bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
APPLIED ISSUES: Exploring the response of functional indicators of stream health to land‐use gradients
Authors: CLAPCOTT JOANNE E. , YOUNG ROGER G. , GOODWIN ERIC O. , LEATHWICK JOHN R. 
Published: July 2010

Summary1. Broad‐scale assessment of stream health is often based on correlative relationships between catchment land‐use categories and measurements of stream biota or water chemistry. Few studies have attempted to characterise the response curves that describe how measures of ecosystem function change along gradients of catchment land use, or explored how these responses vary at broad spatial scales.2. In autumn 2008, we conducted a survey of 84 streams in three bioregions of New Zealand to assess the sensitivity of functional indicators to three land‐use gradients: percentage of native vegetation cover, percentage of impervious cover (IC) and predicted nitrogen (N) concentration. We examined these relationships using general linear models and boosted regression trees to explore monotonic, non‐monotonic and potential threshold components of the response curves.3. When viewing the responses to individual land‐use gradients, four of five functional indicators were positively correlated with the removal of native vegetation cover and N. In general, weaker and less responsive models were observed for the IC gradient. An analysis of the response to multiple stressors showed δ15N of primary consumers and gross primary productivity (GPP) to be the most responsive functional indicators to land‐use gradients. The multivariate models identified thresholds for change in the relationship between the functional indicators and all three land‐use gradients. Apparent thresholds were <10%IC, between 40 and 80% loss of native vegetation cover and at 0.5 and 3.2 mg L−1 N.4. The strength of regression models and the nature of the response curves suggest that measures of ecosystem function exhibit predictable relationships with land use. Furthermore, the responses of functional indicators varied little among three bioregions. This information provides a strong argument for the inclusion of functional indicators in a holistic assessment of stream health.
Life cycle complexity, environmental change and the emerging status of salmonid proliferative kidney disease
Authors: OKAMURA BETH , HARTIKAINEN HANNA , SCHMIDT‐POSTHAUS HEIKE , WAHLI THOMAS 
Published: July 2010

Summary1. Proliferative kidney disease (PKD) is a disease of salmonid fish caused by the endoparasitic myxozoan, Tetracapsuloides bryosalmonae, which uses freshwater bryozoans as primary hosts. Clinical PKD is characterised by a temperature‐dependent proliferative and inflammatory response to parasite stages in the kidney.2. Evidence that PKD is an emerging disease includes outbreaks in new regions, declines in Swiss brown trout populations and the adoption of expensive practices by fish farms to reduce heavy losses. Disease‐related mortality in wild fish populations is almost certainly underestimated because of e.g. oversight, scavenging by wild animals, misdiagnosis and fish stocking.3. PKD prevalences are spatially and temporally variable, range from 0 to 90–100% and are typically highest in juvenile fish.4. Laboratory and field studies demonstrate that (i) increasing temperatures enhance disease prevalence, severity and distribution and PKD‐related mortality; (ii) eutrophication may promote outbreaks. Both bryozoans and T. bryosalmonae stages in bryozoans undergo temperature‐ and nutrient‐driven proliferation.5. Tetracapsuloides bryosalmonae is likely to achieve persistent infection of highly clonal bryozoan hosts through vertical transmission, low virulence and host condition‐dependent cycling between covert and overt infections. Exploitation of fish hosts entails massive proliferation and spore production by stages that escape the immune response. Many aspects of the parasite’s life cycle remain obscure. If infectious stages are produced in all hosts then the complex life cycle includes multiple transmission routes.6. Patterns of disease outbreaks suggest that background, subclinical infections exist under normal environmental conditions. When conditions change, outbreaks may then occur in regions where infection was hitherto unsuspected.7. Environmental change is likely to cause PKD outbreaks in more northerly regions as warmer temperatures promote disease development, enhance bryozoan biomass and increase spore production, but may also reduce the geographical range of this unique multihost‐parasite system. Coevolutionary dynamics resulting from host–parasite interactions that maximise fitness in previous environments may pose problems for sustainability, particularly in view of extensive declines in salmonid populations and degradation of many freshwater habitats.
Searching for effective indicators of ecosystem function in urban streams: assessing cellulose decomposition potential
Authors: IMBERGER SAMANTHA J. , THOMPSON ROSS M. , GRACE MICHAEL R. 
Published: July 2010

Summary1. Urbanisation and landuse changes threaten the ecological integrity of rivers and streams globally. A major challenge in such impacted environments is to develop functional indicators for use by waterway managers. We first reviewed cellulose decomposition potential (CDP) as one such indicator, and here present current understanding and highlight the knowledge gaps which hinder its widespread incorporation into programmes monitoring stream health. In a field study, we also evaluated two differing cellulose materials (Shirley soil burial test material and unbleached calico) and measurement techniques.2. We also investigated the effects of urbanisation and riparian cover on CDP as a standardised indicator of ecosystem function. Cotton fabrics were deployed in paired open and closed reaches across six stream catchments varying in degree of urbanisation (in south‐eastern Australia). After 7, 14 and 21 days materials were retrieved and their decomposition assessed in conjunction with a number of physicochemical variables.3. We observed a strong positive relationship between the decomposition of Shirley and calico materials, thus indicating unbleached calico is an effective substitute for Shirley test cloth, which is no longer available.4. Across sites, CDP was positively correlated with ammonium concentrations and also, to a lesser extent, with filterable reactive phosphorus and sediment silt and clay content/carbon availability. Despite these relationships, cellulose decomposition was not correlated with urbanisation or riparian cover.5. Cellulose decomposition is a simple, rapid and sensitive functional indicator of water quality and associated anthropogenic landuse changes and is thus a valuable tool for monitoring stream health.
Antarctic echinoids and climate change: a major impact on the brooding forms
Authors: SEWELL MARY A. , HOFMANN GRETCHEN E. 
Published: July 2010

AbstractOcean acidification (OA) and the accompanying changes to carbonate concentrations are predicted to have especially negative impacts in the Southern Ocean where, as a result of colder temperatures, there will be shallowing of both the aragonite (ASH) and calcite saturation horizons (CSH). Echinoids are a dominant group of the Antarctic macrofauna which, because of their high‐Mg calcite skeleton, are particularly susceptible to changes in the ASH. Using published information on the bathymetric distributions of Antarctic echinoids, we show that the majority of heavily calcified echinoids have their lower bathymetric limit above a depth of ca. 3000 m, approximately the current depth of the CSH. Echinoids whose depth range extends below 3000 m generally have thin, weakly calcified tests and include species from the Order Holasteroida, and the Families Cidaridae and Schizasteridae. Examination of the reproductive mode of Antarctic echinoids shows that brooding, where calcification of the young occurs in the same CaCO3 environment as the mother, is primarily found at a depth above 3000 m. The predicted shallowing of the ASH and CSH under OA conditions is likely to negatively impact growth and reproduction of heavily calcified brooders in the Family Cidaridae, which may result in changes to bathymetric ranges, local population extinction, and associated losses in macrofaunal biodiversity. As with other calcified deep sea invertebrates, echinoids may be particularly vulnerable to the impacts of increased CO2 and OA in the Southern Ocean.
Proliferative, structural and molecular features of the Mdx mouse prostate
Authors: Pinto Leslie C. , Fávaro Wagner J. , Cagnon Valéria H. A. 
Published: July 2010

SummaryThe prostate is fundamental to the male reproductive process, and the stroma–epithelium interaction has an important role in prostate maintenance. Studies suggest that dystroglycan (DG) plays a role in cancer development in various organs. Thus, the aims of this work were to characterize morphological and proliferative features of the prostatic stroma and epithelium of mdx mice; to verify the immunolocalization of the α and β DG, IGF‐1 and laminin α3 receptors; and to relate those structural and molecular events to prostate pathogenesis and to verify the viability of this experimental model in prostate studies. Thirty male mice (mdx and C57BL10/Uni) were divided into control and mdx groups. Samples from the ventral prostate were collected for immunological, Western Blotting, transmission electron microscopy and morphometric analyses. Oestradiol and testosterone measurements were verified. The results showed diminished testosterone and increased oestradiol levels in the mdx group. Atrophied cells and hypertrophied stroma were seen in the mdx mice. Weak α and β DG and laminin α3 immunolocalization was demonstrated in the mdx group. Intense insulin‐like growth factor receptor α‐1 (IGFRα‐1) localization was identified in the mdx animals. Thus, mdx animals showed changes in molecular and structural integrity and proliferation signals, leading to glandular homoeostasis imbalance, and compromise of prostate function. Also, the steroid hormone imbalance and the increased IGF‐1 receptor level detected in mdx mice could be considered as a crucial factor in the pathogenesis of prostatic disorders.
Effects of ultrasound intensities on a glycin–maltose model system – a means of promoting Maillard reaction
Authors: Guan Yong‐Guang , Wang Jun , Yu Shu‐Juan , Xu Xian‐Bing , Zhu Si‐Ming 
Published: July 2010

SummaryEffects of ultrasound on pH, intermediate products, browning, maltose content, reducing power and antioxidant activity of a glycin–maltose solution were investigated. Results showed that the ultrasonic treatment at the intensity of 17.83 W cm−2 for 100 min resulted in the increases of the solution’s absorbance at 294 and 420 nm and the antioxidant activity from approximately 0% to 1.06%, 0.30% and 22.53%, respectively. At the same time, 86.93% reduction in maltose was observed. In addition, little 5‐hydroxymethyl‐2‐furaldehyde was found in HPLC analyses. This study indicated that ultrasound, especially at higher intensities, could potentially be employed as a means to promote the Maillard reaction in the glycin–maltose solution.
Do invasive species undergo metapopulation dynamics? A case study of the invasive Caspian gull, Larus cachinnans, in Poland
Authors: Lenda Magdalena , Zagalska‐Neubauer Magdalena , Neubauer Grzegorz , Skórka Piotr 
Published: July 2010

AbstractAim  The mechanisms of initial dispersal and habitat occupancy by invasive alien species are fundamental ecological problems. Most tests of metapopulation theory are performed on local population systems that are stable or in decline. In the current study we were interested in the usefulness of metapopulation theory to study patch occupancy, local colonization, extinction and the abundance of the invasive Caspian gull (Larus cachinnans) in its initial invasion stages.Location  Waterbodies in Poland.Methods  Characteristics of the habitat patches (waterbodies, 35 in total) occupied by breeding pairs of Caspian gulls and an equal sample of randomly selected unoccupied patches were compared with t‐tests. Based on presence–absence data from 1989 to 2006 we analysed factors affecting the probability of local colonization, extinction and the size of local populations using generalized linear models.Results  Occupied habitat patches were significantly larger and less isolated (from other habitat patches and other local populations) and were located closer to rivers than empty patches. The proximity of local food resources (fish ponds, refuse dumps) positively affected the occurrence of breeding pairs. The probability of colonization was positively affected by patch area, and negatively by distances to fish ponds, nearest habitat patch, nearest breeding colony and to a river, and by higher forest cover around the patch boundaries. The probability of extinction was lower in patches with a higher number of breeding pairs and with a greater area of islets. The extinction probability increased with distances to other local populations, other habitat patches, fish ponds and to refuse dumps and with a higher cover of forest around the patch boundaries. The size of the local population decreased with distances to the nearest habitat patch, local population, river, fish pond and refuse dump. Local abundance was also positively affected by the area of islets in the patch.Main conclusions  During the initial stages of the invasion of Caspian gulls in Poland the species underwent metapopulation‐like dynamics with frequent extinctions from colonized habitat patches. The results prove that metapopulation theory may be a useful conceptual framework for predicting which habitats are more vulnerable to invasion.
The wide but disjunct range of the European mountain plant Androsace lactea L. (Primulaceae) reflects Late Pleistocene range fragmentation and post‐glacial distributional stasis
Authors: Schneeweiss G. M. , Schönswetter P. 
Published: July 2010

AbstractAim  Our aim was to reconstruct the spatio‐temporal genetic diversification of Androsace lactea, a widely but disjunctly distributed European mountain plant, to test the hypothesis that its distribution is the result of vicariance, in the late Tertiary or during the Pleistocene, or alternatively of long‐distance dispersal. We also addressed the phylogeographic history of the Alps, emphasizing the role of Pleistocene refugia at their northern margin.Location  The central and southern European mountain ranges.Methods  We gathered amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) data and plastid DNA sequences from one to four individuals of each of 26 populations spanning the entire distribution area. AFLP data were analysed with Bayesian clustering approaches, neighbour‐joining analysis and NeighbourNet. Plastid sequences were used to depict relationships among haplotypes in a statistical parsimony network, to test for population expansions, and to obtain age estimates in a Bayesian framework.Results  The AFLP data suggested that many populations were genetically strongly differentiated. The internal structure, however, was weak, and only two major groups of populations, from the north‐western Alps and adjacent regions and from the easternmost Alps, were supported in the neighbour‐joining analysis. One of the Bayesian clustering approaches differentiated three groups of populations: Northern Alps, easternmost Alps and the remaining distribution area. Eleven closely related plastid haplotypes were found, separated by maximally four mutational steps, resulting in a star‐like parsimony network. None of several estimators suggested statistically significant population expansions. The diversification age was inferred to be (mean/median) 0.135/0.08 Ma (95% highest posterior density interval 0.364–0.006 Ma).Main conclusions  We found no evidence that long‐distance dispersal shaped the disjunct distribution range; our data rather favoured a vicariance scenario. However, in contrast to the hypothesis that wide but disjunct distributions are old, we conclude that range fragmentation probably happened in the Late Pleistocene, perhaps during the last glaciation. In the Alps, most populations are at least close to formerly unglaciated areas. Our data support distributional stasis and suggest that important refugia were situated at the north‐eastern, but also at the northern and north‐western edges of the Alps, thereby strengthening the evidence for glacial refugia in this strongly glaciated region.
A community of practice: the nurses’ role on a medical assessment unit
Authors: Griffiths Pauline 
Published: July 2010

Aim.  To explore the nurses’ role on a medical assessment unit.Background.  Medical assessment units facilitate the acceptance of medical emergencies to one dedicated clinical space and are a response to politically driven strategies to enhance the provision of acute medical care in the UK. Despite the essential contribution that nurses make, there is a paucity of research‐based literature that has investigated the nurses’ role in these units.Design.  An ethnographic study of a medical assessment unit in Wales, UK.Method.  Data were collected over a three‐year period from 2003–2006 by participant observation (200 hours) with the researcher, a registered nurse and university lecturer, working alongside the nurses as a contributor to care delivery, semi‐structured interviews with nurses, doctors, paramedics and patients (n = 19) and the collection of documentary and artefact evidence.Results.  Three main themes were identified: ‘making beds’: organising the clinical space; ‘knowing your stuff’: having professional knowledge; and ‘loving the buzz’: having the ability to work under pressure.Conclusion.  A distinctive community of practice had developed to satisfy the workplace demands that the nurses faced in a culture that valued autonomous practice and provided a positive working environment. However, a cautionary note must be raised in that new approaches to care delivery, such as medical assessment units, whilst being operationally efficient, may not reflect a nursing ethos of holistic and individualised care delivery.Relevance to clinical practice.  The concept of community of practice aids the exploration of the interplay of the goals of practice and the attendant social relations developed in nursing teams. Findings from this study have identified aspects of the role of the nurse in a medical assessment unit setting and so can help inform educational programmes. Further research is required to enable the development of this distinctive nursing role.
Chemical surface disinfection of eggs of Baltic cod, Gadus morhua L.
Authors: Overton J L , Bruun M S , Dalsgaard I 
Published: July 2010

AbstractThe effect of two disinfectants on eggs and larvae of Baltic cod, Gadus morhua, was investigated. The eggs were disinfected for 10 min using various concentrations of either glutaraldehyde (100, 200, 400, 600 and 800 mg L−1) or iodophor (10, 50, 100 and 150 mg L−1), 1–4‐days post‐fertilization. Bactericidal effect of disinfection, survival to hatching, hatching success and larval abnormalities were assessed. Larval survival was recorded at 5‐, 10‐ and 15‐days post‐hatch (dph). Although Baltic cod eggs have an unusually thin chorion, they could tolerate surface disinfection. A reduction in bacterial growth was observed with increased concentrations of disinfectant (3.0 × 107–1.6 × 101 CFU mL−1). Abnormalities in newly hatched larvae were not related to disinfection. Survival of the yolk sac larvae was significantly better for eggs treated with 400 mg L−1 glutaraldehyde for 10 min at 10 and 15 dph. Effective disinfection was also recorded using 100 mg L−1 Actomar K30. Egg batch effect rather than initial bacterial concentration, disinfectant type or incubation method determined the survival of the eggs to hatching and survival of larvae. Because of the carcinogenic effect of glutaraldehyde, iodophor is recommended for routine disinfection of cod eggs.
Comorbidity of Asperger syndrome: a preliminary report
Authors: Ghaziuddin M. , Weidmer‐Mikhail E. , Ghaziuddin N. 
Published: July 2010

AbstractAsperger syndrome (AS) is a pervasive developmental disorder characterized by autistic social dysfunction and idiosyncratic interests in the presence of normal intelligence. There is no history of language delay. Although people with AS are known to suffer from comorbid psychiatric conditions, few studies have systematically addressed this topic. This preliminary report describes the occurrence of psychiatric disorders in a series of patients with AS diagnosed according to the ICD‐10/DSM‐IV criteria. Out of 35 patients (29 males and six females; mean age 15.1 years; mean verbal IQ 105.9; mean performance IQ 97.5; mean full‐scale IQ 102.7), 23 patients (65%) presented with symptoms of an additional psychiatric disorder at the time of evaluation or during the 2‐year follow‐up. Children were most likely to suffer from attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, while depression was the most common diagnosis in adolescents and adults. The implications of these findings are discussed.
Orthostatic hypotension and long‐term incidence of atrial fibrillation: the malmö preventive project
Authors: Fedorowski A. , Hedblad B. , Engström G. , Gustav Smith J. , Melander O. 
Published: July 2010

Abstract.  Fedorowski A, Hedblad B, Engström G, Gustav Smith J, Melander O (Department of Clinical Sciences, Lund University, Malmö; and Skåne University Hospital, Malmö, Sweden). Orthostatic hypotension and long‐term incidence of atrial fibrillation: the Malmö Preventive Project. J Intern Med 2010; 268: 383–389.Objectives.  Orthostatic hypotension (OH), a common manifestation of autonomic dysfunction, has been identified as an independent risk factor for all‐cause mortality and incident cardiovascular disease. However, the role of OH in the development of atrial fibrillation has not been studied.Design.  We investigated the incidence of atrial fibrillation in relation to baseline presence of OH according to international consensus criteria in the Swedish population‐based prospective cohort of the Malmö Preventive Project. The study sample consisted of 33 346 individuals (67.3% men; mean age, 45.6 ± 7.4 years; range, 26–61 years). The association between OH and incidence of atrial fibrillation during follow‐up was assessed using the Kaplan–Meier method and multivariable Cox proportional hazard models, taking into account conventional risk factors for atrial fibrillation.Results.  At baseline, 1987 participants (6.1%) met the diagnostic criteria for OH. Over a follow‐up period of approximately 24 years, 2312 individuals (3.0 events/1000 person‐years) were diagnosed with new‐onset atrial fibrillation. Of these, 196 had OH at baseline (4.6 events/1000 person‐years amongst all OH‐positive individuals). In a multivariable Cox regression analysis, OH predicted incidence of atrial fibrillation independently of other risk factors (hazard ratio [HR]: 1.30; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.05–1.61; P = 0.016), and this association was significant in hypertensive (HR: 1.44; 95%CI: 1.10–1.88; P = 0.008), but not in normotensive participants (HR: 1.10; 95%CI: 0.77–1.58; P = 0.60).Conclusions.  The presence of OH predicts the incidence of atrial fibrillation in middle‐aged hypertensive individuals, independently of conventional risk factors. Further studies of the association of autonomic dysfunction and OH with atrial fibrillation are needed.