bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Serum level of immunoglobulin E during pregnancy – does offspring sex matter?
Authors: Løken Mari Overn , Jeansson Stig , Jenum Pål A. , Eskild Anne 
Published: December 2009

SummaryLøken MO, Jeansson S, Jenum PA, Eskild A. Serum level of immunoglobulin E during pregnancy – does offspring sex matter? Paediatric and Perinatal Epidemiology 2010; 24: 75–78.We assessed maternal serum levels of total immunoglobulin E (IgE) in the first, second and third trimester and changes in total IgE levels from first to third trimester in relation to offspring sex. Within a cohort of 29 948 pregnant women, 392 women without a history of pre‐eclampsia and with a liveborn child were randomly selected. Information on offspring sex was obtained through linkage to the Medical Birth Registry of Norway. Blood samples from each trimester were analysed for total IgE concentration. Differences in mean levels according to offspring sex were estimated and changes in total IgE levels from first to third trimester were assessed.In all three trimesters there was a tendency of women carrying a male fetus to have a higher mean total IgE level, but significant statistical differences were not reached. The total IgE concentration decreased during pregnancy, but the decrement was less in women carrying a male fetus compared with those who carried a female fetus.
Species‐specific activation time‐lags can explain habitat restrictions in hydrophilic lichens
Authors: LIDÉN MARLENE , JONSSON ČABRAJIĆ ANNA V. , OTTOSSON‐LÖFVENIUS MIKAELL , PALMQVIST KRISTIN , LUNDMARK TOMAS 
Published: December 2009

ABSTRACTPhotosystem II (PSII) activation after hydration with water or humid air was measured in four hydrophilic and a generalist lichen to test the hypothesis that slow activation might explain habitat restriction in the former group. For the hydrophilic species, activation was after 4 h nearly completed in Lobaria amplissima and Platismatia norvegica, while only c. 50% for Bryoria bicolor and Usnea longissima. The generalist Platismatia glauca was activated instantaneously. The effect of this on lichen field performance was investigated using a dynamic model separating the two water sources rain and humid air. Model simulations were made using the species‐specific characteristics and climate data from 12 stream microhabitats. For U. longissima, slow PSII activation could reduce realized photosynthesis by a factor of five. Bryoria bicolor was almost as severely affected, while P. norvegica displayed moderate reductions. Lobaria amplissima displayed longer realized activity periods even in unfavourable microclimates, possibly because of a higher water loss resistance. Both close proximity to streams and presence of turbulent water had a positive impact on realized activity among the slowly activated species, coinciding with observed distribution patterns of hydrophilic species. The results presented here may thus partly explain observed habitat restrictions of rare hydrophilic lichens.
Do photosynthetic limitations of evergreen Quercus ilex leaves change with long‐term increased drought severity?
Authors: LIMOUSIN JEAN‐MARC , MISSON LAURENT , LAVOIR ANNE‐VIOLETTE , MARTIN NICOLAS K. , RAMBAL SERGE 
Published: December 2009

ABSTRACTSeasonal drought can severely impact leaf photosynthetic capacity. This is particularly important for Mediterranean forests, where precipitation is expected to decrease as a consequence of climate change. Impacts of increased drought on the photosynthetic capacity of the evergreen Quercus ilex were studied for two years in a mature forest submitted to long‐term throughfall exclusion. Gas exchange and chlorophyll fluorescence were measured on two successive leaf cohorts in a control and a dry plot. Exclusion significantly reduced leaf water potential in the dry treatment. In both treatments, light‐saturated net assimilation rate (Amax), stomatal conductance (gs), maximum carboxylation rate (Vcmax), maximum rate of electron transport (Jmax), mesophyll conductance to CO2 (gm) and nitrogen investment in photosynthesis decreased markedly with soil water limitation during summer. The relationships between leaf photosynthetic parameters and leaf water potential remained identical in the two treatments. Leaf and canopy acclimation to progressive, long‐term drought occurred through changes in leaf area index, leaf mass per area and leaf chemical composition, but not through modifications of physiological parameters.
Behavioural differences between male and female carpenter bees in nectar robbing and its effect on reproductive success in Glechoma longituba (Lamiaceae)
Authors: Zhang Y.‐W. , Zhao J.‐M. , Yang C.‐F. , Gituru W. R. 
Published: December 2009

AbstractMale and female nectar robbers may show significantly different behaviour on host plants and thus have different impacts on reproductive fitness of the plants. A 4‐year study in natural populations of Glechoma longituba has shown that male carpenter bees (Xylocopa sinensis) are responsible for most of the nectar robbing from these flowers, while female bees account for little nectar robbing, demonstrating distinct behavioural differentiation between male and female bees in visiting flowers. The smaller male bee spends less time visiting a single flower than the larger female bee, consequently, the male bee is capable of visiting more flowers per unit time and has a higher foraging efficiency. Moreover, the robbing behaviour of female carpenter bees is more destructive and affects flower structures (ovules and nectaries) and floral life‐span more than that of the male bee. According to the energy trade‐off hypothesis, the net energy gain for male bees during nectar robbing greatly surpasses energy payout (17.72 versus 2.43 J), while the female bee net energy gain is barely adequate to meet energy payout per unit time (3.78 versus 2.39 J). The differences in net energy gain for male and female bees per unit time in nectar robbing are the likely cause of observed behavioural differences between the sexes. The differences in food resource preference between male and female bees constitute an optimal resource allocation pattern that enables the visitors to utilise floral resources more efficiently.
Salinity tolerance of Populus
Authors: Chen S. , Polle A. 
Published: December 2009

AbstractThe genus Populus has a wide distribution in different climatic zones. Besides its economic and ecological relevance, Populus also serves as a model for elucidating physiological and molecular mechanisms of stress tolerance in tree species. In this review, adaptation strategies of poplars to excess soil salinity are addressed at different scales, from the cellular to the whole‐plant level. Striking differences in salt tolerance exist among different poplar species and ecotypes, with Populus euphratica being outstanding in this respect. Key mechanisms identified in this species to mediate salt tolerance are compartmentalisation of Cl− in the vacuoles of the root cortex cells, diminished xylem loading of NaCl, activation of Na+ extrusion into the soil solution under stress, together with simultaneously avoiding excessive K+ loss by regulation of depolarisation‐activated cation channels. This leads to improved maintenance of the K+/Na+ balance, a crucial precondition for survival under salt stress. Leaf cells of this species are able to compartmentalise Na+ preferentially in the apoplast, whereas in susceptible poplar species, as well as in crop plants, vacuolar Na+ deposition precedes apoplastic transport. ABA, Ca2+and ROS are involved in stress sensing, with higher or faster activation of defences in tolerant than in susceptible poplar species. P. euphratica develops leaf succulence after prolonged salt exposure as a plastic morphological adaptation that leads to salt dilution. Transgenic approaches to improve salt tolerance by transformation of candidate genes have had limited success, since salt tolerance is a multigenic trait. In future attempts towards increased salt resistance, barriers between different poplar sections must be overcome and application of novel biotechnological tools, such as gene stacking, are recommended.
Iodopovidone is as effective as doxycycline in producing pleurodesis in rabbits
Authors: GUO Yubiao , TANG Kejing , BILACEROGLU Semra , KALOMENIDIS Ioannis , SALLENG Kenneth J. , LANE Kirk B. , LIGHT Richard W. 
Published: December 2009

ABSTRACTBackground and objective:  The mechanism by which iodopovidone achieves pleurodesis is unknown. This study investigated whether iodopovidone is as effective as doxycycline in producing pleurodesis and whether systemic corticosteroids diminish its efficacy.Methods:  Four groups of seven New Zealand rabbits were assigned to the following intrapleural treatment groups: 2 mL of 2% iodopovidone, 2 mL of 4% iodopovidone, 2 mL of 4% iodopovidone plus 0.8 mg/kg triamcinolone intramuscularly weekly and 10 mL/kg doxycycline in 2 mL. Pleural fluid was collected 24, 48 and 72 h after intrapleural injections and analysed for WCC, protein and LDH levels. The rabbits were killed 2 weeks after the injections. Pleurodesis was graded macroscopically on a scale from 1 to 8. The degree of microscopic pleural fibrosis and pleural inflammation was graded from the HE stain slides.Results:  The mean volume of pleural fluid as well as the mean total WCC was significantly lower in the steroid‐treated group than in the other groups. The degree of the resulting pleurodesis was similar in the 2% iodopovidone (7.00 ± 1.29), 4% iodopovidone (7.71 ± 0.76) and doxycycline (7.14 ± 0.90) groups (P > 0.05) whereas the pleurodesis score of the steroid group (3.71 ± 1.98) was significantly lower than all other groups (P < 0.05). The degree of microscopic pleural fibrosis and pleural inflammation was significantly lower in the steroid group than in the 2% iodopovidone or 4% iodopovidone group.Conclusions:  Both 2% and 4% iodopovidone can induce pleurodesis as efficaciously as doxycycline in rabbits. Systemic corticosteroids significantly decrease the efficacy of iodopovidone in producing pleurodesis.
Current clinical trials for the treatment of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis
Authors: KLINGSBERG Ross C. , MUTSAERS Steven E. , LASKY Joseph A. 
Published: December 2009

ABSTRACTMost pulmonary consultants are called upon to discuss IPF management with their patients. The gravity of IPF treatment discussion is immense in view of the data that 3‐ and 5‐year mortality rates are approximately 50% and 80%, respectively. Although IPF occurs in older patients with comorbid diseases, most patients with IPF die as a direct consequence of their lung fibrosis. Here, the results of recently completed IPF trials and the rationale for ongoing studies are succinctly reviewed. There are a number of novel agents in clinical trials that are in the earlier stages of development, and there is new evidence supporting palliative therapies, which may help in managing symptoms of IPF, such as cough, without necessarily altering the course of the disease. The information provided herein should facilitate informed physician–patient dialogue.
Public health management of pandemic (H1N1) 2009 infection in Australia: A failure!
Authors: WATERER Grant W. , HUI David S. , JENKINS Christine R. 
Published: December 2009

ABSTRACTIn April 2009, severe cases of pneumonia preceded by influenza‐like illness were noted to occur in Mexico and North America. A novel influenza A (H1N1) virus was identified as the cause and it rapidly evolved into a pandemic, leading to a large number of cases in Australia despite implementation of public health control measures. In this paper, two senior academics discuss the management of pandemic (H1N1) 2009 infection in Australia from the public health perspective.
The impact of case discussion at a multidisciplinary team meeting on the treatment and survival of patients with inoperable non‐small cell lung cancer
Authors: Bydder S. , Nowak A. , Marion K. , Phillips M. , Atun R. 
Published: December 2009

AbstractPatients with inoperable non‐small cell lung cancer diagnosed and managed at a single institution over a one‐year period were identified. Those whose case had been discussed at a multidisciplinary meeting had better survival than those whose case was not discussed (mean survival; 280 days vs. 205 days, log‐rank P= 0.048).
Spontaneous spinal infections in older people
Authors: Hutchinson C. , Hanger C. , Wilkinson T. , Sainsbury R. , Pithie A. 
Published: December 2009

AbstractBack pain is common in the elderly. Spinal infection is a rare, but possibly increasing, cause. We describe a retrospective case note review of 41 patients aged 65 years and over with spontaneous spinal infections over a 6‐year period. The incidence was 9.8/100 000/year. Staphylococcus aureus was the most common isolate. The mean time from symptom onset to diagnosis was 34 days. Most patients presented with back pain and elevated CRP. Differentiation between discitis and other spinal infections does not appear to be important, as clinical characteristics and outcomes are similar.
The prognostic values of soft tissue sonography for adult cellulitis without pus or abscess formation
Authors: Huang M.‐N. , Chang Y.‐C. , Wu C.‐H. , Hsieh S.‐C. , Yu C.‐L. 
Published: December 2009

AbstractThe current practice for cellulitis in diagnosis and treatment is mainly based on subjective clinical judgement without validated objective guidance. For patients with non‐purulent cellulitis needing intravenous antibiotic treatment in hospital, we found soft tissue sonography performed around 4 days after initiation of antibiotics might have prognostic values. The patients with soft tissue sonographic pattern of subcutaneous thickening alone had shorter duration of antibiotic treatment and higher rate of early treatment response to antibiotics than those with the pattern of cobblestone appearance. Larger‐scale research may be warranted to validate the prognostic roles of sonography in cellulitis management.
Registering wishes about organ and tissue donation: personal discussion during licence renewal may be superior to online registration
Authors: Lawlor M. , Kerridge I. 
Published: December 2009

AbstractConsent to organ and tissue donation is higher when the deceased has indicated a wish to donate. The Australian Organ Donor Register (AODR) is the national register of preferences regarding donation. The AODR has a number of limitations; it has no mechanism for requiring individuals to register their wishes, while the online format both raises concerns about the validity of the consent obtained and precludes personal discussion of fears and concerns about donation. A solution to these limitations is to utilize state‐based agencies that administer driving licences. This strategy ties the donation decision to an existing task (renewal of driving licences), and provides an opportunity for a personalized intervention at the time the decision is being made.
Effect of environmental variables on eukaryotic microbial community structure of land‐fast Arctic sea ice
Authors: Eddie Brian , Juhl Andrew , Krembs Christopher , Baysinger Charles , Neuer Susanne 
Published: December 2009

SummarySea ice microbial community structure affects carbon and nutrient cycling in polar seas, but its susceptibility to changing environmental conditions is not well understood. We studied the eukaryotic microbial community in sea ice cores recovered near Point Barrow, AK in May 2006 by documenting the composition of the community in relation to vertical depth within the cores, as well as light availability (mainly as variable snow cover) and nutrient concentrations. We applied a combination of epifluorescence microscopy, denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis and clone libraries of a section of the 18S rRNA gene in order to compare the community structure of the major eukaryotic microbial phylotypes in the ice. We find that the community composition of the sea ice is more affected by the depth horizon in the ice than by light availability, although there are significant differences in the abundance of some groups between light regimes. Epifluorescence microscopy shows a shift from predominantly heterotrophic life styles in the upper ice to autotrophy prevailing in the bottom ice. This is supported by the statistical analysis of the similarity between the samples based on the denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis banding patterns, which shows a clear difference between upper and lower ice sections with respect to phylotypes and their proportional abundance. Clone libraries constructed using diatom‐specific primers confirm the high diversity of diatoms in the sea ice, and support the microscopic counts. Evidence of protistan grazing upon diatoms was also found in lower sections of the core, with implications for carbon and nutrient recycling in the ice.
Reforming the European Common Fisheries Policy: a case for capacity and effort controls
Authors: Cotter John 
Published: December 2009

AbstractI summarize the total allowable catch (TAC) fishery management system, which forms part of the European Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) as complicated, inaccurate and ineffective. Total allowable effort (TAE), i.e. limits on fishing capacity and days‐at‐sea, provides a simpler, readily enforceable control to protect all species affected by a fishery. Fishing capacity of vessels in each region‐gear fleet could be capped through limits on engine power, gear, crew, and fittings, and/or reducing allowances of days‐at‐sea for large, powerful vessels. Two basic, fishery‐dependent indicators are put forward to assess sustainability of a fishery dependably even in the absence of fishery‐independent data. One is socio‐economic, the other is ecological. Fishery working groups within each marine region would recommend a TAE to sustain their fishery while also protecting the most critically affected species or processes. Regional working groups would supervise a consistent approach across the different fisheries in their region. A pan‐European group would set policy, implement external agreements, set rules for trading TAE if necessary and harmonize fishing opportunities across regions. To ease negotiations on TAEs with the fishing industry when an ecosystem needs to recover, I propose compensation payments funded by re‐direction of existing CFP subsidies that promote fishing.
Tobacco as a production platform for biofuel: overexpression of Arabidopsis DGAT and LEC2 genes increases accumulation and shifts the composition of lipids in green biomass
Authors: Andrianov Vyacheslav , Borisjuk Nikolai , Pogrebnyak Natalia , Brinker Anita , Dixon Joseph , Spitsin Sergei , Flynn John , Matyszczuk Paulina , Andryszak Karolina , Laurelli Marilyn , Golovkin Maxim , Koprowski Hilary 
Published: December 2009

SummaryWhen grown for energy production instead for smoking, tobacco can generate a large amount of inexpensive biomass more efficiently than almost any other agricultural crop. Tobacco possesses potent oil biosynthesis machinery and can accumulate up to 40% of seed weight in oil. In this work, we explored two metabolic engineering approaches to enhance the oil content in tobacco green tissues for potential biofuel production. First, an Arabidopsis thaliana gene diacylglycerol acyltransferase (DGAT) coding for a key enzyme in triacylglycerol (TAG) biosynthesis, was expressed in tobacco under the control of a strong ribulose‐biphosphate carboxylase small subunit promoter. This modification led to up to a 20‐fold increase in TAG accumulation in tobacco leaves and translated into an overall of about a twofold increase in extracted fatty acids (FA) up to 5.8% of dry biomass in Nicotiana tabacum cv Wisconsin, and up to 6% in high‐sugar tobacco variety NC‐55. Modified tobacco plants also contained elevated amounts of phospholipids. This increase in lipids was accompanied by a shift in the FA composition favourable for their utilization as biodiesel. Second, we expressed in tobacco Arabidopsis gene LEAFY COTYLEDON 2 (LEC2), a master regulator of seed maturation and seed oil storage under the control of an inducible Alc promoter. Stimulation of LEC2 expression in mature tobacco plants by acetaldehyde led to the accumulation of up to 6.8% per dry weight of total extracted FA. The obtained data reveal the potential of metabolically modified plant biomass for the production of biofuel.
Development of motion processing in children with autism
Authors: Annaz Dagmara , Remington Anna , Milne Elizabeth , Coleman Mike , Campbell Ruth , Thomas Michael S. C. , Swettenham John 
Published: December 2009

AbstractRecent findings suggest that children with autism may be impaired in the perception of biological motion from moving point‐light displays. Some children with autism also have abnormally high motion coherence thresholds. In the current study we tested a group of children with autism and a group of typically developing children aged 5 to 12 years of age on several motion perception tasks, in order to establish the specificity of the biological motion deficit in relation to other visual discrimination skills. The first task required the recognition of biological from scrambled motion. Three quasi‐psychophysical tasks then established individual thresholds for the detection of biological motion in dynamic noise, of motion coherence and of form‐from‐motion. Lastly, individual thresholds for a task of static perception – contour integration (Gabor displays) – were also obtained. Compared to controls, children with autism were particularly impaired in processing biological motion in relation to any developmental measure (chronological or mental age). In contrast, there was some developmental overlap in ability to process other types of visual motion between typically developing children and the children with autism, and evidence of developmental change in both groups. Finally, Gabor display thresholds appeared to develop typically in children with autism.
Metabolic surgery: an evolution through bariatric animal models
Authors: Ashrafian H. , Bueter M. , Ahmed K. , Suliman A. , Bloom S. R. , Darzi A. , Athanasiou T. 
Published: December 2009

SummaryMetabolic surgery was developed through the application and experience gained from bariatric or weight loss procedures. Much of our knowledge from the procedures comes from the study of animal models, where they have revealed anatomic feasibility, systemic physiological elements and cellular metabolic effects. The first generation of operation included the jejunoileal bypass and partial ileal bypass that led to the development of the current procedures including Roux‐en‐Y gastric bypass, biliopancreatic diversion, adjustable gastric banding and sleeve gastrectomy. These operations carry significant metabolic benefits and can reduce the risk of diabetes, heart disease and cancer. Further insights from these animal models can reveal genetic, molecular and systemic effects that can enhance and develop the next generation of metabolic operations.
PROCREATIVE BENEFICENCE – CUI BONO?
Authors: ELSTER JAKOB 
Published: December 2009

ABSTRACTRecently, Julian Savulescu and Guy Kahane have defended the Principle of Procreative Beneficence (PB), according to which prospective parents ought to select children with the view that their future child has ‘the best chance of the best life’. I argue that the arguments Savulescu and Kahane adduce in favour of PB equally well support what I call the Principle of General Procreative Beneficence (GPB). GPB states that couples ought to select children in view of maximizing the overall expected value in the world, not just the welfare of their future child. I further argue that Savulescu and Kahane's claim that PB has significantly more weight than competing moral principles, such as GPB, lacks justification. A possible argument for PB having significant weight builds on a principle of parental partiality towards one's own children. But this principle does not support PB; it supports a Principle of Sibling‐Oriented Procreative Beneficence (SPB), according to which parents selecting a child should maximize the benefit of all their children. Indeed, PB itself will in some cases be self‐effacing in favour of SPB.