bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
CCN3: a key growth regulator in Chronic Myeloid Leukaemia
Authors: McCallum Lynn , Lu Wanhua , Price Susan , Lazar Noureddine , Perbal Bernard , Irvine Alexandra E. 
Published: July 2009

AbstractChronic Myeloid Leukaemia (CML) is characterized by expression of the constitutively active Bcr‐Abl tyrosine kinase. We have shown previously that the negative growth regulator, CCN3, is down‐regulated as a result of Bcr‐Abl kinase activity and that CCN3 has a reciprocal relationship of expression with BCR‐ABL. We now show that CCN3 confers growth regulation in CML cells by causing growth inhibition and regaining sensitivity to the induction of apoptosis. The mode of CCN3 induced growth regulation was investigated in K562 CML cells using gene transfection and treatment with recombinant CCN3. Both strategies showed CCN3 regulated CML cell growth by reducing colony formation capacity, increasing apoptosis and reducing ERK phosphorylation. K562 cells stably transfected to express CCN3 showed enhanced apoptosis in response to treatment with the tyrosine kinase inhibitor, imatinib. Whilst CCN3 expression was low or undetectable in CML stem cells, primary CD34+ CML progenitors were responsive to treatment with recombinant CCN3. This study shows that CCN3 is an important growth regulator in haematopoiesis, abrogation of CCN3 expression enhances BCR‐ABL dependent leukaemogenesis. CCN3 restores growth regulation, regains sensitivity to the induction of apoptosis and enhances imatinib cell kill in CML cells. CCN3 may provide an additional therapeutic strategy in the management of CML.
Quelques problèmes des universités françaises
Authors: Aron Raymond 
Published: July 2009

Les universités européennes sont des institutions historiques auxquelles la société moderne, de type industriel, impose et imposera de plus en plus des transformations profondes.Deux faits sont à l'origine de la crise, ressentie à un degré ou à un autre, dans tous les pays d'Occident. Le premier est l'élévation du taux de scolarisation, secondaire et supérieure, c'est-à-dire du rapport entre le nombre des jeunes, garçons et filles, d'un certain âge qui continuent à étudier et le nombre total des jeunes de cet âge. Le taux de scolarisation à 17, 18 et 20 ans s'élève pour de multiples causes, les mêmes dans tous les pays industrialisés, qu'ils soient libéraux ou communistes. Le poste auquel chacun peut prétendre dépend de plus en plus de la formation qu'il a reçue. La quantité des tâches qui exigent une éducation secondaire semble augmenter avec la croissance économique. Les parents sont de plus en plus conscients de cette relation entre formation et position dans la hiérarchie sociale. lis souhaitent de plus en plus fréquemment que leurs enfants fassent des études. A mesure que le niveau de vie s'élève, les parents acceptent mieux de retarder le moment ou les enfants gagneront leur vie. Est-il besoin d'ajouter qu'il s'agit là de tendances générales et que cette attitude à l'égard de l'instruction est loin d'être encore répandue dans tous les milieux sociaux et que des différences substantielles subsistent, entre les pays, les régimes et les classes (1)?
L'incohérente endogamie des sociétés peul: une analyse comparative
Authors: Dupire Marguerite 
Published: July 2009

L'organisation sociale des sociétés peul, sociétés distribuées dans toute l'Afrique occidentale, offre au sociologue á la fois un difficile problème théorique et les moyens de le résoudre.Un difficile probléme de théorie, d'abord, dans la mesure oú ces sociétés manifestent paradoxalement trois traits peu compatibles entre eux: l'endogamie accusée du patrilignage y contredit d'une part une nomenclature de parenté de type iroquois (confusion des freres, sceurs et cousin(e)s paralleles) et d'autre part les types de comportement observes entre parents. La fréquence des manages avec la fille de Poncle paternel et les parentes agnatiques va de pair avec une préférence matrimoniale secondaire pour la cousine croisée matrilatérale. Cette endogamie agnatique des Peul n'a pas la meme coherence institutionnelle que celle des Arabes, ou du moins de certaines sociétés arabes. Chez ces derniéres, le mariage préférentiel avec la fille de l'oncle paternel se refléte dans la nomenclature de parenté, le cousin a un droit sur sa cousine et Ton rencontre parfois un modéle conscient traduisant la réalité des faits: dans une famille composée de deux fréres, le premier se marie é l'intérieur — mariage endogame — et le second á l'extérieur — mariage exogame — (I), l'endogamie systématique étant théoriquement impossible. Rien de tel chez les Peul oú il n'existe ni trace de cette endogamie dans la nomenclature, ni droit, ni modele conscient.
Le laboratoire entre équipes et réseaux. Poids des techniques et conflits de légitimités
Authors: Amiot Michel 
Published: July 2009

This study was conducted through interviews with a sample of researchers from French laboratories. It has brought to light two main themes which are interlinked: (i) all laboratories which reach a certain level of development are laboured by a diversification of their teams which tends to compartmentalise them; (2) this compartmentalisation is offset. The laboratory is thus the level at which one finds and manages the problem of unity posed by the compartmentalisation of teams which are open to the whole scientific field.The nature of networks depends mainly on two variables: the weight of instrumentation and the degree of unification of problematics or thematics. Weakly integrated networks are found in those disciplines which use technologies which are easily disseminated because of their low cost, as well as those disciplines which have low degrees of theoretical unification. Nuclear physics and astrophysics are examples of the most integrated networks. A division of labour has recently developed in molecular genetics which has become de localised between different laboratory teams. We can describe these networks as paradoxical.
Fine-scale habitat selection by white-beaked and common dolphins in the Minch (Scotland, UK): evidence for interspecific competition or coexistence?
Authors: Weir Caroline R. , Macleod Colin D. , Calderan Susannah V. 
Published: July 2009

A decline in white-beaked dolphins Lagenorhynchus albirostris had been reported in the Minch (Scotland, UK) since the 1990s, coinciding with an increasing occurrence of short-beaked common dolphins Delphinus delphis. This has led to suggestions that rising seawater temperatures are causing D. delphis to out-compete and exclude L. albirostris in this region. A total of 793 km (66.3 hours) of survey data were collected in the Minch during August 2007, to examine fine-scale habitat selection by L. albirostris and D. delphis and investigate whether their ecological overlap is sufficient to result in interspecific competition and/or habitat partitioning. Ten sightings of L. albirostris (70 animals) were recorded in a relatively small spatial area in the northern Minch. In contrast, the eleven sightings of D. delphis (1486 animals) were more widely distributed. The relative abundance per 1/4 ICES rectangle ranged from 0.41 to 0.53 animals/km for L. albirostris and 0.13 to 6.68 animals/km for D. delphis. The mean group size and group body mass were higher for D. delphis than for L. albirostris indicating D. delphis as the dominant delphinid in the Minch during August. Lagenorhynchus albirostris occurred in waters significantly deeper and further from shore than D. delphis, suggesting interspecific differences in preferred habitat. Most dolphin schools were recorded as foraging/feeding. Behaviour and seabird associations indicated that the two species differed in diet and/or foraging strategy, with L. albirostris foraging sub-surface and D. delphis exhibiting surface-feeding with associated gannets Morus bassanus. This is consistent with published information on the stomach contents of Scottish animals. The results suggest that there are subtle differences in habitat selection and diet between these two species, which may enable L. albirostris and D. delphis to coexist in the Minch. Whether these differences result from niche partitioning arising from previous/ongoing interspecific competition or are the result of genuine differences in the habitat preferences of each species, remains unclear.
Lowering topological entropy over subsets
Authors: HUANG WEN , YE XIANGDONG , ZHANG GUOHUA 
Published: July 2009

AbstractLet (X,T) be a topological dynamical system (TDS), and h(T,K) the topological entropy of a subset K of X. (X,T) is lowerable if for each 0≤h≤h(T,X) there is a non-empty compact subset with entropy h; it is hereditarily lowerable if each non-empty compact subset is lowerable; it is hereditarily uniformly lowerable if for each non-empty compact subset K and each 0≤h≤h(T,K) there is a non-empty compact subset Kh⊆K with h(T,Kh)=h and Kh has at most one limit point. It is shown that each TDS with finite entropy is lowerable, and that a TDS (X,T) is hereditarily uniformly lowerable if and only if it is asymptotically h-expansive.
A sectional-Anosov connecting lemma
Authors: BAUTISTA S. , MORALES C. 
Published: July 2009

AbstractThe Anosov flows on compact manifolds M satisfy the following property: if p,q are points such that for all positive ϵ there is a trajectory from a point ϵ-close to p to a point ϵ-close to q, then there is a point whose α-limit set is that of p and whose ω-limit set is that of q. Here we give a version of this property for sectional-Anosov flows, namely, vector fields inwardly transverse to the boundary whose maximal invariant set is sectional-hyperbolic. Indeed, if in addition M is three-dimensional and p has non-singular α-limit set, then there is a point whose α-limit set is that of p and whose ω-limit set is either a singularity or that of q.
A brief remark on orbits of SL(2,ℤ) in the Euclidean plane
Authors: GUILLOUX ANTONIN 
Published: July 2009

AbstractThe repartition of dense orbits of lattices in the Euclidean plane were described by Ledrappier and Nogueira. We present here an elementary description of the gaps appearing in the experimentations. The main idea behind this description is to see the Euclidean plane as the space of (upper triangular) unipotent orbits in SL(2,ℝ). We conclude with the remark that this analysis may be carried on in much more general settings.
Iteration of certain meromorphic functions with unbounded singular values
Authors: NAYAK TARAKANTA , PRASAD M. GURU PREM 
Published: July 2009

AbstractLet ℳ={f(z)=(zm/sinhm z) for z∈ℂ∣ either m or m/2 is an odd natural number}. For eachf∈ℳ, the set of singularities of the inverse function offis an unbounded subset of the real line ℝ. In this paper, the iteration of functions in one-parameter family 𝒮={fλ(z)=λf(z)∣λ∈ℝ∖{0}} is investigated for eachf∈ℳ. It is shown that, for eachf∈ℳ, there is a critical parameterλ*>0 depending onfsuch that a period-doubling bifurcation occurs in the dynamics of functionsfλin 𝒮 when the parameter |λ| passes throughλ*. The non-existence of Baker domains and wandering domains in the Fatou set offλis proved. Further, it is shown that the Fatou set offλis infinitely connected for 0<∣λ∣≤λ*whereas for ∣λ∣≥λ*, the Fatou set offλconsists of infinitely many components and each component is simply connected.
Horizon scanning of new and emerging medical technology in Australia: Its relevance to Medical Services Advisory Committee health technology assessments and public funding
Authors: O'Malley Sue P. , Jordan Ernest 
Published: July 2009

Objectives:In 1998, a formal process using full health technology assessments (HTAs) was implemented to determine the suitability for public subsidy of new and emerging medical technologies in the Australian private healthcare sector. This process is overseen by the Medical Services Advisory Committee (MSAC). In 2004, horizon scanning was introduced in Australia with the stated objective of identifying new and emerging medical technologies into the public healthcare sector, with consideration to the publicly subsidized private healthcare sector. How well horizon scanning works in identifying new and emerging technologies suitable for government subsidized funding in the private healthcare sector is examined in this study.Methods:A descriptive evaluation of the impact of horizon scanning as an early alert and awareness system identifying new and emerging technologies before these technologies are submitted to MSAC for a full HTA. All MSAC HTAs commenced after the introduction of horizon scanning in 2004 were cross-checked with the list of Prioritizing Summaries or Horizon Scanning Reports to determine whether a prior Prioritizing Summary or Horizon Scanning Report had been carried out.Results:Of the forty-three technologies that were the subject of a full MSAC HTAs in the time period examined, only eleven had been the subject of either a Prioritizing Summary or Horizon Scanning Report. As a result of a full MSAC HTA, twelve of the technologies that were not the subject of a Prioritizing Summary or Horizon Scanning Report were given positive recommendations for public funding.Conclusions:Horizon scanning was set up to scan the introduction of new and emerging medical technologies into the public healthcare sector, with consideration to the publicly subsidized private healthcare sector. Based on the number of new and emerging technologies that have been the subject of a full MSAC HTA without first being subjected to either a Prioritizing Summary or Horizon Scanning Report, horizon scanning in Australia does not function as an “early alert and awareness system” for funding in the publicly subsidized private healthcare sector in Australia.
A cost-effectiveness analysis of a community-based diabetes prevention program in Sweden
Authors: Johansson Pia , Östenson Claes-Göran , Hilding Agneta M. , Andersson Camilla , Rehnberg Clas , Tillgren Per 
Published: July 2009

Objectives:Lifestyle changes to prevent type 2 diabetes among high-risk persons have been shown to be cost-effective. This study investigates the cost-effectiveness of a community-based program promoting general population lifestyle changes to prevent diabetes.Methods:The 10-year program was implemented in three municipalities in Sweden. Effectiveness was measured with a quasiexperimental cohort design, that is, risk factor levels in a population group aged 36–56 years at baseline and 8–10 years later (2,149 men; 3,092 women) in the program municipalities and a control area were compared. The incremental cost-utility analysis included future diabetes and cardiovascular disease-related health effects and societal costs (discounted 3 percent), estimated by a Markov model.Results:In all areas, risk factor levels increased during follow-up, leading to increased societal costs of between SEK40,000 and 90,000 (1 Euro 2004 = SEK9.13; 1 US$ = SEK 7.35) and quality-adjusted life-year (QALY) losses between 0.12 and 0.48 per individual. Compared with the control area, the cost increases and QALY losses for women were more favorable in two program areas but less favorable in one, and less favorable for men in both areas (data unavailable for one municipality). The findings indicate that the program was cost-effective in only two female study groups.Conclusions:Conflicting results on the cost-effectiveness of the program were obtained. As several potentially valuable aspects of the program are not included in the cost-effectiveness analysis, the societal value of the program might not be adequately reflected.
Percutaneous pulmonary and aortic valve insertion in Belgium: Going for conditional reimbursement or waiting for further evidence?
Authors: Neyt Mattias , Vinck Imgard , Gewillig Marc , Van Brabandt Hans 
Published: July 2009

Objectives:The aim of this study was to assess current evidence supporting the use of percutaneous heart valves (PHV) in degenerative aortic valve and congenital pulmonary outflow tract disease, as compared to conservative medical therapy or traditional surgical valve replacement.Methods:A systematic review of the literature on PHV was performed.Results:No randomized controlled trials (RCT) on PHV have been published so far. Only observational data from series and data presented at cardiology meetings are available. Both percutaneous aortic valve (PAV) and percutaneous pulmonary valve (PPV) seem feasible in the hands of an experienced team. Safety, however, seems to be a problem in PAV, as shown by the high 30-day and 6-month mortality rates.Conclusions:Due to safety concerns, PAV reimbursement is not recommended and patients should only be subjected to PAV insertion within the boundaries of an RCT. In contrast, PPV implantation seems to be a safe and promising technology for which reimbursement under strict conditions may be recommended.
Surrogate outcomes in health technology assessment: An international comparison
Authors: Garrido Marcial Velasco , Mangiapane Sandra 
Published: July 2009

Objectives:Our aim was to review the recommendations given by health technology assessment (HTA) institutions in their methodological guidelines concerning the use of surrogate outcomes in their assessments. In a second step, we aimed at quantifying the role surrogate parameters take in assessment reports.Methods:We analyzed methodological papers and guidelines from HTA agencies with International Network of Agencies for Health Technology Assessment membership as well as from institutions related to pharmaceutical regulation (i.e., reimbursement, pricing). We analyzed the use of surrogate outcomes in a sample of HTA reports randomly drawn from the HTA database. We checked methods, results (including evidence tables), and conclusions sections and extracted the outcomes reported. We report descriptive statistics on the presence of surrogate outcomes in the reports.Results:We identified thirty-four methodological guidelines, twenty of them addressing the issue of outcome parameter choice and the problematic of surrogate outcomes. Overall HTA agencies call on caution regarding the reliance on surrogate outcomes. None of the agencies has provided a list or catalog of acceptable and validated surrogate outcomes. We extracted the outcome parameter of 140 HTA reports. Only around half of the reports determined the outcomes for the assessment prospectively. Surrogate outcomes had been used in 62 percent of the reports. However, only 3.6 percent were based upon surrogate outcomes exclusively. All of them assessed diagnostic or screening technologies and the surrogate outcomes were predominantly test characteristics.Conclusions: HTA institutions seem to agree on a cautious approach to the use of surrogate outcomes in technology assessment. Thorough assessment of health technologies should not rely exclusively on surrogate outcomes.
A successful practical application of Coverage with Evidence Development in Australia: Medical Services Advisory Committee interim funding and the PillCam® Capsule Endoscopy Register
Authors: O'Malley Sue P. , Selby Warwick S. , Jordan Ernest 
Published: July 2009

Background:In August 2002, an application for the listing on the Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) of PillCam® Capsule Endoscopy (formally M2A®) as a diagnostic procedure for obscure gastrointestinal bleeding (OGIB) was made to the Medical Services Advisory Committee (MSAC). As a result of this application, in May 2004 PillCam® Capsule Endoscopy was approved with interim funding until April 2007. This funding was conditional on the collection of Australian data on the long-term safety, effectiveness, and cost-effectiveness of capsule endoscopy.Methods:A review was conducted of how the data were collected, the methodological difficulties associated with the collection and analysis of the data, and the outcomes of the data.Results:The PillCam® Capsule Endoscopy Register ran from 2004 to 2007 and amassed data on 4,099 patients forming the largest database on PillCam® in the world. Based on these data, in November 2007, MSAC recommended that full public funding be supported under the current MBS Item Number 11820 as capsule endoscopy is as safe as and more effective than comparable diagnostic tests. It is the preferred choice of patients and has the potential to reduce the number and cost of previous investigations.Conclusions:This form of CED proved to be ideally suited to PillCam® Capsule Endoscopy. The PillCam® Capsule Endoscopy Register provided data that made it possible to validate assumptions used in the economic modeling in the assessment carried out for MSAC in response to the application for funding.Discussion: The use of interim funding requires both risk and cost sharing among the key players: industry, government, the medical profession, and the hospitals. Although the characteristics of PillCam® Capsule Endoscopy proved to be suited to data collection, this may not be the case with other emerging health technologies. If interim funding coupled with data collection is to become an effective mechanism for bridging the evidence gap, work needs to be carried out by health technology assessment agencies to provide guidance on the design of registers so that they cater for the unique characteristics of individual procedures.
Benchmarking homology detection procedures with low complexity filters
Authors: Forslund Kristoffer , Sonnhammer Erik LL 
Published: July 2009

Abstract
Background: Low-complexity sequence regions present a common problem in finding true homologs to a protein query sequence. Several solutions to this have been suggested, but a detailed comparison between these on challenging data has so far been lacking. A common benchmark for homology detection procedures is to use SCOP/ASTRAL domain sequences belonging to the same or different superfamilies, but these contain almost no low complexity sequences.
Results: We here introduce an alternative benchmarking strategy based around Pfam domains and clans on whole-proteome data sets. This gives a realistic level of low complexity sequences. We used it to evaluate all six built-in BLAST low complexity filter settings as well as a range of settings in the MSPcrunch post-processing filter. The effect on alignment length was also assessed.
Conclusion: Score matrix adjustment methods provide a low false positive rate at a relatively small loss in sensitivity relative to no filtering, across the range of test conditions we apply. MSPcrunch achieved even less loss in sensitivity, but at a higher false positive rate. A drawback of the score matrix adjustment methods is however that the alignments often become truncated.
Availability: Perl scripts for MSPcrunch BLAST filtering and for generating the benchmark dataset are available at http://sonnhammer.sbc.su.se/download/software/MSPcrunch+Blixem/benchmark.tar.gz
Contact: kristoffer.forslund@sbc.su.se
Supplementary information: Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
The SNP ratio test: pathway analysis of genome-wide association datasets
Authors: O'Dushlaine Colm , Kenny Elaine , Heron Elizabeth A. , Segurado Ricardo , Gill Michael , Morris Derek W. , Corvin Aiden 
Published: July 2009

Abstract
Summary: We present a tool that assesses the enrichment of significant associations from genome-wide association studies (GWAS) in a pathway context. The SNP ratio test (SRT) compares the proportion of significant to all SNPs within genes that are part of a pathway and computes an empirical P-value based on comparisons to ratios in datasets where the assignment of case/control status has been randomized. We applied the SRT to a Parkinson's disease GWAS dataset, using the KEGG database, revealing significance for Parkinson's disease and related pathways.
Availability: https://sourceforge.net/projects/snpratiotest/
Contact: codushlaine@gmail.com; colm.odushlaine@tcd.ie
Supplementary information: Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.