bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Prevalence and outcome of non‐alcoholic fatty liver disease in adolescents and young adults undergoing weight loss surgery
Authors: Corey K. E. , Stanley T. L. , Misdraji J. , Scirica C. , Pratt J. , Hoppin A. , Misra M. 
Published: March 2014

SummaryBackground/ObjectiveWe evaluated the prevalence of non‐alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and non‐alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) in 27 adolescents referred for weight loss surgery (WLS).ResultsOn biopsy, 18 patients (66.7%) had NAFLD, and of those, 10 (37.0%) had NASH and 11 (40.7%) had fibrosis. Insulin, HbA1C and homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA‐IR) were significantly higher in patients with NASH than those without NASH. Following WLS, 40% of patients with NASH had persistently elevated aminotransferase levels despite weight loss.ConclusionWe found that NASH is underdiagnosed in adolescents referred for WLS, and that hyperinsulinaemia, HOMA‐IR and HbA1c can aid in identifying high‐risk patients.
Long‐Run Stock Performance and Its Determinants for Asset Buyers
Authors: Chen Sheng‐Syan , Liu Yong‐Chin , Chen I‐Ju 
Published: March 2014

AbstractThis paper examines the long‐term stock performance of asset purchasers and the determinants of cross‐sectional differences in performance. Our findings show that buyers’ stocks, on average, underperform following purchases. Buy‐and‐hold abnormal returns of buyers acquiring related assets are significantly higher than those acquiring unrelated assets, consistent with the focus hypothesis. Asset buyers with superior prior stock performance experience poorer long‐run performance than buyers with inferior prior stock performance, consistent with the prior performance hypothesis. Asset buyers that manage earnings upward, experience poorer long‐term abnormal stock performance than acquirers with downward earnings management, consistent with the earnings management hypothesis. The long‐term return evidence is to some degree consistent with the governance hypothesis but we find little support for the free cash flow hypothesis.
Median neuropathy at the wrist as an early manifestation of diabetic neuropathy
Authors: Horinouchi Shuji , Deguchi Takahisa , Arimura Kimiyoshi , Arimura Aiko , Dochi Yukari , Uto Tadashi , Nakamura Tomonori , Arimura Yumiko , Nishio Yoshihiko , Takashima Hiroshi 
Published: March 2014

AbstractAims/IntroductionTo elucidate the clinical significance of median neuropathy at the wrist (MN) in patients with diabetes.Materials and MethodsIn total, 340 patients with diabetes who were hospitalized for glycemic control were enrolled in the present study. The diagnoses of MN and diabetic polyneuropathy (DPN) were based on electrophysiological criteria. A total of 187 patients were divided into four subgroups: patients without MN or DPN; patients with MN without DPN; patients with MN and DPN; and patients with DPN without MN. Intergroup comparisons of clinical characteristics and results of nerve conduction studies were carried out.ResultsA total of 71 patients had neither MN nor DPN; 25 had MN, but no DPN; 55 had MN and DPN; and 36 had DPN, but no MN. In comparison with the MN and DPN group, the MN without DPN group included more patients in the early phase of diabetes (diagnosed within the past 5 years) and fewer patients with diabetic microangiopathy. Comparative median nerve conduction studies showed significantly lower motor and sensory nerve conduction velocities, longer F‐wave latencies, and smaller sensory nerve action potentials in patients with MN and DPN than in those without DPN.ConclusionsMN in patients with diabetes could be attributed to an impairment in axonal function at common entrapment sites, and could be used to identify an early manifestation of diabetic neuropathy.
Morphological and Physiological Changes on Rhizopus stolonifer by Effect of Chitosan, Oligochitosan or Essential Oils
Authors: Alfaro‐Gutiérrez Ivonne C. , Guerra‐Sánchez María G. , Hernández‐Lauzardo Ana N. , Velázquez‐del Valle Miguel G. 
Published: March 2014

AbstractEffects of chitosan, oligochitosan and the essential oils of clove and cinnamon were evaluated on hyphal morphology, cell wall thickness, minimum medium pH changes and respiration of Rhizopus stolonifer. Changes in hyphal morphology were observed due to chitosan or oligochitosan treatment in this fungus. Mycelial branching, abnormal shapes and swelling were showed on hyphae of R. stolonifer treated with chitosan, whereas the development of hyphae was markedly inhibited by the effect of oligochitosan. Clove and cinnamon oils caused few morphological changes in the hyphae of R. stolonifer. Cell wall thickness was increased approximately 2‐ to 3‐fold by effect of chitosan, oligochitosan and the essential oil of clove. R. stolonifer grown in minimum medium generated a decrease in the medium's pH. However, the addition of chitosan or oligochitosan caused increases in pH of medium culture. The highest pH value (5.4) was observed in the presence of chitosan. The respiration of R. stolonifer was stimulated at low concentrations of chitosan, oligochitosan or essential oils. Significant changes in morphology and physiology of this fungus were demonstrated by the effect of all evaluated compounds. The most important changes were induced on cells of R. stolonifer treated with chitosan and oligochitosan.
An update to depression case management by practice nurses in primary care: a service evaluation
Authors: Murphy R. , Ekers D. , Webster L. 
Published: March 2014

Accessible summary
There is a recognized need to enhance non‐pharmaceutical interventions in a way that is more accessible to the primary care population.
Collaborative care has been shown to have a positive impact upon depression symptoms and a core element of the collaborative care approach is the case manager.
This paper is a service evaluation of a collaborative care intervention that uses primary care nurses as the depression case manager and is a follow‐up to the service audit carried out by Ekers and Wilson.
The results support the notion that primary care nurses are ideally placed for delivering care to depressed patients; especially in cases were a patient also has a comorbid long‐term medical condition.
AbstractThere is a recognized need to enhance non‐pharmaceutical interventions for depression in the primary care. This service evaluation of collaborative care for depression by primary care practice nurses is an update of Ekers and Wilson (2008), reporting outcomes 5 years following initial training. From an initial 13 trained practice nurses, three provided anonymized data. Mean post‐treatment Patient Health Questionnaire‐9 (PHQ9) score was 8 [standard deviation (SD) 6.53, n = 185], indicating a mean positive change in depression symptom level of 8.9 [SD 7.01, 95% confidence interval (CI) 7.89–9.93, P < 0.001]. Subgroup analysis for patients identified with a comorbid long‐term conditions (LTC) mean post‐treatment PHQ9 score was 9 (SD 7.72, n = 33), indicating a mean positive change in depression symptom level of 8.1 (SD 5.79, 95% CI 6.04–10.41, P < 0.001). Nurses provided feedback on the intervention showing potential areas that would benefit from further detailed qualitative review. It was concluded that primary care practice nurses would be ideally placed to deliver collaborative care to depression patients with comorbid LTCs.
Induced resistance to periwinkle grazing in the brown seaweed Fucus vesiculosus (Phaeophyceae): molecular insights and seaweed‐mediated effects on herbivore interactions
Authors: Flöthe Carla R. , Molis Markus , John Uwe 
Published: March 2014

Herbivory is a key factor for controlling seaweed biomass and community structure. To cope with grazers, constitutive and inducible defenses have evolved in macroalgae. Inducible chemical defenses show grazer‐specificity and, at the same time, have the potential to mediate interactions among different herbivores. Furthermore, temporal variations in defense patterns, which may adjust antiherbivory responses to grazing pressure, were reported in two brown seaweeds. However, underlying cellular processes are only rudimentarily characterized. To investigate the response of Fucus vesiculosus (L.) to periwinkle (Littorina obtusata) grazing, feeding assays were conducted at several times during a 33 d induction experiment. Underlying cellular processes were analyzed through gene expression profiling. Furthermore, direct processes driving the antiherbivory response to periwinkle grazing and indirect effects on another herbivore, the isopod Idotea baltica, were elucidated. F. vesiculosus showed multiple defense pulses in response to periwinkle grazing, suggesting a high level of temporal variability in antiherbivory traits. Defense induction was accompanied by extensive transcriptome changes. Approximately 400 genes were significantly up‐/down‐regulated relative to controls, including genes relevant for translation and the cytoskeleton. Genes involved in photosynthesis were mostly down‐regulated, while genes related to the respiratory chain were up‐regulated, indicating alterations in resource allocation. The comparison of genes regulated in response to isopod (previous study) and periwinkle grazing suggests specific induction of several genes by each herbivore. However, grazing by both herbivores induced similar metabolic processes in F. vesiculosus. These common defense‐related processes reflected in strong indirect effects as isopods were also repelled after previous grazing by L. obtusata.
Adaptive response in hepatitis B virus infection
Authors: Loggi E. , Gamal N. , Bihl F. , Bernardi M. , Andreone P. 
Published: March 2014

SummaryHepatitis B virus (HBV) is a major cause of acute and chronic liver inflammation worldwide. The immune response against the virus represents a key factor in determining infection outcome, in terms of both viral clearance and the perpetuation of liver damage. Significant advances have recently been achieved regarding the functions of antiviral CD8+ T cells, leading to a better understanding of their abnormalities during chronic infection as well as the pathways to be manipulated to reverse the immune impairment of chronic infection. In this review, we aimed to analyse the patterns of adaptive immunity that develop during acute infection and the profiles in chronic infection. In addition to CD8+ T cells, which are the best‐described subset to date, we reviewed and commented on the direct and indirect roles of CD4+ T cells and B cells.
Perceptual properties of feedback stimuli influence the feedback‐related negativity in the flanker gambling task
Authors: Liu Yanni , Nelson Lindsay D. , Bernat Edward M. , Gehring William J. 
Published: March 2014

AbstractA negative deflection in the event‐related potential is enhanced following error‐ and loss‐related feedback in decision‐making and simple gambling tasks. Researchers have assumed that the perceptual properties of the feedback stimuli are unimportant in explaining these effects. This assumption was tested in the present study through a flanker gambling task, in which the perceptual properties of the feedback were manipulated. Consistent with previous studies, loss elicited a larger feedback‐related negativity (FRN) than gain feedback. However, this FRN reward effect was modulated by the perceptual properties of the feedback stimuli. When gain and loss feedback were perceptually similar to each other, the enhancement of the FRN following the loss feedback was smaller compared to when the gain and loss feedback were different from each other. In addition, incongruent feedback elicited a larger FRN than congruent feedback; this FRN congruency effect was larger following gain than loss feedback. These results suggested that perceptual properties of the feedback stimuli play a role in the elicitation of the FRN.
Genetic variation of the wholeICAM4gene inCaucasians andAfricanAmericans
Authors: Srivastava Kshitij , Almarry Noorah Salman , Flegel Willy A. 
Published: March 2014

BackgroundLandsteiner‐Wiener (LW) is the human blood group system Number 16, which comprises two antithetical antigens,LWaandLWband the high‐prevalence antigenLWab.LWis encoded by the intracellular adhesion molecule 4 (ICAM4) gene. TheICAM4 protein is part of theRhesus complex in the red cell membrane and is involved in cell–cell adhesion.Study Design and MethodsWe developed a method to sequence the whole 1.9‐kbICAM4gene from genomicDNAin one amplicon. We determined the nucleotide sequence ofExons 1 to 3, the two introns, and 402‐bp 5′‐untranslated region (UTR) and 347‐bp 3′‐UTRin 97Caucasian and 91AfricanAmerican individuals.ResultsSeven variantICAM4alleles were found, distinct from the wild‐typeICAM4allele (GenBankKF712272), known asLW*05and encodingLWa. An effect of theLWa/LWbamino acid substitution on the protein structure was predicted by two of the three computational modeling programs used.ConclusionsWe describe a practical approach for sequencing and determining theICAM4alleles using genomicDNA.LW*05is the ancestral allele, which had also been observed in aNeanderthal sample. All seven variant alleles are immediate derivatives of the prevalentLW*05and caused by one single‐nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in each allele. Our data were consistent with theNHLBI GO ExomeSequencingProject (ESP) and thedbSNPdatabases, as allSNPs had been observed previously. Our study has the advantage over the other databases in that it adds haplotype (allele) information for theICAM4gene, clinically relevant in the field of transfusion medicine.
Transfusion‐related acute lung injury and potential risk factors among the inpatient US elderly as recorded in Medicare claims data, during 2007 through 2011
Authors: Menis Mikhail , Anderson Steven A. , Forshee Richard A. , McKean Stephen , Johnson Chris , Warnock Rob , Gondalia Rahul , Mintz Paul D. , Holness Leslie , Worrall Christopher M. , Kelman Jeffrey A. , Izurieta Hector S. 
Published: March 2014

BackgroundTransfusion‐related acute lung injury (TRALI) is a serious complication leading to pulmonary edema and respiratory failure. This study's objective was to assess TRALI occurrence and potential risk factors among inpatient US elderly Medicare beneficiaries, ages 65 and older, during 2007 through 2011.Study Design and MethodsThis retrospective claims‐based study utilized large Medicare administrative databases. Transfusions were identified by recorded procedure and revenue center codes. TRALI was ascertained via ICD‐9‐CM diagnosis code. The study evaluated TRALI rates among the inpatient elderly overall and by calendar year, age, sex, race, blood components, and units transfused. Logistic regression analyses were used to assess potential risk factors.ResultsOf 11,378,264 inpatient transfusion stays for elderly Medicare beneficiaries, 2556 had a recorded TRALI diagnosis code, an overall rate of 22.46 per 100,000 stays. TRALI rates were higher for platelet (PLT)‐ and plasma‐containing transfusions and increased by year and number of units transfused (p < 0.0001). Significantly higher odds of TRALI were also found for persons ages 65 to 79 years versus more than 79 years (OR, 1.19; 95% confidence interval CI, 1.09‐1.29), females versus males (OR, 1.26; 95% CI, 1.16‐1.38), white versus nonwhite (OR, 1.43; 95% CI, 1.27‐1.66), and with 6‐month histories of postinflammatory pulmonary fibrosis (OR, 1.89; 95% CI, 1.52‐2.20), tobacco use (OR, 1.16; 95% CI, 1.00‐1.26), and other diseases.ConclusionOur study among the elderly suggests TRALI to be a severe event and identifies a substantially increased TRALI occurrence with greater number of units and with PLT‐ or plasma‐containing transfusions. The study also suggests importance of underlying health conditions, prior recipient alloimmunization, and nonimmune mechanism in TRALI development among the elderly.
Semaphorin 3A alters endothelial cell immunogenicity by regulating Class II transactivator activity circuits
Authors: Schlahsa Laura , Zhang HaiJiao , Battermann Anja , Verboom Murielle , Immenschuh Stephan , Eiz‐Vesper Britta , Stripecke Renata , Engelmann Katrin , Blasczyk Rainer , Figueiredo Constança 
Published: March 2014

BackgroundEndothelial cells (ECs) play a pivotal role in the allogeneic immune response upon transplantation. Semaphorin 3A (Sema3A) was implicated in the modulation of EC growth, but its effects on immunogenicity were not previously investigated.Study Design and MethodsECs were transduced with a lentiviral vector encoding for the green fluorescence protein (GFP) sequence under the control of a Class II transactivator (CIITA)‐dependent promoter. Upon stimulation of nonmodified ECs with recombinant Sema3A protein, mRNA and protein levels of CIITA, HLA‐DR, and Sema3A receptors were evaluated. An enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay was developed to quantify Sema3A levels in the sera of kidney‐transplanted patients.ResultsSema3A stimulation of lentiviral vector encoding for the GFP sequence ECs caused a significant up regulation of the transgene expression, indicating an increase in CIITA levels. Stimulation of nonmodified ECs with Sema3A resulted in an up regulation of CIITA expression, which was associated with enhanced HLA‐DR levels and an increase in alloreactive CD4+ T‐cell proliferation. Sema3A receptor expression was enhanced by CIITA, establishing a positive feedback loop. Higher levels of Sema3A were observed in sera of patients presenting with organ rejection.ConclusionThis study links Sema3A signaling in ECs with increased CIITA levels and higher HLA‐DR expression, resulting in CD4+ T‐cell activation, which might have important implications for tissue and organ transplantation.
Therapeutic plasma exchange and intravenous immunoglobulin as primary therapy for D alloimmunization in pregnancy precludes the need for intrauterine transfusion
Authors: Bellone Michael , Boctor Fouad N. 
Published: March 2014

BackgroundMaternal D alloimmunization detected in early gestation requires aggressive intervention to prevent severe fetal anemia. An intrauterine transfusion (IUT) is indicated to prevent fetal death once severe fetal anemia has been detected, but is not without risk. Protocols combining therapeutic plasma exchange (TPE) and intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) have been described, but they usually bridge to IUT.Study Design and MethodsWe describe a 27‐year‐old G4, P0‐1‐2‐0 Caucasian female with a history of ruptured ectopic pregnancy presented at 12 weeks' gestation with a very high anti‐D titer (2048). TPE was performed on that week and twice more in the following week, with a fourth final exchange during Week 14. A loading dose of IVIG (2 g/kg) was administered over 2 days after the third TPE and then 1 g/kg per week until Week 28 (total, 14 doses).ResultsThe antibody titer decreased to 256 by the beginning of 15 weeks' gestation and remained stable at that level for the remainder of the pregnancy. Doppler ultrasonographic measurements of the fetal middle cerebral artery peak flow velocity performed throughout gestation showed no evidence of fetal anemia. A healthy male infant was delivered at 37 weeks' gestation with mild immune‐mediated hemolysis. The infant underwent successful treatment with an IVIG dose of 750 mg/kg and a red blood cell exchange.ConclusionOur unique TPE‐IVIG protocol was successful at preventing the onset of severe fetal anemia in a patient with high titer anti‐D. Since IUT may be fatal, our approach offers a safer and less‐invasive treatment regime that can adequately sustain a fetus until term.
Extended storage of buffy coat platelet concentrates in plasma or a platelet additive solution
Authors: Slichter Sherrill J. , Bolgiano Doug , Corson Jill , Jones Mary Kay , Christoffel Todd , Bailey S. Lawrence , Pellham Esther 
Published: March 2014

BackgroundPlatelet (PLT) concentrates (PCs) prepared from whole blood in the United States are made using the PLT‐rich plasma method. The PCs must be made within 8 hours of blood collection and stored for only 5 days. In Europe and Canada, PCs are made using the buffy coat (BC) method from whole blood held overnight at 22°C and storage times may be up to 7 days. Our studies were designed to determine how long BC PLTs can be stored in plasma or Plasmalyte while meeting the FDA's poststorage viability criteria.Study Design and MethodsNormal subjects donated whole blood that was stored at 22°C for 22 ± 2 hours before preparation of BC PLTs. PLTs were stored for 5 to 8 days in either plasma or Plasmalyte concentrations of 65 or 80%. Radiolabeled autologous stored versus fresh PLT recoveries and survivals were assessed as well as poststorage in vitro assays.ResultsBC PLTs stored in either plasma or 65% Plasmalyte met FDA poststorage PLT recovery criteria for 7 days but survivals for only 6 days, while storage in 80% Plasmalyte gave very poor results. Both stored PLT recoveries and survivals correlated with the same donor's fresh results, but the correlation was much stronger between recoveries than survivals. In vitro measures of extent of shape change, morphology score, and pH best predicted poststorage PLT recoveries, while annexin V binding best predicted PLT survivals.ConclusionBC PLTs stored in either plasma or 65% Plasmalyte meet FDA's poststorage viability criteria for 6 days.
Draft Genome Sequence of Bacillus subtilis QH-1, a Chromium-Reducing Bacterial Strain Isolated in Qinghai Province, China
Authors: Feng Liang , Ma Teng , Zhang Junwen , Xu Fen , Shi Liu 
Published: March 2014

ABSTRACT

Bacillus subtilis
strain QH-1, a chromium-reducing bacterial strain, was isolated from a soil sample from a chromium-containing slag heap. The draft genome sequence of this bacterium is 4,034,036 bp in length, with a G+C content of 43.71%, and it is predicted to contain 4,082 protein-coding genes.
Comparison of Pulsed-Gel Electrophoresis and a Commercial Repetitive-Element PCR Method for Assessment of Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus Clustering in Different Health Care Facilities
Authors: Crnich Christopher J. , Duster Megan , Warrack Simone , Maki Dennis , Safdar Nasia 
Published: March 2014

ABSTRACT

Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) is a common method used to type methicillin-resistant
Staphylococcus aureus
(MRSA) in nosocomial investigations and epidemiological studies but is time-consuming and methodologically challenging. We compared typing results obtained using a commercial repetitive-element PCR (rep-PCR) system with PFGE in a sample of 86 unique MRSA isolates recovered from subjects in an academic referral hospital and two nursing homes in the same geographic region. Both methods reliably assigned isolates to the same Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) pulsotype. PFGE was significantly more discriminatory (Simpson's index of diversity, 0.92 at the 95% strain similarity threshold) than the commercial rep-PCR system (Simpson's index of diversity, 0.58). The global (adjusted Rand coefficient, 0.10) and directional congruence (adjusted Wallace coefficient
repPCR→PFGE
= 0.06; adjusted Wallace coefficient
PFGE→repPCR
= 0.52) between the two methods was low. MRSA strains recovered from study nursing homes that were clonal when typed by the commercial rep-PCR method were frequently noted to be genetically distinct when typed using PFGE. These data suggest that the commercial rep-PCR has less utility than PFGE in small-scale epidemiological assessments of MRSA in health care settings.
Midgut malrotation presenting with left-sided acute appendicitis and CT inversion sign
Authors: Çağlar Emrah , Arıbaş Bilgin , Tiken Ramazan , Keskin Suat 
Published: March 2014

In patients presenting with abdominal pain, appendicitis is the most common surgical disorder. Appendicitis causing pain in the left lower quadrant is extremely rare and can occur with congenital abnormalities that include true left-sided appendix or as an atypical presentation of right-sided long appendix, which projects into the left lower quadrant. We report a case of a 69-year-old man showing midgut malrotation with acute appendicitis presenting as left lower quadrant abdominal pain.