bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Spongiform encephalopathy following allogeneic cord blood transplant
Authors: O’Brien Dennis , Klopfenstein Kathryn , Gross Thomas G. , Baker Peter , Termuhlen Amanda 
Published: March 2010

Abstract: A 6 year old boy developed a fatal, rapidly progressive encephalopathy 5 months after a matched unrelated cord blood transplant. Autopsy findings revealed spongiform changes in his brain. The clinical course of this child's illness had many findings consistent with that of a transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (TSE). Pre‐mortem and post‐mortem studies failed to definitively determine an etiology. Spongiform encephalopathies include the TSEs and mitochondrial encephalopathies. Both should be considered in a post‐hematopoietic stem cell transplant patient who develops a progressive encephalopathy when more common etiologies are not found.
Testing host‐associated differentiation in a quasi‐endophage and a parthenogen on native trees
Authors: DICKEY A. M. , MEDINA R. F. 
Published: March 2010

AbstractHost‐associated differentiation (HAD) is the formation of genetically divergent host‐associated sub‐populations. Evidence of HAD has been reported for multiple insect herbivores to date, but published studies testing more than one herbivore for any given host‐plant species pair is limited to herbivores on goldenrods. This limits the number of pair‐wise comparisons that can be made about insect life‐history traits that might facilitate or inhibit host‐race development in general. Two traits previously proposed to facilitate HAD include endophagy and parthenogenesis. We tested for HAD in two herbivores, a quasi‐endophagous caterpillar and a parthenogenetic aphid, feeding on two closely related species of hickories. We found that the quasi‐endophage is panmictic, whereas the parthenogen exhibits HAD on their sympatric host plants, pecan and water hickory, at a geographic mesoscale. This is an important first step in the characterization of HAD in multiple insect herbivores using North American hickories, a host‐plant system with many shared parthenogens.
Evolution of specialization in a spatially continuous environment
Authors: DÉBARRE F. , GANDON S. 
Published: March 2010

AbstractWe study the evolution of specialization in a spatially continuous (one‐dimensional) environment divided into two habitats; we use a general trade‐off function relating fitnesses in the two habitats and illustrate our results with two classical trade‐off functions. We show that the population can either reach an intermediate value of the trait and be moderately adapted to both habitats (1 generalist), or split into two locally adapted subpopulations (2 specialists). We recover the qualitative results obtained with simpler metapopulation models with island migration: the evolutionary outcome depends on the concavity of the trade‐off, on the proportion of each habitat and on migration. Our quantitative prediction on migration, however, depends on isolation by distance. Our spatially explicit model may thus be particularly useful to describe the evolutionary dynamics of specialization in, perhaps, more realistic ecological scenarios.
Di(n‐butyl) Phthalate Induces Vimentin Filaments Disruption in Rat Sertoli Cells: A Possible Relation with Spermatogenic Cell Apoptosis
Authors: Alam M. S. , Ohsako S. , Tay T. W. , Tsunekawa N. , Kanai Y. , Kurohmaru M. 
Published: March 2010

With 3 figuresSummaryPhthalate esters have been extensively used as a plasticizer of synthetic polymers. Previous studies have revealed that some phthalate esters including di(n‐butyl) phthalate (DBP) induce spermatogenic cell apoptosis, although its mechanism is not yet clear. The present study describes that disruption of Sertoli cell vimentin filaments by DBP administration may relate to spermatogenic cell apoptosis. The present histopathological study revealed that a single oral administration of 500 mg/kg DBP caused progressive detachment and displacement of spermatogenic cells away from the seminiferous epithelium and sloughing of them into the lumen. Degenerative spermatogenic cells characterized by chromatin condensation were frequently observed in DBP‐treated rats. Ultrastructurally, the degenerative spermatogenic cells were separated from their neighbours, and a collapse of Sertoli cell vimentin filaments was recognized in DBP‐treated rats. Sertoli cell cultures showed the increased number and size of vacuoles in their cytoplasm. In agreement with the in vivo experiment, vimentin filaments clearly showed a gradual collapse in DBP‐exposed Sertoli cells in vitro. These in vivo and in vitro experiments indicate that DBP‐induced collapse of Sertoli cell vimentin filaments may lead to detachment of spermatogenic cells, and then detached cells may undergo apoptosis because of loss of the support and nurture provided by Sertoli cells.
Potential damage costs of Diabrotica virgifera virgifera infestation in Europe – the ‘no control’ scenario
Authors: Wesseler J. , Fall E. H. 
Published: March 2010

AbstractThe Western Corn Rootworm (WCR or Dvv., Diabrotica virgifera virgifera Le Conte) was first detected in Europe in the early nineties in Serbia. Since then the beetle has spread to more than 15 European countries. We assess the potential damage costs of the invasive species Diabrotica virgifera virgifera LeConte (Dvv.) in Europe under a ‘no control’ scenario. While previous studies considered benefits and costs at country level, this study explicitly investigates the external benefits of control in one country for other countries. The assessment considers the spatial and temporal aspects of invasion considering a number of scenarios developed together with experts. The results indicate enormous economic benefits can be gained by controlling further spread of Dvv. The economic benefits of control range between 143 million Euro in the best case and 1739 million Euro in the worst case scenario. The most likely scenario results in average annual economic benefits of 472 million Euro. Even in countries that do not face high damage costs control can be justified as this will reduce the speed of spread of the WCR and generate a positive externality for other regions with higher damage costs.
Childhood and adolescent orofacial granulomatosis is strongly associated with Crohn's disease and responds to intralesional corticosteroids
Authors: Tuxen Alana J , Orchard David 
Published: March 2010

ABSTRACTWe present seven cases of orofacial granulomatosis occurring in paediatric patients aged 6–16 years. All patients were investigated for Crohn's disease and a strong association was found. All patients were treated with intralesional corticosteroid injections with excellent clinical responses. We review the literature and discuss the epidemiological association between childhood orofacial granulomatosis and Crohn's disease, as well as various treatment options, and propose a treatment protocol that was efficacious and well tolerated in all our patients.
Effect of inflammation on positive margins of basal cell carcinomas
Authors: Macpherson Neil , Lamrock Edwina , Watt Geoff 
Published: March 2010

ABSTRACTBackground/Objectives:  The use of preparations such as imiquimod in the treatment of basal cell carcinoma is well accepted. Imiquimod induces interferon‐α, other cytokines, antigen‐presenting cells and innate immunity, against tumour cells. The current study investigated whether the inflammation induced from a surgical procedure could have a similar effect on removing residual tumour after an excision.Method:  A retrospective audit was carried out on basal cell carcinoma removed in the Dermatology Clinic of the Royal Newcastle Centre in 2007. The end‐point focussed on the features of those tumours which initially had a positive margin, but were found to have no remaining tumour on subsequent excision.Result:  A linear regression was carried out, revealing two significant predictors of outcome. These were the location of the basal cell carcinoma excision and the excision type. Punch biopsies and excisional biopsy had a greater number of histopathologically negative wider excisions despite initial positive margins. Facial lesions had a greater number of negative wider excisions.Conclusion:  The study has shown the majority of negative re‐excisions were from lesions on the head which had had an initial surgical procedure. However, the evidence is not strong enough to advocate a protocol for dealing with positive margins. A larger sample size that encompassed all three factors that affect outcome, that is, the location of lesion, type of lesion and type of excision carried out, would be required in order to make a more definitive statement on protocol change for treatment of basal cell carcinoma.
Attenuation of store‐operated Ca2+ entry and enhanced expression of TRPC channels in caudal artery smooth muscle from Type 2 diabetic Goto‐Kakizaki rats
Authors: Mita Mitsuo , Ito Kazushi , Taira Kengo , Nakagawa Jun‐ichi , Walsh Michael P , Shoji Masaru 
Published: March 2010

Summary1. Previously, we found that Ca2+ entry from the extracellular space via α1‐adrenoceptor‐activated, Ca2+‐permeable channels, but not voltage‐gated Ca2+ channels, is impaired in endothelium‐denuded caudal artery smooth muscle from Type 2 diabetic Goto‐Kakizaki (GK) rats. In the present study, we investigated the impairment of Ca2+ entry mechanisms via Ca2+‐permeable channels from the extracellular space in response to α1‐adrenoceptor stimulation (cirazoline) in endothelium‐denuded caudal artey strips isolated from GK rats.2. The contraction of caudal artery strips from GK rats in response to the sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca2+‐ATPase inhibitor cyclopiazonic acid (10 μmol/L), which causes depletion of Ca2+ stores and subsequent store‐operated Ca2+ (SOC) entry, was significantly depressed compared with that of Wistar rats (maximal force 0.023 ± 0.004 vs 0.058 ± 0.005 mN/mg tissue wet weight, respectively). These results suggest that receptor‐activated Ca2+ entry through SOC channels is impaired in caudal artery smooth muscle in GK rats.3. The classic transient receptor potential (TRPC) channels, which constitute SOC and receptor‐operated cation channels, play an important role in Ca2+ regulation. Therefore, we investigated the mRNA and protein expression of TRPC channels in caudal artery smooth muscle from Wistar and GK rats using reverse transcription–polymerase chain reaction and immunoblotting.4. Expression of TRPC1, TRPC3 and TRPC6 mRNA and protein was found in Wistar rats. However, in GK rats, in addition to the expression of these TRPC channels, mRNA and protein expression of TRPC4 was found. The expression of TRPC1 and TRPC6, but not TRPC3, was increased approximately twofold in GK rats compared with Wistar rats.5. These results suggest that changes in TRPC channel expression may be responsible, in part, for the dysfunction of receptor‐mediated Ca2+ entry in caudal artery smooth muscle of GK rats.
Linear regression analysis for comparing two measurers or methods of measurement: But which regression?
Authors: Ludbrook John 
Published: March 2010

Summary1. There are two reasons for wanting to compare measurers or methods of measurement. One is to calibrate one method or measurer against another; the other is to detect bias. Fixed bias is present when one method gives higher (or lower) values across the whole range of measurement. Proportional bias is present when one method gives values that diverge progressively from those of the other.2. Linear regression analysis is a popular method for comparing methods of measurement, but the familiar ordinary least squares (OLS) method is rarely acceptable. The OLS method requires that the x values are fixed by the design of the study, whereas it is usual that both y and x values are free to vary and are subject to error. In this case, special regression techniques must be used.3. Clinical chemists favour techniques such as major axis regression (‘Deming’s method’), the Passing–Bablok method or the bivariate least median squares method. Other disciplines, such as allometry, astronomy, biology, econometrics, fisheries research, genetics, geology, physics and sports science, have their own preferences.4. Many Monte Carlo simulations have been performed to try to decide which technique is best, but the results are almost uninterpretable.5. I suggest that pharmacologists and physiologists should use ordinary least products regression analysis (geometric mean regression, reduced major axis regression): it is versatile, can be used for calibration or to detect bias and can be executed by hand‐held calculator or by using the loss function in popular, general‐purpose, statistical software.
High‐density lipoproteins, platelets and the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis
Authors: Nofer Jerzy‐Roch , Brodde Martin F , Kehrel Beate E 
Published: March 2010

Summary1. Prospective and interventional studies demonstrate an inverse relationship between plasma high‐density lipoprotein (HDL)–cholesterol and the incidence of coronary artery disease. Although the atheroprotective effects of HDL are usually attributed to the reverse cholesterol transport, in which HDL shuttles cholesterol from cells in the arterial wall to the liver, other mechanisms are also under investigation.2. Platelets are involved in both the initiation and progression of atherosclerotic lesions. In addition, the formation of thrombi over ruptured atherosclerotic plaques results in the narrowing or complete occlusion of coronary arteries. Current experimental evidence suggests that HDL may exert antiplatelet effects and thereby counteract the development of atherothrombotic vascular disease.3. In vitro studies show that HDL inhibits agonist‐stimulated platelet aggregation, fibrinogen binding, granule secretion and liberation of thromboxane A2. Inhibitory effects of HDL are mediated, in part, by scavenger receptor type B1 and/or the apolipoprotein E receptor apoER2/LRP8 and are linked to the induction of intracellular signalling cascades encompassing stimulation of protein kinase C, cytoplasmatic alkalization and generation of nitric oxide.4. Populational studies demonstrate that there is an inverse association between plasma HDL levels and recurrent venous thromboembolism. In addition, HDL–cholesterol has been identified as an independent predictor of acute platelet thrombus formation. The administration of reconstituted HDL particles in humans attenuates ex vivo platelet activation.5. The present review summarizes recent advances in understanding HDL–platelet interactions and discusses the potential use of HDL‐like particles in the therapy of thrombosis.
Emodin attenuates acute rejection of liver allografts by inhibiting hepatocellular apoptosis and modulating the Th1/Th2 balance in rats
Authors: Lin Sheng‐Zhang , Chen Kang‐Jie , Tong Hong‐Fei , Jing He , Li Hong , Zheng Shu‐Sen 
Published: March 2010

Summary1. In the present study, we investigated the immunosuppressive effects and mechanisms of action of emodin on acute graft rejection following liver transplantation in a rat model of orthotopic liver transplantation.2. Rats were divided into three groups: Group A, syngenic control (Brown Norway‐to‐Brown Norway); Group B, acute rejection group (Lewis‐to‐Brown Norway); and Group C, emodin‐treated group (Lewis‐to‐Brown Norway treated with 50 mg/kg emodin, 50 mg/kg.d, injected intraperitoneally once a day from days 1 to 5 posttransplantation). The survival time of the recipients in each group was recorded. Histopathological changes in the liver, hepatocellular apoptosis, serum concentrations of interleukin (IL)‐2, interferon (IFN)‐γ and IL‐4 and their expression in liver tissue were determined.3. Emodin treatment prolonged liver allograft survival time from 10.9 days in Group B to 25.6 days in Group C. The rejection activity index (calculated according to the Banff Schema) in Groups A, B and C was 1.29 ± 0.47, 7.58 ± 0.85 and 4.72 ± 0.79, respectively (P < 0.01 for Groups A and B vs Group C), whereas the apoptosis index in the three groups was 15.51 ± 1.47, 39.50 ± 1.65 and 16.72 ± 1.73, respectively (P < 0.01 for Groups A and C vs Group B). Serum levels of IL‐2 and IFN‐γ were higher, whereas levels of IL‐4 were lower, in the acute rejection group (Group B) than in the emodin‐treated group (Group C; P < 0.05). Changes in the expression of these cytokines in transplanted liver tissue were consistent with changes in serum concentrations.4. In conclusion, emodin effectively suppresses acute graft rejection in vivo to prolong the survival of recipient rats. The mechanism underlying this effect may be associated with the prevention of hepatocyte apoptosis and with a changing in the balance of Th1/Th2 cytokines towards Th2.
Comparison of propofol versus propofol‐ketamine combination for sedation during spinal anesthesia in children: randomized clinical trial of efficacy and safety
Authors: SINGH RABINDER , BATRA YATINDRA K. , BHARTI NEERJA , PANDA NIDHI B. 
Published: March 2010

SummaryObjectives:  This study was designed to compare the efficacy and safety of propofol vs propofol‐ketamine combination for sedation during pediatric spinal anesthesia.Methods:  Forty children, aged 3–8 undergoing spinal anesthesia for lower abdominal surgeries were included. Participants were randomly assigned into two groups. Group 1 received propofol bolus of 2 mg·kg−1 followed by an infusion of 4 mg·kg−1·h−1. Group 2 received a combination of 1.6 mg·kg−1 propofol and 0.4 mg·kg−1 ketamine followed by an infusion of 3.2 mg·kg−1·h−1 and 0.8 mg·kg−1·h−1, respectively. The infusion rate was titrated to keep the child sedated at University of Michigan Sedation Score of 3. The heart rate, blood pressure, respiratory rate and oxygen saturation were recorded every 5 min. The episodes of spontaneous body movements and requirement of supplemental sedation were recorded. The postoperative recovery was assessed by modified Aldrette score.Results:  Seventeen patients in group 1 and four patients in group 2 (P < 0.001) required extra boluses of study drug to prevent movements during lumbar puncture. Four patients experienced respiratory depression and three airway obstruction in group 1 when compared to one patient each in group 2 (P < 0.05). The recovery time was similar in both groups. None of the patient had postoperative nausea/vomiting or psychomimetic reactions.Conclusions:  Propofol‐ketamine combination provided better quality of sedation with lesser complications than propofol alone and thus can be a good option for sedation during spinal anesthesia in children.
Complications during rapid sequence induction of general anesthesia in children: a benchmark study
Authors: GENCORELLI FRANK J. , FIELDS RYAN G. , LITMAN RONALD S. 
Published: March 2010

SummaryObjectives:  Determine incidence of complications such as difficult or failed intubation, hypoxemia, hypotension, and bradycardia in children undergoing rapid sequence intubation (RSI) in a pediatric anesthesia department in a tertiary care children’s hospital.Aim:  To establish a benchmark to be used by other institutions and nonanesthesiologists performing RSI in children.Background:  RSI is being increasingly performed in the nonoperating room setting by nonanesthesiologists. No published studies exist to establish a benchmark of intubation success or failure and complications in this patient population.Methods/Materials:  Retrospective cohort analysis of children aged 3–12 undergoing RSI from 2001 to 2006.Results:  One thousand seventy children underwent RSI from 2001 to 2006. Twenty (1.9%) developed moderate hypoxemia (SpO2 80–89%), 18 (1.7%) demonstrated severe hypoxemia (SpO2 < 80%), 5 (0.5%) developed bradycardia (heart rate <60), and 8 (0.8%) developed hypotension (systolic blood pressure <70 mmHg). One patient had emesis of gastric contents but no evidence of pulmonary aspiration or hypoxemia. Eighteen (1.7%) children were noted to be difficult to intubate and required more than one intubation attempt. All were eventually intubated without significant complications. Patients between 10 and 19 kg had a higher incidence of severe hypoxemia when compared with older children (P < 0.001). There was no association between choice of muscle relaxant and any complication.Conclusions:  In our cohort of 1070 children who underwent RSI, difficult intubation was encountered in 1.7% and transient oxyhemoglobin desaturation occurred in 3.6%. Severe hypoxemia was more likely in children <20 kg. There were no children who could not be intubated, and there were no long‐term or permanent complications.
Ironing out the wrinkles in the rare biosphere through improved OTU clustering
Authors: Huse Susan M. , Welch David Mark , Morrison Hilary G. , Sogin Mitchell L. 
Published: March 2010

SummaryDeep sequencing of PCR amplicon libraries facilitates the detection of low‐abundance populations in environmental DNA surveys of complex microbial communities. At the same time, deep sequencing can lead to overestimates of microbial diversity through the generation of low‐frequency, error‐prone reads. Even with sequencing error rates below 0.005 per nucleotide position, the common method of generating operational taxonomic units (OTUs) by multiple sequence alignment and complete‐linkage clustering significantly increases the number of predicted OTUs and inflates richness estimates. We show that a 2% single‐linkage preclustering methodology followed by an average‐linkage clustering based on pairwise alignments more accurately predicts expected OTUs in both single and pooled template preparations of known taxonomic composition. This new clustering method can reduce the OTU richness in environmental samples by as much as 30–60% but does not reduce the fraction of OTUs in long‐tailed rank abundance curves that defines the rare biosphere.
An improved segmentation approach for planar surfaces from unstructured 3D point clouds
Authors: Awwad Tarek M. , Zhu Qing , Du Zhiqiang , Zhang Yeting 
Published: March 2010

AbstractThe extraction of object features from massive unstructured point clouds with different local densities, especially in the presence of random noisy points, is not a trivial task even if that feature is a planar surface. Segmentation is the most important step in the feature extraction process. In practice, most segmentation approaches use geometrical information to segment the 3D point cloud. The features generally include the position of each point (X, Y and Z), locally estimated surface normals and residuals of best fitting surfaces; however, these features could be affected by noisy points and in consequence directly affect the segmentation results. Therefore, massive unstructured and noisy point clouds also lead to bad segmentation (over‐segmentation, under‐segmentation or no segmentation). While the RANSAC (random sample consensus) algorithm is effective in the presence of noise and outliers, it has two significant disadvantages, namely, its efficiency and the fact that the plane detected by RANSAC may not necessarily belong to the same object surface; that is, spurious surfaces may appear, especially in the case of parallel‐gradual planar surfaces such as stairs. The innovative idea proposed in this paper is a modification for the RANSAC algorithm called Seq‐NV‐RANSAC. This algorithm checks the normal vector (NV) between the existing point clouds and the hypothesised RANSAC plane, which is created by three random points, under an intuitive threshold value. After extracting the first plane, this process is repeated sequentially (Seq) and automatically, until no planar surfaces can be extracted from the remaining points under the existing threshold value. This prevents the extraction of spurious surfaces, brings an improvement in quality to the computed attributes and increases the degree of automation of surface extraction. Thus the best fit is achieved for the real existing surfaces.