bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Contingent Commissions, Insurance Intermediaries, and Insurer Performance
Authors: Ma Yu‐Luen , Pope Nat , Xie Xiaoying 
Published: July 2013

AbstractThis research investigates the relationship shared by contingent commission usage and insurer performance. We assess performance using both frontier efficiency and financial performance measures. Our findings reveal that the relationship is complex and varies across differing insurer business models. We find that nonusers of contingent commissions are more cost and revenue efficient than are users of contingents. However, among insurers that use contingents, relatively higher levels of use are associated with more efficient operations and also better financial performance. Additionally, these findings are conditioned on the type of distribution system the insurer employs.
Spend More Today Safely: Using Behavioral Economics to Improve Retirement Expenditure Decisions With SPEEDOMETER Plans
Authors: Blake David , Boardman Tom 
Published: July 2013

AbstractThis article examines how behavioral economics can be used to improve the spending decisions of retirees, using a SPEEDOMETER (or Spending Optimally Throughout Retirement) retirement expenditure plan that employs defaults within a choice architecture. The plan involves just four key behavioral nudges: (1) first, make a plan—ideally by being auto‐enrolled into one or with the help of a financial adviser; (2) automatic phasing of annuitization, which is designed to tackle the aversion to large irreversible transactions and losing control of assets, and so allows the greatest possible degree of flexibility in managing the rundown of retirement assets; (3) capital protection in the form of “money‐back” annuities that deals with loss aversion, that is, the fear of losing your money if you die early; and (4) the slogan “spend more today safely” that utilizes hyperbolic discounting to satisfy the human trait of wanting jam today, and to reinforce the idea that “buying an annuity is a smart thing to do.”
Optimizing EEMCO guidance for the assessment of dry skin (xerosis) for pharmacies
Authors: Kang B. C. , Kim Y. E. , Kim Y. J. , Chang M. J. , Choi H. D. , Li K. , Shin W. G. 
Published: July 2013

PurposePeople with dry skin (xerosis) are common in community pharmacies, but there is no consistent guidance for community pharmacists to evaluate and alleviate dry skin. Through evaluating any difference of the clinical scoring systems of EEMCO guidance between a dermatologist and pharmacists and the efficacy of moisturizers for the treatment of dry skin recommended by community pharmacists, we aim to validate a dry skin guidance through the help of community pharmacists. These results provide insight into how community pharmacists can help patients with dry skin.MethodsThe clinical scoring systems of EEMCO guidance used in this study comprised analog scales, the overall dry skin score (ODS), and the specific symptom sum score (SRRC) system. All pictures of the dry skin scored by pharmacists were visually evaluated by a dermatologist. The efficacy of the moisturizers was determined by the difference of the scales on day 0 and on day 28.ResultsIn this study, 387 patients with dry skin from 157 community pharmacies were evaluated by pharmacists. Visual scale with divisions, ODS and SRRC that were evaluated by pharmacists on day 0 and day 28 were moderately reliable by a dermatologist. All parameters of dry skin were significantly improved by the moisturizers which were recommended by community pharmacists on day 28.ConclusionVisual scale, ODS and SRRC can be generally measured to evaluate dry skin in community pharmacies with moderate degree of reliability. This finding has possible applications for investigating the assessment of the community pharmacists on clinical scoring system of dry skin and moisturizers.
Teaching Oppressive Texts
Authors: Camp Claudia V. , Webster Jane S. , Thelle Rannfrid 
Published: July 2013

AbstractScholars have identified the many stories in the Bible that are oppressive to women or other minoritized groups. It is remarkable how common it is that North American undergraduate students remain blind to the oppression that is depicted and that is too often the result of commonly accepted interpretations of these texts. Three brief essays collected here, originally presented as part of a panel at the Society of Biblical Literature annual meeting (Atlanta, 2010), present various teaching strategies for exposing the oppressive elements in the biblical text and showing how the oppression operates (an aspect of ideological criticism). What are good strategies for communicating these hard points to students in a way they can hear them and work with them? Why is this important to do?
When to Initiate an International Vertical Merger? The Impact of Negative Demand Shock
Authors: Li Jie , Huang Xianhai 
Published: July 2013

AbstractThis paper develops an extended Hotelling‐type product and technology‐differentiated model with two upstream and two downstream firms. The US upstream (respectively downstream) firm is technologically more advanced than the Chinese upstream (respectively downstream) firm. The locations of the upstream firms and the US downstream firm are fixed, and the Chinese downstream firm chooses its product location. The downstream firms compete with each other in US market. We aim to explore the conditions under which an international vertical merger between the Chinese downstream firm and the US upstream firm occurs and its welfare implications. We show that the incentive for the Chinese downstream firm to initiate a technology‐acquiring international vertical merger crucially depends on the market conditions of the United States. As compared to exporting or domestic vertical merger, international vertical merger is by no means an optimal choice for the Chinese downstream firm when there is no negative demand shocks to US market. This result remains to hold when the US downstream firm also has the option of initiating a merger with the US upstream firm. Nevertheless, in the case of a negative demand shock, a profitable international vertical merger may occur. However, such mergers worsen the social welfare of the United States.
Normal mucus formation requires cAMP‐dependent HCO3− secretion and Ca2+‐mediated mucin exocytosis
Authors: Yang Ning , Garcia Mary Abigail S. , Quinton Paul M. 
Published: July 2013

Key points
HCO3− is required for gel‐forming mucins to form normal mucus, but how?
Two apparently separate signalling pathways are activated concurrently to bring mucus formation to completion: a Ca2+‐mediated pathway mainly directs goblet cell exocytosis, and an independent cAMP‐mediated pathway stimulates HCO3− secretion to help discharge exocytosed mucus.
cAMP‐dependent HCO3− secretion fails, disrupting the normal formation and discharge of mucins in cystic fibrosis (CF) leading to pathologically viscous and tenacious mucus in affected organs.
This work advances our understanding of the role of cAMP (CFTR)‐dependent HCO3− secretion in forming normal mucus and underscores a new importance of addressing the defect in HCO3− secretion as a critical new therapeutic target in CF.
Abstract  Evidence from the pathology in cystic fibrosis (CF) and recent results in vitro indicate that HCO3− is required for gel‐forming mucins to form the mucus that protects epithelial surfaces. Mucus formation and release is a complex process that begins with an initial intracellular phase of synthesis, packaging and apical granule exocytosis that is followed by an extracellular phase of mucin swelling, transport and discharge into a lumen. Exactly where HCO3− becomes crucial in these processes is unknown, but we observed that in the presence of HCO3−, stimulating dissected segments of native mouse intestine with 5‐hydroxytryptamine (5–HT) and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) induced goblet cell exocytosis followed by normal mucin discharge in wild‐type (WT) intestines. CF intestines that inherently lack cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR)‐dependent HCO3− secretion also demonstrated apparently normal goblet cell exocytosis, but in contrast, this was not followed by similar mucin discharge. Moreover, we found that even in the presence of HCO3−, when WT intestines were stimulated only with a Ca2+‐mediated agonist (carbachol), exocytosis was followed by poor discharge as with CF intestines. However, when the Ca2+‐mediated agonist was combined with a cAMP‐mediated agonist (isoproterenol (isoprenaline) or vasoactive intestinal peptide) in the presence of HCO3− both normal exocytosis and normal discharge was observed. These results indicate that normal mucus formation requires concurrent activation of a Ca2+‐mediated exocytosis of mucin granules and an independent cAMP‐mediated, CFTR‐dependent, HCO3− secretion that appears to mainly enhance the extracellular phases of mucus excretion.
Bacterial Peritonitis Due to Acinetobacter baumannii Sequence Type 25 with Plasmid-Borne New Delhi Metallo-β-Lactamase in Honduras
Authors: Waterman Paige E. , McGann Patrick , Snesrud Erik , Clifford Robert J. , Kwak Yoon I. , Munoz-Urbizo Ivón P. , Tabora-Castellanos Juana , Milillo Michael , Preston Lan , Aviles Ricardo , Sutter Deena E. , Lesho Emil P. 
Published: July 2013

ABSTRACT

A carbapenem-resistant
Acinetobacter baumannii
strain was isolated from the peritoneal fluid of a patient with complicated intra-abdominal infection and evaluated at the Multidrug-resistant Organism Repository and Surveillance Network by whole-genome sequencing and real-time PCR. The isolate was sequence type 25 and susceptible to colistin and minocycline, with low MICs of tigecycline.
bla
NDM-1
was located on a plasmid with >99% homology to pNDM-BJ02. The isolate carried numerous other antibiotic resistance genes, including the 16S methylase gene,
armA
.
Discovery of Novel Small-Molecule HIV-1 Replication Inhibitors That Stabilize Capsid Complexes
Authors: Lamorte Louie , Titolo Steve , Lemke Christopher T. , Goudreau Nathalie , Mercier Jean-François , Wardrop Elizabeth , Shah Vaibhav B. , von Schwedler Uta K. , Langelier Charles , Banik Soma S. R. , Aiken Christopher , Sundquist Wesley I. , Mason Stephen W. 
Published: July 2013

ABSTRACT

The identification of novel antiretroviral agents is required to provide alternative treatment options for HIV-1-infected patients. The screening of a phenotypic cell-based viral replication assay led to the identification of a novel class of 4,5-dihydro-1H-pyrrolo[3,4-c]pyrazol-6-one (pyrrolopyrazolone) HIV-1 inhibitors, exemplified by two compounds: BI-1 and BI-2. These compounds inhibited early postentry stages of viral replication at a step(s) following reverse transcription but prior to 2 long terminal repeat (2-LTR) circle formation, suggesting that they may block nuclear targeting of the preintegration complex. Selection of viruses resistant to BI-2 revealed that substitutions at residues A105 and T107 within the capsid (CA) amino-terminal domain (CA
NTD
) conferred high-level resistance to both compounds, implicating CA as the antiviral target. Direct binding of BI-1 and/or BI-2 to CA
NTD
was demonstrated using isothermal titration calorimetry and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) chemical shift titration analyses. A high-resolution crystal structure of the BI-1:CA
NTD
complex revealed that the inhibitor bound within a recently identified inhibitor binding pocket (CA
NTD
site 2) between CA helices 4, 5, and 7, on the surface of the CA
NTD
, that also corresponds to the binding site for the host factor CPSF-6. The functional consequences of BI-1 and BI-2 binding differ from previously characterized inhibitors that bind the same site since the BI compounds did not inhibit reverse transcription but stabilized preassembled CA complexes. Hence, this new class of antiviral compounds binds CA and may inhibit viral replication by stabilizing the viral capsid.
Immunochromatographic Detection of the Group B Streptococcus Antigen from Enrichment Cultures
Authors: Matsui Hidehito , Kimura Juri , Higashide Masato , Takeuchi Yoshio , Okue Kuniyuki , Cui Longzhu , Nakae Taiji , Sunakawa Keisuke , Hanaki Hideaki 
Published: July 2013

ABSTRACT

Group B
Streptococcus
(GBS;
Streptococcus agalactiae
) is a leading cause of serious neonatal infections. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends GBS screening for all pregnant women during the 35th to 37th weeks of gestation. Although GBS screening has been performed mainly by the culture-based method, it takes several days to obtain a reliable result. In this study, we developed a rapid immunochromatographic test (ICT) for the detection of GBS-specific surface immunogenic protein in 15 min using an overnight enrichment culture. The ICT was prepared using two anti-Sip monoclonal antibodies. This ICT was able to detect recombinant Sip levels of 0.5 ng/ml, or about 10
6
CFU/ml of GBS cells, in tests with 9 GBS strains of different serotypes. The cross-reactivity test using 26 species of microorganism showed no detectable false-positive result. Reactivity of the ICT with 229 GBS strains showed one false-negative result that was attributable to the production of truncated Sip. Among 260 enrichment cultures of vaginal swabs, 17 produced red to orange pigments in Granada medium, and they were all GBS and Sip positive. Among 219 pigment-negative cultures, 12 were GBS positive and 10 were Sip positive. Two Sip-negative cultures contained GBS cells below the limit of detection by the ICT. Among 207 GBS-negative cultures, only one was Sip positive, which was attributable to GBS cell debris. Thus, the sensitivity and specificity of the ICT appeared to be 93.1% and 99.6%, respectively. The newly developed ICT is readily applicable to clinical use in the detection of GBS.
Severity of Allergic Airway Disease Due to House Dust Mite Allergen Is Not Increased after Clinical Recovery of Lung Infection with Chlamydia pneumoniae in Mice
Authors: Dutow Pavel , Lingner Sandra , Laudeley Robert , Glage Silke , Hoymann Heinz-Gerd , Dittrich Anna-Maria , Fehlhaber Beate , Müller Meike , Braun Armin , Klos Andreas 
Published: July 2013

ABSTRACT

Chlamydia pneumoniae
is associated with chronic inflammatory lung diseases like bronchial asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. The existence of a causal link between allergic airway disease and
C. pneumoniae
is controversial. A mouse model was used to address the question of whether preceding
C. pneumoniae
lung infection and recovery modifies the outcome of experimental allergic asthma after subsequent sensitization with house dust mite (HDM) allergen. After intranasal infection, BALB/c mice suffered from pneumonia characterized by an increased clinical score, reduction of body weight, histopathology, and a bacterial load in the lungs. After 4 weeks, when infection had almost resolved clinically, HDM allergen sensitization was performed for another 4 weeks. Subsequently, mice were subjected to a methacholine hyperresponsiveness test and sacrificed for further analyses. As expected, after 8 weeks,
C. pneumoniae
-specific antibodies were detectable only in infected mice and the titer was significantly higher in the
C. pneumoniae
/HDM allergen-treated group than in the
C. pneumoniae
/NaCl group. Intriguingly, airway hyperresponsiveness and eosinophilia in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid were significantly lower in the
C. pneumoniae
/HDM allergen-treated group than in the mock/HDM allergen-treated group. We did observe a relationship between experimental asthma and chlamydial infection. Our results demonstrate an influence of sensitization to HDM allergen on the development of a humoral antibacterial response. However, our model demonstrates no increase in the severity of experimental asthma to HDM allergen as a physiological allergen after clinically resolved severe chlamydial lung infection. Our results rather suggest that allergic airway disease and concomitant cellular changes in mice are decreased following
C. pneumoniae
lung infection in this setting.
Evaluation of a New Commercially Available Immunoglobulin M Capture Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay for Diagnosis of Dengue Virus Infection
Authors: Namekar Madhuri , Ellis Esther M. , O'Connell Maile , Elm Joe , Gurary Alexandra , Park Sarah Y. , Imrie Allison , Nerurkar Vivek R. 
Published: July 2013

ABSTRACT
We evaluated the FDA-cleared InBios dengue virus (DENV) IgM capture enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for qualitative detection of anti-DENV IgM antibodies from 79 serum samples obtained from dengue virus-infected patients or suspected dengue cases. The agreement, sensitivity, and specificity of the InBios assay compared to the gold standard in-house DENV IgM capture ELISA were 94, 92, and 94%, respectively. We conclude that the InBios DENV IgM capture ELISA can be effectively used for rapid diagnosis of acute or recent DENV infection.
Emerging 8-Methoxyfluoroquinolone Resistance among Methicillin-Susceptible Staphylococcus epidermidis Isolates Recovered from Patients with Endophthalmitis
Authors: Bispo Paulo J. M. , Alfonso Eduardo C. , Flynn Harry W. , Miller Darlene 
Published: July 2013

ABSTRACT

Fluoroquinolones remain the most commonly used antimicrobials for the prevention and management of bacterial endophthalmitis. Coagulase-negative staphylococci are the most frequently recovered pathogens. Increasing resistance among this group has paralleled the presence of methicillin resistance. From 2005 to 2010, we recovered 38 methicillin-susceptible
Staphylococcus epidermidis
(MSSE) isolates from endophthalmitis patients at our institute, including 15 (39.5%) isolates resistant to gatifloxacin and moxifloxacin, members of the C-8-methoxyfluoroquinolones family. Mutations in the quinolone resistance-determining regions (QRDR) of
gyrA
and
parC
were determined and correlated with fluoroquinolone MICs based on Etests of these 15 MSSE isolates. High-level resistance (MIC, >32 μg/ml) to gatifloxacin and moxifloxacin was documented for 46.7% of the MSSE isolates, and low-level resistance (MIC, 2 to 4 μg/ml) was determined for 53.3%. The MICs for ciprofloxacin, levofloxacin, and ofloxacin were >32 μg/ml for all isolates. The amino acid substitution Ser84Phe in
gyrA
was found among all isolates. A second mutation in
gyrA
(Glu88Lys) resulted in high-level resistance to moxifloxacin and gatifloxacin. Almost all (92.8%) isolates presented double point mutations in the
parC
gene at codons 80 and 84 with different combinations. Eighty-seven percent of the patients had prior exposure to topical 8-methoxyfluoroquinolones. Prior exposure to the 8-methoxyfluoroquinolones may contribute to the selection of MSSE strains containing multiple mutations in the QRDRs of
gyrA
and
parC
that results in low- and high-level resistance to these agents.
Molecular Diagnosis of Polycystic Echinococcosis Due to Echinococcus vogeli in a Paraguayan Immigrant in Argentina
Authors: Grenouillet F. , Frider B. , Alvarez Rodriguez J. , Amante M. , Pestalardo M. L. , Cazorla A. , Bresson-Hadni S. , Millon L. 
Published: July 2013

ABSTRACT

Polycystic echinococcosis due to
Echinococcus vogeli
is a rare parasitic infection that occurs in rural areas of Central and South America. Only molecular identification performed on formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded liver tissue samples gave an unequivocal diagnosis of this disease in a Paraguayan immigrant in Argentina.
Comparison of the FilmArray RP, Verigene RV+, and Prodesse ProFLU+/FAST+ Multiplex Platforms for Detection of Influenza Viruses in Clinical Samples from the 2011-2012 Influenza Season in Belgium
Authors: Van Wesenbeeck Liesbeth , Meeuws Hanne , Van Immerseel Andrea , Ispas Gabriela , Schmidt Kristiane , Houspie Lieselot , Van Ranst Marc , Stuyver Lieven 
Published: July 2013

ABSTRACT

Respiratory tract infections (RTIs) are caused by a plethora of viral and bacterial pathogens. In particular, lower RTIs are a leading cause of hospitalization and mortality. Timely detection of the infecting respiratory pathogens is crucial to optimize treatment and care. In this study, three U.S. Food and Drug Administration-approved molecular multiplex platforms (Prodesse ProFLU+/FAST+, FilmArray RP, and Verigene RV+) were evaluated for influenza virus detection in 171 clinical samples collected during the Belgian 2011-2012 influenza season. Sampling was done using mid-turbinate flocked swabs, and the collected samples were stored in universal transport medium. The amount of viral RNA present in the swab samples ranged between 3.07 and 8.82 log
10
copies/ml. Sixty samples were concordant influenza A virus positive, and 8 samples were found to be concordant influenza B virus positive. Other respiratory viruses that were detected included human rhinovirus/enterovirus, respiratory syncytial virus, parainfluenza virus type 1, human metapneumovirus, and coronavirus NL63. Twenty-five samples yielded discordant results across the various assays which required further characterization by sequencing. The FilmArray RP and Prodesse ProFLU+/FAST+ assays were convenient to perform with regard to sensitivity, ease of use, and low percentages of invalid results. Although the limit of sensitivity is of utmost importance, many other factors should be taken into account in selecting the most convenient molecular diagnostic assay for the detection of respiratory pathogens in clinical samples.
Evolutionarily Conserved Epitopes on Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1 (HIV-1) and Feline Immunodeficiency Virus Reverse Transcriptases Detected by HIV-1-Infected Subjects
Authors: Sanou Missa P. , Roff Shannon R. , Mennella Antony , Sleasman John W. , Rathore Mobeen H. , Yamamoto Janet K. , Levy Jay A. 
Published: July 2013

ABSTRACTAnti-human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL)-associated epitopes, evolutionarily conserved on both HIV type 1 (HIV-1) and feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) reverse transcriptases (RT), were identified using gamma interferon (IFN-γ) enzyme-linked immunosorbent spot (ELISpot) and carboxyfluorescein diacetate succinimide ester (CFSE) proliferation assays followed by CTL-associated cytotoxin analysis. The peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) or T cells from HIV-1-seropositive (HIV+) subjects were stimulated with overlapping RT peptide pools. The PBMC from the HIV+subjects had more robust IFN-γ responses to the HIV-1 peptide pools than to the FIV peptide pools, except for peptide-pool F3. In contrast, much higher and more frequent CD8+T-cell proliferation responses were observed with the FIV peptide pools than with the HIV peptide pools. HIV-1-seronegative subjects had no proliferation or IFN-γ responses to the HIV and FIV peptide pools. A total of 24% (40 of 166) of the IFN-γ responses to HIV pools and 43% (23 of 53) of the CD8+T-cell proliferation responses also correlated to responses to their counterpart FIV pools. Thus, more evolutionarily conserved functional epitopes were identified by T-cell proliferation than by IFN-γ responses. In the HIV+subjects, peptide-pool F3, but not the HIV H3 counterpart, induced the most IFN-γ and proliferation responses. These reactions to peptide-pool F3 were highly reproducible and persisted over the 1 to 2 years of testing. All five individual peptides and epitopes of peptide-pool F3 induced IFN-γ and/or proliferation responses in addition to inducing CTL-associated cytotoxin responses (perforin, granzyme A, granzyme B). The epitopes inducing polyfunctional T-cell activities were highly conserved among human, simian, feline, and ungulate lentiviruses, which indicated that these epitopes are evolutionarily conserved. These results suggest that FIV peptides could be used in an HIV-1 vaccine.