bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Tissue factor expression on the surface of monocytes from a patient with hereditary angioedema
Authors: Iwamoto Kazumasa , Morioke Satoshi , Yanase Yuhki , Uchida Kazue , Hide Michihiro 
Published: September 2014

AbstractHereditary angioedema (HAE) presents as severe angioedema, which is mostly due to the C1 inhibitor (C1‐INH) gene mutations. Environmental factors, minor trauma and oral contraceptives have been reported to induce angioedema attack, but the trigger may often be uncertain. Activated factor XII controlled by C1‐INH facilitates bradykinin generation and also regulates coagulation cascade, but the relationship between edema formation and coagulation is still unclear. We have described a 35‐year‐old female patient with HAE, presenting with frequent angioedema attacks in the absence of an apparent triggering factor. She showed higher levels of FDP and D‐dimer during angioedema than those in remission. In addition, tissue factor (TF), an initiator of the extrinsic coagulation cascade, was expressed on the surface of monocytes. It was significantly higher than that of monocytes from healthy controls and tends to further increase during attacks. The expression of TF on monocytes may play a role in the induction of angioedema attacks in HAE by activating the coagulation pathway in association with reduced functions of C1‐INH.
Untangling the influence of phylogeny, soil and climate on leaf element concentrations in a biodiversity hotspot
Authors: Hao Zhuan , Kuang Yuanwen , Kang Ming 
Published: September 2014

Summary

Plant elemental properties are fundamentally important for physiology and biogeochemical cycling in ecosystems. No study has examined foliar elements and their interaction with soil and climate conditions at large geographic scales in Karst areas of China, a biodiversity hotspot in the world. Yet such information is important for understanding the functional diversity of nutrient strategies and the physiological adaptations of plants to climatic and edaphic heterogeneity.

We assessed the influence of phylogeny, soil type and the climate on leaf element concentrations in a clade of taxonomically diverse Karst plants from the subfamily Didymocarpoideae under an explicit phylogenetic framework. We measured leaf concentrations of seven elements and evaluated soil properties for 422 populations of 177 Didymocarpoideae species. The phylogenetic signals present in the leaf element concentrations and in soil and climatic variables were quantified at both the subfamily (Didymocarpoideae) and genus (Primulina) levels. The correlations between leaf elements and soil and climate conditions were analysed at these two phylogenetic scales.

The Didymocarpoideae subfamily is generally characterized by higher Ca and Mg contents relative to other plants in China. Across the subfamily, a strong phylogenetic signal is detected for all of the leaf elements analysed as well as for most soil and climate variables, whereas the genus Primulina exhibits no significant phylogenetic signal in leaf elements or in most soil variables.

We detected an influence of both soil and climatic conditions on leaf element concentrations. However, the patterns of the relationships between leaf elements and soil and climate variables vary at the subfamily and genus levels. The phylogeny has a stronger effect than soil and climatic factors on leaf element concentrations at the subfamily level, while the leaf element contents within the genus Primulina are mostly influenced by environmental conditions. We conclude that the influences of taxonomy, soil and climate on leaf element concentrations are dependent on the phylogenetic scale of analysis.
Soil biota enhance agricultural sustainability by improving crop yield, nutrient uptake and reducing nitrogen leaching losses
Authors: Bender S. Franz , van der Heijden Marcel G.A. 
Published: September 2014

Summary

Efficient resource use is a key factor for sustainable production and a necessity for meeting future global food demands. However, the factors that control resource use efficiency in agro‐ecosystems are only partly understood.

We investigated the influence of soil biota on nutrient leaching, nutrient‐use efficiency and plant performance in outdoor, open‐top lysimeters comprising a volume of 230 L. The lysimeters were filled with sterilized soil in two horizons and inoculated with a reduced soil‐life inoculum (soil biota ≤11 μm, microbially dominated) and an enriched soil‐life inoculum [soil organisms ≤2 mm, also containing arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF)]. A crop rotation was planted, and nutrient leaching losses, plant biomass and nutrient contents were assessed over a period of almost 2 years.

In the first year of the experiment, enriched soil life increased crop yield (+22%), N uptake (+29%) and P uptake (+110%) of maize and strongly reduced leaching losses of N (−51%, corresponding to a reduction of 76 kg N ha−1). In the second year, wheat biomass (+17%) and P contents (+80%) were significantly increased by enriched soil life, but the differences were lower than in the first year.

Enriched soil life also increased P mobilization from soil (+112%) and significantly reduced relative P leaching losses (−25%), defined as g P leached per kg P plant uptake, as well as relative N leaching losses (−36%), defined as kg N leached per kg N plant uptake, demonstrating that nutrient‐use efficiency was increased in the enriched soil‐life treatment.

Synthesis and applications. Soil biota are a key factor determining resource efficiency in agriculture. The results suggest that applying farming practices, which favour a rich and abundant soil life (e.g. reduced tillage, organic farming, crop rotation), can reduce environmental impacts, enhance crop yield and result in a more sustainable agricultural system. However, this needs to be confirmed in field situations. Enhanced nutrient‐use efficiency obtained through farming practices which exert positive effects on soil biota could result in reduced amounts of fertilisers needed for agricultural production and reduced nutrient losses to the environment, providing benefits of such practices beyond positive effects on biodiversity.
l‐arginine and aminoguanidine reduce colonic damage of acetic acid‐induced colitis in rats: Potential modulation of nuclear factor‐κB/p65
Authors: Farghaly Hanan SM , Thabit Romany H 
Published: September 2014

SummaryThe transcription factor, nuclear factor‐κB (NF‐κB) is a key inducer of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) gene expression. The aim of the present study was to investigate the potential protective effect of l‐arginine (Arg; nitric oxide precursor) and aminoguanidine (inducible nitric oxide synthase inhibitor) against acetic acid (AA)‐induced colitis in rats, and the potential role of NF‐κB. Colitis was induced by intrarectal inoculation of rats with 4% acetic acid for three consecutive days. The effect of Arg and aminoguanidine on nitric oxide levels was assessed by Greiss assay and protein expression of NF‐κB/p65, and inducible nitric oxide synthase was also investigated by immunohistochemistry. Slides were examined using ImageJ, and results reported as the percent area positive for each marker. Intrarectal AA caused a significant increase in bodyweight loss and colon weights. Arg at 100 mg/day for 7 days before induction of colitis diminished the changes in both bodyweight loss and colon weights. Furthermore, Arg attenuated the colonic tissues macroscopic and microscopic damage induced by acetic acid. In addition, i.p. AG 100 mg/kg given during and after induction of colitis recovered the colonic ulcerative lesion induced by AA. Arg can protect against colonic inflammation; an effect that probably be attributed to its nitric oxide‐donating property, resulting in modulatory effects on the expression of NF‐κB/p65 in the colon tissues. The results suggested that Arg might reduce the inflammation associated with colitis as confirmed by histopathological investigations. Arg might inhibit AA‐induced colitis through the NF‐κB/nitric oxide pathway.
Identification of Crystals Forming on Porcine Articular Cartilage: A New Method for the Estimation of the Postmortem Interval
Authors: Rogers Christopher J. , ten Broek Clara M.A. , Hodson Barbara , Whitehead Michael P. , Schmerer Wera M. , Sutton Raul 
Published: September 2014

AbstractArticular cartilage was examined to determine its decomposition sequence and its potential for assessing the postmortem interval. Scanning electron microscopy of articular cartilage from buried porcine trotters showed the presence of microcrystals on the synovial surface. These orthorhombic pyramidal or “coffin”‐shaped crystals, appeared at 3 weeks (22 days) after interment and disappeared after 6 weeks. The disappearance of these crystals was linked to decompositional changes to the integrity of the synovial joint. The formation and disappearance of these crystals was associated with a pH change at the cartilage surface. Scanning electron microscopy–energy‐dispersive X‐ray (SEM‐EDX) analysis showed that the five main elements contained within these crystals were carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, magnesium, and phosphorous. Such elemental analysis suggested the crystals may be struvite (MgNH4PO46(H2O)). Bacteria cultured from the cartilage synovial surface produced struvite crystals when grown in suitable media and were identified by DNA analysis to be Comamonas sp.
Improved cytotoxic effects of Salmonella‐producing cytosine deaminase in tumour cells
Authors: Mesa‐Pereira Beatriz , Medina Carlos , Camacho Eva María , Flores Amando , Santero Eduardo 
Published: September 2014

SummaryIn order to increase the cytotoxic activity of a Salmonella strain carrying a salicylate‐inducible expression system that controls cytosine deaminase production, we have modified both, the vector and the producer bacterium. First, the translation rates of the expression module containing the Escherichia coli codA gene cloned under the control of the Pm promoter have been improved by using the T7 phage gene 10 ribosome binding site sequence and replacing the original GUG start codon by AUG. Second, to increase the time span in which cytosine deaminase may be produced by the bacteria in the presence of 5‐fluorocytosine, a 5‐fluorouracyl resistant Salmonella strain has been constructed by deleting its upp gene sequence. This new Salmonella strain shows increased cytosine deaminase activity and, after infecting tumour cell cultures, increased cytotoxic and bystander effects under standard induction conditions. In addition, we have generated a purD mutation in the producer strain to control its intracellular proliferation by the presence of adenine and avoid the intrinsic Salmonella cell death induction. This strategy allows the analysis and comparison of the cytotoxic effects of cytosine deaminase produced by different Salmonella strains in tumour cell cultures.
Extraction and purification of high‐value metabolites from microalgae: essential lipids, astaxanthin and phycobiliproteins
Authors: Cuellar‐Bermudez Sara P. , Aguilar‐Hernandez Iris , Cardenas‐Chavez Diana L. , Ornelas‐Soto Nancy , Romero‐Ogawa Miguel A. , Parra‐Saldivar Roberto 
Published: September 2014

SummaryThe marked trend and consumers growing interest in natural and healthy products have forced researches and industry to develop novel products with functional ingredients. Microalgae have been recognized as source of functional ingredients with positive health effects since these microorganisms produce polyunsaturated fatty acids, polysaccharides, natural pigments, essential minerals, vitamins, enzymes and bioactive peptides. For this reason, the manuscript reviews two of the main high‐value metabolites which can be obtained from microalgae: pigments and essential lipids. Therefore, the extraction and purification methods for polyunsaturated fatty acids, astaxanthin, phycoerythrin and phycocyanin are described. Also, the effect that environmental growth conditions have in the production of these metabolites is described. This review summarizes the existing methods to extract and purify such metabolites in order to develop a feasible and sustainable algae industry.
MRI abnormalities in children following sequential chemotherapy, hyperfractionated accelerated radiotherapy and high‐dose thiotepa for high‐risk primitive neuroectodermal tumours of the central nervous system
Authors: Thust Stefanie C , Blanco Esther , Michalski Antony J , Chong WK , Gaze Mark N , Phipps Kim , Mankad Kshitij 
Published: September 2014

AbstractIntroductionIntensive postsurgical therapies have improved survival in children with primitive neuroectodermal tumour, but there is concern that the combination of chemotherapy and radiotherapy may result in a compound injury to normal brain. The purposes of this analysis were to characterise what types of imaging abnormalities occur, identify risk factors and explore how treatment‐related changes may be distinguished from tumour.MethodOne hundred fifty‐three MRI studies in 14 children treated with sequential chemotherapy, hyperfractionated accelerated radiotherapy and high‐dose thiotepa were retrospectively analysed at a paediatric national referral centre.ResultsWe observed 11 episodes of new focal enhancing lesions, 5 of which were transient and judged to be treatment related. In addition, 7/14 (50%) of children demonstrated moderate to severe brain volume loss featuring a leukodystrophy pattern.ConclusionTreatment‐related brain MRI abnormalities occurred frequently in this series with a risk of misdiagnosis as tumour. A proportion of patients suffer generalised white matter injury, which has not been appreciated as a side effect of this particular therapy.
Re‐appraisal of the phylogeny and fluorescence in situ hybridization probes for the analysis of the Competibacteraceae in wastewater treatment systems
Authors: McIlroy Simon J. , Nittami Tadashi , Kanai Eri , Fukuda Junji , Saunders Aaron M. , Nielsen Per Halkjær 
Published: September 2014

SummaryMembers of the family Competibacteraceae are common in wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) designed for enhanced biological phosphorus removal (EBPR) and are putatively deleterious to the process of P removal. Their ability to accumulate large amounts of polyhydroxyalkanoates is also suggested to be of potential commercial interest for bioplastic production. In this study we have updated the 16S rRNA‐based phylogeny of the Competibacter and the Plasticicumulans lineages. The former is delineated by 13 clades including two described genera; ‘Ca. Competibacter’ and ‘Ca. Contendobacter’. The oligonucleotide probes used for detection of the family by fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) were re‐evaluated and designed for coverage of these clades. Surveys of full‐scale WWTPs based on 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing and FISH analysis indicate that a number of member clades always coexist, with their relative abundances varying substantially between and temporally within plants. The hypothesis that these differences are based on niche partitioning is supported by marked phenotypic differences between clades. An in‐depth understanding of the ecology of the family requires further studies of the metabolism of individual clades in situ. The proposed phylogeny and FISH probes will provide the foundation for such studies.
Angiotensin receptor blockers and risk of dementia: cohort study in UK Clinical Practice Research Datalink
Authors: Goh Kah L. , Bhaskaran Krishnan , Minassian Caroline , Evans Stephen J. W. , Smeeth Liam , Douglas Ian J. 
Published: September 2014

AimsThis was a cohort study to evaluate whether individuals exposed to angiotensin receptor blockers have a reduced risk of dementia compared with those exposed to angiotensin‐converting enzyme inhibitors.MethodsThe study included new users of angiotensin receptor blockers or angiotensin‐converting enzyme inhibitors (from 1995 to 2010) from UK primary care practices contributing to the Clinical Research Practice Datalink. The association between exposure to angiotensin receptor blockers and the risk of incident dementia was analysed using a Cox model, adjusting for age, sex, body mass index, diabetes, hypertension, heart failure, statin use, socioeconomic status, alcohol, smoking, number of consultations and calendar year.ResultsA total of 426 089 persons were included in the primary analysis, with 45 541 persons exposed to angiotensin receptor blockers and the remainder to angiotensin‐converting enzyme inhibitors. The total number of new diagnoses of dementia was 6517. There was weak evidence of a decreased risk of dementia with exposure to angiotensin receptor blockers, with follow‐up beginning at 1 year after the start of treatment (adjusted hazard ratio 0.92, 95% confidence interval 0.85–1.00). An analysis restricted to the first 12 months after the index date showed a larger effect on dementia risk (adjusted hazard ratio 0.60, 95% confidence interval 0.50–0.72).ConclusionsA small reduction in dementia risk was seen with angiotensin receptor blockers in comparison to angiotensin‐converting enzyme inhibitors. However, the strongest association was seen in early follow‐up, suggesting that the inverse association is unlikely to be causal, but instead reflects other important but unmeasured differences between angiotensin receptor blocker and angiotensin‐converting enzyme inhibitor users.
An exploratory double‐blind, randomized clinical trial with selisistat, a SirT1 inhibitor, in patients with Huntington's disease
Authors: Süssmuth Sigurd D. , Haider Salman , Landwehrmeyer G. Bernhard , Farmer Ruth , Frost Chris , Tripepi Giovanna , Andersen Claus A. , Di Bacco Marco , Lamanna Claudia , Diodato Enrica , Massai Luisa , Diamanti Daniela , Mori Elisa , Magnoni Letizia , Dreyhaupt Jens , Schiefele Karin , Craufurd David , Saft Carsten , Rudzinska Monika , Ryglewicz Danuta , Orth Michael , Brzozy Sebastian , Baran Anna , Pollio Giuseppe , Andre Ralph , Tabrizi Sarah J. , Darpo Borje , Westerberg Goran ,   the PADDINGTON Consortium
Published: September 2014

AimsSelisistat, a selective SirT1 inhibitor is being developed as a potentially disease‐modifying therapeutic for Huntington's disease (HD). This was the first study of selisistat in HD patients and was primarily aimed at development of pharmacodynamic biomarkers.MethodsThis was a randomized, double‐blind, placebo‐controlled, multicentre exploratory study. Fifty‐five male and female patients in early stage HD were randomized to receive 10 mg or 100 mg of selisistat or placebo once daily for 14 days. Blood sampling, clinical and safety assessments were conducted throughout the study. Candidate pharmacodynamic markers included circulating soluble huntingtin and innate immune markers.ResultsSelisistat was found to be safe and well tolerated, and systemic exposure parameters showed that the average steady‐state plasma concentration achieved at the 10 mg dose level (125 nm) was comparable with the IC50 for SirT1 inhibition. No adverse effects on motor, cognitive or functional readouts were recorded. While circulating levels of soluble huntingtin were not affected by selisistat in this study, the biological samples collected have allowed development of assay technology for use in future studies. No effects on innate immune markers were seen.ConclusionsSelisistat was found to be safe and well tolerated in early stage HD patients at plasma concentrations within the anticipated therapeutic concentration range.
A Discrete Time Event-History Approach to Informative Drop-Out in Mixed Latent Markov Models with Covariates
Authors: Bartolucci Francesco , Farcomeni Alessio 
Published: September 2014

SummaryMixed latent Markov (MLM) models represent an important tool of analysis of longitudinal data when response variables are affected by time-fixed and time-varying unobserved heterogeneity, in which the latter is accounted for by a hidden Markov chain. In order to avoid bias when using a model of this type in the presence of informative drop-out, we propose an event-history (EH) extension of the latent Markov approach that may be used with multivariate longitudinal data, in which one or more outcomes of a different nature are observed at each time occasion. The EH component of the resulting model is referred to the interval-censored drop-out, and bias in MLM modeling is avoided by correlated random effects, included in the different model components, which follow common latent distributions. In order to perform maximum likelihood estimation of the proposed model by the expectation–maximization algorithm, we extend the usual forward-backward recursions of Baum and Welch. The algorithm has the same complexity as the one adopted in cases of non-informative drop-out. We illustrate the proposed approach through simulations and an application based on data coming from a medical study about primary biliary cirrhosis in which there are two outcomes of interest, one continuous and the other binary.
Reader Reaction to “A Robust Method for Estimating Optimal Treatment Regimes” by Zhang et al. (2012)
Authors: Taylor Jeremy M. G. , Cheng Wenting , Foster Jared C. 
Published: September 2014

Summary
A recent article (Zhang et al., 2012, Biometrics 168, 1010–1018) compares regression based and inverse probability based methods of estimating an optimal treatment regime and shows for a small number of covariates that inverse probability weighted methods are more robust to model misspecification than regression methods. We demonstrate that using models that fit the data better reduces the concern about non-robustness for the regression methods. We extend the simulation study of Zhang et al. (2012, Biometrics 168, 1010–1018), also considering the situation of a larger number of covariates, and show that incorporating random forests into both regression and inverse probability weighted based methods improves their properties.
Diagnostic accuracy of specific IgE to components in diagnosing peanut allergy: a systematic review
Authors: Klemans R. J. B. , van Os‐Medendorp H. , Blankestijn M. , Bruijnzeel‐Koomen C. A. F. M. , Knol E. F. , Knulst A. C. 
Published: September 2014

SummaryThe diagnostic accuracy of skin prick test (SPT) and specific IgE (sIgE) to peanut extract in diagnosing peanut allergy is suboptimal. Recent studies have evaluated sIgE to peanut components as a possible new diagnostic tool. The aim of our review was to systematically search the literature to assess the diagnostic value of sIgE to peanut components in diagnosing peanut allergy. A literature search was performed in PubMed, Embase and the Cochrane Library. Results were subsequently screened for in‐ and exclusion criteria. The quality of eligible studies was assessed using a standardized quality assessment tool (QUADAS‐2). Data on sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative likelihood ratios were extracted or calculated for a descriptive analysis. Twenty‐two studies were eligible, of which 21 studies in paediatric populations. Most studies reported on sIgE to peanut extract (15) and sIgE to Ara h 2 (12), followed by SPT (9) and sIgE to Ara h 1 (7). All studies were at risk of bias or caused applicability concerns on at least one item of the quality assessment tool. The best combination of diagnostic accuracy measures of all diagnostic tests was found for sIgE to Ara h 2. This finding was independent of geographical location. Compared to SPT and sIgE to peanut extract, sIgE to Ara h 2 was mainly superior in diagnosing peanut allergy in case of a positive test result. Worst diagnostic accuracy measures were found in general for sIgE to Ara h 8 and sIgE to Ara h 9. sIgE to Ara h 2 showed the best diagnostic accuracy of all diagnostic tests to diagnose peanut allergy. Compared to the currently used SPT and sIgE to peanut extract, sIgE to Ara h 2 was superior in diagnosing peanut allergy and should therefore replace these tests in daily clinical practice, especially in children.