bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Bone resorption and environmental exposure to cadmium in children: a cross - sectional study
Authors: Sughis Muhammad , Penders Joris , Haufroid Vincent , Nemery Benoit , Nawrot Tim S 
Published: December 2011

Abstract

Background
Exposure to cadmium has been associated with osteoporosis and fracture risk in women and elderly, but studies in children are lacking. In the present study we investigate the association between markers of bone demineralization [urinary calcium (Ca) and deoxypyridinoline (DPD) excretion] and urinary cadmium (Cd) excretion (as an index of lifetime body burden).

Methods
155 schoolchildren from 2 elementary schools in Lahore, Pakistan were included. Urinary Cd was measured as an index of lifetime exposure. We assessed the multivariate-adjusted association of exposure with markers of bone resorption, urinary DPD as well as with Ca excretion.

Results
Urinary Cd averaged 0.50 nmol/mmol creatinine and was not influenced by age, height, weight and socio-economic status (SES). Independent of gender, age, height, weight and SES a doubling of urinary Cd was associated with a 1.72 times (p < 0.0001) increase in urinary DPD and, a 1.21 times (p = 0.02) increase in urinary Ca. Additional adjustment for urinary Ca revealed still significant associations between urinary Cd and urinary DPD. The shape of the association was linear without evidence of a threshold.

Conclusions
Even in young children, low-level environmental exposure to cadmium is associated with evidence of bone resorption, suggesting a direct osteotoxic effect with increased calciuria. These findings might have clinical relevance at older age.
Adaptive Müller cell responses to microglial activation mediate neuroprotection and coordinate inflammation in the retina
Authors: Wang Minhua , Ma Wenxin , Zhao Lian , Fariss Robert N , Wong Wai T 
Published: December 2011

Abstract

Purpose
Microglia and Müller cells are prominent participants in retinal responses to injury and disease that shape eventual tissue adaptation or damage. This investigation examined how microglia and Müller cells interact with each other following initial microglial activation.

Methods
Mouse Müller cells were cultured alone, or co-cultured with activated or unactivated retinal microglia, and their morphological, molecular, and functional responses were evaluated. Müller cell-feedback signaling to microglia was studied using Müller cell-conditioned media. Corroborative in vivo analyses of retinal microglia-Müller cell interactions in the mouse retina were also performed.

Results
Our results demonstrate that Müller cells exposed to activated microglia, relative to those cultured alone or with unactivated microglia, exhibit marked alterations in cell morphology and gene expression that differed from those seen in chronic gliosis. These Müller cells demonstrated in vitro (1) an upregulation of growth factors such as GDNF and LIF, and provide neuroprotection to photoreceptor cells, (2) increased pro-inflammatory factor production, which in turn increased microglial activation in a positive feedback loop, and (3) upregulated chemokine and adhesion protein expression, which allowed Müller cells to attract and adhere to microglia. In vivo activation of microglia by intravitreal injection of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) also induced increased Müller cell-microglia adhesion, indicating that activated microglia may translocate intraretinally in a radial direction using Müller cell processes as an adhesive scaffold.

Conclusion
Our findings demonstrate that activated microglia are able to influence Müller cells directly, and initiate a program of bidirectional microglia-Müller cell signaling that can mediate adaptive responses within the retina following injury. In the acute aftermath following initial microglia activation, Müller cell responses may serve to augment initial inflammatory responses across retinal lamina and to guide the intraretinal mobilization of migratory microglia using chemotactic cues and adhesive cell contacts. Understanding adaptive microglia-Müller cell interactions in injury responses can help discover therapeutic cellular targets for intervention in retinal disease.
Tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes predict response to anthracycline-based chemotherapy in estrogen receptor-negative breast cancer
Authors: West Nathan R , Milne Katy , Truong Pauline T , Macpherson Nicol , Nelson Brad H , Watson Peter H 
Published: December 2011

Abstract
Introduction
Infiltration of breast tumors by tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TIL) has been associated with sensitivity to anthracycline-based chemotherapy. However, it is unclear whether this is true within the estrogen receptor-alpha (ER)-negative subset of breast tumors that frequently manifest high TIL levels.

Methods
The association of TIL with short-term and long-term clinical response to anthracycline-based therapy was assessed in two independent ER-negative breast cancer cohorts in which patients were categorized as TIL-high or TIL-low. We defined an eight-gene lymphocyte mRNA expression signature (including CD19, CD3D, CD48, GZMB, LCK, MS4A1, PRF1, and SELL) and used unsupervised hierarchical clustering to examine the association between TIL and short-term response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy in a previously published cohort of ER-negative tumors (n = 113). We also examined the association between TIL and long-term chemotherapeutic efficacy in a second cohort of ER-negative tumors (n = 255) with longer than 6 years of median follow-up by using tissue microarrays and immunohistochemistry (IHC) for detection of CD3, CD8, CD4, CD20, and TIA-1.

Results
In patients with ER-negative tumors treated with neoadjuvant anthracycline-based chemotherapy, pathologic complete responses (pCRs) were achieved by 23 (74%) of 31 TIL-high patients and 25 (31%) of 80 TIL-low patients (odds ratio (OR), 6.33; 95% confidence interval (CI), 2.49 to 16.08; P < 0.0001). Multivariate logistic regression with standard clinicopathologic features demonstrated that only tumor size (P = 0.037) and TIL status (P = 0.001) were independent predictors of anthracycline response. In the second cohort, adjuvant anthracycline-based therapy was associated with increased disease-free survival (DFS) only in patients with high levels of intraepithelial CD3+ TIL (P = 0.0023). In contrast, outcomes after CMF treatment (cyclophosphamide, methotrexate, and fluorouracil) showed no association with CD3 status. In both cohorts, cytotoxic T-cells were the primary TIL subtype associated with anthracycline sensitivity. Finally, TIL significantly predicted anthracycline sensitivity for both the Her2-positive and triple-negative tumor phenotypes.

Conclusions
ER-negative breast cancers with high levels of TIL have heightened sensitivity to anthracycline-based chemotherapy, as assessed by the immediate response to neoadjuvant therapy and long-term outcome following adjuvant therapy. Investigations of TIL-based predictive tests to identify patients likely to benefit from anthracycline-based treatments are warranted.
Short women with severe sepsis-related acute lung injury receive lung protective ventilation less frequently: an observational cohort study
Authors: Han SeungHye , Martin Greg S , Maloney James P , Shanholtz Carl , Barnes Kathleen C , Murray Stacey , Sevransky Jonathan E 
Published: December 2011

Abstract
Introduction
Lung protective ventilation (LPV) has been shown to improve survival and the duration of mechanical ventilation in acute lung injury (ALI) patients. Mortality of ALI may vary by gender, which could result from treatment variability. Whether gender is associated with the use of LPV is not known.

Methods
A total of 421 severe sepsis-related ALI subjects in the Consortium to Evaluate Lung Edema Genetics from seven teaching hospitals between 2002 and 2008 were included in our study. We evaluated patients' tidal volume, plateau pressure and arterial pH to determine whether patients received LPV during the first two days after developing ALI. The odds ratio of receiving LPV was estimated by a logistic regression model with robust and cluster options.

Results
Women had similar characteristics as men with the exception of lower height and higher illness severity, as measured by Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation (APACHE) II score. 225 (53%) of the subjects received LPV during the first two days after ALI onset; women received LPV less frequently than men (46% versus 59%, P < 0.001). However, after adjustment for height and severity of illness (APACHE II), there was no difference in exposure to LPV between men and women (P = 0.262).

Conclusions
Short people are less likely to receive LPV, which seems to explain the tendency of clinicians to adhere to LPV less strictly in women. Strategies to standardize application of LPV, independent of differences in height and severity of illness, are necessary.
Disseminated intravascular coagulation or acute coagulopathy of trauma shock early after trauma? An observational study
Authors: Johansson Pär I , Sørensen Anne Marie , Perner Anders , Welling Karen Lise , Wanscher Michael , Larsen Claus F , Ostrowski Sisse R 
Published: December 2011

Abstract
Introduction
It is debated whether early trauma-induced coagulopathy (TIC) in severely injured patients reflects disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) with a fibrinolytic phenotype, acute coagulopathy of trauma shock (ACoTS) or yet other entities. This study investigated the prevalence of overt DIC and ACoTS in trauma patients and characterized these conditions based on their biomarker profiles.

Methods
An observational study was carried out at a single Level I Trauma Center. Eighty adult trauma patients (≥18 years) who met criteria for full trauma team activation and had an arterial cannula inserted were included. Blood was sampled a median of 68 minutes (IQR 48 to 88) post-injury. Data on demography, biochemistry, injury severity score (ISS) and mortality were recorded. Plasma/serum was analyzed for biomarkers reflecting tissue/endothelial cell/glycocalyx damage (histone-complexed DNA fragments, Annexin V, thrombomodulin, syndecan-1), coagulation activation/inhibition (prothrombinfragment 1+2, thrombin/antithrombin-complexes, antithrombin, protein C, activated protein C, endothelial protein C receptor, protein S, tissue factor pathway inhibitor, vWF), factor consumption (fibrinogen, FXIII), fibrinolysis (D-dimer, tissue-type plasminogen activator, plasminogen activator inhibitor-1) and inflammation (interleukin (IL)-6, terminal complement complex (sC5b-9)). Comparison of patients stratified according to the presence or absence of overt DIC (International Society of Thrombosis and Hemostasis (ISTH) criteria) or ACoTS (activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT) and/or international normalized ratio (INR) above normal reference).

Results
No patients had overt DIC whereas 15% had ACoTS. ACoTS patients had higher ISS, transfusion requirements and mortality (all P < 0.01) and a biomarker profile suggestive of enhanced tissue, endothelial cell and glycocalyx damage and consumption coagulopathy with low protein C, antithrombin, fibrinogen and FXIII levels, hyperfibrinolysis and inflammation (all P < 0.05). Importantly, in non-ACoTS patients, apart from APTT/INR, higher ISS correlated with biomarkers of enhanced tissue, endothelial cell and glycocalyx damage, protein C activation, coagulation factor consumption, hyperfibrinolysis and inflammation, that is, resembling that observed in patients with ACoTS.

Conclusions
ACoTS and non-ACoTS may represent a continuum of coagulopathy reflecting a progressive early evolutionarily adapted hemostatic response to the trauma hit and both are parts of TIC whereas DIC does not appear to be part of this early response.
Rv2468c, a novelMycobacterium tuberculosisprotein that costimulates human CD4+ T cells through VLA-5
Authors: Li Qing , Ding Xuedong , Thomas Jeremy J , Harding Clifford V , Pecora Nicole D , Ziady Assem G , Shank Samuel , Boom W Henry , Lancioni Christina L , Rojas Roxana E 
Published: December 2011

ABSTRACTMtb regulates many aspects of the host immune response, including CD4+ T lymphocyte responses that are essential for protective immunity to Mtb, and Mtb effects on the immune system are paradoxical, having the capacity to inhibit (immune evasion) and to activate (adjuvant effect) immune cells. Mtb regulates CD4+ T cells indirectly (e.g., by manipulation of APC function) and directly, via integrins and TLRs expressed on T cells. We now report that previously uncharacterized Mtb protein Rv2468c/MT2543 can directly regulate human CD4+ T cell activation by delivering costimulatory signals. When combined with TCR stimulation (e.g., anti-CD3), Rv2468c functioned as a direct costimulator for CD4+ T cells, inducing IFN-γ secretion and T cell proliferation. Studies with blocking antibodies and soluble RGD motifs demonstrated that Rv2468c engaged integrin VLA-5 (α5β1) on CD4+ T cells through its FN-like RGD motif. Costimulation by Rv2468c induced phosphorylation of FAKs and Pyk2. These results reveal that by expressing molecules that mimic host protein motifs, Mtb can directly engage receptors on CD4+ T cells and regulate their function. Rv2468c-induced costimulation of CD4+ T cells could have implications for TB immune pathogenesis and Mtb adjuvant effect.
Anatomy of right superior septal artery demonstrated on the coronary CT scan
Authors: Takeguchi Takaya , Ibukuro Kenji , Fukuda Hozumi , Tobe Kimiko , Abe Shoko 
Published: December 2011

Background A coronary CT scan allows for non-invasive visualization of the anatomy of a coronary artery in three dimensions compared to the two dimensions afforded by conventional angiography. The septal artery, the main blood source of the interventricular septum, is usually derived from the left anterior descending artery; however, it is occasionally derived from the right coronary artery. Purpose To analyze the prevalence, origin, diameter, and length of the right superior septal artery (RSSA) demonstrated on a coronary CT scan. Material and Methods The right superior septal artery was retrospectively reviewed on the reconstructed axial scan images (0.5-mm thickness, 0.25-mm interval) in 1290 consecutive patients who underwent coronary CT scans. All patients were scanned on a 320-row CT scanner. The images were transferred to a workstation to trace the vessel to analyze the origin, diameter, and length. We also compared the length of the RSSA between patients with and without coronary artery stenosis. Results The RSSA was identified in 51 (3.9%) of 1290 patients. The origin was the proximal portion of the right coronary artery ( n = 40) or the right sinus of Valsalva ( n = 11). The artery co-existed with the conus artery in 15 (29%) of 51 patients. The length was 16–62 mm (mean 31.2 mm ± 10.5), and the diameter was 0.8–2.0 mm (mean 1.3 mm ± 0.2). Longer RSSAs tended to be demonstrated in the patients with coronary artery stenosis rather than with normal coronary arteries ( P < 0.05). Conclusion The right superior septal artery and its anatomical variant could be analyzed with a coronary CT scan. The ability to demonstrate this artery on the coronary CT scan was the same as with coronary angiography. The recognition of this vessel is useful for physicians managing with the diagnosis and treatment of the coronary artery disease.
Are current thrombo-embolic prophylaxis guidelines applicable to unicompartmental knee replacement?
Authors: Willis-Owen C. A. , Sarraf K. M. , Martin A. E. , Martin D. K. 
Published: December 2011

Symptomatic and asymptomatic deep-vein thrombosis (DVT) is a common complication of knee replacement, with an incidence of up to 85% in the absence of prophylaxis. National guidelines for thromboprophylaxis in knee replacement are derived from total knee replacement (TKR) data. No guidelines exist specific to unicompartmental knee replacement (UKR). We investigated whether the type of knee arthroplasty (TKR or UKR) was related to the incidence of DVT and discuss the applicability of existing national guidelines for prophylaxis following UKR.Data were collected prospectively on 3449 knee replacements, including procedure type, tourniquet time, surgeon, patient age, use of drains and gender. These variables were related to the incidence of symptomatic DVT.The overall DVT rate was 1.6%. The only variable that had an association with DVT was operation type, with TKR having a higher incidence than UKR (2.2% versus 0.3%, p < 0.001). These data show that the incidence of DVT after UKR is both clinically and statistically significantly lower than that after TKR.TKR and UKR patients have different risk profiles for symptomatic DVT. The risk-benefit ratio for TKR that has been used to produce national guidelines may not be applicable to UKR. Further research is required to establish the most appropriate form of prophylaxis for UKR.
Coping Strategies and Perceived Stress in Pregnant Smokers Seeking Help for Cessation
Authors: Varescon Isabelle , Leignel Shirley , Poulain Xavier , Gerard Caroline 
Published: December 2011

AbstractDespite substantial efforts to decrease its prevalence, it is estimated that more than 20% of French women continue to smoke during pregnancy. The aim of this study was to assess the perceived stress and coping strategies used by pregnant smokers when they seek help to stop smoking. Eighty pregnant women were involved. Pregnant women who stated their intention to quit smoking (n= 40) were compared with pregnant nonsmokers (n= 40). All participants filled out the Brief Cope (BC), the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) and the Hospital Anxiety Depression Scale (HADS). In addition to these self-report scales, pregnant smokers completed the Fagerström Tolerance Questionnaire (FTQ). The results show that pregnant women who smoked used less active coping, planning, and positive framing, considered a good adaptive strength, and had significantly elevated scores on perceived stress and anxiety scales than nonsmokers. This research is the first to provide Brief Cope results for pregnant smokers seeking help to stop smoking linked to perceived stress. The results obtained contribute to the well-known psychosocial factors in maintaining smoking during pregnancy and will be used in the implementation of more effective intervention programs among pregnant women.
Development of a Proposed ASTM Guide to Continued Applicability of Reports on Fire Test Standards
Authors: Earl Timothy T. , Hirschler Marcelo M. 
Published: December 2011

Abstract
Fire test reports provide information relative to the fire-test-response characteristics of a material, product, or assembly at the time when it was tested and to the evaluative approach of the fire test used, including understanding of the fire test that was used. Such fire test reports remain valid for the particular point in time at which the fire test was conducted, as long as the test was conducted in full accordance with the fire test standard referenced in the test report. However, fire test reports may, at some time, cease being applicable to the material, product, or assembly currently being offered for use; for example, if there has been a technical change in the fire test protocol or if there has been a substantial change in the material, product, or assembly being offered for use. The ASTM Committee E05, and subcommittee E05.31 on Terminology and Services/Functions, is considering the development of an ASTM Guide to formalize the above ideas. The draft ASTM guide contains concepts which provide guidance for assessing the continued applicability of fire test reports. The concepts in the draft guide are intended for application by users of fire test reports to assess whether a particular fire test report continues to be an applicable representation of the fire-test-response characteristics of a material, product, or assembly which is required to be tested for a new assessment using the same fire test standard. The continued applicability of the fire test report will be a function primarily of two issues: (a) whether the material, product or assembly being offered for use is substantially the same as the one that was tested and (b) whether the test method being required is substantially the same as the test that was conducted for the report in question. Some concepts included in the draft guide may be a function of the type of fire test conducted and of the type of material, product, or assembly assessed. The draft guide considers in a separate category materials, products or assemblies listed by an accredited listing agency.
To vše na území malého Česka. Kulturspezifische Selbst- und Fremdstilisierungen im tschechischen Windkraftdiskurs
Authors: Kreß Beatrix 
Published: December 2011

Abstract
In the present paper, I investigate the roles people refer to in political debates by using certain linguistic devices. As in theatre, the participants try to stage themselves, but also attribute a certain role to their adversary. This role-management can be captured by the notion of linguistic style. As a showcase this paper focuses on the ecological debate about wind farms in the Czech Republic. It will be shown that this argument is characterized by typical universal style devices which can be found in these debates in general. However, it can be observed that the Czech president Václav Klaus, who plays a very active role in the ecological debate of his country, has a distinct influence. Furthermore, there are certain argumentation styles which seem to be culturally specific.
Puškin trifft Griboedov auf der „Reise nach Arzrum“
Authors: Kośny Witold 
Published: December 2011

Abstract
In “A Journey to Erzerum” (1836), a literary account of the Caucasian travel in 1829, A. S. Pushkin describes the encounter with the coffin of A. S. Griboyedov, murdered by Persian mob in Tehran. In a personal reminiscence he gives – opposite to F. V. Bulgarin’s panegyric and sentimental “Memories of the unforgettable A. S. Griboyedov” (1830) – a realistic and empathical sketch of the ups and downs in the poet’s life. Griboyedov got the option to accept or to refuse the patronage of the powerful; his decision to accept the tsar’s proposal was disastrous. Pushkin regards the vita brevis of his namesake as an example ex negativo, because “independence and self-esteem alone can lift us [writers] above the trifles and the storms of fate.”
New Patterns of Political Patronage and Their Effect on Health Policy
Authors: Tolchin Susan J. , Gupta Debasree Das , Beck Jeffrey 
Published: December 2011

AbstractThe article considers the concept of pinstripe patronage put forth in Pinstripe Patronage: Political Favoritism from the Clubhouse to the White House and Beyond, by Martin and Susan J. Tolchin (Boulder, Colorado: Paradigm Publishers, 2011) as it applies to the realm of health policy and politics.
New data on the morphology of Dichelyne hartwichi (Nematoda, Cucullanidae), a parasite of freshwater tetraodontid fishes (Tetraodon spp.) in Thailand
Authors: Moravec František , Fiala Ivan , Dyková Iva 
Published: December 2011

AbstractParasitological examination of the freshwater fish Tetraodon palembangensis Bleeker (Tetraodontidae, Tetraodontiformes) (n = 19), imported along with other ornamental fishes from Thailand into the Czech Republic in October 1998, revealed the presence of male specimens of the nematode Dichelyne (Dichelyne) hartwichi Moravec, Wolter et Körting, 1999 (Cucullanidae) (prevalence 11%, intensity 1). Their detailed study using light and scanning electron microscopy (the latter used for the first time in this species) enabled the redescription of this hitherto little-known species and the recognition of considerable morphological and biometrical intraspecific variability. The finding of this species in T. palembangensis represents a new host record.