bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
The scent of senescence: sexual signalling and female preference in house mice
Authors: GARRATT M. , STOCKLEY P. , ARMSTRONG S. D. , BEYNON R. J. , HURST J. L. 
Published: August 2011

AbstractSexual signals are expected to be costly to produce and maintain, thus ensuring that only males in good condition can sustain their expression at high levels. When males reach senescence they lose physiological function and condition, which could constrain their ability to invest in costly sexual signals, decreasing their attractiveness to mates. Furthermore, females may have evolved mating preferences that cause avoidance of senesced males to enhance fertilization success and viability of offspring. Among mammals, the size of antlers and other weapons can decrease with senescence, but changes in olfactory sexual signals have been largely unexplored. We examined changes in olfactory signals with senescence in house mice (Mus musculus domesticus), where males excrete volatile and involatile molecules in scent marks that elicit behavioural and priming responses in females. Compared to middle‐aged males, the urine of senesced males contained a lower concentration of involatile signalling proteins (major urinary proteins or MUPs), and associated volatiles that bind to these proteins. The reduced intensity of male scent will affect the longevity of scent signals deposited in the environment and, accordingly, females were less attracted to urine from senesced males deposited 12 h previously. Females also discriminated against senesced males encountered behind a mesh barrier. These results reveal that investment in olfactory signalling is reduced during senescence and suggest that senesced males and their scent may be less attractive to females.
Factors associated with the use of institutional long‐term care in Japan
Authors: Imai Hidenori , Fushimi Kiyohide 
Published: August 2011

Aim:  Institutionalization is a potential cost burden for long‐term care (LTC) systems in many developed countries. Japan implemented an LTC insurance system in April 2000 and control of institutionalization has been one of its major issues. This study used over 2.1 million national representative administrative records to determine the factors that contribute to care use and the availability of local LTC facilities associated with the use of institutional LTC in Japan.Methods:  Factors associated with the 1‐year institutional use of individuals were examined by a multivariate logistic regression analysis. In addition, we determined the impact of the regional capacities of LTC and medical institutions and the regional deviations of institutional LTC use using standardized use rates estimated from the demography and disability levels of regional LTC users.Results:  We found that subjects aged 85 years or older had more than twice as high a risk as those aged less than 74 years and that the risk of use increased more than eight times at the highest disability level. In addition, the regional capacity of LTC institutions promoted the use of those institutions, whereas that of general beds had a suppressive effect on such use, possibly due to social hospitalization.Conclusion:  Our results suggest that the use of LTC institutions is accelerated by the age and disability level of users as well as the regional availability of such institutions and that an appropriate supply of LTC institutions could increase their use and potentially improve the efficiency of medical care. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2012; 12: 72–79.
Current status of the treatment of acute colonic diverticulitis: a systematic review
Authors: Biondo S. , Lopez Borao J. , Millan M. , Kreisler E. , Jaurrieta E. 
Published: August 2011

AbstractAim This paper addresses the current status of the treatment of acute colonic diverticulitis by an evidence‐based review.Method A systematic search in PUBMED, MEDLINE, EMBASE and Google scholar on colonic diverticulitis was performed. Diagnostic tools, randomized controlled trials, non‐randomized comparative studies, observational epidemiological studies, national and international guidelines, reviews of observational studies on elective and emergency surgical treatment of diverticulitis, and studies of prognostic significance were reviewed. Criteria for eligibility of the studies were diagnosis and classification, medical treatment, inpatients and outpatients, diverticulitis in young patients, immunosuppression, recurrence, elective resection, emergency surgery, and predictive factors.Results Some 92 publications were selected for comprehensive review. The review highlighted that computed tomography is the most effective test in the diagnosis and staging of acute diverticulitis; outpatient treatment can be performed for uncomplicated diverticulitis in patients without associated comorbidities; conservative treatment is aimed at those patients with uncomplicated acute diverticulitis; elective surgery must be done on an individual basis; laparoscopic approach for elective treatment of diverticulitis is appropriate but may be technically complex; in perforated diverticulitis, resection with primary anastomosis is a safe procedure that requires experience and should take into account strict exclusion criteria.Conclusion The heterogeneity of patients with colonic diverticular disease means that both elective and urgent treatment should be tailored on an individual basis.
Effect of geographical range size on plant functional traits and the relationships between plant, soil and climate in Chinese grasslands
Authors: Geng Yan , Wang Zhiheng , Liang Cunzhu , Fang Jingyun , Baumann Frank , Kühn Peter , Scholten Thomas , He Jin‐Sheng 
Published: August 2011

ABSTRACTAim  Our aim was to address the potential effect of the geographical range size of species on the relationships between plant traits, soil and climate in Chinese grasslands. Previous analyses tended to examine plant–environment relationships across many species while ignoring that species with different range sizes may respond differently to the environment. Here we hypothesized that leaf traits of narrow‐ranging species would be more strongly correlated with soil and climatic variables than those of wide‐ranging species.Location  Chinese grasslands.Methods  Data on leaf traits, including nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations, carbon/nitrogen ratio, nitrogen/phosphorus ratio and specific leaf area, as well as species range sizes for 208 species distributed across 178 sites in Chinese grasslands were collected. Soil and climate information for each study site was also gathered. The effects of range size on leaf traits were tested using one‐way ANOVA. Correlations between leaf traits, soil and climate were calculated for all species pooled together and for species partitioned into range size quartiles, from the first (narrowest‐ ranging 25%) to the fourth (widest‐ranging 25%).Results  Narrow‐ranging species tended to occur at high altitude with lower temperature but higher soil nutrient concentrations compared with wide‐ranging species. No direct link between leaf traits and species range sizes was detected. However, patterns of leaf–soil nutrient relationships changed significantly across levels of range size. Narrow‐ranging species tended to be more sensitive to variation in soil nutrient availability than wide‐ranging species, resulting in a shift from a positive leaf–soil nutrient relationship for narrow‐ranging plants to no relationship for wide‐ranging plants. Species responses to climatic variables were unrelated to their range sizes.Main conclusions  The close relationship between leaf and soil nutrients indicates a specialization of narrow‐ranging species to particular habitats whereas wide‐ranging species may be able to better withstand changes in environment such as soil fertility over a large area.
Social behaviour in sharks and rays: analysis, patterns and implications for conservation
Authors: Jacoby David M P , Croft Darren P , Sims David W 
Published: August 2011

AbstractThere are widespread records of grouping behaviour in both adult and juvenile sharks and rays (Class Chondrichthyes, Subclass Elasmobranchii). Yet despite burgeoning descriptions of these events, many of the proximate and ultimate causes of group living in these top predators remain elusive. Given the documented negative anthropogenic effects on many shark populations globally, there is an increasing need to understand how behaviourally mediated grouping influences population distributions and abundance, and the role this plays in exacerbating vulnerability to fishing mortality. Here, we analyse group living in elasmobranchs: we describe our current understanding of the patterns, mechanisms and functions of both aggregation (where grouping is not driven by social mechanisms) and social grouping (where grouping is influenced by social interaction) and discuss some of the current methods used to study social behaviour in this taxa. In particular, social preferences in elasmobranchs have received relatively little attention. We propose that the study of shark aggregations may benefit from a more fine‐scale analytical approach offered by detailed exploration of social interactions using social network analysis. Better understanding of the frequency and longevity of social relations, in conjunction with current long‐term data on habitat use and site philopatry, will likely serve for a more informed approach to coastal and pelagic elasmobranch conservation initiatives.
The Development of a Web‐based Demographic Data Extraction Tool for Population Monitoring
Authors: Chow T. Edwin , Lin Yan , Chan W. Derek 
Published: August 2011

AbstractThe Internet contains a great wealth of information available online. People search engines, such as WhitePages (http://www.whitepages.com), gather personal‐level demographic data, including full name, address, age and household members. Requiring only a surname and locational reference (e.g. city or postal code) as the minimum search criteria, such people search engines can be perceived as a gigantic database of demographic records. The objective of this article is to outline the development of a web‐based demographic data extraction tool for population monitoring. In this study, a web prototype was developed to extract web demographics of the Vietnamese‐American (VA) population in Texas, an ethnic minority with unique migration history, from WhitePages. After post‐processing, the personal‐level demographic data represent 40.3% of 202,003 VA in Texas reported by the American Community Survey (ACS) 2009. While all enumeration strategies, the web approach included, have their own strengths and weaknesses, this study suggests an alternative approach that is complementary to existing enumeration strategies. More research and development are needed to validate the accuracy of web demographics and further enhance data navigation and extraction rules. The utilization and release of web demographics must be cautious with regards to privacy and integrity of personal identity.
Complexity economics, wicked problems and consumer education
Authors: McGregor Sue L.T. 
Published: August 2011

AbstractComplexity economics is a promising theory for consumer education that aspires to be focused on global justice and sustainability in a profoundly complex consumer marketplace. This paper first discusses the basic tenets of complexity theory, the foundations of complexity economics, followed by an overview of normal vs. post‐normal science, including tame and wicked problems. The third part of the paper positions consumer education within normal science, explicating the assumptions of conventional neoliberal economic theory. The final part discusses the assumptions of complexity economics and how it challenges traditional economic theory. A case is made for augmenting 21st century consumer education with complexity economics, anticipating a companion paper with pedagogical details.
The algebra of health concerns: implications of consumer perception of health loss, illness and the breakdown of the health system on anxiety
Authors: Gabay Gillie , Moskowitz Howard R. 
Published: August 2011

AbstractThe current and expected future state of the American health care system creates much concern and anxiety at the national and individual level among Americans. This study is in response to the call of the Institute of Medicine to further study the lack of confidence among Americans about their future ability to receive high‐quality health care. This study compares perceived anxiety and its amelioration as a result of three possible health situations: illness with infectious disease, losing one's health and a breakdown of the health care system.This empirical study was conducted within the framework of conjoint analysis. We conducted an experimental design of ideas, identified attributes that increased or reduced anxiety in each of the three health‐related situations and then segmented consumers on the basis of their patterns of reactions to the attributes.We found that the highest anxiety was attributed to the breakdown of the health care system. The segmentation further suggested that the anxiety emerging from the breakdown of society's health care system generated a different extent of anxiety than that which emerged from one's illness or one's loss of own health. The attributes that drove anxiety across the health situations were, surprisingly, charities, one's company, the local hospital and supplemental insurance. Attributes that reduced anxiety differed among segments. The attributes were found to be: close friends, family, distribution of information by authorities and the belief in God.At a practical level, these data and patterns of response allow health care policy makers to enhance the coping ability of patients by understanding the nature of what reduces the anxiety of individual types of patients. The approach in this study provides a person‐centred system for communication and anxiety reduction that can be implemented as part of a public health policy.
Prophylactic Etoricoxib Is Effective in Preventing “First of Ramadan” Headache: A Placebo‐Controlled Double‐Blind and Randomized Trial of Prophylactic Etoricoxib for Ritual Fasting Headache
Authors: Drescher Michael J. , Wimpfheimer Zev , Abu Khalef Samer , Gammaitoni Arnold , Shehadeh Naim , Torgovicky Rafael 
Published: August 2011

Background.— Religious fasting is associated with headache. This has been documented as “Yom Kippur headache” and “first of Ramadan headache.” Etoricoxib, a Cox‐2 inhibitor with a 22‐hour half‐life, has been shown effective in preventing fasting headache when taken just prior to the 25‐hour Yom Kippur fast. We hypothesized that etoricoxib would also be effective in preventing headache during Ramadan, despite the different characteristics of the fast.Methods.— We performed a double‐blind randomized prospective crossover trial of etoricoxib 90 mg vs placebo, taken just prior to the onset of fasting, during the first 2 weeks of Ramadan 2010. Healthy adults aged 18‐65 years were enrolled. Demographics, headache history and a daily post‐fast survey were collected. We compared incidence, time of onset, and intensity of headache on each day and side effects in control and treatment groups.Results.— We enrolled 222 patients and 189 completed the post‐fast questionnaire (87%). Etoricoxib reduced the incidence of “first of Ramadan” headache by 54% (46% in placebo group [n = 92] vs 21% [n = 96] in etoricoxib group) (P < .0001, OR 3.19 [95% CI 1.68‐6.06]). For days 1‐6, the mean number of headache days for the placebo group was 1.60 (n = 92) and for the treatment group the mean was 0.86 (n = 99) headache days (P = .003). Median severity of headache in the treatment group was significantly lower. In the second week, there was no significant difference in incidence of headache between groups, and the incidence of headache in the placebo group dropped markedly over time.Conclusion.— Etoricoxib 90 mg taken prior to a 15‐hour ritual fast decreases incidence of and attenuates headache during the first 5 days of the month of Ramadan.
Exploring the pattern of blood donor beliefs in first‐time, novice, and experienced donors: differentiating reluctant altruism, pure altruism, impure altruism, and warm glow
Authors: Ferguson Eamonn , Atsma Femke , de Kort Wim , Veldhuizen Ingrid 
Published: August 2011

BACKGROUND: Using constructs from the Theory of Planned Behavior and theories of altruism, this article explores how multiple motivations and beliefs for blood donation are clustered and change across the donor career. In so doing important distinctions, for blood donation, between impure altruism, pure altruism, and warm glow are explored.STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: Measures of intentions, cognitive and affective attitudes, role merger, pure altruism, trust, self‐efficacy, subjective and moral norms, and habit formation were assessed in a sample of 12,580 whole blood donors. Analyses showed that a distinction between first‐time, novice (one to four donations), and experienced donors (five or more donations) is justified. Principal components analysis and confirmatory factor analytic Multiple‐Indicator Multiple‐Causal models were used to compare models across these groups.RESULTS: A cognition‐behavior (CB) factor, including intentions, was common to all groups. First‐time and novice donors were marked by a newly identified motivational factor: “reluctant altruism” (i.e., the motivation to donate because of a lack of trust in others). First‐time donors exhibited an impure altruism factor whereas for experienced donors warm glow and pure altruism factors were observed. For first‐time donors impure altruism and reluctant altruism were both associated with the CB factor in females and impure altruism only in males. For both sexes reluctant altruism was associated of the CB factor in novice donors and warm glow and pure altruism for experienced donors.CONCLUSIONS: New avenues for intervention are suggested by the emergence of reluctant altruism for novice donors and warm glow for experienced donors. The importance of distinguishing aspects of altruism is highlighted.
Effect of dietary γ‐aminobutyric acid on laying performance, egg quality, immune activity and endocrine hormone in heat‐stressed Roman hens
Authors: ZHANG Min , ZOU Xiao‐ting , LI Hui , DONG Xin‐yang , ZHAO Wenjing 
Published: August 2011

ABSTRACTThis study was conducted to evaluate the effect of γ‐aminobutyric acid (GABA) on laying performance, egg quality, digestive enzyme activity, hormone level and immune activities in Roman hens under heat stress. Roman hens (320 days old) were fed with 0, 25, 50, 75 and 100 mg/kg GABA, respectively during a 60‐day experiment. Compared with control, supplementation of 50 mg/kg GABA improved the laying performance and egg quality by significantly increasing egg production, average egg weight and shell strength (P < 0.05), while decreasing the feed–egg ratio and cholesterol level. Anti‐oxidation activity was improved by significantly increasing the activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathione peroxidase (GSH‐Px), but decreasing malondialdehyde level in serum (P < 0.05), while significantly increasing the glucose and total protein (TP) level, follicle stimulating hormone (FSH), luteinizing hormone (LH), estradiol (E2), insulin, triiodothyronine (T3) and free triiodothyronine (FT3) levels, and IgG, IgA and complement (C3)activity in serum (P < 0.05). The results indicated that oral GABA improved laying performance and physical condition mainly by modulating hormone secretion, enhancing anti‐oxidation and immune activity, and maintaining electrolyte balance. Fifty mg/kg was the optimum level for laying hens under heat stress in the present study.
Effects of dietary lysine levels on apparent nutrient digestibility and cationic amino acid transporter mRNA abundance in the small intestine of finishing pigs, Sus scrofa
Authors: WANG Xiu‐Qi , ZENG Pei‐Ling , FENG You , ZHANG Chang‐Ming , YANG Jing‐Pei , SHU Gang , JIANG Qing‐Yan 
Published: August 2011

ABSTRACTOne hundred and twenty pigs were used to evaluate the effects of different dietary lysine levels on the growth performance, apparent nutrient digestibility, and abundance of cationic amino acid transporter messenger RNA (mRNA) in the small intestine of finishing pigs. Pigs received a low lysine diet (LL, 0.60% lysine), moderate lysine diet (ML, 0.80% lysine) or a high lysine diet (HL, 1.00% lysine) for 28 days. A digestion test was carried out during the third week. Although the apparent nutrient digestibility in pigs fed experimental diets were different (P < 0.05) and the highest when pigs were fed ML diet, diets did not change the growth performance. In the duodenum, mRNA abundance of PepT‐1, as detected by real‐time RT‐PCR, was reduced in the LL diet (P < 0.05). A greater abundance of b0,+AT and PepT‐1 mRNA was associated with the ML diet (P < 0.05) in the jejunum and ileum, respectively. In the ileum, the HL diet had a lower abundance of CAT‐1 mRNA compared with other diets. These results showed that the finishing pigs would gain better nutrient digestibility when the dietary lysine content was 0.80%, and dietary lysine levels influenced the expression of cationic amino acid transporter mRNA in the small intestine of finishing pigs.
Distribution, Characterization and Genetic Bases of Erythromycin Resistance in Staphylococci and Enterococci Originating from Livestock
Authors: Jaglic Z. , Vlkova H. , Bardon J. , Michu E. , Cervinkova D. , Babak V. 
Published: August 2011

SummaryThe occurrence of staphylococci and enterococci expressing increased resistance to erythromycin (ERY) and, in particular, to macrolide–lincosamide–streptogramin B (MLSB) antibiotics was investigated in dairy cattle, pigs and turkeys. Three hundred rectal (cloacal) swabs of each animal species were examined. A total of 120 and 71 staphylococci and enterococci, respectively, with increased resistance to ERY were identified. These were most frequent in turkeys (42.3% of positive animals), followed by pigs and dairy cattle (6.7% and 6.0% of positive animals, respectively). Similarly, MLSB‐resistant isolates colonized predominantly turkeys (29.7% of animals), while their occurrence in pigs and dairy cattle was only sporadic (0.8% of animals). At least one of the erm genes encoding for MLSB resistance was found in 56.7% and 69.0% of staphylococci and enterococci, respectively. The erm(C) gene prevailed in staphylococci while the erm(B) gene was predominant in enterococci. Macrolide efflux genes msr(A) and msr(C) were also frequent in staphylococci and enterococci, respectively. Macrolide inactivation gene mph(C) occurred mainly in staphylococci. In staphylococci, methicillin resistance was rarely detected (7.5% of isolates), but resistance to telithromycin (ketolides) was frequent in both staphylococci and enterococci (89.2% and 47.9% of isolates, respectively). This study showed that turkeys represent an important source of ERY (MLSB)‐resistant cocci. In addition, resistance to ketolides was also frequent.