bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
MMP9 expression in oesophageal adenocarcinoma is upregulated with visceral obesity and is associated with poor tumour differentiation
Authors: Allott Emma H. , Lysaght Joanne , Cathcart Mary Clare , Donohoe Claire L. , Cummins Robert , McGarrigle Sarah A. , Kay Elaine , Reynolds John V. , Pidgeon Graham P. 
Published: November 2011

AbstractOverweight and obesity is linked to increased incidence and mortality of many cancer types. Of all cancers, oesophageal adenocarcinoma (OAC) displays one of the strongest epidemiological links with obesity, accounting for up to 40% of cases, but molecular pathways driving this association remain largely unknown. This study aimed to elucidate mechanisms underpinning the association of obesity and cancer, and to determine if visceral obesity is associated with aggressive tumour biology in OAC. Following co‐culture with visceral adipose tissue explants, expression of genes involved in tumour cell invasion and metastasis (matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)2 and MMP9) were upregulated between 10‐fold (MMP2) and 5000‐fold (MMP9), and expression of tumour suppressor p53 was downregulated 2‐fold in OAC cell lines. Western blotting confirmed these results at the protein level, while zymographic analysis detected increased activity of MMPs in OAC cell lines following co‐culture with adipose tissue explants. When OAC cell lines were cultured with adipose tissue conditioned media (ACM) from visceral adipose tissue, increased proliferative, migratory and invasive capacity of tumour cells was observed. In OAC patient tumour biopsies, elevated gene expression of MMP9 was associated with visceral obesity, measured by visceral fat area, while increased gene expression of MMP9 and decreased gene expression of tumour suppressor p53 was associated with poor tumour differentiation. These novel data highlight an important role for visceral obesity in upregulation of pro‐tumour pathways contributing to aggressive tumour biology, and may ultimately lead to development of stratified treatment for viscerally obese OAC patients. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
DNA requirements for assembly and stability of HIV‐1 intasomes
Authors: Li Min , Ivanov Vassili , Mizuuchi Michiyo , Mizuuchi Kiyoshi , Craigie Robert 
Published: November 2011

AbstractIntegration of viral DNA into the host genome is an essential step in retroviral replication that is mediated by a stable nucleoprotein complex comprising a tetramer of integrase bridging the two ends of the viral DNA in a stable synaptic complex (SSC) or intasome. Assembly of HIV‐1 intasomes requires several hundred base pairs of nonspecific internal DNA in addition to the terminal viral DNA sequence that is protected in footprinting experiments. We find that only one of the viral DNA ends in the intasome requires long‐nonspecific internal DNA for intasome assembly. Although intasomes are unstable in solution when the nonspecific internal DNA is cut off after assembly, they are stable in agarose gels. These complexes are indistinguishable from SSCs with nonspecific internal DNA in Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) experiments suggesting the interactions with the viral DNA and integrase tetramer are the same regardless of the presence of nonspecific internal DNA. We discuss models of how the internal DNA contributes to intasome assembly and stability. FRET is exquisitely sensitive to the distance between the fluorophores and given certain assumptions can be translated to distance measurements. We anticipated that a set of such distance constraints would provide a map of the DNA path within the intasome. In reality, the constraints we could impose from the FRET data were quite weak allowing a wide envelope for the possible path. We discuss the difficulties of converting the FRET signal to absolute distance within nucleoprotein complexes.
Eigenmodes of lined flow ducts with rigid splices
Authors: Brambley E. J. , Davis A. M. J. , Peake N. 
Published: November 2011

AbstractThis paper presents an analytic expression for the acoustic eigenmodes of a cylindrical lined duct with rigid axially running splices in the presence of flow. The cylindrical duct is considered to be uniformly lined except for two symmetrically positioned axially running rigid liner splices. An exact analytic expression for the acoustic pressure eigenmodes is given in terms of an azimuthal Fourier sum, with the Fourier coefficients given by a recurrence relation. Since this expression is derived using a Green’s function method, the completeness of the expansion is guaranteed. A numerical procedure is described for solving this recurrence relation, which is found to converge exponentially with respect to number of Fourier terms used and is in practice quick to compute; this is then used to give several numerical examples for both uniform and sheared mean flow. An asymptotic expression is derived to directly calculate the pressure eigenmodes for thin splices. This asymptotic expression is shown to be quantitatively accurate for ducts with very thin splices of less than 1 % unlined area and qualitatively helpful for thicker splices of the order of 6 % unlined area. A thin splice is in some cases shown to increase the damping of certain acoustic modes. The influences of thin splices and thin boundary layers are compared and found to be of comparable magnitude for the parameters considered. Trapped modes at the splices are also identified and investigated.
DIRECTIVE 93/13 AND THE ‘PRICE TERM EXEMPTION’: A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS IN THE LIGHT OF THE ‘MARKET FOR LEMONS’ RATIONALE
Authors: Schillig Michael 
Published: November 2011

AbstractIn the light of the Supreme Court decision in OFT v Abbey National on unarranged overdraft fees in current account contracts, this article analyses the price term exemption at the heart of Directive 93/13 in its European context, and on a comparative basis. It argues for an interpretation in line with the ‘market for lemons’ rationale, which best fits the regulatory outline of Directive 93/13, and the European Court of Justice's case law. Under this approach, only those contract terms that are subject to the correcting forces of markets and competition are part of the ‘main subject matter of the contract’ and should be exempt from assessment of fairness under Directive 93/13.
Correlates of Phonological Awareness in Preschoolers With Speech Sound Disorders
Authors: Rvachew Susan , Grawburg Meghann 
Published: November 2011

PurposeThe purpose of this study was to examine the relationships among variables that may contribute to poor phonological awareness (PA) skills in preschool-aged children with speech sound disorders (SSD).MethodNinety-five 4- and 5-year-old children with SSD were assessed during the spring of their prekindergarten year. Linear structural equation modeling was used to compare the fit of 2 models of the possible relationships among PA, speech perception, articulation, receptive vocabulary, and emergent literacy skills.ResultsHalf the children had significant difficulty with speech perception and PA despite demonstrating receptive language skills within or above the average range. The model that showed the best fit to the data indicated that speech perception is a pivotal variable that has a direct effect on PA and an indirect effect that is mediated by vocabulary skills. Articulation accuracy did not have a direct impact on PA. Emergent literacy skills were predicted by PA abilities.ConclusionsChildren with SSD are at greatest risk of delayed PA skills if they have poor speech perception abilities and/or relatively poor receptive vocabulary skills. Children with SSD should receive assessments of their speech perception, receptive vocabulary, PA, and emergent literacy skills.
Non‐random mate choice in humans: insights from a genome scan
Authors: LAURENT R. , TOUPANCE B. , CHAIX R. 
Published: November 2011

AbstractLittle is known about the genetic factors influencing mate choice in humans. Still, there is evidence for non‐random mate choice with respect to physical traits. In addition, some studies suggest that the Major Histocompatibility Complex may affect pair formation. Nowadays, the availability of high density genomic data sets gives the opportunity to scan the genome for signatures of non‐random mate choice without prior assumptions on which genes may be involved, while taking into account socio‐demographic factors. Here, we performed a genome scan to detect extreme patterns of similarity or dissimilarity among spouses throughout the genome in three populations of African, European American, and Mexican origins from the HapMap 3 database. Our analyses identified genes and biological functions that may affect pair formation in humans, including genes involved in skin appearance, morphogenesis, immunity and behaviour. We found little overlap between the three populations, suggesting that the biological functions potentially influencing mate choice are population specific, in other words are culturally driven. Moreover, whenever the same functional category of genes showed a significant signal in two populations, different genes were actually involved, which suggests the possibility of evolutionary convergences.
Disentangling determinants of egg size in the Geometridae (Lepidoptera) using an advanced phylogenetic comparative method
Authors: DAVIS R. B. , JAVOIŠ J. , PIENAAR J. , ÕUNAP E. , TAMMARU T. 
Published: November 2011

AbstractWe present a phylogenetic comparative study assessing the evolutionary determinants of egg size in the moth family Geometridae. These moths were found to show a strong negative allometric relationship between egg size and maternal body size. Using recently developed comparative methods based on an Ornstein‐Uhlenbeck process, we show that maternal body size explains over half the variation in egg size. However, other determinants are less clear: ecological factors, previously hypothesized to affect egg size, were not found to have a considerable influence in the Geometridae. The limited role of such third factors suggests a direct causal link between egg size and body size rather than an indirect correlation mediated by some ecological factors. Notably, no large geometrid species lay small eggs. This pattern suggests that maternal body size poses a physical constraint on egg size, but within these limits, there appears to be a rather invariable selection for larger eggs.
Sick ants become unsociable
Authors: BOS N. , LEFÈVRE T. , JENSEN A. B. , D’ETTORRE P. 
Published: November 2011

AbstractParasites represent a severe threat to social insects, which form high‐density colonies of related individuals, and selection should favour host traits that reduce infection risk. Here, using a carpenter ant (Camponotus aethiops) and a generalist insect pathogenic fungus (Metarhizium brunneum), we show that infected ants radically change their behaviour over time to reduce the risk of colony infection. Infected individuals (i) performed less social interactions than their uninfected counterparts, (ii) did not interact with brood anymore and (iii) spent most of their time outside the nest from day 3 post‐infection until death. Furthermore, infected ants displayed an increased aggressiveness towards non‐nestmates. Finally, infected ants did not alter their cuticular chemical profile, suggesting that infected individuals do not signal their physiological status to nestmates. Our results provide evidence for the evolution of unsociability following pathogen infection in a social animal and suggest an important role of inclusive fitness in driving such evolution.
Colonoscopy‐associated perforation: a 7‐year survey of in‐hospital frequency, treatment and outcome in a German university hospital
Authors: Hagel A. F. , Boxberger F. , Dauth W. , Kessler H. P. , Neurath M. F. , Raithel M. 
Published: November 2011

AbstractAim  Perforation occurs rarely after colonoscopy, but is associated with high morbidity and mortality. In this study, we assessed the perforation rate in our hospital, its clinical diagnosis and the long‐term outcome.Method  During the study period, 7535 examinations were performed, of which 4830 were diagnostic and 2705 therapeutic. The latter included polypectomy, endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR), endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD), dilatation and argon plasma coagulation (APC).Results  Overall, 25 (0.33%) perforations occurred with two (0.026%) procedure‐related deaths. Seven (0.14%) perforations occurred during a diagnostic procedure and 18 (0.67%) occurred during a therapeutic procedure. Dilation, submusous resection (SMR) and APC accounted for more perforations than polypectomy or diagnostic colonoscopy. Pre‐existing gastrointestinal disease was present in 24 (96%) perforations. Three (12%) patients were treated conservatively and 22 (88%) underwent surgery. The site of perforation was closed by suture in four (18%) patients and resected with colonic anastomosis in five (23%) patients. Two patients underwent endoscopic clipping. A stoma was created after resection in 13 (59%) patients.Conclusion  Death from perforation after colonoscopy is rare, occurring in 1/3500 examinations. The risk is increased in therapeutic colonoscopy and in the presence of previous gastrointestinal disease. Dilatation, SMR and APC appeared to confer a higher risk of perforation than polypectomy or diagnostic colonoscopy.
Refining the understanding of inhibitory processes: how response prepotency is created and overcome
Authors: Simpson Andrew , Riggs Kevin J. , Beck Sarah R. , Gorniak Sarah L. , Wu Yvette , Abbott David , Diamond Adele 
Published: November 2011

AbstractUnderstanding (a) how responses become prepotent provides insights into when inhibition is needed in everyday life. Understanding (b) how response prepotency is overcome provides insights for helping children develop strategies for overcoming such tendencies. Concerning (a), on tasks such as the day‐night Stroop‐like task, is the difficulty with inhibiting saying the name of the stimulus due to the name being semantically related to the correct response or to its being a valid response on the task (i.e. a member of the response set) though incorrect for this stimulus? Experiment 1 (with 40 4‐year‐olds) suggests that prepotency is caused by membership in the response set and not semantic relation. Concerning (b), Diamond, Kirkham and Amso (2002) found that 4‐year‐olds could succeed on the day‐night task if the experimenter sang a ditty after showing the stimulus card, before the child was to respond. They concluded that it was because delaying children’s responses gave them time to compute the correct answer. However, Experiment 2 (with 90 3‐year‐olds) suggests that such a delay helps because it gives the incorrect, prepotent response time to passively dissipate, not because of active computation during the delay.
How do Firms’ Outward FDI Strategies Relate to their Activity at Home? Empirical Evidence for the UK
Authors: Simpson Helen 
Published: November 2011

AbstractThis paper provides new empirical evidence on the relationship between the structure of firms’ overseas FDI and the performance and organisation of their home‐country operations in both manufacturing and business services. It addresses two questions. First, does sorting into multinational status on the basis of productivity extend to the scale of overseas activity? Second, is there evidence that off‐shoring to low‐wage countries has asymmetric effects on high and low‐skill activities in the home economy? The paper considers heterogeneity in firms’ outward FDI strategies and in their behaviour at home, distinguishing between low‐skill and high‐skill‐intensive activities. I differentiate between firms that invest in relatively low‐wage economies and hence might be engaged in vertical FDI, and those that only invest in high‐wage economies. I find that firms that invest in low‐wage economies simultaneously invest in a large number of high‐wage economies, employing complex FDI strategies. I add to existing evidence by demonstrating that selection into multinational status on productivity extends beyond the decision of whether or not to engage in FDI, to the geographic scope of overseas operations. This is consistent with the highest productivity firms being best able to overcome large fixed costs of establishing multiple overseas facilities. I find evidence consistent with differential effects of vertical FDI on firms’ high and low‐skill manufacturing activity in the UK. Relocating low‐skill activity to relatively low‐wage economies could enable a firm to expand output, with potential positive effects on investment, employment and output in complementary (high‐skill) activities at home. For firms investing in relatively low‐wage economies, I find that labour in these countries may substitute for relatively low‐skilled labour in the UK. In high‐skill manufacturing industries I find that multinationals that invest in low‐wage economies are larger, more capital intensive and more intensive in their use of intermediate inputs than other UK‐owned firms.
The CETP I405V polymorphism is associated with an increased risk of Alzheimer’s disease
Authors: Yu Lei , Shulman Joshua M. , Chibnik Lori , Leurgans Sue , Schneider Julie A. , De Jager Philip L. , Bennett David A. 
Published: November 2011

SummaryThe cholesteryl ester transfer protein (CETP) gene plays an essential role in regulating cholesterol homeostasis and is a candidate susceptibility gene for late‐onset Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Recent finding suggests that the CETP I405V polymorphism (rs5882) is associated with a slower rate of memory decline and a lower risk of incident dementia. Using data from two ongoing epidemiologic clinical–pathologic cohort studies of aging and dementia in the United States, the Religious Order Study and the Memory and Aging Project, we evaluated the association of the CETP I405V polymorphism (rs5882) with cognitive decline and risk of incident AD in more than 1300 participants of European ancestry. Our results suggest that the CETP I405V polymorphism was associated with a faster rather than a slower rate of decline in cognition over time, and an increased risk of incident AD. This finding is consistent with data showing that the CETP I405V is associated with increased neuritic plaque density at autopsy.
The Akt1 isoform is an essential mediator of ischaemic preconditioning
Authors: Kunuthur Suma P. , Mocanu Mihaela M. , Hemmings Brian A. , Hausenloy Derek J. , Yellon Derek M. 
Published: November 2011

AbstractPhosphatidyl‐inositol‐3‐kinase (PI3K)‐Akt pathway is essential for conferring cardioprotection in response to ischaemic preconditioning (IPC) stimulus. However, the role of the individual Akt isoforms expressed in the heart in mediating the protective response to IPC is unknown. In this study, we investigated the specific contribution of Akt1 and Akt2 in cardioprotection against ischaemia‐reperfusion (I‐R) injury. Mice deficient in Akt1 or Akt2 were subjected to in vivo regional myocardial ischaemia for 30 min. followed by reperfusion for 2 hrs with or without a prior IPC stimulus. Our results show that mice deficient in Akt1 were resistant to protection with either one or three cycles of IPC stimulus (42.7 ± 6.5% control versus 38.5 ± 1.9% 1 χ IPC, N = 6, NS; 41.4 ± 6.3% control versus 32.4 ± 3.2% 3 χ IPC, N = 10, NS). Western blot analysis, performed on heart samples taken from Akt1−/− mice subjected to IPC, revealed an impaired phosphorylation of GSK‐3β, a downstream effector of Akt, as well as Erk1/2, the parallel component of the reperfusion injury salvage kinase pathway. Akt2−/− mice, which exhibit a diabetic phenotype, however, were amenable to protection with three but not one cycle of IPC (46.4 ± 5.6% control versus 35.9 ± 5.0% in 1 χ IPC, N = 6, NS; 47.0 ± 6.0% control versus 30.8 ± 3.3% in 3 χ IPC, N = 6; *P = 0.039). Akt1 but not Akt2 is essential for mediating a protective response to an IPC stimulus. Impaired activation of GSK‐3β and Erk1/2 might be responsible for the lack of protective response to IPC in Akt1−/− mice. The rise in threshold for protection in Akt2−/− mice might be due to their diabetic phenotype.
Rapamycin inhibits transforming growth factor β‐induced peritoneal angiogenesis by blocking the secondary hypoxic response
Authors: Sekiguchi Yoshimi , Zhang Jing , Patterson Sarah , Liu Limin , Hamada Chieko , Tomino Yasuhiko , Margetts Peter J. 
Published: November 2011

AbstractPatients with end‐stage kidney disease on peritoneal dialysis often develop progressive scarring of the peritoneal tissues. This manifests as submesothelial thickening and is associated with increased vascularization that leads to ultrafiltration dysfunction. Hypoxia induces a characteristic series of responses including angiogenesis and fibrosis. We investigated the role of hypoxia in peritoneal membrane damage. An adenovirus expressing transforming growth factor (TGF) β was used to induce peritoneal fibrosis. We evaluated the effect of the mTOR inhibitor rapamycin, which has been previously shown to block hypoxia‐inducible factor (HIF) 1α. We also assessed the effect of HIF1α independently using an adenovirus expressing active HIF1α. To identify the TGFβ1‐independent effects of HIF1α, we expressed HIF1α in the peritoneum of mice lacking the TGFβ signalling molecule Smad3. We demonstrate that TGFβ‐induced fibroproliferative tissue is hypoxic. Rapamycin did not affect the early angiogenic response, but inhibited angiogenesis and submesothelial thickening 21 days after induction of fibrosis. In primary mesothelial cell culture, rapamycin had no effect on TGFβ‐induced vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) but did suppress hypoxia‐induced VEGF. HIF1α induced submesothelial thickening and angiogenesis in peritoneal tissue. The fibrogenic effects of HIF1α were Smad3 dependent. In summary, submesothelial hypoxia may be an important secondary factor, which augments TGFβ‐induced peritoneal injury. The hypoxic response is mediated partly through HIF1α and the mTOR inhibitor rapamycin blocks the hypoxic‐induced angiogenic effects but does not affect the direct TGFβ‐mediated fibrosis and angiogenesis.
A prospective study on oral microbial flora and related variables in dentate dependent elderly residents
Authors: Almståhl Annica , Kareem Kawa L. , Carlén Anette , Wårdh Inger , Lingström Peter , Wikström Maude 
Published: November 2011

doi: 10.1111/j.1741‐2358.2011.00599.x

A prospective study on oral microbial flora and related variables in dentate dependent elderly residentsObjective:  Oral microorganisms and related variables were followed over a 1‐year period in dentate dependent elderly.Background:  For nursing personnel, oral hygiene for the dependent elderly is demanding. It requires good knowledge of how to carry out preventive oral health measures and to judge when help is needed. Previous studies indicate low levels of knowledge, which might be reflected in the oral health of dentate residents.Material and methods:  Twenty‐one subjects participated at baseline and 14 one year later. Microbial samples were analysed using cultivation technique. The labial minor gland secretion rate was measured using the Periotron® method, and oral clinical data were registered.Results:  Low labial mucosal flow rates were seen for 95% of the participants. At baseline, visibly thick plaque was seen in 48% and 1 year later in 57%. Both frequency and number of bacteria associated with caries and frequency of microorganisms associated with oral soft tissue infections were high. One year later, a decrease in bacteria associated with good oral health and a tendency to an increase in aciduric microorganisms were seen.Conclusion:  Poor oral health, tending to further deteriorate over time, advocates regular professional supplementary support when elderly dentate dependent residents need assistance with their oral care.