bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Uric acid and risk of myocardial infarction, stroke and congestive heart failure in 417 734 men and women in the Apolipoprotein MOrtality RISk study (AMORIS)
Authors: Holme I. , Aastveit A. H. , Hammar N. , Jungner I. , Walldius G. 
Published: May 2009

Abstract.Objectives.  Few studies have simultaneously analysed the influence of elevated serum uric acid (UA) on acute myocardial infarction (AMI), ischaemic and haemorrhagic stroke (IS, HS) and congestive heart failure (CHF) in large healthy populations. We, here, examine UA as a risk factor for AMI, stroke and CHF by age and gender in the Apolipoprotein MOrtality RISk (AMORIS) Study.Design.  Prospective study (11.8 years, range 7–17) of fatal and nonfatal acute myocardial infarction, stroke and CHF through linkage with Swedish hospital discharge and mortality registers.Settings.  Measurements of uric acid in 417 734 men and women from health check‐ups in Stockholm area.Results.  There was a gradual increase in risk of AMI, stroke and CHF by increasing UA levels. Women had a stronger relationship between UA and both AMI and IS than men. Predictions of AMI were at least as powerful in the elderly as in the young, but not so for IS. Associations were markedly attenuated when adjusted for total cholesterol, triglycerides, hospital hypertension and diabetes status. The association between UA and HS was U‐shaped in both genders. CHF was more strongly related to UA than AMI and stroke and less affected by the adjustment factors.Conclusions.  Already moderate levels of UA appear to be associated with an increased incidence of AMI, stroke and CHF in middle‐aged subjects without prior cardiovascular disease. These associations seem to increase gradually from lower to higher levels of UA. UA may be an important complementary indicator of cardiovascular risk in the general population.
Cognate Site Identifier analysis reveals novel binding properties of the Sex Inducer homeodomain proteins of Cryptococcus neoformans
Authors: Stanton Brynne C. , Giles Steven S. , Kruzel Emilia K. , Warren Christopher L. , Ansari Aseem Z. , Hull Christina M. 
Published: May 2009

SummaryHomeodomain proteins function in fungi to specify cell types and control sexual development. In the meningoencephalitis‐causing fungal pathogen Cryptococcus neoformans, sexual development leads to the production of spores (suspected infectious particles). Sexual development is controlled by the homeodomain transcription factors Sxi1α and Sxi2a, but the mechanism by which they act is unknown. To understand how the Sxi proteins regulate development, we characterized their binding properties in vitro, showing that Sxi2a does not require a partner to bind DNA with high affinity. We then utilized a novel approach, Cognate Site Identifier (CSI) arrays, to define a comprehensive DNA‐binding profile for Sxi2a, revealing a consensus sequence distinct from those of other fungal homeodomain proteins. Finally, we show that the homeodomains of both Sxi proteins are required for sexual development, a departure from related fungi. Our findings support a model in which Sxi1α and Sxi2a control sexual development in a homeodomain‐dependent manner by binding to DNA sequences that differ from those defined in previously established fungal paradigms.
Gene expression in the dimorphic sperm cells of Plumbago zeylanica: transcript profiling, diversity, and relationship to cell type
Authors: Gou Xiaoping , Yuan Tong , Wei Xiaoping , Russell Scott D. 
Published: May 2009

Summary Plumbago zeylanica produces cytoplasmically dimorphic sperm cells that target the egg and central cell during fertilization. In mature pollen, the larger sperm cell contains numerous mitochondria, is associated with the vegetative nucleus (Svn), and fuses preferentially with the central cell, forming endosperm. The other, plastid‐enriched sperm cell (Sua) fuses with the egg cell, forming the zygote and embryo. Sperm expressed genes were investigated using ESTs produced from each sperm type; differential expression was validated through suppression subtractive hybridization, custom microarrays, real‐time RT‐PCR and in situ hybridization. The expression profiles of dimorphic sperm cells reflect a diverse and broad complement of genes, including high proportions of conserved and unknown genes, as well as distinct patterns of expression. A number of genes were highly up‐regulated in the male germ line, including some genes that were differentially expressed in either the Sua or the Svn. Differentially up‐regulated genes in the egg‐targeted Sua showed increased expression in transcription and translation categories, whereas the central cell‐targeted Svn displayed expanded expression in the hormone biosynthesis category. Interestingly, the up‐regulated genes expressed in the sperm cells appeared to reflect the expected post‐fusion profiles of the future embryo and endosperm. As sperm cytoplasm is known to be transmitted during fertilization in this plant, sperm‐contributed mRNAs are probably transported during fertilization, which could influence early embryo and endosperm development.
Modulation of 1O2‐mediated retrograde signaling by the PLEIOTROPIC RESPONSE LOCUS 1 (PRL1) protein, a central integrator of stress and energy signaling
Authors: Baruah Aiswarya , Šimková Klára , Hincha Dirk K. , Apel Klaus , Laloi Christophe 
Published: May 2009

SummaryShortly after the release of singlet oxygen (1O2) in chloroplasts, changes in nuclear gene expression occur in the conditional flu mutant of Arabidopsis that reveal a rapid transfer of signals from the plastid to the nucleus. Extensive genetic screens aimed at identifying constituents involved in 1O2‐mediated plastid‐to‐nucleus signaling have failed to identify extraplastidic signaling components. This finding suggests that 1O2‐mediated signals are not translocated to the nucleus via a single linear pathway, but rather through a signaling network that is difficult to block by single mutations. The complexity of this signaling network has been tackled by mutagenizing a transgenic flu line expressing the luciferase reporter gene under the control of the promoter of a 1O2‐responsive AAA‐ATPase gene (At3g28580) and isolating second site mutants that constitutively express the reporter gene at a high level. One of the mutants was shown by map‐based cloning and sequencing to contain a single amino acid change in the PLEIOTROPIC RESPONSE LOCUS 1 (PRL1) protein. PRL1 suppresses the expression of AAA‐ATPase and other 1O2‐responsive genes. PRL1 seems to play a major role in modulating responses of plants to environmental changes by interconnecting 1O2‐mediated retrograde signaling with other signaling pathways.
Could herbicide used to control alien weeds be harming threatened New Zealand spiders?
Authors: Evans A. M. , McCaw J. , Beggs W. 
Published: May 2009

AbstractThe endangered spider Latrodectus katipo Powell, 1871 (Theridiidae) is restricted to coastal habitats around New Zealand, which are being invaded by lupins Lupinus aboreus Sims. We tested the effect of twoherbicides used to control lupins, Grazon® (triclopyr) and Versatill® (clopyralid) and the surfactant Boost® (dimethicone copolyol) on the survival of an exotic surrogate spider species Steotoda capensis (Theridiidae). The herbicides were tested at half and full application rates and caused no significant increase in mortality 7 days after treatment under laboratory conditions. However, the surfactant resulted in significantly higher spider mortality (c. 35%) compared with the other treatments. Recommendations were made to limit the use of surfactant when applying herbicide in situations where threatened invertebrate species may be present.
Pathogenicity and host specificity of Brazilian and African isolates of the acaropathogenic fungus Neozygites tanajoae to mite species associated with cassava
Authors: Agboton B. V. , Hanna R. , Hountondji F. C. C. , Von Tiedemann A. 
Published: May 2009

Abstract Neozygites tanajoae is a host‐specific acaropathogen introduced in the late 1990s from Brazil into cassava fields in West Africa for biocontrol of the cassava green mite (Mononychellus tanajoa). Local African isolates of N. tanajoae are morphologically similar to introduced Brazilian strains but the two origins can be distinguished by diagnostic PCR. In this study it was explored whether differential traits in acaropathogenic performance and host specificity exist between Brazilian and African isolates. Pathogenicity and host specificity of two Brazilian and two African isolates of N. tanajoae were compared in leaf discs laboratory bioassays or on whole cassava plants in the greenhouse by exposing adult female mites to inoculum delivered from N. tanajoae infested mite mummies. The results show that all four N. tanajoae isolates caused significant mortality of M. tanajoa, both on leaf discs and on whole plants. However, on leaf discs the Brazilian isolate collected directly from Alto Alegre in Brazil (Brazil–Brazil isolate) caused a significantly higher mortality (80%) than the Brazilian isolate collected about 9 years post‐release from a field in Adjohoun (Brazil–Benin isolate) (61.3%). The two African isolates collected in Benin and Tanzania caused a mortality similar to the African–Brazilian isolate (62.3% and 61.3% respectively). On whole cassava plants, the four fungal isolates did not show any significant differences in incidence of M. tanajoa infection. The host specificity study was conducted on leaf discs against a collection of mite species typically associated with cassava plants in Africa, Typhlodromalus aripo, Euseius fustis, Tetranychus urticae and Oligonychus gossypii. It demonstrated that the African and Brazilian isolates of N. tanajoae had similar host specificity for M. tanajoa.
Effect of renin–angiotensin system inhibitors on prevention of peritoneal fibrosis in peritoneal dialysis patients
Authors: JING SUN , KEZHOU YU , HONG ZHANG , QUN WANG , RONG WANG 
Published: May 2009

ABSTRACT:Aim:  Long‐term peritoneal dialysis (PD) may lead to peritoneal fibrosis and ultrafiltration failure. It had been demonstrated that the renin–angiotensin system (RAS) plays a key role in the regulation of peritoneal function in rats on PD. We investigated the effects of angiotensin‐converting enzyme inhibitor (ACEI) or angiotensin receptor blocker (ARB) on long‐term PD patients.Methods:  We analyzed data from 66 patients treated with PD therapy at our centre for at least 12 months retrospectively, during which time at least two peritoneal equilibration tests (PET) were performed. Thirty‐eight patients were treated with ACE/angiotensin II (AII) inhibitors (ACE/ARB group); the other 28 received none of the above drugs during the entire follow up (control group). The expression of fibronectin, transforming growth factor‐β1 (TGF‐β1), Aquaporin1 (AQP1) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in the overnight effluent were examined by enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay.Results:  The demographic data of the two groups showed no difference during the study. No difference between the groups was found with respect to residual renal function (RRF) at the start for both groups by the end of follow up, decreased in the vast majority of patients from both groups (P = 0.014). After 12 months, a significant difference in ultrafiltration was found between the two groups: in the control group it had decreased, while it had not changed in the ACE/ARB group (P < 0.05). In comparison with the baseline level, expression of fibronectin, TGF‐β1 and VEGF in dialysate effluent were significantly increased except for AQP1 in the control group (P < 0.05), but not in the ACE/ARB group (P > 0.05).Conclusion:  The findings suggest that ACE/AII inhibitors appeared to have a slower rate of decline in ultrafiltration and RRF, effectively protect against peritoneal fibrosis in long‐term peritoneal dialysis. Long‐term follow up seems to be required to draw more conclusions.
Biodiversity scales from plots to biomes with a universal species–area curve
Authors: Harte John , Smith Adam B. , Storch David 
Published: May 2009

AbstractClassic theory predicts species richness scales as the quarter‐power of area, yet species–area relationships (SAR) vary widely depending on habitat, taxa, and scale range. Because power‐law SAR are used to predict species loss under habitat loss, and to scale species richness from plots to biomes, insight into the wide variety of observed SAR and the conditions under which power‐law behavior should be observed is needed. Here we derive from the maximum entropy principle, a new procedure for upscaling species richness data from small census plots to larger areas, and test empirically, using multiple data sets, the prediction that up to an overall scale displacement, nested SAR lie along a universal curve, with average abundance per species at each scale determining the local slope of the curve. Power‐law behaviour only arises in the limit of increasing average abundance, and in that limit, the slope approaches zero, not ¼. An extrapolation of tree species richness in the Western Ghats to biome scale (60 000 km2) using only census data at plot scale (¼ ha) is presented to illustrate the potential for applications of our theory.
The spermatozoon of the Old Endemic Australo‐Papuan and Philippine rodents – its morphological diversity and evolution
Authors: Breed William G. , Leigh Christopher M. 
Published: May 2009

AbstractBreed, W.G. and Leigh, C.M. 2010. The spermatozoon of the Old Endemic Australo‐Papuan and Philippine rodents – its morphological diversity and evolution.—Acta Zoologica (Stockholm) 91: 279–294The spermatozoon of most murine rodents contains a head in which there is a characteristic apical hook, whereas most old endemic Australian murines, which are part of a broader group of species that also occur in New Guinea and the Philippines, have a far more complex sperm form with two additional ventral processes. Here we ask the question: what is the sperm morphology of the New Guinea and Philippines species and what are the trends in evolutionary changes of sperm form within this group? The results show that, within New Guinea, most species have a highly complex sperm morphology like the Australian rodents, but within the Pogonomys Division some species have a simpler sperm morphology with no ventral processes. Amongst the Philippines species, many have a sperm head with a single apical hook, but in three Apomys species the sperm head contains two additional small ventral processes, with two others having cockle‐shaped sperm heads. When these findings are plotted on a molecular phylogeny, the results suggest that independent and convergent evolution of highly complex sperm heads containing two ventral processes has evolved in several separate lineages. These accessory structures may support the sperm head apical hook during egg coat penetration.
PRESENTISM, TRUTHMAKERS, AND GOD
Authors: RHODA ALAN R. 
Published: May 2009

AbstractThe truthmaker objection to presentism (the view that only what exists now exists simpliciter) is that it lacks sufficient metaphysical resources to ground truths about the past. In this paper I identify five constraints that an adequate presentist response must satisfy. In light of these constraints, I examine and reject responses by Bigelow, Keller, Crisp, and Bourne. Consideration of how these responses fail, however, points toward a proposal that works; one that posits God's memories as truthmakers for truths about the past. I conclude that presentists have, in the truthmaker objection, considerable incentive to endorse theism.
MINDING OTHERS' BUSINESS
Authors: STOHR KAREN 
Published: May 2009

AbstractWhat do we do when a loved one is seriously messing up her life? While Kantianism describes the predicament nicely as a tension between love and respect, it is not well‐suited to resolving it. Kantian respect prevents minding another's business in cases where love demands it. Virtue ethics can readily explain the predicament as a tension between the virtues of sympathy and humility. Moreover, by changing the focus away from the other as a setter of ends and toward the would‐be‐benefactor's own degree of practical wisdom, virtue ethics permits a more nuanced set of loving responses to self‐destructive people.
Optimal spatio‐temporal hybrid sampling designs for ecological monitoring
Authors: Hooten Mevin B. , Wikle Christopher K. , Sheriff Steven L. , Rushin John W. 
Published: May 2009

AbstractQuestion:Static sampling designs for collecting spatial data efficiently are being readily utilized by ecologists, however, most ecological systems involve a multivariate spatial process that evolves dynamically over time. Efficient monitoring of such spatio‐temporal systems can be achieved by modeling the dynamic system and reducing the uncertainty associated with the effect of design choice at future observation times. However, can we combine traditional techniques with dynamic methods to find optimal dynamic sampling designs for monitoring the succession of a herbaceous community?Location:Lower Hamburg Bend Conservation Area, Missouri, USA (40°34′42″ lat. 95°45′38″ long.).Methods:The dynamic nature of the system under study is modeled in such a way that uncertainty in the measurements and temporal process can both be accounted for. Both fixed and roving monitoring locations were used in conjunction with a spatio‐temporal statistical model to efficiently determine optimal locations of roving monitors over time based on the reduction of uncertainty in predictions.Results:During the first 3 years of the study, roving monitors where held at fixed locations to allow for statistical parameter estimation from which to make predictions. Optimal monitoring locations for the remaining 2 years were selected based on the overall reduction in prediction uncertainty.Conclusions:The dynamic and adaptive vegetation monitoring scheme allowed for the efficient collection of data that will be utilized for many future ecological studies. By optimally placing an additional set of monitoring locations, we were able to utilize information about the system dynamics when informing the data collection process.
Species properties and recovery from disturbance: Forest herbs buried by volcanic tephra
Authors: Zobel Donald B. , Antos Joseph A. 
Published: May 2009

AbstractQuestion:How do forest herb species differ from each other in their spatial and temporal dynamics during recovery from volcanic disturbance, and how are dynamics related to species traits?Location:Northeast of Mount St. Helens, Washington, USA.Methods:Following deposition of volcanic tephra in 1980, we measured herb density and cover in permanent 1‐m2plots during 1980‐2005 in three old‐growth forests with differing tephra depths. For 26 species, we calculated the frequency of plots with residuals (individuals that survived the eruption) versus re‐establishment on the tephra, timing of establishment, turnover, influence of nearby conspecific plants, importance of three components of cover increase, and relationship of flowering frequency to succession.Results:Tephra depth affected species behavior. Deep tephra produced fewer residuals, a greater increase in shoot size, and more shoot turnover; favored species that established late; and allowed establishment of early seral herbs. Nearby presence of conspecifics increased permanence of first establishment and rate of plot occupancy. Most species spread significantly in deep tephra but not in shallow tephra. Among species, frequency of flowering increased with fewer residuals, later establishment, and higher turnover. Species behavior seldom differed among growth forms based on leaf longevity and vegetative spread.Conclusion:Population dynamics at the small‐plot scale differed from those of the entire population. The timing and permanency of establishment and mechanism of expansion differed among species and with tephra depth. There was some consistency among species with similar habitat breadth and degree of flowering, but little consistency associated with the usual growth form classification.
The direct regeneration hypothesis in northern forests
Authors: Ilisson Triin , Chen Han Y. H. 
Published: May 2009

AbstractQuestion:Can the direct regeneration hypothesis (DRH) be used to predict post‐disturbance regeneration after fire, wind disturbance, and clearcutting in northern forests? Do life‐history traits such as regeneration strategy and shade tolerance influence post‐disturbance regeneration success of tree species?Location:Northern forests in North America.Methods:A meta‐analysis was conducted by collecting published data on pre‐ and post‐disturbance stand compositional characteristics in the northern forests. For each tree species, compositional difference (CD) was calculated as the difference between basal area proportions of the post‐ and pre‐disturbance stands, but for post‐disturbance stands <25 years of age, post‐disturbance proportions were calculated based on relative stem density.Results:Species response to disturbances was best explained by regeneration strategy, while disturbance type had no effect on CD. The proportion of broadleaf trees with either strong or weak vegetative reproduction ability increased after all disturbances. Serotinous species had CD values not significantly different from zero after fire, while CD for semi‐serotinous species was negative. The post‐disturbance proportions of non‐serotinous conifers decreased after all forms of disturbance.Conclusions:All disturbances promote broadleaf trees, regardless of regeneration strategy (suckering, sprouting, or seeding). The DRH is supported for conifers with serotinous cones after fire. Fire causes local extinction of non‐serotinous conifers, while wind and clearcutting only decrease the proportion of non‐serotinous conifers because of partial survival of seed sources and advanced regeneration. This study suggests that increasing stand‐replacing disturbances associated with global climate change will promote broadleaf trees in northern forests.