bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Reducing costs and operational constraints of dengue vector control by targeting productive breeding places: a multi‐country non‐inferiority cluster randomized trial
Authors: Tun‐Lin W. , Lenhart A. , Nam V. S. , Rebollar‐Téllez E. , Morrison A. C. , Barbazan P. , Cote M. , Midega J. , Sanchez F. , Manrique‐Saide P. , Kroeger A. , Nathan M. B. , Meheus F. , Petzold M. 
Published: July 2009

SummaryObjectives  To test the non‐inferiority hypothesis that a vector control approach targeting only the most productive water container types gives the same or greater reduction of the vector population as a non‐targeted approach in different ecological settings and to analyse whether the targeted intervention is less costly.Methods  Cluster randomized trial in eight study sites (Venezuela, Mexico, Peru, Kenya, Thailand, Myanmar, Vietnam, Philippines), with each study area divided into 18–20 clusters (sectors or neighbourhoods) of approximately 50–100 households each. Using a baseline pupal‐demographic survey, the most productive container types were identified which produced ≥55% of all Ae. aegypti pupae. Clusters were then paired based on similar pupae per person indices. One cluster from each pair was randomly allocated to receive the targeted vector control intervention; the other received the ‘blanket’ (non‐targeted) intervention attempting to reach all water holding containers.Results  The pupal‐demographic baseline survey showed a large variation of productive container types across all study sites. In four sites the vector control interventions in both study arms were insecticidal and in the other four sites, non‐insecticidal (environmental management and/or biological control methods). Both approaches were associated with a reduction of outcome indicators in the targeted and non‐targeted intervention arm of the six study sites where the follow up study was conducted (PPI, Pupae per Person Index and BI, Breteau Index). Targeted interventions were as effective as non‐targeted ones in terms of PPI. The direct costs per house reached were lower in targeted intervention clusters than in non‐targeted intervention clusters with only one exception, where the targeted intervention was delivered through staff‐intensive social mobilization.Conclusions  Targeting only the most productive water container types (roughly half of all water holding container types) was as effective in lowering entomological indices as targeting all water holding containers at lower implementation costs. Further research is required to establish the most efficacious method or combination of methods for targeted dengue vector interventions.
Maternal mortality in Syria: causes, contributing factors and preventability
Authors: Bashour Hyam , Abdulsalam Asmaa , Jabr Aisha , Cheikha Salah , Tabbaa Mohammed , Lahham Moataz , Dihman Reem , Khadra Mazen , Campbell Oona M. R. 
Published: July 2009

SummaryObjectives  To describe the biomedical and other causes of maternal death in Syria and to assess their preventability.Methods  A reproductive age mortality study (RAMOS) design was used to identify pregnancy related deaths. All deaths among women aged 15–49 reported to the national civil register for 2003 were investigated through home interviews. Verbal autopsies were used to ascertain the cause of death among pregnancy related maternal deaths, and causes and preventability of deaths were assessed by a panel of doctors.Results  A total of 129 maternal deaths were identified and reviewed. Direct medical causes accounted for 88%, and haemorrhage was the main cause of death (65%). Sixty nine deaths (54%) occurred during labour or delivery. Poor clinical skills and lack of clinical competency were behind 54% of maternal deaths. Ninety one percent of maternal deaths were preventable.Conclusions  The causes of maternal death in Syria and their contributing factors reflect serious defects in the quality of maternal care that need to be urgently rectified.
Allergen IgE‐isotype‐specific suppression by maternally derived monoclonal anti‐IgG‐idiotype
Authors: Tanasa R. I. , Trad A. , Lange H. , Grötzinger J. , Lemke H. 
Published: July 2009

AbstractBackground:  The dramatic increase of IgE‐mediated allergic diseases in western countries demonstrates the urgent need for new therapeutic or prophylactic approaches. In mice, a prophylactic long‐lasting allergen‐specific suppression of IgE responsiveness is induced by maternal IgG antibodies to allergens like ovalbumin, phospholipase A2 (bvPLA2) or ovomucoid. As neonatal application or maternally derived pathogen‐reactive antibodies (idiotypes) as well as corresponding anti‐idiotypes can induce anti‐microbial protection, we probed the transgenerational IgE‐suppressive mechanism with a syngeneic monoclonal anti‐idiotypic antibody.Methods:  The monoclonal bee‐venom‐phospholipase A2 (bvPLA2)‐reactive IgG antibody MS613 (idiotype) or the corresponding syngeneic anti‐idiotype II/2‐19 were injected during the first 2 days postpartum to the dams. Immunization of offspring with minute doses of IgE‐inducing bvPLA2 was started at an adult age of 3½ months.Results:  The postnatal transfer of the anti‐bvPLA2 idiotype MS613 or the corresponding anti‐idiotype II/2‐19 induced long‐lasting allergen‐specific IgE suppression in a dose‐dependent manner, while the IgG response to the allergen developed normally. Quantitatively, the anti‐idiotype was more effective than idiotype. Molecular modeling of the idiotype‐anti‐idiotype complex and its comparison with the bvPLA2 structure revealed that the anti‐idiotype does not mimic bvPLA2 epitopes and thus can not be regarded as an internal image antibody and, consequently, does not function as a surrogate antigen.Conclusions:  Idiotypic network reactivity is at least one major factor for induction of transgenerational IgE suppression by maternal IgG antibodies. If applicable to humans, these data suggest the possibility of a prophylactic and possibly therapeutic treatment of IgE‐mediated allergic diseases with anti‐idiotypic antibodies.
Efficacy of desloratadine in intermittent allergic rhinitis: a GA2LEN study
Authors: Bousquet J. , Bachert C. , Canonica G. W. , Mullol J. , Van Cauwenberge P. , Bindslev Jensen C. , Fokkens W. J. , Ring J. , Keith P. , Lorber R. , Zuberbier T. ,   The ACCEPT‐1 study group
Published: July 2009

Background:  The Allergic Rhinitis and its Impact on Asthma (ARIA) guidelines proposed a classification for allergic rhinitis based on the duration of symptoms (intermittent, persistent) rather than on the time of allergen exposure (seasonal, perennial). There is no placebo‐controlled, randomized clinical trial on intermittent allergic rhinitis (IAR) to date. Desloratadine (DL) is recommended for the first‐line treatment of seasonal and perennial allergic rhinitis.Objectives:  To assess the efficacy and safety of DL in subjects with IAR based on the ARIA classification.Methods:  Patients over 12 years of age with IAR were assessed over 15 days of treatment with DL 5 mg once daily (n = 276) or placebo (n = 271). The primary endpoint was the AM/PM reflective total 5 symptom score (T5SS). Secondary endpoints included AM/PM instantaneous T5SS and individual symptoms, therapeutic response, symptom severity by visual analogue scale, and quality‐of‐life.Results:  The mean reduction of AM/PM reflective T5SS was significantly greater with DL than with placebo over 15 days (−3.01 vs−2.13, P < 0.001) and on each individual day (P < 0.05). Mean AM instantaneous T5SS was reduced significantly with DL compared to placebo as early as day 2 (−1.84 vs−0.89; P < 0.001). The therapeutic response and improvement in quality‐of‐life were significantly greater with DL than with placebo (P < 0.001 for each). The frequency of treatment‐related adverse events was low and similar between DL (7.2%) and placebo (7.0%).Conclusions:  This is the first large trial to show that treatment can be effective in IAR. Desloratadine was effective and safe.
Oral desensitization to milk: how to choose the starting dose!
Authors: Mori Francesca , Pucci Neri , Rossi Maria Elisabetta , De Martino Maurizio , Azzari Chiara , Novembre Elio 
Published: July 2009

Mori F, Pucci N, Rossi ME, de Martino M, Azzari C, Novembre E. Oral desensitization to milk: how to choose the starting dose! Pediatr Allergy Immunol 2010: 21: e450–e453. © 2009 John Wiley & Sons A/SA renewed interest in oral desensitization as treatment for food allergy has been observed in the last few years. We studied a novel method based on the end point skin prick test procedure to establish the starting dose for oral desensitization in a group of 30 children higly allergic to milk. The results (in terms of reactions to the first dose administered) were compared with a group of 20 children allergic to milk as well. Such control group started to swallow the same dose of 0.015 mg/ml of milk. None reacted to the first dose when administered according to the end point skin prick test. On the other side, ten out of 20 children (50%) from the control group showed mild allergic reactions to the first dose of milk. In conclusion the end point skin prick test procedure results safe and easy to be performed in each single child in order to find out the starting dose for oral desensitization to milk, also by taking into account the individual variability.
US health‐care crisis
Authors: Rushton Francis E. 
Published: July 2009

AbstractAccess to primary care doctors has been shown in studies across the world to result in better patient outcomes, increased satisfaction with care and lower health‐care costs. Primary care is the entry point for most patients into the health‐care system and focuses on prevention, chronic care management and availability for sick care. Primary care offices providing continuous, coordinated and accessible care are called medical homes. Changing disease patterns and increased amounts of chronic care has increased the importance of primary care medical homes to the health and well‐being of patients. In the USA, however, fewer medical school graduates are entering primary care specialties such as pediatrics, family medicine and internal medicine, and the existing workforce is diminishing as primary care doctors retire as a result of overwork and poor job satisfaction.
Evolution of feeding preference in a leaf beetle: the importance of phenotypic plasticity of a host plant
Authors: Utsumi Shunsuke , Ando Yoshino , Ohgushi Takayuki 
Published: July 2009

AbstractMuch attention has been paid to ecology and evolution of damage‐induced plant responses. Recently, it has been emphasized that phenotypic plasticity, such as induced plant responses, has the potential to lead to evolutionary changes of interacting partners. Here, we report that induced plant regrowth promotes a locally adaptive feeding preference of a leaf beetle, Plagiodera versicolora. We found that there was among‐population variation in the strength of the feeding preference of the leaf beetle for leaf‐age types of conspecific host plants. The strength of the preference was positively correlated to leaf production of host plants across populations, and the intensity of induced regrowth was likely to have been responsible for geographic variation in new leaf production. Within one population, we detected a significant additive genetic variance and heritability in the preference for consuming new vs. old leaves. Moreover, the strength of preference was significantly related to egg production depending on the leaf‐age types. Thus, allopatric populations can evolutionarily develop different adaptive preference, according to locally distinct patterns of induced host regrowth.
The Gram‐positive side of plant–microbe interactions
Authors: Francis Isolde , Holsters Marcelle , Vereecke Danny 
Published: July 2009

SummaryPlant growth and development are significantly influenced by the presence and activity of microorganisms. To date, the best‐studied plant‐interacting microbes are Gram‐negative bacteria, but many representatives of both the high and low G+C Gram‐positives have excellent biocontrol, plant growth‐promoting and bioremediation activities. Moreover, actinorhizal symbioses largely contribute to the global biological nitrogen fixation and many Gram‐positive bacteria promote other types of symbioses in tripartite interactions. Finally, several prominent and devastating phytopathogens are Gram‐positive. We summarize the present knowledge of the beneficial and detrimental interactions of Gram‐positive bacteria with plants to underline the importance of this particular group of bacteria.
Type VI secretion modulates quorum sensing and stress response in Vibrio anguillarum
Authors: Weber Barbara , Hasic Medisa , Chen Chang , Wai Sun Nyunt , Milton Debra L. 
Published: July 2009

SummaryType VI protein secretion systems (T6SS) are essential for virulence of several Gram‐negative bacteria. In this study, we identified a T6SS in Vibrio anguillarum, a marine bacterium that causes a hemorrhagic septicemia in fish. A partial operon vtsA‐H (vibrio type six secretion) was sequenced and shown to encode eight proteins. VtsE‐H are signature proteins found in other T6SSs, while VtsA‐D are not associated with T6SS studied so far. In‐frame deletions were made in each gene. Secretion of a haemolysin‐co‐regulated‐like protein (Hcp), a protein secreted by all studied T6SSs, was decreased in VtsE‐H. Unexpectedly, VtsA, VtsC and VtsD activated while VtsB and VtsE‐H repressed hcp expression. The T6SS proteins also regulated expression of two extracellular proteases, EmpA and PrtV, but inversely to Hcp expression. This regulation was indirect as T6S positively regulated expression of the stress‐response regulator RpoS and the quorum‐sensing regulator VanT, which positively regulate protease expression. Moreover, VtsA‐H proteins were not needed for virulence but did play a role in various stress responses. Thus, these data characterize a new role for T6S in the ecology of bacteria and we hypothesize this role to be a signal sensing mechanism that modulates the expression of regulators of the general stress response.
Earlier triple therapy with pioglitazone in patients with type 2 diabetes
Authors: Charpentier G. , Halimi S. ,   on behalf of the F‐PIO‐100 Study Investigators
Published: July 2009

Aims: This study assessed the efficacy of add‐on pioglitazone vs. placebo in patients with type 2 diabetes uncontrolled by metformin and a sulphonylurea or a glinide.Methods: This multicentre, double‐blind, parallel‐group study randomized 299 patients with type 2 diabetes to receive 30 mg/day pioglitazone or placebo for 3 months. After this time, patients continued with pioglitazone, either 30 mg [if glycated haemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) ≤6.5%] or titrated up to 45 mg (if HbA1c >6.5%), or placebo for a further 4 months. The primary efficacy end‐point was improvement in HbA1c (per cent change). Secondary end‐points included changes in fasting plasma glucose (FPG), insulin, C‐peptide, proinsulin and lipids. The proinsulin/insulin ratio and homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA‐IR) and homeostasis model assessment of β‐cell function (HOMA‐B) were calculated.Results: Pioglitazone add‐on therapy to failing metformin and sulphonylurea or glinide combination therapy showed statistically more significant glycaemic control than placebo addition. The between‐group difference after 7 months of triple therapy was 1.18% in HbA1c and −2.56 mmol/l for FPG (p < 0.001). Almost half (44.4%) of the patients in the pioglitazone group who had a baseline HbA1c level of <8.5% achieved the HbA1c target of < 7.0% by final visit compared with 4.9% in the placebo group. When the baseline HbA1c level was ≥ 8.5%, 13% achieved the HbA1c target of < 7.0% in the pioglitazone group and none in the placebo group. HOMA‐IR, insulin, proinsulin and C‐peptide decreased and HOMA‐B increased in the pioglitazone group relative to the placebo group.Conclusions: In patients who were not well controlled with dual combination therapy, the early addition of pioglitazone improved HbA1c, FPG and surrogate measures of β‐cell function. Patients were more likely to reach target HbA1c levels (< 7.0%) with pioglitazone treatment if their baseline HbA1c levels were < 8.5%, highlighting the importance of early triple therapy.
Cell adhesion to fibronectin induces mitomycin C resistance in bladder cancer cells
Authors: Pan Chun‐Wu , Shen Zhou‐Jun , Wu Ting‐Ting , Tang Xiao‐Ying , Wang Min , Sun Jun , Shao Yuan 
Published: July 2009

OBJECTIVETo investigate whether cell adhesion to fibronectin induces drug resistance in human bladder cancer cells, and to study the survival signalling pathway in cell adhesion to fibronectin‐mediated chemotherapy resistance in vitro.MATERIALS AND METHODST24 cells (human bladder cancer cell lines) were pre‐coated with fibronectin, and treated with mitomycin C (MMC) and the specific phosphoinositide‐3 kinase (PI3‐K) inhibitor LY294002. The apoptosis and cell cycles were analysed. The activity of the caspase‐8, ‐9 and apoptosis‐inducing factor (AIF) apoptosis pathways were assessed using colorimetric assay, immunofluorescence, Western blot and flow cytometry. The expression of glycogen synthase kinase‐3β (GSK‐3β) and cyclin D1, as the key regulator of G1/S phase transition, were determined by Western blot. The expression of PI3‐K, Akt, phospho‐Akt and β1‐integrin were also examined by Western blot.RESULTSApoptosis induced by MMC was significantly resisted by fibronectin adhesion in T24 cells, and this effect was through inhibition of the caspase‐9 and AIF apoptosis pathways, but not the caspase‐8 pathway. Fibronectin antagonized MMC‐induced G0/G1‐phase arrest by inactivating GSK‐3β to stabilize cyclin D1 expression in T24 cells. Furthermore, fibronectin‐mediated protection of T24 cells was dependent on the activity of the PI3‐K/Akt signalling pathway, and the protection could be abolished by the PI3‐K inhibitor LY294002.CONCLUSIONSFibronectin‐mediated PI3‐K/Akt activation protects T24 cells from MMC‐induced cell death through inhibition of both caspase‐9 and AIF‐mediated apoptosis and GSK‐3β/cyclin D1 involved G0/G1‐phase arrest.
The use of Butea superba (Roxb.) compared to sildenafil for treating erectile dysfunction
Authors: Cortés‐González Jeff R. , Arratia‐Maqueo Jorge A. , Gómez‐Guerra Lauro S. , Holmberg Anders R. 
Published: July 2009

Study Type – Therapy (case control) Level of Evidence 3bOBJECTIVETo evaluate the effect of an extract of Butea superba (Roxb.) (BS) compared to sildenafil for treating erectile dysfunction (ED).PATIENTS AND METHODSAn open label study was carried out among 32 men with organic ED to evaluate the response on the International Index of Erectile Function 5 (IIEF‐5) to BS, a ‘natural health’ product (100 mg), compared to 50 mg of sildenafil (a phosphodiesterase‐5 inhibitor). After a 1‐week wash‐out, responders to BS received either 100 mg starch or 100 mg of another batch of BS (double‐blind).RESULTSOf the patients in the BS group, 27 (84%) responded positively, compared with 26 (81%) in the sildenafil group. When assessing the score alone, 12 (38%) had a better score after taking BS, compared to seven (22%) after sildenafil, and eight (25%) had the same score. The results were surprising and could not be repeated in the double‐blind part of the study, where no effect of BS was recorded.CONCLUSIONSA ‘natural’ health product containing BS was more effective than sildenafil in the first part of the study, but in the second, using another batch of BS, the positive result could not be repeated and no effect was recorded. The conclusion is that the first preparation of BS was most likely blended with a phosphodiesterase‐5 inhibitor, later confirmed by the supplier of BS (a natural health products company) after their own analysis.
A PARADOX OF JUSTIFIED BELIEVING
Authors: Cheyne Colin 
Published: July 2009

AbstractThe following principles may plausibly be included in a wide range of theories of epistemic justification:

There are circumstances in which an agent is justified in believing a falsehood,
There are circumstances in which an agent is justified in believing a principle of epistemic justification,
Beliefs acquired in compliance with a justifiably‐believed epistemic principle are justified.

I argue that it follows from these three individually plausible claims that an agent's belief may be both justified and unjustified. I consider how theories may avoid this paradox, and conclude that deontological theories of epistemic justification face considerable, perhaps insurmountable, difficulties.
Optimum‐Currency‐Area Paradoxes
Authors: Tavlas George S. 
Published: July 2009

AbstractContributions by Mundell (1961), McKinnon (1963), and Kenen (1969) laid the foundations for all subsequent work in the area of the theory of optimum currency areas. The development of the optimum‐currency‐area paradigm, however, has not been a smooth one. After a rise in research activity during the 1960s, the paradigm fell from favor in the 1970s and 1980s, before it re‐emerged as an active area of research. This paper argues that the decline of the theory as an active area of research partly reflects paradoxes among the contributions of Mundell, McKinnon, and Kenen. Correspondingly, the renewed interest in the theory is due, in part, to a reconciliation of those paradoxes, reflecting both developments in academic thought and the evolution of the international monetary system.
Nonlinearity and Persistence in PPP: Does Controlling for Nonlinearity Solve the PPP Puzzle?
Authors: Kılıç Rehim 
Published: July 2009

AbstractWe suggest half‐life measures conditional on various regimes to examine persistence in the purchasing power parity (PPP) relations within nonlinear exponential smooth transition autoregressive (ESTAR) models. We use normal sampling and simulated confidence intervals for the regime‐dependent half‐lives. Statistical testing and simulations suggest that the regime‐dependent half‐lives work well in characterizing the persistence of departures from PPP in ESTAR models. The analysis reveals considerable persistence in PPP deviations and variation in persistence across currency groups and over time. Findings in the paper suggest that incorporating nonlinearities into PPP may not necessarily solve the PPP puzzle as claimed in some recent studies.
Market Work, Home Work, and Taxes: A Cross‐Country Analysis
Authors: Rogerson Richard 
Published: July 2009

AbstractThis paper uses a simple model of labor supply extended to allow for home production to understand the extent to which differences in taxes can account for differences in time allocations between the US and Europe. Once home production is included, the elasticity of substitution between consumption and leisure is almost irrelevant in determining the response of market hours to higher taxes. But to account for observed differences in leisure and time spent in home production, one still requires a relatively large elasticity of substitution between consumption and leisure, combined with a relatively small elasticity of substitution between time and goods in home production.
Why and How Education Affects Economic Growth
Authors: Zeira Joseph 
Published: July 2009

AbstractThis paper suggests an additional channel through which education affects economic growth. If growth is driven by industrialization of production, where machines replace labor in a growing number of tasks, then operating these machines requires workers who are educated, namely literate and know arithmetic, whose human capital is less specific and more general. As a result, technology adoption depends negatively on wages of educated workers. Hence, economic growth depends negatively on the cost of education or on the barriers to acquire education. The model shows that if the cost of education is high, economic growth might be slow and even stop completely, creating a development trap.