bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Wheezing, asthma, hayfever, and atopic eczema in childhood following exposure to tobacco smoke in fetal life
Authors: Magnusson L. L. , Olesen A. B. , Wennborg H. , Olsen J. 
Published: August 2010

SummaryBackground
Prenatal maternal smoking has been associated with adverse respiratory effects in childhood such as lung deficits and wheezing, but results concerning asthma, hayfever, and atopic eczema are inconsistent.Objective
In the present study, we investigate the effects of maternal smoking in pregnancy on asthma, hayfever, atopic eczema, and wheezing in the offspring up to the age of 14–18.Methods
The study was based on a cohort of mothers enrolled during midwife visits around the 36th week of gestation in Odense and Aalborg, Denmark, 1984–1987. Singleton, live born children (n=11 144) were followed‐up in 2002 to obtain a childhood history of atopic diseases, by means of questionnaires to the parents. Multivariate logistic regression analyses for medical diagnoses of asthma, hayfever, atopic eczema, and symptoms of wheezing before the age of 3, were carried out on 7844 children.Results
After adjustment for confounders, late prenatal smoke exposure was associated with wheezing, with an odds ratio (OR) of 1.2, and a 95% confidence interval (CI) of 1.1–1.5. Furthermore, slightly reduced estimates for hayfever (OR 0.8, CI 0.7–1.0) and atopic eczema (OR 0.8, CI 0.7–0.9) were obtained for children exposed in late pregnancy compared with non‐exposed.Conclusion
Late gestational smoke exposure was associated with wheezing but not with asthma, while null or even protective estimates were indicated for hayfever and atopic eczema. However, lack of control options for hereditary factors may have affected the results.
Molecular characterization of a human immunoglobulin G4 antibody specific for the major birch pollen allergen, Bet v 1
Authors: Flicker S. , Steinberger P. , Eibensteiner P. B. , Lebecque S. , Kraft D. , Valenta R. 
Published: August 2010

SummaryBackground
Allergen‐specific IgG4 antibodies induced by specific immunotherapy are thought to represent a protective immune response.Objective
Our aim was the molecular characterization of a human IgG4 antibody (BAB5) specific for the major birch pollen allergen Bet v 1 that was derived from an immunotherapy‐treated patient.Methods
The cDNA coding for BAB5 was obtained by reverse transcriptase‐PCR from the BAB5‐producing cell line, compared with the germ line sequences and was expressed as a soluble antibody fragment in Escherichia coli. The epitope specificity and cross‐reactivity of BAB5 were investigated with recombinant and synthetic Bet v 1 fragments and Bet v 1 homologous allergens from pollen. The ability of BAB5 to block allergic patients IgE was determined by competition experiments and sandwich ELISA.Results
BAB5 is an affinity‐matured Bet v 1‐specific IgG4 antibody that reacts exclusively with Bet v 1 but not with Bet v 1‐related allergens. Unlike an earlier‐described monoclonal IgG1‐blocking antibody, BAB1, which had been isolated from the same patient, BAB5 did not block allergic patients' IgE reactivity to Bet v 1.Conclusion
Our study demonstrates that not all allergen‐specific IgG antibodies inhibit IgE recognition of allergens and can contribute to the success of immunotherapy. The epitope specificity and affinity of IgG antibodies but not their isotype are decisive for their protective activity.
Animal‐derived lipocalin allergens exhibit immunoglobulin E cross‐reactivity
Authors: Saarelainen S. , Rytkönen‐Nissinen M. , Rouvinen J. , Taivainen A. , Auriola S. , Kauppinen A. , Kinnunen T. , Virtanen T. 
Published: August 2010

SummaryBackground
Although knowledge of the IgE cross‐reactivity between allergens is important for understanding the mechanisms of allergy, the regulation of the allergic immune response and the development of efficient modes of allergen immunotherapy, the cross‐reactivity of animal allergens is poorly known.Objective
The aim of this study was to characterize IgE cross‐reactivities between lipocalin proteins, including five animal‐derived lipocalin allergens and one human endogenous lipocalin, tear lipocalin (TL).Methods
The recombinant proteins were validated by chromatography and mass spectrometry. The IgE‐binding capacity of the allergens was confirmed by IgE. immunoblotting and IgE immunoblot inhibition. IgE ELISA was performed with sera from 42 atopic patients and 21 control subjects. The IgE cross‐reactivities between the lipocalin proteins were determined by ELISA inhibition.Results
ELISA inhibition revealed IgE cross‐reactivities between Can f 1 and human TL, between Can f 1 and Can f 2, and between Equ c 1 and Mus m 1. Low levels of IgE to human TL were found in the sera of seven dog‐allergic patients of whom six were IgE‐positive for Can f 1.Conclusion
Several lipocalins exhibited IgE cross‐reactivity, probably due to the sequential identity of the proteins and also due to similarities in their three‐dimensional structures. The clinical significance of the findings needs to be elucidated. Low‐level IgE cross‐reactivity can play a role in regulating immune response to lipocalin allergens.
Clinical value of negative skin tests to iodinated contrast media
Authors: Caimmi S. , Benyahia B. , Suau D. , Bousquet‐Rouanet L. , Caimmi D. , Bousquet P.‐J. , Demoly P. 
Published: August 2010

AbstractBackground
Several studies have shown that skin tests are useful tools for the diagnosis of iodinated contrast medium (ICM) allergy, but the real number of false negative results is not known.Objective
To evaluate the negative predictive value of ICM skin tests.Material and Methods
One hundred and fifty‐nine patients tested in our department because of a previous ICM reaction over the last 9 years were called and asked standardized questions about ICM re‐exposure.Results
Twenty‐nine patients had been re‐exposed to ICM. There were 20 (69.0%) females and the median age was 55 (34–60) years. The median time interval between the reaction and skin testing was 11.9 (1.6–21.5) years. Twenty‐four patients (82%) had an immediate reaction, four a non‐immediate (13.8%) reaction and no data were available for one patient. Two patients had positive ICM skin tests previously and were re‐exposed to a negatively skin‐tested ICM and did not react. Only two patients presented a mild reaction during ICM re‐injection: one immediate (generalized urticaria lasting for 3 days) and one non‐immediate maculopapular reaction. The patient with urticaria was re‐tested and re‐challenged (negative). The other patient was unable to return for re‐testing.Conclusion
Skin testing for ICM hypersensitivity has a negative predictive value of 96.6% (95% CI: 89.9–103.2) and none of the reactions in skin‐test‐negative patients were severe. Multi‐centric large surveys are still needed for confirmation. Cite this as: S. Caimmi, B. Benyahia, D. Suau, L. Bousquet‐Rouanet, D. Caimmi, P.‐J. Bousquet and P. Demoly, Clinical & Experimental Allergy, 2010 (40) 805–810.
Analysis of a moisture characteristic curve employing a crystalline lattice of capillary pores
Authors: COX M. A. A. 
Published: August 2010

SummaryThe conventional method used to investigate the pore structure of a core of wet sand is to construct a moisture characteristic curve. The plot summarizes the dimensionless volume obtained from the sample at a given suction pressure. We assume here that pore diameters are selected from an arbitrary normal distribution. The problem of estimating the parameters of this distribution reduces to the solution of a quadratic equation and substitution of the resulting value into a polynomial. There is no necessity to plot the characteristic curve, the only values being needed are the first two moments of the raw distribution.
The use of horizontal piezometers for in situ measurements of hydraulic conductivity below the water table
Authors: GOSS M. J. , YOUNGS E. G. 
Published: August 2010

SummaryTo interpret experimental results from installations of horizontal piezometers for the purpose of obtaining in situ estimates of hydraulic conductivity of saturated soils below the water table, shape factors for a range of cylindrical cavities at the ends of piezometers were obtained using an electric analogue. Those for the particular piezometers used in a field experiment in a clay soil were obtained in the same way and found to be smaller because of the limited number of perforations in the tip forming the cavity. Hydraulic conductivity values obtained with the piezometers were similar to those obtained in laboratory measurements on undisturbed cores of the same soil.
The diffusion of two interacting solutes in soil
Authors: NYE P. H. 
Published: August 2010

SummaryEquations are developed to describe the diffusion of two solutes that react with each other in the soil. Examples of such systems are nutrient uptake by a root simultaneously releasing a solubilizing agent, and dissolution of a fertilizer having an acid‐base reaction with the soil. Illustrative analytical solutions of the equations are given for planar, cylindrical and spherical systems. The effect of increasing strength of a solubilizing agent on nutrient uptake by a root is examined.
On the reversibility of phosphate sorption by soils
Authors: BARROW N. J. 
Published: August 2010

SummarySorption of phosphate was induced by incubating phosphate with samples of two soils. Both desorption and further sorption of phosphate were then measured on separate subsamples of the incubated soils. The effects of varying the amount of phosphate incubated with the soil and of period of desorption, or of further sorption, were measured on one soil; the effect of period of incubation was measured on the other.Plots of desorbed phosphate versus concentration were continuous with plots of newly sorbed phosphate versus concentration. Neither of these coincided with the plots of the original additions of phosphate. These results were compatible with a model for the reaction between soil and phosphate in which phosphate is initially adsorbed and subsequently diffuses beneath the adsorbing surfaces.Sorption is reversible in the sense that a continuous curve of sorbed and desorbed phosphate is obtained when these are measured in opposite directions by increasing, or decreasing, the solution concentration of phosphate. However, because dynamic processes are involved, an earlier position of a plot of sorbed phosphate against concentration is not retraced when the concentration is changed.
Nitrogen interactions and crop uptake from fresh and composted15N‐labelled poultry manure
Authors: KIRCHMANN H. 
Published: August 2010

SUMMARY15N‐labelled poultry excrement was obtained by feeding chickens with15N‐labelled barley grain. The excrement produced was tested for uniformity of15N‐labelling; only small variations in the15N content were found, indicating uniform labelling. The excrement was mixed with straw to produce manures which were used in a pot experiment measuring uptake of labelled and unlabelled N by ryegrass from the mixture in both a fresh form and after a period of composting. Interactions of N pools differed between the two materials. Addition of composted manure to soil caused a larger uptake of unlabelled N by ryegrass, whereas fresh manure caused a smaller plant uptake of unlabelled N. The proportion of plant N coming from labelled N from fresh manure was 25.7% and from composted manure 3.8%. However, the contributions of the two manures to plant uptake of total N were 15.5% and 13.8%, respectively. The fresh manure, being a mixture of excrement and straw, is considered as a two‐component material, whereas composted manure is considered as a single component. It was concluded that the increase or decrease in the quantity of unlabelled, soil‐derived N in plants after manure addition was related to the amount of energy available in the different manures.
Ammonia volatilization from five nitrogen compounds used as fertilizers following surface application to soils
Authors: WHITEHEAD D. C. , RAISTRICK N. 
Published: August 2010

SUMMARYMeasurements were made of the volatilization of ammonia from mono‐ammonium phosphate (MAP), di‐ammonium phosphate (DAP), ammonium sulphate (AS), ammonium nitrate (AN) and urea, applied to the surface of five contrasting soils. The compounds were applied as solids, at a rate equivalent to 100 kg N ha−1, to samples of moist soil packed into columns (48 mm diameter) and placed individually in jars through which a stream of air was passed for a period of 8 d. Volatilization ranged from nil to 53% of the N applied, with both the nature of the compound and soil type having large effects. Taking all combinations into account, there was a close relationship between the extent of volatilization, expressed as a percentage of the ammonium or urea N, and the pH attained after 24 h by the corresponding mixtures of soil and compound. Using the results of these and other experiments, the proportion of fertilizer N volatilized as ammonia is estimated to be about 3.4% over the UK as a whole.
Influence of organic matter on phosphate adsorption by aluminium and iron oxides in sandy soils
Authors: BORGGAARD O. K. , JDRGENSEN S. S. , MOBERG J. P. , RABEN‐LANGE B. 
Published: August 2010

SUMMARYThe phosphate adsorption capacity (Pmax) of samples from various horizons of five Danish podzolized soils were investigated before and after organic matter removal. Removal of organic matter had no direct influence on Pmax suggesting that organic matter did not compete with phosphate for adsorption sites. In the soils investigated aluminium and iron oxides were the main phosphate adsorbents. Thus, more than 96% of the variation in Pmax could be accounted for by poorly crystalline aluminium and iron oxides (extractable by oxalate) and by well‐crystallized iron oxides (taken as the difference between dithionite‐citrate‐bicarbonate‐extractable iron and oxalate‐extractable iron).Organic matter affected phosphate adsorption indirectly by inhibiting aluminium oxide crystallization. The resulting poorly crystalline oxides had high Pmax. In contrast, the influence of organic matter on the crystallinity of the iron oxides, and therefore on their capacity to adsorb phosphate, seemed limited.
One equation to analyse the pH of soil systems
Authors: BOSATTA E. 
Published: August 2010

SUMMARYStarting from the basic equations of chemical equilibrium, an analytical mathematical expression is derived that relates pH to base saturation, concentration of acid anions (SO42−, NO3−, etc.) and other properties of the soil and soil solution. The equation is particularly valid in acid soils (low base saturation and relatively large, >100 μmolc dm−3, concentration of acid anions) in the range in which cation exchange is the buffering mechanism. Values of pH, alkalinity and degassed pH calculated with the aid of this equation compared well to values measured in three forest‐floor horizons; calculated pH values also compared well to values measured on a number of acid soils. The equation is also used to derive analytical mathematical expressions for alkalinity, soil leaching sensitivity (a measure of the sensitivity of a soil solution to become dominated by A13+), and other variables of interest in the context of acidification.
Use of scaling to quantify variability of heavy metal sorption isotherms
Authors: BÖTTCHER J. 
Published: August 2010

SummarySorption isotherms of heavy metals in soil often vary strongly from place to place in the field. Scaling might be useful to quantify the variability of such functional relations. Application of scaling to sorption isotherms requires a rule. In this paper the derivation of a scaling rule for sorption isotherms, based on a hypothesis of 'sorption similarity’, and its application to cadmium sorption isotherms measured in 25 fields on sandy soils are reported. Scale factors are calculated by least squares procedures. Scaling reduced the variation of the Cd isotherms, expressed as sum of squares about an average, by about 86%, preserving the variation through the calculated scale factors. Scaling of sorption isotherms requires no specific equation to fit the sorption data. The aforementioned average should be calculated as scale mean because of the theoretical stringency of this approach.
Incorporation studies of NH+4 during incubation of organic residues by l5N‐CPMAS‐NMR‐spectroscopy
Authors: KNICKER H. , LÜDEMANN H.‐D. , HAIDER K. 
Published: August 2010

SummaryThis study focuses on the processes occurring during incorporation of inorganic nitrogen into humic substances. Therefore rye grass, wheat straw, beech saw dust, sulphonated lignin and organosolve lignin were incubated together with highly 15N‐enriched ammonium sulphate in the laboratory for 600 days. Samples from the incubates were periodically analysed for weight loss, and carbon and nitrogen contents. The samples were also analysed by solid‐state 13C‐ and 15N‐CPMAS‐NMR‐spectroscopy to follow the turnover of the materials during incubation. Most of the detectable N‐signals was assigned to amide ‐ peptide structures. The remaining intensities could be ascribed to free and alkylated amino groups, and those on the low field side of the broad amide‐peptide signal to indole, pyrrole and nucleotide derivatives. Abiotic reactions of ammonia with suitable precursors and the formation of pyridine, pyrazine or phenyloxazone derivatives were not observed. Signals from ammonia and nitrate occurred only at the end of the incubation.
Hydrophobicity of organic matter in arable soils: influence of management
Authors: CAPRIEL P. 
Published: August 2010

SummaryThe affinity of soil organic matter for water influences resistance to microbial degradation, the rate of wetting and adsorption processes. Such properties play key roles in organic matter and microbial biomass dynamics, aggregate stability, water infiltration, leaching of organic and inorganic pollutants, chemical composition and the dynamics of dissolved organic matter (DOM). The hydrophobicity of the organic matter as a function of management have been studied in two soils with contrasting textures using diffuse reflectance infrared fourier transform spectroscopy (DRIFT). The results show that agricultural management clearly influences the amount of aliphatic C‐H units and implicitly the hydrophobicity of the soil organic matter. A decrease of organic C due to management is accompanied by a decrease of hydrophobicity as well as of soil microbial activity and aggregate stability. The hydrophobicity index is a sensitive quantity to characterize the‘quality’ of soil organic matter. DRIFT spectroscopy proves to be a rapid and reliable technique to determine quantitatively the hydrophobicity of soil organic matter.
Changes in solid‐ and solution‐phase phosphorus in soil on acidification
Authors: HARTIKAINEN H. , SIMOJOKI A. 
Published: August 2010

SummaryThere is confusion about the effects of acidification on soil P because its impact on sorption and on P dissolution have not been separated. We investigated these effects with two soils treated with H2SO4 by both percolation and batch titration methods. Repeated percolation with dilute acid removed less P than repeated percolation with water. In contrast, the more acid was added in the batch method the more P was released. The conflicting outcome was attributable to the differences in the closed and open systems; the solutions used to remove P differed in their ionic strength and composition. The Q/I plots and the fractionation analyses revealed that the P release and the changes in the dynamic relation between solid‐and solution‐phase P are a net effect of two coincident, but opposing reactions on oxide surfaces. As a result of acidification the sorption sites available on the Fe and Al oxide surfaces will diminish through the resorption of P dissolved by acid from the Ca‐bound fraction. This increase in the P saturation enhances the desorption tendency, which is counteracted by the protonation of the oxide surfaces enhancing the sorption affinity.
A modified method for the determination of quickly reacting aluminium
Authors: CLARKE N. , GUAN X. , GOBRAN G. R. 
Published: August 2010

SummaryCalculation of [Al3+] is necessary to understand geochemical processes involving aluminium. Quickly reacting aluminium is a quantity from which [Al3+] can be calculated. We have modified the method used to determine quickly reacting aluminium in soil leachates. The modifications consist of changing the reaction pH from 5·0 to 4·5 and increasing the reagent concentration from 4 to 12 mmol 1−1. The range of concentrations for which Beer's law applies has been increased up to 40 mg Al l−1 using a 20 μl injection volume. The sample throughput is 69–88 injections per hour, depending on concentration. A slight improvement in the buffering capacity has been obtained. The fractionation obtained is similar to that of the original method, except that a clearer separation is obtained for the complex AlHPO4+, enabling easier calculation of [Al3+].
Soil structural quality, compaction and land management
Authors: BALL B. C. , CAMPBELL D. J. , DOUGLAS J. T. , HENSHALL J. K. , O'SULLIVAN M. F. 
Published: August 2010

SummarySoil compaction is a concern worldwide, particularly where compactible soils are used for intensive agriculture in a wet climate. We have investigated the impact of compaction and the associated changes in soil structural qualities on crop production and environmental pollution. The overall objective was to develop soil management systems that provide suitable conditions for crop growth and minimize environmental damage. We ran large‐scale field experiments studying the preservation of structural quality in arable and permanent grassland, using management systems such as the control or elimination of field traffic and the application of conservation tillage and zero tillage. We measured bulk density, shear strength, cone resistance, macroporosity, relative diffusivity, air permeability and water infiltrability to identify soil qualities that could be used for selecting suitable soil management. Along with crop yield, we measured environmental impacts, such as the emissions of nitrous oxide from the soil, which require the interaction of soil structure and water content near the soil surface. Soil structure influenced wetness, which affected trafficability, compaction and nitrogen retention. Measurement of properties that affect fluid storage and transport, such as macroporosity, provided soil quality indices that helped in recommending suitable soil management systems. Spatial variation of structure associated with wheel‐track locations could be estimated rapidly using a cone penetrometer. Variation was particularly important in determining crop yield consistency. Crop productivity and soil structural qualities were preserved best when field traffic was eliminated. A reduced ground‐pressure system successfully minimized compaction in grassland but was less effective in an arable rotation. Unless traffic is eliminated, good timing of operations is the most effective way to preserve soil structural quality.