bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Cold truths: how winter drives responses of terrestrial organisms to climate change
Authors: Williams Caroline M. , Henry Hugh A. L. , Sinclair Brent J. 
Published: April 2014

ABSTRACTWinter is a key driver of individual performance, community composition, and ecological interactions in terrestrial habitats. Although climate change research tends to focus on performance in the growing season, climate change is also modifying winter conditions rapidly. Changes to winter temperatures, the variability of winter conditions, and winter snow cover can interact to induce cold injury, alter energy and water balance, advance or retard phenology, and modify community interactions. Species vary in their susceptibility to these winter drivers, hampering efforts to predict biological responses to climate change. Existing frameworks for predicting the impacts of climate change do not incorporate the complexity of organismal responses to winter. Here, we synthesise organismal responses to winter climate change, and use this synthesis to build a framework to predict exposure and sensitivity to negative impacts. This framework can be used to estimate the vulnerability of species to winter climate change. We describe the importance of relationships between winter conditions and performance during the growing season in determining fitness, and demonstrate how summer and winter processes are linked. Incorporating winter into current models will require concerted effort from theoreticians and empiricists, and the expansion of current growing‐season studies to incorporate winter.
Downgrading, Downsizing, Degazettement, and Reclassification of Protected Areas in Brazil
Authors: BERNARD E. , PENNA L. A. O. , ARAÚJO E. 
Published: April 2014

AbstractProtected areas (PAs) are key elements for biodiversity conservation and ecosystem services. Brazil has the largest PA system in the world, covering approximately 220 million ha. This system expanded rapidly in the mid‐1990s to the mid‐2000s. Recent events in Brazil, however, have led to an increase in PA downgrading, downsizing, and degazettement (PADDD). Does this reflect a shift in the country's PA policy? We analyzed the occurrence, frequency, magnitude, type, spatial distribution, and causes of changes in PA boundaries and categories in Brazil. We identified 93 PADDD events from 1981 to 2012. Such events increased in frequency since 2008 and were ascribed primarily to generation and transmission of electricity in Amazonia. In Brazilian parks and reserves, 7.3 million ha were affected by PADDD events, and of these, 5.2 million ha were affected by downsizing or degazetting. Moreover, projects being considered by the Federal Congress may degazette 2.1 million ha of PA in Amazonia alone. Relaxing the protection status of existing PAs is proving to be politically easy in Brazil, and the recent increase in frequency and extension of PADDD reflects a change in governmental policy. By taking advantage of chronic deficiencies in financial and personnel resources and surveillance, disputes over land tenure, and the slowness of the Brazilian justice, government agencies have been implementing PADDD without consultation of civil society. If parks and reserves are to maintain their integrity, there will need to be investments in Brazilian PAs and a better understanding of the benefits PAs provide.Degradación, Reajuste, Eliminacióm de las Listas y Reclasificación de Áreas Protegidas en Brasil
[Re]considering Respect for Persons in a Globalizing World
Authors: Padela Aasim I. , Malik Aisha Y. , Curlin Farr , De Vries Raymond 
Published: April 2014

AbstractContemporary clinical ethics was founded on principlism, and the four principles: respect for autonomy, nonmaleficence, beneficence and justice, remain dominant in medical ethics discourse and practice. These principles are held to be expansive enough to provide the basis for the ethical practice of medicine across cultures. Although principlism remains subject to critique and revision, the four‐principle model continues to be taught and applied across the world. As the practice of medicine globalizes, it remains critical to examine the extent to which both the four‐principle framework, and individual principles among the four, suffice patients and practitioners in different social and cultural contexts. Using the four‐principle model we analyze two accounts of surrogate decision making – one from the developed and one from the developing world – in which the clinician undertakes medical decision‐making with apparently little input from the patient and/or family. The purpose of this analysis is to highlight challenges in assessing ethical behaviour according to the principlist model. We next describe cultural expectations and mores that inform both patient and clinician behaviors in these scenarios in order to argue that the principle of respect for persons informed by culture‐specific ideas of personhood may offer an improved ethical construct for analyzing and guiding medical practice in a globalized and plural world.
Reuse Of Pacemakers In Ghana And Nigeria: Medical, Legal, Cultural And Ethical Perspectives
Authors: Ochasi Aloysius , Clark Peter 
Published: April 2014

AbstractAccording to the World Health Organization (WHO) cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death globally. Over 80% of CVD deaths take place in low‐ and middle‐income countries (LMICs). It is estimated that 1 million to 2 million people worldwide die each year due to lack of access to an implantable cardiac defibrillator (ICD) or a pacemaker. Despite the medical, legal, cultural and ethical controversies surrounding the pacemaker reutilization, studies done so far on the reuse of postmortem pacemakers show it to be safe and effective with an infection rate of 1.97% and device malfunction rate of 0.68%. Pacemaker reutilization can be effectively and safely done and does not pose significant additional risk to the recipient. Heart patients with reused pacemakers have an improved quality of life compared to those without pacemakers. The thesis of this paper is that pacemaker reutilization is a life‐saving initiative in LMICs of Nigeria and Ghana. It is cost effective; consistent with the principles of beneficence, nonmaleficence, and justice with a commitment to stewardship of resources and the Common Good. Used pacemakers with adequate battery life can be properly sterilized for use by patients in LMICs who cannot afford the cost of a new pacemaker.
A Brief History of Biomedical Research Ethics in Iran: Conflict of Paradigms
Authors: Aramesh Kiarash 
Published: April 2014

AbstractDuring the past two decades, Iran has experienced a noteworthy growth in its biomedical research sector. At the same time, ethical concerns and debates resulting from this burgeoning enterprise has led to increasing attention paid to biomedical ethics. In Iran, Biomedical research ethics and research oversight passed through major periods during the past decades, separated by a paradigm shift. Period 1, starting from the early 1970s, is characterized by research paternalism and complete reliance on researchers as virtuous and caring physicians. This approach was in concordance with the paternalistic clinical practice of physicians outside of research settings during the same period. Period 2, starting from the late 1990s, was partly due to revealing of ethical flaws that occurred in biomedical research in Iran. The regulatory and funding bodies concluded that it was not sufficient to rely solely on the personal and professional virtues of researchers to safeguard human subjects' rights and welfare. The necessity for independent oversight, emphasized by international declarations, became obvious and undeniable. This paradigm shift led to the establishment of research ethics committees throughout the country, the establishment of academic research centers focusing on medical ethics (MEHR) and the compilation of the first set of national ethical guidelines on biomedical research–one of the first and most important projects conducted by and in the MEHR. Although not yet arrived, ‘period 3’ is on its way. It is predictable from the obvious trends toward performance of high‐quality clinical research and the appearance of a highly educated new generation, especially among women.
Time‐lapse imaging system with shell‐less culture chamber
Authors: Funahashi Jun‐ichi , Nakamura Harukazu 
Published: April 2014

We have developed a system for imaging whole chick embryos from embryonic day 1.5 (E1.5) to E4.5. Our system consists of a custom‐made culture chamber, the top and bottom of which were heated and the inside was humidified. The system also has a fixed stage uplight fluorescent microscope, and long‐working distance objective lenses were adopted. The albumen removed‐yolk with the embryo in the dish was put in the chamber. It is of importance that we adopted long working distance lenses because the working distance of conventional objective lenses is too short for observation of the embryo in a humidified chamber. The objective lens we adopted has sufficient resolution to detect fluorescent protein expression at the single‐cell level. Transparent glass heater set on the top of the chamber helps to reduce dew condensation; the bottom heater keeps the temperature inside the chamber, and the water bath surrounding the egg maintains humidity. This system was used to detect fluorescent protein expressing cells in embryos. We could successfully trace those cells for 17 h in vivo. In conclusion, this system is useful for time‐lapse analysis of fluorescent protein expression and distribution for a longer period of time.
Evaluation of patient satisfaction after non‐vital bleaching in traumatized discolored intact anterior teeth
Authors: Gupta Saurabh K. , Saxena Payal 
Published: April 2014

AbstractAimThis study evaluated patient satisfaction and clinical effectiveness of intracoronal bleach in traumatized anterior discolored intact teeth. Assessment of awareness and knowledge of the patient regarding treatment modalities for such cases was also performed.Material and methodForty‐one patients were included in the study. Walking bleach was performed using sodium perborate (tetrahydrate) after root canal treatment and proper cervical seal. Patient was recalled after 1 week for evaluation. The bleaching procedure was repeated again till the patient agreed for it. On each recall visit, shade evaluation was performed using the Vita Classic shade guide. On completion of treatment, the patients were questioned as to their satisfaction level. Statistical analysis was carried out using anova.Results87.8% of the subjects were highly satisfied with the results obtained; 7.32% were satisfied, while 4.9% were not satisfied. Average number of appointments needed for highly satisfied group was 2.75, and average shade change obtained was 11.97. Significantly more number of appointments were needed for the older patients (P < 0.01) or patients with older trauma (P < 0.05)/discoloration (P < 0.05). Severity of discoloration did not affect the number of appointments (P > 0.05). Most of the participants (97.6%) were not aware of bleaching procedure. The aspect of this treatment, which satisfied them the most, was improvement of the tooth coloration followed by conservation of tooth structure while the most perplexing thing was the unpredictability of final shade achieved and lack of color stability.ConclusionsHigh level of patient satisfaction after non‐vital tooth bleach treatment strongly supports this treatment modality to be a conservative treatment alternative for traumatized discolored anterior tooth.
Evaluating an early intervention in psychosis service for ‘high‐risk’ adolescents: symptomatic and social recovery outcomes
Authors: Lower Rebecca , Wilson Jonathan , Medin Evelina , Corlett Emma , Turner Ruth , Wheeler Karen , Fowler David 
Published: April 2014

AbstractAimThis study presents client characteristics and treatment outcomes for a group of young people seen by Central Norfolk Early Intervention Team (CNEIT). The team offers an intensive outreach model of treatment to young people with complex co‐morbid emotional, behavioural and social problems, as well as the presence of psychotic symptoms.MethodsOutcomes include both client self‐report and clinician‐rated measures. Data are routinely collected at acceptance into service, after 12 months of service and at point of discharge.ResultsData show that clients seen by the CNEIT youth team are a group of young people at high risk of developing long‐term mental illness and social disability. Outcomes show significant reductions in not only psychotic symptomatology, but also co‐morbid anxiety and depression, as well as improvements in social recovery. At the end of their time with the service, the majority of clients are discharged back to the care of their general practitioner, which indicates that the team successfully managed to reduce the complexity of needs and difficulties associated with this client group.ConclusionsOutcomes support the use of an intensive outreach approach for young people at high risk of developing psychotic disorders. It has been suggested that this model may be successfully broadened to young people with other emerging, potentially severe or complex mental disorders. Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust has built on the success of its youth early intervention team and innovatively redesigned its services in line with this model by developing a specific youth mental health service.
Premorbid self‐disorders and lifetime diagnosis in the schizophrenia spectrum: a prospective high‐risk study
Authors: Parnas Josef , Carter John , Nordgaard Julie 
Published: April 2014

AbstractAimThe notion of a disordered self as a core disturbance of schizophrenia was proposed in many foundational texts. Recent studies, spurred by the development of the Examination of Anomalous Self‐Experience (EASE), seem to indicate that self‐disorders are a specific manifestation of schizophrenia vulnerability. Follow‐up studies of help‐seeking, prodromal and first‐admission patients have demonstrated the utility of self‐disorders for predicting later schizophrenia‐spectrum disturbance. We wished to extend these findings by gauging the predictive value of self‐disorders in a premorbid, non‐clinical population at high risk for schizophrenia.MethodsChildren from the Copenhagen High‐Risk Project with high‐genetic risk for schizophrenia (N = 212) were assessed premorbidly (average age = 15), and diagnostically re‐evaluated after 10 and 25 years. Since the EASE was not available at the time of premorbid assessment, we hypothesized that a proxy scale drawn from the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) could distinguish those who later developed a schizophrenia‐spectrum disorder (N = 68) from those who remained healthy (N = 64). The Self‐Disorder Scale comprised 32 items whose content suggested an aspect of self‐disorder as measured by the EASE.ResultsPremorbid Self‐Disorder Scale scores significantly predicted lifetime schizophrenia‐spectrum diagnosis in the high‐risk cohort. Although there was considerable item overlap between the new scale and an existing MMPI scale (psychoticism), the overlap did not account for the Self‐Disorder Scale's predictive efficacy.ConclusionThe results support the notion of self‐disorders as a core vulnerability feature in schizophrenia, detectable premorbidly in those developing later schizophrenia‐spectrum disorders.
Early lymphocyte recovery at 28 d post‐transplant is predictive of reduced risk of relapse in patients with acute myeloid leukemia transplanted with peripheral blood stem cell grafts
Authors: Michelis Fotios V. , Messner Hans A. , Loach David , Uhm Jieun , Gupta Vikas , Lipton Jeffrey H. , Seftel Matthew D. , Kuruvilla John , Kim Dennis D. 
Published: April 2014

AbstractAllogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) is potentially curative for acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Impact of lymphocyte recovery on post‐transplant outcomes has been suggested but reports are conflicting. We evaluated the impact of lymphocyte recovery at 28 d post‐HCT in 191 AML patients using peripheral blood stem cells as graft. Patients were divided into those with absolute lymphocyte count (ALC) ≥0.5 × 109/L (n = 111, 58%; high ALC group) and those with ALC <0.5 × 109/L (n = 80, 42%; low ALC group), at day 28 post‐transplant. With a median follow‐up of 49 months, overall survival (OS) was significantly improved in the high ALC group (59% at 3 yr) vs. patients with low ALC (40% at 3 yr, P = 0.03). Cumulative incidence of relapse (CIR) was significantly lower in the high ALC group (16% at 3 yr) vs. low ALC group (36% at 3 yr, P = 0.001). Multivariable analysis for CIR demonstrated high ALC group as an independent factor decreasing relapse risk (P = 0.03, HR = 0.49, 95% CI = 0.26–0.92). Multivariable analysis for OS and non‐relapse mortality did not demonstrate ALC ≥0.5 × 109/L at 28 d post‐transplant to be predictive. We conclude that lymphocyte recovery with ALC ≥0.5 × 109/L at day 28 post‐transplant is associated with less relapse in AML patients undergoing allogeneic peripheral blood HCT, but without survival benefit.
Reading difficulty is associated with failure to lateralize temporooccipital function
Authors: Tailby Chris , Weintrob David L. , Saling Michael M. , Fitzgerald Carly , Jackson Graeme D. 
Published: April 2014

SummaryObjectiveStudies of focal epilepsy have revealed abnormalities of language organization; however, little attention has been paid to disorders of reading in this group. We hypothesized that language functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) would reveal differences in language organization between focal epilepsy patients with and without reading difficulties.MethodsWe conducted language fMRI studies of 10 focal epilepsy patients with reading difficulties, 34 focal epilepsy patients without reading difficulties, and 42 healthy controls.ResultsWe defined regions of interests on the basis of activation patterns on an orthographic lexical retrieval task. Comparison of activations within these ROIs on a second Noun‐Verb task revealed epilepsy‐related effects (relative to healthy controls: reduced activation in left inferior frontal cortex), as well as greater activation in the right temporooccipital cortex specific to the reading difficulty group.SignificanceThese findings identify a focal epilepsy effect in the left frontal region (present in patients with and without reading difficulties), and a functional abnormality specific to the reading difficulty group localized to right temporooccipital cortex—a region implicated in lexicosemantic processing. Our observations suggest a failure of left hemisphere specialization among focal epilepsy patients with reading difficulties.A PowerPoint slide summarizing this article is available for download in the Supporting Information section here.
The influence of sampling design on tree‐ring‐based quantification of forest growth
Authors: Nehrbass‐Ahles Christoph , Babst Flurin , Klesse Stefan , Nötzli Magdalena , Bouriaud Olivier , Neukom Raphael , Dobbertin Matthias , Frank David 
Published: April 2014

AbstractTree‐rings offer one of the few possibilities to empirically quantify and reconstruct forest growth dynamics over years to millennia. Contemporaneously with the growing scientific community employing tree‐ring parameters, recent research has suggested that commonly applied sampling designs (i.e. how and which trees are selected for dendrochronological sampling) may introduce considerable biases in quantifications of forest responses to environmental change. To date, a systematic assessment of the consequences of sampling design on dendroecological and‐climatological conclusions has not yet been performed. Here, we investigate potential biases by sampling a large population of trees and replicating diverse sampling designs. This is achieved by retroactively subsetting the population and specifically testing for biases emerging for climate reconstruction, growth response to climate variability, long‐term growth trends, and quantification of forest productivity. We find that commonly applied sampling designs can impart systematic biases of varying magnitude to any type of tree‐ring‐based investigations, independent of the total number of samples considered. Quantifications of forest growth and productivity are particularly susceptible to biases, whereas growth responses to short‐term climate variability are less affected by the choice of sampling design. The world's most frequently applied sampling design, focusing on dominant trees only, can bias absolute growth rates by up to 459% and trends in excess of 200%. Our findings challenge paradigms, where a subset of samples is typically considered to be representative for the entire population. The only two sampling strategies meeting the requirements for all types of investigations are the (i) sampling of all individuals within a fixed area; and (ii) fully randomized selection of trees. This result advertises the consistent implementation of a widely applicable sampling design to simultaneously reduce uncertainties in tree‐ring‐based quantifications of forest growth and increase the comparability of datasets beyond individual studies, investigators, laboratories, and geographical boundaries.
Comparison of experimental fine‐mapping to in silico prediction results of HIV‐1 epitopes reveals ongoing need for mapping experiments
Authors: Roider Julia , Meissner Tim , Kraut Franziska , Vollbrecht Thomas , Stirner Renate , Bogner Johannes R. , Draenert Rika 
Published: April 2014

SummaryMethods for identifying physiologically relevant CD8 T‐cell epitopes are critically important not only for the development of T‐cell‐based vaccines but also for understanding host–pathogen interactions. As experimentally mapping an optimal CD8 T‐cell epitope is a tedious procedure, many bioinformatic tools have been developed that predict which peptides bind to a given MHC molecule. We assessed the ability of the CD8 T‐cell epitope prediction tools syfpeithi, ctlpred and iedb to foretell nine experimentally mapped optimal HIV‐specific epitopes. Randomly – for any of the subjects' HLA type and with any matching score – the optimal epitope was predicted in seven of nine epitopes using syfpeithi, in three of nine epitopes using ctlpred and in all nine of nine epitopes using iedb. The optimal epitope within the three highest ranks was given in four of nine epitopes applying syfpeithi, in two of nine epitopes applying ctlpred and in seven of nine epitopes applying iedb when screening for all of the subjects' HLA types. Knowing the HLA restriction of the peptide of interest improved the ranking of the optimal epitope within the predicted results. Epitopes restricted by common HLA alleles were more likely to be predicted than those restricted by uncommon HLA alleles. Epitopes with aberrant lengths compared with the usual HLA‐class I nonamers were most likely not predicted. Application of epitope prediction tools together with literature searches for already described optimal epitopes narrows down the possibilities of optimal epitopes within a screening peptide of interest. However, in our opinion, the actual fine‐mapping of a CD8 T‐cell epitope cannot yet be replaced.