bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Oral Administration of Puerh Tea Polysaccharides Lowers Blood Glucose Levels and Enhances Antioxidant Status in Alloxan‐Induced Diabetic Mice
Authors: Xu Ping , Chen Hao , Wang Yiqi , Hochstetter Danielle , Zhou Tao , Wang Yuefei 
Published: October 2012

Abstract:  The polysaccharides, named puerh tea polysaccharides (PTPS), were isolated from puerh tea. Physicochemical characteristics, hypoglycemic and antioxidant effects of PTPS in alloxan‐induced diabetic mice were investigated. PTPS was found to be a kind of acid heteropolysaccharides conjugate, but the physicochemical characteristics of which were different from the polysaccharides from other kinds of teas in literature. Meanwhile, daily administration of PTPS (40 mg/kg BW) could significantly lower the blood glucose levels, which was not different (P > 0.05) from the effects of metformin (15 mg/kg BW) throughout the entire experiment. Furthermore, after 4‐wk administration of PTPS (40 mg/kg BW), the superoxide dismutase activity and malondialdehyde contents both in serum and liver were improved to the levels of those in normal mice. In regards to the serum GSH‐Px activity, it was even significantly higher (P < 0.05) than that in normal mice, indicating the oxidative stress induced by alloxan could be reversed by administration of PTPS.Practical Application:  Control of blood sugar levels and inhibition of oxidative stress are suggested to be important in the treatment of diabetes. In the present work, the effects of the polysaccharides from puerh tea (PTPS) on blood glucose levels and antioxidant status in alloxan‐induced diabetic mice were investigated. The information obtained will be valuable for potential application of PTPS in the treatment of diabetes.
Detection of Viable Cronobacter spp. (Enterobacter sakazakii) by One‐Step RT‐PCR in Dry Aquatic Product
Authors: Ye Yingwang , Wu Qingping , Zhang Jumei , Jiang He , Hu Wang 
Published: October 2012

Abstract:  Cronobacter are opportunistic food‐borne pathogens associated with meningitis, sepsis, and necrotizing enterocolitis. Little attempt has focused on detection of viable cell of Cronobacter spp. in dry aquatic products, which were frequently used for raw materials of infant foods due to high nutrition. In this paper, one‐step reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT‐PCR) was developed for detection of viable Cronobacter spp. in dry aquatic products. Specificity test indicated that clearly expected amplicon in size 469bp was amplified from RNA of Cronobacter, but not from RNA of negative controls and DNA of Cronobacter strains. The sensitivity was 104 CFU/mL of Cronobacter strain in artificially fish meal samples and 101 CFU/mL of Cronobacter after 10‐h enrichment. In a total of 81 dry aquatic products, 9.8%, 8.6%, and 9.8% of samples were found to be positive for Cronobacter by one‐step RT‐PCR, U.S. Food and Drug Administration method, and Druggan‐Forsythe‐Iversen medium, respectively. The results clearly indicated that one‐step RT‐PCR could avoid the interference of residual DNA of Cronobacter in food samples and be used to specifically detect viable Cronobacter spp. for large‐scale monitoring of food samples.Practical Application:  The use of rapid and specific detection of food borne pathogens in food samples was most of importance for control and precaution of food borne diseases. In this study, one‐step RT‐PCR was developed for detection of Cronobacter spp. in aquatic products. A comparison of different methods for detection of Cronobacter indicated that the newly developed method could be widely used to specifically detect Cronobacter spp. in food samples.
Flavor and Antioxidant Capacity of Peanut Paste and Peanut Butter Supplemented with Peanut Skins
Authors: Hathorn Chellani S. , Sanders Timothy H. 
Published: October 2012

Abstract:  Peanut skins (PS) are a good source of phenolic compounds. This study evaluated antioxidant properties and flavor of peanut paste and peanut butter enhanced with peanut skins. PS were added to both materials in concentrations of 0.0%, 0.5%, 1.0%, 5.0%, 10.0%, 15.0%, and 20.0% (w/w). PS, peanut paste, and peanut butter used in the study had initial total phenolics contents of 158, 12.9, and 14.1 mg GAE/g, respectively. Hydrophilic oxygen radical absorbance capacity (H‐ORAC) of peanut skins was 189453 μMol Trolox/100 g and addition of 5% PS increased H‐ORAC of peanut paste and peanut butter by 52% to 63%. Descriptive sensory analysis indicated that the addition of 1% PS did not change intensity of descriptors in the sensory profile of either peanut paste or peanut butter. Addition of 5% PS resulted in significant differences in woody, hulls, skins; bitter; and astringent descriptors and 10% PS addition resulted in significant differences in most attributes toward more negative flavor.Practical Application:  Peanut skins are a low‐value residue material from peanut processing which contain naturally occurring phenolic compounds. The use of this material to improve antioxidant capacity and shelf‐life of foods can add value to the material and improve the nutritional value of foods. The improved nutritional qualities and unchanged flavor profile occurring with low levels of peanuts skins in peanut paste and peanut butter suggest potential application of this technology in various food industries.
Consumers' intention to use generic-drug discount programmes
Authors: Patel Harshali K , Johnson Michael L , Sansgiry Sujit S 
Published: October 2012

Abstract

Objective
Generic-drug discount programmes (GDDPs) offer generic drugs at subsidized costs to both insured and uninsured consumers in the USA. Understanding predictors of intention to use GDDPs could help in developing interventions to direct more consumers to take advantage of such programmes. The objective of this study was to identify predictors of intention to use GDDPs using the theory of planned behaviour (TPB).

Methods
A paper-based survey was self-administered to randomly selected individuals from the greater Houston area in Texas, USA. The validated questionnaire included potential predictors of intention to use GDDPs that were derived and measured using the premise of TPB and the concept of awareness. Logistic regression was performed to evaluate if awareness, attitude towards GDDPs and generic drugs, perceived behavioural control (PBC) and subjective norms predicted intention to use GDDPs after controlling for demographics, income, number of chronic conditions and number of prescription drugs taken.

Key findings
A response rate of 59.5% was achieved (n = 663). Approximately 62.4% (414) respondents were aware of and 80% (528) had an intention to use GDDPs. After controlling for demographics and predisposing factors (current prescription drug use, chronic conditions and insurance status), attitude towards GDDPs (odds ratio, OR = 5.08; 95% confidence interval, CI = 3.228–8.003; P &lt; 0.0001), attitude towards generic drugs (OR = 1.733; CI = 1.231–2.441; P = 0.0016) and PBC (OR = 1.57; CI = 1.067–2.320; P = 0.0222) significantly predicted intention to use GDDPs. Individuals of Hispanic and African American origin were 3.1 times (P = 0.0016) and 2.6 times (P = 0.0173) more likely, respectively, than white people to have an intention to use GDDPs.

Conclusions
Attitude towards GDDPs and generic drugs, PBC, location and race/ethnicity were significantly associated with intention to use GDDPs. Interventions by stakeholders to promote positive attitudes and highlighting the ease with which GDDPs can be used would be beneficial to eventually increase consumer utilization of GDDPs.
Acute effect of β-sitosterol on calcium uptake mediates anti-inflammatory effect in murine activated neutrophils
Authors: Liz Rafael , Zanatta Leila , dos Reis Gustavo Oliveira , Horst Heros , Pizzolatti Moacir Geraldo , Silva Fátima Regina Mena Barreto , Fröde Tânia Silvia 
Published: October 2012

Abstract

Objectives
To evaluate the effect of β-sitosterol on 45Ca2+ uptake in activated murine neutrophils, and upon myeloperoxidase and adenosine deaminase activity, and interleukin-1β (IL-1β) and tumour necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) levels, in carrageenan-induced inflammation in the mouse air pouch model.

Methods
Dried Esenbeckia leiocarpa bark was macerated and extracted resulting in a crude hydroalcoholic extract (CHE) that was partitioned to obtain an alkaloid fraction. The alkaloid was then partitioned in polar and nonpolar subfractions. β-Sitosterol was isolated from the nonpolar subfraction and identified by comparison with the literature. The effect of β-sitosterol on 45Ca2+ uptake in activated murine neutrophils, and upon myeloperoxidase and adenosine deaminase activity, IL-1β and TNF-α levels in carrageenan-induced inflammation in mice were evaluated.

Key findings
β-Sitosterol promoted a time- and dose-dependent increase of the calcium uptake in activated neutrophils that was promptly reversed by nifedipine, BAPTA-AM, LY294002, and colchicine. β-Sitosterol inhibited myeloperoxidase and adenosine deaminase activity, and IL-1β and TNF-α levels.

Conclusions
β-Sitosterol inhibited either myeloperoxidase and adenosine deaminase activity or IL-1β and TNF-α levels. This effect seemed to be mediated by the calcium uptake in activated neutrophils in a time- and concentration-dependent manner through L-type voltage dependent calcium channels, intracellular calcium, phosphoinositide kinase-3, and microtubule modulation.
Humic Substances Delay Aging of the Photosynthetic Apparatus of Chara hispida
Authors: Pörs Yvonne , Steinberg Christian E. W. 
Published: October 2012

In freshwaters, dissolved humic substances (HSs) distinguish apparently HS‐avoiding Charophytes from apparently HS‐tolerant ones, but the underlying mechanisms so far remain obscure. In this contribution, we tested direct and indirect effects of HSs on Chara hispida (L.) Hartm. Using Rhodamine B, we showed that C. hispida is able to adsorb or even uptake and, subsequently, desorb and depurate organic compounds in the molecular mass range of the applied fulvic acids. To classify direct and indirect HS‐mediated effects due to reduced light quantities, or to effects more strongly elicited by red relative to blue light, plants were exposed to HSs directly as well as through a neutral foil, or shaded by means of an external HS‐containing reservoir (low‐light variant). We showed that the apparently HS‐tolerant C. hispida exhibited reduced lipid peroxidation and non photochemical quenching of chlorphyll fluorescence when exposed to HSs. Plants directly exposed to HSs were significantly different from control as well as to foil‐shaded plants in terms of chl a+b, VAZ/chl, and β‐Car/chl; yet, in low‐light plants these variables did not differ from control and HS‐exposed plants, suggesting that the shift in favor of red lights in the low‐light variant led to a reduction in its cells' internal antioxidant content. However, the Fv/Fm ratio in HS‐exposed plants decreased more slowly than in all other exposure variants, indicating that the photosynthetic apparatus aged more slowly, by a mechanism yet to be discovered. Our study indicates that both direct and indirect effects contribute to the HS tolerance of C. hispida.
Coalescent and biophysical models of stepping‐stone gene flow in neritid snails
Authors: Crandall Eric D. , Treml Eric A. , Barber Paul H. 
Published: October 2012

AbstractMarine species in the Indo‐Pacific have ranges that can span thousands of kilometres, yet studies increasingly suggest that mean larval dispersal distances are less than historically assumed. Gene flow across these ranges must therefore rely to some extent on larval dispersal among intermediate ‘stepping‐stone’ populations in combination with long‐distance dispersal far beyond the mean of the dispersal kernel. We evaluate the strength of stepping‐stone dynamics by employing a spatially explicit biophysical model of larval dispersal in the tropical Pacific to construct hypotheses for dispersal pathways. We evaluate these hypotheses with coalescent models of gene flow among high‐island archipelagos in four neritid gastropod species. Two of the species live in the marine intertidal, while the other two are amphidromous, living in fresh water but retaining pelagic dispersal. Dispersal pathways predicted by the biophysical model were strongly favoured in 16 of 18 tests against alternate hypotheses. In regions where connectivity among high‐island archipelagos was predicted as direct, there was no difference in gene flow between marine and amphidromous species. In regions where connectivity was predicted through stepping‐stone atolls only accessible to marine species, gene flow estimates between high‐island archipelagos were significantly higher in marine species. Moreover, one of the marine species showed a significant pattern of isolation by distance consistent with stepping‐stone dynamics. While our results support stepping‐stone dynamics in Indo‐Pacific species, we also see evidence for nonequilibrium processes such as range expansions or rare long‐distance dispersal events. This study couples population genetic and biophysical models to help to shed light on larval dispersal pathways.
Increased Antioxidant Activity and Changes in Phenolic Profile of Kalanchoe pinnata (Lamarck) Persoon (Crassulaceae) Specimens Grown Under Supplemental Blue Light
Authors: Nascimento Luana B. S. , Leal‐Costa Marcos V. , Coutinho Marcela A. S. , Moreira Nattacha dos S. , Lage Celso L. S. , Barbi Nancy dos S. , Costa Sônia S. , Tavares Eliana S. 
Published: October 2012

AbstractAntioxidant compounds protect plants against oxidative stress caused by environmental conditions. Different light qualities, such as UV‐A radiation and blue light, have shown positive effects on the production of phenols in plants. Kalanchoe pinnata (Lamarck) Persoon (Crassulaceae) is used for treating wounds and inflammations. Some of these beneficial effects are attributed to the antioxidant activity of plant components. We investigated the effects of blue light and UV‐A radiation supplementation on the total phenol content, antioxidant activity and chromatographic profile of aqueous extracts from leaves of K. pinnata. Monoclonal plants were grown under white light, white plus blue light and white plus UV‐A radiation. Supplemental blue light improved the antioxidant activity and changed the phenolic profile of the extracts. Analysis by HPLC of supplemental blue‐light plant extracts revealed a higher proportion of the major flavonoid quercetin 3‐O‐α‐l‐arabinopyranosyl (1→2) α‐l‐rhamnopyranoside, as well as the presence of a wide variety of other phenolic substances. These findings may explain the higher antioxidant activity observed for this extract. Blue light is proposed as a supplemental light source in the cultivation of K. pinnata, to improve its antioxidant activity.
Population Pessimism and Economic Optimism in the Asian Giants
Authors: Golley Jane , Tyers Rod 
Published: October 2012

AbstractThe timing of China’s and India’s demographic transitions and the implications of alternative fertility scenarios are explored here using a global economic model incorporating full demographic behaviour and measures of dependency that accurately reflect the changing proportion of workers, rather than working‐aged, in the total population. The baseline scenario confirms that demographic change in India may yield significant gains to future real per capita income, resulting from a continuing sharp decline in its total dependency ratio. For China, these gains are largely in the past, although the positive contribution of declining youth and working‐aged dependency to future per capita income will continue to offset the negative impact of rising aged dependency through to 2030. Whilst a policy change to foster higher fertility rates and hence more rapid population growth in China might ultimately ease its dependency burden, in the short run it will increase it. In any case, such a course is contradictory to the goal of delivering improvements in real per capita income. For India, we confirm that the benefits of further fertility reductions, in the form of increased real per capita income, are substantial.
Test configurations and Okounkov bodies
Authors: Witt Nyström David 
Published: October 2012

AbstractWe associate to a test configuration for a polarized variety a filtration of the section ring of the line bundle. Using the recent work of Boucksom and Chen we get a concave function on the Okounkov body whose law with respect to Lebesgue measure determines the asymptotic distribution of the weights of the test configuration. We show that this is a generalization of a well-known result in toric geometry. As an application, we prove that the pushforward of the Lebesgue measure on the Okounkov body is equal to a Duistermaat–Heckman measure of a certain deformation of the manifold. Via the Duisteraat–Heckman formula, we get as a corollary that in the special case of an effective ℂ×-action on the manifold lifting to the line bundle, the pushforward of the Lebesgue measure on the Okounkov body is piecewise polynomial.
Lifting, restricting and sifting integral points on affine homogeneous varieties
Authors: Gorodnik Alexander , Nevo Amos 
Published: October 2012

AbstractIn [Gorodnik and Nevo,Counting lattice points, J. Reine Angew. Math.663(2012), 127–176] an effective solution of the lattice point counting problem in general domains in semisimpleS-algebraic groups and affine symmetric varieties was established. The method relies on the mean ergodic theorem for the action ofGonG/Γ, and implies uniformity in counting over families of lattice subgroups admitting a uniform spectral gap. In the present paper we extend some methods developed in [Nevo and Sarnak,Prime and almost prime integral points on principal homogeneous spaces, Acta Math.205(2010), 361–402] and use them to establish several useful consequences of this property, including:(1)effective upper bounds on lifting for solutions of congruences in affine homogeneous varieties;(2)effective upper bounds on the number of integral points on general subvarieties of semisimple group varieties;(3)effective lower bounds on the number of almost prime points on symmetric varieties;(4)effective upper bounds on almost prime solutions of congruences in homogeneous varieties.
Clinical Validation of a Type-Specific Real-Time Quantitative Human Papillomavirus PCR against the Performance of Hybrid Capture 2 for the Purpose of Cervical Cancer Screening
Authors: Depuydt C. E. , Benoy I. H. , Beert J. F. A. , Criel A. M. , Bogers J. J. , Arbyn M. 
Published: October 2012

ABSTRACT

To be acceptable for use in cervical cancer screening, a new assay that detects DNA of high-risk human papillomavirus (hrHPV) types must demonstrate high reproducibility and performance not inferior to that of a clinically validated HPV test. In the present study, a real-time quantitative PCR (qPCR) assay targeting the E6 and E7 genes of hrHPV was compared with Hybrid Capture 2 (hc2) in a Belgian cervical cancer screening setting. In women >30 years old, the sensitivity and specificity for intraepithelial neoplasias of grade 2 or worse (93 cases of cervical intraepithelial neoplasias of grade 2 or worse (CIN2+) and 1,207 cases of no CIN or CIN1) were 93.6% and 95.6%, respectively, and those of hc2 were 83.9% and 94.5%, respectively {relative sensitivity of qPCR/hc2 = 1.12 [95% confidence interval (CI), 1.01 to 1.23]; relative specificity = 1.01 [95% CI, 0.99 to 1.03]}. A score test showed that the sensitivity (
P
< 0.0001) and specificity (
P
< 0.0001) of the qPCR assay were not inferior to those of hc2 at the required thresholds of 90% and 98%, respectively. The overall agreement of hrHPV positivity between the two runs of the qPCR tests was 98.7% (95% CI, 97.5 to 99.4%), with a kappa value of 0.96 (95% CI, 0.83 to 1.00). The qPCR assay used in this study can be considered a reliable HPV assay that fulfills the clinical validation criteria defined for use in cervical cancer screening.
Alternative Sampling Methods for Detecting Bacterial Pathogens in Children with Upper Respiratory Tract Infections
Authors: van den Bergh Menno R. , Bogaert Debby , Dun Lideke , Vons Joline , Chu Mei Ling J. N. , Trzciński Krzysztof , Veenhoven Reinier H. , Sanders Elisabeth A. M. , Schilder Anne M. G. 
Published: October 2012

ABSTRACTNasopharyngeal sampling is used for detecting bacteria commonly involved in upper respiratory tract infections, but it requires training and may not always be well tolerated. We sampled children (n= 66) of ages 0 to 4 years, with rhinorrhea, by using a nasopharyngeal swab, a nasal swab, and nose blowing/wiping into a paper tissue.Streptococcus pneumoniae,Haemophilus influenzae,Moraxella catarrhalis, andStaphylococcus aureuswere cultured at similar rates across methods with high concordance (80 to 97%), indicating that they are reliably detected by alternative means.
Japanese Encephalitis Virus Infects Neuronal Cells through a Clathrin-Independent Endocytic Mechanism
Authors: Kalia Manjula , Khasa Renu , Sharma Manish , Nain Minu , Vrati Sudhanshu 
Published: October 2012

ABSTRACT
Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) is a mosquito-borne pathogenic flavivirus responsible for acute viral encephalitis in humans. The cellular entry of JEV is poorly characterized in terms of molecular requirements and pathways. Here we present a systematic study of the internalization mechanism of JEV in fibroblasts and neuroblastoma cells. To verify the roles of distinct pathways of cell entry, we used fluorescently labeled virus particles, a combination of pharmacological inhibitors, RNA interference (RNAi), and dominant-negative (DN) mutants of regulatory proteins involved in endocytosis. Our study demonstrates that JEV infects fibroblasts in a clathrin-dependent manner, but it deploys a clathrin-independent mechanism to infect neuronal cells. The clathrin-independent pathway requires dynamin and plasma membrane cholesterol. Virus binding to neuronal cells leads to rapid actin rearrangements and an intact and dynamic actin cytoskeleton, and the small GTPase RhoA plays an important role in viral entry. Immunofluorescence analysis of viral colocalization with endocytic markers showed that JEV traffics through Rab5-positive early endosomes and that release of the viral nucleocapsid occurs at the level of the early and not the late endosomes.
Myeloid-Derived Suppressor Cells Regulate Natural Killer Cell Response to Adenovirus-Mediated Gene Transfer
Authors: Zhu Jiangao , Huang Xiaopei , Yang Yiping 
Published: October 2012

ABSTRACT

The attendant innate and adaptive immune responses to viral vectors have posed a significant hurdle for clinical application of viral vector-mediated gene therapy. Previous studies have shown that natural killer (NK) cells play a critical role in innate immune elimination of adenoviral vectors in the liver. However, it is not clear how the NK cell response to adenoviral vectors is regulated. In this study, we identified a role for granulocytic myeloid-derived suppressor cells (G-MDSCs) in this process. We show that
in vivo
administration of adenoviral vectors results in rapid accumulation of G-MDSCs early during adenoviral infection.
In vivo
depletion of both MDSC populations, but not monocytic MDSCs (M-MDSCs) alone, resulted in accelerated clearance of adenoviral vectors in the liver. This was accompanied by enhanced NK cell proliferation and activation, suggesting a role for MDSCs, probably G-MDSCs, in suppressing NK cell activation and function
in vivo
. We further demonstrate
in vitro
that G-MDSCs, but not M-MDSCs, are responsible for the suppression of NK cell activation. In addition, we show that adenoviral infection activated G-MDSCs to produce higher levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and that G-MDSC-mediated suppression of NK cells is mediated by ROS, specifically, H
2
O
2
. This study demonstrates for the first time that the NK cell response to adenoviral vectors is negatively regulated by G-MDSCs and suggests that G-MDSC-based strategies could potentially improve the outcome of viral vector-mediated gene therapy.