bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Smoking and risk for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: Analysis of the EPIC cohort
Authors: Gallo Valentina , Bueno‐De‐Mesquita H. Bas , Vermeulen Roel , Andersen Peter M. , Kyrozis Andreas , Linseisen Jakob , Kaaks Rudolph , Allen Naomi E. , Roddam Andrew W. , Boshuizen Hendriek C. , Peeters Petra H. , Palli Domenico , Mattiello Amalia , Sieri Sabina , Tumino Rosario , Jiménez‐Martín Juan‐Manuel , Tormo Díaz María José , Rodriguez Suarez Laudina , Trichopoulou Antonia , Agudo Antonio , Arriola Larraitz , Barricante‐Gurrea Aurelio , Bingham Sheila , Khaw Kay‐Tee , Manjer Jonas , Lindkvist Björn , Overvad Kim , W. Bach Flemming , Tjønneland Anne , Olsen Anja , Bergmann Manuela M. , Boeing Heiner , Clavel‐Chapelon Francoise , Lund Eiliv , Hallmans Göran , Middleton Lefkos , Vineis Paolo , Riboli Elio 
Published: March 2009

AbstractObjectiveCigarette smoking has been reported as “probable” risk factor for Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), a poorly understood disease in terms of aetiology. The extensive longitudinal data of the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) were used to evaluate age‐specific mortality rates from ALS and the role of cigarette smoking on the risk of dying from ALS.MethodsA total of 517,890 healthy subjects were included, resulting in 4,591,325 person‐years. ALS cases were ascertained through death certificates. Cox hazard models were built to investigate the role of smoking on the risk of ALS, using packs/years and smoking duration to study dose‐response.ResultsA total of 118 subjects died from ALS, resulting in a crude mortality rate of 2.69 per 100,000/year. Current smokers at recruitment had an almost two‐fold increased risk of dying from ALS compared to never smokers (HR = 1.89, 95% C.I. 1.14–3.14), while former smokers at the time of enrolment had a 50% increased risk (HR = 1.48, 95% C.I. 0.94–2.32). The number of years spent smoking increased the risk of ALS (p for trend = 0.002). Those who smoked more than 33 years had more than a two‐fold increased risk of ALS compared with never smokers (HR = 2.16, 95% C.I. 1.33–3.53). Conversely, the number of years since quitting smoking was associated with a decreased risk of ALS compared with continuing smoking.InterpretationThese results strongly support the hypothesis of a role of cigarette smoking in aetiology of ALS. We hypothesize that this could occur through lipid peroxidation via formaldehyde exposure. Ann Neurol 2009;65:378–385.
Three‐dimensional surface maps link local atrophy and fast ripples in human epileptic hippocampus
Authors: Ogren Jennifer A. , Wilson Charles L. , Bragin Anatol , Lin Jack J. , Salamon Noriko , Dutton Rebecca A. , Luders Eileen , Fields Tony A. , Fried Itzhak , Toga Arthur W. , Thompson Paul M. , Engel Jerome , Staba Richard J. 
Published: March 2009

AbstractObjectivesThere is compelling evidence that pathological high‐frequency oscillations (HFOs), called fast ripples (FR, 150–500Hz), reflect abnormal synchronous neuronal discharges in areas responsible for seizure genesis in patients with mesial temporal lobe epilepsy (MTLE). It is hypothesized that morphological changes associated with hippocampal atrophy (HA) contribute to the generation of FR, yet there is limited evidence that hippocampal FR‐generating sites correspond with local areas of atrophy.MethodsInterictal HFOs were recorded from hippocampal microelectrodes in 10 patients with MTLE. Rates of FR and ripple discharge from each microelectrode were evaluated in relation to local measures of HA obtained using 3‐dimensional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) hippocampal modeling.ResultsRates of FR discharge were 3 times higher in areas of significant local HA compared with rates in nonatrophic areas. Furthermore, FR occurrence correlated directly with the severity of damage in these local atrophic regions. In contrast, we found no difference in rates of ripple discharge between local atrophic and nonatrophic areas.InterpretationThe proximity between local HA and microelectrode‐recorded FR suggests that morphological changes such as neuron loss and synaptic reorganization may contribute to the generation of FR. Pathological HFOs, such as FR, may provide a reliable surrogate marker of abnormal neuronal excitability in hippocampal areas responsible for the generation of spontaneous seizures in patients with MTLE. Based on these data, it is possible that MRI‐based measures of local HA could identify FR‐generating regions, and thus provide a noninvasive means to localize epileptogenic regions in hippocampus. Ann Neurol 2009;66:783–791
Steam reforming of propane in a zirconia membrane reactor with a Rh‐supported Ce0.15Zr0.85O2 catalyst
Authors: Kusakabe K. , Fukuda K. , Mizoguchi H. , Taneda M. , Takahashi O. 
Published: March 2009

AbstractThe steam reforming (SR) of propane for hydrogen production at 400–600 °C in a porous yttria‐stabilized zirconia (YSZ) membrane reactor was investigated. The YSZ membrane was used as a hydrogen selective membrane. A Rh‐supported Ce0.15Zr0.85O2 catalyst was packed in the membrane reactor because the catalyst was found to be the most suitable catalyst for the low‐temperature SR of propane on the basis of the results obtained using a packed bed reactor. The conversion of propane in the membrane reactor was higher than that in a packed bed reactor due to the shift of equilibrium toward the hydrogen‐producing side. In spite of relatively low permeation selectivity (ideal H2/CO selectivity = 9 at 100 °C), hydrogen permeation through the membrane caused an increase in the CO2 fraction and a decrease in the CO fraction in reformed gas. This indicates that the water‐gas shift reaction was an important contributor in the product distribution in the membrane reactor. Meanwhile, the methane fraction remained largely unchanged, regardless of selective hydrogen permeation. Copyright © 2009 Curtin University of Technology and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Glycerol upgrading by ketalization in a zeolite membrane reactor
Authors: Roldán Laura , Mallada Reyes , Fraile José M. , Mayoral José A. , Menéndez Miguel 
Published: March 2009

AbstractSolketal, a valuable green solvent, has been produced from glycerol and acetone in a catalytic system, using K10 montmorillonite as a heterogeneous catalyst. The use of a zeolite membrane to remove water formed during the reaction gives rise to a significant improvement in the achievable glycerol conversion with a reduction in the excess of acetone needed because of the low equilibrium constant. Several zeolite membranes are compared, showing that the quality of the membrane is a key factor for this improvement, and that water/acetone separation is more difficult to achieve than the commonly used ethanol/water separation test. This method is compatible with a mixture of glycerol and fatty esters, showing the possible future application in an integrated system of biodiesel and solketal production. Copyright © 2009 Curtin University of Technology and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Reaction of phenol‐ and thiophenol‐terminated compounds with bisoxazolines
Authors: Néry Laurent , Lefebvre Hervé , Fradet Alain 
Published: March 2009

AbstractBulk reactions of phenolic compounds (bisphenol‐A and α,ω‐diphenol oligosulfone) or thiols (thiophenol and bis(4‐mercaptophenyl)sulfide) with bisoxazoline coupling agents, namely 2,2'‐(1,3‐phenylene)bis(2‐oxazoline) (mbox), 2,2'‐(1,4‐phenylene)bis(2‐oxazoline) (pbox), and 2,2'‐(2,6‐pyridylene)bis(2‐oxazoline) (pybox), were carried out in the bulk at 140–240°C. The reactions were followed by viscosimetry, size exclusion chromatography, and 1H‐ and 13C‐NMR spectroscopy. The phenol/bisoxazoline bulk reactions at 240°C required the presence of sodium methoxide catalyst. Bisoxazoline pybox gave the best results in this case. Thiol and dithiol/bisoxazoline reactions were faster and did not require any catalyst. High‐molar‐mass polymers were obtained within 5 min at 200°C while using bis(4‐mercaptophenyl)sulfide (BMPS) and any of the bisoxazolines. The NMR spectra of model compounds and polymers were fully assigned, showing that the oxazoline/phenol and oxazoline/thiophenol (tph) polyaddition reactions proceed in the expected way, without any noticeable side reaction. All polymers were amorphous and displayed good thermal stability. Bisoxazolines were also used as coupling agents for the preparation of copolymers of BMPS and α,ω‐dicarboxy polyamide‐12 and for the preparation of polysulfone‐polyamide‐12 block copolymers. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2009
Cure properties of self‐extinguishing epoxy resin systems with microencapsulated latent catalysts for halogen‐free semiconductor packaging materials
Authors: Kim Whan Gun 
Published: March 2009

AbstractThe cure properties of self‐extinguishing epoxy resin systems with different microencapsulated latent catalysts were investigated, which are composed of YX4000H and NC3000H as a biphenyl epoxy resin, MEH‐7800SS as a hardener, and triphenylphosphine (TPP) microencapsulated with various polymers as a latent catalyst. The cure kinetics of these systems were analyzed by differential scanning calorimetry using an isothermal approach, and the kinetic parameters of all systems were reported in generalized kinetic equations with diffusion effects. Both the epoxy resin systems with microencapsulated latent catalysts showed lower cure conversion rate and higher critical cure reaction conversion than those with TPP. These different cure conversion rates could be explained by the decrease of crystallinity of the biphenyl epoxy resin and the activation energy of these epoxy resin systems. The cure conversion rates of the epoxy resin systems with the microencapsulated latent catalyst would be dependent on the activation energy of these systems. The storage stability tests for these systems were performed, and a good shelf‐life was observed in both the epoxy resin systems with EPCAT‐PAM, a core–shell‐type latent catalyst. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2009
Functional Morphology of the Nasal Complex in the Harbor Porpoise (Phocoena phocoena L.)
Authors: Huggenberger Stefan , Rauschmann Michael A. , Vogl Thomas J. , Oelschläger Helmut H.A. 
Published: March 2009

AbstractToothed whales (Odontoceti, Cetacea) are the only aquatic mammals known to echolocate, and probably all of them are able to produce click sounds and to synthesize their echoes into a three‐dimensional “acoustic image” of their environment. In contrast to other mammals, toothed whales generate their vocalizations (i.e., echolocation clicks) by a pneumatically‐driven process in their nasal complex. This study is dedicated to a better understanding of sound generation and emission in toothed whales based on morphological documentation and bioacoustic interpretation. We present an extensive description of the nasal morphology including the nasal muscles in the harbor porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) using macroscopical dissections, computer‐assisted tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, and histological sections. In general, the morphological data presented here substantiate and extend the unified “phonic lips” hypothesis of sound generation in toothed whales suggested by Cranford et al. (J Morphol 1996;228:223–285). There are, however, some morphological peculiarities in the porpoise nasal complex which might help explain the typical polycyclic structure of the clicks emitted. We hypothesize that the tough connective tissue capsule (porpoise capsule) surrounding the sound generating apparatus is a structural prerequisite for the production of these high‐frequency clicks. The topography of the deep rostral nasal air sacs (anterior nasofrontal and premaxillary sacs), narrowing the potential acoustic pathway from the phonic lips to the melon (a large fat body in front of the nasal passage), and the surrounding musculature should be crucial factors in the formation of focused narrow‐banded sound beams in the harbor porpoise. Anat Rec, 292:902–920, 2009. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
A Potential Role of Collagens Expression in Distinguishing Between Premalignant and Malignant Lesions in Stomach
Authors: Zhao Yuan , Zhou Tianhua , Li Aiqing , Yao Haomi , He Fei , Wang Liangjing , Si Jianmin 
Published: March 2009

AbstractLack of clinical biomarkers for early gastric cancer without specific early symptoms leads to delayed diagnosis, which contributes to high mortality of gastric cancer. Here, we used oligonucleotide microarray to systematically examine differential gene expression among 33 samples from normal, premalignant, and malignant lesions in stomach. A focal adhesion pathway mainly composed of collagen genes was found to have a significantly different expression profile in gastric cancers compared to premalignant lesions. A subset of collagen genes efficiently separated malignant from premalignant tissues, and two representative genes COL11A1 and COL1A1 were validated in 42 tissue samples with quantitative reverse transcription‐PCR and in situ hybridization. The data above suggest that focal adhesion pathway may have a role in the pathogenesis of gastric cancer, and the expression profile of collagen genes may be a potential biomarker to distinguish malignant from premalignant lesions in stomach. Anat Rec, 2009. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Effect of Prolactin on the Population of Epithelial Cells From Ventral Prostate of Intact and Cyproterone Acetate‐Treated Peripubertal Rats: Stereological and Immunohistochemical Study
Authors: Gómez Vicente , Ingelmo Ildefonso , Martín Rocío , Codesal Javier , Rodríguez Rosario , Pozuelo Jose M. , Santamaría Luis 
Published: March 2009

AbstractThe interactions between steroid and nonsteroid hormones in the prostate are of special interest during the growth phase of the gland. The purpose of this work is to study the influence of prolactin (PL), with or without androgenic blockade, on epithelial cells from peripubertal rat ventral prostate. Twenty male peripubertal Sprague‐Dawley rats were grouped as controls, or treated with cyproterone acetate (CA), CA plus PL (CA‐PL), or PL. The total number (N total) of epithelial cells, and their labeling indices to proliferative cell nuclear antigen (LI PCNA), apoptosis (LI apoptosis) and androgen receptors (LI AR) were measured. CA and PL treatment significantly decrease the N total, but the LI PCNA was unchanged. We have observed a greater LI apoptosis in pharmacologically castrated animals without PL than in the rats with androgenic blockade with PL. The LI AR does not change with CA treatment in the ventral region, but the PL significantly increases it. Androgenic blockade and PL decrease the number of epithelial cells from the ventral prostate. These changes are not attributable to the decrease of cell proliferation, rather to the increase of epithelial apoptosis. The increase of cells expressing AR after treatment with PL might be attributed to the decrease of testosterone secretion caused by the hyperprolactinemia. PL does not modulate the size of the ventral prostate in prepubertal rats. Anat Rec, 2009. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Leptin and Its Receptor Are Expressed in the Testis and in the Epididymis of Young and Adult Pigs
Authors: Rago Vittoria , Aquila Saveria , Guido Carmela , Carpino Amalia 
Published: March 2009

AbstractRecent studies indicated that leptin, a 16 kDa hormone, is a regulatory signal in human and rodent male reproduction. This work was designed to investigate the expression of leptin and its receptor in testes and epididymides from immature and mature pigs. Immunolocalization revealed that leptin and its receptor were confined only in the interstitial compartment of immature testes, whereas both proteins were detected in Leydig cells and within seminiferous tubules of mature gonads. The immunostaining of epididymal tissues showed that leptin was absent in the epithelial cells of immature pigs but it was present in all the three regions of mature epididymides, although with a minor signal in the cauda. Conversely, leptin receptor was observed in all the epithelial cells of both immature and mature epididymides. Western blot analysis of tissue extracts detected a 16 kDa band for leptin and five/six isoforms, ranging from 120 to 40 kDa, for leptin receptor. In conclusion, this work has identified, for the first time, leptin and leptin receptor in the testis and in the epididymis of the pig showing a differential cell‐type expression pattern of the two proteins in young and adult animals. Therefore, our findings suggest a possible involvement of leptin in endocrine or autocrine/paracrine control of porcine male reproductive structures. Anat Rec, 2009. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
A study of the use of multi‐objective evolutionary algorithms to learn Boolean queries: A comparative study
Authors: López‐Herrera A.G. , Herrera‐Viedma E. , Herrera F. 
Published: March 2009

AbstractIn this article, our interest is focused on the automatic learning of Boolean queries in information retrieval systems (IRSs) by means of multi‐objective evolutionary algorithms considering the classic performance criteria, precision and recall. We present a comparative study of four well‐known, general‐purpose, multi‐objective evolutionary algorithms to learn Boolean queries in IRSs. These evolutionary algorithms are the Nondominated Sorting Genetic Algorithm (NSGA‐II), the first version of the Strength Pareto Evolutionary Algorithm (SPEA), the second version of SPEA (SPEA2), and the Multi‐Objective Genetic Algorithm (MOGA).
The guinea pig as an animal model for developmental and reproductive toxicology studies
Authors: Rocca Meredith S. , Wehner Nancy G. 
Published: March 2009

AbstractBACKGROUND: Regulatory guidelines for developmental and reproductive toxicology (DART) studies require selection of “relevant” animal models as determined by kinetic, pharmacological, and toxicological data. Traditionally, rats, mice, and rabbits are the preferred animal models for these studies. However, for test articles that are pharmacologically inactive in the traditional animal models, the guinea pig may be a viable option. This choice should not be made lightly, as guinea pigs have many disadvantages compared to the traditional species, including limited historical control data, variability in pregnancy rates, small and variable litter size, long gestation, relative maturity at birth, and difficulty in dosing and breeding. METHODS: This report describes methods for using guinea pigs in DART studies and provides results of positive and negative controls. Standard study designs and animal husbandry methods were modified to allow mating on the postpartum estrus in fertility studies and were used for producing cohorts of pregnant females for developmental studies. RESULTS: A positive control study with the pregnancy‐disrupting agent mifepristone resulted in the anticipated failure of embryo implantation and supported the use of the guinea pig model. Control data for reproductive endpoints collected from 5 studies are presented. CONCLUSION: In cases where the traditional animal models are not relevant, the guinea pig can be used successfully for DART studies. Birth Defects Res (Part B)86: 92‐97, 2009. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Current knowledge in the renewal capability of germ cells in the adult ovary
Authors: Oktem Ozgur , Oktay Kutluk 
Published: March 2009

AbstractIt is a central dogma in reproductive biology that oogenesis is completed before or just after birth and that the postnatal ovary is endowed by a fixed and non‐renewing number of oocytes in mammals. However, this widely accepted doctrine was recently challenged by studies showing regeneration of oocytes from putative germ cells in bone marrow and peripheral blood. These results not only triggered an enormous amount of interest among reproductive biologists but also a great deal of debate. In this review we will provide an update on the molecular aspects of the formation of primordial germ cells (PGC), the precursors of adult gametocytes, beginning from their specification to their migration to prospective gonads and formation of the ovary and follicular structures. We will also discuss more recent studies that showed in vivo regeneration of germ cells in the postnatal ovary in situ, along with other pioneering works that demonstrated generation of germ cells in vitro from embryonic and somatic stem cells. Birth Defects Research (Part C) 87:90–95, 2009. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
What happens with ageing: decline or remodeling of opsonin‐independent phagocyte oxidative activity?
Authors: Alexandrova Margarita L. 
Published: March 2009

AbstractChanges that occur with age in the opsonin‐independent oxidative activity of peripheral phagocytes in whole blood were examined by means of luminol chemiluminescence (LCL). The chemiluminescence was registered simultaneously by non‐stimulated and stimulated cells and the age‐related alterations of total and extracellular generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) were studied using model systems. It was found that the rate of phagocyte activation by the glass surface of the measuring chambers, assessed by the time of the peak appearance after the start of LCL response, increased. However, the maximum oxidative activity and the integral oxidative capacity of the cells during adhesion, evaluated by the maximum LCL intensity and the area under the LCL curve, respectively, declined. No age‐dependence of formyl‐methionyl‐leucyl‐phenylalanine (fMLP)‐stimulated oxidative cellular activity for total ROS generation was detected. The maximum oxidative activity and the integral oxidative capacity of peripheral phagocytes to generate extracellular superoxide in response to fMLP was decreased. The likely causes for the observed alterations in phagocyte function are discussed and an analysis of the obtained results is given on the background of the contradictory data published on phagocyte oxidative activity age‐related changes. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Gross morphology of the vastus lateralis muscle: An anatomical review
Authors: Becker Ines , Woodley Stephanie J. , Baxter G. David 
Published: March 2009

AbstractTo understand the role of the vastus lateralis (VL) muscle in the pathogenesis of common knee disorders such as patellofemoral joint syndrome, knowledge of its anatomical structure is essential. The aim of this study was to review currently available information on the gross morphology of VL. A structured literature review was undertaken and 36 references, comprising 22 scientific papers and 14 anatomical textbooks, were included. Results of this literature review show that most of the included studies exhibited methodological limitations, and focused on different parameters of the VL muscle. Hence, reproducibility of these studies and comparison of results was difficult. This review also demonstrates a dearth of information on the muscle architecture, compartmentalization, nerve supply and fusion of VL, and that there has been no investigation of the muscle as a whole unit. Further research is required of the architecture and innervation of the VL muscle to better understand its function. Clin. Anat. 22:436–450, 2009. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.