bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Detection of circulating antierythropoietin antibodies in patients with end stage renal disease on regular hemodialysis
Authors: EL‐DIN M. M. , ATTIA F. M. , LABIB S. M. , OMAR W. 
Published: August 2009

SummaryRecombinant human erythropoietin (rHuEPO) has been successfully and safely used to treat anemia in patients with end stage renal disease (ESRD). The safety profile of rHuEPO had been considered to be excellent with possible exception of hypertension and increased risk of dialysis access thrombosis. Recently, antibody‐mediated pure red cell aplasia associated with administration of rHuEPO has been identified as a cause of major concern; we aimed to detect and evaluate the presence of anti‐EPO antibodies in patients with ESRD on regular dialysis who are using rHuEPO. Serum anti‐EPO antibodies were detected by enzyme‐linked immunosorbant assay technique in a total of 90 patients who are currently on regular hemodialysis and using rHuEPO alpha subcutaneously for more than 6 months. All patients were subjected to full history taking and clinical examination. Complete blood count, reticulocytes count, serum creatinine, blood urea, serum albumin, serum ferritin, and hepatitis markers were performed for all patients. Our results showed that 35 patients (38.9%) had the anti‐EPO antibodies in their blood, while 55 patients (61.1%) did not have the circulating antibodies. The mean hemoglobin (Hb) level was significantly lower in the antibody positive group (8.8 g/dl ± 1.35) than in the antibody negative group (9.42 g/dl ± 1.32) (P = 0.000). The reticulocytes count was also significantly much lower in the patients who had anti‐EPO antibodies with mean of (1.99 ± 1.14) vs. (3.15 ± 0.89) in the antibody negative (P = 0.000). The dose of EPO administrated in both studied groups was insignificantly different. The incidence of anti‐EPO antibodies is high in ESRD patients on maintenance hemodialysis. Its presence is associated with increased incidence of anemia possibly due to immune‐mediated inhibition of erythropoiesis as evidenced by reticulocytopenia.
Manipulation of charged residues within the two‐peptide lantibiotic lacticin 3147
Authors: Deegan Lucy H. , Suda Srinivas , Lawton Elaine M. , Draper Lorraine A. , Hugenholtz Floor , Peschel Andreas , Hill Colin , Cotter Paul D. , Ross R. Paul 
Published: August 2009

SummaryLantibiotics are antimicrobial peptides which contain a high percentage of post‐translationally modified residues. While most attention has been paid to the role of these critical structural features, evidence continues to emerge that charged amino acids also play a key role in these peptides. Here 16 ‘charge’ mutants of the two‐peptide lantibiotic lacticin 3147 [composed of Ltnα (2+, 2−) and Ltnβ (2+)] were constructed which, when supplemented with previously generated peptides, results in a total bank of 23 derivatives altered in one or more charged residues. When examined individually, in combination with a wild‐type partner or, in some instances, in combination with one another, these mutants reveal the importance of charge at specific locations within Ltnα and Ltnβ, confirm the critical role of the negatively charged glutamate residue in Ltnα and facilitate an investigation of the contribution of positively charged residues to the cationic Ltnβ. From these investigations it is also apparent that the relative importance of the overall charge of lacticin 3147 varies depending on the target bacteria and is most evident when strains with more negatively charged cell envelopes are targeted. These studies also result in, for the first time, the creation of a derivative of a lacticin 3147 peptide (LtnβR27A) which displays enhanced specific activity.
Microaerobic and anaerobic metabolism of a Methylocystis parvus strain isolated from a denitrifying bioreactor
Authors: Vecherskaya Margarita , Dijkema Cor , Saad Hugo Ramírez , Stams Alfons J. M. 
Published: August 2009

SummaryAn obligate methanotrophic bacterium, strain MTS, was isolated from a methane‐fed microaerobic denitrifying bioreactor. 16S rRNA and DNA–DNA hybridization analysis revealed that this organism was most closely related to Methylocystis parvus, a Type II methanotroph, belonging to the α‐subclass of the Proteobacteria. The metabolism of the bacterium under microaerobic and anaerobic conditions was studied by 13C‐NMR. 13C‐labelled poly‐β‐hydroxybutyrate (PHB) formation occurred in cell suspensions incubated with 13C‐labelled methane at low (5–10%) oxygen concentration. Under these conditions low levels of succinate, acetate and 2,3‐butanediol were formed and excreted into the culture medium. Intracellular PHB degradation was observed in intact cells under anaerobic conditions in the absence of an exogenous carbon source during a long‐term incubation of 90 days. Multiple 13C‐labelled β‐hydroxybutyrate, butyrate, acetate, acetone, isopropanol, 2,3‐butanediol and succinate were identified as products in in vivo13C‐NMR spectra and in the spectra of culture medium during the dynamic PHB degradation. The isolated obligate methanotroph clearly shows a fermentative metabolism of PHB under anaerobic conditions. The excreted products may serve as substrates for denitrifying bacteria.
Models for individual oral health promotion and their effectiveness: a systematic review
Authors: Yevlahova D , Satur J 
Published: August 2009

AbstractBackground:  There is a recognized need to deliver oral health information to people during clinical encounters to enable them to develop personal skills in managing their own oral health. Traditional approaches to individual oral health education have been shown to be largely ineffective and new approaches are required to address personal motivations for preventive behaviour. This systematic review aims to identify and assess the effectiveness of behaviour models as a basis for individual oral health promotion.Methods:  Electronic databases were searched for articles evaluating the effectiveness of health behaviour models in oral and general health between 2000 and 2007. Eighty‐nine studies were retrieved and data were extracted from the 32 studies that met the inclusion criteria.Results:  Thirty‐two studies were identified in the fields of clinical prevention and health education, motivational interviewing (MI), counselling, and models based interventions. MI interventions were found to be the most effective method for altering health behaviours in a clinical setting.Conclusions:  There is a need to develop an effective model for chairside oral health promotion that incorporates this evidence and allows oral health professionals to focus more on the underlying social determinants of oral disease during the clinical encounter. There is potential to further develop the MI approach within the oral health field.
Access to dental care among adults with physical and intellectual disabilities: residence factors
Authors: Pradhan A , Slade GD , Spencer AJ 
Published: August 2009

AbstractBackground:  There is limited information about access and barriers to dental care among adults with disabilities.Methods:  A mailed questionnaire survey of carers of 18–44‐year‐old South Australians with physical and intellectual disabilities (care recipients; n = 485) in family homes, community housing and institutions. Bivariate associations were tested using chi‐square tests. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95 per cent confidence intervals (CI) were estimated for irregular dental visits (IDV).Results:  Carers from family homes and community housing were more likely to report problems in obtaining dental care than those at institutions (p < 0.001). Lack of dentists with adequate skills in special needs dentistry (SND) was the most frequently reported problem for carers from family homes and community housing. IDV were less likely (p < 0.01) for care recipients in institutions and community housing than in family homes. After adjusting for care recipients’ age, gender and disability, odds of IDV was lower in community housing (OR = 0.2, 95% CI = 0.1, 0.3) and in institutions (OR = 0.1, 95% CI = 0.04, 0.3) relative to family homes.Conclusions:  Care recipients in institutions and community housing had better access to dental care than those at family homes. The shortage of dentists in SND and treatment costs needs to be addressed.
The effects of saliva on the erosive potential of three different wines
Authors: Brand HS , Tjoe Fat GM , Veerman ECI 
Published: August 2009

AbstractBackground:  The erosive potential of wine on teeth may be modified by the buffering capacity of saliva. This potential effect was studied for three different wines in vitro and in vivo.Methods:  The buffering capacity was studied in vitro by stepwise addition of small volumes of a dry white wine, a medium sweet white wine and a red wine to collected stimulated saliva. In vivo, this was studied by six volunteers vigorously rinsing 5 mL of each wine in their mouth for 15 to 45 seconds. Changes in salivary flow rate and pH were measured during a period of 10 minutes after rinsing with 5 mL wine.Results:  pH values < 5.5 were observed in vitro after addition of 0.2 mL dry white wine and medium sweet wine and after 0.3 mL red wine to 1 mL saliva. During rinsing with all wines, the intra‐oral pH decreased to below 4 within 15 seconds and remained below this value for at least 45 seconds. After expectoration, the salivary pH remained significantly low for two to six minutes, despite a doubling of the flow rate observed during the first two minutes.Conclusions:  Vigorously rinsing wine induced a decrease in intra‐oral pH of significant degree and duration, which increases the risk of developing dental erosion.
Consumption of milk with added casein phosphopeptide‐amorphous calcium phosphate remineralizes enamel subsurface lesions in situ
Authors: Walker GD , Cai F , Shen P , Bailey DL , Yuan Y , Cochrane NJ , Reynolds C , Reynolds EC 
Published: August 2009

AbstractBackground:  Casein phosphopeptide‐amorphous calcium phosphate (CPP‐ACP) is an anticariogenic agent that is suitable to be added to foods. The aim of this double‐blind, three‐way crossover randomized study was to investigate the capacity of CPP‐ACP, when added to bovine milk, to remineralize enamel subsurface lesions in situ.Methods:  Ten subjects drank 100 mL of bovine milk containing no added CPP‐ACP (control milk), 0.2% (w/v) CPP‐ACP or 0.3% (w/v) CPP‐ACP, for 30 seconds once daily for 15 days, whilst wearing removable appliances with attached slabs of enamel containing subsurface enamel lesions. After each treatment and a one‐week washout period, subjects crossed over to another treatment and this was repeated until they had consumed each of the three milk products. At the completion of each treatment the enamel slabs were removed and remineralization was determined using microradiography.Results:  The results demonstrated that all three milk samples remineralized enamel subsurface lesions in situ. However, the two milk samples containing added CPP‐ACP each produced significantly greater remineralization than the control milk.Conclusions:  The remineralizing effect of CPP‐ACP in milk was dose‐dependent with milk containing 0.2% CPP‐ACP and 0.3% CPP‐ACP producing an increase in mineral content of 81% and 164%, respectively, relative to the control milk.
Severe necrotizing stomatitis and osteomyelitis after chemotherapy for acute leukaemia
Authors: Santos FA , Pochapski MT , Pilatti GL , Kozlowski Jr VA , Goiris FAJ , Groppo FC 
Published: August 2009

AbstractBackground:  Leukaemia is a malignant neoplasm characterized by clonal proliferation of white blood cells within the bone marrow. Despite an increase in the white blood cell count, the leukaemic leukocytes are non‐functional. The oral complications arising in leukaemic patients can be attributed to the direct and indirect effects of immunosuppressive chemotherapy.Methods:  This case report describes severe maxillary and mandibular necrotizing stomatitis and osteomyelitis in a young female patient after chemotherapy for acute leukaemia. On physical examination, the patient presented malnourished with pale skin, cervical lymphadenitis, frequent fever and generalized pain. The intra‐oral clinical examination found halitosis, multiple ulcers, necrotizing stomatitis and osteomyelitis located in the maxillary and mandibular regions. The necrotizing stomatitis and osteomyelitis were treated locally with atraumatic removal of the necrotized tissues. The patient received a daily preventive protocol consisting of oral hygiene care, including twice daily brushing, and mouthrinses with a solution of chlorhexidine. She was also treated with systemic metronidazole and amoxicillin for 21 days.Results:  During the course of management the patient's oral condition improved with some re‐epithelialization being noted. However, severe alveolar bone destruction remained evident. Thirty‐two months after presentation of the initial symptoms, the patient died due to complications related to leukaemia recurrence (haemorrhage, sepsis and respiratory distress syndrome).Conclusions:  Dental monitoring during cancer treatment is imperative in order to emphasize the importance of dental plaque control and the maintenance of a healthy periodontal condition throughout medical treatment.
A measure & conquer approach for the analysis of exact algorithms
Authors: Fomin Fedor V. , Grandoni Fabrizio , Kratsch Dieter 
Published: August 2009

For more than 40 years, Branch & Reduce exponential-time backtracking algorithms have been among the most common tools used for finding exact solutions of NP-hard problems. Despite that, the way to analyze such recursive algorithms is still far from producing tight worst-case running time bounds. Motivated by this, we use an approach, that we call “Measure & Conquer”, as an attempt to step beyond such limitations. The approach is based on the careful design of a nonstandard measure of the subproblem size; this measure is then used to lower bound the progress made by the algorithm at each branching step. The idea is that a smarter measure may capture behaviors of the algorithm that a standard measure might not be able to exploit, and hence lead to a significantly better worst-case time analysis.
In order to show the potentialities of Measure & Conquer, we consider two well-studied NP-hard problems: minimum dominating set and maximum independent set. For the first problem, we consider the current best algorithm, and prove (thanks to a better measure) a much tighter running time bound for it. For the second problem, we describe a new, simple algorithm, and show that its running time is competitive with the current best time bounds, achieved with far more complicated algorithms (and standard analysis).
Our examples show that a good choice of the measure, made in the very first stages of exact algorithms design, can have a tremendous impact on the running time bounds achievable.
LIPSIN
Authors: Jokela Petri , Zahemszky András , Esteve Rothenberg Christian , Arianfar Somaya , Nikander Pekka 
Published: August 2009

A large fraction of today's Internet applications are internally publish/subscribe in nature; the current architecture makes it cumbersome and inept to support them. In essence, supporting efficient publish/subscribe requires data-oriented naming, efficient multicast, and in-network caching. Deployment of native IP-based multicast has failed, and overlay-based multicast systems are inherently inefficient. We surmise that scalable and efficient publish/subscribe will require substantial architectural changes, such as moving from endpoint-oriented systems to information-centric architectures.
In this paper, we propose a novel multicast forwarding fabric, suitable for large-scale topic-based publish/subscribe. Due to very simple forwarding decisions and small forwarding tables, the fabric may be more energy efficient than the currently used ones. To understand the limitations and potential, we provide efficiency and scalability analysis via simulations and early measurements from our two implementations. We show that the system scales up to metropolitan WAN sizes, and we discuss how to interconnect separate networks.
Towards automated performance diagnosis in a large IPTV network
Authors: Mahimkar Ajay Anil , Ge Zihui , Shaikh Aman , Wang Jia , Yates Jennifer , Zhang Yin , Zhao Qi 
Published: August 2009

IPTV is increasingly being deployed and offered as a commercial service to residential broadband customers. Compared with traditional ISP networks, an IPTV distribution network (i) typically adopts a hierarchical instead of mesh-like structure, (ii) imposes more stringent requirements on both reliability and performance, (iii) has different distribution protocols (which make heavy use of IP multicast) and traffic patterns, and (iv) faces more serious scalability challenges in managing millions of network elements. These unique characteristics impose tremendous challenges in the effective management of IPTV network and service.
In this paper, we focus on characterizing and troubleshooting performance issues in one of the largest IPTV networks in North America. We collect a large amount of measurement data from a wide range of sources, including device usage and error logs, user activity logs, video quality alarms, and customer trouble tickets. We develop a novel diagnosis tool called Giza that is specifically tailored to the enormous scale and hierarchical structure of the IPTV network. Giza applies multi-resolution data analysis to quickly detect and localize regions in the IPTV distribution hierarchy that are experiencing serious performance problems. Giza then uses several statistical data mining techniques to troubleshoot the identified problems and diagnose their root causes. Validation against operational experiences demonstrates the effectiveness of Giza in detecting important performance issues and identifying interesting dependencies. The methodology and algorithms in Giza promise to be of great use in IPTV network operations.
Every microsecond counts
Authors: Kompella Ramana Rao , Levchenko Kirill , Snoeren Alex C. , Varghese George 
Published: August 2009

Many network applications have stringent end-to-end latency requirements, including VoIP and interactive video conferencing, automated trading, and high-performance computing---where even microsecond variations may be intolerable. The resulting fine-grain measurement demands cannot be met effectively by existing technologies, such as SNMP, NetFlow, or active probing. We propose instrumenting routers with a hash-based primitive that we call a Lossy Difference Aggregator (LDA) to measure latencies down to tens of microseconds and losses as infrequent as one in a million.
Such measurement can be viewed abstractly as what we refer to as a coordinated streaming problem, which is fundamentally harder than standard streaming problems due to the need to coordinate values between nodes. We describe a compact data structure that efficiently computes the average and standard deviation of latency and loss rate in a coordinated streaming environment. Our theoretical results translate to an efficient hardware implementation at 40 Gbps using less than 1% of a typical 65-nm 400-MHz networking ASIC. When compared to Poisson-spaced active probing with similar overheads, our LDA mechanism delivers orders of magnitude smaller relative error; active probing requires 50--60 times as much bandwidth to deliver similar levels of accuracy.
Evolution of a Video-Learning Object Format
Authors: Fadde Peter J. 
Published: August 2009

In a previous article, Peter J. Fadde emphasized the value of creating an identifiable format for video-learning objects. Developing such a format requires an investment of time and creativity, yet the return-on-investment is significant. In addition, viewers (or learners) know what to expect from each video-learning object -- of key importance with video objects because they can't be perused in a glance.
Here, I analyze a series of mini-lecture video-learning objects called 'Real Time Minutes' (RTMs) produced by Jonathan Finkelstein, the creator/curator of Learning Times, an online community for teachers.
Virtualizing office hours in CS 50
Authors: Malan David J. 
Published: August 2009

In Fall 2007, we introduced "virtual office hours" into Harvard College's introductory computer science course, CS 50, so that students could meet with teaching fellows (TFs) online to discuss problem sets at any hour from anywhere. Our goals were to lower the bar to interaction among TFs and students and to improve the efficiency and convenience of the same. Rather than rely on email alone, we experimented with Elluminate, third-party software that not only allowed students and TFs to chat via IM and VOIP, it also enabled the latter to see and even share control of the former's screens (eg, code in students' terminal windows). Students, in turn, were able to troubleshoot bugs with TFs by their (virtual) side.
We surveyed our nearly 300 students on their experiences with office hours, both physical and virtual. Although most students responded positively to the idea of virtual office hours, only 55% logged in at least once. However, nearly the same number (62%) attended the physical. We ultimately judged our virtual office hours a net positive, with 14% of students attending the virtual (and 21% the physical) "often." But our experiment was not without some unexpected results. We found that wait times online sometimes matched or exceeded those in the physical lab, partly the result of the software's own shortcomings and students' habits online.
Ultimately, the audience for these virtual office hours was entirely self-selecting. Those students who liked the experience online opted in, whereas those who preferred more traditional help opted out.
Neural Correlates of Generic versus Gender-specific Face Adaptation
Authors: Kloth Nadine , Schweinberger Stefan R. , Kovács Gyula 
Published: August 2009

Abstract
The perception of facial gender has been found to be adaptively recalibrated: adaptation to male faces causes participants to perceive subsequent faces as more feminine and vice versa [Webster, M. A., Kaping, D., Mizokami, Y., & Duhamel, P. Adaptation to natural facial categories. Nature, 428, 557–561, 2004]. In an event-related brain potential (ERP) study, Kovács et al. [Kovács, G., Zimmer, M., Banko, E., Harza, I., Antal, A., & Vidnyanszky, Z. Electrophysiological correlates of visual adaptation to faces and body parts in humans. Cerebral Cortex, 16, 742–753, 2006] reported reduced N170 amplitudes and increased latencies for test faces following female gender adaptation compared to control stimulus (a phase randomized face) adaptation. We examined whether this N170 attenuation to test faces was related to the adaptor's gender, or to adaptation to face exposure in general. We compared N170 effects after adaptation to either male or androgynous faces. Additionally, we investigated cross-modal adaptation for the same test faces following male or androgynous voice adaptors. Visual adaptation to face gender replicated previously reported aftereffects in classifying androgynous faces, and a similar trend was observed following adaptation to voice gender. Strikingly, N170 amplitudes were dramatically reduced for faces following face adaptors (relative to those following voice adaptors), whereas only minimal gender-specific adaptation effects were seen in the N170. By contrast, strong gender-specific adaptation effects appeared in a centroparietal P3-like component (∼400–600 msec), which in the context of adaptation may reflect a neural correlate of the detection of perceptual novelty.