bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Altrenogest Treatment Associated with a Farrowing Induction Protocol to Avoid Early Parturition in Sows
Authors: Gaggini TS , Perin J , Arend LS , Bernardi ML , Wentz I , Bortolozzo FP 
Published: September 2012

ContentsThis study investigated the effect of altrenogest treatment on the farrowing development of sows, and birth weight (BW) and piglet survival until the third day of life. Three control groups were used: (i) sows that farrowed spontaneously before 114 day of gestation (CONT <114); (ii) sows that spontaneously farrowed at ≥114 day of gestation (CONT ≥114); (iii) sows that farrowed at ≥114 day with cloprostenol treatment (CONTCLOPR). Other sows were treated with altrenogest (Regumate®) for 3 days (days 111, 112 and 113 of gestation): one group gave birth spontaneously (ALT) and the other group received altrenogest until day 113 and cloprostenol on day 114 (ALTCLOPR). There were no differences (p > 0.05) in farrowing duration, BW, coefficient of variation (CV) of BW, stillborn piglets, mummified foetuses, percentage of light piglets and survival until Day 3 between sows with and without cloprostenol treatment, in both control (CONT ≥114 vs CONTCLOPR) and altrenogest‐treated sows (ALT vs ALTCLOPR). Further comparisons were performed taking into account three groups: sows with early delivery (CONT <114 – farrowing before 114 days of gestation; n = 56), sows with longer gestation (CONT ≥114 – with and without cloprostenol treatment sows; n = 103) and ALT sows (with and without cloprostenol treatment; n = 105). Gestation length of CONT ≥114 and ALT sows was similar (p > 0.05), but higher than in CONT <114 sows. There were no differences (p > 0.05) between groups in farrowing duration, CV of BW, and percentages of stillborn piglets and mummified foetuses. Sows of CONT <114 group had a larger litter size and a lower BW than sows of the other two groups (p < 0.05). Sows of CONT <114 group had a higher percentage of lighter piglets and a lower piglet survival rate (p < 0.05) than ALT sows. In conclusion, altrenogest treatment proved to be an efficient method to avoid early parturition in 3–5 parity sows resulting in heavier piglets at birth.
The glutamatergic system as a target for neuropathic pain relief
Authors: Osikowicz Maria , Mika Joanna , Przewlocka Barbara 
Published: September 2012

New findings
What is the topic of this review?This paper presents a review of the literature of glutamate receptors and transporters in neuropathic pain and the role of glia in these effects. Specifically, pharmacological interventions aimed at inhibiting group I mGluRs and/or potentiating group II and III mGluR‐mediated signalling is discussed.
What advances does this highlight?Recent discoveries show that metabotropic glutamate receptors play a role in neuropathic pain, and give substantial evidence of glial participation in these effects.
Glutamate is the major excitatory neurotransmitter in the mammalian CNS. The understanding of glutamatergic transmission in the nervous system has been greatly expanded with the discovery and investigation of the family of ionotropic and metabotropic glutamate receptors (mGluRs). Metabotropic glutamate receptors are localized at nerve terminals, postsynaptic sites and glial cells and thus, they can influence and modulate the action of glutamate at different levels in the synapse. Moreover, there is substantial evidence of glial participation in glutamate nociceptive processes and neuropathic pain. Metabotropic glutamate receptors have been shown to play a role in neuropathic pain, which is one of the most troublesome illnesses because the therapy is still not satisfactory. Recently, the development of selective mGluR ligands has provided important tools for further investigation of the role of mGluRs in the modulation of chronic pain processing. This paper presents a review of the literature of glutamate receptors in neuropathic pain and the role of glia in these effects. Specifically, pharmacological interventions aimed at inhibiting group I mGluRs and/or potentiating group II and III mGluR‐mediated signalling is discussed. Moreover, we introduce data about the role of glutamate transporters. They are responsible for the level of glutamate in the synaptic cleft and thus regulate the effects of all three groups of mGluRs and, in consequence, the activity of this system in nociceptive transmission. Additionally, the question of how the modulation of the glutamatergic system influences the effectiveness of analgesic drugs used in neuropathic pain therapy is addressed.
Effect of radiation induced current on the quality of MR images in an integrated linac‐MR system
Authors: Burke Ben , Wachowicz K. , Fallone B. G. , Rathee Satyapal 
Published: September 2012

Purpose:In integrated linac‐MRI systems, the RF coils are exposed to the linacˈs pulsed radiation, leading to a measurable radiation induced current (RIC). This work (1) visualizes the RIC in MRI raw data and determines its effect on the MR image signal‐to‐noise ratio (SNR) (b) examines the effect of linac dose rate on SNR degradations, (c) examines the RIC effect on different MRI sequences, (d) examines the effect of altering the MRI sequence timing on the RIC, and (e) uses a postprocessing method to reduce the RIC signal from the MR raw data.Methods:MR images were acquired on the linac‐MR prototype system using various imaging sequences (gradient echo, spin echo, and bSSFP), dose rates (0, 50, 100, 150, 200, and 250 MU/min) and repetition times (TR) with the gradient echo sequence. The images were acquired with the radiation beam either directly incident or blocked from the RF coils. The SNR was calculated for each of these scenarios, showing a loss in SNR due to RIC. Finally, a postprocessing method was applied to the imagek‐space data in order to remove partially the RIC signal and recover some of the lost SNR.Results:The RIC produces visible spikes in thek‐space data acquired with the linacˈs radiation incident on the RF coils. This RIC leads to a loss in imaging SNR that increases with increasing linac dose rate (15%–18% loss at 250 MU/min). The SNR loss seen with increasing linac dose rate appears to be largely independent of the MR sequence used. Changing the imaging TR had interesting visual effects on the appearance of RIC in k‐space due to the timing between the linacˈs pulsing and the MR sequence, but did not change the SNR loss for a given linac dose rate. The use of a postprocessing algorithm was able to remove much of the RIC noise spikes from the MR image k‐space data, resulting in the recovery of a significant portion, up to 81% (Table II), of the lost image SNR.Conclusions:The presence of RIC in MR RF coils leads to a loss of SNR which is directly related to the linac dose rate. The RIC related loss in SNR is likely to increase for systems that are able to provide larger than 250 MU/min dose. Some of this SNR loss can be recovered through the use of a postprocessing algorithm, which removes the RIC artefact from the imagek‐space.
Evolution of the Capsular Operon of Streptococcus iniae in Response to Vaccination
Authors: Millard Candice M. , Baiano Justice C. F. , Chan Candy , Yuen Benedict , Aviles Fabian , Landos Matt , Chong Roger S. M. , Benedict Suresh , Barnes Andrew C. 
Published: September 2012

ABSTRACT

Streptococcus iniae
causes severe septicemia and meningitis in farmed fish and is also occasionally zoonotic. Vaccination against
S. iniae
is problematic, with frequent breakdown of protection in vaccinated fish. The major protective antigens in
S. iniae
are the polysaccharides of the capsule, which are essential for virulence. Capsular biosynthesis is driven and regulated by a 21-kb operon comprising up to 20 genes. In a long-term study, we have sequenced the capsular operon of strains that have been used in autogenous vaccines across Australia and compared it with the capsular operon sequences of strains subsequently isolated from infected vaccinated fish. Intriguingly, strains isolated from vaccinated fish that subsequently become infected have coding mutations that are confined to a limited number of genes in the
cps
operon, with the remainder of the genes in the operon remaining stable. Mutations in strains in diseased vaccinated fish occur in key genes in the capsular operon that are associated with polysaccharide configuration (
cpsG
) and with regulation of biosynthesis (
cpsD
and
cpsE
). This, along with high ratios of nonsynonymous to synonymous mutations within the
cps
genes, suggests that immune response directed predominantly against capsular polysaccharide may be driving evolution in a very specific set of genes in the operon. From these data, it may be possible to design a simple polyvalent vaccine with a greater operational life span than the current monovalent killed bacterins.
Differential Involvement of β-Glucosidases from Hypocrea jecorina in Rapid Induction of Cellulase Genes by Cellulose and Cellobiose
Authors: Zhou Qingxin , Xu Jintao , Kou Yanbo , Lv Xinxing , Zhang Xi , Zhao Guolei , Zhang Weixin , Chen Guanjun , Liu Weifeng 
Published: September 2012

ABSTRACT

Appropriate perception of cellulose outside the cell by transforming it into an intracellular signal ensures the rapid production of cellulases by cellulolytic
Hypocrea jecorina
. The major extracellular β-glucosidase BglI (CEL3a) has been shown to contribute to the efficient induction of cellulase genes. Multiple β-glucosidases belonging to glycosyl hydrolase (GH) family 3 and 1, however, exist in
H. jecorina
. Here we demonstrated that CEL1b, like CEL1a, was an intracellular β-glucosidase displaying
in vitro
transglycosylation activity. We then found evidence that these two major intracellular β-glucosidases were involved in the rapid induction of cellulase genes by insoluble cellulose. Deletion of
cel1a
and
cel1b
significantly compromised the efficient gene expression of the major cellulase gene,
cbh1
. Simultaneous absence of BglI, CEL1a, and CEL1b caused the induction of the cellulase gene by cellulose to further deteriorate. The induction defect, however, was not observed with cellobiose. The absence of the three β-glucosidases, rather, facilitated the induced synthesis of cellulase on cellobiose. Furthermore, addition of cellobiose restored the productive induction on cellulose in the deletion strains. The results indicate that the three β-glucosidases may not participate in transforming cellobiose beyond hydrolysis to provoke cellulase formation in
H. jecorina
. They may otherwise contribute to the accumulation of cellobiose from cellulose as inducing signals.
Inactivation of Ribosomal Protein Genes in Bacillus subtilis Reveals Importance of Each Ribosomal Protein for Cell Proliferation and Cell Differentiation
Authors: Akanuma Genki , Nanamiya Hideaki , Natori Yousuke , Yano Koichi , Suzuki Shota , Omata Shuya , Ishizuka Morio , Sekine Yasuhiko , Kawamura Fujio 
Published: September 2012

ABSTRACT

Among the 57 genes that encode ribosomal proteins in the genome of
Bacillus subtilis
, a Gram-positive bacterium, 50 genes were targeted by systematic inactivation. Individual deletion mutants of 16 ribosomal proteins (L1, L9, L15, L22, L23, L28, L29, L32, L33.1, L33.2, L34, L35, L36, S6, S20, and S21) were obtained successfully. In conjunction with previous reports, 22 ribosomal proteins have been shown to be nonessential in
B. subtilis
, at least for cell proliferation. Although several mutants that harbored a deletion of a ribosomal protein gene did not show any significant differences in any of the phenotypes that were tested, various mutants showed a reduced growth rate and reduced levels of 70S ribosomes compared with the wild type. In addition, severe defects in the sporulation frequency of the Δ
rplA
(L1) mutant and the motility of the Δ
rpsU
(S21) mutant were observed. These data provide the first evidence in
B. subtilis
that L1 and S21 are required for the progression of cellular differentiation.
Chest physiotherapy in paediatric patients hospitalised with community-acquired pneumonia: a randomised clinical trial
Authors: Lukrafka Janice Luisa , Fuchs Sandra C , Fischer Gilberto Bueno , Flores José A , Fachel Jandira M , Castro-Rodriguez Jose A 
Published: September 2012

BackgroundChest physiotherapy has been used to treat children hospitalised with pneumonia with no clear scientific evidence to support a beneficial effect. The objective of the current study was to evaluate the efficacy of chest physiotherapy as an adjuvant treatment in children hospitalised with acute community-acquired pneumonia.MethodsChildren (aged 1–12 years) with a clinical and confirmed radiological diagnosis of pneumonia sequentially admitted to a tertiary children hospital were eligible for this study. Participants were randomly selected to receive a standardised respiratory physiotherapy (positioning, thoracic vibration, thoracic compression, positive expiratory pressure, breathing exercises and forced exhalation with the glottis open or ‘huffing’) three times daily in the ‘intervention group’ or a non-mandatory request to breathe deeply, expectorate the sputum and maintain a lateral body position once a day in the ‘control group’. The primary outcomes were reduction in respiratory rate and severity score (respiratory rate, recession, fever, oxygen saturation and chest x-ray) from baseline to discharge. Secondary outcome was duration of hospitalisation.ResultsIn all, 72 patients were randomly allocated to the intervention (n=35) or control (n=37) groups. There were no differences at admission on severity of pneumonia between groups. Respiratory rate and severity score significant decreased between admission to discharge within each group; however, there were no differences when comparing groups. Also, there was no significant difference in duration of hospitalisation between the control and intervention groups (6 vs 8 days, p=0.11, respectively).ConclusionsThis clinical trial suggests that, in children hospitalised with moderate community-acquired pneumonia, chest physiotherapy did not have clinical benefits in comparison to control group.
Retrospective study of patients with acute pancreatitis: is serum amylase still required?
Authors: Gomez Dhanwant , Addison Alfred , De Rosa Antonella , Brooks Adam , Cameron Iain C 
Published: September 2012

ObjectivesTo assess the role of serum amylase and lipase in the diagnosis of acute pancreatitis. Secondary aims were to perform a cost analysis of these enzyme assays in patients admitted to the surgical admissions unit.DesignCohort study.SettingSecondary care.ParticipantsPatients admitted with pancreatitis to the acute surgical admissions unit from January to December 2010 were included in the study.MethodsData collated included demographics, laboratory results and aetiology. The cost of measuring a single enzyme assay was £0.69 and both assays were £0.99.ResultsOf the 151 patients included, 117 patients had acute pancreatitis with gallstones (n=51) as the most common cause. The majority of patients with acute pancreatitis had raised levels of both amylase and lipase. Raised lipase levels only were observed in additional 12% and 23% of patients with gallstone-induced and alcohol-induced pancreatitis, respectively. Overall, raised lipase levels were seen in between 95% and 100% of patients depending on aetiology. Sensitivity and specificity of lipase in the diagnosis of acute pancreatitis was 96.6% and 99.4%, respectively. In contrast, the sensitivity and specificity of amylase in diagnosing acute pancreatitis were 78.6% and 99.1%, respectively. Single lipase assay in all patients presenting with abdominal pain to the surgical admission unit would result in a potential saving of £893.70/year.ConclusionsDetermining serum lipase level alone is sufficient to diagnose acute pancreatitis and substantial savings can be made if measured alone.
‘Matching Michigan’: a 2-year stepped interventional programme to minimise central venous catheter-blood stream infections in intensive care units in England
Authors: Bion Julian , Richardson Annette , Hibbert Peter , Beer Jeanette , Abrusci Tracy , McCutcheon Martin , Cassidy Jane , Eddleston Jane , Gunning Kevin , Bellingan Geoff , Patten Mark , Harrison David 
Published: September 2012

BackgroundBloodstream infections from central venous catheters (CVC-BSIs) increase morbidity and costs in intensive care units (ICUs). Substantial reductions in CVC-BSI rates have been reported using a combination of technical and non-technical interventions.MethodsWe conducted a 2-year, four-cluster, stepped non-randomised study of technical and non-technical (behavioural) interventions to prevent CVC-BSIs in adult and paediatric ICUs in England. Random-effects Poisson regression modelling was used to compare infection rates. A sample of ICUs participated in data verification.ResultsOf 223 ICUs in England, 215 (196 adult, 19 paediatric) submitted data on 2479 of 2787 possible months and 147 (66%) provided complete data. The exposure rate was 438 887 (404 252 adult and 34 635 paediatric) CVC-patient days. Over 20 months, 1092 CVC-BSIs were reported. Of these, 884 (81%) were ICU acquired. For adult ICUs, the mean CVC-BSI rate decreased over 20 months from 3.7 in the first cluster to 1.48 CVC-BSIs/1000 CVC-patient days (p<0.0001) for all clusters combined, and for paediatric ICUs from 5.65 to 2.89 (p=0.625). The trend for infection rate reduction did not accelerate following interventions training. CVC utilisation rates remained stable. Pre-ICU infections declined in parallel with ICU-acquired infections. Criterion-referenced case note review showed high agreement between adjudicators (κ 0.706) but wide variation in blood culture sampling rates and CVC utilisation. Generic infection control practices varied widely.ConclusionsThe marked reduction in CVC-BSI rates in English ICUs found in this study is likely part of a wider secular trend for a system-wide improvement in healthcare-associated infections. Opportunities exist for greater harmonisation of infection control practices. Future studies should investigate causal mechanisms and contextual factors influencing the impact of interventions directed at improving patient care.
Measuring patients’ experiences with palliative care: the Consumer Quality Index Palliative Care
Authors: Claessen Susanne J J , Francke Anneke L , Sixma Herman J , de Veer Anke J E , Deliens Luc 
Published: September 2012

BackgroundThe Consumer Quality Index Palliative Care (CQ-index PC) is a structured questionnaire for measuring the quality of palliative care from the perspective of care users. CQ-indices assess which care aspects need quality improvement by relating answers about actual care experiences to answers about the importance of certain aspects of care.MethodsTo improve the chance that the new instrument has good content validity, a literature study and individual and group discussions were performed, and a steering committee was consulted to establish the instrument's face and content validity. The questionnaire was administered to patients with a life expectancy of 6 months or less and/or who were receiving palliative treatment. Descriptive analyses were carried out on the items about actual care experiences and the importance of care aspects, and on ‘need for improvement’ scores.Results15 care organisations participated. 133 patients met the inclusion criteria (net response n=85). Patients considered the following aspects the most important: ‘offering help in good time in acute situations’, ‘caregivers having the necessary expertise’ and ‘caregivers taking the patient seriously’. The three care aspects with the highest ‘need for improvement’ scores were: ‘support when the patient feels depressed’, ‘support when the patient is anxious’ and ‘support when the patient has shortness of breath’.ConclusionsThe CQ-index PC provides opportunities for care organisations to assess which care aspects have the highest priority for quality improvement within their organisation. Further research is needed to assess whether the instrument has enough discriminative power to assess differences between organisations.
Street conflict mediation to prevent youth violence: Conflict characteristics and outcomes
Authors: Whitehill Jennifer M , Webster Daniel W , Vernick Jon S 
Published: September 2012

BackgroundMediation of potentially violent conflicts is a key component of CeaseFire, an effective gun violence-prevention programme.ObjectiveTo describe conflicts mediated by outreach workers (OW) in Baltimore's CeaseFire replication, examine neighbourhood variation, and measure associations between conflict risk factors and successful nonviolent resolution.MethodsA cross-sectional study was conducted using records for 158 conflicts mediated between 2007 and 2009. Involvement of youth, gangs, retaliation, weapons and other risk factors were described. Principal component analysis (PCA) was used for data-reduction purposes before the relationship between conflict risk components and mediation success was assessed with multivariate logistic regression.ResultsMost conflicts involved 2–3 individuals. Youth, persons with a history of violence, gang members and weapons were commonly present. OWs reported immediate, nonviolent resolution for 65% of mediated conflicts; an additional 23% were at least temporarily resolved without violence. PCA identified four dimensions of conflict risk: the risk-level of individuals involved; whether the incident was related to retaliation; the number of people involved; and shooting likelihood. However, these factors were not related to the OW's ability to resolve the conflict. Neighbourhoods with programme-associated reductions in homicides mediated more gang-related conflicts; neighbourhoods without programme-related homicide reductions encountered more retaliatory conflicts and more weapons.
Diagnostic and prognostic impact of desmocollins in human lung cancer
Authors: Cui Tiantian , Chen Yuan , Yang Linlin , Mireskandari Masoud , Knösel Thomas , Zhang Qing , Kohler Lukas Herbert , Kunze Almut , Presselt Norbert , Petersen Iver 
Published: September 2012

ObjectiveDesmosomes are intercellular junctions that confer strong cell–cell adhesion. Two main members of desmosomal cadherins, desmogleins (DSGs) and desmocollins (DSCs), are involved in carcinogenesis. However, their role in human lung cancer remained elusive. The aims of this study were to analyse the expression of DSCs and to evaluate their clinical application in lung cancer.MethodsThe expression of DSC1-3 mRNAs was analysed by RT-PCR. The methylation status of DSCs was analysed by demethylation tests and bisulphite sequencing. Protein expression of DSCs in primary lung cancer was evaluated by immunohistochemistry on tissue microarrays.ResultsDSC1-3 mRNAs were downregulated in lung cancer cells, and the expression was restored in four out of seven cell lines, respectively, after 5-aza-2′-deoxycytidine treatment. A heterogeneous methylation pattern was detected by bisulphite sequencing in exon 1 of DSC2 and DSC3. In 199 patients with primary lung cancer, we found that lower protein expression of DSC1 was significantly linked to worse tumour differentiation (p=0.017), DSC3 proteins were more expressed in squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) compared with adenocarcinoma (ADC) (p<0.001), and reduced expression of DSC1 and DSC3 was significantly correlated with poor clinical outcome (p=0.045 and p=0.007, respectively).ConclusionsOur data suggest that downregulation of DSC1-3 may be explained by DNA methylation, DSC1 may be a marker for tumour differentiation, DSC3 has a potential diagnostic value in subclassification of non-small cell lung carcinoma into SCC and ADC, and furthermore, DSC1 and DSC3 may be prognostic markers for lung cancer.