bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Adjuvant Approaches to Enhance Cryosurgery
Authors: Goel Raghav , Anderson Kyle , Slaton Joel , Schmidlin Franz , Vercellotti Greg , Belcher John , Bischof John C. 
Published: July 2009

AbstractMolecular adjuvants can be used to enhance the natural destructive mechanisms of freezing within tissue. This review discusses their use in the growing field of combinatorial or adjuvant enhanced cryosurgery for a variety of disease conditions. Two important motivations for adjuvant use are: (1) increased control of the local disease in the area of freezing (i.e., reduced local recurrence of disease) and (2) reduced complications due to over-freezing into adjacent tissues (i.e., reduced normal functional tissue destruction near the treatment site). This review starts with a brief overview of cryosurgical technology including probes and cryogens and major mechanisms of cellular, vascular injury and possible immunological effects due to freeze-thaw treatment in vivo. The review then focuses on adjuvants to each of these mechanisms that make the tissue more sensitive to freeze-thaw injury. Four broad classes of adjuvants are discussed including: thermophysical agents (eutectic forming salts and amino acids), chemotherapuetics, vascular agents and immunomodulators. The key issues of selection, timing, dose and delivery of these adjuvants are then elaborated. Finally, work with a particularly promising vascular adjuvant, TNF-alpha, that shows the ability to destroy all cancer within a cryosurgical iceball is highlighted.
Efficacy of High Doses of Daptomycin versus Alternative Therapies against Experimental Foreign-Body Infection by Methicillin-Resistant
Staphylococcus aureus
Authors: Murillo O. , Garrigós C. , Pachón M. E. , Euba G. , Verdaguer R. , Cabellos C. , Cabo J. , Gudiol F. , Ariza J. 
Published: July 2009

ABSTRACT

Since the currently approved dose of daptomycin (6 mg/kg of body weight/day) has been associated with clinical failures and resistance development, higher doses for some difficult-to-treat infections are being proposed. We studied the efficacy of daptomycin at high doses (equivalent to 10 mg/kg/day in humans) and compared it to that of reference and alternative treatments in a model of foreign-body infection with methicillin (meticillin)-resistant
Staphylococcus aureus.
In vitro studies were conducted with bacteria in the log and stationary phases. For the in vivo model, therapy with daptomycin at 100 mg/kg/day, vancomycin at 50 mg/kg/12 h, rifampin (rifampicin) at 25 mg/kg/12 h, or linezolid at 35 mg/kg/12 h was administered for 7 days. Antibiotic efficacy was evaluated using either bacteria from tissue cage fluids or those attached to coverslips. We screened for the emergence of linezolid- and rifampin-resistant strains and analyzed the surviving population from the daptomycin-treated group. Only daptomycin was bactericidal in both the log- and stationary-phase studies. Daptomycin (decrease in the log number of CFU per milliliter of tissue cage fluid, 2.57) and rifampin (decrease, 2.6 log CFU/ml) were better (
P
< 0.05) than vancomycin (decrease, 1.1 log CFU/ml) and linezolid (decrease, 0.9 log CFU/ml) in the animal model. Rifampin-resistant strains appeared in 60% of cases, whereas no linezolid resistance emerged. No daptomycin-resistant subpopulations were detected at frequencies of 10
−7
or higher. In conclusion, daptomycin at high doses proved to be as effective as rifampin, and the two were the most active therapies for this experimental foreign-body infection. These high doses ensured a profile of safety from the development of resistance.
Artemisone and Artemiside Control Acute and Reactivated Toxoplasmosis in a Murine Model
Authors: Dunay Ildiko R. , Chan Wing Chi , Haynes Richard K. , Sibley L. David 
Published: July 2009

ABSTRACTImmunocompromised patients are at risk of developing toxoplasmosis, and although chemotherapy is available, standard treatments are often complicated by severe side effects. Artemisinin is a new highly potent antimalarial drug that has activity againstToxoplasma gondiiin vitro. However, artemisinin derivatives have previously been ineffective in vivo using a rat model of toxoplasmosis. In the present study, the efficacy of several new artemisinin derivates was investigated for treatment of mice infected with the parasiteToxoplasma gondii. Artemiside and artemisone displayed better inhibition than either artemisinin or artesunate against the parasite in vitro. Artemiside and artemisone treatment controlled parasite replication in vivo, and mice survived the acute infection. In a murine model of reactivated toxoplasmosis, both drugs increased survival, although artemiside was more effective. These results indicate that these newer derivatives of artemisinin may have potential for treatment of toxoplasmosis.
Efficacy of Albaconazole against
Candida albicans
in a Vaginitis Model
Authors: González Gloria M. , Robledo Efrén , Garza-González Elvira , Elizondo Mariana , González J. Gerardo 
Published: July 2009

ABSTRACT

The efficacy of albaconazole (ABC) was evaluated using a murine model of vaginal
Candida albicans
infection. Both ABC and fluconazole (FLC) were effective in reducing the fungal load from vaginas of infected mice; however, ABC demonstrated encouraging activities against an FLC-resistant strain, with trends toward superiority over FLC in some treatment groups.
Involvement of
pmrAB
and
phoPQ
in Polymyxin B Adaptation and Inducible Resistance in Non-Cystic Fibrosis Clinical Isolates of
Pseudomonas aeruginosa
Authors: Schurek Kristen N. , Sampaio Jorge L. M. , Kiffer Carlos R. V. , Sinto Sumiko , Mendes Caio M. F. , Hancock Robert E. W. 
Published: July 2009

ABSTRACT

During investigation of susceptibility testing methods for polymyxins, 24 multidrug-resistant clinical isolates of
Pseudomonas aeruginosa
were observed to have a distinct, reproducible phenotype in which skipped wells were observed during broth microdilution testing for polymyxin B. Possible mechanisms underlying this phenotype were investigated. The effects of various concentrations of polymyxin B on growth, the expression of resistance genes, and outer-membrane permeability were observed. Real-time PCR was performed to compare the expression, in response to selected concentrations of polymyxin B, of genes related to the PhoP-PhoQ and PmrA-PmrB two-component regulatory systems in polymyxin B-susceptible isolate PAO1, polymyxin B-resistant isolate 9BR, and two isolates (19BR and 213BR) exhibiting the skipped-well phenotype. 19BR and 213BR appeared to have similar basal levels of expression compared to that of PAO1 for
phoQ
,
arnB
, and PA4773 (from the
pmrAB
operon), and in contrast, 9BR had 52- and 280-fold higher expression of
arnB
and PA4773, respectively. The expression of
arnB
and PA4773 increased in response to polymyxin B in a concentration-dependent manner for 9BR but not for 19BR and 213BR. For these isolates, expression was significantly increased for
arnB
and PA4773, as well as
phoQ
, only upon exposure to 2 μg/ml polymyxin B but not at a lower concentration of 0.125 μg/ml. The sequencing of the
pmrAB
and
phoPQ
operons for all three isolates revealed a number of unique mutations compared to that for PAO1. 1-
N
-phenylnaphthylamine (NPN) was used to study the effect of preincubation with polymyxin B on the self-promoted uptake of polymyxin B across the outer membrane. The preincubation of cells with 2 μg/ml polymyxin B affected baseline membrane permeability in 19BR and 213BR and also resulted in a reduced rate of NPN uptake in these isolates and in PAO1 but not in 9BR. The results presented here suggest that the skipped-well isolates have the ability to adapt to specific concentrations of polymyxin B, inducing known polymyxin B resistance genes involved in generating alterations in the outer membrane.
Interactions of Enteropathogenic
Escherichia coli
with Pediatric and Adult Intestinal Biopsy Specimens during Early Adherence
Authors: Humphries Romney M. , Waterhouse Christopher C. M. , Mulvey George , Beck Paul , Armstrong Glen D. 
Published: July 2009

ABSTRACT

Enteropathogenic
Escherichia coli
(EPEC) strains cause watery diarrhea almost exclusively in young children. The basis for this age discrimination has never been determined, but it may be related to host cell receptors. During infection, EPEC strains express type IV bundle-forming pili composed of repeating subunits of the protein called bundlin. The very first interaction between EPEC and in vitro-cultured epithelial cells is mediated by the binding of α-bundlin to a carbohydrate receptor that contains, at a minimum, the
N
-acetyllactosamine (LacNAc) glycan sequence. However, bundlins expressed from the β-bundlin allele do not bind LacNAc glycan sequences. Herein, we investigated whether EPEC strains use α-bundlin to mediate early adherence to human intestinal biopsy specimens cultured in vitro by assessing the ability of isogenic EPEC mutants expressing either the α
1
- or β
1
-bundlin allele or a bundlin-deficient EPEC strain to bind to these specimens. Furthermore, we directly compared the abilities of a wild-type EPEC strain to bind to the epithelial surfaces of both human adult and pediatric biopsy specimens. Our results demonstrate that β-bundlin does not act as an adhesin during early EPEC adherence to adult duodenal biopsy specimens. The results also indicate that EPEC binds equally well to adult and pediatric biopsy specimens in an early adherence assay. This result is supported by the finding that the early adherence of EPEC to both adult and pediatric biopsy specimens was inhibited by LacNAc neoglycoconjugates, suggesting that organisms expressing α-bundlin-type bundle-forming pili initially bind to related glycan receptors in both age groups.
CA-074Me Protection against Anthrax Lethal Toxin
Authors: Newman Zachary L. , Leppla Stephen H. , Moayeri Mahtab 
Published: July 2009

ABSTRACT

Anthrax lethal toxin (LT) activates the NLRP1b (NALP1b) inflammasome and caspase-1 in macrophages from certain inbred mouse strains, but the mechanism by which this occurs is poorly understood. We report here that similar to several NLRP3 (NALP3, cryopyrin)-activating stimuli, LT activation of the NLRP1b inflammasome involves lysosomal membrane permeabilization (LMP) and subsequent cytoplasmic cathepsin B activity. CA-074Me, a potent cathepsin B inhibitor, protects LT-sensitive macrophages from cell death and prevents the activation of caspase-1. RNA interference knockdown of cathepsin B expression, however, cannot prevent LT-mediated cell death, suggesting that CA-074Me may also act on other cellular proteases released during LMP. CA-074Me appears to function downstream of LT translocation to the cytosol (as assessed by mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase cleavage), K
+
effluxes, and proteasome activity. The initial increase in cytoplasmic activity of cathepsin B occurs at the same time or shortly before caspase-1 activation but precedes a larger-scale lysosomal destabilization correlated closely with cytolysis. We present results suggesting that LMP may be involved in the activation of the NLRP1b inflammasome.
Quality of reporting in sports injury prevention abstracts according to the CONSORT and STROBE criteria: an analysis of the World Congress of Sports Injury Prevention in 2005 and 2008
Authors: Yoon Uzung , Knobloch Karsten 
Published: July 2009

ObjectiveThe quality of reporting in congress abstracts is likely to influence clinical decision-making.HypothesisThe quality of reporting in sports injury prevention abstracts has increased over the last 3 years, as did the number of randomised controlled trials (RCT).Methods154 abstracts from the 2005 and 186 abstracts from 2008 World Conferences on Sports Injury Prevention in Norway were analysed.Main outcome measuresScores of 17 Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials (CONSORT) criteria for RCT, or 22 Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology (STROBE) criteria for observational studies were determined.ResultsImprovement in reporting was evident in RCT (CONSORT score 5.8±0.9 vs 8.6±2.9, p=0.001, CI −4.29 to −1.43) as well as for observational studies (STROBE score 7.9±1.6 vs 9.9±1.7, p<0.001, CI −2.34 to −1.53) between 2005 and 2008. RCTs were published in 9.1% in 2005 versus 10.2% in 2008 (p=0.727). RCT demonstrated a significant improvement in main outcome (0% vs 57.9%, p<0.001). For observational studies, a significant improvement was reported in rationale (53.5% vs 98.2%, p<0.001), objectives (82.2% vs 95.1%, p=0.012), study design (25.2% vs 65%, p<0.001), setting (43.7% vs 65.6%, p=0.002), variables (20.7% vs 74.2%, p<0.001), participants (0.7% vs 10.4%, p=0.001) and funding (0% vs 5.5%, p=0.006).ConclusionWhile the percentage of published RCTs in abstracts at the World Congress of Sports Injury Prevention remained unchanged, an improvement in reporting of abstracts was evident from 2005 to 2008, as determined by CONSORT/STROBE criteria. However, substantial and comprehensive use of the CONSORT and STROBE criteria might further increase the quality of reporting of sports injury conference abstracts in the future.
Rapid blood separation is superior to fluoride for preventing in vitro reductions in measured blood glucose concentration: Figure 1
Authors: Shi R Z , Seeley E S , Bowen R , Faix J D 
Published: July 2009

Aims:To determine whether tubes containing sodium fluoride negatively bias blood glucose concentration by directly comparing glucose concentrations in paired blood samples collected in tubes containing lithium heparin (Li-Heparin) and tubes containing sodium fluoride/potassium oxalate (NaF-KOx).Methods:Paired blood samples from a group of patients (n = 1040) were collected in tubes containing Li-Heparin and tubes containing NaF-KOx at the same time. All Li-Heparin samples were centrifuged soon after collection and were kept cool in transport along with NaF-KOx samples, which were centrifuged at the receiving location after an average transport time of 4 h, but immediately before analysis. Glucose concentrations in the paired samples were determined simultaneously by an automated oxidase method.Results:The mean glucose concentrations for NaF-KOx samples and Li-Heparin samples were 5.7 mmol/l and 6.1 mmol/l, respectively, with a mean difference of 0.39 mmol/l.Conclusion:Rapid separation of heparinised blood is superior to fluoride alone for abrogating glycolytic effects on blood glucose measurements in the clinical laboratory.
The expression of adiponectin receptors Adipo-R1 and Adipo-R2 is associated with an intestinal histotype and longer survival in gastric carcinoma
Authors: Barresi V , Grosso M , Giuffrè G , Tuccari G , Barresi G 
Published: July 2009

Background:Adiponectin (ApN) is a 30 kDa adipocytokine which mediates an antineoplastic effect after binding to its receptors, Adipo-R1 and Adipo-R2. The expression of these receptors has been documented in gastric cancer (GC) cell lines, but only a few data exist on their expression in GC neoplastic tissue.Aim:To investigate the expression of Adipo-R1 and Adipo-R2 in a series of surgically resected GCs and to assess its association with various tumour clinicopathological characteristics as well as with patient survival.Methods:Forty-nine surgically resected GCs were submitted to immunohistochemical assays for Adipo-R1, Adipo-R2 and ApN.Results:Adipo-R1 and Adipo-R2 immunoexpression was found in 22/49 GCs and in intestinal metaplasia areas near the tumours, whereas only slight immunoreactivity for these proteins was found in adjacent normal gastric epithelium. No ApN expression was encountered in any of the cases analysed. Adipo-R1/Adipo-R2 expression was significantly associated with an intestinal histotype of the tumours and with longer overall survival of the patients.Conclusions:Intestinal-type GCs often express Adipo-R1/R2 in association with a better prognosis. The presence of these receptors could be exploited for novel anticancer therapies based on ApN addition in GC.
Lupus anticoagulant: case-based external quality assessment
Authors: van den Besselaar A M H P , Devreese K M J , de Groot P G , Castel A 
Published: July 2009

Aims:A model for presenting case histories with quality assessment material is to be developed for the Dutch external quality assessment (EQA) scheme for blood coagulation testing. The purpose of the present study was to assess the performance of clinical laboratories in case-based EQA using the case history of a patient suffering from lupus erythematosus of the skin.Methods:Along with the case history, a freeze-dried plasma sample from the patient was distributed to the participants of the Dutch EQA scheme for blood coagulation testing. The participants were requested to report their coagulation test results, interpretation of the test results, and suggestions for further testing.Results:The response rate was 65%. Tests for lupus anticoagulant were performed by 27% of the respondents and mixing experiments by 32%. The interpretation of the test results was heterogeneous but the presence of lupus anticoagulant was suggested by 54% of the respondents. A substantial number of respondents (23%) did not provide any interpretation. Only few participants followed the sequential steps for lupus anticoagulant identification recommended by the Scientific and Standardization Committee of the International Society on Thrombosis and Haemostasis.Conclusions:Case-based EQA is useful as an educational postanalytical tool. Several limitations were noted, and these included the limited volume of the sample, the different matrix of the freeze-dried sample compared with a fresh sample, and the time lag between the case history and the preparation of the freeze-dried sample.
TESTING AND FORMAL VERIFICATION OF SERVICE ORIENTED ARCHITECTURES
Authors: SLOAN JOHN C. , KHOSHGOFTAAR TAGHI M. 
Published: July 2009

We examine two open engineering problems in the area of testing and formal verification of internet-enabled service oriented architectures (SOA). The first involves deciding when to formally and exhaustively verify versus when to informally and non-exhaustively test. The second concerns scalability limitations associated with formal verification, to which we propose a semi-formal technique that uses software agents. Finally, we assess how these findings can improve current software quality assurance practices. Addressing the first problem, we present and explain two classes of tradeoffs. External tradeoffs between assurance, performance, and flexibility are determined by the business needs of each application, whether it be in engineering, commerce, or entertainment. Internal tradeoffs between assurance, scale, and level of detail involve the technical challenges of feasibly verifying or testing an SOA. To help decide whether to exhaustively verify or non-exhaustively test, we present and explain these two classes of tradeoffs. Identifying a middle ground between testing and verification, we propose using software agents to simulate services in a composition. Technologically, this approach has the advantage of assuring the quality of compositions that are too large to exhaustively verify. Operationally, it supports testing these compositions in the laboratory without access to source code or use of network resources of third-party services. We identify and exploit the structural similarities between agents and services, examining how doing so can assure the quality of service compositions.
Light warping for enhanced surface depiction
Authors: Vergne Romain , Pacanowski Romain , Barla Pascal , Granier Xavier , Schlick Christophe 
Published: July 2009

Recent research on the human visual system shows that our perception of object shape relies in part on compression and stretching of the reflected lighting environment onto its surface. We use this property to enhance the shape depiction of 3D objects by locally warping the environment lighting around main surface features. Contrary to previous work, which require specific illumination, material characteristics and/or stylization choices, our approach enhances surface shape without impairing the desired appearance.
Thanks to our novel local shape descriptor, salient surface features are explicitly extracted in a view-dependent fashion at various scales without the need of any pre-process. We demonstrate our system on a variety of rendering settings, using object materials ranging from diffuse to glossy, to mirror or refractive, with direct or global illumination, and providing styles that range from photorealistic to non-photorealistic. The warping itself is very fast to compute on modern graphics hardware, enabling real-time performance in direct illumination scenarios.

Note: Third-Party Material Attribution
Third-party material used in ACM Transactions on Graphics 28(3), Article 25 - "Light Warping for Enhanced Surface Depiction," by Vergne, Pacanowski, Barla, Granier, and Schlick - was used without proper attribution.

The 3D model used in Figures 1, 3, and 5, as well as in the cover image of this volume of the journal, was downloaded from the Shape Repository of AIM@SHAPE Project (http://shapes.aimatshape.net) and is the property of CNR-IMATI.
We regret this oversight.
Toward evaluating lighting design interface paradigms for novice users
Authors: Kerr William B. , Pellacini Fabio 
Published: July 2009

Lighting design is a complex but fundamental task in computer cinematography, involving the adjustment of light parameters to define final scene appearance. Many user interfaces have been proposed to simplify lighting design. They can be generally categorized in three paradigms: direct light parameter manipulation, indirect light feature manipulation (e.g., shadow dragging), and goal-based optimization of lighting through painting. To this date, no formal evaluation of the relative effectiveness of these paradigms has been performed.
In this paper, we present a first step toward evaluating the benefits of these three paradigms in the form of a user study with a focus on novice users. 20 subjects participated in the experiment by performing various trials on simple scenes with up to 8 point lights, designed to test two lighting tasks: precise adjustment of lighting and the artistic exploration of lighting configurations. We collected objective and subjective data and found that subjects can light well with direct and indirect interfaces, preferring the latter. Paint-based goal specification was found to be significantly worse than the other paradigms, especially since users tend to sketch rather than accurately paint goal images, an input that painting algorithms were not designed for. We also found that given enough time, novices can perform relatively complex lighting tasks, unhindered by geometry or lighting complexity. Finally, we believe that our study will impact the design of future lighting interfaces and it will serve as the basis for designing additional experiments to reach a comprehensive evaluation of lighting interfaces.