bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Association of SRD5A2 Variants and Serum Androstane-3α,17β-Diol Glucuronide Concentration in Chinese Elderly Men
Authors: Jiang Jieying , Tang Nelson LS , Ohlsson Claes , Eriksson Anna L , Vandenput Liesbeth , Liao ChenDi , Wang Xingyan , Chan Frank WK , Kwok Anthony , Orwoll Eric , Kwok Timothy CY , Woo Jean , Leung Ping Chung 
Published: September 2010

BACKGROUNDResults of recent studies have demonstrated that genetic variants of the enzyme steroid 5α reductase type II (SRD5A2) are associated with serum concentrations of major androgen metabolites such as conjugates of androstane-3α,17β-diol-glucuronide (3α-diol-G). However, this association was not consistently found among different ethnic groups. Thus, we aimed to determine whether the association with SRD5A2 genetic variations exists in a cohort of healthy Chinese elderly men, by examining 2 metabolite conjugates: androstane-3α,l7β-diol-3-glucuronide (3α-diol-3G) and androstane-3α,17β-diol-17-glucuronide (3α-diol-17G).METHODSWe used GC-MS and LC-MS to measure serum sex steroid concentrations, including testosterone and dihydrotestosterone, and 3α-diol-3G and 3α-diol-17G in 1182 Chinese elderly men age 65 and older. Genotyping of the 3 SRD5A2 tagSNPs [rs3731586, rs12470143, and rs523349 (V89L)] was performed by using melting-temperature–shift allele-specific PCR.RESULTSThe well-described SRD5A2 missense variant rs523349 (V89L) was modestly associated with the 3α-diol-17G concentration (P = 0.040). On the other hand, SNP rs12470143 was found to be significantly correlated with 3α-diol-3G concentration (P = 0.021). Results of haplotype analysis suggested that the presence of an A-C-G haplotype leads to an increased 3α-diol-3G concentration, a finding consistent with results of single SNP analysis.CONCLUSIONSThe genetic variation of SRD5A2 is associated with circulating 3α-diol-3G and 3α-diol-17G concentrations in Chinese elderly men. In addition, we showed that SRD5A2 haplotypic association, rather than a single SNP alone, might be a better predictor of the 3α-diol-G concentration. Thus, the effect of either the haplotype itself or of other ungenotyped SNPs in linkage disequilibrium with the haplotype is responsible for the interindividual variation of 3α-diol-G.
Microsatellite Instability Detection by High-Resolution Melting Analysis
Authors: Janavicius Ramunas , Matiukaite Dovile , Jakubauskas Arturas , Griskevicius Laimonas 
Published: September 2010

BACKGROUNDMicrosatellite instability (MSI) is an important marker for screening for hereditary nonpolyposis colorectal cancer (Lynch syndrome) as well as a prognostic and predictive marker for sporadic colorectal cancer (CRC). The mononucleotide microsatellite marker panel is a well-established and superior alternative to the traditional Bethesda MSI analysis panel, and does not require testing for corresponding normal DNA. The most common MSI detection techniques—fluorescent capillary electrophoresis and denaturing HPLC (DHPLC)—both have advantages and drawbacks. A new high-resolution melting (HRM) analysis method enables rapid identification of heteroduplexes in amplicons by their lower thermal stability, a technique that overcomes the main shortcomings of capillary electrophoresis and DHPLC.METHODSWe investigated the straightforward application of HRM for the detection of MSI in 70 archival CRC samples. HRM analysis for 2 MSI markers (BAT25 and BAT26) was evaluated, and 2 different HRM-enabled instruments were compared—the LightCycler® 480 (Roche Diagnostics) and the LightScannerTM (Idaho Technology). We also determined the analytical sensitivity and specificity of the HRM assay on both instruments using 11 known MSI-positive and 54 microsatellite-stable CRC samples.RESULTSAll MSI-positive samples were detected on both instruments (100% analytical sensitivity). The LightScanner performed better for analytical specificity, giving a combined specificity value of 99.1% compared with 92.3% on the LightCycler 480.CONCLUSIONSWe expanded the application of the HRM analysis method as an effective MSI detection technique for clinical samples.
Long Life Fatigue Fracture Induced by Interior Inclusions for High Carbon Chromium Bearing Steels Under Rotating Bending
Authors: Oguma N. , Lian B. , Sakai T. , Watanabe K. , Odake Y. 
Published: September 2010

Abstract
The characteristics of the long life fatigue fractures induced by interior nonmetallic inclusions for two types of high carbon chromium bearing steels were experimentally examined under rotating bending. Specimens were machined from the round bars with different diameters. One type was cut from the central area of a thin bar; the other type was cut from the medium area of the radius of a thick bar. As a result of the fatigue tests, the fatigue life of the latter type specimen was longer in the long life region. Crack initiation sites on fracture surfaces of all the failed specimens were observed by means of a scanning electron microscope. The number of alumina inclusions was decreased, and the average size of titanium nitride inclusions on fracture surfaces was smaller for the latter type specimens. And a characteristic rough surface of fine granular area (FGA) was observed in a circle around the inclusion on the fracture surface. The size of FGA tended to increase with an increase of the fatigue life and a decrease of the stress amplitude at the position of the inclusion. From a view point of fracture mechanics, the stress intensity factor range at the front of FGA, ⊿KFGA, was calculated for each specimen by using √area model. Values of ⊿KFGA of both type specimens were almost constant regardless of the stress amplitude at the site of inclusion, and the average value was about 5 MPa√m. That is, it seems that the fatigue life of the specimens cut from the thick bar was improved by downsizing the inclusion area on the fracture surface.
Systemic Hypothermia After Neonatal Encephalopathy: Outcomes of neo.nEURO.network RCT
Authors: Simbruner Georg , Mittal Rashmi A. , Rohlmann Friederike , Muche Rainer ,   neo.nEURO.network Trial Participants
Published: September 2010

OBJECTIVE:
Mild hypothermia after perinatal hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) reduces neurologic sequelae without significant adverse effects, but studies are needed to determine the most-efficacious methods.

METHODS:
In the neo.nEURO.network trial, term neonates with clinical and electrophysiological evidence of HIE were assigned randomly to either a control group, with a rectal temperature of 37°C (range: 36.5–37.5°C), or a hypothermia group, cooled and maintained at a rectal temperature of 33.5°C (range: 33–34°C) with a cooling blanket for 72 hours, followed by slow rewarming. All infants received morphine (0.1 mg/kg) every 4 hours or an equivalent dose of fentanyl. Neurodevelopmental outcomes were assessed at the age of 18 to 21 months. The primary outcome was death or severe disability.

RESULTS:
A total of 129 newborn infants were enrolled, and 111 infants were evaluated at 18 to 21 months (53 in the hypothermia group and 58 in the normothermia group). The rates of death or severe disability were 51% in the hypothermia group and 83% in the normothermia group (P = .001; odds ratio: 0.21 [95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.09–0.54]; number needed to treat: 4 [95% CI: 3–9]). Hypothermia also had a statistically significant protective effect in the group with severe HIE (n = 77; P = .005; odds ratio: 0.17 [95% CI: 0.05–0.57]). Rates of adverse events during the intervention were similar in the 2 groups except for fewer clinical seizures in the hypothermia group.

CONCLUSION:
Systemic hypothermia in the neo.nEURO.network trial showed a strong neuroprotective effect and was effective in the severe HIE group.
Racial Differences in the Effects of Postnatal Environmental Tobacco Smoke on Neurodevelopment
Authors: Xu Xiaohui , Cook Robert L. , Ilacqua Vito A. , Kan Haidong , Talbott Evelyn O. 
Published: September 2010

OBJECTIVES:We used the 2001–2004 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey to examine the association between postnatal environmental tobacco smoke exposure, measured as serum cotinine levels, and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) among children 4 to 15 years of age. We further investigated the interactions of race and serum cotinine levels with ADHD.METHODS:Logistic regression models were used to evaluate associations.RESULTS:This study found that the prevalence of ADHD increased as blood cotinine levels increased. The effects of blood cotinine levels on ADHD differed according to race. Compared with children of the same racial group with the lowest blood cotinine levels, the odds ratios were 2.72 (95% confidence interval: 1.25–5.93) for Mexican American children and 5.32 (95% confidence interval: 1.55–18.3) for children in other racial groups with the highest blood cotinine levels, with controlling for the effect of maternal smoking during pregnancy. However, no significant associations between blood cotinine levels and ADHD were observed among non-Hispanic white or non-Hispanic black children.CONCLUSIONS:The findings of this study underscore the possibility of racial disparities in the effects of environmental tobacco smoke on behavioral problems in children. These findings warrant further investigation.
Critical and alternative directions in applied linguistics
Authors: Pennycook Alastair 
Published: September 2010

Critical directions in applied linguistics can be understood in various ways. The termcriticalas it has been used incritical applied linguistics, critical discourse analysis, critical literacyand so forth, is now embedded as part of applied linguistic work, adding an overt focus on questions of power and inequality to discourse analysis, literacy or applied linguistics more generally. In this paper I will argue, however, that although critical discourse analysis and critical literacy still make claims to a territory different from their ‘non-critical’ counterparts, much of this work has become conventional and moribund. The use of the term ‘critical’ (with its problematic claims and divisions) has perhaps reached saturation level. This is not to say, however, that the basic need to bring questions of power, disparity and difference to applied linguistics is any way diminished, but rather that we may need to look in alternative directions for renewal.Here I want to pursue two main possibilities: On the one hand, the effects of critical work have been widely felt, so that the issues and concerns raised by work in this tradition have filtered through to many parts of the field. Work today that might be deemed critical may no longer need to wear this label. On the other hand, a range of different social theories (captured in part by a series of ‘turns’) has started to shift the thinking in many domains of applied linguistics in important ways. Just as work in sociolinguistics, for example, has shifted from a central focus on variationist accounts of language to include style, identity, practices and politics more broadly, and work in bi- and multilingualism has started to question the ways in which these are framed (hence, for example, multilanguaging, polylingualism and metrolingualism), so applied linguistics has shifted from a central focus on language teaching, testing and second language acquisition to a broader and more critical conceptualization of language in social life. It has started to take on board the implications of new ‘turns’ in the social sciences (practices, sensory, somatic, postmodern, ecological, decolonial) and new influences from previously overlooked sources (queer theory, critical geography, postcolonial studies, philosophy). Critical and alternative directions in applied linguistics, therefore, may be found across a variety of domains that are engaging with notions such as language as a local practice.
Heterogeneity and Learning in Labor Markets
Authors: Woodcock Simon D 
Published: September 2010

Abstract
I develop an equilibrium matching model where heterogeneous workers and firms learn about match quality and bargain over wages. The model generalizes Jovanovic (1979) to the case of heterogeneous workers and firms. Equilibrium wage dispersion arises due to productivity differences between workers, technological differences between firms, and heterogeneity in beliefs about match quality. Under a simple CRS technology, the equilibrium wage is additively separable in worker- and firm-specific components as well as in the posterior mean of beliefs about match quality. This parallels the person and firm effects empirical specification of Abowd et al (1999) and others. The model predicts a negative correlation between estimated person and firm effects, which is consistent with most previous empirical evidence. I estimate the equilibrium wage function and test the model's empirical predictions using linked employer-employee data from the U.S. Census Bureau. I find empirical support for many of the model's predictions and estimate that dispersion in beliefs about match quality explains over 20 percent of observed earnings variation.
Metformin Treatment May Increase Omentin-1 Levels in Women With Polycystic Ovary Syndrome
Authors: Tan Bee K. , Adya Raghu , Farhatullah Syed , Chen Jing , Lehnert Hendrik , Randeva Harpal S. 
Published: September 2010

OBJECTIVE
Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is associated with the metabolic syndrome. Decreased omentin-1 levels are associated with obesity and diabetes. To study the effects of metformin treatment on omentin-1 levels in PCOS subjects and effects of omentin-1 on in vitro migration and angiogenesis.

RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS
Serum omentin-1 was measured by ELISA. Angiogenesis was assessed by studying capillary tube formation in human microvascular endothelial cells (HMEC-1) on growth factor reduced Matrigel. Endothelial cell migration assay was performed in a modified Boyden chamber. Nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) was studied by stably transfecting HMEC-1 cells with a cis-reporter plasmid containing luciferase reporter gene linked to five repeats of NF-κB binding sites. Akt phosphorylation was assessed by Western blotting.

RESULTS
Serum omentin-1 was significantly lower in PCOS women (P &lt; 0.05). After 6 months of metformin treatment, there was a significant increase in serum omentin-1 (P &lt; 0.01). Importantly, changes in hs-CRP were significantly negatively correlated with changes in serum omentin-1 (P = 0.036). In vitro migration and angiogenesis were significantly increased in serum from PCOS women (P &lt; 0.01) compared with matched control subjects; these effects were significantly attenuated by metformin treatment (P &lt; 0.01) plausibly through the regulation of omentin-1 levels via NF-κB and Akt pathways. CRP and VEGF induced in vitro migration, and angiogenesis was significantly decreased by omentin-1.

CONCLUSIONS
Increases in omentin-1 levels may play a role but are not sufficient to explain the decreased inflammatory and angiogenic effects of sera from metformin-treated PCOS women.
Identification of Autoantibody-Negative Autoimmune Type 2 Diabetic Patients
Authors: Brooks-Worrell Barbara M. , Reichow Jessica L. , Goel Amit , Ismail Heba , Palmer Jerry P. 
Published: September 2010

OBJECTIVEIslet autoimmunity has long been recognized in the pathogenesis of type 1 diabetes and is becoming increasingly acknowledged as a component in the pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes. Islet reactive T cells and autoantibodies have been demonstrated in type 1 diabetes, whereas islet autoimmunity in type 2 diabetes has been limited to islet autoantibodies. In this study, we investigated whether islet reactive T cells might also be present in type 2 diabetic patients and how islet reactive T cells correlate with β-cell function.RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODSAdult phenotypic type 2 diabetic patients (n = 36) were screened for islet reactive T-cell responses using cellular immunoblotting and five islet autoantibodies (islet cell antibody, GADA, insulin autoantibody, insulinoma-associated protein-2 autoantibody, and zinc transporter autoantibody).RESULTSWe identified four subgroups of adult phenotypic type 2 diabetic patients based on their immunological status (Ab−T−, Ab+T−, Ab−T+, and Ab+T+). The Ab−T+ type 2 diabetic patients demonstrated T-cell responses similar to those of the Ab+T+ type 2 diabetic patients. Data were adjusted for BMI, insulin resistance, and duration of diabetes. Significant differences (P &lt; 0.02) were observed among groups for fasting and glucagon-stimulated C-peptide responses. T-cell responses to islet proteins were also demonstrated to fluctuate less than autoantibody responses.CONCLUSIONSWe have identified a group of adult autoimmune phenotypic type 2 diabetic patients who are Ab−T+ and thus would not be detected using autoantibody testing alone. We conclude that islet autoimmunity may be more prevalent in adult phenotypic type 2 diabetic patients than previously estimated.
Metabolic Syndrome, Brain Magnetic Resonance Imaging, and Cognition
Authors: Cavalieri Margherita , Ropele Stefan , Petrovic Katja , Pluta-Fuerst Aga , Homayoon Nina , Enzinger Christian , Grazer Anja , Katschnig Petra , Schwingenschuh Petra , Berghold Andrea , Schmidt Reinhold 
Published: September 2010

OBJECTIVE
We explored cognitive impairment in metabolic syndrome in relation to brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings.

RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS
We studied 819 participants free of clinical stroke and dementia of the population-based Austrian Stroke Prevention Study who had undergone brain MRI, neuropsychological testing, and a risk factor assessment relevant to National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel III criteria–defined metabolic syndrome. High-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) was also determined.

RESULTS
Of 819 subjects, 232 (28.3%) had metabolic syndrome. They performed worse than those without metabolic syndrome on cognitive tests assessing memory and executive functioning after adjustment for possible confounders. Stratification by sex demonstrated that metabolic syndrome was related to cognitive dysfunction in men but not in women. Only in men was an increasing number of metabolic syndrome components associated with worse cognitive performance. MRI showed no significant differences in focal ischemic lesions and brain volume between subjects with and without metabolic syndrome, and MRI abnormalities failed to explain impaired cognition. Cognitive performance was most affected in male subjects with metabolic syndrome who also had high hs-CRP levels.

CONCLUSIONS
Metabolic syndrome exerts detrimental effects on memory and executive functioning in community-dwelling subjects who have not had a clinical stroke or do not have dementia. Men are more affected than women, particularly if they have high inflammatory markers. MRI-detected brain abnormalities do not play a crucial role in these relationships.
Impact of BMI and the Metabolic Syndrome on the Risk of Diabetes in Middle-Aged Men
Authors: Ärnlöv Johan , Sundström Johan , Ingelsson Erik , Lind Lars 
Published: September 2010

OBJECTIVE
The existence of an obese subgroup with a healthy metabolic profile and low diabetes risk has been proposed; yet long-term data are lacking. We aimed to investigate associations between combinations of BMI categories and metabolic syndrome and risk of type 2 diabetes in middle-aged men.

RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS
At age 50, cardiovascular risk factors were assessed in 1,675 participants without diabetes in the community-based Uppsala Longitudinal Study of Adult Men (ULSAM) study. According to BMI/metabolic syndrome status, they were categorized as normal weight (BMI &lt;25 kg/m2) without metabolic syndrome (National Cholesterol Education Program criteria, n = 853), normal weight with metabolic syndrome (n = 60), overweight (BMI 25–30 kg/m2) without metabolic syndrome (n = 557), overweight with metabolic syndrome (n = 117), obese (BMI &gt;30 kg/m2) without metabolic syndrome (n = 28), and obese with metabolic syndrome (n = 60). We investigated the associations between BMI/metabolic syndrome categories at baseline and diabetes incidence.

RESULTS
After 20 years, 160 participants had developed diabetes. In logistic regression models adjusting for age, smoking, and physical activity, increased risks for diabetes were observed in the normal weight with metabolic syndrome (odds ratio 3.28 [95% CI] 1.38–7.81; P = 0.007), overweight without metabolic syndrome (3.49 [2.26–5.42]; P &lt; 0.001), overweight with metabolic syndrome (7.77 [4.44–13.62]; P &lt; 0.001), obese without metabolic syndrome (11.72 [4.88–28.16]; P &lt; 0.001), and obese with metabolic syndrome (10.06 [5.19–19.51]; P &lt; 0.001) categories compared with the normal weight without metabolic syndrome category.

CONCLUSIONS
Overweight or obese men without metabolic syndrome were at increased risk for diabetes. Our data provide further evidence that overweight and obesity in the absence of the metabolic syndrome should not be considered a harmless condition.
La littératie : une pratique sociale
Authors: Barton David , Hamilton Mary 
Published: September 2010

Cet article présente une théorie de la littératie comme pratique sociale, avançant six propositions sur la nature de la littératie. Nous partons d’une conception de la littératie en termes de pratiques sociales, observables dans des événements relayés par des textes écrits. Cela offre un moyen puissant de conceptualiser le lien entre les activités de lecture et d’écriture et les structures sociales dans lesquelles elles s’insèrent. Dans une culture donnée, il y a différentes littératies associées à différents domaines de la vie. Les pratiques de littératies sont modelées par les institutions sociales et les relations de pouvoir, et certaines littératies sont plus dominantes que d’autres, plus vernaculaires. Ce cadre a été utilisé pour une étude ethnographique menée par les auteurs à Lancaster, en Angleterre (Barton, D. & M. Hamilton, 1998. Local literacies : reading and writing in one community, London : Routledge). Le concept de littératies vernaculaires résume bien ce qui a été révélé par cette étude. L’article souligne ensuite les changements radicaux dans l’organisation de la vie sociale et les technologies de la communication qui affectent les pratiques contemporaines.
L'appropriation de l'écriture dans deux villages nahua du centre du Mexique
Authors: Rockwell Elsie 
Published: September 2010

Cette étude met l’accent sur l’émergence d’écrits, profondément ancrés dans l’oralité, dans des villages mexicains qui cherchent dans les années 1950-1970 à accéder à un statut d’autonomie et aux équipements urbains. Les récits de deux hommes qui habitent à Cuauhtenco et Xaltipan laissent entrevoir leur participation à de multiples transactions écrites qui ont des répercussions sur l’espace public de chaque communauté. Ils confortent une conception particulière de la « littératie » comme pratique située, influencée par le contexte social et ancrée dans des interactions locales mais aussi marqués par l’histoire des relations de ces bourgs à l’État. Ces relations, telles que perçues par ces communautés rurales, aident à comprendre l’émergence de stratégies liées au dispositif écrit dans les projets d’urbanisation et dans leurs rapports avec les différents niveaux de pouvoir.