstly, the evolution of tourism policy of Spain in the last 60 years in relation to the process of national economic development is analysed. Secondly, a limited role of tourism on economic and territorial balance as well as changes in the regional distribution in the supply of hotel accommodation is highlighted. Thirdly, territorial changes related to the supply of hotel accommodation and GDP per capita are discussed. Finally, certain topics are suggested for future debate: tourism and imbalance as well as tourism and development.
Spatial autocorrelation of communes websites: A case study of the region Stredné Považie in Slovakia
Authors: Klobučník Michal , Bačík Vladimír 
Published: November 2013

AbstractSince its origination the Internet has been the basic communication channel through which e-Government processes in our society are carried out. The basic element of such processes is an existing website. This paper is the result of long-term research during which the authors collected information on the presence or absence of websites of self-governments in Slovakia. The output can be divided into two main parts. The first one, on the basis of the acquired data, evaluates the overall trend of self-government websites between 2008-2012. The results were distributed in the form of a website devoted to communes of Slovakia, using technology enabling the graphical and cartographic interpretation of the results. In the second part, on the basis of the gathered data, the authors applied spatial autocorrelation, specifically the ‘join count statistics’ method with the subsequent application to selected phenomenon in society, in particular the occurrence of websites of a selected region of Stredné Považie in Slovakia at the same time interval. This way the authors wanted to point out the interaction of communes in the development of websites, whether through inspiration or rivalry among neighbouring communes. From this point of view, mainly in the first period under review (2008), positive spatial autocorrelation is apparent in the occurrence of communes with websites.
Cartographic source materials and cartographic method of research in the past environment analyses
Authors: Nieścioruk Kamil 
Published: November 2013

Abstract
The article reviews a methodology of using early maps and other cartographic materials in the past environment studies. The application of the cartographic method of research is presented on examples from different research fields, but cases from the Earth Science are analysed deeper - from hydrography, through geomorphology to many aspects of economic geography. What is broadly described is a detection of human interaction with the nature: all traces that are marked by settlement, land use, communication, etc. This paper shows that the past environment, with its ways of use and topology can be recreated using early maps. These materials help finding hidden marks from the past, saved in abandoned orchards, old roads composed into modern network, toponyms storing past spatial relations, etc. It is also shown that analyses of early maps have to be conveyed with great care and responsibility, especially when it comes to geometric properties of old cartographic materials. The Geographic Information System (GIS) is helpful in such a situation, but its use is more profound. In this paper GIS is described as a tool being a great step forward in the applications of cartographic method of research and many examples of such applications in the field of a landscape analyses are given - from simple yet informative numeric outcomes of research to 3D virtual creations of long-gone landscapes.
Inflammation as a target of minocycline: special interest in the regulation of inflammasome signaling
Authors: Kauppinen Anu , Salminen Antero , Kaarniranta Kai 
Published: November 2013

AbstractMinocycline is a wide-spectrum antibiotic derived from tetracycline. In addition to its anti-microbial activity, minocycline is known to possess several immunomodulatory and neuroprotective properties. Fewer severe side effects and more efficient tissue penetration make minocycline better than its parent tetracycline. Doxycycline competes with minocycline in improved biological half-life but minocycline becomes more rapidly absorbed in tissues than doxycycline. Due to its high lipid solubility, minocycline also crosses the blood-brain barrier easily, which increases its relevance in the treatment of diseases beyond the barriers. Inflammasomes are intracellular protein complexes which become primed via NF-kB and MAPK pathways, and activated by various PAMPs and DAMPs. In this article, we hypothese about the capability of minocycline to regulate inflammasomes as part of its anti-inflammatory activity. The hypothesis is based on the ability of minocycline to regulate signals essential to both the priming and the activation of inflammasome signaling
Interior and closure operators on bounded residuated lattices
Authors: Rachůnek Jiří , Svoboda Zdeněk 
Published: November 2013

Abstract
Bounded integral residuated lattices form a large class of algebras containing some classes of algebras behind many valued and fuzzy logics. In the paper we introduce and investigate multiplicative interior and additive closure operators (mi- and ac-operators) generalizing topological interior and closure operators on such algebras. We describe connections between mi- and ac-operators, and for residuated lattices with Glivenko property we give connections between operators on them and on the residuated lattices of their regular elements.
The jump of the Milnor number in the X
9 singularity class
Authors: Brzostowski Szymon , Krasiński Tadeusz 
Published: November 2013

Abstract
The jump of the Milnor number of an isolated singularity f
0 is the minimal non-zero difference between the Milnor numbers of f
0 and one of its deformations (f
s). We prove that for the singularities in the X
9 singularity class their jumps are equal to 2.
Experimental study of the structure of chalcogenide glassy semiconductors in three-component systems of Ge-As-Se and As-Sb-Se by means of NQR and EPR spectroscopy
Authors: Bolebrukh Olga , Sinyavsky Nikolay , Korneva Irina , Dobosz Bernadeta , Ostafin Michal , Nogaj Boleslaw , Krzyminiewski Ryszard 
Published: November 2013

Abstract
The structure of chalcogenide glassy semiconductors in three-component systems of Ge-As-Se and As-Sb-Se has been studied by means of both NQR (nuclear quadrupole resonance) and EPR (electron paramagnetic resonance) spectroscopy. It is investigated that in the glasses of both systems the value of the electric field gradient at the resonating nuclei grows with increasing concentration of the clusters As2Se3 and Sb2Se3, thereby increasing the NQR resonance frequencies. It appears that for the Ge-As-Se system the structural transition from a two-dimensional to three-dimensional structure occurs at average coordination number $\bar r$ = 2.45. The EPR spectral parameters of glasses depend on the composition, the average coordination number and the temperature, and these are discussed. The effect of ”ageing” for CGS (chalcogenide glassy semiconductors) of As-Sb-Se system due to partial crystallization of the sample is observed from the EPR spectra.
Corrosion and wear study of Ni-P-PTFE-Al2O3 coating: the effect of heat treatment
Authors: Sharma Ankita , Singh A. 
Published: November 2013

Abstract
In the present work, Ni-P-PTFE-Al2O3 nanodispersion coatings were developed on mild steel. These coatings were heat treated and were exposed to 3.5% NaCl solution. Thus obtained as plated, heat treated and exposed coatings were investigated for their corrosion and wear behavior together with other tribological properties. SEM/EDAX and X-ray diffractometry were used to analyze composition and structural changes of the coatings. Corrosion parameters of the coated samples were obtained from electrochemical polarization and immersion tests. Microhardness, wear resistance and friction coefficient of the coatings were also measured. The results showed that heat treatment at 200°C has little effect on the coating whereas treatment at 400°C results in enhanced crystallinity due to formation of intermetallics phases and possibly aluminum phosphide. Beyond this temperature at 600°C coarsening of the grains occurs which reduces the number of hardening sites. These structural changes result in the observance of highest hardness and lowest wear rate in case of coatings treated at 400°C. Corrosion resistance of the coated samples was observed to decrease with the heat treatment presumably due to the various physical and structural changes of the coating components. Similar changes were observed on their exposure to the corrosive media.
On MHD unsteady reactive Couette flow with heat transfer and variable properties
Authors: Makinde Oluwole , Franks Oswald 
Published: November 2013

Abstract
This study is devoted to investigate the effect of magnetic field on a reactive unsteady generalized Couette flow with temperature dependent viscosity and thermal conductivity. It is assumed that conducting incompressible fluid is subjected to an exothermic reaction under Arrhenius kinetics, neglecting the consumption of the material. The model nonlinear differential equations governing the transient momentum and energy balance are obtained and tackled numerically using a semi-discretization finite difference technique coupled with Runge-Kutta Fehlberg integration scheme. Important properties of the velocity and temperature fields including thermal stability conditions are presented graphically and discussed quantitatively.
Applying data envelopment analysis to operating performance in textile industry
Authors: Ho Chia-Hui 
Published: November 2013

Abstract
Operating performance could affect the survival and future development of a business that both businesses and
business managers would devote to the enhancement of operating performance. Having developed for more than
four decades, the consistent upstream, mid-stream and downstream system have been constructed in domestic
textile industry. The output value of textiles in Taiwan has exceeded 480 billion NT dollars, which is not a sunset
industry, as generally described. The impacts of high labour cost, environmental protection measures and changes
of capital market as well as the competition of emerging countries, particularly Mainland China, have made textile
industry in Taiwan face great market competition and pressure. Since textiles are regarded as one of the major
products in Taiwan, the operating performance could affect the survival of the overall industry. In this case, operating
performance survey of textile manufacturers in Taiwan during 2010–2012 is combined with Data Envelopment
Analysis and Slack Variable Analysis to measure the total efficiency, pure technical efficiency and scale efficiency
of top 12 textile manufacturers in Taiwan, tending to provide the reference of operating efficiency improvement for
the manufacturers.
The empirical results show that the overall efficiency in the 3 years appears 0.89 averagely. The relative efficiency
(1) between two manufacturers, Far Eastern New Century and Ruentex Industries, achieves the optimal operating
efficiency, whereas the remaining 10 are comparatively worse. Regarding the analysis of returns to scale, two textile
manufacturers present constant returns to scale, with the optimal operating efficiency, whereas the remaining 10
show increasing returns to scale, revealing that expanding the scale could enhance the marginal return and further
promote the efficiency.
Impact of preoperative anemia on outcomes in patients undergoing elective cranial surgery
Authors: Alan Nima , Seicean Andreea , Seicean Sinziana , Neuhauser Duncan , Weil Robert J. 
Published: November 2013

Object
The objective of this study was to assess whether preoperative anemia in patients undergoing elective cranial surgery influences outcomes in the immediate perioperative period (≤ 30 days).

Methods
The National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (NSQIP) was used to identify 6576 patients undergoing elective cranial surgery between 2006 and 2011. Propensity scores were used to match patients with moderate to severe anemia (moderate-severe) or mild anemia with patients without anemia. Logistic regression analysis was used to predict the outcomes of interest. Sensitivity analyses were used to limit the sample to patients without perioperative transfusion as well as those who underwent craniotomy for definitive resection of a malignant brain tumor.

Results
A total of 6576 patients underwent elective cranial surgery, of whom 175 had moderate-severe anemia and 1868 had mild anemia. Patients with moderate-severe (odds ratio 1.8, 95% CI 1.1–2.8) and mild (odds ratio 1.5, 95% CI 1.3–1.7) anemia were more likely to have prolonged length of stay (LOS) in the hospital compared to those with no anemia. Similarly, in patients who underwent craniotomy for a malignant tumor resection (n = 2537), anemia of any severity was associated with prolonged LOS, but not postoperative complications nor death.

Conclusions
Anemia is not associated with an overall increased risk for adverse outcomes in patients undergoing elective cranial surgery. However, patients with anemia are more likely to experience prolonged hospitalization postoperatively, resulting in increased resource utilization.
Delayed leptomeningeal and subependymal seeding after multiple surgeries for supratentorial diffuse low-grade gliomas in adults
Authors: Alvarez de Eulate-Beramendi Sayoa , Rigau Valérie , Taillandier Luc , Duffau Hugues 
Published: November 2013

Object
Diffuse WHO Grade II glioma (diffuse low-grade glioma [DLGG]) is an infiltrative brain tumor that usually migrates along the white matter fibers. The delayed CSF dissemination of supratentorial DLGGs is an exceptional complication and is rarely described in adults. Here, the authors report outcomes in a surgical series of 9 patients with DLGGs with subsequent leptomeningeal and/or subependymal seeding (LMSS) following multiple incomplete resections.

Methods
The authors performed a retrospective review of patients who underwent surgery for histopathologically confirmed WHO Grade II gliomas between 1998 and 2012 and experienced a secondary CSF spread. Information regarding clinical features, surgical procedures, histopathological results, adjuvant treatment, and clinical outcomes was collected and analyzed.

Results
Nine consecutive patients were included in this study. There were 6 men and 3 women whose mean age was 35.5 years (range 22–59 years) at the time of initial symptom onset. All patients underwent surgery with the aid of intraoperative mapping, with incomplete tumor removal because of invasion of eloquent structures. The neuropathological examination diagnosed a DLGG in all cases (7 oligodendrogliomas, 1 astrocytoma, and 1 oligoastrocytoma). Five patients had a 1p19q codeletion. Because of tumor regrowth, the 9 patients underwent reoperation (2 surgeries in 6 cases and 3 surgeries in 3 cases), again with incomplete resection. There were no surgical complications. Adjuvant therapy (radiotherapy and chemotherapy) was administered in all patients because of progression to a higher grade of malignancy that was histopathologically confirmed in all tumors. The patients suddenly worsened, and the diagnosis of LMSS was made with a mean delay of 77 months (range 27–140 months) after the initial symptom onset. Six patients benefited from salvage chemotherapy while palliative care was chosen in 3 cases. The median survival in the 6 patients who underwent LMSS treatment was significantly longer than that in the 3 patients who did not receive salvage chemotherapy (p = 0.03). Indeed, all patients died, with a mean delay between the diagnosis of LMSS and death of 11 months (range 2–38 months) and with a mean delay between the initial symptom onset and death of 88 months (range 34–144 months).

Conclusions
Cerebrospinal fluid dissemination of DLGG is a rare but possible event. It can occur throughout the progression of WHO Grade II oligodendrogliomas, oligoastrocytomas, and astrocytomas, regardless of 1p19q status. This complication seems to appear in patients who have undergone multiple incomplete resections. Salvage therapy can be considered in patients with good neurological status. However, LMSS is associated with a decreased overall survival. Therefore, this rare entity deserves further multicenter studies to better understand its pathophysiology and to adapt therapeutic strategies.