bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Ovarian volume and gluco‐insulinaemic markers in the diagnosis of PCOS during adolescence
Authors: Villa Paola , Rossodivita Aurora , Sagnella Francesca , Moruzzi Maria Cristina , Mariano Nicoletta , Lassandro Anna Pia , Pontecorvi Alfredo , Scambia Giovanni , Lanzone Antonio 
Published: June 2012

AbstractObjectiveTo evaluate the role of mean ovarian volume (MOV) in the diagnosis of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) during adolescence, and its relationship with metabolic and endocrine parameters.DesignObservational study.PatientsA total of 134 young girls, including 86 adolescents with PCOS and 48 controls, were studied.MeasurementsDuring the early follicular phase, a pelvic ultrasound examination was performed to measure the ovarian volume of both ovaries and to calculate the MOV. All subjects underwent hormonal assessment and an ultrasound examination. PCOS subjects were submitted to an oral glucose tolerance test. The homeostasis model assessment for insulin resistance (HOMA‐IR) and several insulin resistance indexes were also determined.ResultsAndrogens, free androgen index (FAI), LH and insulin resistance indexes were higher in the PCOS group. MOV was significantly different between the two groups: control group 4·6 ± 1·9 cm3, adolescent PCOS group 9·6 ± 4·4 cm3. The MOV threshold of 5·596 cm3 offered the best compromise between sensitivity and specificity based on the characteristics of the operating receiver curve analysis. Therefore, an ovarian volume higher than 5·6 increased the risk of PCOS by about 15 times (OR 16·25 IC 95% 6·3–41·3). In adolescent PCOS girls, the ovarian volume was significantly associated with circulating testosterone and insulin, and indices of insulin resistance.ConclusionsDuring early adolescence MOV evaluation may offer an effective means to screen and follow up young girls with irregular cycles in order to prevent the long‐term metabolic disturbances of the polycystic ovary syndrome.
Thyroid function and the risk of coronary heart disease: 12‐year follow‐up of the HUNT Study in Norway
Authors: Åsvold Bjørn O. , Bjøro Trine , Platou Carl , Vatten Lars J. 
Published: June 2012

SummaryObjectiveIn a mortality follow‐up of the HUNT Study, serum TSH within the reference range was positively associated with the risk of coronary death in women. We now aimed to confirm the association of high serum TSH with the risk of coronary heart disease, using hospital‐based diagnoses of myocardial infarction.DesignProspective population‐based study with linkage to hospital information on myocardial infarction and to the national Cause of Death Registry.ParticipantsA total of 26 707 people without previously known thyroid or cardiovascular disease or diabetes at baseline.MeasurementsHazard ratios (HR) of coronary death and HRs of hospitalization with a first‐time acute myocardial infarction, by baseline thyroid function.ResultsDuring 12 years of follow‐up, 960 (3·6%) participants had been hospitalized with first‐time myocardial infarction and 558 (2·1%) had died from coronary heart disease. High TSH within the reference range was associated with increased risk of coronary death in women (Ptrend 0·005), but not in men. The risk of coronary death was also increased among women with subclinical hypothyroidism or subclinical hyperthyroidism, compared to women with TSH of 0·50–1·4 mU/l. However, thyroid function was not associated with the risk of being hospitalized with myocardial infarction.ConclusionsHigh serum TSH was associated with increased mortality from coronary heart disease in women, but we found no association of thyroid function with the risk of being hospitalized with myocardial infarction. Thus, the morbidity finding does not confirm the suggestion that low thyroid function within the clinically normal range is associated with increased risk of coronary heart disease.
Large‐scale coherence in New England lobster (Homarus americanus), settlement and associations with regional atmospheric conditions
Authors: PERSHING ANDREW J. , WAHLE RICHARD A. , MEYERS PATRICK C. , LAWTON PETER 
Published: June 2012

AbstractTime series of American lobster (Homarus americanus) postlarval settlement from southern New England to Atlantic Canada exhibit many common features, and a cluster analysis indicates a block of regions extending from Massachusetts to Maine that have coherent interannual variations. The spatial scale of this block suggests that variability in settlement is related to large‐scale, rather than local, processes. We examined the association between settlement at six reference regions and monthly mean atmospheric conditions (temperature, geopotential height, westerly and southerly wind components, and wind curl) from the North American Regional Reanalysis. We first extracted the dominant modes of variability in monthly averaged geopotential height, temperature, and wind curl. The leading mode from September, which represents high geopotential height, warm temperatures, and negative wind curl throughout the study area, was strongly correlated with settlement at most of the regions. The third mode from August, which represents enhanced southwesterly winds, was correlated with settlement in Rhode Island. Correlations between local atmospheric conditions and lobster settlement confirm the principal component results. Settlement was correlated to varying degrees with geopotential height (positive), temperature (positive) and wind curl (negative) with lobster settlement at the northern sites, with temperature being a stronger indicator in the north and curl a stronger indicator in the south. Rhode Island settlement was strongly correlated with August westerly winds. The correlation between settlement and atmospheric conditions could improve our understanding of stock‐recruit relationships for lobster populations and provides one mechanism for how climate change could impact lobsters.
Does the decline of gastropods in deep water herald ecosystem change in Lakes Malawi and Tanganyika?
Authors: VAN BOCXLAER BERT , SCHULTHEIß ROLAND , PLISNIER PIERRE‐DENIS , ALBRECHT CHRISTIAN 
Published: June 2012

Summary1. Ancient, deep lakes have traditionally been considered as stable, ecological islands, well buffered from environmental change because of their great depth. However, they are not immune to anthropogenic and climatic stress. Ecosystems of the permanently stratified warm Lakes Malawi and Tanganyika in the Great East African Rift are particularly delicate. Their stratification regime has historically limited the distribution of benthic biota to a ‘bathtub ring of biodiversity’, namely substrata in the upper, oxygenated water layer.2. We use historical data on the endemic deep‐water molluscs of these lakes to assess present‐day stress on their benthic ecosystems. During the 20th century, these molluscs have probably decreased in abundance and migrated to shallower water.3. These apparent trends have a significance beyond species‐based conservation, foremost because deep‐water organisms heavily rely on the position and temporal stability of the oxycline and therefore provide an early warning of large‐scale changes in the distribution of dissolved oxygen. Oxygen demands have increased in the East African Great Lakes over the last century whereas ventilation of deep water has remained the same or declined.4. The combination of these factors is resulting in a narrowing of the ring of biodiversity and a changed nutrient flux through this ring. Reduction in the habitat available inevitably puts biota at risk, whereas changes in nutrient flux may cause shifts in the entire ecosystem or the collapse of parts of it.5. Considering the socioeconomic value of these lakes and the potentially grave implications for their faunal biodiversity and entire ecosystems, existing evidence of faunal decline, especially in taxa that depend strongly on the stratification regime, is of great concern. Moreover, because the factors responsible are widespread and include surface‐water warming, increased run‐off and eutrophication, respiration stress may also develop in other tropical and subtropical lakes.
Trapped in desert springs: phylogeography of Australian desert spring snails
Authors: Murphy Nicholas P. , Breed Martin F. , Guzik Michelle T. , Cooper Steven J. B. , Austin Andrew D. 
Published: June 2012

AbstractAim  We investigate the phylogeographical history and determine the time‐scale of population divergence of hydrobiid freshwater snails (genus Trochidrobia) inhabiting groundwater springs in the Australian desert. We test the hypothesis that divergence between geographically distinct snail populations occurred simultaneously due to their isolation in hydrologically discrete spring systems, i.e. ‘trapped in desert springs’.Location  Groundwater springs of the Great Artesian Basin (GAB) in central Australia.Methods  DNA sequence data from the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I gene and the nuclear 28S and internal transcribed spacer rRNA genes were used to reconstruct phylogenetic relationships within and among three species of Trochidrobia (Hydrobiidae): T. punicea (13 spring groups, n = 90), T. smithi (12 spring groups, n = 62) and T. minuta (2 spring groups, n = 4). Bayesian relaxed molecular clock analyses and approximate Bayesian computation were used to date lineage divergence and distinguish between alternative biogeographical scenarios.Results  The diversification of the three Trochidrobia species probably occurred between 2.54 and 9.3 Ma, prior to the formation of the springs c. 1 Ma. Intraspecific divergences within the two widespread species occurred after the formation and colonization of the springs. Coalescent modelling and molecular clock analyses supported a simultaneous radiation of five allopatric intraspecific snail lineages within T. punicea (two lineages) and T. smithi (three lineages) across the GAB springs examined.Main conclusions  The analyses support the ‘trapped in desert springs’ hypothesis for the diversification of intraspecific lineages within the species T. punicea and T. smithi. This hypothesis suggests that the formation of deserts around Lake Eyre in the early Pleistocene led to the hydrological isolation of spring complexes in the GAB, resulting in significant molecular divergence, but no morphological divergence, of Trochidrobia snail populations.
Habitat distribution models for intertidal seaweeds: responses to climatic and non‐climatic drivers
Authors: Martínez Brezo , Viejo Rosa M. , Carreño Francisco , Aranda Silvia C. 
Published: June 2012

AbstractAim  Because intertidal organisms often live close to their physiological tolerance limits, they are potentially sensitive indicators of climate‐driven changes in the environment. The goals of this study were to assess the effect of climatic and non‐climatic factors on the geographical distribution of intertidal macroalgae, and to predict future distributions under different climate‐warming scenarios.Location  North‐western Iberian Peninsula, southern Europe.Methods  We developed distribution models for six ecologically important intertidal seaweed species. Occurrence and microhabitat data were sampled at 1‐km2 resolution and analysed with climate variables measured at larger spatial scales. We used generalized linear models and applied the deviance and Bayesian information criterion to model the relationship between environmental variables and the distribution of each target species. We also used hierarchical partitioning (HP) to identify predictor variables with higher independent explanatory power.Results  The distributions of Himanthalia elongata and Bifurcaria bifurcata were correlated with measures of terrestrial and marine climate, although in opposite directions. Model projections under two warming scenarios indicated the extinction of the former at a faster rate in the Cantabrian Sea (northern Spain) than in the Atlantic (west). In contrast, these models predicted an increase in the occurrence of B. bifurcata in both areas. The occurrences of Ascophyllum nodosum and Pelvetia canaliculata, species showing rather static historical distributions, were related to specific non‐climatic environmental conditions and locations, such as the location of sheltered sites. At the southernmost distributional limit, these habitats may present favourable microclimatic conditions or provide refuges from competitors or natural enemies. Model performances for Fucus vesiculosus and F. serratus were similar and poor, but several climatic variables influenced the occurrence of the latter in the HP analyses.Main conclusions  The correlation between species distributions and climate was evident for two species, whereas the distributions of the others were associated with non‐climatic predictors. We hypothesize that the distribution of F. serratus responds to diverse combinations of factors in different sections of the north‐west Iberian Peninsula. Our study shows how the response of species distributions to climatic and non‐climatic variables may be complex and vary geographically. Our analyses also highlight the difficulty of making predictions based solely on variation in climatic factors measured at coarse spatial scales.
Development of a quantitative real‐time PCR for the detection of Tenacibaculum maritimum and its application to field samples
Authors: Fringuelli E , Savage P D , Gordon A , Baxter E J , Rodger H D , Graham D A 
Published: June 2012

AbstractThe development and the application of a quantitative real‐time PCR for the detection of Tenacibaculum maritimum are described. A set of primers and probe was designed to amplify a 155‐bp fragment specific to the T. maritimum 16S rRNA gene. The test was shown to be very sensitive, able to detect as little as 4.8 DNA copies number μL−1. In addition, the assay was found to have a high degree of repeatability and reproducibility, with a linear dynamic range (R2 = 0.999) extending over 6 log10 dilutions and a high efficiency (100%). The assay was applied to DNA samples extracted from 48 formalin‐fixed paraffin‐embedded (FFPE) Atlantic salmon, Salmo salar, gill tissues showing varying degrees of gill pathology (scored 0–3) and from 26 jellyfish samples belonging to the species Phialella quadrata and Muggiaea atlantica. For each sample, the bacterial load was normalised against the level of the salmonid elongation factor alpha 1 (ELF) detected by a second real‐time PCR using previously published primers and probe. Tenacibaculum maritimum DNA was detected in 89% of the blocks with no signs of gill disease as well as in 95% of the blocks with mild‐to‐severe gill pathology. Association between bacterial load and gill pathology severity was investigated. T. maritimum DNA was detected at low level in four of the 26 jellyfish tested.
Enhancement of Hsp70 synthesis protects common carp, Cyprinus carpio L., against lethal ammonia toxicity
Authors: Sung Y Y , Roberts R J , Bossier P 
Published: June 2012

AbstractExposure to TEX‐OE®, a patented extract of the prickly pear cactus (Opuntia ficus indica) containing chaperone‐stimulating factor, was shown to protect common carp, Cyprinus carpio L., fingerlings against acute ammonia stress. Survival was enhanced twofold from 50% to 95% after exposure to 5.92 mg L−1 NH3, a level determined in the ammonia challenge bioassay as the 1‐h LD50 concentration for this species. Survival of TEX‐OE®‐pre‐exposed fish was enhanced by 20% over non‐exposed controls during lethal ammonia challenge (14.21 mg L−1 NH3). Increase in the levels of gill and muscle Hsp70 was evident in TEX‐OE®‐pre‐exposed fish but not in the unexposed controls, indicating that application of TEX‐OE® accelerated carp endogenous Hsp70 synthesis during ammonia perturbation. Protection against ammonia was correlated with Hsp70 accretion.
Paternity assignment and demographic closure in the New Zealand southern right whale
Authors: CARROLL EMMA L. , CHILDERHOUSE SIMON J. , CHRISTIE MARK , LAVERY SHANE , PATENAUDE NATHALIE , ALEXANDER ALANA , CONSTANTINE ROCHELLE , STEEL DEBBIE , BOREN LAURA , SCOTT BAKER C. 
Published: June 2012

AbstractThe identification and characterization of reproductively isolated subpopulations or ‘stocks’ are essential for effective conservation and management decisions. This can be difficult in vagile marine species like marine mammals. We used paternity assignment and ‘gametic recapture’ to examine the reproductive autonomy of southern right whales (Eubalaena australis) on their New Zealand (NZ) calving grounds. We derived DNA profiles for 34 mother–calf pairs from skin biopsy samples, using sex‐specific markers, 13 microsatellite loci and mtDNA haplotypes. We constructed DNA profiles for 314 adult males, representing 30% of the census male abundance of the NZ stock, previously estimated from genotypic mark‐recapture modelling to be 1085 (95% CL 855, 1416). Under the hypothesis of demographic closure and the assumption of equal reproductive success among males, we predict: (i) the proportion of paternities assigned will reflect the proportion of the male population sampled and (ii) the gametic mark–recapture (GMR) estimate of male abundance will be equivalent to the census male estimate for the NZ stock. Consistent with these predictions, we found that the proportion of assigned paternities equalled the proportion of the census male population size sampled. Using the sample of males as the initial capture, and paternity assignment as the recapture, the GMR estimate of male abundance was 1001 (95% CL 542, 1469), similar to the male census estimate. These findings suggest that right whales returning to the NZ calving ground are reproductively autonomous on a generational timescale, as well as isolated by maternal fidelity on an evolutionary timescale, from others in the Indo‐Pacific region.
n‐Butyrate Anergized Effector CD4+ T Cells Independent of Regulatory T cell Generation or Activity
Authors: Fontenelle B. , Gilbert K. M. 
Published: June 2012

AbstractCD4+ T cell anergy reflects the inability of CD4+ T cells to respond functionally to antigenic stimulation through proliferation or IL‐2 secretion. Histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitors have been shown to induce anergy in antigen‐activated CD4+ T cells. However, questions remain if HDAC inhibitors mediate anergy through direct action upon activated CD4+ T cells or through the generation and/or enhancement of regulatory T (Treg) cells. To assess if HDAC inhibitor n‐butyrate induces anergy independent of the generation or expansion of FoxP3+ Treg cells in vitro, we examine n‐butyrate‐treated murine CD4+ T cells for anergy induction and FoxP3+ Treg activity. Whereas n‐butyrate decreases CD4+ T cell proliferation and IL‐2 secretion, n‐butyrate did not augment FoxP3 protein production or confer a suppressive phenotype upon CD4+ T cells. Collectively, these data suggest that HDAC inhibitors can facilitate CD4+ T cell functional unresponsiveness directly and independently of Treg cell involvement.
Association of Clostridium difficile infection with outcomes of hospitalized solid organ transplant recipients: results from the 2009 Nationwide Inpatient Sample database
Authors: Pant C. , Anderson M.P. , O'Connor J.A. , Marshall C.M. , Deshpande A. , Sferra T.J. 
Published: June 2012

AbstractBackgroundDiarrhea is a frequent and potentially severe complication in solid organ transplant (SOT) recipients. One of the most common infectious etiologies of diarrhea in these patients is
Clostridium difficile. Our objective was to investigate the association of
C. difficile infection (CDI) with the outcomes of hospitalized SOT patients.MethodsWe extracted all adult cases with discharge diagnoses of SOT or CDI from the United States Nationwide Inpatient Sample, Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality 2009 database. We collected outcome variables (mortality, length of hospital stay [LOS], hospitalization charges, complications of the transplanted organ, and colectomy), demographic information, and comorbidity data for each of the cases. The data were evaluated using univariate and multiple variable regression analyses.ResultsWe identified 49,198 cases with SOT of which 2.7% had CDI. Univariate comparisons of cases with SOT + CDI to those with SOT‐only revealed significant differences in the evaluated outcomes including in‐hospital mortality (7.4% vs. 2.4%, P < 0.001), LOS (median 9 days vs. 4 days, P < 0.001), charges (median $53,808 vs. $31,488, P < 0.001), organ complications (38.1% vs. 33.9%, P < 0.001), and colectomy (1.1% vs. 0.3%, P < 0.001). Using multiple variable regression analyses, in the SOT cohort (SOT‐only and SOT + CDI), CDI was independently associated with greater mortality (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 2.48, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 2.22, 2.76, P < 0.001), longer LOS (difference 9.6 days, 95% CI = 9.3, 9.9, P < 0.001), higher charges (difference $69,647, 95% CI = $66,190, $73,104, P < 0.001), more complications of the transplanted organ (aOR 1.36, 95% CI = 1.28, 1.44, P < 0.001), and increased need for colectomy (aOR 3.10, 95% CI = 2.35, 4.08, P < 0.001).ConclusionsOur results demonstrate that CDI is associated with overall significantly worse outcomes in hospitalized patients with SOT.
Respiratory support during the influenza A (H1N1) pandemic flu in Sweden
Authors: BRINK M. , HAGBERG L. , LARSSON A. , GEDEBORG R. 
Published: June 2012

BackgroundAcute respiratory insufficiency characterised critically ill patients during the influenza A (H1N1) pandemic 2009–2010. Detailed understanding of disease progression and outcome in relation to different respiratory support strategies is important.MethodsData collected between August 2009 and February 2010 for a national intensive care unit influenza registry were combined with cases identified by the Swedish Institute for Infectious Disease Control.ResultsClinical data was available for 95% (126/136) of the critically ill cases of influenza. Median age was 44 years, and major co‐morbidities were present in 41%. Respiratory support strategies were studied among the 110 adult patients. Supplementary oxygen was sufficient in 15% (16), non‐invasive ventilation (NIV) only was used in 20% (22), while transition from NIV to invasive ventilation (IV) was seen in 41% (45). IV was initiated directly in 24% (26). Patients initially treated with NIV had a higher arterial partial pressure of oxygen/fraction of oxygen in inspired gas ratio compared with those primarily treated with IV. Major baseline characteristics and 28‐day mortality were similar, but 90‐day mortality was higher in patients initially treated with NIV 17/67 (25%) as compared with patients primarily treated with IV 3/26 (12%), relative risk 1.2 (95% confidence interval 0.3–4.0).ConclusionsCritical illness because of 2009 influenza A (H1N1) in Sweden was dominated by hypoxic respiratory failure. The majority of patients in need of respiratory support were initially treated with NIV. In spite of less severe initial hypoxemia, initiation of ventilatory support with NIV was not associated with improved outcome.
Seed Rot, a New Disease of Beech Tree Caused by Neonectria ramulariae (anamorph: Cylindrocarpon obtusiusculum)
Authors: Hirooka Yuuri , Ichihara Yu , Masuya Hayato , Kubono Takanori 
Published: June 2012

AbstractDuring a survey of seed diseases of Fagus crenata, a new fungal disease of the seeds was found with high frequency in Akita, northern Japan. Main symptoms are often expressed as browning of the cracked parts from exposed cotyledons and complete loss of viability of infected seeds. Reddish perithecia and whitish yellow sporodochia were occasionally observed symptoms and determined that they were anamorph–telemorph relationship on the basis of both cultural observations. Inoculation studies confirmed that this fungus was the cause of seed rot. The fungus is morphologically identical with Neonectria ramulariae (anamorph: Cylindrocarpon obtusiusculum) that is well known as the soil‐born fungi around the world. Sequences between the authentic isolate of Neo. ramulariae (CBS 151.29) and the pathogenic fungus based on ITS, LSU and tub showed high similarity. Thus, ‘seed rot’, the new disease of beech seeds caused by Neo. ramulariae (anamorph: Cyl. obtusiusculum) was proposed in this study.