bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Prevalence and distribution of sensitization to foods in the European Community Respiratory Health Survey: a EuroPrevall analysis
Authors: Burney P. , Summers C. , Chinn S. , Hooper R. , Van Ree R. , Lidholm J. 
Published: February 2010

To cite this article: Burney P, Summers C, Chinn S, Hooper R, van Ree R, Lidholm J. Prevalence and distribution of sensitization to foods in the European Community Respiratory Health Survey: a EuroPrevall analysis. Allergy 2010; 65: 1182–1188.AbstractBackground:  Reports of adverse reactions to foods are increasing, but there is limited information on the comparative prevalence of sensitization to food allergens using standardized methods.Methods:  Sera from the ‘random sample’ of young adults seen during the second phase of the European Community Respiratory Health Survey were analysed for IgE against 24 foods using ImmunoCAP. Sera were tested on five food mixes, and subsequently on individual foods in each positive mix.Results:  Sera from 4522 individuals living in 13 countries were tested for at least one food allergen mix. Prevalence of sensitization to any of the 24 food allergens ranged from 24.6% in Portland (USA) to 7.7% in Reykjavik (Iceland). With few exceptions, the relative prevalence of sensitization to different foods was similar in all countries. Sensitization rates to egg, fish and milk were each less than 1%, and the most common sensitizations are not represented in current commercial mixes. The prevalence of sensitization to foods was not related to that of sensitization to aeroallergens but was related to the geometric mean total IgE for the country.Conclusions:  Sensitization to foods is common but highly variable. The relative prevalence of sensitization to different foods is more consistent than would be expected by chance, suggesting that quantity of consumption of specific foods does not determine prevalence. The aetiology of food sensitization is only partly similar to that for aeroallergens but is related to local levels of total IgE. This may provide an important clue to the origins of food sensitization.
Rock, paper and scissors? Traumatic paediatric cataract in Victoria 1992–2006
Authors: Staffieri Sandra E , Ruddle Jonathan B , Mackey David A 
Published: February 2010

AbstractBackground:  To review visual acuity outcomes from paediatric traumatic cataract and examine the mechanisms by which they occur.Methods:  A retrospective review of paediatric patients (aged less than 18 years) who underwent lens surgery following ocular trauma, between 1992 and 2006 at the Royal Children's Hospital and Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital in Melbourne. Data collected included gender, mechanism of injury, wound type, age at injury, age at surgery, refractive rehabilitation, complications and visual acuity outcome.Results:  A total of 74 patients (75% male) were identified over the 15‐year period, representing an incidence of 4.9 cases per year. The mean age at injury was 7.5 years. Sixty‐five cataracts (88%) followed a penetrating eye injury, whereas only nine patients (12%) developed cataract after known blunt trauma. Fourteen patients (19%) underwent lensectomy at the time of primary wound repair and 45 patients (61%) underwent primary intraocular lens (IOL) implantation. Visual acuity outcomes ranged from 6/5 to no perception of light. Twenty‐five patients (34%) achieved 6/12 or better in the injured eye, 23 patients (31%) achieved between 6/15 and 6/60, and 14 patients (19%) had visual acuity of less than 6/60. Twelve patients (16%) were lost to follow‐up.Conclusion:  In a paediatric population, cataract formation as a result of trauma requiring lensectomy is not uncommon. Males are more likely to suffer from such injury. A variety of sharp and blunt objects are the primary mechanism by which the injury is sustained with variable visual outcomes.
Prevalence of refractive errors among schoolchildren in Shiraz, Iran
Authors: Yekta AbbasAli , Fotouhi Akbar , Hashemi Hassan , Dehghani Cirous , Ostadimoghaddam Hadi , Heravian Javad , Derakhshan Akbar , Yekta Reihaneh , Behnia Mehdi , Khabazkhoob Mehdi 
Published: February 2010

AbstractPurpose:  To determine the prevalence of refractive errors in Shiraz schoolchildren by age and gender.Methods:  For this cross‐sectional study, random cluster sampling was carried out from students of the 2008–2009 academic year. After the initial interview, ophthalmic examinations including tests of visual acuity, non‐cycloplegic and cycloplegic refraction and binocular vision were performed. Myopia was defined as a spherical equivalent ≤−0.50 dioptre (D), hyperopia as ≥+2.0 D, and astigmatism as a cylinder refraction ≥0.75 D. All values for school grade and gender were directly standardized based on the total student population in the 2008–2009 school year.Results:  A total of 2130 students were sampled, of which 1872 participated in the study (response rate = 87.88%). The prevalence of uncorrected, best‐corrected, presenting and spectacle corrected visual acuity of 6/12 or worse in the better eye was 6.46%, 0%, 1.49% and 0.9%, respectively. The prevalence rates of myopia, hyperopia and astigmatism were 4.35% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 2.89–5.82%), 5.04% (95% CI: 3.50–6.58%), and 11.27% (95% CI: 9.81–12.74%), respectively. Anisometropia was detected in 2.58% of schoolchildren. The prevalence of hyperopia significantly decreased with age (P = 0.021).Conclusions:  Compared with other reported rates, the prevalence of myopia in the schoolchildren of Shiraz is similar to that in most places excluding East Asian countries, and that of hyperopia is in the mid range.
Genetic variation of early height growth traits at the xeric limits of Austrocedrus chilensis (Cupressaceae)
Authors: APARICIO ALEJANDRO GABRIEL , PASTORINO MARIO JUAN , GALLO LEONARDO ARIEL 
Published: February 2010

AbstractThe study of the genetic variation of early height growth traits in seedlings helps to predict the possible outcomes of tree populations in the face of climate change. Second‐year height growth of 10 geographically marginal populations of Patagonian cypress (Austrocedrus chilensis (D. Don) Pic. Ser. et Bizzarri) (Cupressaceae) was characterized under greenhouse conditions. Variation among and within an average of 15 open‐pollinated families (comprising 21 seedlings per family) for each population was analysed for six size and timing traits obtained from fitted Boltzmann growth curves. The among‐family and among‐population variances were 4.03% and 2.74% of the total phenotypic variation, while the residual variance was 84.57% on average. Genetic differentiation among populations was low, except for the maximum growth rate (QST = 0.35) and for growth initiation (QST = 1). For most traits, genetic variation and heritability were variable across populations, except for growth initiation, which showed in general null intra‐population levels of genetic variance. Although no direct associations were found between the additive genetic variation and latitude or altitude, the north range of the distribution was more variable for the pool of the analysed traits. Although most extreme‐marginal populations of A. chilensis would be very limited in their ability to evolve if climate in north‐west Patagonia turns drier and warmer, their long‐term persistence could largely rely on a phenotypic diversification strategy.
Secondary seed dispersal of Erodiophyllum elderi, a patchily distributed short‐lived perennial in the arid lands of Australia
Authors: EMMERSON LOUISE , FACELLI JOSÉ M. , CHESSON PETER , POSSINGHAM HUGH 
Published: February 2010

AbstractWe investigated secondary dispersal of propagules of Erodiophyllum elderi (Asteraceae), a short‐lived perennial plant growing in small patches in the arid lands of southern Australia. In spite of its importance for population dynamics, secondary dispersal is a little understood process. We monitored the dispersal of 2280 large woody capitula (seed heads) released in six E. elderi patches for 9 months. Colour‐coded seed heads were located at night using UV light and their distance and direction from the release point were measured. Over the 9‐month period, more seed heads moved, and those that did, moved further in areas with high herbivore activity. Overall dispersal distance across the ground was limited to less than 30 m. Dispersal patterns were related to the topographical slope at the release site: seed heads moved further, and more dispersed on steeper slopes unless the steep slopes had sandy soil in which case seed heads were buried, caught or there was reduced sheet water flow limiting their dispersal potential. After several months, seed head dispersal virtually ceased as seed heads became stuck in the debris and soil after heavy rains or further dispersal became unlikely when seed heads reached locally low‐lying areas. Secondary dispersal patterns suggest two distinctly different influences associated with the presence of herbivores: the direct movement of seed heads by trampling from sheep (an introduced herbivore) and the indirect effect of a reduced standing biomass from grazing. Reduced vegetation cover allows seed head redistribution via sheet water flow during large rainfall events.
Ultrastructural localization and function of dopamine D1‐like receptors in the substantia nigra pars reticulata and the internal segment of the globus pallidus of parkinsonian monkeys
Authors: Kliem Michele A. , Pare Jean‐Francois , Khan Zafar U. , Wichmann Thomas , Smith Yoland 
Published: February 2010

AbstractThe motor symptoms of Parkinson’s disease (PD) are commonly attributed to striatal dopamine loss, but reduced dopamine innervation of basal ganglia output nuclei, the internal globus pallidus (GPi) and the substantia nigra pars reticulata (SNr) may also contribute to symptoms and signs of PD. Both structures express dopamine D1 and D5 receptors under normal conditions, and we have recently demonstrated that their local activation reduces neuronal discharge rates and enhances bursts and oscillatory activity in both nuclei of normal monkeys [M.A.Kliemet al.(2007)J. Neurophysiol., 89, 1489–1500]. Here, we determined the ultrastructural localization and function of D1‐like receptors in 1‐methyl‐4‐phenyl‐1,2,3,6‐tetrahydropyridine (MPTP)‐treated parkinsonian monkeys. In both normal and MPTP‐treated monkeys, most of the D1 and D5 receptor immunoreactivity was associated with unmyelinated axons, but we also found significant postsynaptic D5 receptor immunostaining in dendrites of GPi and SNr neurons. A significant proportion of axonal D1 immunostaining was bound to the plasma membrane in both normal and MPTP‐treated monkeys. Local microinjections of the D1/D5 receptor agonist SKF82958 significantly reduced discharge rates in GPi and SNr neurons, while they increased burst firing and oscillatory activity in the 3–15‐Hz band in SNr, but not in GPi, of parkinsonian monkeys. Together with our recent findings from normal monkeys, these data provide evidence that functional D1/D5 receptors are expressed in GPi and SNr in both normal and parkinsonian states, and that their activation by endogenous dopamine (under normal conditions) or dopamine receptor agonists (in parkinsonism) may regulate basal ganglia outflow.
β‐Amyloid activates presynaptic α7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptors reconstituted into a model nerve cell system: involvement of lipid rafts
Authors: Khan Ghous M. , Tong Mei , Jhun Michelle , Arora Komal , Nichols Robert A. 
Published: February 2010

AbstractBeta amyloid (Aβ) plays a central role in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s disease. Aβ is the major constituent of senile plaques, but there is a significant presence of Aβ in the brain in soluble forms. The results of functional studies indicate that soluble Aβ interacts with the α7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR) complex with apparent high affinity. However, conflicting data exist as to the nature of the Aβ–α7 nAChR interaction, and whether it is the result of specific binding. Moreover, both agonist‐like and antagonist‐like effects have been reported. In particular, agonist‐like effects have been observed for presynaptic nAChRs. Here, we demonstrate Aβ1‐42‐evoked stimulatory changes in presynaptic Ca2+ level via exogenous α7 nAChRs expressed in the axonal varicosities of differentiated hybrid neuroblastoma NG108‐15 cells as a model, presynaptic system. The Aβ1‐42‐evoked responses were concentration‐dependent and were sensitive to the highly selective α7 nAChR antagonist α‐bungarotoxin. Voltage‐gated Ca2+ channels and internal Ca2+ stores were both involved in Aβ1‐42‐evoked increases in presynaptic Ca2+ following activation of α7 nAChRs. In addition, disruption of lipid rafts by cholesterol depletion led to substantially attenuated responses to Aβ1‐42, whereas responses to nicotine were largely intact. These results directly implicate the nicotinic receptor complex as a target for the agonist‐like action of pico‐ to nanomolar concentrations of soluble Aβ1‐42 on the presynaptic nerve terminal, including the possible involvement of receptor‐associated lipid rafts. This interaction probably plays an important neuromodulatory role in synaptic dynamics.
Mechanisms of hypothermia‐induced cell protection mediated by microglial cells in vitro
Authors: Diestel Antje , Troeller Silke , Billecke Nils , Sauer Igor M. , Berger Felix , Schmitt Katharina R. L. 
Published: February 2010

AbstractDespite the widespread interest in the clinical applications of hypothermia, the cellular mechanisms of hypothermia‐induced neuroprotection have not yet been clearly understood. Therefore, the aim of this study was to elucidate the cellular effects of clinically relevant hypothermia and rewarming on the morphological and functional characteristics of microglia. Microglial cells were exposed to a dynamic cooling and rewarming protocol. For stimulation, microglial cells were treated with 1 μg/mL lipopolysaccharide (LPS). We found that hypothermia led to morphological changes from ramified to ameboid cell shapes. At 2 h after hypothermia and rewarming, microglial cells were again ramified with extended branches. Moreover, we found enhanced cell activation after rewarming, accompanied by increased phagocytosis and adenosine triphosphate consumption. Interestingly, hypothermia and rewarming led to a time‐dependent significant up‐regulation of the anti‐inflammatory cytokines interleukin‐10 and interleukin‐1 receptor antagonist in stimulated microglial cells. This is in line with the reduced proliferation and time‐dependent down‐regulation of the pro‐inflammatory cytokines tumor necrosis factor‐alpha and monocyte chemotactic protein‐1 in comparison to normothermic control cells after LPS stimulation. Furthermore, degradation of the inhibitor of the nuclear transcription factor‐kappaB (IkappaB‐alpha) was diminished and delayed under conditions of cooling and rewarming in LPS‐stimulated microglial cells. Thus, our results show that hypothermia and rewarming activate microglial cells, increase phagocytosis and shift the balance of cytokine release in stimulated microglial cells towards the anti‐inflammatory cytokines. This could be a new cellular mechanism of hypothermia‐induced neuroprotection mediated by activated microglial cells.
Why do men opt out of prostate‐cancer screening? Attitudes and perception among participants and non‐participants of a screening trial
Authors: Malmi Hanna , Ruutu Mirja , Määttänen Liisa , Stenman Ulf‐Håkan , Juusela Harri , Tammela Teuvo L.J. , Auvinen Anssi 
Published: February 2010

Study Type – Decision analysis (patient preference) Level of Evidence 4OBJECTIVETo evaluate attitudes to prostate cancer screening with prostate‐specific antigen (PSA) of men who complied with offered screening and those who declined it within the Finnish randomized population‐based screening trial, and to compare general health‐related quality of life (HRQL) between participants and non‐participants.SUBJECTS AND METHODSSelf‐administered questionnaires were sent to 500 men randomized into the screening arm in 1996–99 within the Finnish component of the European Randomized Study on Screening for Prostate Cancer. A similar survey was conducted among 500 non‐participants.RESULTSResponse proportions among the screening participants and non‐participants were 59% and 28%, respectively. Current smoking was less frequent (P < 0.05) among the participants. In terms of attitude, the participants regarded the prostate cancer study as more important and the invitation letter as more informative than the non‐participants (P < 0.001). There was no clear difference in worry about treatment consequences. The most commonly given reasons for not participating included previous PSA testing (41%), forgetting the invitation (51%), or not wanting to think of prostate cancer (39%) and regarding possible further diagnostic examinations as unpleasant (28%). The non‐participants had a lower mental health score (P < 0.001) than the participants in the RAND‐36 Survey.CONCLUSIONMost men who chose not to attend screening had a positive attitude, but did not participate due to practical reasons. However, two‐thirds of the non‐participants indicated a willingness to participate in the next screening round.
Effects of phosphodiesterase‐5 inhibitors on Leydig cell secretory function in oligoasthenospermic infertile men: a randomized trial
Authors: Dimitriadis Fotios , Tsambalas Stavros , Tsounapi Panagiota , Kawamura Hiroshi , Vlachopoulou Evlalia , Haliasos Nikolaos , Gratsias Stavros , Watanabe Takeshi , Saito Motoaki , Miyagawa Ikuo , Sofikitis Nikolaos 
Published: February 2010

Study Type – Therapy (RCT) Level of Evidence 1bOBJECTIVETo evaluate the effects of phosphodiesterase‐5 inhibitors (PDE5‐i) on Leydig cell secretory function (LCSF).PATIENTS AND METHODSIn all, 75 men with oligoasthenospermia were treated daily for 12 weeks with either vardenafil (23 men, group A), sildenafil (25 men, group B) or l‐carnitine (26 men, group C); a further group of 22 men with oligoasthenospermia (group D) received no treatment. Serum levels of insulin‐like‐3 peptide (INSL3) were evaluated before and after the end of the treatment in each of groups A, B and C, respectively. Serum INSL3 levels were measured in each participant of group D before and after the 12‐week experimental period.RESULTSWithin group A and B, the peripheral serum mean INSL3 concentration, sperm concentration, percentage of motile spermatozoa, and percentage of morphologically normal spermatozoa were significantly greater after PDE5‐i treatment than before.CONCLUSIONWe suggest that PDE5‐i enhances LCSF, as the mean INSL3 concentration was significantly greater after PDE5‐i administration than before, within groups A and B. This enhancement in LCSF might contribute to the increase in sperm concentration and sperm motility after administration of PDE5‐i.
New Atheism and Old Christianity More Majorum Atheist Delusions. The Christian Revolution and Its Fashionable Enemies – By David Bentley Hart
Authors: Peterson Paul Silas 
Published: February 2010

AbstractDavid Bentley Hart has challenged the New Atheism with a careful book about the stirring history of Christianity and its vast gifts to occidental culture: the founding of the person and something Hart titles ‘total humanism’. With ease and exactitude, he defends Christianity with historical tools in claiming that the faith is neither inherently violent nor attempted to destroy antique literature. Against its critics, Hart further holds that Christianity was not inimical to the development of natural science, but rather enabled its progress by steering it to practical, human‐oriented purposes. The argument of the book then takes a polemic turn in fearing the decay of this total humanism in an age of secularism. In the following review essay, I attempt to outline some of the main arguments of Hart's praiseworthy book before suggesting that the Christian ‘revolution’ might be better characterized as a renewal of antiquity. A less revolutionary tale of Christianity is one of a slow and liberal amalgamation of the finest wisdom and truest beliefs from the past and pristine worlds of Melchizedek, Akhenaten or Artaxerxes.
Death and prices
Authors: Treisman Daniel 
Published: February 2010

AbstractMost experts agree that alcohol abuse has been a major cause of Russia’s soaring mortality rate. But why have ever more Russians been drinking themselves to death? Some attribute this to despair in the face of painful economic change. I present evidence that, in fact, the surge in alcohol‐related deaths – and premature deaths in general – was fuelled by a dramatic fall in the real price of vodka, which dropped 77 percent between December 1990 and December 1994. Variation in vodka prices – both over time and across Russia’s regions – closely matches variation in mortality. Although market competition and weak excise collection help explain the fall in prices, the main reason appears to be populist price regulation during inflationary periods.
Prodromal symptoms and atypical affectivity as predictors of major depression in juveniles: implications for prevention
Authors: Kovacs Maria , Lopez‐Duran Nestor 
Published: February 2010

Background:  Given the long‐term morbidity of juvenile‐onset major depressive disorder (MDD), it is timely to consider whether more effort should be dedicated to its primary and secondary prevention.Methods:  We reviewed studies of prodromal symptoms that may herald a first episode pediatric MDD and considered whether that literature has made an impact on secondary prevention (efforts to prevent progression from symptoms to full disorder). We also reviewed studies of children at familial risk for MDD that addressed atypical affectivity and the regulation of sad, dysphoric affect (mood repair) and related physiological systems, and considered whether research in those areas has made an impact on primary prevention of pediatric MDD (efforts to prevent the disorder).Results:  A compelling body of literature indicates that depressive symptoms in youngsters predict subsequent MDD across the juvenile (and early adult) years and that any combination of several symptoms for at least one week is informative in that regard. These findings are echoed in the case selection criteria used by many secondary prevention programs. Convergent findings also indicate that (compared to typical peers) young offspring at familial risk for depression manifest low positive affectivity and compromised mood repair, along with signs of dysfunction in three intertwined physiological systems that contribute to affectivity and mood repair (the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axis, cerebral hemispheric asymmetry, and cardiac vagal control). While all these affect‐related parameters are suitable for case selection and as intervention targets, they have not yet made an impact on primary prevention programs.Conclusions:  According to recent meta‐analyses, attempts to prevent pediatric depression have not lived up to expectations. Based on our review, possible reasons for this include: (a) the use of case selection criteria that yield samples heterogeneous with regard to whether the symptoms are truly prodromal to an episode of MDD or are trait‐like (which could affect response to the intervention), (b) failure to fully capitalize on the broad‐ranging literature on vulnerability to pediatric MDD, as evidenced by the infrequent use of family history of depression (a robust index of vulnerability) or combined indices of vulnerability for case selection, and (c) lack of synchrony between dimensions of vulnerability and the content of the prevention program, as indicated by the overwhelming use of cognitive‐behavioral interventions, irrespective of subjects’ age, developmental readiness, and whether or not they evidenced the relevant cognitive vulnerability. Prevention trials of pediatric MDD could benefit from new approaches to case selection that combine various indices of vulnerability, more effective use of existing findings, and new or modified interventions that are developmentally sensitive.