bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Altered oxidative state in schoolchildren with asthma and allergic rhinitis
Authors: Bakkeheim Egil , Mowinckel Petter , Carlsen Kai Håkon , Burney Peter , Lødrup Carlsen Karin C. 
Published: July 2010

To cite this article: Bakkeheim E, Mowinckel P, Carlsen KH, Burney P, Lødrup Carlsen KC. Altered oxidative state in schoolchildren with asthma and allergic rhinitis. Pediatr Allergy Immunol 2011; 22: 178–185.AbstractOxidative stress may be defined as a disruption of the balance between the level of oxidants and reductants (antioxidants), and oxidative state in children may influence the risk of asthma and allergic disease. We investigated serum antioxidant levels: selenium, vitamin E, bilirubin, albumin, uric acid and transferrin as well as the oxidant ferritin and their association with asthma and allergic rhinitis. Children of 7–12 yr with asthma (n = 50) and no asthma (controls) (n = 52) underwent skin prick test, lung function, fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO) measurements and blood sampling. Allergic rhinitis was found in 23 children, 19 with asthma and four controls. Healthy children were controls without rhinitis. Asthma was associated with reduced albumin (g/l), adjusted odds ratio (aOR) (95% CI) 0.81 (0.66, 0.99) (p = 0.048) compared with healthy children in a regression analysis adjusted for age and gender. Asthma with high FeNO ≥20 ppb was associated with reduced albumin, aOR 0.60 (0.40, 0.89) (p = 0.012) compared to controls with FeNO <20. Asthma with allergic rhinitis had reduced albumin, aOR = 0.70 (0.50, 0.99) (p = 0.04), and higher ferritin levels (mg/l) [aOR = 1.04 (1.00, 1.09) p = 0.03] compared to healthy children. Poorly controlled asthma was associated with lower vitamin E levels, aOR 0.79 (0.65, 0.95) (p = 0.02), lower transferrin levels, aOR 0.72 (0.57, 0.92) (p < 0.01), and higher albumin levels, aOR 1.53 (1.03, 2.28) (p = 0.04), compared to well controlled asthma. In conclusion, schoolchildren with asthma and rhinitis had reduced levels of the major serum antioxidant albumin, and poorly controlled asthma was associated with decreased vitamin E and transferrin levels. Reduced albumin was associated with increased FeNO, a marker of allergic inflammation in asthma, although the discriminatory value of this finding should be further assessed in population studies.
Decreased levels of serum brain‐derived neurotrophic factor in both depressed and euthymic patients with unipolar depression and in euthymic patients with bipolar I and II disorders
Authors: Monteleone P , Serritella C , Martiadis V , Maj M 
Published: July 2010

Objectives: Brain‐derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) has been proposed as a candidate molecule in the pathophysiology of major depressive disorder (MDD) and bipolar disorders (BD). Reduced levels of peripheral BDNF have been found in drug‐free MDD patients, in drug‐treated depressed or manic patients with BD type I (BD‐I), but not in drug‐treated euthymic BD‐I individuals. No study has been done in patients with BD type II (BD‐II). Moreover, the influence of Axis I psychiatric comorbidity on circulating BDNF in affective patients has never been evaluated. Therefore, in the present study, we aimed: (i) to confirm previous findings on peripheral BDNF in MDD and BD‐I patients; (ii) to assess whether changes in circulating BDNF occur also in patients with BD‐II; and (iii) to exclude the possibility that comorbid psychiatric disorders exerted an effect on BDNF levels in affective patients.Methods: We measured serum BDNF concentrations by an enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay method in 85 subjects, including 24 euthymic patients with unipolar depression (UD), 17 euthymic patients with BD‐I, 11 euthymic patients with BD‐II, 11 UD patients with a current major depressive episode and 22 drug‐free healthy controls. At the time of the study, 15 patients were drug‐treated; the remaining ones were drug‐free for at least four weeks.Results: Compared to healthy controls, serum BDNF concentrations were significantly reduced in all the patient groups (F4,80 = 3.840, p = 0.006) with no significant difference among them. Drug treatments and comorbid psychiatric disorders had no effect on lowered circulating BDNF levels in affective patients.Conclusions: Present results confirm previous independent findings of reduced circulating BDNF in patients with MDD and report, for the first time, decreased serum BDNF levels in euthymic patients with UD, BD‐I and BD‐II, independently from drug treatment status and concomitant Axis I psychiatric disorders.
A comparison of two double‐injection techniques for peribulbar block analgesia: infero‐temporal plus supero‐medial vs. infero‐temporal plus medial‐percaruncular*
Authors: Van Den Berg A. A. 
Published: July 2010

Background:  Combinations of infero‐temporal and either supero‐nasal (‘inferior–superior’) or medial percaruncular (‘inferior–medial’) injections are popular double‐injection techniques for establishing peribulbar block analgesia. This study compared the efficacy of these two techniques in achieving ocular and lid akinesia.Methods:  One hundred patients were randomized to receive inferior–superior or inferior–medial injections in a study in which injectate, injectate volumes, 5‐min ocular akinesia scoring (0–8), lid scoring (0–2) and supplemental injection protocols were standardized. The numbers of supplemental injections required at each observation period and the total volume of injectate required to produce ocular and lid akinesia were compared.Results:  The two test groups were demographically similar. The inferior–medial combination achieved greater ocular akinesia than the inferior–superior combination 5 min after the initial injections (mean score ± standard deviation of 1.74 ± 1.86 vs. 2.66 ± 2.39; P < 0.05), with a reduced requirement for supplementary injections (3 vs. 23 supplementary injections; P < 0.025). The inferior–superior technique achieved greater lid akinesia at 5 min than the inferior–medial technique (mean score ± standard deviation of 0.7 ± 0.9 vs. 0.3 ± 0.58; P < 0.005). A medial subconjunctival hemorrhage occurred in one patient in the inferior–medial group.Conclusion:  Compared with the inferior–superior technique, the inferior–medial combination achieved more rapid ocular akinesia with less need for supplementation, but induced less efficient lid akinesia and had a propensity to cause iatrogenic subconjunctival hemorrhage. The latter complication is considered by our surgeons to be a contraindication to the inferior–medial technique in patients undergoing trabeculectomy.
Natural selection hampers divergence of reproductive traits in a seed beetle
Authors: FRICKE C. , ANDERSSON C. , ARNQVIST G. 
Published: July 2010

AbstractSpeciation is thought to often result from indirect selection for reproductive isolation. This will occur when reproductive traits that cause reproductive isolation evolve (i) as a by‐product of natural selection on traits with which they are genetically correlated or (ii) as an indirect result of diversifying sexual selection. Here, we use experimental evolution to study the degree of divergent evolution of reproductive traits by manipulating the intensity of natural and sexual selection in replicated selection lines of seed beetles. Following 40 generations of selection, we assayed the degree of divergent evolution of reproductive traits between replicate selection lines experiencing the same selection regime. The evolution of reproductive traits was significantly divergent across selection lines within treatments. The evolution of reproductive traits was both slower and, more importantly, significantly less divergent among lines experiencing stronger directional natural selection. This suggests that reproductive traits did not evolve as an indirect by‐product of adaptation. We discuss several ways in which natural selection may hamper divergent evolution among allopatric populations.
REVIEW: Optimality models in the age of experimental evolution and genomics
Authors: BULL J. J. , WANG I.‐N. 
Published: July 2010

AbstractOptimality models have been used to predict evolution of many properties of organisms. They typically neglect genetic details, whether by necessity or design. This omission is a common source of criticism, and although this limitation of optimality is widely acknowledged, it has mostly been defended rather than evaluated for its impact. Experimental adaptation of model organisms provides a new arena for testing optimality models and for simultaneously integrating genetics. First, an experimental context with a well‐researched organism allows dissection of the evolutionary process to identify causes of model failure – whether the model is wrong about genetics or selection. Second, optimality models provide a meaningful context for the process and mechanics of evolution, and thus may be used to elicit realistic genetic bases of adaptation – an especially useful augmentation to well‐researched genetic systems. A few studies of microbes have begun to pioneer this new direction. Incompatibility between the assumed and actual genetics has been demonstrated to be the cause of model failure in some cases. More interestingly, evolution at the phenotypic level has sometimes matched prediction even though the adaptive mutations defy mechanisms established by decades of classic genetic studies. Integration of experimental evolutionary tests with genetics heralds a new wave for optimality models and their extensions that does not merely emphasize the forces driving evolution.
Host control over infection and proliferation of a cheater symbiont
Authors: SACHS J. L. , RUSSELL J. E. , LII Y. E. , BLACK K. C. , LOPEZ G. , PATIL A. S. 
Published: July 2010

AbstractHost control mechanisms are thought to be critical for selecting against cheater mutants in symbiont populations. Here, we provide the first experimental test of a legume host’s ability to constrain the infection and proliferation of a native‐occurring rhizobial cheater. Lotus strigosus hosts were experimentally inoculated with pairs of Bradyrhizobium strains that naturally vary in symbiotic benefit, including a cheater strain that proliferates in the roots of singly infected hosts, yet provides zero growth benefits. Within co‐infected hosts, the cheater exhibited lower infection rates than competing beneficial strains and grew to smaller population sizes within those nodules. In vitro assays revealed that infection‐rate differences among competing strains were not caused by variation in rhizobial growth rate or interstrain toxicity. These results can explain how a rapidly growing cheater symbiont – that exhibits a massive fitness advantage in single infections – can be prevented from sweeping through a beneficial population of symbionts.
Chloroplast DNA phylogeography of the shrub Cistus ladanifer L. (Cistaceae) in the highly diverse Western Mediterranean region
Authors: Quintela‐Sabarís C. , Vendramin G. G. , Castro‐Fernández D. , Isabel Fraga M. 
Published: July 2010

AbstractThis study investigated the phylogeographic structure of Cistus ladanifer, in order to locate its Quaternary refugia, reconstruct its recolonisation patterns and assess the role of geographical features (mountain ranges, rivers and the Strait of Gibraltar) as barriers to its seed flow and expansion through the Western Mediterranean. Thirty‐eight populations were screened for length variation of polymorphic chloroplast simple sequence repeats (cpSSRs). Statistical analyses included estimation of haplotypic diversity, hierarchical analysis of molecular variation (amova) and fixation indices. Mantel tests, SAMOVA and BARRIER analyses were applied to evaluate the geographical partitioning of genetic diversity across the entire species range. Pollen data from bibliography were used to complement molecular inferences. Chlorotype diversity within populations was similar throughout the natural range of C. ladanifer (mean haplotypic diversity = 0.32). High differentiation among populations was estimated (GST = 0.60). Our data suggest that the barriers of the Strait of Gibraltar and the Betic ranges may have favoured the divergence during glacial periods of four different lineages of populations inferred with SAMOVA. The main northward colonisation of in the Iberian Peninsula occurred from refugia in southwest Iberia. This process may have been influenced by human activities (forest clearance, livestock grazing and even commerce) in the Iberian Peninsula. In contrast, populations in the Betic area have conserved a specific haplotype.
Morphological Features of the Stomach of Malayan Pangolin, Manis javanica
Authors: Nisa’ C. , Agungpriyono S. , Kitamura N. , Sasaki M. , Yamada J. , Sigit K. 
Published: July 2010

With 6 figuresSummaryThe morphology of the stomach of Malayan pangolin, Manis javanica was studied at macroscopic, light microscopic, and scanning electron microscopic levels. The stomach of M. javanica was C‐shaped with short lesser curvature. At the oesophageal junction, the inner smooth muscle was thickened in the greater curvature side. The entire stomach was lined by a thick cornified stratified squamous epithelium, except at the duct orifices of glands and in the pyloric gland region. The wall of the fundus was thin and devoid of glands. The gastric glands consisted of mucous, oxyntic, and pyloric glands. The mucous glands were observed in the lesser curvature (Mg‐L), in the greater curvature (Mg‐G), and in the pyloric canal (Mg‐C) respectively. The oxyntic glands were organized into gland mass, making an oval mound elevated to the gastric lumen, in the middle of the greater curvature. The oxyntic gland mass has a single common duct with opening directed to the pyloric side. This duct was surrounded by mucus gland (Mg‐G). The pyloric glands were located caudal to the pylorus. There was no sphincter at the pyloric‐duodenal junction. Large mucosal protuberance, the torus pyloricus was observed in the side of the lesser curvature of the pyloric canal. In the lumen of pyloric canal region, numerous spines and small pebbles were observed. The muscle layers in the wall of this region were considerably thickened. The present results on the stomach of M. javanica are thought to be closely related to the toothless and eating habits of this animal species.
Developmental patterning deciphered in avian chimeras
Authors: Le Douarin Nicole M. 
Published: July 2010

I started my scientific carer by investigating the development of the digestive tract in the laboratory of a well‐known embryologist, Etienne Wolff, then professor at the Collège de France. My animal model was the chick embryo. The investigations that I pursued on liver development together with serendipity, led me to devise a cell‐marking technique based on the construction of chimeric embryos between two closely related species of birds, the Japanese quail (Coturnix coturnix japonica) and the chick (Gallus gallus).The possibility to follow the migration and fate of the cells throughout development from early embryonic stages up to hatching and even after birth, was a breakthrough in developmental biology of higher vertebrates.This article describes some of scientific achievements based on the use of this technique in my laboratory during the last 38 years.
Low‐dose valaciclovir and cytomegalovirus immunoglobulin to prevent cytomegalovirus disease in high‐risk renal transplant recipients
Authors: TOUSSAINT NIGEL D , TAN MARCUS BP , NICHOLLS KATHY , WALKER ROWAN G , COHNEY SOLOMON J 
Published: July 2010

ABSTRACTBackground:  Cytomegalovirus (CMV) remains an important cause of disease in renal transplant recipients. Prophylaxis is effective in reducing disease; however, the optimal regimen remains uncertain. We assessed the efficacy of low‐dose valaciclovir (3 months) and intravenous CMV immunoglobulin in the prevention of CMV disease in CMV‐negative recipients of kidneys from CMV‐positive donors (D+/R−).Methods:  A single‐centre, retrospective study examining the incidence of CMV disease and patient and graft survival in all patients transplanted between October 2000 and November 2004.Results:  Among 203 renal transplant recipients, 46 were D+/R− (22.7%) and received prophylaxis. Of the 203 recipients, 21 (10.3%) developed CMV disease over a four‐year follow‐up period. Within the D+/R− group, CMV disease occurred in 15.2% of patients at 6 months (7/46), and 21.7% at 4 years (10/46). Of the 10 D+/R− patients who developed CMV disease, six were inadvertently on a dose of valaciclovir below that dictated by protocol arising from a failure to increase dosage in parallel with improving recipient renal function. In the D+/R− recipients where the protocol was adhered to, the incidence of CMV disease was 5% (2/40) at 6 months, and 10% (4/40) at 4 years.Conclusion:  Low‐dose valaciclovir with CMV immunoglobulin was as efficacious in preventing CMV disease as other published regimens, including those with full‐dose valaciclovir and valganciclovir. There was a low incidence of CMV disease beyond 6 months. Outcomes could be improved by ensuring appropriate dose adjustment following changes in renal function.
Hyponatraemia in older people as a sign of adrenal insufficiency: a case–control study
Authors: Winchester Behr T. , Sonnenblick M. , Nesher G. , Munter G. 
Published: July 2010

AbstractBackground: Hyponatraemia is a common cause of hospitalisation in older adults. Adrenal insufficiency (AI) can result in hyponatraemia.Aim: The aim of our study was to determine the frequency and characteristics of AI in elderly patients with hyponatraemia.Methods: Thirty patients ≥65 years with Na+≤130 mmol/L and 30 age‐matched control subjects, all hospitalised, were included in the study. Plasma cortisol levels were determined before and after intravenous administration of 1 µg synthetic adrenocorticotropin hormone. A peak cortisol >550 nmol/L was considered to exclude AI.Results: Sodium levels were 125 ± 5 and 139.8 ± 2 mmol/L in the hyponatremic and control groups respectively. Baseline cortisol <550 nmol/L was found in a half of hyponatremic patients. However, stimulated cortisol levels were compatible with AI in only one case (3%) and none of the controls. The mean cortisol levels were significantly higher in hyponatremic compared with control subjects, both in the basal state (585 ± 215 and 381 ± 135 nmol/L, respectively, P < 0.001) and after stimulation (933 ± 254 and 781 ± 160 nmol/L, P < 0.05). However, the incremental increase in cortisol levels after stimulation was similar in the two groups (361 ± 196 and 403 ± 155 nmol/L)Conclusions: AI is an uncommon cause of hyponatraemia in older age. Based on this small cohort, AI may be present in 3% of elderly patients with hyponatraemia. AI cannot be excluded by baseline cortisol in a significant minority of hyponatremic patients and further testing with adrenocorticotropin hormone stimulation is needed.
Specific inhibitory synapses shift the balance from feedforward to feedback inhibition of hippocampal CA1 pyramidal cells
Authors: Elfant David , Pál Balázs Zoltán , Emptage Nigel , Capogna Marco 
Published: July 2010

AbstractFeedforward and feedback inhibition are two fundamental modes of operation widespread in the nervous system. We have functionally identified synaptic connections between rat CA1 hippocampal interneurons of the stratum oriens (SO) and interneurons of the stratum lacunosum moleculare (SLM), which can act as feedback and feedforward interneurons, respectively. The unitary inhibitory postsynaptic currents (uIPSCs) detected with K‐gluconate‐based patch solution at −50 mV had an amplitude of 20.0 ± 2.0 pA, rise time 2.2 ± 0.2 ms, decay time 25 ± 2.2 ms, jitter 1.4 ± 0.2 ms (average ± SEM, n = 39), and were abolished by the γ‐aminobutyric acid (GABA)A receptor antagonist 2‐(3‐carboxypropyl)‐3‐amino‐6‐methoxyphenyl‐pyridazinium bromide (SR 95531). Post hoc anatomical characterization revealed that all but one of the identified presynaptic neurons were oriens‐lacunosum moleculare (O‐LM) cells, whereas the postsynaptic neurons were highly heterogeneous, including neurogliaform (n = 4), basket (n = 4), Schaffer collateral‐associated (n = 10) and perforant path‐associated (n = 9) cells. We investigated the short‐term plasticity expressed at these synapses, and found that stimulation at 10–40 Hz resulted in short‐term depression of uIPSCs. This short‐term plasticity was determined by presynaptic factors and was not target‐cell specific. We found that the feedforward inhibition elicited by the direct cortical input including the perforant path onto CA1 pyramidal cells was modulated through the inhibitory synapses we have characterized. Our data show that the inhibitory synapses between interneurons of the SO and SLM shift the balance between feedback and feedforward inhibition onto CA1 pyramidal neurons.
Activation of dopamine D1/D5 receptors facilitates the induction of presynaptic long‐term potentiation at hippocampal output synapses
Authors: Roggenhofer Elisabeth , Fidzinski Pawel , Bartsch Julia , Kurz Felix , Shor Oded , Behr Joachim 
Published: July 2010

AbstractEncoding of novel information has been proposed to rely on the time‐locked release of dopamine in the hippocampal formation during novelty detection. However, the site of novelty detection in the hippocampus remains a matter of debate. According to current models, the CA1 and the subiculum act as detectors and distributors of novel sensory information. Although most CA1 pyramidal neurons exhibit regular‐spiking behavior, the majority of subicular pyramidal neurons fire high‐frequency bursts of action potentials. The present study investigates the efficacy of dopamine D1/D5 receptor activation to facilitate the induction of activity‐dependent long‐term potentiation (LTP) in rat CA1 regular‐spiking and subicular burst‐spiking pyramidal cells. Using a weak stimulation protocol, set at a level subthreshold for the induction of LTP, we show that activation of D1/D5 receptors for 5–10 min facilitates LTP in subicular burst‐spiking neurons but not in CA1 neurons. The results demonstrate that D1/D5 receptor‐facilitated LTP is NMDA receptor‐dependent, and requires the activation of protein kinase A. In addition, the D1/D5 receptor‐facilitated LTP is shown to be presynaptically expressed and relies on presynaptic Ca2+ signaling. The phenomenon of dopamine‐induced facilitation of presynaptic NMDA receptor‐dependent LTP in subicular burst‐spiking pyramidal cells is in accordance with observations of the time‐locked release of dopamine during novelty detection in this brain region, and reveals an intriguing mechanism for the encoding of hippocampal output information.