bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Do ‘cinnamon‐sensitive’ patients react to cinnamate UV filters?
Authors: Pentinga Stefanie E. , Kuik Dirk J. , Bruynzeel Derk P. , Rustemeyer Thomas 
Published: March 2009

Background:  Use of sunscreens has increased dramatically worldwide, and some sunscreen chemicals may be allergens. Ultraviolet (UV) filters are added to various cosmetic products. Cinnamate UV filters are structurally related to cinnamon‐related fragrances.Objective:  The purpose of this study was to determine if ‘cinnamon‐sensitive’ patients show positive photopatch tests to cinnamate UV filters and, therefore, should avoid these UV filters.Method:  We photopatch tested cinnamon‐sensitive patients (n = 18) with cinnamon, cinnamon‐related fragrances, Myroxylon pereirae, and two cinnamate UV filters.Results:  No positive photopatch test to cinnamate UV filters was found (95% confidence interval 0–13%).Discussion:  The risk of developing unwanted allergic contact dermatitis because of cinnamate UV filters in cinnamon‐sensitive patients seems to be low, but our study population was small. Therefore, we recommend cinnamon‐sensitive patients to perform a use test, for example the repeated open application test, before using cosmetic products containing cinnamate UV filters. In addition, physicians and patients should be aware that many sunscreens contain (cinnamon‐related) fragrances and could, therefore, elicit allergic contact dermatitis in cinnamon‐sensitive patients, independently from other potential sensitizing components of the sunscreen.
Protective effects of a cream containing Dead Sea minerals against UVB‐induced stress in human skin
Authors: Portugal‐Cohen Meital , Soroka Yoram , Ma’or Zeevi , Oron Miriam , Zioni Tamar , Brégégère François Menahem , Neuman Rami , Kohen Ron , Milner Yoram 
Published: March 2009

AbstractBackground: Dead Sea (DS) mud and water are known for their unique composition of minerals, and for their therapeutic properties on psoriasis and other inflammatory skin diseases. Their mode of action, however, remains poorly known.Objectives: To analyse the ability of Dermud™, a leave‐on skin preparation containing DS mud and other ingredients like DS water, zinc oxide, aloe‐vera extract, pro‐vitamin B5 and vitamin E, to antagonize biological effects induced by UVB irradiation in skin when topically applied in organ cultures.Methods: We have used human skin organ cultures as a model to assess the biological effects of UVB irradiation and of Dermud™ cream topical application. Skin pieces were analysed for mitochondrial activity by MTT assay, for apoptosis by caspase 3 assay, for cytokine secretion by solid phase ELISA, for overall antioxidant capacity by ferric reducing antioxidant power and Oxygen radical absorbance capacity assays (epidermis) or by cyclic voltammetry (external medium), and for uric acid (UA) content by HPLC.Results: We report that UVB irradiation decreases cell viability, total antioxidant capacity and UA contents in the epidermis of skin organ cultures, while increasing the levels of apoptosis in cells and their cytokine secretion. Topical application of Dermud™ decreased all these effects significantly.Conclusions: Our results clearly show that Dermud™ has protective, anti‐oxidant and anti‐inflammatory properties that can antagonize biological effects of UVB irradiation in skin. It may therefore be able to reduce skin photodamage and photoaging, and more generally to reduce oxidative stress and inflammation in skin pathologies.
Target for Glycemic Control in Type 2 Diabetic Patients on Hemodialysis: Effects of Anemia and Erythropoietin Injection on Hemoglobin A1c
Authors: Uzu Takashi , Hatta Tsuguru , Deji Naoko , Izumiya Tamani , Ueda Hisami , Miyazawa Itsuko , Kanasaki Masami , Isshiki Keiji , Nishio Toshiji , Arimura Tetsuro 
Published: March 2009

AbstractIn hemodialysis (HD) patients the glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) level may underestimate glycemic control. The aim of this study is to estimate accurate glycemic control in type 2 diabetic patients on HD. Type 2 diabetes patients (N = 87) who had been receiving maintenance HD for at least one year were enrolled. HbA1c and the percentage of glycated albumin relative to total the serum albumin (%GA) were measured in blood samples and the factors that affected the %GA/HbA1c ratio were examined. There were significant and positive correlations between the plasma glucose and either the HbA1c levels (r = 0.539, P < 0.01) or the %GA level (r = 0.520, P < 0.01). No relationship between the serum albumin levels and %GA levels was observed. A weekly dose of erythropoietin (EPO) was positively correlated with the ratio of %GA/HbA1c and hematocrit (Ht) correlated negatively. There was no significant correlation between the %GA/HbA1c level and the EPO dose in patients with Ht ≥ 30%, although a significant correlation was found between those parameters in the Ht < 30% group. The mean of the %GA/HbA1c ratios in patients with Ht ≥ 30%, with Ht < 30% and treated with EPO < 100 IU/kg/week, and with Ht < 30% and treated with EPO ≥ 100 IU/kg/week were 3.41, 3.56 and 4.13, respectively. In HD patients, accurate glycemic control may be estimated as: HbA1c × 1.14 if Ht ≥ 30%; HbA1c × 1.19 if Ht < 30% and treated with low dosages of EPO; and HbA1c × 1.38 if Ht < 30% and treated with high dosages of EPO.
Single Lipoprotein Apheresis Session Improves Cardiac Microvascular Function in Patients With Elevated Lipoprotein(a): Detection by Stress/Rest Perfusion Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Authors: Bohl Steffen , Kassner Ursula , Eckardt Rahel , Utz Wolfgang , Mueller‐Nordhorn Jacqueline , Busjahn Andreas , Thomas Hans‐Peter , Abdel‐Aty Hassan , Klingel Reinhard , Marcovina Santica , Dietz Rainer , Steinhagen‐Thiessen Elisabeth , Schulz‐Menger Jeanette , Vogt Anja 
Published: March 2009

AbstractThe aim of this study was to explore the effects of a single lipoprotein apheresis session on myocardial stress/rest (S/R) perfusion in patients with elevated lipoprotein(a) (Lp(a)) and coronary artery disease using cardiac magnetic resonance imaging. Twenty patients with Lp(a) > 60 mg/dL and coronary artery disease were randomized into a control or a treatment group. Both groups underwent cardiac magnetic resonance imaging with assessment of left ventricular function, perfusion and viability, and the treatment group underwent lipoprotein apheresis immediately afterwards. Repeat magnetic resonance imaging was performed at 24 h for both groups and at 96 h for just the treatment group. The transmyocardial perfusion gradient (i.e. endo‐epi ratio [EER]) was determined and a comprehensive parameter of resting and adenosine‐induced stress perfusion was derived (EER‐S/R). While the hematocrit remained unchanged, apheresis reduced lipoproteins and rheological parameters: Lp(a) − 55.1%, total cholesterol − 34.5%, low density lipoprotein (LDL) − 54.6%, Lp(a)‐corrected LDL − 54.3%, high density lipoprotein − 17.4%, apolipoprotein B − 39.2%, plasma viscosity − 10.7%, and fibrinogen − 30.6% at 24 h (P < 0.05 for all). At 96 h these parameters, except for plasma viscosity, apolipoprotein B and Lp(a)‐corrected LDL, recovered but did not reach baseline values (P < 0.05 for all). The EER‐S/R at 24 h was lowered by therapy (ΔEER‐S/R 5%; P < 0.03), whereas this effect disappeared at 96 h. The ejection fraction (EF) was slightly improved at 24 h (67.07 ± 6.28% vs. 64.89 ± 6.39%; ΔEF 2.2%, P < 0.05) and returned to baseline at 96 h. In the control group no corresponding changes were detected. In conclusion, cardiac magnetic resonance imaging detects subtle treatment‐related changes in regional myocardial perfusion in patients with elevated Lp(a) and coronary artery disease undergoing lipoprotein apheresis.
A Case Report of Amitriptyline Poisoning Successfully Treated With the Application of Plasma Exchange
Authors: Belen Burcu , Akman Alkim , Yüksel Nurullah , Dilsiz Günter , Yenicesu Idil , Olguntürk Rana 
Published: March 2009

AbstractAmitriptyline is a very frequently prescribed antidepressant agent and is very often involved in attempted suicides. Amitriptyline intoxication necessitates primary therapeutic approaches that include gastric irrigation and recurrent administration of activated charcoal. In the case of pronounced anticholinergic findings, physostigmine is of proven benefit and hypertonic sodium bicarbonate can be used to shorten the QRS duration and AV interval. In cases of a comatosed state, hemoperfusion and plasma exchange can be used. In this case report we present a case of severe amitriptyline poisoning that we successfully managed with plasma exchange. We confirmed a 59.5% reduction in the amitriptyline plasma level in our patient after a single plasma exchange session. She was discharged by the third day of admission without any complications. According to current literature, our patient is the fifth patient treated with plasma exchange to be the subject of a publication.
A Case Report of Successful Long‐term Relapse Control by Protein‐A Immunoadsorption in an Immunosuppressive‐treated Patient With End‐stage Renal Disease Due to Wegener's Granulomatosis
Authors: Koch Michael , Kohnle Matthias , Trapp Rudolf 
Published: March 2009

AbstractA long‐term female hemodialysis patient with end‐stage renal disease due to Wegener's granulomatosis (WG) experienced a severe relapse when immunosuppressive therapy was switched from prednisone and cyclophosphamide to azathioprine maintenance therapy. Ten courses of protein A immunoadsorption therapy and switching immunosuppressive therapy to mycophenolate mofetil have proved to be very successful and free of side effects. The patient has fully recovered from all clinical WG symptoms and is still in remission ten months after the treatment.
Standard on Microbiological Management of Fluids for Hemodialysis and Related Therapies by the Japanese Society for Dialysis Therapy 2008
Authors: Kawanishi Hideki , Akiba Takashi , Masakane Ikuto , Tomo Tadashi , Mineshima Michio , Kawasaki Tadayuki , Hirakata Hideki , Akizawa Tadao 
Published: March 2009

AbstractThe Committee of Scientific Academy of the Japanese Society for Dialysis Therapy (JSDT) proposes a new standard on microbiological management of fluids for hemodialysis and related therapies. This standard is within the scope of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), which is currently under revision. This standard is to be applied to the central dialysis fluid delivery systems (CDDS), which are widely used in Japan. In this standard, microbiological qualities for dialysis water and dialysis fluids are clearly defined by endotoxin level and bacterial count. The qualities of dialysis fluids were classified into three levels: standard, ultrapure, and online prepared substitution fluid. In addition, the therapeutic application of each dialysis fluid is clarified. Since high‐performance dialyzers are frequently used in Japan, the standard recommends that ultrapure dialysis fluid be used for all dialysis modalities at all dialysis facilities. It also recommends that the dialysis equipment safety management committee at each facility should validate the microbiological qualities of online prepared substitution fluid.
Evaluation of Noble Gas Recharge Temperatures in a Shallow Unconfined Aquifer
Authors: Cey Bradley D. , Hudson G. Bryant , Moran Jean E. , Scanlon Bridget R. 
Published: March 2009

AbstractWater table temperatures inferred from dissolved noble gas concentrations (noble gas temperatures, NGT) are useful as a quantitative proxy for air temperature change since the last glacial maximum. Despite their importance in paleoclimate research, few studies have investigated the relationship between NGT and actual recharge temperatures in field settings. This study presents dissolved noble gas data from a shallow unconfined aquifer heavily impacted by agriculture. Considering samples unaffected by degassing, NGT calculated from common physically based interpretive gas dissolution models that correct measured noble gas concentrations for “excess air” agreed with measured water table temperatures (WTT). The ability to fit data to multiple interpretive models indicates that model goodness‐of‐fit does not necessarily mean that the model reflects actual gas dissolution processes. Although NGT are useful in that they reflect WTT, caution is recommended when using these interpretive models. There was no measurable difference in excess air characteristics (amount and degree of fractionation) between two recharge regimes studied (higher flux recharge primarily during spring and summer vs. continuous, low flux recharge). Approximately 20% of samples had dissolved gas concentrations below equilibrium concentration with respect to atmospheric pressure, indicating degassing. Geochemical and dissolved gas data indicate that saturated zone denitrification caused degassing by gas stripping. Modeling indicates that minor degassing (<10% ΔNe) may cause underestimation of ground water recharge temperature by up to 2°C. Such errors are problematic because degassing may not be apparent and degassed samples may be fit by a model with a high degree of certainty.
Does Board Independence Matter in Companies with a Controlling Shareholder?
Authors: Dahya Jay , Dimitrov Orlin , McConnell John J. 
Published: March 2009

A number of studies have reported value discounts for listed companies in countries that provide weak legal protection to minority shareholders. Such studies typically attribute these discounts to the ability, and the well‐documented tendency, of controlling shareholders to extract a disproportionate share of corporate resources for “private benefits.” This tendency and the resulting discounts create a dilemma for those controlling shareholders intent on maximizing value for not just themselves, but all shareholders: How can such controlling shareholders assure their minority shareholders that they will not exploit their power to expropriate resources and so eliminate the discount from their companies' shares?This article investigates the possibility that such discounts can be reduced by appointing boards of directors made up of individuals who are independent of the controlling shareholders. Based on the systematic analysis of some 800 companies representing 22 countries, the authors' recent study reports that corporate values are consistently higher when boards are more independent of controlling shareholders—and that this relationship is especially strong in those countries that afford fewer rights to minority shareholders.What is likely to cause controlling shareholders to appoint more independent directors—a change that, after all, effectively limits the controlling shareholders' power and “degrees of freedom”? The answer provided by the authors is that board independence is most likely to be pursued by companies with controlling shareholders that also have major growth opportunities that must be funded mainly with outside equity.
Dealing with the Contagion: China and India in the Aftermath of the Subprime Meltdown
Authors: Sharma Shalendra D. 
Published: March 2009

AbstractWhat began as a downturn in the US housing sector in the summer of 2007 had mushroomed into a global financial crisis by September 2008: the most severe since the 1930s. Developing countries, including China and India, at first seemingly sheltered from the worst of the turmoil, have not been immune to the contagion's spillover effects. What are China and India's precise vulnerabilities, and what can each do to better insulate their economies from the vagaries of global financial marker turmoil? Equally important, what long‐term strategies must each country adopt to make their economies more resilient to global market downturns?
Pricing to Market: Chinese Export Pricing to the USA after the Peg
Authors: Witte Mark David 
Published: March 2009

AbstractIn July 2005, the Chinese Government unpegged the RMB from the US dollar. As the RMB has followed a remarkably predictable appreciation over time, I examine the price of Chinese exports to the USA after unpegging the exchange rate. Results suggest that the Chinese industries with greater import market share were able to raise their prices after the removal of the pegged exchange rate regime; however, over time there is a significant deflationary trend. Chinese export prices tended to decrease under an unanticipated RMB appreciation; this effect was more pronounced for industries with more pricing flexibility. This suggests that Chinese exporters are consistently “pricing to market” and thus creating a significant foreign exchange policy implication. Specifically, a more flexible exchange rate regime will likely have little impact on the prices of Chinese exports to the USA but might increase the profit volatility of Chinese firms.
Rise and Fall of the First Financial Futures Market in China: The Case of Chinese Government Bond Futures
Authors: Chen Chao , Zhou Zhong‐guo 
Published: March 2009

AbstractThis paper studies the rise and fall of the first financial futures market in China. We compare the characteristics in the Chinese Government bond futures market with those in the US T‐bond futures market. They differ in market design and structure, market governance, margin requirements, position limits, delivery process, and the way in which the settlement price is calculated. Furthermore, with a unique dataset, we show that prior to maturities of government bond futures, traders began to accumulate significant amounts of long positions for several selected contracts without the intention to offset, forcing short position holders to either purchase deliverable bonds or offset futures at highly inflated prices, causing higher market volatility and price disequilibrium in both spot and futures markets. Arbitrage opportunity arises and the market eventually collapses. The lessons learned from the suspension of the Chinese Government bond futures market offer an invaluable learning experience.
Karl Pearson in Russian Contexts
Authors: Seneta Eugene 
Published: March 2009

Summary The confluence of statistics and probability into mathematical statistics in the Russian Empire through the interaction, 1910–1917, of A.A. Chuprov and A.A. Markov was influenced by the writings of the English Biometric School, especially those of Karl Pearson. The appearance of the Russian‐language exposition of Pearsonian ideas by E. E. Slutsky in 1912 was instrumental in this confluence. Slutsky's predecessors in such writings (Lakhtin, Orzhentskii, and Leontovich) were variously of mathematical, political economy, and biological backgrounds. Work emanating from the interpolational nature of Pearson's system of frequency curves was continued subsequently through the work of Markov, Bernstein, Romanovsky, and Kravchuk (Krawtchouk), who laid a solid probabilistic foundation. The correlational nature in the interpolational early work of Chebyshev, and work of the English Biometric School in the guise of linear least‐squares fitting exposited as the main component of Slutsky's book, was developed in population as well as sample context by Chuprov. He also championed the expectation operation in providing exact relations between sample and population moments, in direct interaction with Karl Pearson. Romanovsky emerges as the most adaptive and modern mathematical statistician.
Karl Pearson and the Establishment of Mathematical Statistics
Authors: Magnello M. Eileen 
Published: March 2009

Summary At the end of the nineteenth century, the content and practice of statistics underwent a series of transitions that led to its emergence as a highly specialised mathematical discipline. These intellectual and later institutional changes were, in part, brought about by a mathematical‐statistical translation of Charles Darwin's redefinition of the biological species as something that could be viewed in terms of populations. Karl Pearson and W.F.R. Weldon's mathematical reconceptualisation of Darwinian biological variation and “statistical” population of species in the 1890s provided the framework within which a major paradigmatic shift occurred in statistical techniques and theory. Weldon's work on the shore crab in Naples and Plymouth from 1892 to 1895 not only brought them into the forefront of ideas of speciation and provided the impetus to Pearson's earliest statistical innovations, but it also led to Pearson shifting his professional interests from having had an established career as a mathematical physicist to developing one as a biometrician. The innovative statistical work Pearson undertook with Weldon in 1892 and later with Francis Galton in 1894 enabled him to lay the foundations of modern mathematical statistics. While Pearson's diverse publications, his establishment of four laboratories and the creation of new academic departments underscore the plurality of his work, the main focus of his life‐long career was in the establishment and promulgation of his statistical methodology.
Two-Step Epstein-Barr Virus Immunoglobulin A Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay System for Serological Screening and Confirmation of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma
Authors: Paramita Dewi K. , Fachiroh Jajah , Haryana Sofia M. , Middeldorp Jaap M. 
Published: March 2009

ABSTRACT
Undifferentiated nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC; WHO type III) is 100% associated with Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection and the fourth most prevalent cancer in Indonesian males. Therapy failure is high, since most patients come to the hospital at an advanced stage of disease. Screening for early-stage NPC is needed. Here, a simple and economical two-step enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) system is proposed for diagnosing NPC in high-risk populations, employing the peptide-based immunoglobulin A (IgA) EBNA1 plus viral capsid antigen p18 ELISA as an initial screening test and the IgA early antigen (EA) ELISA using a different set of EBV antigens as a confirmation test. A total of 151 NPC patients and 199 regional healthy EBV carriers were used to evaluate the two-step ELISA approach. Routinely, EBV IgG immunoblotting is used as a standard confirmation test. The sensitivity and specificity for diagnosing NPC by the two-step ELISA approach increased from 85.4% to 96.7% and 90.1% to 98%, respectively, with positive predictive values and negative predictive values increasing from 78.7 and 93.9% to 97.3 and 97.5%, respectively, relative to the immunoblotting confirmation system. On discrepant samples, additional testing was done by EBV DNA load quantification in blood. Results showed that 5/11 discrepant NPC samples with an elevated IgA EA ELISA also had elevated an EBV DNA load in the circulation (range, 3,200 to 25,820 copies/ml). Therefore, the IgA EA ELISA is proposed as a confirmation test in first-line NPC serological screening studies. This two-step EBV ELISA system provides a standardized approach for NPC screening and may be used in combination with dried blood sampling in future field studies for identification of early-stage NPC in high-risk regions.