bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Cross‐hatching: A novel technique for Eustachian tuboplasty. Preliminary report
Authors: Yañez Carlos 
Published: April 2010

ObjectiveTo evaluate laser‐assisted cross‐hatching technique for treatment of patients with Eustachian tube dysfunction.Study DesignProspective, institutional review board‐approved surgical trial.SettingTertiary care medical center.Subjects and MethodsA total of 25 patients with Eustachian tube dysfunction underwent laser Eustachian tuboplasty with cross‐hatching technique (CHT). Surgery involved use of the argon laser to cross‐hatch the posterior cushion to modify the curvature of the cartilage of the posterior cushion and to alter the spring of the cartilage to make it wider and larger, thereby alleviating the obstructive dysfunction of the tube. None of the patients had any concurrent disease or surgical procedure.ResultsThere were no surgical complications. Following CHT, subjective symptoms of an ear blockage improved in 23 of 25 (92%) patients. Posterior cushion curvature became softer and wider, and the valve appeared more open postoperatively on simple endoscopy (SE) and slow motion video endoscopic analysis (SMVEA). Mean pure‐tone average improved by 10 dB (30 dB preoperatively vs 20 dB postoperatively; P = 0.015). Abnormal tympanogram improved in 24 of 25 (96%) patients. Failure of the procedure correlated with severity of cartilage deformation and valve obstruction as measured by both SE and SMVEA. Mean follow‐up was 15 months (range 3‐37 months).ConclusionCross‐hatching technique for Eustachian tuboplasty appears to be a safe and useful technique for treatment of Eustachian tube dysfunction.
Allergic rhinitis patients with recurrent acute sinusitis have increased sinonasal epithelial cell TLR9 expression
Authors: Melvin Thuy‐Anh N. , Lane Andrew P. , Nguyen Mai‐Tien , Lin Sandra Y. 
Published: April 2010

ObjectivePilot study examining toll‐like receptor 9 (TLR9) expression by sinonasal epithelial cells in allergic rhinitis (AR) subjects with and without a history of recurrent acute rhinosinusitis (RARS).Study DesignCohort study.SettingOutpatient clinic.Subjects and MethodsAdult subjects were eligible for study if skin tested positive for inhalant allergens, and positive allergens were in season at time of study. Subjects were considered to have AR+RARS if they had four symptomatic episodes with major/minor factors in 12 months and CT evidence of sinusitis. Eight AR‐only subjects and 13 AR+RARS subjects underwent endoscopic‐guided cell brushing from the middle meatus. Flow cytometry for TLR9 expression was performed on collected fresh sinonasal epithelial cells.ResultsThe AR+RARS group was found to have a significant increase in TLR9 expression in the sinonasal epithelium (66% ± 30%) compared with that of AR‐only patients (32% ± 21%; P = 0.011).ConclusionThe significant difference in expression of TLR9 in allergic sinusitis patients compared with allergy‐only patients in this study may indicate a difference in the role of innate immunity in these groups. The results suggest that expression of innate immune markers such as TLR9 may be upregulated in response to repeated microbial insults in AR+RARS. Further research is necessary to determine whether an initial impairment of innate immune gene expression may predispose some AR patients to subsequent development of RARS.
c‐MET pathway involvement in chronic rhinosinusitis: A genetic association analysis
Authors: Castano Roberto , Bossé Yohan , Endam Leandra Mfuna , Filali‐Mouhim Abdelali , Desrosiers Martin 
Published: April 2010

ObjectiveThe c‐MET receptor and its ligand hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) has been shown to be overexpressed in tissue from chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) patients with nasal polyps compared with that from controls. We assessed the genetic association of polymorphisms in the met proto‐oncogene (MET) gene with CRS.Study DesignCase‐control genetic association study.SettingTertiary‐care university hospital.Subjects and MethodsA total of 206 unrelated Canadian patients with CRS and 196 control subjects were enrolled. Subjects were genotyped for 33 polymorphisms in the MET gene.ResultsThe allelic association analysis showed eight single nucleotide polymorphisms in the MET gene (rs38850, rs38855, rs38857, rs2237717, rs2402118, rs193688, rs1621, rs42336) with a statistically significant association with CRS. The rs38850 T allele showed the strongest association and the highest risk for CRS (P = 0.004; odds ratio 1.65, 95% confidence interval 1.18‐2.32); the association did not reach statistical significance after adjustment for genomic control (P = 0.06). The haplotype TGG constructed of markers rs38850, rs38855, and rs38857 represented a risk haplotype, resulting in a P value of 0.003 that remained significant after correction for multiple testing (P = 0.018).ConclusionThese data suggest that polymorphisms in the MET gene may play a role in the susceptibility to develop CRS. Study findings apply to patients with severe CRS unresponsive to surgery.
Effects of montelukast on quality of life in patients with persistent allergic rhinitis
Authors: Cingi Cemal , Ozlugedik Samet 
Published: April 2010

ObjectiveTo determine the effects of montelukast monotherapy on health‐related quality of life (HRQL) in patients with persistent allergic rhinitis.Study DesignThe study was placebo‐controlled, randomized, and double blinded.SettingTertiary university hospital.Subjects and MethodsThere were 46 patients in the study group and 24 patients in the control group, all of whom had a diagnosis of persistent allergic rhinitis of at least two years. The patients were evaluated at two control visits after the diagnosis. The study group was given 10‐mg montelukast oral tablets, while the control group was given a placebo, and these were taken daily for one month. For evaluation of HRQL in both groups, the Rhinoconjunctivitis Quality of Life Questionnaire (RQLQ) was used.ResultsThere was a larger decrease in the overall RQLQ score for the group using montelukast compared with the placebo group (P < 0.001). The difference between scores at baseline versus the end of the first month for all domains was statically significant in both the placebo group and study group (P < 0.001). The difference in change from baseline to the end of the first month (treatment difference) between the placebo group and the study group was statically significant, in favor of the study group, for sleep, practical problems, nasal problems, and activities that have been limited by nose or eye symptoms, and for overall score (P < 0.001, P < 0.001, P = 0.003, P < 0.001, and P < 0.001, respectively).ConclusionMontelukast is a drug that improves the disease‐specific quality of life in patients being treated for persistent allergic rhinitis better than placebo.
Genetic mutations and aminoglycoside‐induced ototoxicity in neonates
Authors: Johnson Romaine F. , Cohen Aliza P. , Guo Yingshi , Schibler Kurt , Greinwald John H. 
Published: April 2010

ObjectiveMutations in the 12S rRNA gene have been associated with aminoglycoside‐induced ototoxicity. Our objective was to study the relationship of these mutations in neonates, duration of aminoglycoside exposure, and other known risk factors to the presence of hearing loss.Study DesignProspective case‐cohort study.SettingThree neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) in Cincinnati, OH.Subjects and MethodsWe studied a population of premature, low‐birth‐weight (< 2500 g) infants admitted to one of three ICUs. Demographic, genetic, clinical, and audiometric data were collected, and the prevalence of 12S rRNA mutations was calculated.ResultsOf the 436 patients enrolled in the study, 378 were exposed to gentamicin during their ICU stay. Mutations in the 12S rRNA gene were identified in four patients (0.9%), all of whom received gentamicin. Of the cohort, 256 patients (60%) received a complete audiometric assessment; 39 failed their initial hearing assessment. Only one of these patients had a 12S rRNA mutation. Of these 39 patients, the mean birth weight (1645 g vs 1306 g) was significantly less than the birth weight of those infants who passed their initial hearing screening. Definitive hearing assessment for those who failed showed no significant differences, however.ConclusionThe prevalence of 12S rRNA mutations related to aminoglycoside ototoxicity in our study population was approximately one percent. Most patients with this mutation and aminoglycoside exposure showed no evidence of hearing loss. Low birth weight was one risk factor related to the presence of failing a hearing assessment.
Long-lived granite-related molybdenite mineralization at Connemara, western Irish Caledonides
Authors: FEELY MARTIN , SELBY DAVID , HUNT JON , CONLIFFE JAMES 
Published: April 2010

AbstractNew Re–Os age determinations from the Galway Granite (samples: KMG = 402.2 ± 1.1 Ma, LLG = 399.5 ± 1.7 Ma and GBM = 383.3 ± 1.1 Ma) show that in south Connemara, late Caledonian granite-related molybdenite mineralization extended fromc.423 Ma toc.380 Ma. These events overlap and are in excellent agreement with the published granite emplacement history determined by U–Pb zircon geochronology. The spatial distribution of the late-Caledonian Connemara granites indicates that initial emplacement and molybdenite mineralization occurred atc.420 Ma (that is, the Omey Granite and probably the Inish, Leterfrack and Roundstone granites) to the N and NW of the Skird Rocks Fault, an extension of the orogen-parallel Southern Uplands Fault in western Ireland. A generally southern and eastward progression of granite emplacement (and molybdenite mineralization) sited along the Skird Rocks Fault then followed, atc.410 Ma (Roundstone Murvey and Carna granites), atc.400 Ma (Errisbeg Townland Granite, Megacrystic Granite, Mingling Mixing Zone Granodiorite, Lough Lurgan Granite and Kilkieran Murvey Granite) and atc.380 Ma (Costelloe Murvey Granite, Shannapheasteen and Knock granites). The duration of granite magmatism and mineralization in Connemara is similar to other sectors of the Appalachian–Caledonian orogeny and several tectonic processes (e.g. slab-breakoff, asthenospheric flow, transtension and decompression) may account for the duration and variety of granite magmatism of the western Irish Caledonides.
A “Suitable Population”: Charles Brooke and Race-Mixing in Sarawak
Authors: Reece R.H.W. 
Published: April 2010

In the “Concluding Remarks” appended to his journal for 1853–63, published in London in 1866 as Ten Years in Sarawak, Charles Brooke gave his support to the unfashionable idea of miscegenation between Europeans and Asians. The younger nephew of the first Rajah, James Brooke, and heir apparent to the Brooke raj to which he succeeded two years later, his views were of some significance. Accepting that a tropical climate was “not adapted for the permanent residence of Anglo-Saxons,” he proposed that a mixed race could provide Sarawak with a “suitable population.” To support his argument, Brooke cited the observation of Dr W.J. Moore of the Bombay Medical Service that Europeans had not survived as a race after many generations of British rule in India:Of the numerous pensioners, etc. etc., there is not one single instance – there is not a great-grand-child or grand-child of these pensioners retaining their European characteristics. An infusion of native blood is essential to the continuance of the race. The fact is, for the white man, or his offspring, there is no such thing as acclimatisation in India. Exposure, instead of hardening the system, actually has the contrary effect, and the longer Europeans remain in this country, the more they feel the effects of the vertical sun.
Islam in the History of Early Europe
Authors: Abulafia David 
Published: April 2010

Virtually every account of European history after the fall of the Roman Empire identifies ‘Europe’ with Christian civilisation, echoing, consciously or otherwise, the universalist claims of the Byzantine emperors, the popes and the western Roman emperors. Yet it is also the case that Islam possessed a European presence from the eighth century onwards, first of all in Spain and the Mediterranean islands, and later, from the mid-fourteenth century, in the Balkans, where the Turks were able rapidly to establish an empire which directly threatened Hungary and Austria. The lands ruled by Islam on the European land mass have tended to be treated by historians as European only in geographical identity, but in human terms part of a victorious and alien ‘oriental’ civilisation, of which they were provincial dependencies, and from which medieval Spanish Christians or modern Greeks and Slavs had to liberate themselves. Yet this view is fallacious for several reasons. In the first place, there is a valid question about our use of the term ‘civilisation’, which Fred Halliday has expressed as follows:‘Civilisations’ are like nations, traditions, communities – terms that claim a reality and authority which is itself open to question, and appeal to a tradition that turns out, on closer inspection, to be a contemporary creation.
Histoire des Femmes-Histoire Coloniale: collaboration et échanges à propos des femmes rurales à Java
Authors: Schwegman Marjan , Locher-Scholten Elsbeth 
Published: April 2010

L'histoire des femmes, jusqu'à aujourd'hui, s'est presque uniqueraent intéressée aux femmes du monde occidental.En histoire coloniale, le viricentrisme est pratiquement dominant. Le but de cette communication est de rompre ce double isolement. A cet effet nous proposerons d'abord un aperçu des courants s'exerçant depuis dix ans dans l'his-toire des femmes; dans la seconde partie seront traités dif-férents thèmes de l'histoire des femmes en relation avec des données provenant de recherches effectuées sur la position de la femme javanaise dans I'agriculture pendant la période coloniale.
Feeling or Figures: Two New Books on the Financial History of the Dutch East India Company
Authors: Gaastra Femme S. 
Published: April 2010

J.P. de Korte, De jaarlijkse financiële verantwoording in de Verenigde Oostindische Compagnie, Leiden, Martinus Nijhoff, 1984. Werken uitgegeven door de Vereeniging Het Nederlandsch Economisch Historisch Archief, 17. XIV + 94 blz, 14 appendices. ISBN 90 247 2108 3.J.J. Steur, Herstel of ondergang. De voorstellen tot redres van de V.O.C. 1740-1795, Utrecht, HES Uitgevers, 1984, 322 blz. ISBN 90 6194 214 4.
Goa during the First Century of Portuguese Rule
Authors: Pearson M. N. 
Published: April 2010

“Goa has never been other than fundamentally Indian …” J.M. Richards, 1982.“The posteritie of the Portingales, both men and women being in the third degree, doe seeme to be naturall Indians, both in colour and fashion.” J.H. van Linschoten, c. 1590.“Rich on trade and loot, Goa in the halcyon days of the sixteenth century was a handsome city of great houses and fine churches… In the eyes of stern moralists the city was another Babylon, but to men of the world it was a paradise where, with beautiful Eurasian girls readily available, life was a ceaseless round of amorous assignments and sexual delights”. G.V. Scammell, 1981.
Notes on a Forgotten Asian Port (Pattani)
Authors: Chamaraman Chusiri 
Published: April 2010

In the spring of 1979 professor Chusiri Chamaraman passed through Leiden and remarks on archaeological research opportunities in Thailand sounded so interesting that we asked her for an article. The following is her reply:Some three months ago Leonard Blussé asked me to write something about my research for ‘Itinerario’ but so many things have intervened that I have not even had much opportunity either to do research or to write about it. All I can do here is to piece together various items of possible interest concerning that research and hope that it might be of some use to Itinerario readers.
Screen-time, obesity, ageing and disability: findings from 91 266 participants in the 45 and Up Study
Authors: Banks Emily , Jorm Louisa , Rogers Kris , Clements Mark , Bauman Adrian 
Published: April 2010

AbstractObjectiveTo assess the relationship between obesity and sedentary behaviours, such as watching television or using a computer (‘screen-time’), and describe how this relationship varies between population subgroups.DesignCross-sectional analysis of the relationship between obesity (BMI ≥ 30 kg/m2) and screen-time, adjusted for age, sex, income and education and compared according to a range of personal characteristics.SettingNew South Wales, Australia.SubjectsA total of 91 266 men and women aged 45 years and above from the general population of New South Wales in 2006–2007 and providing self-reported information on height and weight and other factors.ResultsObesity prevalence was 21·4 %. Compared to individuals with <2 h of daily screen-time, the adjusted relative risks (RR) of obesity were 1·35 (95 % CI 1·26, 1·44), 1·70 (95 % CI 1·59, 1·82), 1·94 (95 % CI 1·81, 2·08) and 1·92 (95 % CI 1·80, 2·06) for 2–3, 4–5, 6–7 and ≥8 h, respectively. The increase in obesity with increasing screen-time was similar within categories of overall physical activity, but was attenuated in those in full-time paid work, compared to non-workers (P for interaction < 0·0001). Among non-workers, the overall obesity RR per 2 h increase in daily screen-time was 1·23 (95 % CI 1·21, 1·25) and was significantly elevated in all groups examined, ranging from 1·16 to 1·31 according to sex, level of age, education, income, smoking and fruit consumption. The RR did not differ significantly according to overall physical activity, region of residence and alcohol and vegetable consumption, but was substantially lower in disabled v. not-disabled individuals (P for interaction < 0·0001).ConclusionsObesity increases with increasing screen-time, independent of purposeful physical activity. This was observed in all population groups examined, although it is attenuated in full-time workers and disabled individuals.
Effect of biscuits fortified with different doses of vitamin A on indices of vitamin A status, haemoglobin and physical growth levels of pre-school children in Chongqing
Authors: Zhang Xuan , Chen Ke , Qu Ping , Liu You-Xue , Li Ting-Yu 
Published: April 2010

AbstractObjectiveTo investigate the efficacy of biscuits fortified with different doses of vitamin A on improving vitamin A deficiency (VAD), anaemia and physical growth of pre-school children.DesignA randomised double-masked population-based field interventional trial with a positive control group.SettingBanan district of Chongqing, China.SubjectsA total of 580 pre-school children aged 3–6 years were randomly recruited into four groups. Children in groups I and II were given biscuits fortified with vitamin A at 30 % of the recommended daily intake (RDA) and 100 % of the RDA once a day for 9 and 3 months, respectively. Children in group III received biscuits containing 20 000 IU of vitamin A once a week for 3 months. Initially, the children in group IV received a 200 000 IU vitamin A capsule just once. At the beginning and end of the study, blood samples were collected to measure Hb, serum retinol, retinol-binding protein and prealbumin, and weight and height were measured.ResultsAll the fortification types significantly decreased the prevalence of VAD and anaemia in each group (P < 0·05). The effect of 9-month intervention on group I was the most efficient (P < 0·0045). After intervention, the Z-scores of height-for-age, weight-for-age and weight-for-height in all groups increased markedly compared with baseline (P < 0·05), but no significant difference was observed among the groups.ConclusionsData indicated that consuming vitamin A-fortified biscuits with daily 100 % RDA for 3 months has the same effect on the improvement of VAD, anaemia and physical growth as did the weekly 20 000 IU and single 200 000 IU administration in pre-school children.
Functional diversity of bacteria in a ferruginous hydrothermal sediment
Authors: Handley Kim M , Boothman Christopher , Mills Rachel A , Pancost Richard D , Lloyd Jonathan R 
Published: April 2010

Abstract
A microbial community showing diverse respiratory processes was identified within an arsenic-rich, ferruginous shallow marine hydrothermal sediment (20–40 °C, pH 6.0–6.3) in Santorini, Greece. Analyses showed that ferric iron reduction with depth was broadly accompanied by manganese and arsenic reduction and FeS accumulation. Clone library analyses indicated the suboxic–anoxic transition zone sediment contained abundant Fe(III)- and sulfate-reducing Deltaproteobacteria, whereas the overlying surface sediment was dominated by clones related to the Fe(II)-oxidizing zetaproteobacterium, Mariprofundus ferroxydans. Cultures obtained from the transition zone were enriched in bacteria that reduced Fe(III), nitrate, sulfate and As(V) using acetate or lactate as electron donors. In the absence of added organic carbon, bacteria were enriched that oxidized Fe(II) anaerobically or microaerobically, sulfide microaerobically and aerobically and As(III) aerobically. According to 16S rRNA gene analyses, enriched bacteria represented a phylogenetically wide distribution. Most probable number counts indicated an abundance of nitrate-, As(V)- and Fe(III)(s,aq)-reducers, and dissolved sulfide-oxidizers over sulfate-reducers, and FeS-, As(III)- and nitrate-dependent Fe(II)-oxidisers in the transition zone. It is noteworthy that the combined community and geochemical data imply near-surface microbial iron and arsenic redox cycling were dominant biogeochemical processes.
An antisense RNA in a lytic cyanophage links psbA to a gene encoding a homing endonuclease
Authors: Millard Andrew D , Gierga Gregor , Clokie Martha R J , Evans David J , Hess Wolfgang R , Scanlan David J 
Published: April 2010

Abstract
Cyanophage genomes frequently possess the psbA gene, encoding the D1 polypeptide of photosystem II. This protein is believed to maintain host photosynthetic capacity during infection and enhance phage fitness under high-light conditions. Although the first documented cyanophage-encoded psbA gene contained a group I intron, this feature has not been widely reported since, despite a plethora of new sequences becoming available. In this study, we show that in cyanophage S-PM2, this intron is spliced during the entire infection cycle. Furthermore, we report the widespread occurrence of psbA introns in marine metagenomic libraries, and with psbA often adjacent to a homing endonuclease (HE). Bioinformatic analysis of the intergenic region between psbA and the adjacent HE gene F-CphI in S-PM2 showed the presence of an antisense RNA (asRNA) connecting these two separate genetic elements. The asRNA is co-regulated with psbA and F-CphI, suggesting its involvement with their expression. Analysis of scaffolds from global ocean survey datasets shows this asRNA to be commonly associated with the 3′ end of cyanophage psbA genes, implying that this potential mechanism of regulating marine ‘viral’ photosynthesis is evolutionarily conserved. Although antisense transcription is commonly found in eukaryotic and increasingly also in prokaryotic organisms, there has been no indication for asRNAs in lytic phages so far. We propose that this asRNA also provides a means of preventing the formation of mobile group I introns within cyanophage psbA genes.